Suggestions?
 

A little background...

Our girl has not particularly liked any kind of treat from the start. She once would "tolerate" yogurt drops but that was about it. She will eat freeze-dried chicken at times and loves "real" mini carrots. In fact, carrots are the only treats that she will eat whenever we offer.

Tonight we took Taffy to her first puppy class. There were only 2 others there but I feel as though the honor of the Yorkie breed is at stake!

Taffy was so well-behaved and her sweetest little self (even if a bit overwhelmed by all the strange sights/sounds, etc.) However, as I had worried a bit about...she would not accept the treats from the instructor as he demonstrated click training.

I thought I had prepared well for this problem though because I had taken tiny slices of the mini carrots. She would not take those either! Not from the instructor nor from us.

We really were the rebels of the class tonight, I'm afraid. Everyone else goes outside to potty and they had instruction on accomplishing potty training. Our girl? She came to us as a mere puppy already housebroken just from observing her mother. Very, very rarely does she have an accident and it's usually just a depth perception problem since it's right at the pad. (She's 10 months old; we've had her since she was 14 weeks. I'd guess we haven't had even a week's total of accidents if that.)

I finally decided to do a bit of explaining to the guy tonight because I could tell he was getting the wrong idea of our baby. She didn't fall for his treat temptation and she didn't potty outdoors and *big gasp* we free feed. (Oh yes, we were the only ones who do that, too.) I tried to explain that it really doesn't matter because it's kibble and she doesn't like that either.

The guy was a retired teacher and most of you know that I am, too, so I decided that I had to defend our girl's honor. This was during the potty training segment where he's doing all this about treats, etc. Our little girl never had to have treats to use her pee pad. As I said she trained herself by imitating her mother. However, once in awhile she will look up at us when she's finished peeing and we will give her a round of applause as though she's just won the Oscar. This only happens about once a week or so because our Southern belle really prefers to do her private business in private. (I must say he was quite taken aback by that description and FINALLY commented that we had a smart dog...LOL)

Okay, here's my need for suggestions (sorry the post is long but I'm still hurt that ours was not the star of the class tonight...a spaniel got that distinction...beautiful dog but not a Yorkie...LOL).

I need to think of something soft, small, and irrestible to take as treats that Taffy will enjoy. (We're supposed to have treats next week that will trump the teacher's...) I'm at a total loss and need suggestions! I cannot stand the thought of our little girl being pegged as "remedial" when she's actually gifted! (We have tried Yorkie Yummies, peanut butter chips, Cherrios...)

Case in point...we're not even supposed to use the word "sit" this week as we practice with the clicker and treats. Our girl sits (if she's not being stubborn) and only wants our applause in return. (Actually at times I think she even tolerates our applause.)

One other thing which is too funny not to share. When we got home tonight, she sat at one end of the room for the longest time just looking at my husband and me. It was really funny. We couldn't decide if we had embarrassed her at the class or if she was sitting there showing us her superiority...LOL Regardless of her intent, we got the cold shoulder for about the next half hour.

She did make friends with the spaniel though so it was a good night even though she was bored or disgusted with us...LOL

I really think my husband and I tried too hard tonight. Sheesh, I don't think I've worked as hard in a class since statistics in graduate school and I left the class tonight with about the same level of knowledge...LOL

Has anyone else had their Yorkie in a training class and stressed over it like we are? (By the way, I forgot to mention that we were told not to feed our dogs before class infering that we had... The guy just doesn't get it that she doesn't care for treats! She hadn't eaten in 4 or so hours. I didn't even respond to that though because I was getting pretty defensive of our baby girl by that time.) Grrrrr...

Your little girl sounds a real sweetheart, and if she were mine, i wouldnt want her to change.
May i ask the reason you decided to take her to classes?
I guess i'm not as strong as you, but if i had been to that first class, i dont think i would have gone back for a second one!
Taffy sounds a real character, and very well behaved.
She sounds very clever, and when she ignored you for a while, maybe she was saying...all that i do for you and you want more!! lol :D

Our girl works for little bits of the natural balance chubs! They are 99 cents at petco--we break off a little and use that for treats! Works like a charm. We use the lamb or turkey

We use the dried liver pieces.The only thing Tommy or Jackson will eat. Just a tiny little piece though.I get them at Pet Valu. Your little girl is adorable and sounds like a real sweetheart.:)

Hi Deb, dont know which kind of treats to use, but I think Taffy has to be the smartest, cutest dog in the class. So there!

