Well, it has certainly been a tough week. On Tuesday I took the dogs to hydrotherapy and to cut a long story short Cody, Ditto and Dobby sustained chlorine poisoning. For a moment it seemed touch and go, my world collapsed around me. After many different treatments and a night on a drip they made a break through, and are now back home (Ditto back to causing havoc, Cody still not quite himself). We really were so lucky!
Prior to the incident, I had been working on Ditto's habitual learning. Habitual learning aims to create a working state of mind in a dog/puppy that can focus in any environment and situation. The dog/puppy should offer the same intensity to cued behaviours as they would in their most comfortable environment. Our agility dogs are asked to give us 100% of their attention, focus and drive whilst competing at shows and at training. These environments are hugely arousing! By acustomising puppies to different environments and asking them to 'work' (or play as they see it) can only aid them for their future agility career.
So I have found myself squatting down on the floor, tasty treats in one hand, clicker in the other, in many strange locations: high street, pet shop, pub, road side, fields, car show room ect ect. The results are amazing. I just love this super puppy!
I have often wondered how/why people say ' I cant wait till my pup is 12 months so we can start agility training'. Both Ditto and myself are having so much fun pushing the boundaries of puppy training into new areas for both of us. Dog training really is about pushing the limitations conventional dog training has set.
A big thank you must go to all who have supported us over the last few days. The good wishes and thoughts have meant a lot :)
“Limitations live only in our minds. But if we use our imaginations, our possibilities become limitless.” Jamie Paolinetti
