Day 9 -- Lessons Learned

Play is an important aspect of training. Incorporating play into a training session makes it more fun for Kazi and Capri and makes them much more willing to comply. But they are still young so they still need guidance. They need to be interrupted if their play gets out of hand. If they are still struggling, a short timeout works really well. They will quickly learn that if they are too rough, it means that play will end.

This is also the case when they are guarding their toys. If they are allowed to keep the toy after they have snapped at someone, they just learn to continue that behavior. This could lead into a dangerous situation if they decide to start guarding from people or if they guard with the wrong dog.

I give them a lot of praise when they are playing well with another dog. I want them to have a clear understanding of what behavior I would like from them.

I can also use play as a reward for them. For instance, if they sit nicely for me, I can release them to go play. Or, when I call them to come, I can play with them when they arrive.

They are both doing great with their recalls! If fact, when they do come, they want to stick with you the whole time and it takes them a while before they will go back and play again. This is excellent! This is exactly what you want from a dog. It's so nice to have a dog who enthusiastically comes when you call and doesn't want to leave you once they arrive. What good dogs...