(private information for SCDR AND CBBR)

IMPULSE CONTROL

o  Teaching the dog to wait at the door instead of bolting out.

o  Teaching the dog to sit and wait to enter the car once they hear the command.

o  Teaching the dog to sit and wait for me to place the food bowl down instead of jumping on me and almost knocking me over.

o  Teaching the dog to walk by and ignore some tempting food on the sidewalk (that could even be harmful) instead of pulling to get it. The advantage is that he will get more and better treats when he "leaves it.".

o  Teaching a dog that if I keep my arm stretched out with a treat in my hand and he looks at me first instead of jumping and barking in frustration, that behaviour will make my hand release the treat.

o  Teaching that whining and barking doesn't unlock my attention, only quiet, calm behaviour does.

o  Teaching that calm behaviour gets a game of fetch or tug started.

o  Teaching gradually by rewarding split seconds of calm behaviours and then building on duration. If you ask too much at once, especially in the initial stages of learning, you'll likely cause frustration.

o  Basically, I look for teaching these three important points:

§  1. that calm behaviours unlock a world of rewards

§  2. that frustrated behaviours don't unlock rewards

§  3. that by waiting and not getting a reward right away, there are far off more and better rewards.

o  * Note: When training a dog that easily gets frustrated, it's important to recognise signs of frustration building up. The following are common signs of frustration in dogs:

§  If Rover gets a sudden itchy fit, most likely you are dealing with an out-of-context displacement behaviour; basically, Rover's way of dealing with a frustrating situation.

§  Some dogs may start chewing on the leash when they get frustrated. If you notice any signs of frustration, try to split the exercise in smaller, attainable steps and reward each little piece of progress. Work in small, short sessions to help your dog succeed and build tolerance as you progress.

§  Some dogs start pacing back and forth when they are frustrated.

§  Whining, barking can be vocal manifestations of frustration.

o  Frustration tolerance therefore depicts a dog's ability to cope with not getting what it wants. Some dogs are better in this than others, but with time and consistency with most dogs you are able to change their frustration threshold for the better.