The Labraventures of Carbón, Spanish (ex-) foster dog extraordinaire

[Stacia]

I gave mine a 'go sniff' command (find it difficult to say cue!) and the heel, so he had the opportunity to sniff and then he learnt that heel meant heel. So maybe on a walk we would start at heel and then after a while I would say ok, go sniff', or we might do a hundred yards or so at heel and then freedom to go and sniff. Might or might work with Señor Carbon. Or could you be so fascinating he spends his time looking at you

 

[snowbunny]

Increased reactivity is very likely a sign of increased stress. Sniffing helps to relieve stress. No free runs means fewer opportunities to release stress.

I think you need to let him sniff if that’s what he needs to do.

You can train this, but I think it’s unfair to train it when he’s already stressed and in an environment where he wants to sniff everything. As always, you should be setting yourselves up for success, by arranging the environment so he is very likely to make the choices you want.

In your case, I’d chill out, not make the walks about getting from one place to another, but rather considering them as decompression time for Carbón. If that means you spend an hour sniffing all the posts within ten metres of your door, then so be it.

 

[Emily_Babbelhund]

I gave mine a 'go sniff' command (find it difficult to say cue!) and the heel, so he had the opportunity to sniff and then he learnt that heel meant heel. So maybe on a walk we would start at heel and then after a while I would say ok, go sniff', or we might do a hundred yards or so at heel and then freedom to go and sniff. Might or might work with Señor Carbon. Or could you be so fascinating he spends his time looking at you

Brogan had a sniff command as well, just like you and Rourke. For some reason, I've just not gotten that to work with Carbon yet. However he's a much more dedicated sniffer than Brogan. I think that's down to the fact that Brogan wasn't all that interested in food and didn't mark at all due to being neutered so young.

And Carbon definitely doesn't spend his time looking at me...unless it's to remind me that he's SUCH a good boy and it's been way too long (more than 3 seconds) since his last treat.

 

[Emily_Babbelhund]

In your case, I’d chill out, not make the walks about getting from one place to another, but rather considering them as decompression time for Carbón.

I agree with this and have definitely increased how much I allow him to sniff. However, we live in town (at the moment) and sometimes I simply need to get from point A to point B on foot since I don't have nearby access to my car. I've been allowing more time to get from point A to point B, but turning a 15 minute walk into a 40 minute walk is nuts. Plus he simply can't wee in all the areas he wants to for sanitary reasons.

I've actually wondered if I'm making it more confusing for Carbon by allowing him so much more sniffing and weeing than normal (i.e. now he may think he can do it everywhere and at every time) but then I do know that for the moment this is his only stress outlet so needs to be given extra sniff and wee time.

It's confusing to know what the right balance is.

 

[Boogie]

I’d strictly do one or the other so that he knows which mode he is in - ‘work’ mode or ‘relax and sniff’ mode.

I asked my supervisor if I can allow Spencer some sniffy walks. Ours are usually working or on a free run - no halfway house. But some days he has worked all morning (eg Wednesdays at art class) then we get the bus then a walk home. I feel that it’s too much concentration for him. She said it’s fine but only because I’m experienced and can switch him into and out of work mode - so I mustn’t tell other puppy walkers it’s OK because it depends on the dog and the person.
.

 

[Emily_Babbelhund]

I’d strictly do one or the other so that he knows which mode he is in - ‘work’ mode or ‘relax and sniff’ mode.

We've talked about this before, so you know I have a hard time figuring out how to signal which mode he is in. I was using the training vest, so maybe I should use that again, though frankly it is a pain in the winter to manage off/on with gloves and such. But maybe that's simply what I need to do even if it's awkward, so that there is a definite line in the sand (or more accurately SNOW) between working mode and sniffing mode.

Recently he's been pulling towards his known sniff spots, so I asked him to sit to ask before sniffing, but that has turned out to be a bad idea. He simply sits everywhere!

 

[snowbunny]

How about having him on the opposite side to the smells, too. So walk him on the road side when he can't sniff. It'll make it easier for him as he'll be farther away from the smelly things. I did this with Shadow a lot when he was younger.

