Train Fido

 Assistance canines are broken down into three categories:  Guide Dogs, Hearing Dogs, and Service Animals (everything other than guide or hearing dogs). In the United States, the term Service Animal is used generically to mean any kind of assistance animal, including both guide and hearing dogs.


The Codes of Federal Regulation for the Americans with Disabilities Act defines "service animal" as "any guide dog, signal dog, or other animal individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including, but not limited to, guiding individuals with impaired vision, alerting individuals with impaired hearing to intruders or sounds, providing minimal protection or rescue work, pulling a wheelchair, or fetching dropped items."

There are some good organizations that will help with placing a service dog.  But there are sometimes long waiting lists and great expense involved.  There are approximately 15,000 service dogs across the U.S.

That is why some people, like myself, have trained their own dogs.  My standard poodle, Jazzy, does some handy things for me.  She picks up anything you drop or that she feels is misplaced - she is quite particular and likes things in order.  She will help carry in the groceries, put her toys away, and assist with removing jackets, socks and shoes.  Her services are quite handy.

Some advantages of training your own dog are:

1 - no waiting
2 - more cost effective
3 - you can train for your specific needs

There are  some minimum standards for Service dogs including:

1 - must respond to command 90% of the time.
2 - demonstrate basic obedience
3 - must perform at least 3 tasks to help the client's disability

The most important factor is picking the right dog for your needs.  Most service dog tasks require a dog to take things in their mouth.  Certain breeds are much more willing to do this.  For example, my rottweiler hates to carry things while my poodle loves it - a  poodle is a retrieving type dog.  Use your dogs natural abilities and tendencies.  Traditional breeds for service dogs have been German Shepherds, Labradors, and Golden Retrievers.  But almost any type of dog that has the temperament, skills, and willingness to work can become a service dog.

In the United States there is no special license or certification required.  While a business cannot require certification as a condition of allowing a team to enter their facilities, they may ask what the dog has been trained to do and whether it is required because of a disability.

What makes a dog a real service dog is being trained to perform tasks that assist a person with their disability.

Whenever you mention The Dog Whisperer, Cesar Millan, you are sure to get a definite opinion.  Most people you run into either love him or hate him.  Which one are you?

I am feeling the love.  He has such a great energy and such  a common sense approach when it comes to dogs.  As he is quick to point out, he teaches dog psychology as opposed to dog training.  His favorite mottos seems to be "no talk, no touch, no eye contact" and "calm, assertive energy".

I used to live in Southern California and if I still did, I would do everything in my power to be around his facility.  Especially the new one  - that is in the high desert, I think, around where I used to lived.  Back in the 80's when I lived in California, I was impressed with Mathew Margolis and did go to his training facility.  But Cesar Millan would be even much better to meet.

I believe most everything he says, but I do have to admit, I am still a little unsure about the pit bulls.  Just last week in the local news I heard about a police officer getting attacked by a pit bull and they had to shoot him.  After the dog was dead it still took 20 minutes to get his jaws unclenched. 

I know it is not about the breed, but how they are raised.  But the thought of a dog not letting go is still scary.

I have studied the Dog Whisperer shows and have adopted many of Cesar Millan's techniques and strategies.  He has a natural instinct when it comes to dogs.

What about you? What do you think? 

A golden retriever swallowed a three carat diamond ring estimated to be worth $20,000.  This happened in Rockville, Maryland inside a local jewelry store.

The owner of the dog was looking over the big rock when the diamond ring was dropped on the floor.  The dog, Soli, made a bee line for the tasty rock and swallowed it before the owner to grab it.

So after consulted with their vet, Soli's owners waited patiently for three days before the stone reappeared.

How fun would that be to examine each bowel movement everyday for three days?
Watch the story here:

Off leash training serves more than one purpose and I think it is a necessity for any dog owner.  There is such a freedom for the handler, knowing your dog has reached such a high level of obedience.  But there are other reasons to train your dog off leash.

1)  Freedom for the dog - this is the first thing people think about when wanting to train their dog to walk off leash.  The joy of seeing their dog running and playing on there own.

2) Exercise for your dog.  Your dog can get more exercise if it is not restrained.  Most people cannot get up to "dog speed" unless they are rollerblading or riding a bike.

3) Easier for the handler - no more pulling on the leash, no more getting the leash wrapped around a tree or a person's legs

4) Safety - this is the most important one - it is safer for your dog to be under your control  on or off the leash - no more worrying about your dog bolting out the door and getting lost, or roaming the neighborhood and getting hit by a car.. Just the peace of mind knowing that your dog is safe, even if someone drops the leash or hold the front door open.



