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Permalink Reply by Jane T. (& Griffin) on October 4, 2011 at 5:45pm

Hi, when Griffin is being silly (laying on floor and squirming) I tell him to "sit", give him a treat and then clip on leash.

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Permalink Reply by Sam Tsang on October 4, 2011 at 6:36pm

Hi Jane, all young pups will put up a fight with the leash / collar, it's heavy and dictates where they go. Don't chase him, he'll turn it into a game. Your best bet is to treat all training into a rewarding positive experience, take advantage of his love of food, have super yummy treats available and he'll do whatever you want. (almost).

 

Always make his crate the best place in the world, you can associate food, toys, gradually increase incrate time, when you can supervise him, leave the door open. Check the FAQ.

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Permalink Reply by Jane and Beau on October 4, 2011 at 8:34pm

Thanks - all good advice.

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Permalink Reply by Jane on October 4, 2011 at 7:19pm

Maybe take his leash and walk around with it occasionally, or put it next to you on the couch when you're watching TV, etc so he doesn't think he's getting grabbed every time it comes out. When you do need to leash him I would use a bit of chicken or cheese or other yummy treat to lure him to you until he's more reliable. Definitely try not to chase him, I wouldn't even call his name, just walk over calmly and snap the leash on if possible.

Henry is kind of a stinker sometimes about going in the car. If he's doing his "chase me" routine, sometimes I'll just walk to the door, say "ok then, bye!" and walk into the garage, shutting the door behind me. If I wait a few minutes and then open the door he is almost always sitting there waiting to go lol.

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Permalink Reply by Beth on October 4, 2011 at 8:02pm

For the crate, figure out what word you'll use to crate him up (I use "go to bed!" since that's when I crate mine, but many people use "kennel up" or something similar).

 

Toss a cookie in the back of the crate and as he runs in, say your command in a cheerful happy voice and then say "Yayyy!!!" and make a fuss.   Keep doing this for a couple weeks and then start saying the word before you throw the treat and make him go in first.   

 

Just be careful if you have a wire crate to put tape or something across the front;  Jack was so enthusiastic about running in his that he caught a toe and hurt himself.

 

I used this to teach mine to go in their ex-pen and now when I haul the pen out of the basement if we need it, they both get so excited that they hover around until the door gets put in the proper position, then hop through it and stand there looking at me, grinning.  It's actually kind of funny;  they're like "Hey, going through this door thing makes Mom very happy.  Here we are!!!"   They'll do this even if they haven't seen the pen in months.  Maddie especially is prone to randomly going into the pen or her crate and sitting there, looking at me hopefully.

 

The other thing you can do is when you are going to be leaving him in his crate, get him in there using the lure method I described, then give him a Kong or something similar with a little peanut butter or cream cheese on it.  Put it in with him, close the door and walk away without a word.   Make sure he only gets that yummy treat when he's locked up and he'll come to look forward to being put away. 

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Permalink Reply by Bev Levy on October 4, 2011 at 9:56pm

I agree never chase him. Use treats to bring him to you and occasionally snap the leash on and take it right off. Ex.-give a treat, snap on the leash, and remove. Do it a couple times in a row. Also, I always put a little cheese smeared in a Kong when I am leaving the house. The one dog I have to crate races to her kennel as soon as I pick up her Kong. The other two go into the kitchen right away. My leaving is a very happy moment for them because it is the only time they get cheese in their Kong. When training a recall in such a young puppy be sure to make yourself fun and exciting so he will want to come over to you. If all else fails lay on the floor and make silly noises, reward with a treat when he comes over to investigate. Remain patient you are just encountering typical smart puppy testing. Enjoy!

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