by Grayson Schaffer | on February 8th, 2010 | in Features
Generally, digging dogs are a nuissance but I thought we should teach Danger to dig on command in case he ever needs to dig me out of an avalanche or help me burrow in for the night. How to do it: Bury some jerky in the snow or soft dirt. Show him where it is. Click him for digging down to it. Simple stuff. Just remember to click the actual paw stroke. I found that Danger would look at me and take one swipe at the dirt to test whether that’s what he was being clicked for. Fun stuff.
Cool-Hand Danger, why are you digging out my hole?
by Grayson Schaffer | on January 26th, 2010 | in Features, The Wildrose Way, Training
Every dog’s got to know his name. That’s how your pup is going to know when it’s really his turn to heel, retrieve, or get on the couch.
by Grayson Schaffer | on January 5th, 2010 | in Features, Training, Video Clips
We’re going to keep harping on this point all winter. Dogs that get close to skis receive gaping lacerations. It’s just that simple. Here are three tips to help ease your mind and your dog’s pain. Nothing keeps me awake at night like the thought of skis cutting doggy tendons. You can see, even in this video clip that Danger and Cooper aren’t perfect. In the heeling part at the end, Danger crosses over my right ski and was very lucky not to have gotten cut.
Next time, we’ll work on positioning—teaching your pup when he should be at your side, when he should be a ski-pole’s length away, and when he should be behind.
Cooper, Grayson, and Danger at Ski Santa Fe
by Grayson Schaffer | on December 21st, 2009 | in Features, Video Clips
Danger gets ready to spin the bottle
by Grayson Schaffer | on December 15th, 2009 | in Features, Swag the Dog, Things Dog People Wear
Nice work, Danger, five greenheads and a drake pintail. Doesn't get any better than that.
Can’t really beat Patagonia’s quilted Again Jacket ($125) as all-purpose undergarment and outerwear. The nylon/wool/poly blend is eminantly soft while the trim styling makes either a nice midlayer for skiing or duck hunting or outer layer for around town.
by Grayson Schaffer | on December 14th, 2009 | in Features, Training
This is another fun one to teach with the clicker. First teach him to drop a glass bottle in the glass bin, just like we did with the cans. Do this only after teaching the can trick—broken glass and dog paws don’t mix. Then have him start by picking up the glass bottle from the can bin and dropping it in the glass bin. Gradually add cans to the mix and only click/treat him when he chooses the bottle.
Danger hits his mark
by Grayson Schaffer | on December 10th, 2009 | in Features, Your Questions
Cooper post cactus encounter. The spines were actually in his leg and flank.
It’s got to be hard to be my dog. There’s snow on the ground, now, but it turns out that cactus still reside under it and so do their spines. Cooper took a digger yesterday and must have skidded right across one. I noticed a few spines after we were done training but didn’t see the fine hair-like spines that were stuck in his leg and belly by the hundred. When I got home last night, poor Cooper looked like a Shar Pei and couldn’t hold down his dinner. I gave him two Bendryl (to bring down the swelling from his alergic reaction) and started plucking out the spines with tweezers. Three hours later, I’d gotten most of the spines out and the swelling had started to go down. This morning, we went to the vet who said more Benadryl and rest. Cooper thanked the nice man by barfing on his floor. Hopefully the little man’s back on his feet by tomorrow.
by Grayson Schaffer | on December 7th, 2009 | in Features, Training
Here’s a classic trick that never gets old: Play dead. Use a clicker to shape this behavior. The click should come right at the moment when the dog has completed the task. Early on, you might click just for him lying down and then for flopping over onto his side a bit. With a dog that’s had some clicker training before and knows that he’s got to offer a behavior to get the click, this should go quickly. You can teach a roll-over the same way.
by Grayson Schaffer | on December 2nd, 2009 | in Features, Media, Time Wasters
This one’s a chain of the first half of a retrieve, a drop it, and a go lie down. Getting him to reliably hit the bin with the can is the only thing that takes some time. To shape that behavior, I used a clicker, put the bin next to him, and clicked any time the can touched the bin. Then click for the can actually landing in the bin. Once he had that skill down, it was just a matter of adding the retrieve and the down to either end.