Now don't misunderstand.  There are many instances when you should not have the dog off a leash.  Many cities have leash laws that require you to have  a leash on your dog anytime you are outside with your dog in an unfenced area.  You should abide by all local laws.

There are also other areas that are too busy or crowded with too many chances of injury to your dog or others.  You should consider other people when you are outside off leash with your dog.  Many people have phobias about animals and could be traumatized by a dog running toward them off leash.


I have found it best to start training your dog at a young age is the easiest.  The puppies natural instinct is to follow your lead.  If you use this instinct when he is a baby, you are well on your way.  Just walk in a safe area and call the dog to you anytime he is starting to stray. Be sure to have a treat handy at the beginning to help entice him to you.  Repeating this process is all it takes with a puppy.


If your dog is older or your puppy starts wandering too far and not wanting to come back you can follow these steps.

Get a light line.  This is a extra long line - 12 to 30 feet that is strong, but lightweight.  Attach to your dog's collar.  Warning:  watch so you don't get tangled around anyone's legs and wear gloves to avoid rope burns because the dog will be able to gain more momentum with the longer lead and the rope burns are quite painful.  I learned the hard way with a German Shephard.

Walk the dog and call him back to you frequently.  When the dog comes eagerly, reward with pets or treats.  If the dog does not turn and come instantly, reel him in with the light line.  Praise and treat the dog when he is sitting or standing in front of you.

It is your preference how strict or precise you want to be.  Some people want the dog to sit directly in front of you each time the dog returns to you.  For general off leash, I just want the dog to come back to me and then we can continue on our walk.

Do not rush through this step.  Keep working with the light line until your dog comes to you every time without hesitation.   It is very important that your dog does not learn that he can disobey the come command.  The dog must come EVERY time you call.

When your dog is at this state it is time to take them to an enclosed area and test the waters.  A school yard when school is out or a large fenced tennis court are great places to test.

That is all there is too it - reward and reinforce often.  If the dog regresses, go back to the light line for a few weeks, then to the enclosed area for testing and try again.

For those of you with remote collars, the off leash work is much easier and twice as reliable - I will be developing the full remote "ecollar" training part of this blog as I go along further.  Check back often.
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BARF stands for "Bones and Raw Food" and there is great controversy about feeding your dog this way. However, many say it is the most natural and healthy way to feed. Dogs are only fed natural, whole foods.

The BARF diet consists of raw meats, raw bones, eggs, dairy products, supplements, fruits and vegetables, and eliminates processed and commercial foods which usually have grains as their main ingredients.

Some of the benefits of the Bones and Raw food diet

* Natural and nutritionally-balanced diet
* Healthy coat and skin
* Better digestion and stool
* More energy and a healthy immune system
* Free of preservatives, sweeteners, additives and filler

* Less carbs and wheat products then commercial dog foods

Some of the controversies are:

* Benefits are not scientifically proven
* Potential for bacteria, including e.coli and salmonella
* Possible choking or puncture a dog's gastrointestinal tract
* Can be costly and time consuming

Follows of the BARF diet say that dogs have a different digestive system and will not get e.coli or salmonella poisoning and that all bones and meat are safe if served raw.

Dr. Billinghurst, author of the books 'Give Your Dog a Bone' and 'Grow Your Pups with Bones', describes the BARF diet this way:

“BARF is about feeding dogs properly. The aim of BARF is to maximize the health, longevity and reproductive capacity of dogs and by so doing, minimize the need for veterinary intervention. How do you feed a dog properly? You feed it the diet that it evolved to eat. ... Artificial grain based dog foods cause innumerable health problems. They are not what your dog was programmed to eat during its long process of evolution. A biologically appropriate diet for a dog is one that consists of raw whole foods similar to those eaten by the dogs’ wild ancestors. The food fed must contain the same balance and type of ingredients as consumed by those wild ancestors. This food will include such things as muscle meat, bone, fat, organ meat and vegetable materials and any other foods that will mimic what was those wild ancestors ate.”

Since dogs are descendants of the wolf, the Barf diet can make sense.  Wolves are very hardy animals with no packaged dog food, chefs or disinfectants.  Worth looking into.

 A remote training dog collar, also called an ecollar is a tool to teach your dog from a distance.  The remote training collar consists of the dog collar and a separate hand held remote.  There are settings  on the remote to allow the trainer to adjust the intensity.  Most remote collars also have a tone only mode, that simply sounds a tone to let the dog know that the behavior is unwanted.

