nosework at home? and other questions

[sam.i.am]

I'd like to do nosework with Delilah, but we have no classes here.
Is there a way to set up a nosework class at home?
I wish there was a class here as Delilah really needs the social aspect of being around others.

For a dog with poor hips, are there other classes that would be fun? Her right hip is 'fixed' but I don't want to do high-impact stuff that may hurt her left one and cause it to need to be operated on (it's not such a great hip but wasn't a good candidate for correction -- and it never bothers her).

Should I just do a PS class just to do a low-impact socializing class for her? The smaller SPCA-play yard (supervised dog park where they do not allow dogs who don't like the group play) has not opened up this year so I really am looking for a way to do something fun with her and I/other dogs. So, any ideas are greatly appreciated

[kasmith]

Admittedly I'm not sure what you would consider high impact because I don't know Delilah's physical limitations. But that said I have a couple of suggestions.

We've done some scentwork with Abby and I loved it. Abby's classes are all based on clicker training, so when we first started I put a peppermint teabag in a Ziploc bag. If Abby even touched the bag with her nose, scented towards it, or acknowledged the bag I clicked her and treated. I continued to build that up. Then I wanted her to stick her nose in the bag and I'd only click for that. Once she was comfortable with that I would ask for a sit. When she started to get to a point where she would sniff in the bag and sit to mark the scent, I would then give her the queue "Find it." Then I moved to putting the teabag in a Solo cup and lining 5 of them on the floor. I would tell her to find it and if she sniffed at the cup I'd click and treat her. Then we'd build it up the same way where I'd ask for a sit and stuff like that. I tell you if Peppermint tea becomes illegal I will have quite the working girl on my hands. But that could get you started on doing it on your own.

Have you thought of Rally obedience? Again, I'm not sure what is considered high impact for her so this might be a bad idea given some of the commands involved. But essentially you could walk a course at your own pace, and so far it seems to involve sitting, walking around weave poles or other obstacles, turning in 360's, etc. We're presently in a mixed class that combines Agility, Rally, and work from Control Unleashed. So far we've only done one week of Rally, but it seems pretty cool. But depending on her physical limitations that might not be feasible.

[sam.i.am]

Thank you so much!
Kelly that nose work sounds awesome! Thanks for the beginner exercises for scent work! She will LOVE it. I wish there was a class here! I think that is really what she'd love to do. She's a Saint after all! Today on our walk, there was a pile of shrub clippings and she found that someone had forgotten their gardening gloves at the bottom of the pile. She is a sniffer at heart.

Re. her physical abilities: She runs and does crazy stuff just fine. She doesn't have real limitations per se, but I don't want her to do tons of repetition or something really high impact (like jumping off stuff). I'm not familiar with Rally. I'll look into that further.

This is my preferred place, but she doesn't do anything beside basic obedience that I think Delilah can do easily without risking overuse injuries (agility and flyball): http://www.pawsitivelyfun.biz/index.html#schedule
I assume agility is what I'm trying to avoid for her.

I sent an email to this place earlier: http://flaoa.webs.com/ and it looks like they offer Rally Obedience! I'm clueless about what that means as Delilah is my first dog who'd love to be part of a class or doing something organized. Is it less army-style obedience? I am not a fan of stringent types of classes (it's just my preference/personality).

[kasmith]

You're welcome, I'm so glad it was helpful!

From what I understand of Rally, and keep in mind that I am super new to it, it is structured obedience. You walk a course that points you through various objectives. You can treat the whole time at first as you and the dog learn, but inevitably I think you are only treating at the completion of the course, or during the course at the completion of a sit. That said, although it is something that can be competitive, our trainer tells us that the spirit of Rally-O is much less pressure and more welcoming/inviting. You become more discriminating in which behaviors are correct (ex. the dog is literally facing you sitting when the dog must be sitting in front of you). But what I like about it is that for me I feel like it really has bonded me and Abby in more of the handler/dog relationship. It requires a bit more trust on my part to trust that Abby knows to heel and that she will learn my queues and be able to do them to work a course. The idea and challenge of that is really cool to me. It isn't for everyone and might not be your speed, but it might be something that gets her thinking a bit. I think that depending on the instructor and their approach to it you should find that this is something that can be done largely for fun and enjoyment. As I'm understanding from our trainer it sounds like that shouldn't be that hard to find given the approach to the sport itself.