Danger hits the bin
by Grayson Schaffer | on November 30th, 2009 | in Features, Training, Video Clips
What’s not to love about Ski Santa Fe? The same slopes we were hunting September we’re skiing in November. Cooper was too young to hunt this year, but he’s just the right age to get started on snow. We’re going to spend a lot of time talking about how to ski with your dog this winter. Everyone loves to do it, but few people do it safely. Of the Outside dogs that accompany us on morning hike-up laps, none have escaped a laceration either from a ski edge or a snowmobile. The reason it happens is simple: The owner has no control over the dog when new and exciting distractions are introduced. A few people have told me that I’m no fun for making my dogs heel. But that’s not quite right. The point is: Make sure your dog can heel and will come when called (even when skiers or snowmobiles are zipping by). Then when you release your dog to run and play, you can do so with the confidence that he’s not a danger to himself.
- Cooper gets his intro to snow
by Grayson Schaffer | on November 12th, 2009 | in Features, Swag the Dog
Kennel covers are great for keeping the icy wind off your dog in the back of your truck in winter and keeping disease-causing mosquitos out of your pup’s crate in the summer. One other reason I like ‘em: When you zip the screens shut, they make it just dark—like stop barking and go to sleep dark. $90.
by Grayson Schaffer | on November 11th, 2009 | in Features, The Wildrose Way
Hmmm, notes of kerosene with a distinct diesel finish
Mike passed along news from Tennessee-based handler Jim Bowers about Cooper’s half-brother Boone’s recent certification in arson detection. Boone is trained to detect some 18 different accelerants, which are often present in arson-caused fires. The dog pinpoints the location of the fuel in the debris, a sample is taken back to the lab and, voila, This was no accident!
Boone was started in scent detection at Wildrose shortly after birth and made the team at only 12 months, which is very young to pass the Canine Accelerant Detection Association’s rigorous test. Currently there are about 200 arson-detection dogs working in the country. Nice job, Boone!
by Sue Barns | on November 10th, 2009 | in Features, Your Questions
http://www.flickr.com/photos/druidicparadise / CC BY 2.0
A few weeks ago, Grayson posted some tips on how to prevent your dog from wolfing down his food. That post drew a criticism for referring to dogs as scavengers rather than straight-up hunt-kill-eat carnivores.
Physiologically, dogs are certainly carnivores. This is evident in the structure of their digestive tract, from their sharp, flesh-tearing teeth, through the bone-dissolving acidity of their stomachs, to their short span of intestine—useful for absorbing fat and protein but wholly inappropriate for digesting vegetable matter. I’ve fed my dogs a raw diet for 10 years. Assistance Dogs of the West also advocates and feeds a raw diet, and has for many years. We have seen remarkable benefit of this sort of feeding in the health, temperament and longevity of our service dogs. Here’s some more info on the how and why of feeding raw.
Although dogs share the majority of their genetic makeup with wolves and can interbreed, in many ways they are distinct. Since their hook-up with humans tens of thousands of years ago, many physical and behavioral changes have taken place. There are many theories on how wolves came to be domesticated into dogs, but a likely route was by learning to scavenge for scraps around human settlements. This behavior was the source of my suggestion that dogs be fed more than once a day—together with personal experience, and veterinary recommendations. Certainly dogs can get by on a single, large meal per day, and there are people who feed this way. As with all interactions with our dogs, it is up to each of us to determine what best serves the health and happiness of our companion animals.
by Alicia Carr | on November 9th, 2009 | in Features, Swag the Dog
The wait was long. Four to six weeks for lab results drags on until you nearly forget about them. Then, one day, they arrive in your mailbox and everything you’ve been waiting for, like the results of the Canine Heritage Breed Test, is right there in your hand, sealed. Will the word “saluki” grace Rio’s Certificate of DNA Breed Analysis? And American staffordshire terrier (aka pit bull) be printed on Odin’s?
Well, as it turns out, no. No, no, and more no. Apparently, we were only right about one thing. But before I let you in on that, here are a couple more pictures so you can gather your final guesses.
Odin, the “pit bull”
Rio, the “saluki”
Within the results of a Canine Heritage Breed Test there are three groups in their analysis–primary breed, secondary, and “in the mix.” Dogs like Rio and Odin, who are mixed breed, will only have something listed under primary if one of their parents is purebred. Primary also indicates that a dog is mainly made up of a specific breed. Unfortunately, “primary” was left blank for both of my dogs, meaning neither hailed from a purebred. Had there been something listed, I would have been able to attribute my dogs’ characteristics more significantly to that certain breed.