The collar with the transmitter has two probes that deliver the "tap" to the dog's neck.  The collar has to be quite snug to be effective, usually allowing on one finger to be inserted between the dog's neck and the collar.  Always start on the lowest level.  Continue to use the lowest level necessary to get the desired behavior.

There are different methods of ecollar training.  One method is called the avoidance method - this method involves holding down on the button until the dog completes the desired task.  In this way the dog will do the desired task as quick as possible until you get to the point that the dog will "beat" the button.

Another method is to simply "tap" the button when the dog is doing an undesirable action.  A quick tap is given and additional taps at increasing intensities until the dog stops the behavior.

There seems to be much debate about training your dog with a remote collar.  Many have used this method with great success.  Others call it cruel, however, I have rarely heard anyone call the invisible fence pet containment system cruel.  I wonder why people don't make the connection that they are the same thing.

E-collars are definitely getting more popular among the general dog owning public, because  they can produce such a high level of obedience in such a short amount of time.

One thing to remember is that these collars are a very effective training device and are usually only necessary during the training process.  Once the dog is trained, the collars are rarely used.

  Clicker training your dog can be a lot of fun. It is a way of training called "operant conditioning".  Operant conditioning is a scientific term that describes the way animals learn from the consequences of certain behaviors.  It goes to the root of how animals learn in their natural world.  One type of operant conditioning  used in dog training is positive reinforcement.

The first people to take operant  conditioning out of the laboratory were Keller and Marian Breland, two students of B.F. Skinner, way back in the 1940's- the used dogs. Later the same technique was used to help train dolphins.  

The Clicker is a small plastic box with a metal strip that makes a sharp, clicking sound when pushed and released. Its value is that the unique sound doesn't get lost in the babble of words we are constantly throwing at our dogs.

It is faster than saying a command and allows the trainer to mark the behavior  being reinforced.  Paired with something the dog finds very rewarding, the clicker becomes a powerful tool for shaping behavior.

Clicker training is a very good method of teaching your dog a new trick.  For example, if you want to teach your dog to touch his nose to an object, you can simple watch him and every time he touches something with his nose, click and treat.

The most important thing with the clicker training is timing - this is what makes this type of training so effective.  You can click simultaneously with the desired action.  The dog gets the association much quicker this way.  Clicker training does not really focus on the clicker or a food reward, it depends on the correct timing and reinforcement.

This type of training mimics Ivan Pavlov's Classic Conditioning.  Pavlov was the first person to discover the correlation between stimulus and response.  He found that if a particular stimulus in the dog’s surroundings were present when the dog was presented with meat powder, then this stimulus would become associated with food and cause salivation on its own. In his initial experiment, Pavlov used a metronome to call the dogs to their food and, after a few repetitions, the dogs started to salivate in response to the metronome whether the food was present or not.

You can teach your dog advanced techniques using the clicker, just remember to teach each new step slowing.  If you want to teach your dog to jump on a chair, pull a string, jump back down and sit.  First teach the dog to jump on a chair - when the dog has this step learned well, add the next step - having him jump on the chair and touch the string - etc, etc.

The steps to Clicker Obedience:

1. Get your clicker and a few treats - the best treats are tiny pieces - like jerky treats, chicken or cheese that you can tear into tiny bits.  

2.  Click then give the dog a treat - this begins the dog's understanding that the click sound means a treat.

3.  Then stop clicking and just wait for the desired behavior. If you want the dog to look at your - click when the dog looks at  you and give him the tidbit.  If the desired command is sit, wait until the dog sits, then click and treat.

Your First Days with your new dog

Training your dog begins as soon as you bring him home. One of the biggest mistakes people make is being too lenient with their dog and then trying later on to enforce the rules. Step one is setting the rules from the beginning.

Here are some simple things you can do. A good pack leader always goes through the doorway first, eats first, and leads the way on the walk. Invite the dog on the furniture if that is your preference, but don't allow them to jump up there without being invited.

Use your body language to convey what you want instead of your voice. A strong stance and confident manner signal strength to your dog. These simple actions give a strong leadership message to your dog.

Your tone of voice is very important. Many dog owners make the mistake of speaking to their dog in a very high excited voice. This only makes the dog excited and anxious. Talk in a normal tone, and generally the fewer words, the better.

When you are it the pack leader it helps your dog feel calm and secure. He knows what is expected of him and he can trust you to handle situations in a calm, fair way.

* exercise your dog regularly and lead the way
* wait until your dog is calm before you reward
* use calm energy
* always be fair
* do not be harsh
* do not yell or hit your dog