Original music by Matt Setter and friend Sean!
Original content by Matt Setter and friend, Sean!
Original music by Matt Setter and friend Sean!
Original content by Matt Setter and friend, Sean!
Hey, this is Pate. And I'm Jme. We are Motley Zoo Animal Rescue, and this is our podcast Rescue Shit. Today we're gonna talk about the importance of dog training, not necessarily which kind of trainings you do, but that training is really, really important for any dog that there are certain opportunities that you can, have your dog take tests and, and get certifications. And this is one of the unique things about Motley Zoo is that from day one, we wanted to have a program that could serve our dogs even after they were adopted. And that's when we came up with the dog daycare and training facility and, you know, most rescues and shelters. Once the dog is adopted, they're like, hi, bye. And. You know, they might hear from them or you know, they can maybe help problem solve, but we wanted to continue to see the dogs that we adopted out and make sure they were staying on the right path and be a resource for people because our job isn't done when we adopted out the animal. So it's a unique thing that we started and our program we called Rockstar University. Why don't you talk a little bit about that, Pate. Rockstar University isn't just for our adopters, it's for all the dogs. Because like Jme said, we want to help ensure that dogs stay in their homes. Cuz then that will alleviate burden on the shelters, that'll alleviate burden on other rescues and us. Right? So if you can keep your dog, and that's really rescuing the dog, like, you know. Yeah. It saves lives. Yeah, exactly. For the dogs who obviously need the shelter, for other extenuating circumstances, at least your dog's not gonna be part of that statistic. And so we developed the RSU, especially during covid because of all the Covid puppies. Yes. And really we came back from, you know, three months of shutdowns. And no one wanted daycare. Mm-hmm. because they were working from home and, we'd always wanted to start the training aspect. Mm-hmm. And we decided that, well, we need to pivot because of those COVID puppies. Mm-hmm. All the clients that were coming to us were people that had young puppies, that they had gotten over the shutdowns and they needed help. Right. The puppies had lost out on those crucial socialization months, and a lot of covid puppies that we were seeing were behind on their socialization. Well, and you can't run an entire room of puppies, like it just runs amuck. So we were struggling to have dog groups that were not out of control because the puppies didn't know how to play with each other. Mm-hmm. And there are some points in the puppies' development when it is critical that they play with each other and you teach them how. Mm-hmm. But once they get older and bigger and they're past that, 17 week critical window, then they're just teaching each other bad habits. Right. And having puppies mixed in with adult dogs that already know the ropes is really one of the best ways to teach, puppies how to play properly. Although we did find out some of these adult dogs that were good in daycare after not being in daycare or being around people and around other dogs, they actually were set back and couldn't even be in daycare anymore. So we had to adjust our gears to accommodate for these, dogs who could no longer be with other dogs easily. Mm-hmm. well, and the program that we offered was a day training program, so it worked like daycare where you drop your dog off before you go to work. You pick them up on your way home, they're nice and tired. They got trained and we sent the owners home with homework. Mm-hmm. And so they would know, what to do, what we had worked on that day. And this was very convenient because it took the burden of the general responsibility of training off the shoulders of these people, and it helped accelerate the learning and the training process for their dogs. As well, we had smaller playgroups so that we taught these dogs how to play appropriately with other dogs. And part of the RSU program that we had, one of the big things that you could accomplish with your dog was getting the Canine Good Citizen certification. So people started having their dogs come to RSU for two purposes, either to be able to pass the CGC again, the canine good citizen, or to be able to play in daycare dog groups again. Yeah. And so all of the grade levels from preschool to high school, built on the tasks that the dog needs to know and be able to pass to do these Canine Good Citizen certification. And the great thing about CGC is that it's like a good dog medal and it can really open doors for people when it comes to renting. People who have pit bulls, things like that. So a lot of landlords are adjusting their policies to allow