Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Operation Bang for Beef

That's what I'm calling my teeter retraining project.  The board Max is on has a PVC pipe attached underneath to make a mini teeter.  When it tips it makes a really loud bang.  We've been working on rewarding the bang with a hunk of stewing beef.  When I first brought the board back out I thought it was the tip that Max was leery of but after it banged loudly on the floor and freaked him out I realized it was the bang.  We went to putting a mat under the bottom to muffle the bang and now we have moved into the kitchen with full bang for the first time. Max is sitting here waiting to be released (after his reward).

I'm also doing this exercise with Rylie a) because Rylie will not be left out and b) I think Max's tentativeness comes a lot from not regularly practicing.  He can't eat beef though so he kind of gets ripped off in the treat department but shhhhhh - don't tell him.

4 comments:

Cavaliers Corner said...

I'm not really sure I understand why you're doing this? Is it to teach the dogs not to freak out with loud noises? Just interested, actually the see-saw thing looks like fun!

beth said...

So your pup associates not reacting to loud noises with good things (treats), right? Very clever, aren't you?!

Debbie said...

Beth - that's it exactly - I'm hoping it will work. My baby dog thinks it's the funnest game ever even though his treats are kibble - Max isn't so sure.

Beyond the Dog Dish said...

I like this new piece of equipment you have made and think this summer may add that. I never showed you my jumps I made after you told me how to. Still dont have a clue what I'm doing but its fun!