Secondary breeds are those that “might be easily recognizable within your dog.” Here’s where I would guess rhodesian ridgeback for Rio because of her golden coloring, floppy ears, and large chest. The last category, “in the mix,” is made up of breeds that affect a dog’s composition in very small amounts, but are recognizable as markers in a dog’s DNA.
Drumroll. Please.
I present Rio:
Primary Breed: Nada
Secondary Breed: German Shorthaired Pointer
In the Mix: Australian Shepherd (thus, the furry tail and petite stature)
Rhodesian Ridgeback (ding, ding, ding!)
And now, Odin:
Primary Breed: Nope.
Secondary Breed: Sorry, my friend.
In the Mix: Boxer (the source of his brindled coat, white chest, and cat-like boxing moves)
Collie (also possibly the culprit behind the white chest)
Shetland Sheepdog (why he rounds up cattle)
Pembroke Welsh Corgi (wtf?)
According to the breakdown of the analysis, when a dog only has breeds listed “in the mix,” it is likely that only small traces of these breeds will be noticeable in the animal. Perhaps that’s why Odin isn’t “10 to 12 inches tall at the shoulder” like a corgi and doesn’t hold down a Tina Turner-like mane like his ancestors, the collie and Shetland sheepdog, but why he does have high-perched ears, a high-pitched bark, and a high-velocity ability to wrangle cattle.
Was I surprised about Rio? Nah. She might not have the brown-and-white spots of a German shorthaired pointer, but she’s got the moves to prove it; She chases down rabbits like it’s nobody’s business.
In the end, it’s nice to know Odin is not a pit bull (for home owners’ insurance purposes) and to be able to attribute his boxing habits (I swear, they exist) to something and not the idea that he was raised by a cat before coming into our home. Besides that, we didn’t learn much about our dogs that we didn’t already know. They won’t change because we know sort of who their grandparents were. But, it does fill that little thing inside called curiosity.
Are you surprised by my dogs’ results? Would you test your dog based on my experience?
by Grayson Schaffer | on November 3rd, 2009 | in Features, Pampering, Swag the Dog
I got my eye on you, Cooper
Here’s simple yet stylish slip lead from Avery. It’s braided leather and of the style and short length that’s perfect for quick walks where you don’t want your dog straying too far. Note, if your dog doesn’t have a good heel or is prone to pulling out, you’ll know it as soon as you slap this lead on. $30.
by Alicia Carr | on November 2nd, 2009 | in Features, Swag the Dog
I’ve never been sure about what breed my two, raucous dogs are. I’ve been close to sure. I’ve had vets make suggestions and the dog-obsessed hint at a trace of this or that breed, but every time I almost have it nailed down, someone tells me otherwise or the dog pulls a stunt I’ve never seen. For instance, my mostly-black brindle dog, Odin, is quite possibly 90% pit bull. The shelter “sold” him to us as a lab mix, of course, but there’s no questioning his box-shaped melon and the marble-like coloring of his fur. Until, that is, we were out hiking and came across a scattered group of cattle. Never before have I seen him round up cattle. All it took was some high-pitched barking and nipping at their heels and he had them all in a small herd in the corner of the field. Um, border collie? Australian shepherd? General nuisance?
I don’t know why I’m so eager to find out what breeds actually inhabit their floppy ears and droopy eyes. It won’t change anything. They’ll still be the same pooches that they’ve always been. But knowing that there is a test out there that can reveal this piece of information makes me curious. When I first came across the Canine Heritage Breed Test, the process that is able to break down a dogs DNA to find its primary, secondary, and tertiary breeds, the company was only able to define roughly 68 breeds. That may sound like a lot but, when it comes to the hundreds of dog breed that exist, that’s just a pinprick in what should be a gaping hole. I was further deterred because someone had suggested my red dog, Rio, is part saluki—the oldest domesticated dog known to man—and that breed (which I’d never even heard of) did not grace the Canine Heritage Breed Test’s list.
Today, however, the test is able to detect over 100 breeds including said saluki as well as other rarities like wirehaired pointing griffon, a hunting dog that resembles an even longer-haired version of a wirehaired German pointer, or keeshonden, what looks like a mix between a chow chow and an Alaskan malamute. One hundred breeds is definitely not the gamut but saluki now exists on their list, so I figured that was my cue.
