Clean Run - February 2014 - 39

Terrier Shmerrier!
By Bobbie Bhambree
Photos by Misa Martin except where noted

I thought I knew how to
train dogs. Then I adopted
a Terrier/Chihuahua mix
puppy and named her Tricky!
People warned me when I
named her Tricky, jokingly
and affectionately telling me
she would likely embody
the name I gave her. They
weren't kidding. Tricky
pushed and continues to push
my training knowledge, understanding of learning, and
mechanical skills to the limit!
And I thank her every day for
it. Every agility dog offers a
variety of training challenges
specific to the breed or the
individual. In this article, I
am going to talk about some
of the lessons I learned in my
experiences with Tricky.
© BoBBIe BHaMBree

When Tricky was six months
old, I attended an agility
training camp. On several
occasions, Tricky ran off to
play with other dogs. Her
eyes and focus were often
elsewhere, even if I had a
hunk of steak between my
fingers. During one of the
lectures, I had a "lightning
bolt" moment and a whole
new level of understanding occurred for me. The
presenter told the group that
herding dogs were bred to
work dependent on people,
whereas terriers were bred to
work independently of people. Duh! After that simple
but very profound statement,
I completely changed my
training plan with Tricky. I
was already working within
the concept of "Nothing in
Life is Free," meaning just
as I had to work for my paycheck, Tricky had to work
for things she wanted. I realized that I had to take this
concept to the next level and
get creative with training
this little terrier.

The Premack Principle
Tricky at five weeks old, still
at the New Rochelle Humane
Society where I first met her.
February 14

| Clean Run

This principle is also known
as Grandma's Law because
it comes down to one simple

rule: you have to eat your
veggies before you can have
your dessert. This technique
was helpful in training my
older dog Claire to recall
off a squirrel. Food was not
valuable enough when she
was about to take off after
a speedy critter. So I taught
Claire that if she came running to me when I called her,
she would be released to go
chase that squirrel: dessert
after veggies.
Transfer of Value
As a puppy, Tricky wasn't
very food motivated. She
preferred toys, especially
tennis balls. Her eyes would
literally light up when she
saw a tennis ball. To make
training easier, I needed her
to love food the way she
loved tennis balls.
I started out by offering a
really yummy treat. If she
didn't take it, then I offered
it again. If Tricky refused
a second time, I moved her
back a few feet from what
she really wanted (another
dog or a toy) and offered
the treat again. If Tricky
took the treat, I immediately
rewarded her with what she

wanted, releasing her to
the dog or toy.
Eventually the behavior
grew so that I was able to
ask her to sit, give her a
yummy treat, and then reward her with a tennis ball.
Essentially, I was rewarding Tricky for eating treats.
Soon, the value of the toy
transferred to the treats. Now
Tricky will accept anything
I offer her as a reward.
Think about different things
your dog LOVES. Maybe
it's other dogs, freedom, a
specific toy, other people,
or sniffing the ground. Ask
your dog to perform a behavior, then reward your dog
with what he really wants.
If you are trying to get him
to love food (the way I had
to do with Tricky), then ask
your dog to perform the behavior, offer a treat, and then
reward him with what he
really wants.

Oooh... Clouds!
For a while, the start line
became my nemesis. Not
because Tricky couldn't hold
a sit-stay-those were solid
as a rock. Her focus-or
rather her eyes-were the
39
Clean Run - February 2014

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run - February 2014
