Today's Sunshine

Time to pull myself together, no more ignoring the blog! Let's see... Today Monster had zero reaction to a woman working in her yard (wearing a rain poncho - that's a dedication to gardening I just can't find in myself) who called out a hello as we walked past. Later he ignored... No, that's not right, he was interested and even slightly tense, but he had a very small reaction to a man walking his dog who called out to us as we were walking away from them across a field - apparently we looked a bit like Lil-something whom he wanted to talk to - and even though the other dog also tensed up a bit Monster just let it go. Finally he stopped to watch a couple throwing a ball for their Rottweiler, looked at the rottie (who ignored the ball in favour of staring back at Monster) for a little while and then just moved along past them. None of these encounters were closer than about four meters, the dogs were at a greater distance. But this is still a really good day for us! Monster really is self-BATting, and it's amazing to see.

Well, you're not exactly good at it, so...

Today Monster has also sniffed a leveret across its back... It was hiding in that peculiar hare way - meaning it was keeping absolutely still without hiding at all - and we were out in the garden with Monster working an item search. Amazingly he was so focused on his task he had no interest whatsoever in the leveret. Clearly it wasn't the coaster he was looking for, so why care about it? Conveniently it (finally!) ran away once he stuck his nose in its fur, so he could check the ground where it had been sitting. No coaster there, so the search continued elsewhere... That was honestly absolutely amazing! I don't think he registered the fleeing animal at all, searching was far more important. If only I could tap into that in all situations...

Sshhhh! I'm on the trail...

Today's Sunshine

There hasn't really been anything specific to point out as sunny today, so let's talk about a fun little pastime we've come up with instead. As a simple nose work exercise, I'll hide an item somewhere in the house and have Monster search for it. Not particularly advanced, but I've been trying to develop it a bit and have found something which is proving much more of a challenge for Monster.

Weeeeell... That makes it sound like it's hard, I can't agree with that. I'm far too good.

So, this is what we do: First, I take out a special treat (usually a half thawed chicken wing, which Monster for some reason really enjoys) and place it in Monster's food bowl with him watching. But instead of giving him the all clear to eat I give him a command to stay. I take out some item (anything really - usually a small item of clothing like a sock, or a coaster, or a key, or my wallet, or one of Monster toys) and show it to him, letting him sniff it briefly. Then I go upstairs and walk around a bit and hide the item somewhere a bit tricky (behind the books on a shelf, under a pillow, under a rug, on a window shelf behind the curtains, and so on - anywhere he'll have to make a bit of an effort), making sure I've touched and lifted lots of other things along the way too (otherwise he'll just track me instead of doing a search for the hidden item). I then go downstairs again and send Monster off to search...

Finally!

This maybe doesn't sound like it's all that difficult, but for Monster it's not so easy. First he has to hold a stay close to the temptation in his food bowl - with me elsewhere so he needs to control himself rather than letting me control him - for several minutes (it's not a big house but I make sure it takes a bit of time to hide the item). He then has to leave the treat in order to get it, and focus on finding the hidden item without getting distracted by the temptation. He then needs to not only find it and race off to his food bowl, but instead pick it up and bring it to me... I don't know about your dogs, but Monster struggles a bit with this. The first three-four tries I had to help him leave the food bowl at all, and follow him upstairs to get him started at all. And even when he'd started searching he'd abandon the search and come back down to look at the treat again, repeatedly. He has pretty good search stamina ordinarily, but found the treat very distracting. And once he did manage to find the item, it was really hard for him not to race off and reward himself rather than finish it and bring the item to me. In other words: lots of fun!

Fun for whom?

Oh, Monster likes a challenge too, don't worry. And as I said, this is surprisingly challenging for him. My only worry now is that it keeps getting easier for him. Soon it'll probably be boring... If anyone has some tips on ways to add variety and difficulty, we'd be happy to hear about it!

Today's Sunshine

Monster and I had The Kid visiting again today (and yesterday), and we got some good training in together. First Monster and I made a little show with some of the tricks we've been working on, like picking up things and placing them in a bowl. This was good exercise, as performing for a reacting audience is very different from just training with me. Then we did some tracking/hide and seek, where The Kid ran outside and hid somewhere near the house after doing some confusing loops, and then Monster had to track him down. It was horribly sloppy from a formal standpoint, with the tracks extremely fresh and me even allowing some air scenting, but it was great fun for all of us.

Why doesn't The Kid live here with us?

Because you're quite enough of a handful, Monster...

Today's Sunshine

Monster had a lot of focus outside today. I placed him in a stay and wandered off and hid a toy somewhere in the garden. In spite of him nearly vibrating with excitement, he stayed in place every time. I wandered out of sight, came back, disappeared again, showed him the toy, etc. The longest stay was a little over three minutes, and he didn't budge. When I returned I praised him, petted him and talked to him, and he stayed through that too, waiting desperately for me to say...