Pieces of natural balance meat rolls are good to use as treats. You can get them at Petco. Mine are really picky about treats also

Honestly, it's not really a BAD thing that she won't take treats necessarily. I would love if my dog would listen to me all the time w/o treats but sometimes if I don't have that treat with me, Jackson goes a little ADD and his mind goes elsewhere and decides he doesn't need to listen to me. However, if I've got a treat, he will 100% have his full attention on me. He's a pretty well behaved dog for the most part but I wish I didn't use treats so much but what can ya do? They work :)

With that said, Jackson is VERY picky about his treats too. He will NOT take any kind of hard biscuit-type treat from anybody, and those are generally the treats people pass out at stores, etc. It's kind of embarrassing when Jackson just turns his nose up to their treat, LOL. He however LOVES those Wellness treats. They're little square shaped soft treats and he loves them. I've found them at Petco and Pet Valu. He also loves those tiny Bil Jac treats which are wonderful for training because they're sooo tiny. You can find them at Petsmart, Petco, etc. They're in a little purple bag with a Yorkie on the front. If all else fails with Taffy, I'd be surprised as hell if she didn't take a liking to real meat. Why don't you cook some chicken breasts plain, cut them up into tiny pieces and use that as a reward?

sorry but I just had to laugh when I read your story your little girl sounds just amazing not only is she super beautiful she's also super intelligent and full of caracter lol what a sweety.......as far as treats go sorry no suggestions here my two will eat just about anything, no wait let me correct that they'll just eat anything lol. the cooked chicken breast sounds like a good suggestion though.

Thanks so much, everyone!

You've given me several things I haven't tried which is a very good thing...LOL

MollysMum, one of the main reasons we are taking her to class is to learn how to teach her since she doesn't like treats...LOL...ironic, huh? The primary thing I want her to learn is "stay" because (selfishly, I guess) because I want to get some cute photos of her and for her own safety.

She also drives us crazy (!) with her mind games when we play. She wants us to play fetch and she's really great to fetch but she doesn't want to give it back after she fetches it so that we can continue to play. It is cute though...she will drop the toy but then step on it to hold it there or lay on it and then look up at us. The funniest though is that when I tell her I can't reach it, she'll move it about an inch closer to me. And then another inch when I protest...well, you get the picture...LOL (If it's a ball, she just nudges it towards me.) I am rather awed by her intelligence but I need to learn how to use it effectively.

Aside from the fun and vain reasons though, she needs to learn "come" because she got away from me once last week. She just did one of her jerk lunges and I didn't have the leash secure on my hand. Scared me to death but luckily there was no traffic on the cul de sac at the time! There is no way I can chase greased lightning so I just tried to keep an eye on where she went, etc. Everything is such an adventure for her! I watched her get 2 houses down and then stop and look back at me. I think at that time I said, "Taffy, get back here now." Anyway, she darted past me and ran into the house (I had taken time to throw open the front door and yell for my husband but of course, he didn't hear me).

It scared me so badly that I'm just now able to talk about it but I still remember the panic. This could have been my worst nightmare.

As I told my husband last night, I don't want the class to break her spirit, but I do want her to learn enough to be careful. I know she knows what she's doing...she just has a really stubborn will. You can see the intelligence and understanding in her eyes when I tell her something and the little toot can even understand certain words that we've had to start spelling...LOL (I know...everyone thinks we're imaging that but we throw the word...or its spelling into a sentence totally out of context and get the same response!)

None of the numerous books we've read to help in training her work since they all are based on treats. Even the guy last night told us he doesn't know how we'll teach her since she doesn't like them unless we use the old way of punishment. I can tell you right now that there is no way that will happen! It is the only real thing that man and I agreed on last night.

I wish you guys could have seen her looking at us last night after we got her home. It was the funniest thing in the context of the evening. I think we insulted her by taking her to school...LOL (However, she really did enjoy playing with the spaniel. She impressed the guy again during the free play because she laid down in a submissive way when she met the spaniel...textbook style. By this time though I was wishing she would hold her ground...LOL However, the trainer said something like "Wow, you'll never have to worry about being sued.")

