Piper, American Bulldog

[southerngirl]

Age- 18 months
Birthday- End of April?
Gotta Day- July 28, 2013
Sex- Female: spayed
Favorite toy: blue bouncy kong like toy
weight- 48 pounds
Nick-Names- Pipper, Wiper Piper(curtsy of my 5 year old nephew) Pippi, Piper no swiping, hyper Piper.
How I got Piper- One morning I woke up and my dad is like "There's a brown and white dog outside" Me and my mom go outside to see what he is talking about. We find a cute white and brindle puppy leashed to our swing set. I go over to her and she attacks me with kisses and jumping all over me. I unleash her and brought her to the porch. It took about 10-15 minutes until I Missy finally stopped barking at her. It turned out she had been hanging out at my cousins house across the street, so him and my brother brought him to my house. My jerk of a brother's plan was look for her owners for a day than bring her to the pound. My mom told him that he was not about to bring her to the pound. I looked for her owners for about a month before giving up, if they wanted their dog back they would have found her by now I made it very easy by posting about her everywhere. Their loss, my gain. My parents think that Piper was more than the owners bargained for so they dropped her off in the neighborhood, but who knows.

Who is she- Hyper pretty much sums it up. Whenever someone comes in the house she jumps up and down scratching the poor victim.She really loves people. She loves loves playing with Missy, she's her best friend. She sits, and lays on top of poor Missy. When she wants attention she stares at you with her puppy eyes and puts a paw on your arm, and for some extra effect she might even lay her head on you. You can tell when she has something she's not suppose to because she takes off running to the living room. Being a puppy she is always on the counter, in the garbage and taking things that don't belong to her. She has chewed two pair of my flip flop, 2 pairs of my mom's shoes and I think that's all. To get her to stay out of the kitchen I have to leash her to the couch leg because getting up constantly to put her back out of the kitchen wasn't working.
Tricks/commands
1. Sit
2. stay
3. come
4. rollover
5. back up
6. walk on loose leash
7. Drop it
8. Shake
9. Nose Target
10. Lie Down
11. Weave
12) stand tall
13) Heal
14) figure 8
15) Jump into arms

Yes, a very short list. I've been busy with school so I haven't had much time for trick training.

It's a bit long, but I couldn't decided what to cut.

 

[Gordykins]

Yay! You ended up keeping her! I haven't been around for awhile, so I hadn't seen what happened with Piper til now. She is gorgeous. How is she doing?

 

[southerngirl]

Thank you. And I totally agree she is gorgeous. She's doing good, trying to drive me nuts with her puppy antics. She is a bundle of energy, like an energizer bunny.

 

[Gordykins]

Enjoy the puppy antics while they last! I'm sure with you to teach her that she's going to mature beautifully!

 

[southerngirl]

 

[brody_smom]

I love the look on Piper's face, like she's really trying to understand what you want her to do, how to earn her reward. It must be difficult for you to fit in training and play time with both your girls and get your schooling done as well.

 

[southerngirl]

I love the look on Piper's face, like she's really trying to understand what you want her to do, how to earn her reward. It must be difficult for you to fit in training and play time with both your girls and get your schooling done as well.

Yeah she is always trying to figure out what to do to get the food. If she can't figure it out she will start doing tricks that she already knows. Yes, I do find it hard to fit in schooling, walks, playtime(for the dogs) and training. That's why the girls don't know more tricks than they do. Some days I'll do homework for hours and by time it's done it'll be dark so I play with them inside for a bit to tire them out some.

 

[brody_smom]

We've been doing a lot more indoor play and training lately. I actually find him to be less stressed inside when he hasn't had a walk, but has had several good indoor fetch games. We use the Chuckit indoor balls and I have him chase them up a short set of stairs and return them to a little basket before I throw the next ball. It really tires him out and he is learning a cool trick at the same time!