At first, I questioned the validity of it, but then I came across this:
“The Canine Heritage Breed Test began with the search for a set of unique DNA markers, known as SNPs (Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms), which could identify the breed of a purebred dog. We started by testing over 400 different DNA markers on over 100 [AKC-recognized] purebred breeds to identify the unique combination of markers that describe each breed. After testing thousands of purebred dogs, a unique breed DNA profile was developed using over 400 DNA markers per breed. From these initial markers we identified a smaller subset of markers used for the Canine Heritage Breed Test. This final marker set, based on a blind study using thousands of dogs that have been verified to be purebred by AKC certification, was able to successfully assign the correct breed over 99% of the time when testing purebred dogs that are among our identifiable breeds. These markers were then applied and validated on mixed breed dog populations.”
How it works: You order a test kit from canineheritage.com ($120) which includes a cheek swab brush which you’ll use to collect cells from the inside of your dog’s cheek. You stick the swab into the data collection envelope they send, stamp it, mail it, and sit back for four- to six-weeks twiddling your thumbs. Collecting the cells is easier than you think. It’s simply like brushing the inside of the dog’s cheek for 30 seconds with what looks like a mascara brush.
When submitting the test, they ask for a voluntary photograph of your dog. I opted not to send one. While I’m sure the labs at the testing facility aren’t cooing at dog photos and going, “I don’t know, he looks more cocker spaniel than miniature pinscher,” I didn’t want to sway them one way or the other.
Give it your best shot. What breed do you think my dogs are?
Name: Odin
Age: 2
Name: Rio
Age: 2.5
What’s your best guess?
by Sue Barns | on October 30th, 2009 | in Features, Media, Time Wasters
Hey, it's Halloween
Links to some of my favorite clicker training videos and people:
http://www.youtube.com/user/supernaturalbc2008
http://www.youtube.com/user/kikopup
http://www.youtube.com/group/traininglevels
http://www.youtube.com/user/kpct
http://www.youtube.com/user/LeslieMcDevitt
http://www.nerdbook.com/sophia/movies.html
by Grayson Schaffer | on October 28th, 2009 | in Features, The Wildrose Way, Training
Three fingers under the chest; pinkie out; thumb out
Puppies are great. Loads of fun. But they squirm a lot and, unlike cats, do not always land on their feet. Here, Mike demonstrates proper technique with my mom’s pup, Gibbs.
How to Hold Your Puppy from Walker Parks on Vimeo.
by Grayson Schaffer | on October 27th, 2009 | in Features, Swag the Dog, Training Equipment
I'm going to go make myself a sandwich. You guys better still be on that stand when I get back.
I’ve recommended having your dog sit on a chair for some of the basic training drills, but here’s a piece of equipment well known to retriever trainers that’s even better. This one is the Avery Ruff Stand and runs $180. Dog stands are typically used to give your pup a lift out of the fridged waters of duck marshes, but they’re also a great way to get him up to eye level for hold conditioning, eye contact, place training, and anything else you’d normally have to crouch down to accomplish. For a young pup, the stand also builds confidence for higher places (make sure there’s no hard landing around the stand if you’ve got a very young dog) and provides a stable surface to teach loading (jump on or into something) and under, which is great if you’re in a public place and you want to keep your dog out of the way.
by Mike Stewart | on October 26th, 2009 | in Features, Your Questions
Do I look worried?
Q. I have a 7 month British Lab. Outstanding pup, very good with obedience and retrieving—in the backyard. However, she is very skittish in new surroundings: school yard, fields, park, etc. She won’t retrieve or listen to me anywhere except the backyard, but she does heel very well for more than twenty minutes around our neighborhood. I have tried MANY new locations, recently walking her on a 6′ lead in the same field seems to help a little. Will she outgrow this shyness or is there other methods to assist? Thanks.
A. To arrive at a solution for your dog’s problem, you have to attempt to analyze the possible causes. Situational shyness, as you describe, could come from three specific areas:
1. genetics – the parents portrayed these traits/the dog’s personality
2. improper early puppy pre-conditioning, socialization and backgrounding (the lack thereof)
3. inadequate training methods
Assuming that we have no genetic traits that could be the cause of this problem, then we have to focus on the other two. Even if you have genetic issues that are causing the shyness, progress can be made by slowly introducing variables in the dog’s life for desensitization. Item 2 can be equally difficult. Early socialization of a pup is imperative to build a great foundation for future learning and the ability to deal with new situations. Opportunities lost cannot be regained. Similarly to the genetic issue, this will be a slow process of progressive introductions. One success at a time.