I know this is long again but I can't seem to talk about her in words. She is deserving of paragraphs...LOL

I'm eager to see how she behaves with us today. I think we really "insulted" her last night by treating her like a dog! Seriously...

Mooney loves Wellness Puppy Treats they are great. they are soft but can be broken up even smaller which is what you want w/ clicker training. Good luck the clicker is great

For training treats I highly recommend the Natural Balance dog food rolls sold at Petco or the Pet Botanics dog food roll sold at Petsmart. Also you could try boiled chicken breast or string cheese. Most dogs go crazy over the chicken.

Hey! Thanks! I had forgotten all about string cheese. She generally likes cheese in any form.

She does love chicken as several have mentioned. She eats that quite often but I'd never thought of trying it as a treat. (Well, I'll take that back. I had thought of trying the freeze-dried chicken breasts that she will eat.)

You guys are great with your suggestions! I can't wait to try them.

By the way, she's happy as can be this morning. Guess all if forgiven...LOL

As far as needing treats for the "sit"... All I have to say is either "sit" or "Taffy, sit" and she plops her little bottom down and looks up at me.

Ahhhhhh...

I have three dogs: my Fergus, 10 months old, 5 pounds of completely untrained yorkie. Hamish, my teapot 19 pound yorkie who came to us through rescue and was so happy to be with us he has been obedient about nearly all things since his first few months, and Dante: my 100 pounds of Search and Rescue German Shepherd, who has been training extensively since he was 8 months old in obedience, SAR, and personal protection.

For Dante we used chopped up bits of hot dog (because thats what the instructor liked...she held them in her own mouth in the beginining...yuck!), then went to the rolls of fresh food which we called "puppy crack" because all the dogs went mental for it!

Fergus listens the way most terriers do: when it suits him! I have a dog that waits for my commands. Sits, stays, heck, he even finds lost kids in the woods when I want him to, and mostly he does this more for love than for treats (which drove my trainers mad....he would ignore treats they dropped on the train in order to get to the "victim" quicker). I finally found a trainer who understood that different dogs have different motivations. Dante will track a lost person for me, the trainer, my SO, but, as my trainer with 20 years of police canines puts it "he works so much harder for YOU". And its true. He loves what he is doing and he does it for ME, because I asked.

Find what motivates you baby. If its applause/praise I say go with that and stop trying to mold your dog into the silly spaniel that the trainer is used to. YOU know your dog best, and if the trainer tries to force his methods on a dog that works in a different drive (prey drive, toy drive, food drive, etc) you will end up with an unhappy pet.

Sorry this was long. But I have years in this game and trying to find someone knowledgable that recognizes not all dogs are cookie cutter replicas can be hard.

And terriers are SMART. They are way smarter than dog trainers. So, let her show you how to do it.

I think the trick is to find the thing that Taffy finds rewarding, which is not necessarily a food reward. Does she have a favorite toy? I have seen trainers hand over a 'special squeaky' for a few moments of play after a dog does a good job with a specific behavior. (Daisy has a tiny piggy we found at PetCo that she loves so much; it has exactly the right amount of squish and will fit into her little mouth easily.)

[QUOTE=r
And terriers are SMART. They are way smarter than dog trainers. So, let her show you how to do it.[/QUOTE]

I agree with all you said Redvalaria, especially this last line. :thumbup:

Oh, TOY, I love your posts! :D I don't know about treats, but I think you have such a way with words that you should write a book about Taffy! It would be a best-seller for sure! :D

Thanks so much for your response. I am fascinated by your experiences with your dogs and I so agree with you that each has their own learning style, etc. Cookie cutter teaching doesn't work well with all children so I can understand why it doesn't work with other animals.

Actually this trainer did do things right, I think. For the most part after trying to get Taffy to take treats in several passes, he didn't offer a treat but would say to her, "You're sitting nicely. I'd give you a treat if you'd take it." I couldn't fault him for that...it's just I got the feeling that since ours wasn't one of his successful interactions, he'd just as soon we disappear...LOL

Can't do that...it's not the money. Shoot, I've spent way much more on treats...LOL...but Taffy needs the social interaction with others, especially other puppies. We are retired with no children/grandchildren so much as older parents interact differently with human children (vocabulary, etc.), I think Taffy is getting that vibe and reacting from us.

