Positive reinforcement training ("Perfect Puppy" by Dr. Sophia Yin)

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

Does anyone here have experience trying the "Perfect Puppy in 7 days" method of positive reinforcement training?  DH and I have been reading this book by Dr. Sophia Yin and the method seems pretty sound but very rigorous and time-consuming.

It basically involves rewarding the dog with treats for asking politely for everything by sitting (including affection, greetings, going out etc.), tethering or crating at all times and using very few cue words but mostly physical cues (like being on a hands-free leash).

We are expecting a litter of puppies to be born any day now so starting to look into things!

This is the book I'm talking about:

https://www.amazon.com/Perfect-Puppy-Days-Start-Right/dp/0964151871...

Before I compile a list/"game plan" of how we are going to go about training I wanted to see if anyone had tips.  DH is planning on taking a week or so off with puppy when we bring it home to give us a good start on training since we'll be moving a couple weeks later (yikes!).

Thanks!

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Thanks, BG.  I am a firm believer in treating each dog with the tools he needs, but I let others' opinion color my good judgement.  If I don't want Charlie to pull me down, I have choices - never walk him with another of my dogs! OR use a prong so that I can get control and not be pulled over!  :-}

[Sebastian and Chester's Mom]

Sorry I’m so late to this.  Chester, my Lab mix, got into something yucky, and has been having some pretty intense GI issues all week.

In all honesty, Jasper sounds a bit like adolescent Sebastian, my Saint Bernard / Great Pyrenees mix.  Sebastian was a very high energy puppy / adolescent, who had little to no impulse control or frustration tolerance.  He also gets his personality almost entirely from his Livestock Guardian Dog side.  In short, he frequently left the trainers and behaviorists we worked with without answers.

For the first two years, Sebastian and I lived in an urban, walkable neighborhood in Dallas, with lots of restaurants and shops along our daily walking route.  At that time, Sebastian had a game that he loved to play that I call Kill Mommy.  He would get overly excited or frustrated and start jumping up on me and mouthing me.  I knew that the behavior was annoying but otherwise harmless, but it scared the you-know-what out of innocent passers-by.  I had people running across the street asking if I needed help, taxis pulling over in traffic to try to save me, a waiter in a fine dining restaurant even ran out in the middle of his shift to see if he could rescue me from Sebastian’s antics.  If Sebastian had been a normal sized dog, this behavior would have looked frightening.  He stands 32 inches at the shoulder, and weighs roughly 115 lb.

Even when he wasn’t tying to kill me, Sebastian’s high-energy and lack of impulse control earned us a lot of side-eye and snide remarks.  I had to remind myself constantly that if teaching Sebastian basic manners was easy, it would have been done at that point.  The most important thing I had to learn, though, was how to stop letting myself get frustrated with him (not as easy as it sounds).  My frustration was hurting us in two ways - when he was acting out for attention, my frustration was giving him the response he was looking for.  When his bad behavior was rooted in frustration, my frustration fed into his, and exacerbated the behavior.

What I didn’t know at the time, and the trainers and “behaviorists” we worked with didn’t tell me, was that when Sebastian got worked up to the point that he could no longer pay attention to me, even when ultra-high-value treats were in play, he was what is known as over threshold.  We didn’t have a training issue, we had a behavior modification issue.  My treating it as a training issue and continuing to put him in situations where he went over threshold exacerbated his issues to the point that he learned to associate meeting new dogs with being frustrated. We are now 3 1/2 years into working on his dog reactivity issues.

Now, of course, every dog is different, so I am not at all saying that Jasper is going to develop any of Sebastian’s issues.  All I’m trying to say is that you might have an easier time with him in public if you watch his body language for signs that he could be getting close to threshold, and then removing him from the situation when he shows those signs.  Yes, it can seem painfully slow to see results, but when he’s over threshold, he isn’t really learning what you want him to learn, anyways.  Using aversive techniques, when he is over threshold can be tempting, but then you run the risk of him making the wrong associations, as Sebastian did.

