# Fun and useful proofing for pet dogs



## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Those of us who are training for and trialing in performance sports know the importance of proofing the training. In other words we do lots of work to test whether our dogs have had sufficient training to reliably execute the behavior at any time or place and with any level of distractions and oddities. Most people with dogs whose main job is as companion in chief of the couch probably don't think to much about proofing our training, but since some proofs are about ensuring that you can save your dogs life with an order to do something important very reliably all training really should be proofed.


For example your dog just bolted the front door and crossed the street. You need for her to be able to return home safely. What should you do? Well, that depends. If you live on a dead end and you are absolutely certain there is no chance of being hit by a car you stand at the door and give your happy hearty order to come. She better return hastily. On the other hand what if your street is busy? We live at a T shaped intersection with stop signs for all directions but many people barely tap their brakes and more people than not probably roll through in any direction at 15-25 mph (yes I've told the police to watch the intersection, they do and people slow down until they are gone). I would never plan to recall our dogs under those conditions. I would order a sit or down at distance. Our dogs know how to do that as does my mom's dog. Does yours?


I will give a couple of fun suggestions for these sorts of proofs here, but really also hope others will add their own.


Does your dog really know what the word sit means? We think they do, but do they really? At an Ian Dunbar workshop some years ago we played a sit game where we left our dog and walked away while Ian held the leash. When we stopped we did not turn around while Ian let go of the leash and we called the dog and then quickly told it to sit with our back turned. If the dog sat Ian said good dog. If we didn't immediately here a good dog we said sit again. I am happy to say Lily sat the second time I told her to. If you don't have a helper you can do a variation of this in an enclosed area with the dog off leash. Walk with the dog at heel while doing doodles (silly paths). Tell the dog to sit while you keep moving. Does the dog sit the first time. I can do this with Lily and leave her at sit, down or stand and then call her back to find heel. For her that game is mostly about finding her way back to heel but for lots of dogs the hard part really will be staying while you keep moving.


Does your dog know how to recall to you if they can't see you or at least see your face? When all of our dogs were youngsters we would play hide and seek recalls with them in the yard. Each of us would take treats and for Lily and Peeves a ball for variations. We would work from opposite ends of the yard and call them back and forth between us only rewarding for super fast returns. When they were little we could do this in the house to, so for toys and small minis you can play this game in the house too. If you are working by yourself, leave the dog on a sit and turn sideways or have your back to the dog and call them to front. They will have to turn and sit facing you to get the reward for the behavior.


So there is a start. Please add your ideas (I will also add more). Play games and have fun training your dogs. These are games to play for a life time and to save lives too.


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## Asta's Mom (Aug 20, 2014)

As you say proofing is very important even tho I do not have a performance dog - He knows his job and does it faithfully as I have trained his behavior in many different situations.


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## Click-N-Treat (Nov 9, 2015)

I like games like these. We set aside one puppy meal for recall practice. Like you, we hid in the house and called our dogs, or played in the yard. Recall is one of those skills that you never stop training and never stop rewarding. 

A variation on the recall game is randomly calling your dog to you while they are busy playing, reward with treats, and send them right back to what they were doing. This way recall doesn't automatically mean fun time is over. If your dog resists recall because it always means outdoor playtime ends, surprise your dog. Call your dog, go inside, reward with a treat party, and then immediately go back outside.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

Excellent games! I have over the years found Wait! to be the single most useful command. Wait to go out of the door, Wait to get out of the car, Wait while I put leashes on, Wait when crossing roads, and especially Wait at a distance if bicycles approach unexpectedly. I started by simply body blocking while they got the idea, and would then ask them to sit and wait while I walked away a few steps, followed by recall for treats and a game. Because I use it so much the dogs learned that it means "stay where you are until I tell you what to do next" - I don't mind whether they stand, sit, or lie down as long as they stay put.


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## Rose n Poos (Sep 22, 2017)

I'm working still on these particular skills with my boys. DH does not participate for various reasons. Any suggestions on how I work with them so they listen to him too? What I have trained, they seem to perform for him about as well, but I'm especially concerned with those emergency situations.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Rose n Poos said:


> I'm working still on these particular skills with my boys. *DH does not participate for various reasons. Any suggestions on how I work with them so they listen to him too?* What I have trained, they seem to perform for him about as well, but I'm especially concerned with those emergency situations.



Without trying to pry about DH and why he normally doesn't help you can try just having him sit someplace and do recalls that way if it is a matter of him not being mobile. Otherwise if it is a matter of unwilling rather than unable I would tell him you will make his favorite dessert or such in exchange for some help in training. I sometimes have to do that with BF.


