Never Compare Dogs
Place work. Place work is the foundation of many obedience programs, and for good reason. Place work establishes self-capping and control in the dog on their terms. Stay on place – good things happen. Come off place – not so good things happen. Place work is super simple for some dogs, some can learn the game in one lesson. Others however, struggle with place long term.
Many trainers can establish place work with dogs relatively quickly and condition the dog to the task with clarity in less than 30 to 50 repetitions while in a controlled environment. However, throw in stimulus and little to no equipment and the dog can struggle. The thing is, stimulus is different to each dog. Some can avoid people but not other dogs, others can ignore dogs but not kids – etc etc. Work the dog in its different thresholds while always setting the dog up for success.
In this picture dogs present a major challenge for the Labrador. So, in order to set the Labrador up for success we use a very stable and clear-headed dog as a (free-dog) distraction and then work on place in front of a kennel full of working dogs. Is this complex dog training – NO. Is this super simple for some dogs – YES. However, for this specific Labrador, this is very hard. As we started this blog, we will close it. Never compare dogs – train the dog in front of you. Success is measured different for each dog.