Training Monty - Need your experience, strength and hope!!

[Jellymint]

The 9 month old Magnificent Mr Monty can drive me nuts! LOL. Because of his giardia I have not been able to get him neutered and until he is neutered he can not go into the training I want him to go into ... which translates to me training him for the next 2 months!

I have never experienced a dog who is not food motivated before. For the most part Monty can take it or leave it and when something is slightly more interesting, there is little value in food.

I have had some success with boiled chicken, cut up super tiny and then frozen so it doesn't crumble. And then there are the freeze dried liver treats that he likes as well but I worry about giving him too much.

Pleasing me isn't high on his list of priorities either LOL!! Hahaha... I think it's kind of funny actually. In some ways he is very cat like. All about Monty. Smile. He is not a lap dog. Does not sleep on my lap or really sit on my lap. He'll hang out beside me on the couch, or on the arm of the couch, or on the back of the couch. He'll sleep at the foot of my bed or on my pillow at the top of my head. Smile. He is very affectionate - can't control his licker (snicker) but always on his terms. I am slowly helping him know that he can be all "babyish" with me and get a good cuddle/snuggle in. He is responding. Yay! Precious.

That being said I have to work at not being discouraged and keep things in perspective. I am very disappointed with this Giardia. It is a time stealer. Very angry with the pet store for selling a pup with a parasite to that lady and then her putting him on kijiji the next day. I am very happy that he is with me because I am taking very very good care of him. I can't even describe the reward I am receiving watching him transform into a puppy!!

But... Having to figure out how to train a puppy who stands there and looks at me and says ... "mmmm... nah" and walks away make me go all frowny and stuff.

So here is me looking for your experiences and suggestions!! I am so excited to "break into" his little mind and work collaboratively with him. Learn his language so I can teach him mine.

He definitely knows how to sit and down very well. He knows wait. I now have him sitting and waiting while I open the door and fart around taking my time before I release him to come out. (Of course no one is in the hall at the time) I am also having him sit and wait while I put his food down. He is doing well especially when it has wet dog food which is what makes him drool. That took some doing but he picked it up well. He knows "off" when he is mounting another dog or if I don't want him on the couch. He knows "no bark" and had compromised with squeaky air barking instead of big dog barking - very cute. I am also currently teaching him "up up." I bend over and hold my arm parallel to the floor his shoulder height and get him to stand with his front paws on my arm. This way I can pick up up without him cowering like he does now when I pick him up. It's my way of giving him ownership that he does indeed want up. He is slowly getting it. So far he stands and leans against the cupboards and I let my arm touch his tummy so he gets used to it.

Poor wee thing just hasn't been with someone long enough to develop that serious bond. It took a while to teach him how to look at me, that I was in the same space as him if his attention got consumed with something. I would hold a treat between my finger and thumb in front of his face and repeat "focus." When he looked at me and not the treat, I would give it to him while he was looking at me. Now when I am out and calling him, half the time he will look at me and when he doesn't, I call out focus and then he does. Hit and miss if he actually comes ... le sigh!

I think one of my concerns is that I start training him with a technique that is actually counter productive. Then I would have to undo the bad training. Since I am pretty much at the beginning, this is a good time to solicit advice.

I am in a position to do actually training routines with him, I just need to decide which style and go with it. I was all set to go with the trainer's style but I can't wait two months to begin. I figure that if in two months I do decide to go with her, then I can teach him her style then.

So he is doing very well in many ways. Come is one that I would really like some direction with. I know that this is also one of the hardest ones so patience is required. I am patient, and tenacious. I can stay the course. I actually need to see if he will indeed come to a place where he will go down when I command in a dangerous situation. I had him on the leash outside and it slipped out of my hand the other week. It is a retractable and it scootched toward him scaring him and he took off. I gave chase and "pounced" and managed to grab him before he got to traffic. Scared me so bad. Now I have a wrist band around my wrist attached to the leash. It's annoying but very comforting. That leash will not get away on me again.

Also when I was at the park, there was a dog fight. He was on the leash so I was able to pick him up right away but that would have been a time when I would have wanted to order him "down" so I could go and get him.

I also recognize that he may never get to a place where he will want to come when called. He may not be "that" dog and that's okay with me too. Shrug. Adapt. I will do my very best for him though to see if there is a way to bring us into a place of understanding. Smile.

