Baby of the class

[Becca & Lucy]

Lucy and I joined a training class. They have wonderful programs and you can work your way up to therapy dog (which I would love!) This is a manners I class. There are only 5 dogs in the class which is great.

Lucy is 5 months and total baby love. I mean she REALLY loves people. (probably more then dogs)

She is actually picking up thing quicker then her older classmates. :)

Our problem is distractions.... Oh my goooooooodness. She is smart but WOW when she sees a kid or a person she goes coo coo. At home she is doing much better. Greetings are still hard. Mostly bc people ignore what I say to do. So I have been putting her on the lead and it takes some time and very high valued treats to get through it.

On a happier note. The program works with special needs. There was an autistic boy there that would not touch any of the dogs. I had not really paid any attention and then I heard I will try.
Lucy sat perfectly still. Its like she knew that she needed to be calm with him. All the trainers just watched bc he had never pet any of the dogs. I guess its hard to say no to a real Teddy bear :)
I'm hoping this is giving me a glimpse into the future. Tonight she had the zoomies and my 3 yr old son did not see her. He flipped ring over her as him came around the bend. He started to cry mostly bc it scared him. She froze. Then she would not leave his side ... Even when he was taking a bath. (he was totally fine having a blast and she kept checking on him)

Any tips how to have my fur baby not love people so much and get distracted?

[Suzann, Rosey & Bandit]

I sounds like you are on the right path.  Just remember the 3 D's of training, Duration, Distance, and Distraction.  All which have to be worked up to, to achieve success!!  Good Luck!

[Bridget B]

Lucy sounds like she has the makings of a great therapy dog.  She is just very young right now.  By the time you finish a couple/few classes, and she gets a little more mature you will see an amazing difference!  She likes people and has empathy for them.  I don't think you can train for those things!  Behavior you can train.  Best of luck to you both!

[Adina P]

You're on the right track.  She's young and you've JUST started classes. She'll get there if you stick to it =)

You can't go from just learning a command to being able to do it everywhere, anywhere, no matter what.  Your trainer should help guide you in this and help you know when to add certain distractions.  For one thing I would not expect a pup her age who just started training to be able to handle polite greetings.  That's a skill that comes with practice.  Look over some of the past discussions in this group on door greetings and sit-stays for some past tips =)

[Karina]

You puppy sounds like my Rosie. In class she always loved people more than dogs. She also developed a funny habbit of checking the unattended purses for treats, it was so smart of her.

 

Thank you for the encouragement. I will try to find a program to join after we move and get settled. I can't wait for a fenced yard...dream!

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Lucy sounds like she is doing great - it is just that she needs more life experiences.  The older she gets and the more you expose her to, the better she will behave.  You are on the right path.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Lucy is still a baby, and she's just having some trouble controlling her excitement.  I think that's totally normal.  The more you train, practice and expose her to the better she'll get.  You're doing great!

[Becca & Lucy]

We played "baseball" today in class.  Base 1 you put pup in the down position. Base 2 you get your pup in a sit and stay and had owner had to sing a short song. Base 3 you hand pup on lead over to trainer then go to home plate and get your pup to return. There where SO many distractions. We where supposed to do this as quickly as possible. One of the older dogs that has been through all the training classes but still young did it in 21 seconds. Lucy did it in 26! Woohoo! 

 

I have to say I love this class/program. The trainer is SO positive and loves what she does. 

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Woo Hoo is RIGHT!