Training: One thing that is interesting is the dog does fine in your backyard but is not easily transferring these skills to other locations and/or situations. There are four levels of training… yard work (teaching the basic skills in a familiar area which you have done), field work (teaching the pattern drills, exercises and skill necessary for hunting, adventure, service, etc.), transitional training (moving the basic skills taught in training to realistic field activities/experiences/situations). Transitional training is where a lot of people break down with their dogs. A few exercises in the back yard, then it’s off to an abandoned lot and we thing we’re ready for a hunt. The result: the wheels run off. It’s called generalization. Dogs don’t easily move/transfer skills learned in one location to another in a rational manner. It has to be experiential. Each skill has to be practiced 5 times in 5 different locations.
Now, in your pup’s case, he’s confident in the back yard, but this confidence is lost when moved to a new area. In gundog training I call this sensory overload or to use popular terms today, the stimulus package. When we are asking skills of our dogs and the stimulation, diversions, and distractions are too high or extreme, we have two choices… simplify the task while maintaining the stimulus or keep the task and reduce the level of the stimulus.
Plan of action: Perfect one or two skills of your choice in your back yard. Then, move one of these skills to a new area but with no activity, just new ground. Perfect the single skill there. Then move the same skill to a new area with a bit more activity. Focus only on one or two skills and gradually vary the locations only after the skill is perfected in each, then increase the stimulus slowly. Here’s the Wildrose rule: Each of our skills must be practiced 5 times in 5 different locations before we can assume the skill is an entrenched habit. Be careful that you do not subconsciously reinforce the fear factor. When you move to a new area, do it with a great deal of confidence which should be displayed in your body posture, tone, gait and attitude. Don’t be thinking your dog is going to fail. Also, don’t coddle the fear. Walk briskly and aggressively as the pack leader letting your dog know there is nothing to fear.
The last of the four levels of training is an actual field activity, hunt, adventure, competition, the public area, etc. Your first experience in any field situation is not about your participation in the activity. Your focus is on training your dog. Example: Your first hunt is not a hunt at all; it’s a training opportunity. Keep in mind Wildrose law #5 as you deal with the fear factor: “Make haste slowly.”
Best of luck,
—Mike
by Walker Parks | on October 23rd, 2009 | in Features, Who's Cutest?
The call of the open road
I adopted Cosette in 2007 from the Little Big Dog Rescue group. I’m still not certain what kind of dog she is, but when the rescue group originally found her at 8 weeks she was suffering from severe demodectic mange, had lost the majority of her fur and could barely walk. She and I are pretty much attached at the hip, and she has accompanied me on filming assignments all across the country. She loves traveling, running, hiking, and sleeping anywhere soft.
—Allison Otto
Bisbee, Arizona
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- The call of the open road
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- Laughing on a roadtrip
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- Sleeping with her new friend after visiting Roswell, New Mexico
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- Wearing her new sweater
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- Headed to the Bisbee Dog Parade
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- Sprinting during her first trip to the Colorado mountains
by Grayson Schaffer | on October 22nd, 2009 | in Features, Training, Video Clips
Safety Note: If you're going to try this with a bottle, make sure your dog's hold is bulletproof.
Some folks were asking whether Danger can do that beer trick from last week’s short movie, “In the Face of Danger,” in one take. Yes, and chances are your dog can too. Training a dog to connect tricks or behaviors end to end is called chaining. Typically, these types of linked behaviors are taught back to front, or what’s called back-chaining. Basically, you start with the last part of the task, train that to proficiency, and then add the next-to-last part. Withhold your reward until the dog completes both of these well-polished tasks end to end. It won’t take him long to figure out that the criteria have been raised and he now has to do two tasks before the reward. Then add a third link in the chain and so on. When you see dogs performing complex, apparently human-like tasks on TV, this is generally how they’re taught.
OK, here’s the video.
How To Teach Your Dog To Fetch A Beer from Walker Parks on Vimeo.
by Grayson Schaffer | on October 20th, 2009 | in Features, Media
Danger and I spent last week with Allison Otto and the Serac Adventure Film School making a movie about Danger’s attempts to become a tracking dog. Here’s Allison’s excellent movie. Please share it with your friends.
by Walker Parks | on October 19th, 2009 | in Features, The Wildrose Way, Training, Video Clips