Any advice or words of encouragement are very strongly appreciated. Thanks. Lauren

(It's funny. My daughter being on the transplant list for a double lung transplant is what motivated me to go and find something to love/comfort me. Definitely a good call getting this puppy. But I am just so emotional and have a lot of fear. I am really glad I have found this forum. It would have been horrible to have a first time yorkie without any information on how they operate. They truly are unique wee blessings.)

[Jellymint]

Monty Sleep.jpgAnd yes, my head is usually just under his left paw. Smile.

[barneysmommmy]

Have you tried using toys as motivators? Barney was not the least bit food motivated when I got him. But he will do anything to play with any toy that I am holding. Also, he as not a lap dog. He's now 3 and actually cuddles! These moments are rare and treasured, but they happen.

The "up, up" that you are training him can easily be turned into getting him to "pray." I have Barney put paws up on my arms and then I put his treat under my arm so his head bows down to get the food. It appears that he is praying.

Don't give up. He is sooo young. My 3 are all 3 years and up and they still love learning new tricks.

Sending very positive thoughts and prayers for your daughter's upcoming transplant surgery.

[canana]

It sounds like you're doing a fantastic job training him yourself! It was my understanding after attending a training course, that it's more a course to teach you how to train your dog. If you're doing well right now, it may not be horrible to just continue on as you are. I don't think all dogs need to go to 'puppy training schools'.

I can relate to your dog not being food-motivated. Scottie wasn't either at first. That was the main reason I had a slow start to training him when I got him at 5 months. He wasn't toy-motivated either.

When I finally got a clicker, persistently did my 10-15 minute daily training sessions with him (a few times throughout the day) and he showed the slightest bit of progress, I was so thrilled! I think my excitement showed and he fed off of that. My genuine excitement was his motivation and he started to enjoy the training/bonding with me! It was really funny when I learned how my excitement translated to his excitement lol...it was a lot of "What a goood boy!! You're the smartest!! You're the best boy ever!!"
From then onward, because he had a sensitive stomach, I trained him with his kibble and a clicker. As long as he was hungry, he was willing to learn.

After he got his basics (and then I had to 'train' him how to eat his meals without me feeding him), I started using treats when he was about 1 yr old. Instead of liver, which can cause upset stomach if fed too much, try lamb lung! Don't quote me on it, but I read that it can be fed as a protein. At the very least, my mister-most-sensitive-dog-ever Scottie didn't get upset stomach from it. In addition, green tripe is a very smelly but tasty treat almost all dogs cannot resist. You can buy it in the dehydrated 'whole' form or the freeze-dried pellet form.

Scottie was also 'like a cat'. He is quite an independent individual. He wasn't really a lap dog at first. But slowly and gradually, he became more cuddly. I think I had to accept that, because I didn't grant him access to the couch, as I wanted to train him he wasn't allowed on-off access at his will, but only on my terms (my fear is that he'll hurt himself jumping on and off). I was really strict! But I think I had to be, because boy, he's too smart for his own good and tries so hard many times to 'own me'. It's a battle really...but I insist on being 'boss'/'pack leader'.

At 9 months, I'd say you're doing good. Just be consistent with training the 'come' command. Treat every time he comes. Keep treats with you in all your pockets, so he doesn't know when you have it and when you don't. Make sure it's always fun when he comes (and never ever anything bad when he comes).

If you're concerned with being counter-productive, have you seen some Youtube videos on training? I am a fan of Kikopup's channel. Check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tV5qsH5tjYA Not sure what your trainer's style is, but I think whatever style you go with and the dog picks up on it, it's a good style

I've also come to terms that Scottie may never get 'come' down 100%. He's a toy breed; they're too mischievous and fun-loving to be that reliable. I just make sure I protect him at all times from any possible dangers. I occasionally get envious of those who walk/play with their dogs off-leash in public. But I also think, because he's so small and precious, I'd rather be protective of him than to risk him being hurt either by another dog or by traffic (you just never know!). I also recommend to not use the retractable leash, many others warned about using it. One story went on to be as crazy as the retractable wire slicing off the guys' finger and him not even realizing it!
Anyway, it's up to you, but I use a leather leash which gives me easy control and it's easy on the hand.

Best wishes to your daughter for the lung transplant. I love this forum as well, it's such a great tight-knit community.