Here is another game I use to reinforce name recognition (which I find the need for since sometimes I call Lily and Peeves shows up) and which also can reinforce a nice recall.


I have described this game elsewhere, but here it is for the purposes of this thread. It is called "get it, get it." Work in a space where the dog can't take off on you (fenced yard if you have or a room with a fair amount of open floor otherwise). Start with the dog on leash and sitting next to you. They don't have to look up at you for this. Get their attention on you having a treat and toss it where they see it and as the treat lands tell them to get it. As soon as they pick it up and start to chew say the dog's name (not come, just name). As they are returning toss a treat in a different direction and tell them to get it. Once they pick it up and start to chew call their name. Repeat, repeat as much as you want. Don't feed them for coming but instead let them learning that coming will give them a chance to go get another treat. Once they understand the game done on leash you can take the leash off and toss the treats further always waiting until they pick the treat just thrown before saying the name. Essentially you are making it fun since they get to trot off for a treat but they also learn that their name always means they should attend to you. As this continues to improve add a collar grab when they get close before you send them for the next cookie so they get used to the idea you may reach for and restrain them when they approach. Other than that keep it pretty informal and it will stay fun so it can be nice and snappy as the basis of recall for the dog to hear its name and know it should be heading to you any time that happens. As Click said above recall should be practiced frequently through a dog's life time and this is a very informal way to add a fresh element to that practice.


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## Mufar42 (Jan 1, 2017)

Thank you. I will start some with Renn. He was doing good but somehow we got lost. I've been giving him free run in the backyard with a ball. He will after a few runs bring it a drop it close to me and wait till I throw it. We can play over and over. However now he no longer want to come back to me to return into the house. He had a firm sit so I would do that go to him, pet, him grab his collar then play more. After about 4 times I would attach his lead walk a bit then come into the house but now he is getting wise to that and doesn't seem to want to come back at all. I guess I will need to put a long lead on him and practice.?


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Maybe try the get it game with treats going in and our of the house Mufar.


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## Skylar (Jul 29, 2016)

Before I got into training Babykins, seriously, I thought you just needed a short training session to train the basics. I didn't know that dogs don't generalize easily and they need many training sessions in many locations.

Babykins is the first dog I trained so I was a newbie (I left the training of our tpoo to my older daughter who was a naturally gifted trainer while DH and I worked long hours). I quickly learned that when my dog knew "sit" in the kitchen, she didn't know it in the family room.... and when she knew sit in the family room, she didn't know sit on the family room couch. We practiced sit outside, in the car, in the park.... in all kinds of locations. It's the repetition in many locations that makes a solid sit and we practice both with voice and hand signal.

Recall - my dog had a horrible recall for a long time - no matter what I did - and I got great advice here at PF. Ironically her recall in formal obedience has always been good. But frankly recall outside of the obedience ring is far more important. I work this every day in all kinds of ways, in different locations. I suspect I'll be doing this her whole life. She is trained that when someone other than I walks her, when they come back home, she comes and searches the house to find me and if appropriate, she comes into front position close to my feet and well with a position where I can grab her collar if this was an emergency. I often have treats in my hand to encourage this behavior and she always gets petting and praise. I take her to the park and set her into distractions on a 15' flexileash. I let her explore then I recall - if needed I tug on the leash to remind her to come back - she gets lots of treats and praise and petting, then I give her the release word so she can go back to what was fun. I don't give her the opportunity to make mistakes which is why I use the leash. I don't want to rehearse "no recall". I will randomly in the house do a recall - again random treats with petting and praise. Sometimes a recall means a toy toss or tug. We're working on our drop on recall - that is an Obedience task that is performed in the ring, but we practice in the park, on the lawn near our training clubs, in our back yard as well as inside our house and training facilities. Being able to tell your dog to immediately lie down or sit from a distance could be a life saver.

When I think back to when I first got Babykins, and over the first year there were many behaviors that I trained because they were useful for a house pet. Behaviors like sitting while the leash was hooked on, laying down while their food was prepared, sitting and to remain sitting by the front door when it's open, leave it etc. Sometimes it felt like she was never going to learn. She would stand up when we put the leash on, or wouldn't sit; she would lay down but then get up and beg when the pet food was being sorted out (for 4 pets) and she would rush out of the door instead of waiting for her release word......... I never got upset, I just put her back into position but I wondered when would this finally stick. It seemed like an overwhelming task to train some of these behaviors. About a year later I was at the front door talking to a deliveryman who was remarking on how well behaved my dog was sitting by the door and not making any moves to dart out....... and I was thinking back to how wonderful it was to have a dog that automatically sits when she hears the word leash and waits for it to be latched, she lays down on her mat to wait for food prep.... all the behaviors that I wanted kicked in. Some came more quickly than others..... I was training a teenager, since she was almost a year old when I got her, it might have been quicker with a puppy who is more compliant, less obstinate. The key take away message for pet owners is to determine what behaviors will make your dog a great pet - then work on them and don't give up - keep working on them and maybe within days, to weeks to months you will look back and realize you have that great dog.



