# Handy Tip for Service Dog Handlers



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

Here's a tip for those of you who are training service dogs: create a fake name for your dog. Here's why.

Noelle was in a beautiful down/stay in a busy store. Everything was perfect. A man came over and struck up a conversation about how good Noelle was being. Then he asked, "What's her name?"

"Noelle."
The man crouched down, made kissing noises, reached out his hand, and said, "Hi Noelle!" in a bright friendly voice. 

Did you guess that Noelle's internal poodle silly switch got triggered? Big time. Even though she didn't break her down/stay, I still had a hyperactive, way too happy poodle on my hands. 

Here's what I should have done. Train Noelle that the name "Candace" means give mom mesmerizing eye contact in exchange for a mega super awesome treat. 

A stranger asks, "What's your dog's name?"
"Candace."
Noelle's head whips around to look deep into my eyes, oblivious to the world.
Stranger tries to get Noelle's attention by saying, "Hi, Candace." 
Noelle continues stare at me hypnotically.
I say, "Good Candace." After the stranger leaves, Noelle gets a mega treat.

My old SD Honey's alias was Sparkle. Even if you don't pair the alias with a specific behavior, I suggest creating an alias anyway. It makes working in public a whole lot easier.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

That is very clever and yes, super important and I think not just for service dogs. I think it could be very useful for performance sport dogs too to have an alias that tells them something important for your working routine. For example if you have a crowded on deck area and people are trying to talk to you and/or the dog use the alias as a way to get laser focused attention away from the crowd. Alternatively you could put the alternate names on your crates and teach the dog not to budge when addressed by that name. At big shows sometimes you have to walk away from your crate. Sometimes I worry about people luring a too friendly poodle out of the crate.


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## Beautiful Blue (Apr 24, 2017)

I might even use a different, random name each and every time!! Or "Candace" will start associating the term to ... something. You know how their minds work!


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## Skylar (Jul 29, 2016)

Click-N-Treat, that's so smart. What a great way to handle a potential problem.

lily cd re - if you figure out a good plan with this please post. Babykins is so friendly that she would easily walk away with someone.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Skylar, both of mine would too! Part of why Javelin's house name (Javelin/Javvy) has nothing to do with his registered name is so that if I keep the registered name on his crate people won't know the name he answers to. Lily's registered name includes Lily so I am stuck there. I also know she will leave her crate for someone other than myself since the first time we went to rally nationals I stewarded on the Saturday of obedience and had no break to take her out to potty. I was able to ask a friend to take her out and despite my friend wondering if she would go with her she had no problem getting her to come out of the crate and go out for a potty break. I've always sort of hoped that it was because she really needed to go and not a matter of her being willing to go with any random stranger, but she is very friendly and flirty so I've never been sure.


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## Beautiful Blue (Apr 24, 2017)

Rio has come to know 2 terms for the same thing...and probably that is not uncommon in any household where more than one person interacts with the dog.

Example: "Settle" the word from the previous owner, gets the same response now with me as "lie down" Interchangeable.

Your Faux Name - - LOL - - unbeknownst to the over-friendly stranger, could be your word for "look at me" or "stay" or "play dead"


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## snow0160 (Sep 20, 2016)

This is a great thread and using an alias is a really good tip. I am going to work on sound training today and maybe a bit of public access. I love training!


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## Countryboy (May 16, 2011)

Tonka is quite used to ignoring anybody calling his name... including me.


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## spindledreams (Aug 7, 2012)

My girls is Lilo which was her puppy name and is a far cry from Jazz


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## Mfmst (Jun 18, 2014)

Great advice Click-N-Treat! It makes a lot of sense with a service animal that needs to focus on its partner and not on the admiring public. if I see a dog in a service vest, I'm going to observe from afar. Some folks have boundary issues or get excited to see a dog in unexpected places.


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

Countryboy said:


> Tonka is quite used to ignoring anybody calling his name... including me.


That made me laugh.


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## snow0160 (Sep 20, 2016)

Brevity is the soul of wit. His comment also made me smile.


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## Sammy the spoo (Jul 7, 2016)

That is a really smart idea! 

Sent from my A0001 using Tapatalk


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Not related to names, but a service dog question nonetheless. I am starting fetal pig dissections tonight in my class. Clearly I can't have Javelin getting involved with these specimens. I am not sure how he will react and of course instruction of the students has to take priority. Take him with me as usual or leave him home this week?


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

Hmmm... Hmmm, that's interesting. Here's my thinking. 

If leave it is more or less on default, unless you give him permission to interact with stuff in the environment, bring him as usual. 

If you're in a store, and he's still tempted by things, and you're staying leave it more than twice a trip, leave him home. 

Javvy is just learning this whole SD thing and it takes a few months for that to settle in. I'd probably leave him home this week, but you know the dog on your leash, and you know when he's ready to try something harder. That's my thinking anyway.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Click-N-Treat thank you for that very clear explanation of your thinking on this. It makes perfect sense. I have to think of this lab week as being like the food store (where I am still saying leave it more than once or twice). He will probably stay home. The only thing I can really think of as useful to do with him during lab is training his stay in place on a settle at distance.


