Had some good news yesterday – our washing machine was repaired. An engineer came out, fully decked in gloves and mask. Luckily our utility room has an outside door, so he came and went through that and we didn’t have any close contact. Turned out the brushes were worn right down. Today it is working well but hard – there was quite a washing backlog to get through.
I hope you are all coping with the ongoing lockdown. I feel a bit more settled most of the time, though I still have my moments. Running our online calls and courses and the Challenge is helping as it feels more normal. I hope you are getting some training in with your dog.
Several people have contacted us because they want to use their time at home to train their dog in all the basics, things they haven’t time for in ‘normal’ life.
Today’s Challenge is to teach your dog to move between your leg – this is one of the games we teach during the Perfect Pet course, too. “Legs” gives your dog a safe place to go if they are feeling scared or worried by something, or a place to cue them to go if you want to control your dog when something odd is happening around, or loose dogs come running up.
Here’s how (check out the video in the group for more information):
– have a treat in both hands
– lure your dog round behind one leg, then swap hands to lure her through your legs
– stop when her head is just poking through, praise and reward
– add your chosen cue once she understands what you’re wanting and drop the lure as soon as you can
– if you lift the treat slightly you can encourage her to sit between your legs
– or if she stays standing you can practice shuffling round in different directions (a nice doggy dancing move too)
Have fun practising!
Keep training and keep safe,
Carol