If you find that you just aren’t making the progress that you would like to see by working with him on your own, I would recommend seeing a behavior consultant as opposed to a trainer.  I don’t think that you necessarily need a dACVB or CAAB, but if there is a CDBC in your area, they may be able to help you develop some exercises for Jasper that will help him learn impulse control without letting him go over threshold.

I hope this helps without sounding too crazy.  Again, living with Sebastian changed everything I thought I knew about dogs.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Thank you for taking the time to post your thoughts & experiences. 

I really don't think Jasper needs a behaviorist. :) He is really a very calm, friendly, well-balanced, confident puppy. Jackdoodle was a lot like what you are describing with Sebastian, but Jasper's issues are different. He's also a 15 lb Miniature Poodle who is never going to be able to drag me or injure me like JD did when he got reactive, lol. Not that that means he doesn;t need to learn to behave properly, but it's not quite as urgent as it was with my big guy.

Jasper has also not had any opportunities to interact with other dogs or puppies since he left his breeder 4 months ago, and I think that's a lot of the reason he gets so excited when he sees other dogs now. It's like someone who has been on a very limited restricted diet suddenly having freshly baked pie a la mode held under their nose, lol. 

I think the problems lie entirely with me; I have not put in enough time working with him, and I've tried to move too fast. I'm also not very experienced with these new training methods, not having had a puppy in 28 years. It's been 12 years since I worked with JD, and he was an adult at the time. 
I really think I just need some help from a good trainer in learning how to get his attention and how to progress slowly. 

[Maryann,Roo and Tigger]

I think the take away from this is:

1) No dog is perfect in seven days, in takes years of reminders, practice, and training to have a "perfect" dog.

2) Positive training is great.  Hitting, kicking, yelling at dogs (or kids) is not best practice.

3) There is a difference between mistreating a living being and "punishment".  Going to place for a dog and going to your room for a kid are equivalent and basically tell either to go sit down and think about it. 

4) My opinion, based on my experience and my abilities:  No video or book is as good as a once a week really experienced trainer.  This is generally not a "petsmart" trainer".  Ask for trainer's experience: trained hundreds of dogs for a variety of show, obedience, film work, guide dog, etc.  Ask for trainer's philosophy of training.  Is s/he up to date on methods and techniques?  A really good trainer can and will help you solve problems as well as teach you basic training tools. I pay $90 for 6 once a week one hour small group (6-8) training in the Los Angeles area.  She is awesome and so helpful with problems.  Buy all the books and videos you want but start training every week with a real live trainer.  Urban areas often have 6 week puppy socialization classes beginning at three months (google "Karma dog training" to see if there is one in your area) is good for beginning skills and socialization.  Then look for a more experienced dog trainer for continuing training.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I agree with you. My problem is that I cannot find a good trainer. The only one I've found who comes highly recommended and meets the criteria you described charges $200/hr and there are no package deals. :(

[Stacy]

Holy Moly! That's out there. Who can possibly afford that? 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Classes are $150 for six classes, but there are no openings in the classes for months. And the classes are for competitive obedience only, not beginners. 

[Stacy]

I am paying 100 for 6 classes. It goes down to 75 if you join the kennel club. I need to do that.

I'm sure you have, but you've checked for trainers on the APDT website? It looks like there are a few in your area, but it's so hard to judge distance and traffic and things.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I did look at that site, but it really doesn't tell you much about the trainers. I found a couple of names I might contact. 

[Stacy]

So true. A really good personal recommendation would be great.

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

Yeah for sure - it's hard to find good training classes.  The trainers we took Luna to were ok, but all we really got out of it was socialization.  I think we will still do a puppy socialization type thing (or maybe not, lots of dogs around!) but will skip the formal obedience training.

[Stacy]

Karen - how are Jasper's outings going? Is he figuring it out? I took Maggie to Bass Pro today and she was pretty amazing. I wonder if there's a dog friendly place that doesn't have so many dogs that would be good for him. Less distraction?