 

[southerngirl]

I play fetch and frisbee in the hallway and I've started hiding a toy in my room then having them find it.
The basket is a great idea, I'll start doing that when we play fetch. Oh and if Brody puts his ball in the basket you can use that to teach him to put away his toys since he already knows to put his ball in the basket. I love hearing about ways people exercise their dogs indoors, it gives me ideas for when I can't walk the girls. But I can never seem to truly be able to tire Piper, even after playing at the dog park for 3 hrs. fifteen minutes later she is re-energized.

 

[Gordykins]

I love how deep in thought Piper looks! And I was so happy to see Missy too! I totally was just expecting to only see Piper. You really do a great job with both of them!

Piper sounds like Gordy... even when he goes to his rehab vet visit... he gets sooo tired on the treadmill. I swear he looks more tired after a few minutes on the treadmill than he does after a day of hiking. Still, he rests up on the ten minute drive back to our house, and then he's ready to party again. As he gets older though, he is definitely learning how to calm down, even though he's not tired.

 

[brody_smom]

I play fetch and frisbee in the hallway and I've started hiding a toy in my room then having them find it.
The basket is a great idea, I'll start doing that when we play fetch. Oh and if Brody puts his ball in the basket you can use that to teach him to put away his toys since he already knows to put his ball in the basket. I love hearing about ways people exercise their dogs indoors, it gives me ideas for when I can't walk the girls. But I can never seem to truly be able to tire Piper, even after playing at the dog park for 3 hrs. fifteen minutes later she is re-energized.

He actually learned to put his toys away first, and on his own, put the ball in the basket when we were playing fetch. I decided I liked the idea, so I got a second ball the same as the first and shaped him into putting the first ball in the basket before I would throw the second. He seems to really enjoy it. It's really fun to watch him when he gets going fast, because he sort of tosses the ball toward the basket and then looks up at me to throw the other ball. If he has missed the basket, I just wait without saying anything, and then he looks around and realizes his ball is still on the floor. Sometimes he will toss it 3 or 4 times and keep missing, but he keeps at it. If I move the basket against a wall, he uses it like a back board and the ball goes right in. If the basket is away from the wall, it's a bit harder, so he has to actually place it inside, rather than toss it. I have started making it more challenging by moving the basket around the room and making him find it each time so he can put the ball in.

 

[MaryK]

Absolutely LOVE Piper's videos She does look so serious in her trick one, Leaf's like that, very serious about her training! Love the way Missy works too, she's wonderful with Piper.

 

[MaryK]

Absolutely LOVE Piper's videos She does look so serious in her trick one, Leaf's like that, very serious about her training! Love the way Missy works too, she's wonderful with Piper.

What method did you use to train the jump on your chest? Now Leaf's almost a year I want to teach her that trick, as she's got a very good 'jump'.

 

[southerngirl]

Absolutely LOVE Piper's videos She does look so serious in her trick one, Leaf's like that, very serious about her training! Love the way Missy works too, she's wonderful with Piper.

What method did you use to train the jump on your chest? Now Leaf's almost a year I want to teach her that trick, as she's got a very good 'jump'.

I used this video

 

[MaryK]

Thank you Danielle. Leaf will jump on/off but need to get that "U" turn, at present she's kinda looking at me as if to say "Hey I just got up here now you want me DOWN - make up your jolly mind please !" Will work on this as it's one we can do inside, now it's too wet to work outside, LOL one day the weather will be 'just right'!

 

[brody_smom]

Brody and I got a little stuck on that one a while ago. He would do fine until I tried raising the criteria and waited for him to do the on/off a little faster. Instead, he would grab the towel in his mouth and run away! Apparently I need to start reinforcing a lot more often!