Mufar, maybe if he knew he would get treats, and perhaps more play time (maybe playing tug if you don't want him running after a toy) when he came in the house - he would want to return? Seems to me he has learned that coming into the house means the end of fun. 

As a separate issue, I would put that long line on Renn and practice recall - toss some balls, then a recall then toss some balls. At other times let him explore, then recall then release to explore again. Get creative - where else can you practice recall on a long line? It's always a party time when he comes - food, praise, petting and/or tug on a toy or toss a toy. Randomly he then goes with you on a leash but most of the time he gets released for fun.


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## Rose n Poos (Sep 22, 2017)

Thank you for the additional tips. Re DH, let's just say that he's used to being a weekend, summer vacation kind of "parent" and leaves the rearing to others. I can sometimes get him to play along for a few minutes.

I started "get it, get it" tonight with the boys. They're smart enough, I just must keep at it. 

Thanks again.


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## Mufar42 (Jan 1, 2017)

Yes, thank you. I'm going to work more on all that has been mentioned. I do think he may be getting the fun is over when you come inside. Inside I really prefer they dog dog run around. Mainly because of my husbands balance issues. But I think I may just change that up a bit. I think I will do coming inside, treat, back outside more treats inside. And when he comes in most impurely I will make sure my husband is sitting so that Renn can have more playtime inside too until he settles on his own, I think you may have nailed this. I need to make indoors as fun as outdoors. Thanks again. Sometimes although I've worked with my past dogs, life changes and I may be doing things more conservatively than I have in past and this is hindering progress.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Rose n poos I hear you on the weekend dad sort of thing. I sometimes want help with things with the dogs and the chickens and it can be like pulling teeth. Thankfully since poodles are quick studies on so many things a few minutes here and there should mostly do the trick.


Mufar yes life changes can make the project of the current dog different than what worked in the past. Your plan sounds good.


Another thing I think is important for all dogs is impulse control. The best game for starting to develop this is Susan Garrett's excellent "It's Yer Choice" which can be expanded in many many ways. One of my favorite ways to broaden its use is waiting for permission to take food. Obviously with a youngster or an older dog new to this you start with a simple sit in front of the food, but later you can have the dog(s) do position changes and such while leaving the food. Javelin and Lily now can start at sits by their breakfast or dinner and each do different position changes like Javelin down, Lily stand. They really have to listen and at the end I make them each wait a few seconds for them to offer sustained eye contact before getting the go ahead to eat. They also can be told to sit in the middle of their meal for a few seconds. I know that part might sound mean but if you have a dog that tends to be a glutton it can be very useful to interrupt the inhalation style of eating.


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## Mufar42 (Jan 1, 2017)

Thanks lillycd...this morning we worked in the driveway some. He did well. Some dogs went past and although he was excited he sat and watched. WE actually got a bit closer to the street today, and I've used some method that I read about on susan garret with throwing treats down. I just happened to have some and he lost interest for a few min to find the treats, Then the lady with the two dogs came closer he barked 1x and went back in his attention sit. So we are doing better on that. Then we just worked on his heel and focus in the driveway. He can sit front now but when I ask for help position he seems to leap 3 ft in the air first then goes to my side. So we are working on that, I just shorten the leash and we ended it on a good note doing what I wanted. Now he is tuckered..Next we will work on back yard, recall coming in and out. He actually likes to work and to play , so that is good. Sit at food or interrupt at meal won't work for him as he could care less about eating, And he takes forever to eat his food. If he gets interrupted mid way he doesn't go back. I do not free feed, just leave it while I'm on computer then he loses if he hasn't eaten. Thanks again for all the advise. I'm feeling better this week so going to work him more. I think that is really what he needs.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Mufar42 said:


