Day 5 -- Getting into the Routine

Capri and Kazi are really starting to get into the routine here. They are figuring out what they need to do to get what they want and the routine is helping me to predict their needs more.

Kazi sits and waits for his dinner. I feed them in the same area but on different sides of the room so that I can appropriately reward each dog. If both were side by side, it would get really confusing to them because I would not be able to reward them at the exact time I am getting the behavior I want. Imagine if Kazi were sitting but Capri was not. If I put the food down, Capri would be rewarded for standing, not sitting. But, if I held onto the food and waited for Capri to sit, Kazi would not be rewarded for his nice sit. It's much easier to separate them by a little space and reward each individually.

They eat quickly now so it doesn't take a lot of time out of my day to feed scheduled meals. Icee has her own meals separate from the puppies so she is less anxious about her food. I just keep the puppies in the kitchen with me while they are eating and it gives me a chance to get things done while they are eating. It's also a great opportunity to take a few minutes to get some training in. They are more than happy to work for their kibble...especially Capri. She loves working on her sits during mealtime.

After mealtime I know it's time to go outside to go potty. I still keep them leashed until they are finished so they stay on task. This also gives me a chance to praise them when they toilet outside. Otherwise they are going to stick to their nice comfortable toilets in the house. It's nice in there, it's clean and dry. Why wouldn't they want to toilet inside? So going out with them helps to make it more pleasant for them to toilet outside. When they have gone to the bathroom, I let them off leash to play. It's been a little wet here but that doesn't seem to stop them. And no digging either! I've been outside with them every time to go outside to reward behavior I like (i.e. going to the bathroom outside) and interrupt behavior I don't like (i.e. digging).

Kazi sometimes needs some encouragement to go outside. The dark doesn't seem to bother him. He'll still run around and play in the dark. But crossing the threshold to go outside is sometimes difficult for him. Giving him a tasty treat when he follows me out helps with this issue.