Training

[chubbypup]

I have read in a few of your posts of all the wonderful tricks/ commands your cairns can do. My Metz can sit, lay down and even stay for a reasonable time. However he will not come everytime he is called...probably cos he is a terrier, but also looses interest quickly when training him. Some commands i havent even got a clue how to teach him... like 'play dead' etc. Any advice would be greatly appreciated....

[kayharley]

Don't feel bad....I can't get Madison to do "down" never mind "come"! I will admit lately when she's out on the wall doing terror things, I clap my hands, yell for her to come and tell her what a good girl she is and she comes running like the wind. I really think she's just tired of chasing critters and wants to come inside.... my words mean nothing.

I think because the Cairn has such a mind of their own and can get distracted by anything fun, they say to never trust one off lead or loose in an unfenced yard. I agree.

[Guest posting as: derecskey]

Just this weekend we taught Bella (17 weeks old) to "On Your Side" and "Play Dead", and she picked right up on it. Several weeks ago, there's no way we'd have succeeded. In our case, here's what we did:

We're clicker training Bella, and she already knows Click!=A treat! so she knows when we play this fun game she gets a snack. She loves clicker training. Since Bella has known "Down" for a few months already, we used this to our advantage. She's not always so keen to be put on her back by one of us.

Over the last several weeks, I've been introducing longevity to Bella's "down" behavior, waiting longer and longer to click when she does what I want. I used this to my advantage, and commanded her to "Down". When she did, I quietly told her "Good Girl", but did not click. She's watching my hand for a click or a treat. So I say "On Your Side" and move my hand right to left, even touching her nose, and luring her until she just rolls onto her side. It took a few repetitions with a little more "force" at first, but after 3 or 4 of these, she was doing it with me just lightly touching her nose as I moved my hand right to left and gave the command. Soon I started to hold my hand farther and farther from her, and am now able to get her to do this behavior when I am in a complete standing position.

After a few days of repetition intermixed with her "old" tricks, we converted "On Your Side" into "Play Dead". All you need is a firm foundation, it's like building blocks.

There are other tricks that I'd like to teach Bella, but I can't force it, I just have to pick and choose what to teach her depending on what she's willing to do at the time or what I can capture her doing naturally (turning her head side to side? licking her lips? winking?)

So far she knows:

Come

Sit

Down

Get Up

Spin Around

Circus Dog (Stand on hind legs)

Circus Spin (spin while standing on hind legs, needs work!)

Kiss Kiss

Shake

High Five

On Your Side

Play Dead

Look At the Fish! (we have a fish tank)

The easiest were Sit, Down, Come, Spin Around, Kiss Kiss. Get Up, for whatever reason, was very difficult for her initially. Probably because I introduced it so closely to Down, I allowed her to many opportunities to make mistakes and get confused.

[wags]

I think a good way to teach would be to catch the dog in a "play dead" position and give it a name. Keep reinforcing the position with the name and eventually you might get the reaction you want. Mostly the key to success is "repitition."

Why can't all dogs be like "Lassie?"

[Scully'sMom]

Heck, I'd settle for Scully behaving like Bella. Great job with all those tricks!

[Guest Tototoo]

Toto did pick-up sit already, but its not that Cairns aren't great at learning tricks their words just have different meanings:

Sit - for a second

Get Down - French Kiss Your Owner

Lay Down - Time to rub my belly

Stay - Wander around and Ignore your master

Get the ball - And don't bring it back

Shake - Gnaw on your owners hand

Come - Let's play "Cause You Can't Catch Me!" (Best when played in the rain in your rattiest robe and fuzzy slippers!

Its not that they are not smart enough to learn the tricks we want to teach them, we are just not smart enough to understand the words they are trying to teach us!

K

[toomanypaws]

My cairn girls come running if I'm shaking a carton of Bil-Jac treats Actually, the two younger ones Abbey and Hannah usually always come when called. I think they're afraid they're missing out on something. Kiara is coming now, but she's my problem cairn when it comes to obeying. I fear the day she ever gets loose again. My dh and I have even questioned ourselves if it's a good idea to take Kiara w/ us to N.C. at Christmas. I can just see us all packed up ready to go and Kiara is running through the mountains somewhere. No, seriously we are taking every precaution w/ her from buying her a double hooked harness to taking the portable pens to set up outside. The clicker method has proven to work for Kiara, at least in our backyard. I'm afraid to try anything in the front yard where she has a mind of her own.

As far as other commands, they all know how to sit but don't always do it. They know the command "in your crate" and march right in. Kiara knows "in your bed" being she doesn't have to be crated anymore (one plus for her ). They all know "kiss kiss" , too cute! What I'd love for them to do is hold their paw out like my lab does when it comes to trimming nails. It will never happen!

[kayharley]

And my dream is to say "Pick up" and they put all their toys back in the toy box!

[CarCarDawn]

Hi! I'm pretty satisfied with "Eat", "Go PeePee"and "Go PooPoo" - - - anything else is a bonus!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Scully'sMom]

@ CarCarDawn!

I feel your pain sister! We know "Go Potty", "Go Eat",

"Want a Treat", "Go Get A Toy", "IN!", and "Nite Nite" and some others. Basically anything eat, sleep or poop.

No behavior command. Uh...fuhgedaboutit.

[Guest Tototoo]

Kayharley,

My dream is if the kids would learn "pick-up" too. Maybe if you teach your pup that one, I'll send you my kids! Honest they are angels!!! They won't chew or bite (too much)

K