I have a 7 year old female Ausstralian Terrier. As well as a not quite pup, 2 year old male Australian Terrier. In the past few months my female, I'll call her by her name from now on, Ollie, has lost all interest in "learning". It's almost as if she's lost that terrier "spark". Now don't get me wrong Ollie is still a ball crazed, squeeky toy shredding terrier, but she has gone from the pup that loves to learn new tricks to a somewhat bored, passive dog that would much rather lay on the couch for a nice nap than participate in a training session.
So with the back story set, I guess I'm coming to the group with a question:
Can I Click! to reconnect with Ollie?
I have clicker trained my younger Aussie. He knows the sound of the key chain being attached to the treat bag. He knows if we are going to class (which is "work" for him) and he is more than eager to entertain even the most trivial of tasks I ask of him. Ollie doesn't respond to the Clicker as much. She associates the click with a treat or the click with a squeeky, but would much rather watch from the sidelines. Does anyone have any ideas as far as getting Ollie and I reconnected? I can't seem to find anything besides a good swim after a ball in the lake that gets her motivated.
re: Click! to reconnect?
You certainly can. Sue Ailsby calls it "in the game" when a dog is actively engaged in training. Some likely causes of a dog not being "in the game" are:
- criteria too high
- rate of reinforcement too low
- reinforcer not valuable to dog
- too many distractions
So pick a low distraction area, like your bathroom, and begin teaching something simple like "go to mat". Set your criteria really low and keep the rate of reinforcement high. Do this before a meal, you might even skip a meal earlier in the day or the night before.
Regards,
Aidan
http://www.PositivePetzine.com