How to Train a Crazy Dog.

[Carrie]

I thought this was an excellent article.

How to Train a "Crazy" Dog! | Karen Pryor Clickertraining

[britishbandit]

I love it! (I now have it bookmarked..LOL)

[Rivsky]

That was a brilliant article!! And it's so true that those "crazy" dogs are a heck of a lot easier to train than one that don't seem to be overly interested in anything at all.

[Carrie]

Yes...and once they get that energy channelled in the right direction, they do everything with such gusto and joy. It's how Lyric, my Doberman was as a youngster. (notice the Doberman on the picture in that article) lol. So, instead of trying to supress that rambunctiousness and stamp out the obnoxious behavior, the trick is to turn it into something that you're teaching.

I remember when I was looking into getting a Doberman and was talking to all kinds of breeders, they all said that they're very trainable, BUT (lol) you have to get creative with them. They are very willing to learn and be obedient but they're going to tell you they have a better way to do it. So, you have to listen and make them think they thought of it. LOL. And if you fight them on everything, you end up with an unhappy dog. I think lots of dogs are like that...lots of breeds and lots of individuals.

[Rivsky]

Originally Posted by Carrie

They are very willing to learn and be obedient but they're going to tell you they have a better way to do it.

Sounds just like River

[dogs4life]

Crazy dogs are motivated by everything! <snip> Crazy dogs tend to tell you exactly what they want to work for at the moment. If you believe them—he wants to play tug, or meet a person, or chase a ball—they're eager to work for their reward.

So true, but she is also a very fast, observant person so she matches the dogs energy perfectly. I really enjoy Laura's blog, I think she does videos too. I used her techniques for Montana's nail clippings, the clicker didn't work cause she couldn't hear it, but we still used her concepts with facial expressions, treats, touch and hand signals.

So Carrie and Rivsky, would you say you matched or match Lyric and Rivers energy levels making it easier for you to understand their personalities and motivations?

[Carrie]

I don't always have a lot of energy...no. But I have that kind of personality....exciteable, volatile, gregarious, playful, goofy, don't take everything too seriuosly and I recognize and can relate to even the precursors to or hints of those traits in dogs as well as in people. I like those traits. It makes things more fun and it makes me more patient I think with dogs. Where certain behaviors irritate a lot of people, I don't see it that way. I think it enables me to see things from a dog's point of view more. And then I'm able to work with it, not fight it.

Anyhow, that's how I analyze it.

[Rivsky]

I'd say I can match River's energy levels at times though I am guilty of being a lazy trainer at times and using food when I can't be bothered getting myself/him razzed up - which I know is bad and is something I'm working on. And on the flip side I do know there are times when he's not really in the mood for play either which is happening less and less lately I'm pleased to say.

I do know that when he's really switched on he'll tug on my sleeve and carry on like an absolute idiot but I can have him working and under "control" again with one word and he works like an absolute dream just for the chance to play again.

I think with a dog like River it's pretty easy to work out what makes him tick as he isn't shy about letting people know what he wants and never has been. He gets a mixture of food, play and being released to go sniff during training and I can tell by his energy levels which one is going to appeal to him most at any one time which I honestly think comes from simply spending a lot of time with him and getting used to his different "moods" (for want of a better word!!).