Alison And Archie( A Stubborn And Charismatic Wire Fox Terrier)

[Alison Gray]

hello, My terrier Archie in the last three months has went from being a relatively well behaved dog to well a terror. he will not come when we call and has bolted out three times when opportunity arose. t took two to three hours to catch hem, he is very fast and agile.
any way took him to classes and they are not going well. last night Archie was so stubborn he did nothing, fights the Baltic type lead. let night and today he and me have been so traumatized by the class, the dogs looks positive depressed taken to bed. hid under table when we came home. this is his air raid shelter but usually when he is being cheeky and does not want caught. I was not comfortable with the way she was trying to teach him the down command and today I am annoyed with myself for not speaking up. I obvously need him to come when shouted but I do not wish to squash his spirit. Does anybody have any kind words of wisdom or advise
Alison

 

[tx_cowgirl]

Check out our classrooms. Try to find a POSITIVE trainer, not one that uses corrective methods. You will not get the most out of your dog with these methods and he will not enjoy it. You may be able to get a refund and leave the class if you don't wait too long.

The classrooms have lessons on teaching your dog to come; from there it's just a matter of practice and SLOWLY increasing distractions so you can gradually increase his attention span until he will come to you when called no matter what's going on.
I like to teach dogs to wait at the door by using body blocking. Patricia McConnell has a video on it--just move it to a doorway(with him either on a long line or at a door that enters a safe, fenced area). I couldn't get a link up directly to the video, but if you go to Abrionline.org and search "patricia mcconnell body blocking" you will find Part 1 and 2 videos. This is a great way to teach your dog to wait at the door without even so much as saying anything or even touching him.
Don't be afraid to speak up for your dog. You are your dog's only provider and it's your responsibility to keep him safe. It's up to you to speak up for him because he can't.

 

[Jean Cote]

Hello Alison, welcome to the Dog Trick Academy! What kind of classes are they? Are they positively oriented? I don't know why your dog would go hiding after a training unless you are using lots of correction and the training is painful for the dog, or maybe he was just mentally tired and just wanted to take a break.

For name recall, there is an excellent lesson in the classroom. You want your dog to come to you because it means it is something positive. If you yell at your dog to come to you, he will learn to avoid you. Also, you say that you had to chase him to get him. Chasing your dog actually rewards him because it becomes a game to your dog.

Don't worry about it being difficult, we've all been there. Training dogs takes a little while to get used to, especially to realize what behaviors you are reinforcing and what behaviors you aren't when you think you are, if that makes sense,.

 

[sara]

Aren't all terriers stubborn and charasmatic? LOL all the ones I've had and lived with are! LOL

Terriers especially tend to shut down with corrective or force training. they do extremely well with clicker training (as do most dogs, but I've noticed some breeds are way more forgiving of force and corrective training methods) Terriers are way too independent to put up with force for long.

I almost adopted a deaf wire fox terrier... he was just a bit too far away for me (Florida) but I really like the breed!

Welcome to the DTA!

 

[Alison Gray]

Aren't all terriers stubborn and charasmatic? LOL all the ones I've had and lived with are! LOL

Terriers especially tend to shut down with corrective or force training. they do extremely well with clicker training (as do most dogs, but I've noticed some breeds are way more forgiving of force and corrective training methods) Terriers are way too independent to put up with force for long.

I almost adopted a deaf wire fox terrier... he was just a bit too far away for me (Florida) but I really like the breed!

Welcome to the DTA!

Hi
hank you for your post .it is nice to get some feedback. Iam now feeling better about the training and have decided not to return. Since this we have made progress with Archie. He is coming to us more than not.He seams to be doing as he is told mostly anyway. Still a long way to go with getting him back on the lead. Archie finally started talking to me on Monday, well woofing! Did I mention he is stubborn. Ps I liked the quote about saving a dog, my daughter rescued a dachshund crossed with a whippet. Dog was neglected and found emaciated on the streets. He,s much better now but caucus
ThNks

alison

Aren't all terriers stubborn and charasmatic? LOL all the ones I've had and lived with are! LOL

Terriers especially tend to shut down with corrective or force training. they do extremely well with clicker training (as do most dogs, but I've noticed some breeds are way more forgiving of force and corrective training methods) Terriers are way too independent to put up with force for long.

I almost adopted a deaf wire fox terrier... he was just a bit too far away for me (Florida) but I really like the breed!

Welcome to the DTA!

 

[Ina]

Hi Alison.

Bribery gets you everywhere! I had the same issue with my puppy. I always thought I can't get him off leash if he isn't listening reliably.
Then I read an article (or watched a clip on YouTube) by Ian Dunbar. He teaches the dogs to walk on leash after he taught them the heeling command off leash. First I was sceptical, but then I tried it.
Went to an off leash park that was deserted with a very hungry puppy. I clicked and fed and clicked and fed about 20 pieces. Then I let him go sniff around. Whenever he turned my way I clicked and he came to get his treat. Any head movement or directional change was rewarded. He is now paying a lot of attention to me.
The next step was to put the leash on, treat and wait 10 seconds and take the leash off again. Let him sniff for a minute and repeat. Make the leash on longer and longer. All of a sudden it's not such a big deal to put him on leash again. I can just wiggle the leash in my hand and he will come to get a treat.
If you do this a couple of times you will have a dog that loves to come to you and have the leash put on him.
If your dog is more focused on playtime, then replace the treat with a short game. As long as he feels like it's a bonus to come to you he will !

 

[Alison Gray]

hi Ina
Thank you for your reply.He is much better,he must of got a shock however he is coming more often than this time last week. Even the barking, I am sending him to his bed and he is actually going, don't know who is more shocked me or Archie. The lead still a problem but still working on it, he looks terrified,sorry, when I approach him with collar, lead or harness. This week the poor wee soul has an eye infection and he looks as I he is crying as well
thanks for the tips about the lead I will keep trying

alison