 

[Stacia]

Carbon has probably got in the habit of sniffing, he has been rewarded by finding the £10 note, so in his mind 'this is what we do', you have to try and change this mindset! If every time he sniffed there was a danger of a bomb going off, how would you change the sniffing!

Edited to add: Just seen your post @snowbunny, good idea, though Carbon may walk in front of Emily and trip her up! However a very good thought to a way of changing his behaviour.

 

[Emily_Babbelhund]

How about having him on the opposite side to the smells, too. So walk him on the road side when he can't sniff. It'll make it easier for him as he'll be farther away from the smelly things. I did this with Shadow a lot when he was younger.

Yes, good idea. I do this when possible depending on where we're at. "When possible" because in the newer part of town the walking paths are built in such a way that there are usually very interesting smells within reach on either side. In the old town, it's a safety issue as cars/bikes/humans share very narrow lanes, it is often necessary to keep Carbon tucked on the side close to the buildings.

 

[Emily_Babbelhund]

Carbon has probably got in the habit of sniffing, he has been rewarded by finding the £10 note, so in his mind 'this is what we do', you have to try and change this mindset! If every time he sniffed there was a danger of a bomb going off, how would you change the sniffing!

Yes, he definitely increases the manic sniffing if he gets the money (food) once. It can last for days before he goes back to a normal level. This dog never forgets.

In the bomb situation, frankly I'd stick a head collar on him. I know it's not positive and that's why I've not gone there, but if it were life and death, then I'd do it.

But it's not a bad idea to keep your idea of a bomb in my head to keep myself sharp and try to move him into another behaviour before the sniffing gets to that manic point. And also maybe better motivate me to be consistent with using his training vest.

 

[snowbunny]

As for how to train a "go sniff", it's pretty easy, even if your dog isn't getting it in the real world. Fake it to make it.
Get some smelly food - a piece of roast meat for example - and make a show of putting it on the floor. Although, don't actually put it there, just rub it gently on the floor to get some scent there. Then give him the cue (and make it obvious what you mean), so he goes to sniff. Obviously, there's nothing there, but he'll enjoy the sniffing. If he's not that bothered, do it in long grass and hide a small piece of food in there, so he has to sniff it out. Hey presto, you end up with a sniff on cue.

Side note: in this situation, using the word "cue" rather than "command" makes even more sense than normal. "Command" means "I demand you do this". Well, it's a sniff. Do you care if he doesn't? Hmmm. Whereas the word "cue" derives from the Latin "quando", meaning "when" - should be familiar to you, Emily
"Cue", or "quando" is "when can I do the thing I want to do?". So giving him a "cue" to sniff is entirely more sensible to giving him a "command".

Anyway, I digress.

Once you have a solid "go sniff" cue, you can work on reinforcing the end of it. Let him sniff that pre-made scent, then when he lifts his head, click and give him the food. Repeat. You're reinforcing the end of the sniff as being great. And then, again, once you can predict when he's going to lift his head (because you have a really controlled and predictable environment), you can give your cue to stop sniffing before he raises his head, at which point you click and reinforce. Build up to more distracting environments. In the meantime, use management in the real world, where you can't control it. If that means putting a headcollar on him (properly introduced) then so be it. It's part of a management strategy rather than a long-term solution. Not my cup of tea, but you have to look at your situation and decide what is going to set you both up for success. The head collar can be the cue for "no sniffing now". Take it off to let him have a sniffy walk.

 

[Selina27]

Emily, I don't know if this will help, given all the good advice you've already had, but when I did a loose lead workshop morning not long ago we learnt to use the sniffing as the reward for not pulling, as well as lots of exercises around loose lead walking. It was really helpful.
I'm a bit short of time right now but I could go into more detail later if you want.

 

[Emily_Babbelhund]

Thank you, @snowbunny ! I'll give it a try. I'm sure he'll love the idea of yummy things rubbed on the floor.

I'm not to the point yet where I really want to use a headcollar. I may, however, think about positively acquainting him with it like I did with the muzzle. That way if we ever really need it in an emergency situation, it's not a shock.

 

[M.F.]

