Dog Zen by Mark Vette

Author:Mark Vette [Vette, Mark]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780143770824
Publisher: Penguin Random House New Zealand
Published: 2013-04-08T00:00:00+00:00

Stage three: Umbilical

Umbilical training involves having your dog on a safety slip collar and a lead which is clipped to your waist (like an umbilical cord), moving with you as you go about your daily activities. It extends the behaviour you’ve cultivated on the lead, and brings it into your everyday life, hands-free, enabling your dog to get used to following you with less direct intervention than on the hand-held lead. Allow just enough lead to give your dog room for a ‘down’.

Make sure you have progressed with stage two before you graduate to this stage, as you don’t want to drag your dog around or vice versa. Bigger or more hyperactive dogs may require more work on the hand-held lead before they are ready for the umbilical. Be aware of any physical limitations you might have (particularly if you have a big, strong dog). Be careful that your dog doesn’t pull you around or over. Ensure your equipment is appropriate to the size and strength of your dog.

The technique

Clip your dog’s lead to your belt (with your dog on her safety slip collar).

Go about everyday tasks as per usual with your dog attached to you by the lead. Start slowly inside your house, having your dog tag along with you, and observe how she mimics your movement and relates to you and your space.

Click and reward good following behaviour (when your dog is moving with you happily, and not resisting or pulling away from you). Click and reward pressure off.

Give your dog a ‘no’ command if slow on the uptake of commands.

If still not responding, give your dog a check on the second ‘no’.

Continue to uphold the principles of pressure on, pressure off. Later cue a ‘heel’ command for even better walking beside you.

For example, when you are about to walk through a door, ask your dog to sit and wait before you go through — you should always walk first through doors. If your dog obeys, click and reward the good behaviour. If your dog doesn’t listen, say ‘no’ and click and reward good behaviour. If she persists, then on your second ‘no’ give an effective check by applying a quick and firm tug to the lead, then ask your dog to sit again. Repeat until you achieve the desired result: it is important to be consistent and insist on the right behaviour every time.

It’s a bit of a hassle to begin with, but, believe me, it will pay off. Remember, it’s the contrast you’re after, not dominance. You are shaping the follower response. Dogs thrive on a clear sense of role and place in the family, with clear knowledge of who to look to, especially when confused.

Whenever you stop, ask for a ‘sit’, and reward your dog for stopping when you stop. If you stay in one place for any amount of time, go through your ‘sit’, ‘down’ and ‘Zen down’ commands, particularly rewarding a ‘Zen down’.

When you move on, your dog’s awareness of you should be such that she comes with you — it becomes second nature and a beautiful synergy develops.

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