Nors just targeted the cat....

[DogKisses]

No, not in a bad way.

She was sitting next to the cat, who was laying on his back (begging for food & attention). Nora noticed me watching her and proceeded to put her front paw on the cat's face over and over (it didn't bother him until the 3rd time, then he rolled upright. He is very chill, nothing bothers him much) while I was cracking up.

Nora's default behavior is to target (with her foot) whatever is closest to her. Including the cat. She knows it pleases me, and thinks "hey, we can do a training session right-here-right-now! Because I want treats!"

One day I was washing her in the tub, I was giving her treats for not jumping out, ect. She decided I was not giving out enough treats. So she started targeting the shampoo bottle (it fell down on the floor of the tub and I left it until I was done) over and over and over until I think she forgot I was even washing her, she just wanted treats baldly lol. (I gave them to her lol)

Works for me if it means she enjoys baths!

 

[~Dixie's_Mom~]

Hahaha that is soooo awesome!! I know Violet would catch on to targeting so quickly, she uses her paws so much. Do you know of any good videos on it or anything? I'm horrible at trick training, and I need a step-by-step video to understand anything lol!

 

[DogKisses]

I don't know of a video off-hand, but if you look up kikopup on youtube she probably has a video about it.

There are a couple ways to start off teaching it, I start off using their empty food bowl because they will naturally check it out if you tap your hand on it.

I just toss the bowl on the floor, dog goes after it, click/treat! Repeat until dog realizes it is a game. If they sniff/paw/grab/throw the bowl , they get a click/treat. If the dog gets confused I hold the bowl out and when they stick their nose in it click/treat.

After they get the general idea, I change the bowl out for toys (good way to teach fetch), sticky notes (good for teaching closing doors), crates (almost like crate games), tree stumps, bowls of water (doing this with Nora, I hope she learns to like water), my foot, hand, any thing at all. It's even better when it is something that rolls away, like an empty 2 liter bottle.

It is basically the exact same thing as the "100 things to do with a box" training game. I will find a few links and pm you. It's a great way to tire a dog out mentally and physically!