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## ErinWynne (Apr 19, 2017)

This is an awesome idea! My past SD's name was George and I had so many problems with people calling out to him if they recognized us (small town). One day I told a friend that saying his name was distracting so she started calling him Jorge, he didn't even glance over. I'm definitely going to start doing this!


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## Skylar (Jul 29, 2016)

Catherine, would you bring Javelin's crate with you?

When he's in the dog training facility - does he not smell lots of treats being handed out to other dogs? I have trouble walking Babykins in Petco too near the treats in the aisle, but when I put another foot or two distance away from the food then she's fine.

Also these specimens will be embalmed so they won't smell like "meat" that he's used to.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Skylar, no I would not have a crate (and he sort of still has crate problems anyway). I would have to rely on him staying on a relaxed down near my desk. I have about 40 minutes left before I leave so it is time to decide what to do. I could tether him at my desk, but am not sure whether that is a great answer either. This is a really unusual situation for me to have to deal with since I only teach this course once a year and it is the only course that has the temptation of dissection specimens. I sort of think he might find the smell of the preservative pretty off putting (I know I do), but this is uncharted territory. I will let you all know later or in the morning what I did and how it went!


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## Skylar (Jul 29, 2016)

lily cd re said:


> Skylar, no I would not have a crate (and he sort of still has crate problems anyway). I would have to rely on him staying on a relaxed down near my desk. I have about 40 minutes left before I leave so it is time to decide what to do. I could tether him at my desk, but am not sure whether that is a great answer either. This is a really unusual situation for me to have to deal with since I only teach this course once a year and it is the only course that has the temptation of dissection specimens. I sort of think he might find the smell of the preservative pretty off putting (I know I do), but this is uncharted territory. I will let you all know later or in the morning what I did and how it went!


If you take him - I hope it goes well. That smell is definitely off putting.


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

Lily,

it's time to play Noelle's favorite game: go to your mat and don't get up until released. I made Noelle's mat into a treat jackpot spot. When I started she got a treat every two seconds. Then I spaced it out to every three seconds. In the beginning, she was so heavily rewarded for being on her mat, that she didn't want to get off. She still just launches herself on the mat and flops down. Okay, Mom, let the treat party begin.

A mat next to your desk for Javvie that he adores and doesn't want to leave, will make your life at school easier. Go to your mat works in the doctor's office, too. I love the mat because it's a spot to do a specific activity: a quiet down/stay, and the mat itself becomes a cue for that specific behavior.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Click-N-Treat go to place is definitely something that we are working on. He is getting better, but he has such strong centripetal attraction for me that he finds it hard to be distant from me when he can see and hear me. I saw significant improvement on this yesterday when I took the two spoos to my club for an hour of training time available through the good graces of my friend who is my Friday assistant. We generally leave our dogs confined behind gates in the reception/front desk area. My friend stayed near Javelin while I worked with Lily and praised him for quiet and corrected him for jumping up on the gate and/or barking to get my attention. He did really well! 

On the basis of his good behavior at the club, I did take him to class last night and looped his leash over my chair in the front of the room. This way I could move around and help the students get started with their dissections without worrying about him sticking his nose where it didn't belong. Normally I bring him around in lab with me to work on his ignoring people behaviors and he has gotten very good at not flirting with every new person he stands near, so working on something different was entirely appropriate. He was a bit twitchy about holding his down stay, but better than earlier in the summer. This part is hard because I try not to feed him in lab since I have a very strict nothing in your mouth rule for students there (which is really totally about safety) and I have extended that rule to Javelin. I mostly have to rely on praising his good responses which he loves, but not as much as a cheese jackpot. We will try again tonight.


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

I read this earlier this morning. No food in the lab is something Mr. Javelin is going to have to get used to, and it totally makes sense. I actually love that he has a strong desire to be with you. Most of the time that will serve you well. I know that you can train him to be amazing. 

Noelle lost her calm attitude in a grocery store and got overly hyper yesterday. Lots of excited wiggling and bouncing. I was talking to someone, and Noelle acted like a four-year-old who wanted my attention. By standing around talking for too long, I pushed her into a situation she wasn't ready to deal with. Noelle can handle a brief conversation, but this guy wanted to talk to me about his standard poodles that he bred in the 1970's. 

Mom, this is so boring, can we go?
Mom, this is so boring, are you done?
Mom, mom, mom, watch me. I'm gonna do a trick.

Anyone have any ideas for an exit strategy for me and Noelle when someone is talking our ear off? I don't want to be rude, but I can't talk for 10 minutes while we're shopping.


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## Beautiful Blue (Apr 24, 2017)

"Oh! I'm sorry. I need to take this call...nice visiting with you." As you walk away and reach for your phone.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

In a supermarket I always just say something about moving on with the perishables in the cart and food safety. Since I scan and pack my own bags as I go no one will ever be the wiser even if I only have pasta and crackers. On other occasions I will say that I need to keep moving so that I can get to an appropriate place to give the dog a potty break.