dogs that do have a CGC certificate because those dogs had to work really hard(mm-hmm) to pass that test. And if they pass that test, then they generally think, oh, well this is a dog I don't really have to worry about. So that's an important thing that is kind of happening out there in the world now. Right. And I've had CGC certified dogs and when we adopt out pit bull puppies, and it's funny, and the reason why we're doing this, podcast specifically on the CGC is because when I discuss it with dog owners, the adopters, many people aren't even aware of what a CGC certification is. So I have to discuss the Canine Good Citizen certification, how you pass it. Basically there's 10 steps in the CGC that your dog should be able to perform, and we start out with the Pup Star. It's AKC Star Puppy, basically. Mm-hmm. And that program is kind of like the foundation work. Yeah. For dogs under six months. Yeah. Or under a year really, because you can't have a dog pass CGC under six months,(so it well) at all. No. If anyone tries to pass your dog, says that your dog has passed a CGC under two years of age, I highly doubt it. Your dog has to be super exceptional. I mean, seeing eye dogs don't pass the CGC under two years of age. So I seriously doubt that your dog that has not had the rigorous training that seeing eye dogs do has passed the CGC. Your dog's not a genius. Mm-hmm. I mean, my dog's not a genius. You know, and, and we are people who actually train and rehabilitate, and my dog will not pass a CGC under two years of age because they go through different puppy stages and their personality is not totally determined, and formed until after two years of age. So I would be very skeptical of anyone who said that their dog passes CGC under two years. And what are some of the tasks? The one that comes to mind first is probably the very last, highest caliber one, which is that your dog has to sit quietly for at least three minutes when you leave the room and not move. You know, and I have to say that with our dogs, that's the hardest. It's super hard. I mean, your dog... They're like, where'd you go? Yeah, they, can be great at everything and then they have to sit there for three minutes just waiting for you to come back and not make a move. That's really pretty hard so that's why it's important that, if a landlord's gonna allow a dog of a certain breed, like that's a disciplined dog. Yeah, it's very disciplined and it's very social. Mm-hmm. So it's confident enough that you're gonna come back for it, and it's not gonna be anxious. It's not gonna be out of control. Mm-hmm. And, there are 10 things that you have to pass for the CGC, but a lot of people don't know that CGC even goes beyond that. Mm-hmm. So once you pass the CGC with your dog at two, there's other things such as the AKC Community Canine, and the AKC Urban CGC for those who want to get past that basic Good Citizen certification. So it's like a master's or a doctorate for your dog. Right. And, and beyond that you've got AKC Therapy Dog. And then you got Trick Dog, Fit Dog... Well, and we'd like to say that it is the AKC, the American Kennel Club that designed this test, we are not fans of the AKC at all. I don't even wanna go into that, but we are fans of this certification, these tests and encourage people to consider looking into them for their pets. And we actually have a few trainers who are tested and able to do this training and do the certification. So we made sure that our training progressed. Mm-hmm. And it led to a point. There was something that you would earn in the end(mm-hmm), that your dog would get in the end that would help keep people motivated and wanting to train their dog. Haku would be a great example of that. She was a dog that we adopted out that came to daycare. That dog was smart as a whip and... So smart. She could do anything. There's nothing she couldn't do. And I don't know that her parents actually took her for the CGC because they didn't really need to, or care, I guess. Mm-hmm. In their, in their world. But we used to call her the golden child because she was so good at everything and she was a dog that could have easily passed the test. Right. And again, your foundation is the Star Pup. And after that, the Canine Good Citizen testing that they do is comprised of just 10 basic things that you may not think it's a lot, but it actually is(mm-hmm) because a lot of dogs cannot pass this. The first one is accepting a friendly stranger. A lot of covid puppies, not so much. Yeah. That one's difficult for... Yeah, and then sitting politely for pets. Again, from a stranger. Yeah. I mean, your dog might be really friendly, but are they gonna sit and wait for someone to pet them or are they gonna be jumping all over them? Exactly. And so that's like manners, right? Mm-hmm. A lot of this is manners... and appearance and