Learning

There is always something new to discover.  In bringing Jackie into our home with Gunner, who is already fairly well advanced in his general obedience, it is interesting to observe the dynamic that having the presence of another Border collie in the same household has had for Gunner.  

Gunner’s recall is very good. His attention to me has always been on point as well.  Maybe I am just noticing it in contrast to Jackie, who has not yet had enough time for us to have a deeply bonded relationship, nor even begin her “formal” education, but Gunner’s attention to me has sharpened even more.  His focus on me and promptness was already very good, and I didn’t realize it could be even sharper.  But sharpened it has, just from the (competitive?) presence of Jackie.  

I am being very deliberate about making sure Rosco and especially the more sensitive Gunner have above and beyond adequate Mom time, and that they feel valued— because they are valued. Even with this idea in place, Gunner has displayed a sharpened recall, longer duration for behaviors that require patience and control on the dog’s part, and his heel is phenomenal — even though we haven’t practiced “show ring” heeling in years due to our focus on trick training, urban citizen training, and agility.  It has been interesting and informative for me to watch Gunner’s obedience skills deepen and sharpen in these last several days since we adopted Jackie into our home.

(A word about Rosco: Cocker spaniels have rich inner lives, I’m not arguing that at all. We adopted little buddy Rosco 12 years ago from a breed rescue [thank you Cocker Spaniel Rescue of East Texas!] as an adult dog, so he is at least 13 years old.  He is well educated using R+ and has an excellent foundation in obedience.  His daily needs have always been different than those of the Border collies in my life, and certainly now in his geriatric years his enrichment needs are a different intensity than those of Gunner’s and Jackie’s.  Rest assured reader that even though Rosco may not be the current focus of this blog, he has much enrichment, learning opportunities, and love in his life.)

What are the training lessons here?  I’m actually not sure yet, and I wanted to document what I’m observing in real time, in order to reflect later as well as ponder just now.  Is training in a multi-dog household superior to training a “singleton?”  If so what are the dynamics? And even though I currently view it as a positive outcome of interest, what is Gunner’s perception of the current situation?  Is his “increase” in sharpness due to jealousy?  competition? something else?  Is it good for Gunner or stressful for him?  A little of both? I want to learn more…

Dogs dogs dogs

Pearls:

• Dynamics change in a multi-dog household, the more I observe the more I learn; Gunner seems to have found a whole new gear in the presence of Jackie
• Rosco is a baller
• As I observe what is happening with my own multi-dog household, I am curious to learn more about other experiences when training multiple sport dogs in the same household

Patience is a Virtue

Yesterday I wrote about reinforcers, their value, and letting the learner choose what is higher in value to the learner.  Today while on our stroll, and occasionally other times, Jackie would literally spit out the food reinforcer I popped into her mouth and it hits the ground with a failing thud to my ears.  I’ve experimented with boiled chicken and even beef, hot dogs and lamb (lamb loaf is my favorite for ease of use, ease of storage, ease of prep. I can cut the loaf into individual large medallions the size of a human chocolate chip cookie to store in the fridge, then take out a couple large medallions to put in my bait pouch to easily pinch off a teeny tiny to a bigger bite-ful, and it is simple to jackpot several small bites in a row). However— value of a reinforcer is assigned by the learner, not the teacher, though I am working to build value into “boring” treats.

Jackie isn’t getting the memo on the treats.  Anyhow that was my knee jerk thought.  In reality the point is that I need to slow my expectations, and follow the good advice to be patient.  Jackie is still very much in the honey moon stage of the relationship, everything is still new: sights, smells, and sounds are all different and coming fast and furious at her.  The preexisting dogs take for granted things like the sound of the river dam roaring loudly on the day after a heavy rain when the day before it was a calm gurgle, or to ignore the third yard down past the first turn after the trail gait when the two doodles pop up out of their bushes and bark and lunge furiously up and down their wrought iron fenceline as we stroll by, or that the men building a neighbor’s pool house are not menacing and can be safely ignored as they shout to one another over the noise of their construction equipment.  Jackie is still learning all this and more.  

It can be difficult to pay attention to a piece of chicken or steak when novel (and is it threatening? Jackie does not have a frame of reference yet) stimuli happen in her environment. She is doing a superb job at taking her cues from her family members, since I maintain a calm demeanor and do not push her to any threshold where she is scared or feels in danger.  Gunner and Rosco are also teaching her by example what is to be ignored and what is worth paying attention— it’s Mom, she’s worth paying attention— which years of experience (and positive reinforcement of all kinds) have taught Rosco and Gunner. 

So I’m giving myself a break on my exuberance to get out in front of Jackie’s education, but also a reminder of the mantra patience, patience, patience.  We will get there.  Jackie is doing a great job.  I want to as well— and it can be done with patience as my guide. 

“You don’t really suppose, do you, that all your adventures and escapes were managed by mere luck, just for your sole benefit? You are a very fine person, Mr. Baggins, and I am very fond of you; but you are only quite a little fellow in a wide world after all!”

Jackie, discovering that it’s a wide world after all, adventures can be fun, and there are more folks in this world who love her.

Pearls:

• Patience
• Patience
• Patience
• You don’t have to be a wizard to educate a dog, you just have to be patient