Totally Overstimulated Outside
- Thread starter Elrohwen
- Start date
Yay! I'm so glad he's already improving!! I was worried it might take longer because of how stubborn you said he is. LOL.
Also, sorry about not getting back to you but things got a little crazy after class and then I just crashed when I got home. But it looks like it all worked out anyway.
Also, sorry about not getting back to you but things got a little crazy after class and then I just crashed when I got home. But it looks like it all worked out anyway.
That's true. And he was actually tired after last night even though we weren't out long - his little brain was working hard.
My parents are still walking him during the day (we are staying with them because of my job thing). They are walking him on a harness, only around the apartment complex, and they said he's being really calm, so I figured they could keep doing that to give him some exercise. If we hit a wall with my training then I'll ask them to stop until he's further along, or show them what to do.
My parents are still walking him during the day (we are staying with them because of my job thing). They are walking him on a harness, only around the apartment complex, and they said he's being really calm, so I figured they could keep doing that to give him some exercise. If we hit a wall with my training then I'll ask them to stop until he's further along, or show them what to do.
It will likely get worse before it gets better. The whole extinction burst thing. Its always pronounced when either the behaviour you are trying to modify was working well for the dog, or if the other option is harder in some way.
I am sure controlling himself would fall under the difficult heading.
I am sure controlling himself would fall under the difficult heading.
What Dekka said. LOL.
But don't give up, he's going to push boundaries and try to get back the freedom to act like a nut he had before. He just needs to learn it self control or nothing.
And like I told you before, you may never even leave the car some days. Once he understands it's not on his terms anymore though things will start going a lot quicker.
But don't give up, he's going to push boundaries and try to get back the freedom to act like a nut he had before. He just needs to learn it self control or nothing.
And like I told you before, you may never even leave the car some days. Once he understands it's not on his terms anymore though things will start going a lot quicker.
Oh yeah, I don't at all expect him to change overnight. I was actually quite surprised that he did so well the first day - I was expecting something more like last night. But then he generally does better when the situation is new (say, first day at agility class) and he's interested to see what I might do. Once he sees that I'm boring ("mom just stands there while there are squirrels to hunt!") and everything else is more interesting, he regresses. So I'm not at all surprised.
Last night I saw a really nice side effect of our training! When we got home from training (in the parking lot behind Target) I had to take him out for a potty break, so I put him on a harness and long line. I wanted to do all-structure-walks-all-the-time but without a yard I don't have a ton of options. I figured he could have a little freedom to run around for a minute.
Anyway, he was going to hit the end of the long line, so I softly said his name just to get him to stop and look at me and not hit the end. Instead of just stopping, he whipped around and came flying back to me with a look of pure joy on his face. It was awesome! His recall in real world situations has always been just ok and reluctant, and I didn't know how to fix it (obviously, since I started a recall thread not too long ago). All this time I've been thinking of recall and impulse control and over arousal as separate issues to solve, but I think they are all symptoms of the same problem. Maybe we've finally started the first steps towards fixing it.
Anyway, he was going to hit the end of the long line, so I softly said his name just to get him to stop and look at me and not hit the end. Instead of just stopping, he whipped around and came flying back to me with a look of pure joy on his face. It was awesome! His recall in real world situations has always been just ok and reluctant, and I didn't know how to fix it (obviously, since I started a recall thread not too long ago). All this time I've been thinking of recall and impulse control and over arousal as separate issues to solve, but I think they are all symptoms of the same problem. Maybe we've finally started the first steps towards fixing it.
Yay! That's great to hear! And yes, lack of impulse control can lead to a lot of other problems. But I'm so glad you are already seeing effects from your training lessons! That is always such a confidence boost!
Now that I know that he has impulse control, because he's done the foundation work, I'm figuring out how to expect it in real life and not let him get away with doing what he wants.