Excellent session. We should have started this way. I'm using coffee mugs, one with kibble in it. They're too small for her to eat out of. If I don't help, she has to use her tongue to suck them out like an anteater. 2 reps as I lower the kibble mug down towards her face. When she pays enough attention to it to tell me that she knows there's kibble in it, I Yes and tip it so she can get some out of it.
This eliminates the delay in her getting the kibble from me having to pry the lid off the container, and doesn't distract her from the point. Even when I use 2 cups, I don't have to put one down to pry the lid off the correct one.
Next, 8 reps with 2 mugs, one empty, coming down towards her face from above, about 2" apart so one come downs on each side of her uplifted muzzle (she's sitting in front of me). Again, when she pays enough attention to the correct mug, I Yes and tip it for her.
I don't want to use an actual click. I don't want to be that precise since I have no idea when she actually a) finds the strongest kibble scent or b) decides that she's found it. I've seen a lot of problems in the past with people precisely marking the indication of the find and teaching the indication rather than the find - or else the dog goes out and hovers over one article waiting to see whether she gets a click or not, without ever understanding that the click was supposed to be for the find and not for the indicator. Another reason I'm happy that I backed up to training the find and forgot about the indicator.
After 10 reps from the beginning of the session (failure at the point is not an option), I put the mugs about a foot apart on the floor and, to short-circuit that evil paw, I start quietly suggesting she Down when she finds the scent. As soon as she's down, I pick up the mug and tip it so she can eat out of it. After 6 reps, she starts lying down on her own as soon as she finds the kibble (!). Oh well, if the Beagles at the airport can do it, I guess it's not too much to expect my PWD to figure it out...
At that point I add a 3rd mug and start tossing one treat away after she eats to get her away so I can start shifting them around like a shell game. Very good session.
No comments:
Post a Comment