Initial Thoughts After First Week of Training

Initial Thoughts After First Week of Training

It has been one week of training with Roxanne, and wanted to post my experiences and thoughts for the rest of the group.  This was my first real experience with formal dog training (at least in the Koehler Method of training), and has been eye opening for sure.

1.  I must constantly be aware of the environment for my dog to succeed.   There are many opportunities around us that can be used for our dog’s growth and success.  Whether it be distractions, noises, other dogs, people, new surfaces, etc. there are always ways to further challenge our dogs for their improved development.   With that comes great responsibility, as we must also know our dog’s limits.  Having an eye of what could be around the corner that could cause our dog to fail requires assertiveness and a proactive approach with our pups.

2.  This is a partnership relationship built on trust.  I need to foster trust with my dog.  I want to help with overcome obstacles but not do things for him.  I’ve messed up in the past week and have seen the negative effects.  When my dog has something in his mouth and don’t know what he has, my first instinct is to go to my dog and take it out of his mouth.  This soon created a “chase” where my dog knows I am going to take something from him that he wants, and will run away if he sees me approach him.  Instead, I have to train the “recall” and foster trust between us.   This is also built as I help him tackle new obstacles.  Roxanne took Judah and I to a playground to help him with his kinesthetic sense and proprioception/balance on higher uneven surfaces.  Judah needed to recruit new muscle groups, requires mental and physical energy with my hand on his collar most of the time.   In exercises such as these, I am hoping to build a strong bond between dog and owner.  I’ve since taken him to different playgrounds and used different equipment to help overcome his hesitancy the past week.

3.  The importance of balanced and trained mature dogs.   Judah has spent a lot of time with four adults dogs this week:  Drago, Red, Sugar, and Pree.  They have all brought Judah out of shell a bit.  Judah is learning how to play appropriately, run with a pack, learn appropriate behaviors around other dogs, etc.   I’ve also seen Judah “mirroring” one of Roxanne’s dogs (Pree) in learning how to overcome new obstacles.  Dogs do learn from other dogs and the importance of having well-trained dogs as a model for young pups is so important to pass on.

4.  The value of quiet time.  The quiet time exercise has been fantastic, not only for Judah, but for me as well.  Since doing the exercise, Judah’s favorite place is not laying down on my left side even when we are not doing the formal exercise.  It is a time to calm both of us down, as the first week as required so much attention, discipline, and mental energy.   It also has instilled confidence in me being able to take him in public as I know he is able to do a quiet time with distractions around. 

5.  Raising a puppy is exhausting work but rewarding.  As I alluded to earlier, I am learning to not be so overprotective of Judah, as he will figure things out if I lead him in the right direction.  Judah needs time to explore, learn some independence off-lease and to just be a dog.  Every bark or anytime I heard Judah vocalizing, I kept asking Roxanne, “should he be doing this… is this okay?” and needed to learn that Judah needs to explore, learn to play with other dogs, and give him space to just be a German Shepherd.   Seeing Judah overcome new obstacles and learn new commands has been extremely rewarding.  The exhausting part is the mental energy, required patience, and commitment to follow through.   If I give a command, he needs to sit.  I should not need or should I have to repeat a command multiple times.  All that does is reinforce him not having to listen on the first command.  He needs to be on a learning string and must always be ready do a recall if necessary.  The early days of training really require constant vigilance as Judah is still learning his boundaries, appropriate behavior, and new commands. 

5.  The importance of seeing the “big picture.”  Seeing how well mannered Roxanne’s and other owners’ dogs makes the tedious day in and day out work so worth all the effort.  Without seeing some of the “end results” of what we are shooting for and what is possible, it could really be easy to get discouraged and give up.  The encouragement of Roxanne and other owners is a great resource and help in the first weeks of training. 

6.  "A tired dog is a relaxed dog and a relaxed dog makes for a very happy owner."  This quote from Roxanne has helped Judah’s pent up energy and I’ve noticed a carry over effect to the next day.   Draining the energy, both mentally and physically, outside is critical to having a relaxed dog in the house.  This has been important in the morning when Judah first wakes up.  I’ve noticed a carry over effect of exercising him a lot the day before, and he is much more subdued the next day.  Maintaining a consistent schedule really helps both dog and owner!

7.  Don’t forget the details.  The little things are so important.  Correct hand placement, learning when to relax the leash, thumb up rather than thumb down when cuing the dog to sit, my feet placement and controlling my body in space and not only the dog’s, etc. -  all these little details are vital in the dog’s learning development.  Correct body mechanics and consistent repetitions build my confidence as an owner, and ultimately, help Judah learn what I am asking him to do.