Mike's Doghouse

So far, I’ve just worked with Mike on simple things, like releasing whatever is in his mouth and going after the toy I throw. I’ve gotten him used to the clicker and he no longer twitches each time it clicks. And yesterday we specifically started working on sit. I’d kinda worked on it before while getting him used to the clicker. But yesterday we locked ourselves in the kitchen and learned sit.

Clicker training is an excellent way to teach behaviors. Joella learned all her SD tasks this way and excelled. I think Mike will be the same. It is also easier on me since there’s no leash jerking or butt pushing. Just sitting and waiting for Mike to do what I want him to do then rewarding him like mad. Basically.

Linkages:
Karen Pryor (Wikipedia)
Take a Bow Wow (Karen Pryor Video/DVDs)
Clicker Training YouTube videos

WARNING: this post discusses canine bodily functions. Don’t read if you don’t like the words “poop” or “pee”.

Oy, what an experience this has been. Mike is roughly 14 weeks old. Old enough to learn right from wrong in the human world and terminology. But that doesn’t mean it is easy for him or me.

House training has been rough for both of us. “They” say a puppy will need to go poop about half an hour after eating. Mike, however, has gone as long as 6 hrs although his normal is between 2-4hrs. He’ll pee much more often. Like every half hour. Everywhere.

Part of the problem is that our fenced in yard is connected to the back porch. Normally we just open the door and out they go. In the summer, the door is open all the time. Off the back porch is a dog ramp. The first part is slightly sloped and sturdy enough to hold a human. The second part, however, is steeper and not sturdy. It is a project we need to finish but never got around to. It is painful for me to go down that second part, and is quite risky. I don’t go down it when I am home alone. Taking Mike out to do his business is difficult. I either have to put him on the leash and take him out front or I go down the ramp with him. When he is out front, he’ll pee but he has yet to poop.

Mike needs to learn to tell me he has to go. I have to learn to pay attention to him.

I believe Mike understands what “outside” means. I’m not sure he understands he needs to ask.

I called Elena today and asked for her wisdom. She suggest I put Mike on a schedule. Go out every 2 hrs. When he poops in the fenced yard, take it out to where I want him to go out in the front yard. This is the safest way for me. Once he learns to go there and learns to ask to go there, then we can just morph that into asking to go out the back door. But first, the pooping and peeing in the house has to stop.