 

[southerngirl]

When I started teaching it to Missy I gave up, because both of us were getting frustrated. A few months later I tried again and she picked it up in maybe 2 training sessions. B's mom I would revisit it. What I did is once Missy was jumping on me while sitting I barley lifted myself off my bed(where I was sitting) and just kept getting closer to standing. I found this worked for her. The next few times we had to do a refresher course, but I was able to get to standing a lot quicker. Good luck you guys.
I will be trying this with Piper in a little bit. Any suggestions for how old she should be until I do this with her? She is ten months old and will be eleven on the 28th.

 

[MaryK]

Brody and I got a little stuck on that one a while ago. He would do fine until I tried raising the criteria and waited for him to do the on/off a little faster. Instead, he would grab the towel in his mouth and run away! Apparently I need to start reinforcing a lot more often!

We haven't got to the towel part yet we're still on the U on/off, but Danielle gave you very good advice, to stop for a while then 'revisit' the trick.
I did this with Leaf when she was learning 'Say your Prayers". When I first started she just 'didn't get it' at all, kept collapsing in a heap (I did wait until she was old enough of course, strain on young joints etc.). So I stopped and restarted again just recently and voila!!!!!!!!!!! She did it first time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I did the same with Rakins, when he got stuck on the odd trick, it always amazes me that by giving a trick a rest, went frustration sets in on both sides, then revisiting it sometimes a month or more later, how your dog suddenly 'gets it'. It's amazing and I don't have a scientific answer, sure there is one, but hey if it works that's all that matters.

 

[MaryK]

When I started teaching it to Missy I gave up, because both of us were getting frustrated. A few months later I tried again and she picked it up in maybe 2 training sessions. B's mom I would revisit it. What I did is once Missy was jumping on me while sitting I barley lifted myself off my bed(where I was sitting) and just kept getting closer to standing. I found this worked for her. The next few times we had to do a refresher course, but I was able to get to standing a lot quicker. Good luck you guys.
I will be trying this with Piper in a little bit. Any suggestions for how old she should be until I do this with her? She is ten months old and will be eleven on the 28th.

Good advice Danielle, works like a charm! Dogs must have some form of 'residual' memory when it comes to tricks they didn't get first time but do with ease a while later!

Will follow your advice when Leaf and I get to the towel part - thank you.

With Piper I would wait a bit longer, she's a big lassie and her joints etc. may take that little bit longer to mature. Definitely wouldn't start with her before she's at least a year old. I know you'd rather be safe than sorry later.

When I had German Shepherds, I didn't start with too much 'jumping style' work until they were around the 16 to 18 months age. They did the small 'novice' jumps in Agility but that trick does require good development in the skeletal area and all the associated muscles, tendons etc. Plus with the quick 'U" turn, that means the dog's spine also comes into play. Watch in slow motion, and you'll see what I mean.

 

[myraellen]

My friend had seen this thread about Piper. She would like to ask something about her. In another thread you told that Piper would be hard to train. However, in one other thread about her you had told that you had gotten Piper to learn some things almost immeadeately when she was only about six months old (either someone had already teached them to her or she is fast in learning). My friend has read that Piper is partly a Pit Bull. She has recently watched videos of Pit Bulls. In those videos they show also shortly when they are trainining them. In them they get even those dogs, that haven't been trained much, to learn things fast. What my friend had seen in that trick video you had linked about her made her look so smart compared to Lotta. At least my friend thinks it seems like it. My friend didn't know that Piper would be hard to train because you had managed to teach her things. My friend couldn't see it in that video. She was only 9 months old in it.

I love the look on Piper's face, like she's really trying to understand what you want her to do, how to earn her reward.

Yeah she is always trying to figure out what to do to get the food. If she can't figure it out she will start doing tricks that she already knows.

In another thread you told that that would make Piper hard to be trained and that she gets excited in training. How do they make her hard to be trained? So, that's the first question.

The next questions are: How have you gotten Piper to do something in training sessions although it's hard to train her? How had you managed to teach Piper all those behaviors in the list you had put in the first message? My friend is not asking about individual behaviors. Her questions relates rather on how have you been able to train Piper although it's difficult.