Leslie McDevitt - Control Unleashed: Creating a Focused and Confident Dog

Creating a Focused and Confident Dog CONTROL

Unleashed

Leslie McDevitt, MLA, CDBC, CPDT

CONTROL UNLEASHED

CREATING A FOCUSED AND CONFIDENT DOG

Copyright 2007 by Leslie McDevitt All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

For information contact:

Clean Run Productions LLC

17 Industrial Dr.

South Hadley, MA 01075-2621

800-311-6503

Website: www.cleanrun.com

Edited by Nini Bloch, Monica Percival, and Rosemarie Stein Book design and typesetting by Marianne Harris Cover photos: Action photo by Barry Rosen and still photos by Clean Run

Cover design by Alex Preiss. Agility Action photo on cover by Barry Rosen, Ain't Mutts Behavin and still photos by Clean Run.

All photographs unless otherwise noted are by Kienan Brown and Bryan Hahn, Kibrion Photography.

Trademarks: All service marks, trademarks, and product names used in this publication belong to their respective holders.

First edition

First printing 2007

ISBN 978-1-892694-17-1

TABLE OF CONTENTS

List of exercises

Foreword

About the author

Chapter 1 Nuts & Bolts

Is CU for you?

For instructors

Which dogs are appropriate for CU?

For agility students: Stand up for yourself and your dog

The principal principles

Conditioning a relaxed response

Reading your dog

Working with thresholds

The Goldilocks Rule

Using the Premack Principle to teach focus Reframing the picture

If it's not working

Connecting with your dog requires understanding his state of mind

Twilight times

Passive attention

To leash or not to leash

Leash exercises

Default behaviors

Release cues

Reorienting points

Sacred space

I'm gonna get you!

We don't need no stinkin leashes!

But he runs off the second I unclip the leash

Leash comes off, toy comes out

Management

The Great De-bait

The ballet of teamwork

Teamwork exercise in the box

Beginning of box work

Active attention: Transitioning from passive to active work Active attention exercises

Doggie Zen

Leave It

Targeting

Go to Place

Recognizing when to drop the leash Balancing environmental challenges and performance criteria Starting startline stays

changing attitudes (Look at That! game) A different approach

Why do I like this game so much?

Training the Look at That! game

Giving dogs a task to focus on while working near other dogs (parallel games)

Parallel racing

Working with motion-triggered dogs Training a reactive dog to watch other dogs in motion Adding motivational cues

focus in a distracting environment (Give Me a Break game) Sniffing is not a crime!

Teaching the dog to think through his arousal (the Off-switch game)

Impulse control and agility must go hand in paw Dealing with poor impulse control on the agility course Combining the Off-switch game with other games Close encounters (Campfire Circle game)

Prepping for even closer encounters (There's A Dog In Your Face! game)

Targeting task to perform loose around other moving dogs (Get Outs around jump standards)

Making it personal: Customizing the CU approach But he only plays at home

Distance work (the Out 'n Mats game) Work in tight quarters (the Car Crash game)

Think inside the box

Guidelines for integrating CU games into daily life Dealing with the distracted

Coping with stress

Combining games to reduce stress

Help for the CU handler: Dealing with real life Chapter 10 Real Life: Snap's Progress Report The match

The first trial

The pet expo

The second trial: We got him just where we want him The third trial: Tail of a brave little munchkin Recommended Resources

LIST OF EXERCISES (IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE) Passive attention exercises

Leash exercises

Default behaviors

Release cues

Reorienting points

Sacred space

I'm gonna get you!

We don't need no stinkin leashes!

But he runs off the second I unclip the leash

Leash comes off, toy comes out

Management rules

Calm behavior opens the crate door Reorienting to your handler is the ticket to going anywhere Management for the hypervigilant dog Teamwork exercise in the box

Box work

Rate of reinforcement

Click for orienting

Box work modifications

The Pop-up game

Active attention exercises

Doggie Zen

Leave It

Targeting

Go to Place

Startline stays

Look at That! game

Parallel games

Parallel racing

Give Me a Break game

Off-switch game

Campfire circle game

There's a Dog in Your Face! game

Get Outs

Out 'n Mats game

Car Crash game

FOREWORD

Every agility instructor should read this book. With so many dog training clubs launching agility classes, instructors need clear, detailed, and creative steps for keeping classes safe while making sure that problematic dogs are not left out of the fun. ControlUnleashed addresses helping those dogs that need the outlet and benefits of agility the most but who so often, unfortunately, are the least suited for group classes.

While the book is a bible for agility clubs, its value extends well beyond the agility arena. It serves as a practical guide for owners of excitable, hypervigilant, or unfocused dogs. Control Unleashed provides a gold mine of training and behavior modification advice for any trainer or behavior counselor who works with dogs that exhibit focus and arousal problems.

In clear and readable language McDevitt presents the science of desensitization and operant conditioning in an accessible and pertinent way and thoroughly outlines training steps. Her methods are fluid and dynamic, sensible and sensitive to the needs of each particular dog. It's a pleasure to read a book that provides such a sound knowledge of learning theory but at the same time never fails to adjust techniques for individual dogs' temperaments and personalities. Anecdotes throughout the book make visual the practical applications for McDevitt's program and help the reader envision how, when, and for what types of dogs to use the exercises. McDevitt's experience and keen knowledge of dog behavior are evident throughout and ensure that even the most reactive dog can benefit from the Control Unleashed program.