Javelin's desire to stay close to me is mostly a super great asset. He just has to learn that I always return. BF has told me he howls (I think it sounds more like moaning) when I leave the house, but he has also told me that he quickly settles down and relaxes/goes to sleep so I know it isn't a generalized problem with my absence. He really just seems to mind when he knows I am close (can hear and/or see me).


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

I will use the potty break idea and the phone. Good ideas, thanks both of you. In the offline world, I'm a shy introvert who doesn't like talking to strangers, so I find these small talk chats very draining.


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## Beautiful Blue (Apr 24, 2017)

Click-N-Treat said:


> I will use the potty break idea and the phone. Good ideas, thanks both of you. In the offline world, I'm a shy introvert who doesn't like talking to strangers, so I find these small talk chats very draining.


LOL - the phone one even works with my husband!! He's hard of hearing, and never knows what ring tone I have set currently, so assumes it's higher pitched and he just didn't hear it.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Last night was easier with the dissection material. The students were better able to work on their own, although right at the end of lab (and after I told them to clean up) one of them brought a tray up to my desk to ask something and had the tilting tray with all kinds of yuck in it right over Javelin's head. I couldn't believe it. I would have had to give him a bath at 11:00 last night if it had spilled. To Javelin's credit he held his down stay despite the minor commotion right overhead.

I finished the lecture topics I had planned for last night about 10 minutes early and after reviewing the organization for Thursdays's lab exams let the students leave about five minutes early. Since this is a lecture only room I do feed him there. He gets his dinner while I set up for lecture. After the students left I used freeze dried chicken breast as a nice jackpot for holding stays while I walked to different places in the room and even went just out of sight in the hall (I watched his back end, but he didn't have eye contact to me). He did great even holding a nice long sit stay on a very slippery floor. Progress....

Going back to the original topic about names, I have a colleague who is teaching in the same time slot. She asked if she could greet a couple of weeks ago and I said yes as long as he kept four on the floor. I know that having him be neutral around people who aren't is important and that using people I know, but he doesn't is a good way to approach this. Well now she calls him by name every time she sees him and he has decided he loves her, so clearly this would have been a great scenario for which to have that alternate name installed. I think he will be Harry.


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## kontiki (Apr 6, 2013)

So glad I checked into Poodleforum and found these Service Dog threads! I am totally enjoying reading this thread and the diabetes alert thread.

I too have a poodle for a Service Dog. Mine is a Spoo. I love the idea of using a fake name. Alas, about half of the small town I live in knows his name, even people that I have never met!

I got a great compliment a few days ago. We just went to a wedding in California. The mother of the bride came up to us as we stood right next to the buffet table at the rehearsal dinner. He has been so well trained for so long I thought nothing of standing there to chat. She exclaimed that she is a dog trainer and had never seen a dog, even one of her own dogs, well enough trained to be able to do that while totally ignoring the buffet. My heart went pitter patter for sure. I love him to bits.


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

Isn't it fun when people are astonished by your dog? I love going to the buffet and having Noelle down next to food and not eat it. It really surprises people.

Today I wanted to kill Noelle, though!

We went to a new store she's never been to before, and Noelle did perfect. Walked with me, didn't sniff anything, sat while I paid for my stuff. She's been balking on SIT lately, so I was happy with that. We left the store. I said, "shake it off," and Noelle gave herself a vigorous shake. Good dog, perfect dog. We headed toward the parking lot.

Then
She
Barked
At 
Someone!

OMG!!! WTF?

Noelle never barks at people. There was a lady who was trying to meet Noelle and I wasn't going to let her make a friend because I wanted to go home. And it's super hot/humid out there and my body can't take the weather. So, I'm trying to leave, the lady is staring and cooing, and Noelle barked at her several times. 

OMG, WTF! Shut up Noelle!

I don't know why that happened, but I'm embarrassed. She never barks at people. I hope this doesn't become a new behavior. Arugh!


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## kontiki (Apr 6, 2013)

My SD has only ever barked at 2 people in 8 years. One of them had been approaching me. I was so startled as it wan't like him at all. That guy ended up in front of a judge the next day for exposing himself in the women's room at the public library.

So I trust my Spoo's judgement.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

kontiki I would give that dog a thumb's up for putting the sex offender off your trail. I always trust my dogs' ability to read the hinky factor. Peeves (a somewhat aloof dog) trusting a contractor I was considering by lying down on the sofa with him was part of why I gave him the job.


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

My last SD snarled and air snapped at one person once in her whole life. I found out moments after her barking, snarling, growling fit that man was just released from prison after serving a long sentence for rape. I'm with you on trusting the dog.

I don't know what it was about this woman today. She came out from behind a car and cooed at us and was kind of following us. I have no idea why Noelle barked at her, but clearly Noelle was telling her to leave. We've been in so many different parking lots and places, and seen all kinds of different people of all ages, so I have no idea why Noelle barked. We went out again later and had no problems. On a positive note, Noelle sat next to a dried cranberry at the salad bar and didn't eat it.


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