> Thanks lillycd...this morning we worked in the driveway some. He did well. Some dogs went past and although he was excited he sat and watched. WE actually got a bit closer to the street today, and I've used some method that I read about on susan garret with throwing treats down. I just happened to have some and he lost interest for a few min to find the treats, Then the lady with the two dogs came closer he barked 1x and went back in his attention sit. So we are doing better on that. Then we just worked on his heel and focus in the driveway. He can sit front now but when I ask for help position he seems to leap 3 ft in the air first then goes to my side. So we are working on that, I just shorten the leash and we ended it on a good note doing what I wanted. Now he is tuckered..Next we will work on back yard, recall coming in and out. * He actually likes to work and to play , so that is good. Sit at food or interrupt at meal won't work for him as he could care less about eating, And he takes forever to eat his food. If he gets interrupted mid way he doesn't go back. I do not free feed, just leave it while I'm on computer then he loses if he hasn't eaten. Thanks again for all the advise. I'm feeling better this week so going to work him more. I think that is really what he needs.*



For dogs work and play shouldn't particularly feel different, so this kind of training never has to end just be built and built on. It is too baad food related games won't work for Renn, but that is the way sometimes. A favorite toy can work just as well.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I do so agree about work and play being the same thing if you get it right. Poppy has even invented a recall game - she either runs ahead or waits as I walk away, and then zooms back for a bounce and a game when I fling my arms wide and call "Wheeeeeeee!". I deliberately don't use Come - this is her game, and she decides when to start and when to finish, and this way it doesn't matter if she ignores me (which is more than anyone else within sight or earshot seems able to do!).


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

fjm it is important to keep it balanced and having the dogs get joy out of what we do with them. I think a dog should love doing things with their owners under the guise of playing a game, doing a trick or calling it training. One thing I try to do is to listen to what the poodles are telling me about what they want to do on a given day. If I call one of them to come get dressed for the car and they don't show up I go check on them and ask again, if they don't budge they get to stay home. That is rare. Usually they both come running and spin and jump with joy at going to play the funny games we play at my club.


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## Rose n Poos (Sep 22, 2017)

lily cd re said:


> One of my favorite ways to broaden its use is waiting for permission to take food. Obviously with a youngster or an older dog new to this you start with a simple sit in front of the food, but later you can have the dog(s) do position changes and such while leaving the food. Javelin and Lily now can start at sits by their breakfast or dinner and each do different position changes like Javelin down, Lily stand. They really have to listen and at the end I make them each wait a few seconds for them to offer sustained eye contact before getting the go ahead to eat. They also can be told to sit in the middle of their meal for a few seconds. I know that part might sound mean but if you have a dog that tends to be a glutton it can be very useful to interrupt the inhalation style of eating.


Woot! We've been doing something consistently right . I haven't done position changes so I'll add that in. Neo was such a food inhaler that I had to make him pause for his own good. He now pauses and sits on his own, then continues eating!


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I should try the pause in eating with Poppy, but she gobbles her food so fast I don't think there would be time between her nose entering the bowl and it being empty! A meal is only a large tablespoonful, but even so it vanishes extremely fast - I have resorted to giving it to her in stages before now. On the plus side she has learned to leave Sophy and the cats strictly alone while they are eating - they prefer to enjoy their food in a more leisurely fashion.


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## For Want of Poodle (Feb 25, 2019)

Today we learned that come doesn't really mean come when there is a interesting smelling black and white friend in the yard.... my girl has lost off leash privileges in the yard as I think it was a baby, as it didn't spray, and is living with its family under our back shed. :ahhhhh::ahhhhh::ahhhhh:

So .... more proofing ideas for come please? We walk off leash a fair bit and often play the "stupid human gets lost if I don't pay attention game"- basically I hide or go the other direction if she is distracted and she comes running to fiND me. She is great at that, but her recall has been slowly declining for distractions. I admit I have been shamelessly using the run away to entice her to chase method. But.... smelly friend! I also worry about her recall if we were to encounter someone else. Hasn't happened, as I always see them before she does, but bound to eventually. 

Also... any ideas for proofing and training stay at a distance?


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## Charmed (Aug 4, 2014)

Rose n Poos, before our youngest dogs were solid on "come" from any family members, I trained the dogs to come to three sharp toots on a whistle. I left the whistle hanging by the door so everyone would remember to use it. It worked great because the dogs did not differentiate between "blowers". Our yard is shaped in such a way that the dogs can be out of sight, but not out of hearing range for the whistle. I did not want anyone to use their own (mouth) whistle because people whistle differently. Needless to say coming to the whistle was always rewarded with high value treats.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Until your recall is rock solid reliable there is no such thing as being off leash! This is life saving stuff and cannot be anything less than stellar. Start with having pup sit and wait to be recalled on a 6' leash giving treats for picking their butt up to come towards you right away. Then insist on a sit when they get to you (still 6' leash). Then have pup sit when they get to you and touch the collar and release to something fun alternating with treats. The game can be something like doing a trick such as a spin or a nose touch. Repeat that on a long line after everything is good close up. Then add in a trick that will involve you or pup getting some distance so that coming on the long line doesn't mean fun is over. Once it is all good on a long line in your front yard, back yard and someplace not close to home like a strip mall parking lot in a quiet area then outside store entrances then repeat the whole process off leash in your fenced yard.


