Different in and out of the house

[pupdaddy]

Jarvis, who is 8 months old, will sit on command when indoors, even in a new place. He'll give either paw on command ("left paw", "right paw").

However, once out on the walk he won't do anything we ask/say. There is a point where we normally let him off the lead. I managed to get him sitting but he won't look at me and wouldn't give me any paws. He kept trying to look round me.

At least he doesn't run off so much now - he does seem to take heed of "this way" and the whistle commands

[PennyB]

He's a teenager and there are far more distractions than in the house. You have to make yourself more interesting to him.

[Helen]

sounds normal to me...


remember  a) he's an adolescent and b) what makes you think that giving paw is more interesting than all the smells of the big wide open  world?

[Nicola]

I always ask my lot to sit before leads come off on walks. Tilly and Rodaidh always do it first time but Alfie went through a phase at about the same age as Jarvis of not doing it and would stand and look around at everything but me. When he did this he simply didn't get off the lead, I would walk on a bit with him and then stop somewhere else and engage his attention - I face him and walk backwards, this always gets him looking at me as he walks towards me and I might do some sharp turns etc. as well, talking to him the whole time so he's engaging with me. I then ask him to sit again and 99.9% of the time he does it right away and I take his lead off BUT I don't let him charge off, I make him walk to heel off lead for a short distance then sit again and then he gets to go and do his own thing. I don't have to do this very often now, he usually sits first time but occasionally he takes a notion and decides he can't be bothered and this routine always works  

[Helen]

i've always done the 'sit' thing before letting jarv off the lead, but not 'paw' etc....

[Joules]

You have to make yourself more interesting to him.

Easier said than done though   - perhaps try carrying a whole roast chicken about your person      Sounds like adolescence - you might find it a bit of a battle maintaining his attention for a while as he is becoming a typical smartarse teenager  

[Cob-Web]

Somewhere along the line I have picked up the phrase "take it on the road" in relation to training commands.......in other words, once you have trained your dog to do something in a low distraction environment (home), then you begin all over again in a place with slightly higher distractions, and so on, and so on, until your dog is doing as you ask in the middle of a field of sheep/pheasants/dogs.....

I've always thought how unrealistic it is to expect a dog to do as it is asked in a training class environment.........it is probably one of the highest distraction places they are likely to experience, but we expect them to learn and perform newly learnt behaviours 

[Top Barks]

Take it on the road indeed.
Some trainers reckon that you need to teach a behaviour in about twenty different locations before it is proofed.
Dogs do not generalise learning well which basically means the learning does not transfer easily from one location to another.
Then you have to train for the small matter of distractions which can be anything in everyday life.
Do the basics in as many environments as you can and remember not to expect your dog to be on the ball unless you have taken the time to train what you want.
Mark