-Where's the frisbee!?

Wooohooo!

(Monster works buck nekkid in the garden of course, I just don't have a lot of photos of him at full speed - cameras risk going airborne - so I'm using what I've got. Deal with it.)

Hiding toys in the garden is of course not track work, since a scent trail needs time to sink. Instead he uses air scenting for the toy (as opposed to checking where I went). It's great fun to watch him search. He'll always head first to the last place he saw me holding the toy (I usually pretend to hide it somewhere within sight, but tuck it away in a pocket or up a sleeve instead), but when it's not there he doesn't get stuck. Instead he'll begin the search in earnest, working the wind from different angles, climbing up trees to check, making big loops around the perimeter to pick it up and close in. While he's searching I remain quite passive, although I do tend to sneak after him a little around corners and bushes so I can watch. When he finds the toy he'll come racing back to me so we can have a reward tug of war.

He really loves it, and I try to make sure to vary the difficulty so sometimes he'll find it easily and sometimes he'll really have to work for it. I wish we could do it other places too, since he knows all the tricks in the garden pretty well by now... Maybe one day.

What "maybe"? Quit whining and get to work!

 

Today's Cloud

I finally did get around to lay a track today and let Monster work it. Unfortunately there was nobody home, Monster had no idea what a track even was - much less how to follow one!

With a lot of patience and encouragement, he did manage to follow through to the end. But along the way he lost the track repeatedly and appeared confused and unsure. I probably should have just given up on the whole thing - after all, the only thing failure teaches him is how to fail - but I think I was too incredulous to realize it really was happening.

Monster is a tracking maniac. What's happened to suddenly make him about as able to track as I am?!

Yeah, I see you pointing at the ground. What do you want me to do with it?

Very, very strange...

Today's Cloud

I promised Monster we'd go out tracking today. At a quarter to midnight, I think I may have to consider the possibility it's not going to happen...

You've got some explaining to do.

Today's Sunshine

Lately I've started walking Monster on the tracking line. It's about 50 feet long, and made of a thin rope (like a flagpole rope) with a plastic coating. This makes it light, and it doesn't snag easily.

Using this for a leash, Monster gets quite a bit more freedom on our walks. I think I've been hesitating using it in the past because I've been subconsciously thinking that the whole off leash thing would all resolve itself tomorrow. Of course, that's not true. Even if Monster's issues suddenly disappear overnight, training a dog to be manageable off leash takes time and hard work. Meaning, Monster will be stuck on a leash for a long time - even if he gets to the point where off leash is a reasonable goal.

Therefore, the tracking line has become our leash. It gives him a chance to move about more freely.

Mmmmmm, nice...

I think it's also helping with his willingness to offer eye contact. Now he seems to be checking in with me a bit more, even when he's off exploring.

What's up, Mom?

It also gives us a great opportunity to practice recall away from home.

Woooohoooo! I'm coming, Mom!

I also think it's good for him to be able to explore a bit more independently. You never know, it might help his confidence...

Whoah! What's that?

All in all, I'm really happy I made this change. Occasionally I get a little twinge of guilt because I didn't do it sooner... But realistically, I couldn't do it before. That line is well and good when we're out on a nice walk. If he's pulling, holding it hurts like fire. If he were to go full on aggressive, it would injure my hands. I'd still hold him, of course, but it would be more than just a little painful. These days I no longer expect at least one full Monster breakdown every time we set foot outside. In fact, I'm pretty confident that even with a surprise encounter there won't be much more than some pulling and tensions, as opposed to lunging and trying to tear free.

He wears the regular leash as we're leaving and entering the village, and I change over once we're out in the open. I'm not an idiot.

Wrong Kind of Tracking!

Remind me why I was so pissy about the cold?

Cause this is not how I like to see my floors...

Since there's still some tension between the dogs around going out/coming home procedures, it makes it difficult to take the time to clean paws immediately. I know this is what you sign up for with dogs, but come on! I don't like cleaning. I wonder if I can teach Monster to use a mop...

Today's Cloud

Monster is becoming increasingly interested in wild game...

Can... almost... reach... hare smell...

A favorite activity while out walking has always been flushing pheasants, he'll work the ditches and bushes until he gets rewarded by a big noisy bird flying up right in front of his nose. However, that's been as far as his interest goes.

But lately, he gets very excited when we come across hares fleeing over the fields - or even better, deer!

Bambi!

He'll pull and whine and focus, becoming very excited. Not just at the sight of fleeing animals, but at the scent - he knows what's coming.

