Elliott's first day of school

[kayharley]

Elliott really did quite well for his first night. Only problem was his barking. Every time the instructor spent time with one of the other 3 dogs in class and gave them treats for doing good, he started barking because he was jealous (kind of what happens at home if I do something with Maddy or Winnie) After about 15 minutes of him acting like a jerk the instructor came over to him and said "QUIET". Did he listen...nope Another embarrassing moment for me. I was told to try and distract him from the other dogs by working on some of our exercises. Elliott had enough treats tonite to keep him full until September but it was an excellent training facility and I was impressed with our instructor.

What was the best out of this first class was the "Leave it" exercise. Elliott is constantly putting things in his mouth when he's out and about in the yard and I have to yell "Cookie" for him to consider dropping it and that's 50/50 bet that he'll do it. Of course I have to give him a treat when he listens and then Maddy has to have one for doing nothing and poor overweight Winnie also benefits from Elliotts habits...I swear they're all in it together.

Well, after class I came home to do some late gardening. Elliott was froliking in the yard with my other two when I saw him put a large piece of wood in his mouth. I yelled "Leave it!" He instantly dropped it. That right there told me how important this training is and that there is hope for even my Helliott.

[Bekah]

Congradulations Elliot!

[Milopup]

Sounds like he did well! When Bosco had his third round of training, he barked so much that we were practically in the next building since we kept getting moved further and further away from the other dogs.

[CathyAnn]

Kay....oh, do I hear ya when you say they are all in it together!!

Whenever we "do" anything such as nail trimming, washing paws, etc. to just one of them, the OTHER one is jumping up and down frantically waiting for the coveted treat! Definitely a conspiracy!!

I can just hear them out in the yard...."Ok, it's your turn to dig and get all dirty so Mom has to wash you. Then, we get the goods...yeah, yeah!!"

I am glad to hear there's hope for your little Helliot!!!

Cathy

[toomanypaws]

Glad the class went good. I definitely know what you're saying about them all being in it together. When one of my 3 cairns girls has to go out and hits the door, the other 2 follow. It doesn't matter if only one of them go, they all come running back to the kitchen for a treat. What's funny too is my lab is always there hanging his head over the baby gate, so he gets one just for watching. It's next to impossible to reward just one w/o the others expecting to be included.

[GIDGETSMOM]

Good luck with Helliott Elliott!

I previously put my Greta (schnauzer) thru training, so I'm trying to teach Gidget what I learned without having to pay another fee to put her thru classes.

Not sure it'll work, so I may be posting this same type of message before long.

p.s. I use Excedrin Migraine

[Toto times 2]

Go Helliott! Ghillie did well in puppy school but my husband had to be retrained after.

[Apollo8it]

my husband had to be retrained after.

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Mine too and, "leave it" is the best exercise we ever learned.

Advil gel caps is my preferred choice for pain relief.

I love reading about the antics of these little creatures.

[Tribo64]

How old is Elliot? I'm wondering if I should get Charlie in as soon as possible? What kind of collars does your instructor use?

Funny. Helliot and My Charlie Rotten. They are a hoot, aren't they?

[Scully'sMom]

I just love Helliot stories!!!!!!!!!!

[Brigette]

I love Helliott, he is such a character.

[hallswel]

I think the classes are such fun! Leave it is the best thing to teach your dog. What until he decides someone elses treats smell better than the ones you are giving him.

Way to go Elliott!

[Eliz222]

Good for Helliot! "leave it" are such important words to know....we have used it too many times to count!

Scout learned alot in puppy classes, but I'm afraid that all Finch learned is that the teacher has lots of treats...she spent most of her time sitting under the teacher waiting for treats to drop!

Oh, we have the "together" thang too. They have learned that they get treats for doing what I want them to do, and also for doing NOTHING! LOL!

[AllAboutPetey]

Petey has just finished his obedience classes, but unfortunately we have to miss graduation on Monday night . The classes were well worth the money spent, not only training him, but really training me! But I hear ya, Petey always wanted to be the "demo dog" to show the next exercise. If he didn't get called on to do that, I swear he was saying "pick me, pick me!!" After the first class and me giving him treats for EVERYTHING, he came home and threw up, so I learned to cut my treats up in tiny pieces after that. I have to say, though, when I call "Petey, here!" it's so cool to see him tearing across the yard, up the deck steps, all the way to the back door for those super hot dog treats. It works every time! I hope your classes go well...it was frustrating at times and A LOT of work, too. Good luck, and Go Elliott! Good boy!

[Milopup]

When Bosco and I went through Puppy Kindergarten and Basic Beginners, he was the only terrier. Needless to say he was always barking up a storm. The only way to get him to be quiet was for him to be the demo dog, which his trainer was kind enough to make him much of the time. She was wonderful - if anyone in the San Diego area ever needs a dog trainer, let me know!

[Carolinasmom]

Oh, we have the "together" thang too. They have learned that they get treats for doing what I want them to do, and also for doing NOTHING! LOL!

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Carolina gets a treat after the CAT gets his toenails clipped! (The cat gets a treat after a clipping and for some reason, the dog thinks she deserves one as well!)

[Jazz's mom]

I also would like to know how old Elliot is . I need to find a class for Jazz and i am not sure if i should be taking her to one 45 minutes away or wait for the one to come around in our town. I would love to get her some training however. Has anyone had good experience with Petco or Pet Smart?

Donna

[kayharley]

Elliott will be 8 months the end of April. I should have taken him earlier but our schedules were conflicting.

I am so impressed, as stated before but even more so now. I was told I would have a problem getting Elliott to go "down" because he's small, excitable and low to the ground already

Well I've been working on that exercise inside the house in different rooms (outside will come later) and can't believe after only 1 class how he's caught on. Treat in hand I call his name, he comes, sits in front of me, I quickly put the treat on the ground and stay "DOWN" and his belly hits the floor. (I think someone came in during the night and switched dogs on me) I am so proud of him.

When I told my hubby to watch what Elliott learned, he kinda rolled his eyes as if to say, "Elliott, learned something?" Ha...We showed him!

Now if only he'll do that in class Thursday night his instructor wil be amazed.

[Scully'sMom]

Kay, whenever you tell an Elliott story, for some reason I can just picture the whole thing.

I'll bet dad was VERY proud (and surprised!).

I just came in from Petsmart with three big bags. The salesperson when I checked out said, "Oh, it MUST be somebody's birthday." I just laughed and said, "No, we're getting our backyard fenced in on Tuesday for my dog to run amuck in and we need new stuff." So now we have upstairs toys, downstairs family room toys, and outside toys. It's a tough job being a Cairn but somebody has to do it!

[kayharley]

So what kind of toys did you get for outside? We have so much stuff in the doggie toy box that I went through it the other day looking for things that could be brought outside and I wouldn't care if they were buried or lost.

Right now we have a frisbee, some balls (Elliott already popped the large smiley face one...guess he was in a bad mood and didn't want to see that face ) but I'd like to find some more interesting things for them to play with in the yard that just might keep them out of my flower beds.

[AllAboutPetey]

'Down' is Petey's best trick! The instructor used him to demonstrate, and he put his whole heart (and body) into it. I believe he even jumped up a little before he went down with an audible "plop". It cracked the whole class up. Down-stay is coming along nicely, but for some reason he doesn't do so well with sit-stay. Oh well, we'll just keep trying...