He's gotten great at sleeping with me, yes, it was definitely a learning curve! In fact he's discovering the joys of blankets, and more specifically being underneath them! Mostly I forget that he hasn't been a house dog for a full year, he's come so far. I still use "stop" in my half sleep stupor to get him to cease bouncing all over me in the morning when he knows I'm awake, but trying to greet the world in a quiet and easy manner. He's training me to mumble "down" instead... I'm a slow learner it would seem.
With time being at a premium lately we train when/where/what we can. I like to take advantage of quick/repetitive moments.... like his treats before bed. He always gets two (and yes I swear he can count them!) I've been teaching "place", meaning his bed on the floor... or the really cushy mat I walk across on the way to the shower. Place teaches body awareness, adds a word to our repertoire and will, hopefully, help me when it comes time to introduce him to people. Because of all the clicker training we've done, he knows that when I say a word, he's supposed to figure out what I want.
When clicker training new words, there is often a behavior burst. Meaning Toad offers everything he knows, and everything that's ever gotten him anything in the past. Sometimes, with surrendered dogs you can discover a trick they know, or see a behavior from their past. Toad's pretty limited to what I've taught/rewarded. He, after 5 days, sits his butt in a whirling/spinning/dizzy making speed on his bed once I've asked for "place". A little mental energy burn off before bed... win win!
Puppy sit ups is another one we've been working on. Getting a dog to do a sit then down, then sit/down... is trickier then it seems on the surface. Initially it took a lot of luring. Thankfully Toad's motivated to get the treat as productively as possible. Meaning, he cuts out as many steps as he can, as quickly as he can. We're getting there, but not anywhere close to "proofed"
The last one, is to build core strength. Sit Pretty. These chunky monkeys poop muscles, but not necessarily core muscles. Yes it's a thing with dogs too. Yes, it's why some dogs can "sit pretty" and others cannot. It takes time and conditioning for those who cannot. Toad is on the cannot list. Slowly, a few quick times a day, I can see his balance/strength and focus getting better. In this case, he knows what I want, but simply cannot do it yet, he will with time, repetition and something to lean on.Core Strength. It's what separates the winners from the whiners. Facing the tough things little bits at a time is how we all get through. We all work on core strength, we all get rewarded for our practice. A friend reminded me recently that no matter how much we do, or how well there will always be 10% who are not happy. I'd like to thank those 10%, they make me sit taller, longer and with more conviction. You keep pushing, I'll keep working, Even when I need to lean.
Sit Pretty, even when it isn't.
