CGC, PAT and Mitigating Behaviors

Have been having a great conversation with Maureen about ADI and CGC, PAT and mitigating behaviors.  And other forms of PAT, including that designed by Psychiatric Assistance Dogs.  Also discussing the test designed by Pawsitive Teams that is Levels based.  I like this evaluation because it takes in to consideration the test dog's own personal "nightmare" situations.

Lily has passed all - multiple times, actually.  When Sue visits, we test each other's dogs both on the CGC and the ADI PAT.  And the Pawsitive Teams Levels test, too.  But,,,, the behaviors are good ones to use in training situations in public places.  I am going to put them on my iPod to take with me.  Oops!  I just gave my iPod to Colin.  Well, I need to figure out a way to digitalize the tests so that I can refer to them in public and then use the behaviors as training goals in different real world environments.  Places where Lily and I often go.  And others.  Low distraction environments and those with greater challenges.

In addition to being good reminders, it will be fun for us both.

Mmmmm.  A good opportunity for a chart!!!

Then, finally, we get to the most important part - Lily's public mitigating behavior.  Lily has public and at-home mitigating "get help" behaviors.  We are developing an additional public "retrieve a stranger" behavior, but she has a "stay with me when down" public behavior.  Her public mitigating behavior has been trained and tested but since we stopped training in public with Jan and Cathy, we have not tested nor trained the behavior.  It is next to impossible to train without incurring interaction from well meaning public.  Of course, that's what it is supposed to do, but I haven't figured out a training plan to activate on my own in public.  So this is something else that needs to be addressed.  Another use for the "TRAINER" shirts!

Service dog training is never ending.  Where have I heard that before?

CGC Behaviors	Details
1. Accept a friendly stranger	Beach 5'; NEX 4'
2. Sitting politely for petting: head and body	car wash (I watched while Lily solicited interaction w/a young sailor)
3. Appearance and grooming
4. Loose leash: right/left/about turn; stop	Beach; Rite Aid; NEX
5. Walk thru crowd: no sniffing	NEX
6. Sit/stay and Down/stay out 20' and return	Beach 6'
7. Come when called: 10'	Beach/off leash
8. Reaction to another dog	Beach 6'
9. Reaction to distraction (usually noise)	HUGE low flying fighter jets one right after the other got Lily's attention
10.  Supervised separation: 3 minutes
Interior Mitigating	Details
1. Dedicated phone	FR (phone moved)
2. ECB	DR; LR; lower stairs;
New Mitigating Behaviors	# of Sessions`
1. Wearing vest in the house for balance/pull	III
2. Get Help = retrieve a stranger behavior chain

We spent most of our Dog Beach time around the water hose where dogs leaving the beach are hosed off for the ride home.  We stood in line with all the other dogs and their owners, only we kept dropping to the middle and back of the line.  In contrast to the CGC meeting another dog position, we were all facing forward.  And I wasn't shaking hands w/the other owners, but we were chatting.  It's great exposure to a variety of breeds and sizes that Lily doesn't often get.  She was just 'one of the' many well mannered dogs.

Lily doesn't have a problem with other dogs, but other than when working with Jan and Cathy and their dogs on Cathy's tennis court or when taking the CGC, I don't think we ever in real life had had the occasion to actually meet and greet another dog team.

We will continue to work our CGC behaviors in this environment for self control in a dog friendly environment.

We will work them on base, along the Bay and on Orange Avenue as well as we review CGC for the remainder of September.

And I'll try to keep the chart current, too.  Should be interesting.

"He's friendly."

This morning, before it gets too hot again, we are going to Dog Beach for some CGC work.  Real time.  With unfamiliar and unknown leashed dog teams.  Recently, when we did this, we ran in to an owner who insisted on permitting her dog to pull on its tight leash straight toward us, despite my open palm "Stop" signal and my, "We're training.  We don't want to visit."  She replied, "Socialization is good for dogs."  I told her, "We don't want to socialize.", turned and walked away as best as I was able in the sand.  Not exactly the training opportunity I had envisioned....but good training for "expecting the unexpected"!  No longer training with a group (with familiar dogs and set ups) Lily's training and exposure is truly all "real life".

Since in the course of Lily's working life Lily and I rarely go places where we run in to other dogs, I need to make a point of doing more random CGC-type training to give her the opportunity of practicing her public skills in the presence of unfamiliar dogs.

There will be no videos.  No pictures.  Just a verbal picture.  The entrance to Coronado Dog Beach is a great place for this exercise.  I need a place that offers "more bang for the buck" and there are ALWAYS dogs coming and going at Dog Beach and, for the most part, they are all leashed.  Always different and definitely "real life" - not the sterile environment where the CGC test is practiced and given.  And not empty parking lots or places where most dogs are not allowed.  IOW, I want to work on using the behaviors whenever and wherever.  I am seeking out the "controlled unexpected" training environment.  I will be in training mode.

Our last Dog Beach experience occurred when Mary Jane was visiting.  As we were slogging through the sand toward the "off leash" portion of the beach, we encountered a German Shepherd that was off leash and leaving the beach.  "Don't worry!  He's friendly!" his owner who was a good 20' behind the dog called.  Yeah, right.  My sister was terrified.  I was in deep sand.  I put myself between Lily between the shepherd and Lily, but he came on showing teeth and growling anyway.  That time I shouted at the dog and that distracted him long enough for the owner to catch up and grab him by the collar.  Lily did not react but that's not what I am after when I am letting Lily just "be a dog" on her collar and leash.

Today I am after CGC self control.  She will wear her collar (off duty) because I intend for her reward to be sniffing and looking and enjoying the environment.  If I ask her to Sit or to Down, I may reward w/food.  Probably string cheese.  I envision, at some future point, a WR type place behavior.  That, however, is a tough thing to generalize in a public situation when you have no control over the other dogs.

Anyway, we're going out, which is a good thing.  And we're purposely going into a challenging environment.  But at a sub-threshold distance.  We will work where Lily can be successful.  Whether we make it to the beach or not is not a given.  The problem there is mine - my knees.  Wish Dog Beach had a complimentary dune buggy!  But that would be in direct conflict with my training goals.  Sigh.