To @Jelinga ’s advice re threat of a bomb: there is one spot that I don’t let Snowie sniff. It’s a patch of grass where builders go to eat their lunch and toss their chicken bones. We pass it en route to our off-leash walk on a mountain path. When Snowie was recovering from HGE, he was not allowed any bones. And his favourite munching ground was this luncheon spot. He’d dig in his heels and refuse to budge, wanting to cross the road to feast. I’d also dig in my heels and say No. No meant no, and he soon cottoned on that in this case, no meant no. Didn’t stop him trying his luck every time. In all other circumstances, I usually give in to his whims. But due to his health issues, this was one time I wouldn’t. I don’t know if my saying no was (is—he’s still not allowed there most times) the right thing to do. It’s not positive rewards. It’s not modern training methods. But Snowie understands, and after a few attempts of dig in heels, he moves on and gets lots of praise for moving on and wags his tail for all the praise.

 

[HAH]

Emily, I don't know if this will help, given all the good advice you've already had, but when I did a loose lead workshop morning not long ago we learnt to use the sniffing as the reward for not pulling, as well as lots of exercises around loose lead walking. It was really helpful.
I'm a bit short of time right now but I could go into more detail later if you want.

I’d really like to hear about this when you have time @Selina27

 

[Stacia]

Side note: in this situation, using the word "cue" rather than "command" makes even more sense than normal. "Command" means "I demand you do this". Well, it's a sniff. Do you care if he doesn't? Hmmm. Whereas the word "cue" derives from the Latin "quando", meaning "when" - should be familiar to you, Emily
"Cue", or "quando" is "when can I do the thing I want to do?". So giving him a "cue" to sniff is entirely more sensible to giving him a "command".

.

I suppose because I have been with dogs for many years, we were always told it was a 'command' not that I thought it was "I demand you to do". Now that you have given me an understanding that 'cue' is the word which derives from the Latin "quando" meaning 'when' it makes sense and as I love the Latin derivatives we have in our language

 

[Stacia]

@Emily_Babbelhund have you thought of having the £10 in your hand, so that he concentrates on that and you occasionally reward him with it. Thus it is more fun to definitely get a delicious reward from Mum, rather than sniff the ground in the hope he might find the reward!

 

[Emily_Babbelhund]

@Emily_Babbelhund have you thought of having the £10 in your hand, so that he concentrates on that and you occasionally reward him with it. Thus it is more fun to definitely get a delicious reward from Mum, rather than sniff the ground in the hope he might find the reward!

I CONSTANTLY give him rewards. Maybe too constantly? I fill up the enormous left pocket of my winter coat in the morning and it's gone by evening. If I keep the treats coming, he doesn't sniff, but I feel like it's more of a bribe than a reward...and I admit that it feels like he's 'food mugging' me. It does work, though. I had to get to my lawyer's on time this afternoon, so the walk to the car was heavily rewarded and he did very nicely, purposefully bypassing a few of his chronic sniff spots in favour of treats from me.

However on a more relaxed walk where my hand isn't constantly in my pocket, nothing beats the rare find of delicious poo or bread. When we were in the countryside, he was finding poo (locals told me it was wild boar) and now that we're back in the city, it's whole pieces of bread people leave out for the pigeons. It gets covered over by snow, so I don't realise what he's got until it's too late. If I do see it before he gets to it, he's good with "Don't touch" as he knows "Take it" and a treat from me follows. It's seeing it before he's got it in his mouth that's the challenge!

 

[Boogie]

Bribe = you show them food before the behaviour, then they do it for the food.
Reward = you only give them the food after they’ve done the behaviour. You mark it as it happens then treat ASAP after that. No food for nudges or hints from him, just correct behaviour.

If you do the second you’re not bribing. Once it becomes a habit the rewards aren’t needed as much - just now and again, but it can take ages to become a habit - often months. And the fact that you are often in different venues will mean rewards are needed more too.

 

[Aitch]

Emily and @snowbunny My vet has finally worked out how to do the heartworm test and Alex will be going for his blood drawing on 29th. She hadn't a clue about heartworm and had to do some research but she got there in the end.