Every day I am astounded by some new facet of her intellect or personality. I realized just yesterday that she knows my husband as Frank or Daddy. I can tell her to go to him (using either name) or ask where he is by either name and she will respond appropriately. Also yesterday I got tired of playing fetch so I casually commented, "Go see if your Daddy wants to play." I'd never said such a thing before but she literally picked up the toy and took it over in front of his chair, laid it down, and then looked up at him imploringly. Generally, I refer to him as Frank which is another reason this shocked me and made me realize she knew him by 2 different words.

This ability to process new information is what is so fascinating to me...and although I am highly prejudiced (and know it), I really think she is probably a candidate for a canine MENSA. LOL...I know I probably do have too much time on my hands to think of such things but she really is amazing.

It does make me wonder though if any research has been undertaken to use information such as this to correlate to children with autism. Hmmm...

Thank you so much.

I do love to write...probably because I love to talk so much! I have entertained the thought but haven't pursued it as such except in two personal books I did for friends.

As an aside...Taffy doesn't seem too traumatized after last night. She just brought her harness and laid it by my chair. The girl can communicate...LOL

In my 20 years working with and training dogs, what I will say is this: you have to be flexible and follow your instincts.

My Dante was a rescue. He HATED the car. I don't know what they did to him, but cars were traumatic for him. Till I started making car rides seem like the best thing ever. Usually by taking him to a drive through! Ever time I had to go somewhere, he went in the car, we stopped and got chicken nuggets or some other devilishly bad for US treat! Now, I can barely get out the door without him. But on the trail (which he loves) he ignores food totally and just looks at me like "am I doing it right??", I just love that big guy!

Hamish had been abandoned to a shelter because he was a "runner". Not a lot of fenced yards in the NE of Scotland and a dog that won't come home is a problem. He started that business with me. I would call...he would take off. I just handled him differently. I said fine, went in, shut the door and ignored him (we had a dog door, and lived on a large farm). He would be sitting by the back door a few minutes later and I would let him in. When he discovered that we were NOT going to chase, he stopped running. We "reason with" him mostly. He understands english, much like your girl. when he does bad, we call his name and say "did you do that??" he hangs his head....turns away...so pitiful!

Fergus has been a challenge. he is a mommy's boy. Totally. I haven't discovered his "drive" yet. What motivates him mostly is being protective over me and keeping everyone else at bay! I just haven't figured a way to turn that into a training tool!

Well, I'm here to tell ya, I can relate. My little Zhoie went to good manners puppy class at 5mos. She too didn't take treats nor could she tolerate the sound of even a quiet clicker. Needless to say, she was the belle of the ball only because she wanted to socialize with the other pups. That was the best part of class for us, as she doesn't get to play with any small dogs. My girlie only eats her food and takes nothing else.

Zhoie would not participate in class, but training at home now and knowing the proper techniques has been great. Now we train with praise and toys as a reward. No clicker involved.

GOOD LUCK!

HELP, am I posting a reply in the right place, sorry...gals..new to this and I think it is difficult site to use??????

Your post was absolutely in the right place! Just remember though that it's not a "chat" room so if you don't see a response to your post immediately, it's because sometimes the poster is off reading other threads or off the computer entirely. (Personally I am the world's worst at leaving Yorkie Talk up on the computer when I get up to do something else. It's my favorite site these days and sometimes I can have it "on" all day without getting back to it until night!)

Also, there are many times that you post and althought folks may read it, they don't respond. Plus, sometimes posts just sorta die a sad, lonely death with no responses at all.

I was afraid since my original post turned out so long that I wouldn't have any responses but I have been pleasantly surprised today. (I return over and over during the day just to see if there are any responses and get as excited as a teen getting the car keys for the first time!)

And by the way, I've been on here for months and am still finding places on the site I haven't visited before. It's a treasure trove of goodies! Welcome!

Oh Taffy, she HAS to be a lil diva! ;)

Any luck with any of the suggestions?