grooming. You gotta be able to clip their nails and things like that and... Brush them. Brush'em, yeah. And. The other one is out for a walk- being able to walk on a loose lead without pulling lunging, being reactive... Yeah, they have to ignore things that would normally set them or other dogs off. Mm-hmm. Because this is what it takes to be kind of a bomb-proof dog in society. Right. Walking through a crowd is another one. walking next to you through a crowd without them just being... Overwhelmed. Yeah, exactly. Because, I mean, think about it, they're hitting a lot of knees, a lot of hips. Well, and you'd be surprised how many people don't realize that that's a very stressful environment for their dog. And oftentimes will take a new dog that they don't know very well into that kind of environment. And like even just going to innocently, going to the farmer's market, like for some dogs, that's something you have to work up to. Mm-hmm. You have to really help prepare them. Right. Another is sit and down on cue and stay in place. And that's one of our foundations of training. Mm-hmm. The other, of course, is recall coming when called. This is what we talked about in our podcast for dog parks. You better have top-notch recall is what you really need for dog park etiquette. Well, and the other thing is that, you know, once your dog achieves this, it's not as though they're done learning. You should continue to uphold this training and their standards because you've worked really hard for it. Your dog's worked really hard for it, and it doesn't mean they can't be a dog. But you will know that your dog's not gonna get into trouble if you take them somewhere and it feels good to have a really well behaved dog. Right. That people notice is really well behaved. So it pays to just continue living your lifestyle in a way that upholds these skills. Right. And then the other things is reaction to another dog. Of course, we don't want reactive dogs, or have them know how to respond or basically ignore another dog or maybe another reactive dog... Reaction to distraction. There's a lot of distractions in the world. Squirrels! And then supervised separation, which is what Jme had talked about. Them not being so anxious when you leave the room. Yeah. When they're with another person, they can be with another person without freaking out when you're not there. Yeah. They have to stay in place if they get up and move. Right. They fail. Yeah. And they can't whine, they can't, you know, there's a lot of things, but again, this is just the first step of C G C. If you want to continue more and have an even better dog, there's other programs, the urban, the community. Mm-hmm. The family. Well, and the thing that we talk about with training is, it's not this thing that takes so much time that you have to set aside all this time to do things. I mean, yes, you have to practice things, but training is really a lifestyle. It's the way in which you do things. Do you just let your dog run out of the crate or do you make them sit and wait before they come out? Do you just throw the food down or do you make them sit and wait before you put it down? That impulse control, just sit and wait. It goes so far and it, it doesn't take long to initially teach them. I mean, we can teach a dog not to grab at their food bowl when we're putting it down probably in about five minutes. Most dogs can learn that, and as long as you keep it up, every time you feed them, they get better and better and better. And it doesn't take longer. It's just a certain way to do things. Right. And that's what we stress is that it's like having good habits, like going to the gym. Mm-hmm. Or, eating salads or not going out to eat fast food. It's a lifestyle of habits and it's helpful for your dog to have that kind of consistency, to have that kind of reliability and they will be a happier dog because they know exactly what's coming next, what to predict. And again, it's not all this time you have to set aside. Right. It's no different than having your child at a restaurant and having them sit and eat properly. Mm-hmm. I mean of course there are people out there where I'm like, seriously, get your kid under control cuz they're jumping on the seats they're looking over at other people in the booth... Running up and down the... Oh my god. Yeah. I'm like ready to like throw some peas at'em or something. Screaming. Why do kids have to shriek so much? It's just an excitement. The shrieking. Oh my gosh. Oh yeah. I've been there, done that. The kids are crazy. And they do, they do shriek. Yes. And dogs don't always like kids because kids are shrieky. Well, even just the short... That energy level. Yeah. Even just the short time, like what, two weeks that that daycare was open next to our dog daycare, the shrieking from the from the parking lot from their play