SDiT Puppy TEAM Wk 6
Added 2025-03-27 20:34:38 +0000 UTCWe hope you have enjoyed watching these weekly recordings created by Canine Coaches, Penny, Cindy, Kristi, & Tammy. It's been a fun project of using TEAMwork to show you how a trainer interacts with their young puppies and includes socialization to scents, sounds, sights, taste, & touch into their skills & manners training.
This week we starting building several impulse control related games that can be broken down very simple for puppies and slowly build up of the the months of working with an adolescent dog. These games build up focus, recall, and the foundations for several tasks that might later be taught. Here are the games we played:
It's Yer Choice
Tammy & Doogan demonstrated what it looks like to start this game, then a follow up game to build it slightly a few days later. The basic idea is that the dog first learns to ignore kibble in one hand by being rewarded with a higher value treat from the other hand. The ignore hand starts high above the puppy's reach zone and slowly moves downward until it is below the pup's nose and can be placed on the floor. Once the puppy learns to ignore the kibble placed on the floor, the owner can begin to build distance, duration, and distraction.
The It's Yer Choice Game can be found in the Positively Puppy 6 Collection, the Play with Purpose Collection and on our various YouTube Channels. You can also look up Susan Garett's Podcast at DogsThat.com for additional help.
Zen Hand
Kristi and Nylah demonstrated this game for us with 2 different videos from 2 sessions. While this starts out with the hand head high, slowly moving downward like the It's Yer Choice Game, the big difference is that the reinforcement to be ignored is the same value as the reinforcement being given. In some puppies this can lead to frustration which is what we get to see with young Nylah. She doesn't understand the game so her bitey puppy teeth and jumping on her person begin to happen. This allowed a great discussion on how puppy frustration can easily go unnoticed as the behavior is minor compared to what an older dog might do in frustration.
You can learn more about the Zen Game in the Play With Purpose Collection.
Settle on a Mat/Station Training
We also looked at teaching puppy to settle on a mat or station. Tammy and Doogan were happy to demonstrate this again. This is an early foundation skill that will help when you start to teach your pup to Stay. We can build a basic foundation for waiting to be released by using a raised station or floor surface that is different than the main floor in the training area.
There is more information about this game in the Positively Puppy 6 Collection and the SD Foundations Collection.
We previously discussed Door Zen to teach your pup not to rush out the door. This is another great example of the puppy learning to have some self regulation, using impulse control.
If you would like to watch any of the training videos again or watch these pups as they grow up, you can subscribe to these YouTube Channels.
