MagnoliaMountain
Active Member
Hi all,
Recently I've been trying to train my Aussie Cattle Dog to do some harder commands. She knows all the basics (sit, lie down, stay, paw, etc.), but any time I try something more advanced, it's like she just gives up immediately. Whenever she doesn't understand something right away, she'll flee to her "safe spot" (a dark, secluded corner in my apartment) and lie down. Or she'll just lie down on her back and look up at me with this sort of miserable look in her eyes (it's both adorable and sad). For example, just now I was attempting to teach her to retrieve objects, and I started by throwing a ball a few times and telling her to fetch it. She did it once or twice, but then she immediately went into the submissive/scared/running away behavior, which is really weird because she'll gladly retrieve the ball when there's no pressure.
I've tried using a clicker, but it seems like she's even more afraid that way--she'll run away whenever I click it!
I've also tried building her confidence by going over and over the commands she already knows and giving her tons of praise, but whenever I start on a new one it's pretty much game over. Just for the record, I have never, ever punished her for not performing a trick correctly or gotten frustrated with her when she's not getting something. But I'm sure that there's something about my approach that I should be changing, because clearly she is associating the training with something negative. Speaking to her soothingly/reassuring her hasn't worked, either.
I don't want to ascribe human emotions to dogs (that's always dangerous territory), but it really seems like this is some kind of performance anxiety thing. My dog is so, so eager to please everyone, even strangers--that's sort of her M.O.--and I get the sense that she just can't handle the idea of not giving you what you want, so she just gives up. How can I let her know that it's okay for her to not understand something right away?
Recently I've been trying to train my Aussie Cattle Dog to do some harder commands. She knows all the basics (sit, lie down, stay, paw, etc.), but any time I try something more advanced, it's like she just gives up immediately. Whenever she doesn't understand something right away, she'll flee to her "safe spot" (a dark, secluded corner in my apartment) and lie down. Or she'll just lie down on her back and look up at me with this sort of miserable look in her eyes (it's both adorable and sad). For example, just now I was attempting to teach her to retrieve objects, and I started by throwing a ball a few times and telling her to fetch it. She did it once or twice, but then she immediately went into the submissive/scared/running away behavior, which is really weird because she'll gladly retrieve the ball when there's no pressure.
I've tried using a clicker, but it seems like she's even more afraid that way--she'll run away whenever I click it!
I've also tried building her confidence by going over and over the commands she already knows and giving her tons of praise, but whenever I start on a new one it's pretty much game over. Just for the record, I have never, ever punished her for not performing a trick correctly or gotten frustrated with her when she's not getting something. But I'm sure that there's something about my approach that I should be changing, because clearly she is associating the training with something negative. Speaking to her soothingly/reassuring her hasn't worked, either.
I don't want to ascribe human emotions to dogs (that's always dangerous territory), but it really seems like this is some kind of performance anxiety thing. My dog is so, so eager to please everyone, even strangers--that's sort of her M.O.--and I get the sense that she just can't handle the idea of not giving you what you want, so she just gives up. How can I let her know that it's okay for her to not understand something right away?