area. Like, I was like, holy crap, I couldn't tolerate this for very long at all. Mm-hmm. I like kids, but man, no shrieking. Yeah. That's your outside voice. Yeah. Yeah. Dogs have an outside voice too. Mm-hmm. But again, I mean, it's about, boundaries. Dogs have to be able to navigate the human world and the CGC program is a good basis for that. Yeah. It's a great standard and it's something to aspire to(mm-hmm) so that you feel like there's a real point to what you're doing. I mean, cuz some people get frustrated or they take one class and they're like, well, I'm done with training. Your kid's not done learning because they pass kindergarten. Or even when they graduate high school, they're not done learning. Yeah. So why do people think that their dog took one obedience class.(yeah) and then they don't need to go again. Yeah. Your kid is not Doogie Houser, all right. They are not all of a sudden a child doctor. They go through years and years and years and years and years of school. Yeah. Just like, I mean, I'm sure Beethoven... Wait, was Beethoven like a protege? Yeah. I mean, was he crazy town? But he was six? No. Wait, okay. Yeah. You know what? He's not a good example. Throw him away. Because I was gonna say, didn't he compose something when he was two? I don't know. He was like five or something. Okay, fine. That's not normal. No. And a dog is not going to be Beethoven. After, oh yeah, we took him for a puppy class and I just don't understand why he's being this way. He's just so rude. Right, and they're allowing the dog to jump. They're doing all the wrong things. While they're telling you this, that the dog has a problem, and we're like, no, it's you. Yeah. Well, and I think something really important that not enough people consider is that training is not something you do because you have to, because you have to fix a problem or a bad habit that's developed. It should be something you always do. Every dog owner should pursue it to prevent problems from starting. Mm-hmm. It is so much easier to prevent a problem than to let a bad habit start and try and fix it. I mean, it's the same with people. Just start out on a good foot and don't let the bad things in and your dog is gonna be that much better off, so(right) I wish that people thought about training as a preventative requirement, like having a license to drive a car. They should have training for a dog. A lot of times people ask, when can I start training my puppy? Uh, now, so... They're, you're training them every minute you're with them, whether or not you realize it and good or bad, they're learning something. Mm-hmm. It is never too early. It is too early to expect that they're gonna be housebroken in a certain amount of time. It is too early to expect that a six week puppy is gonna be reliable with a sit or a down. That's not gonna happen. Like you have to adjust your expectations. Mm-hmm. But every interaction you have with your dog is an opportunity to train or to let them have a bad habit develop. Right. And you can start training puppies at six weeks old. We actually have a video of, I think the youngest that we got to sit to train to sit was like five weeks. Barely toddling. Super cute. Anyway, That's not gonna be everybody that was Beethoven. No. Anyway. But yeah, you want to start right away. You want to start setting up those boundaries. You may not be able to start taking classes(mm-hmm) per se, but you can start with the basics. The basics, what motivates puppies, right? the most common things that motivate puppies, prey drive that, you know, that desire to chase. And food drive. They're starving. Mm-hmm. All the time. Well, hopefully, unless they're huskies, then that's just a whole different ball game right there. But then with Huskies, you can use their prey drive, right? So those are the two motivators for training with puppies. You can actually use their kibble instead of giving them breakfast. You can use a kibble first before giving'em breakfast and a full stomach so that there is motivation for them to sit, to come, et cetera. We do a lot of lure training. Yeah, and you know, once you start using these drives to your advantage, your dog is able to control those impulses better, and that is the key to helping your dog establish good habits, good boundaries. You're, you're teaching them how to control those natural instincts and impulses. Right. And finding trying to find that puppy's motivation will help you with your skills, especially when they get older and you're starting to incorporate distractions. So when they're at home before they get all of their vaccinations and you go to a puppy class, then you're building up your bank in a way... Of trust. With your, of Yeah. With your puppy. Well, and so most puppies can start class at eight or nine weeks when they've had at least one... The core. Yeah. One