I can understand his prey drive, he wants to chase, naturally. But we really didn't need another thing making Monster excited and unfocused...

Hot On the Trail

I like to do nose work with Monster (not the plastic surgery kind). It's fun and challenging, he loves it, and we can do it pretty well all on our own. So I figured, why not show off my pretty boy at work!?

Now, I'm no expert tracker, and we haven't taken any classes - yet (you know why...), so if you're looking for how to train your dog to become an expert tracker you may want to keep looking. I think Monster's pretty good, but I have no real clue how much we're doing wrong if we're talking competition level...

Anyway, I brought the camera along on Monster's latest tracking mission, so let's go!

First of all, I take the car to where I'll lay down the track - you'll see why shortly - and walk a distance, this time it was about 1200 feet I think. I let the track cool for at least an hour, and this time I think I left it for perhaps four hours. I then take Monster for a walk, heading towards the tracking area.

And the tracking begins at the front door...

Aha! She got into the car here!

This is why I drive. Monster will track me from the front steps as far as he can. When we have guests over and he doesn't get to come outside and watch as they leave, he'll track them as well once we go out, trying to find out where they went. Even after he finds where they got into the car he'll continue searching, I don't know if he's trying to find the trail again or if he's actually trying to track the car...

Anyway, we go for a walk, and once we get to the start of the trail (which I've marked just by kicking up a little patch of dirt or something) I give the command to track and Monster sets off.

Don't bother me, I'm working.

This trail wasn't really meant to be all that challenging, mostly I wanted to take some photos. However, nature decided to play with me...

When I first walked the track, I did notice a slightly funky smell in the area, but I didn't pay that much attention - it's nature, stuff smells. But when Monster and I got there, it reeked! The smell of a thousand incontinent and horny cats would be a close description, I think. My first thought was fox, but I don't know. Something appears to have become upset at my blundering through their territory and decided a thorough marking was called for. I walked through around 9 am, so I may have disturbed someone who was sleeping. We quickly came upon this:

Uh-oh...

Now, I'm not from around here originally, and where I grew up we didn't have these things, but I'm pretty sure this is the calling card of Mr. Boar. I know there are boars down here, and I know they attack and kill dogs from time to time, but I've never seen one. And do boars make a big stink? This appeared to have been left pretty recently, anyway.

Still, Monster just sniffed this and moved on, completely undeterred. As we kept walking, I saw more signs of boar around (disturbed earth, more droppings), but Monster never veered.

I don't use any markings for our tracks, mostly because from the first time I tried him Monster worked very confidently and I didn't need to make sure he was keeping true to the trail. Instead I just set up sight markers, like "walk to the crooked tree, turn left 45 degrees and aim for the fallen stump", and the trails aren't planned out, I simply walk as I feel like and try to vary the terrain a bit and include some angles.

What, is this supposed to be hard?

This time, however, not only did nature mess with us, I did it myself too. I'd lost focus as I was wandering around and (apparently) thinking about other stuff, and walked into a snare of something sharp and snagging. Not thinking about it I backed up and walked around it instead. I didn't even realize/remember I'd done it, until Monster got there...

Hang on... I know she went in here...

I know this is in no way impossible for a dog to handle, I just hadn't meant to add backtracking just yet - and certainly not without even thinking about it! Monster didn't waver for long though, but set to tracking again after a moment's thought, and was soon back on track.

Which is when I discovered I'd been even more unfocused than I thought! Maybe I should start drinking coffee again? Because I had stepped right over this:

Unnecessary difficulties...

Apparently, a deer carcass is very well camouflaged, to the point where a Monstermom will actually lay a track across one... I thought all things tracking were now over and done with, but Monster stopped and smelled it, regally peed on it to make sure everyone knew it was his, and continued on.

In all honesty, I think my dog is amazing.

There is one thing, though, I just can't get right. Monster will not stop. I don't know how to make him accept that tracking has been completed. When I decide to make the end of the track, I kick around some dirt and leaves, and leave a reward of some kind. I've tried treats - they don't get eaten, he'll just track right across them. I've tried various toys - same reaction. I've cheered, clapped, rewarded, played tug, brought an audience to help cheer and clap, and still nothing. If I react with a big fuss as he finds the toy (I've given up on treats, they barely interest him when he's bored even), pick it up and play with it, have a tug of war, pet him and praise him, he'll accept it, he'll play with me and focus on me, and he'll move away from the track with me. But the instant I stop rewarding him, his focus is back on the track...