[mezmerelda]

Rally is basically obedience that is a bit more fun that standard obedience work, IMO. It gets the handler a bit more involved, and there's more thought involved.

Tomorrow is Indy's last week in a 4 week "tricks" class that has been great for her. It teaches behavior shaping more than anything else, and I think is wonderful for any dog that needs focus work. It's basically what you are doing with the automatic check in that you try to train into a dog - especially when it doesn't come naturally. If someone had taken us through this instead of the thoughtless crap we had at our cautious canine class 2 years ago, Indy might be a much different dog.

I've done rally w/Ozzy (Intro and Ring Ready) and Tricks with Indy. Both have helped us bond more, and neither would be considered hard on the joints or other parts of a dog.

ETA: That "Beyond Click and Treat" is sort of similar to what we've been doing. Behavior shaping, and at our school with tricks to be made fun for us.

[sam.i.am]

awesomeness. I will ask that place about Rally. If it's all positive and fun, then I'm all for it. I haven't seen a 'tricks' class. I wish there were more offerings here!!!!! I'm not super impressed with our training opportunities. We've had bad experiences with a few places, so I am uber cautious with where we go.

Maybe I can send her to one of you with great classes for 'sleep-away camp' Just kidding. I just wish there were more opportunities here. Lame little town...

[ShilohsGirlJen]

Lowe is doing nose work and she loves it. Any dog can do it. We have had older dogs and even a blind dog. We started with a treat they love and placed it in a box and saw if they would take it from there. We practiced and practiced. we then used several boxes and would put cheese in one box and then work her through the boxes letting her lead the way. When she locked on she would grab the cheese and then we would drop another bit back into the box and praise --good find-- When she showed this was the barries she worked off leash. The boxes are always open. Also you use only one box at first for the food. You just move it around. I would sit Lowe out of site and then move the course and send her to work always with an extra treat when she found it. Also do not be to quick to help. Once she got really good at this we started placing it on the floor or another suface and letting her work that. Always a treat when its found from the location..ie in the box or off the floor not right from your hand.

When you get this mastered I will go further if you want. Cheese curds worked best for Lowe but if you have abetter fav food so be it. Lowe is currently working 2 scents. Birch and Anise.

[sam.i.am]

Thanks, Jenni! I will definitely be starting nosework with Delilah at home. I really wish we had classes around here. Thanks for the offer for more info when we're ready.

That second training place that offered Rally is off the list. They told me that they didn't think we were a good fit b/c I used PR and do not want to use negative reinforcers. At least they were up front about that. I've had places try to pretend that's what they did and then we wasted more time with them.

ETA: we're heading back to the Pawsitively Fun place -- we'll be in level II and I'm thinking it's structured more like 'rally' as it's a less formal take. It is preparation for CGC, which we'll test for by the time Delilah is 3. Then we'll do TD testing and hopefully she can do some TD work.

[Hounds_N_Leo]

lol Beagles do nosework naturally. I think I'd have to invest in some lead lined boxes to even challenge them HAHA!

[sam.i.am]

lol your hounds probably do not need an instruction manual on picking up scents

I think Delilah (Saints) do nosework naturally, too. But, I was thinking it'd be a super fun game for her if we could set up a course.
In contrast, I know Miltie will look on from afar laughing at how silly Delilah is to race around trying to find things. He sees no need for things like that, I don't think. He's got enough to worry about regarding ensuring the safety of his property -- sniffing for random scents is a preoccupation that he doesn't seem to have time for. lol

[Hounds_N_Leo]

Their favorite thing is when I throw handful's of goldfish crackers into the long grass they LOVE that.

[sam.i.am]

nosework at its finest! lol

eta: I do the same thing with pieces of treats/randoms all over the livingroom and dining room...so, I guess Delilah has a primer in nosework, too. Miltie is not willing to run around like a goof trying to vacuum up little pieces of treats.

[ToBScholarly]

I never even considered doing stuff like that but I think Maxine would totally go for it! She has to smell everything! When we have people over and she is let out of our room (after the initial excitement dies down), she runs over to the door and spends 10 minutes sniffing each shoe individually.
I am going to reread this thread and do some work with her. Thanks guys!