round of vaccines. Some might have you wait later, but we would accept dogs as early as nine weeks because that's the earliest they could get Bordetella. Right. And so, we had very, very young puppies in our daycare, but we also tested everybody regularly. Mm-hmm. And we were very, very strict on our health policies and our cleaning procedures. Right. I actually, watched a webinar and it was a study that they had done at a college and it was about attachments and secure or insecure attachments with people and dogs. And the goal is a secure attachment and a dog that has even one secure attachment in their life will be more successful and more likely to build other secure attachments. But that, that is done through being authoritative, not authoritarian. Mm-hmm. So people often mistake being authoritative, having rules, having boundaries, having guidelines with authoritarian, which is dominating ruling by fear. That is not going to do it. But what made the most impression and kept the dogs from getting the most stressed out were the secure attachments with people who were more like a parent to them. You know, tough love than the ones that were their friends. And even sometimes the with the insecure attachments with dog parents that acted more like their friends or peers, them coming back in the room didn't alleviate their stress. Mm-hmm. Because their attachment with that person was very insecure. They were not trusting that person to be the leader, to be the guide, to be their... To keep them safe. Yes. So even their owner coming back didn't make them feel better. They were still anxious. They also showed that introducing another dog does not replace that secure attachment with a person. It can help in some ways, but saying I need to get two dogs to keep each other company, that doesn't necessarily alleviate the stress that you think it does when you leave the house. And this is, kind of like a separation anxiety. Mm-hmm. But I was so pleased to hear that, that authoritative, constructive boundaries and being able to say no and you know, those kinds of things, like that's what's best for them. And what we've always said, I mean, without scientific proof, was that people often say, well, my foster dog, if they grow to love me, won't they miss me and not be able to make an attachment with somebody else? And we actually say, no. What you're doing is you're opening the door to their heart(mm-hmm) and you're teaching them how to love and how to trust so that they are more likely to do that again. To transfer that to another person. Yes. Because they know that you are a good person. They can trust you and you've introduced them to other people and they can learn to trust those people as well. Yeah. So this is scientific proof(yeah) that what we've been saying and you know, we just know it to be true... Right. But that's what works. And so even if you aren't gonna get super serious with your dog training and maybe you're not gonna pursue the CGC, it is still going to benefit your dog the most to be strong, tough love, you know, have boundaries and don't be a pushover parent. Right. Although you really should strive for the CGC. That's all I gotta say. Especially, I mean, and I hate to say this, but especially for pit bulls. I mean, pit bulls get such a bad rap, you know, it's all about a pit bull did this, a pit bull did that, and... When we adopt out pit bulls, we tell them like it's not okay just to be a good pit bull, you have to be the best dog on the playground. You have to be an ambassador. Yeah, your dog... Ambassador. Your dog has to be a gold star example of pit bulls. Otherwise, you are just reinforcing stereotypes and things that people want, they see what they wanna see. And the last thing anyone needs to see is a pit bull behaving badly. Right. I mean, other dogs can behave badly, other dogs can send people to the hospital and they are not gonna get the media attention, they're not gonna get the hate. No. The way a pit bull does. If a golden retriever attacked a pit bull viciously at the dog park, everyone would say it was the pit bull's fault, even if they watched it. Mm-hmm. They would say it was the pit bull and... Because it couldn't be a golden. No, this is, and this is a fact. Like people will twist what happens. Right. Yeah. And they will think, well, the pit bull did something to instigate the golden. Right? Well, every dog has teeth and pit bulls aren't the only dogs that bite kill or mame. Right. But did you know that a pit bull's jaws lock? Yeah. Right. That's a good one. I know. It's a myth, people. Thank you, Matthew. Yes. He thinks so too. Yeah. Matthew's like that's bogus shit right there. So one of the things that I always say to people, when we talk about training is there is never a problem that a dog has that doesn't start with... At home. Well, no, no. The