Laura VanArendonk Baugh CPDAT-KA KPACTP has written a wonderful book on socializing puppies, "Social, Civil, and Savvy." We are continuously improving, and reading about new animal training techniques is part of this process. Here are my notes!
Teach them "Touch" THEN teach them "Come."
$50 Rule: Only add the verbal cue if you would bet $50 that they would "Come" to the hand cue.
Rule:
- Dogs don't get to maul people. People don't get to maul dogs.
Planned separations:
Long lead in a park
- At a friend's house, place them in a crate in another room
Scary thing? Do "touch," then treat away from the "goblin." Slowly make the "Touch" (and giving of the treat) farther apart (so the dog is actually getting closer to the goblin").
To prevent resource guarding, don't play with the dog's food, rather, approach them with cheese (feed them the cheese rather than the kibble). Later, if you take away their full food bowl, top it with cheese before giving it back.