I have heard that dogs have the mentality of a 2 year old child, they can understand and have that sneaky little way of doing things that a two year old has, and of course the sweetness one has as well. I didn't believe that until I realized that my dog would try to escape from the yard, she would look over to where i was and slowly move toward the fence where she knew she could get out, this really surprised me and now I believe it... you have yourself a really smart 2year old child :aimeeyork
good luck w/ the training. :animal-pa

We were out and about both today and yesterday for a short while and both times I forgot I wanted to stop by the grocery and get string cheese! Grrr...my memory is non-existent sometimes.

However, get this...

Today, she learned to lay down when I say, "Taffy, lay down." She learned this with no treats but with our toy toss. It is so funny though because after we started the game, I'd say "Taffy, sit" before I would pick up her toy (after getting it from her...still gotta work on that...LOL) and toss it again. I felt like I was playing "Simon Says"...LOL

At times I'd point to her and then back to my nose to get her to focus totally on me whenever she was distracted. Then when I said, "Taffy, sit" and she didn't I'd just cross my arms and look away. (Drove her crazy...LOL) Within 5-10 seconds, the little toot would sit...just a test of wills. When I didn't give in and toss the toy anyway, she decided to play the game my way.

This wasn't new learning because I'd already taught her to sit and as one poster wrote above, I realized that I taught her that by just playing, no treats needed sooooo...today she learned how to lay down the same way. She got so into that routine of toss, command to lay down, lay down, and then toss again that she started bypassing my telling her to lay down. LOL...she'd run back and slide into place like a runner stealing base. That's when I had to start mixing it up with the "Sit" and "Lay down."

She loves playing this game so much that she tired me out! Forget that short attention span she's supposed to have. What is funny though is that I discovered she really likes me to say her name with the cue. "Sit" doesn't get near the quick response I get from "Taffy, sit." The girl likes that personal touch...LOL

I am thrilled! Why on earth I tried to force a square peg into a round hole is beyond me. I just used some of the techniques I used when I taught kids whose attention wandered (as in the focus on me). Now I'm in territory I understand...LOL I may not know a darn thing about training dogs but evidently Taffy does not consider herself a dog anyway and I do know how to teach!

LOL...I think I'm going to love teaching her. Forget the training...LOL (We will still go to "school" though because she loves recess!)

Frank and I both talk to her all the time since we're here 24/7 and I promise you she perked up her ears when we started talking about that spaniel (her new friend)in the class! She seemed satisfied when I told her we'd see her later. (LOL...even I will admit I don't think she understands the concept of days of the week...LOL) She is really smart though so who knows? (LOL...folks, some of that is tongue-in-cheek so don't call the white coats for me.)

However, I think it's pretty obvious that it's a good thing I never had chidren...

I totally believe it, too! She is much smarter than I gave her credit for and believe me, I gave her quite a bit of credit...LOL

I just failed to take into consideration that she doesn't really know she's a d-o-g. I tell her every day how pretty she is, how smart she is, etc. but I leave out the part where I tell her she's a d-o-g...LOL

A lot of the SAR dogs I have worked with do NO food treats at all, but get a special tug or toy when they have accomplished their goal (like finding a person, or detecting a drug). We had one who just wanted his 4 inches of pvc pipe that he carried around! it was hilarious, but it was his SPECIAL toy. he only got it on training or missions.

if she is responding like that then know that this is how you should train her.

Good luck, she sounds like a real bright one!

Have I ever told you how much I love Taffy stories? She's such a lucky, wonderful little girl!! I just love her to pieces! :)

I just went through the same thing with Lily at the Petsmart Class!! She is pad trained, free feeds w/dry kibble and doesn't like treats either!! The first night of school she was afraid of the clicker and didn't want any part of treats or anything there!! The next week I cooked some ground beef and put it in container and she did great with it!! I froze some and I will just take it as needed ... that is the only time she gets it and she has never had it before so it worked as a "treat" for her!! Good Luck!!

Both our dogs LOVE the Wellness treats.... until the instructor brought out the Puperoni (not sure how to spell the brand). She would only do commands for that while we were there. I was kind of mad because he never asked if those treats were okay to give her and we only feed organic, and once she had those, she ignored our treats for the rest of the night. Zukes also makes great tiny treats!
:p