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Walk Away demo
Hi!
I love Walk Away, especially For leash-reactive dogs. Macy is a young GSD/lab mix who used to react to everything on our daily walks (I’m also a dog walker). Jax is her “brother”, not littermate…and older, so her behavior would often set him off, trying to correct her.
This is after about 9 months of walks, M-F…but we have an incredibly stable Walk Away cue. The parameters are, no matter where we are or what we are doing, IMMEDIATELY on cue, they must turn with me and walk 180 degrees in opposite direction. I used to pay small jackpots at the beginning, but now just a single out partial treat. Note, when I see the dog or garbage truck or whatever, I can change direction with them both and stay in perfect harmony.
Hope you enjoy!
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16 Replies
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Paula, I love this cue and training demo! How lovely, to be able to work 2 dogs (and BIG ONES at that!) so smoothly. Well done. This is a super useful cue and behavior chain. Thanks so much for sharing!
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@catherine: Thank you! I love that cue, too. I was amazed how they both took to it quickly, and that we didn’t get all tangled up (I keep them both on my waist leash currently, but we didn’t start out that way). I agree about it being a great cue and behavior chain. I love that they trust me and just come with, no matter what.
@jenz: I am thinking back to starting this sequence…no, I had them both with me on the walk. Jax is super food crazy (needs to be told to go sniff, because he thinks I’m too interesting to leave my side, lol) so, he naturally followed a lure. Macy used to be so reactive (used to be on a prong collar) and I swear she would be looking for things to react to! So, getting her attention was harder with food, but if her big brother got some, she wanted it, too. Eventually, they both were so much better LLW and doing Watch me on walks…(again, they are only walking clients, I train them for my own joy!) so what started as: I saw a dog coming at us with owner on leash…get their attention with a food lure…(kick-turn-ba-da-boom)…they are still with me, YAY! Pay, PAY!!! “GOOD PUPS! “ quickly, Macy started figuring out that I had my reasons, that we were turning and she is happy about not having to react to something…suddenly, there are times now (just last week) that she physically cues me, by planting herself in a polite sit and looking over her shoulder, when she’d like to change direction (P.S. it’s never a destination walk with these two because of the street pattern and all the triggers). ????
Sometimes I can do a food dump, say “Find It!” And let the two dogs forage in the grass while the trigger goes past us. That works, too.
Dogs are the best and once they find a means of communicating, we really go to a new level as best friends.
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Sometimes I can do a food dump, say “Find It!” And let the two dogs forage in the grass while the trigger goes past us. That works, too. – Paula M.
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Synchronized turning! I love it!
I agree with @catherine ! Great demo and training!
Did you start training them one at a time for this?
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Thanks for walking me through your process! I am even more impressed you trained this with the two of them at once! What a challenge that seemed to come so naturally for you!
“Dogs are the best and once they find a means of communicating, we really go to a new level as best friends.” I love this statement, since I have had the opportunity to experience it just as you state it- so true!
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Building these cues, to have those strong and happy responses to them from the dogs you are working with is GOLDEN! That you have a variety of cues to use in combination, allows you as the handler the flexibility to lead your dogs through challenging situations with minimal stress.
Have you been able to teach the dog’s owners to use these cues as well?
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Not yet! The owner is very passive and her life is always chaotic. Originally they were training clients who switched over to me doing daily walks, which she says still helps them a lot. I think that would be a great idea to see if I can get them to do some training to teach them these cues. Any suggestions on how to breach the subject without being pushy?
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Has the owner seen the cue in action? If not, maybe something as simple as, “do you want to see something really cool” and then have the dogs show off the behavior? Just watching their dogs do such a nifty maneuver so smoothly (it really looks like magic) might be just what they need to get them interesting in learning how to be part of the fun!
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You know, you’re right, that’s a great idea, Jen! I will give that a whirl! Thank you!????
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Seeing is believing!
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OK, well, I wasn’t planning on posting another video…this is another dog, training client, Rusty. He used to pull so hard on walks that he knocked his owner down and she broke her foot…so my task had been improving his LLW and I’ve also used Walk Away with him.
Today, on our walk, we encountered a doe, almost came 10 feet away from us! That is a huge trigger, according to his owners, who often have deer on their yard. So, we both saw the deer and I said Walk Away, he followed, I jackpotted him and kept praising and treating him for continuing not to react. I actually granger grabbed my phone when the deer started following us!!! Rusty was also taken aback, but kept our new trajectory towards my car! Finally we lost the deer when we cut through a yard. I am totally astounded!!!
And…his owners were mad at him for counter surfing a breakfast casserole this weekend, but I think this video absolves him of that.❤️
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WOW – great job @bernerlabreclectus and Rusty! I completely think Rusty deserved a breakfast casserole for that performance with the deer!
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I love this method and I think my dogs do too. I use the term “runaway” like in Monty python. I realized that using a command that makes me laugh like “runaway” helps keep me calm and the dogs react with more enthusiasm.
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@cath – you literally made me Laugh Out Loud with your reply! I agree that is really important to keep these sorts of cues happy ones. I counsel clients to use a cheerful tone when speaking cues like Come and Leave It but having a funny phrase to say is an even better idea!
I practice Evasive Maneuvers like this one randomly when I am out walking with my own dogs to keep it primarily just a fun way to move together, not just a quick way to get away from a trigger (like a skateboarder or a barking down the street).
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@jenwalker -I totally agree about using it as part of an Evasive Manuvers arsenal. What I love about the cue, is that it works in so many different ways. I also love learning what my clients use it for. Also, when we are not destination walking, it becomes so much easier for the owner to let go and use it frequently. What is it with humanity that we need to get from point A to point B in a hurry? I think the dogs love the change of pace and scenery and a chance to go back the way we just came from in a different view!
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I agree, finding ways to enjoy the walk itself (in such good company) makes all the difference in engagement. When doing training walks with clients, I often wonder out loud what their dog might be smelling/hearing/thinking. It really puts a smile on my face when the clients join in! I know we are only guessing but educated-anthropomorphizing can be a great tool for building empathy.
I honestly think helping our clients see the joy that their dogs have being in motion and exploring while on their walks can be reinforcement to the clients themselves!
(print from http://www.sivertson.com/shop/originals/coddiwomple)
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