Puppy doing focus heeling at 7.5 months? - Page 2

Ruger,good stuff.Keep up the good work and before you know it your dog will be titled.

Thank you all.  Frost is probably one of the most naturally talented obedience dogs that I have trained.  This video is of her at about 11 weeks learning the watch:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dDHfixCXe4

And her at 17 months doing obedience and bitework:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGQTE3gnY3A

While she was ready skill-wise for AKC obedience competition by the time she was 6 months old, I don't like showing puppies as I think it is healthier to let them mentally mature.  Last summer at around 23 months, she went straight through and got her CD and CDX in less than a month (with her obedience debut garnering a HIT at the show to boot).  I am glad I waited as she might have mentally fallen apart if I tried that prior to the age of two.  We are now working on Utility and she is getting pretty close to qualifying.  It is just the utility class deal of one thing comes together and another thing falls apart :-p

Ruger - Prince is looking very good!  You have come a long way with that boy :-)

i like the variability people present here.. IMO ..and a post to contemplatre about : ......  i want the dog to ignore other things .. so with a pup at 8 weeks old .. i take a complete opposite tact ..if  i want the dog to behave in a certain context -ie.  to ignore distractions and focus on me  , ...  then at 8 weeks old , this is what i start teaching ..exactly  to focus , attention or whatever descriptive words used  with all / any distraction i can present right at the start. . because in the dog's mind right from  the begining the outlook of the dog is influenced that in the teaching process distractions , which we think of ,  become irrelevent.  even to the point that with a 9 week old pup ,  if i use food , i can outstretch my hand holding food and the dog will still begin to learn to attend to me & ignore everything else .. even in the presecne of a group ogf other dogs , toys , traffic etc. .. even the food itself is dismissed as a distrction .. i want the dog to dismiss anything outside myself .. then IMO , my quirky way to teach ... my mantra .. "teach exactly , exactly what you want and from the start .. .. i don't terach the dog e.g focus .. then distract the dog , in order to teach it to focus again ??  like teaching the dog sit .. then teaching stay ./.. then having to teach a sit stay ?? just trach the dog to sit /stay the first time ??  having that foundation it is very very simple to transfer that lesson to a heel .. the only difference is now we are both moving .. same foundation , just adding a movement. again .. just a word for thought ...     ps .. if you compete . this manner of  focused heeling will become   solid and ingrained , unshatterable .. in the dog

     Thank you for the nice comments about my video....: ) It was a painful  experience to post right before Psycht and her amazing little pup..;)

      
       Sonya,
       I will get another video together as soon as it stops raining...if it ever stops..

Sonya
The very best example that i know is this and it is precision heeling. Go onto the site www.working-dog.eu, in the persons type in Ronny van den Berghe
click on the dog Como Bonauer Wald
Scroll right down to the bottom past the pedigree and you will see 6 videos of Como working
go to number 5 from left and there Ronny is heeling 8 month old Como. as you know he grew on to be WUSV champion 2010
that is the very best example i can give you, If you take the time to look let me know what you think
Steve1

No video here, just a photo montage of my girl focus heeling at 12 weeks old :)

Ruger and Psycht wonderful videos!! Thanks for sharing. Give me inspiration for working with my boy, I just need to find something. He is just not much of a ball guy, loves the tug and pull. Oh well, hopefully one day he will look as good as yours!! ; )

Hi,

Below is a video of sonya heeling. Its work in progress but i guess its getting a little better everyday.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GYZrl2zkWk

OK I got some clips today.  I was actually making a video clip of something else and my dog dropped a ball in front of me so we played with some heeling.  The dog is 7 months.  No leash, no food, no lure, no gimmicks.  Eventually I will want more intensity but didn't do the normal "build up" today that I would on the training field (getting him more amped up, working in a ritual that cues him to work time). I do not like a lot of forging (dog too far forward) or crabbing (dog's butt swinging out) and I don't need a super-prance with the dog's head cranked into my armpit.  I like correct, focused, and showing some intensity (I try to bring out whatever the dog brings naturally, and I generally do not buy dogs with super high prey/toy drive but dogs that like doing this work and will heel for the sake of heeling even if it's not the flashiest style).