Look in to my eyes

[peter.glynn]

i have already done focus training where i get my puppy to look at me he fine in the house but not when i start train i have him sit in front of me and he looks up at me and looks me in the eye i use the word look at me and he looks at me but haven't tried it outside because if my wife is there he always look to her because shes always feeding him kibble so he associate my wife as being kind not that i am not but i sometimes shout at him for misbehaving any when we are out if i stop and the wife carries on he look for and try and pull me towards her also when i go to puppy classes my wife never comes in with me as she find she will be a big distraction but as i say i am doing the training he alway obey my commands in training but i have yet to try it in different locations yet.

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Hi Peter.glynn,

Sounds like you're on a roll! Kudos to you for taking your time in training your pup, border collies are very smart and love keeping their brains busy.

The issue you are facing is not unusual. Dogs do best initially learning in areas without distractions, and then you must gradually increase distractions going at your dog's pace. If your wife is such a strong distraction, you can perhaps try the exercise with your wife at a distance where your puppy is under threshold. You can read about threshold levels here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/

 

So find that "sweet spot" where your puppy can see your wife but he remains to a good extent under control. Skip when your wife comes home from work as he may be extra excited to see her, wait for him to get calmer. Ask your wife to just stand there, not look at your dog and not doing anything in particular or maybe just looking at her phone. Practice the exercise at a distance for some time until you get a solid response. Then, practice with your wife closer, then progress from there.

 

If any time, your puppy gets distracted, then you know your wife is too close and your puppy is too excited to focus. Increase distance again momentarily and then again trying at gradually closer distances. Progress to the point where your wife is standing next to you and you can get your pup to focus on you. You may need to use extra valuable, smelly treats (think freeze-dried liver) as the distance decreases so to overcome the distraction at first.

 

Same with the leash. Have your wife stand at a distance from your pup and practice heeling back and forth with high-value treats watching for signs of your puppy going over threshold, and increasing distance as needed. If your dog pulls towards her, make an about face and walk the opposite direction increasing distance until he's able to focus again. Make it a fun activity (talk to your puppy with silly voices if it helps in between using your smacking sound!) and very rewarding (reinforce every step at first with a treat). You want your puppy to form positive associations with you so he'll want to stick with you more and more because it's so much fun.

 

Distractions are not to be feared, but should actually be embraced as opportunities to improve. These challenges ultimately make us better trainers.

 

Glad to hear you have your pup enrolled in puppy classes, they can be very helpful!

Happy training!

Best,

Adrienne

Edited March 13, 2019 by Adrienne Farricelli