After a track's end, I make a sharp turn and walk out of the area in a way that will not disturb the trail and in a direction we will not be moving in once we've done the tracking, but Monster cannot let it go. He becomes anxious at being forced to abandon the track, and will continue to focus on it. The track work itself appears to be too rewarding, nothing I do can measure up to it... I need to make a clean break at the finish, but I am so far unsuccessful.

Either way, though, Monster really likes doing this, and once home he'll conk out nicely.

Whlrrrghzz..?

Oh, and the next day we were close to the area again, and I decided to go check if there had been any more activity. We (well, Monster really) found this:

Yup.

That would be a dead fox... It appears to have died during the night as nothing has been touched, even its eyes are intact. I'm guessing a traffic victim, although there were no visible injuries to it. So was I right after all, was it fox smell? Or did the boars and the fox work in tandem, and then the boars turned around and (literally) backstabbed the fox?

Either way, who needs TV when you have nature?

Oh, just in case you think Monster is the only one with any tracking talent, let me show off my skillz.

Aha!

This is unmistakably the tracks of a young animal, male, a little over 100 pounds, and about... two - no, make that three miles away from an urgently needed washing of the paws. How about that!

Today's Sunshine

Today Monster and I had my nephew over to visit all day. Monster  loooves him, and becomes ecstatic every time they meet. Today, he did however calm down amazingly fast.

Later, I sent The Kid out in the bushes to lay a track for Monster. This was very exciting, because it was the first time I've set Monster on the trail of someone other than myself (usually, I drive off a distance, get out of the car and lay a trail, go back home, wait an hour or two, and take Monster for a walk over to the tracking area). Monster grasped the task immediately (I'd let the trail cool for just an hour, making it a little easier), and set off. He did the track work very well, however he still went off track a couple of times. I hadn't considered that not only was the scent different (since it wasn't mine), but also the distractions. If The Kid made a single sound, Monster would get distracted, looking back and wanting to be a part of whatever was going on. Still, he also really loves tracking, and returned to the task very quickly without encouragement.

We'd laid a trail of about 400 feet, through forest and bush, so not very advanced. But still fun! And as usual, Monster overshot the trail ending (where The Kid had kicked up a big fuss and left a favorite toy and some treats), sticking to the trail as it left the woods and returned to the road. I still haven't figured out a strong enough reward to mark the end; toys, treats, praise, play and distraction does not work. He'll accept it, quite happily, if I don't allow him to continue on without it, but he'll stick his nose right back down again as soon as he gets a chance. I'm going to have to find some advice on this...

And then we walked back home, and Monster conked out on the floor in front of the wood-burning stove and started snoring. There's nothing that can beat that sound of contentment.

What!? The floor gets hard after a while!

So, What Have We Got To Show For Ourselves?

Our current situation, as the year starts to wind down (while the blog is just starting) is as follows:

• Monster is 1.5 years old, weighing in at about 100 pounds, and as far as he will tell me of sound mind and body.
• We can go for walks even when other dog owners are out, but I must be alert to make sure we don't get too close (at around 100 feet away Monster will begin to focus overly on other dogs making it difficult for him to follow commands or pay attention, at around 30 feet away he will display aggressive behavior such as barking and lunging).
• If allowed to reach a point of aggressive behavior, it's still possible to get some minimal moments of attention from him, he can be brought away from the situation, and he doesn't redirect his aggression towards me.
• He no longer reacts just towards dogs, his behavior can now be triggered by people, cars, cats, bikes, blowing leaves, etc...
• He is starting to show more enthusiasm about training, no longer avoiding eye contact or refusing to try.
• He is in a higher level of stress than before we started our current method of training. He has difficulty focusing for almost any period of time, on almost any activity (does not show when tracking, although he has trouble giving up the "hunt" once he reaches the target). He constantly tries to pull on the leash when out walking.
• He is becoming more interested in food rewards, although it's still not very important to him.
• His behavior towards dogs he considers friends (those he grew up with) is becoming ruder. He will play more intensely, with gestures of dominance and some resource guarding.
• He is showing insecurity towards sudden surprises, like things falling down or sudden noises.

So, it's mixed results, I suppose... Certainly, we're nowhere close to done - or even acceptable. For people reading this for the first time, the fact that I'm willing to keep at it with a method that's showing a worsening behavior in some aspects probably seems insane. I understand where you're coming from, the increase in stress and the expansion to all things being a trigger is not a pleasant result. But the overall result is still positive, for us.

I'm starting this blog when we've had aggression issues for a year already. I can't bring you up to speed in just a few posts, unfortunately, so let me just say it's been a lot worse. And I suppose I have faith in where we're headed. Some results are undesireable, but I think I understand why they're cropping up (maybe), and I think they'll die down again if we just keep at it.

But hey, I've been wrong before... At least it will feel familiar if it turns out I'm wrong again, then.