Remember you must keep yourself more interesting than anything else for activities that may really be more boring than fun. By example I trained Javelin a lot of time in my yard by making him want to follow and chase me to develop his centripetal attraction for me while we were in my fenced yard. Once that was solid I took him on lead not only to my front yard, but to a small park in my neighborhood, to parking lots, and into pet stores (big chains). He learned sit and down stays and recalls in the aisles of those stores (started in quiet aisles like all the way in the back near grooming). We gradually moved close to the store entrance (also where I taught Lily sit, down and stand stays). We proofed sit and down stays with Javelin right in front of the doggie day care situated so he could see crazy dogs bouncing off the glass). This was the basis of testing him for his CGC.


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## For Want of Poodle (Feb 25, 2019)

Charmed- great idea on whistle training. Our previous dogs -and a cat!- were all whistle trained, and it worked great. Just dug it out and practiced with Annie and some sausage. Biggest issue with her is once I have her attention, it's hard to shake it to practice a recall again, but she is definitely getting the idea that whistle =delicious! 

Catherine- you are right, I have been lazy, and i need to go back to basics.... she came to me with a near 100% recall off leash and no other commands, that went quickly to 100%, even with distractions like chasing birds, and seldom went more than 15 m from me off leash, so i focused on other stuff and was lazy with proofing recall. Our typical off leash is after/during a walk. We scout out the area, and i recall her on leash, sit, down, etc, a few times to make sure her focus is on me before i let her off - if it isn't i wont. Then we immediately do a few recalls off leash with great treats. We do a lot of catch, treat/praise/pet and release, and trests jus for checking in. But now that she's 6 months..... yes, back to basics it is. Recall on leash with distractions is a good idea, i honestly hadnt thought about that- and yes, people is one of the distractions i am most worried about! She is super good at focus in pet stores/stores (come, sit, down, wait with treat on floor for an OK to eat it). Haven't tried stay there though, so will have to add that in next time. Nearest is about an hr away. I need to look for a farmers market... the nearest dog friendly store here is the garden centre, and she just thinks it's boring. 

Any ideas for seeming more fun? I am a calm quiet person, which means I have a calm puppy, but isn't the greatest for being the most interesting thing in the world


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

It sounds like you mostly need to refresh things that have lapsed. I am guilty there too. I think we all tend to be so. I would teach really fun tricks that center on interactions with you so you become super fun without trying to counter your native personality. I am pretty low key myself. I tend to do things like nose touches, spin and twist and invited jump ups. For Javelin the jump up (which I call give hugs) is integrated into his training to work and is a great releaser that invites him to make very direct eye contact. You could also develop tug play as a way to make you fun time.


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## For Want of Poodle (Feb 25, 2019)

Ooooh..... tug is a good idea, she loves that. We have been doing "you must back off and sit at a distance if I have your toy then I will throw jt" after too much jumping led to a few bad scrape bruises from teeth. But it's been long enough she might be out of that habit and I can reintroduce tug. She knows hug too, but isn't a huge fan. I taught it to teach her what off means, then i kept it because its cute. She used to like hop, which I stopped at the same time because she got crazy. Maybe we can try that again too as a reward, not as part of obedience.

Thanks for all the advice- I can't seem to find a positive trainer offering classes withhin 45 min right now, and health issues make driving further a bad idea. The highly recommended trainer offering puppy classes when we were looking had a website talking about leash pops and pinch collars for puppy class, so we stayed far, far away. And the CKC club is not training over the summer. Stalking poodleforum has been really, really helpful with training Annie


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Whenever I find myself stuck on getting something to work I always try to look back into my on the shelf tools and techniques. It sounds like your shelf is loaded with great stuff. Keep looking around up there. 



Well I don't ever use leash pops but I do train with pinch collars and encourage handlers in my classes to consider them if I think they would be helpful. I also teach them how to use them in a way that they can be faded. * But I certainly wouldn't ever put a pinch collar on a puppy! *It is too bad you don't have a decent balanced methods place near you.


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