solution doesn't start with putting the leash on. I will have people be like, well, my dog does this. And I'm like, okay, put the leash on then blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And they're like, well, they do this. And I'm like, okay, put the leash on them, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And every time it's the leash. And then they just, they don't want that to be the solution. They want some magic thing. And I'm like, it's a$5 tool. It will prevent a world of problems and it will solve your problems. Like use it. Right. Yeah. A leash can help with so many things and help with bad habits from forming. And it's not like you have to have this dog on a leash 24 7 for the its entire life. It's just at the beginning to develop those basic foundations before they start developing bad habits. Because if you have a puppy with you on a leash, that puppy cannot get up, go to another room and take a huge dump because that puppy is with you. And then you see that puppy, circling or like hunching and then you're like, oh God, okay, you're about to take a dump. Let's run outside. Go to our potty spot, say go potty. They potty. You throw party. Look, you just started potty training the dog. Well, and when you do that sudden, no, no, no, no and you, and you have to chase them down or reach for them, that's when a dog is gonna turn around and bite you because they're scared shitless that you're trying to chase them. Whereas if you have a leash, you just turn and go and there's no drama, there's no fear. Right. So a lot of bites actually happen when people are trying to grab their dog. Mm-hmm. Because to prevent them from having a potty accident. Or Yeah, I mean, just grabbing a dog(mm-hmm) in general, with the puppies, it's, it's the leash. You're very calm, let's go outside cuz you're on a leash instead of, you know, walking into another room and stepping in poop. And again, that's because a bad habit developed cause you didn't have eyes on the puppy. Right. But it's also, the leash is also very great when it comes to new dogs that don't know you, you haven't built up that trust bank. So instead of being this looming giant over Jack with his little harp that you're running away from, because I mean the dog is Jack, you were that scary ass giant. And you don't wanna be the scary ass giant. You want to be the guy with the beans that Jack wants to give you the, okay. That's a really bad anecdote. It's funny, I love, I love your stories sometimes I'm like, okay, let's just see where this goes. Keep the dog with you, on the leash. And then the leash is just an extension of you in a sense, what I call umbilical training. Because you know what? You never stop training. Right? Well, you're pumping trust into them through the leash. And when Pate talks about the bank of trust, it it is, it's like the relationship you have is like a bank account. And every time you're doing things right, you're building trust. You know, you're enjoying cuddling, like you're adding to the bank account. Every once in a while you're gonna screw up. Like maybe you're gonna scare the dog, maybe you're gonna accidentally kick the dog in the head when you're running... Tripping. Stairs or something. You know, something like that where you're like, oh my gosh, like, I'm so sorry. Right. And that when you have built that trust up, then you know you're taking... A small withdrawal, right? So you're building up in pennies, but when you make mistakes, you're taking out in dollars. So you need to build up those pennies to make sure that you have that trust with that dog. And some people will argue that the umbilical technique is flooding a dog. But the same person that said that, had a dog that they'd had for six months and still couldn't touch it. And when we told them, geez, put the leash on it and tie it to your belt loop, they were like, oh no, that's flooding. And I was like, you've had this dog for six months and you can't touch it. Like Yeah. What are you doing? Right? Like at some point you need to try something else. Mm-hmm. And so it's, it's not flooding when you are showing them and helping them get over irrational fear that you were gonna be horrible to them. Mm-hmm. Then they are getting over it. They're learning to cope with the stress of being near you. They're learning to cope with the changes. They're learning to cope with your movements, with things going on in the house. And then they start to realize like, what was I even scared of? I don't even know why I was scared. This is great. That's all the time that we have for today. We'll be back, obviously. I'm Pate. Next Thursday. Right? Exactly. Every Thursday. Yeah. Whether you want us to or not. Mm-hmm. You can count on us. This is Pate. I'm Jme. And we are Motley Zoo Animal Rescue. This is our podcast. Rescue Shit. Rock On. Rescue On.