SKYLER'S SERVICE DOG TRAINING JOURNAL

UPDATES HERE FOR OUR HOOSIER BOXER BASH!

2004-09-02T13:16:00.000-07:00

Hello All!
Sorry for the lack of posts but I am keeping them on notes in my handwritten log and will post them very soon! We've been so busy with organizing our Hoosier Boxer Bash coming up Sept. 26, 2004!

If you are a Boxer dog owner in Ohio, Indiana, or Kentucky check out our site and sign up for an awesome day of fun meeting other Owners of Boxers and their dogs! The dogs will have a blast playing since we have a 135 acred farm!

There's going to be door prizes, games, lots of food (human and Canine!)and many Surprises in store for all!

So go sign up, join our mailing list for updates and other Boxer Meet Ups and Boxer Bashes in your area!

There's also lots of information on: Service dogs, deaf dogs, Handicap Assist dogs, Meet Ups, Boxer Bashes, Multiple Sclerosis and local support groups, Great places to shop for great prices on pet supplies and specialty service dog and deaf dog equipment, pet pagers, vibrating collars, and tons of fun stuff like free pet or Boxer dog postcards, games, contests, sweepstakes, more!

Warmest Regards to all our readers,

Mindy, Kenny, & Skyler

P.S. Please post any comments, notes, etc... All inappropriate posts will be deleted immediatly so please be courteous. :)

GEE MOM, YOU'RE AWEFUL SLOW AT THIS TRAINING THING!

2004-08-16T23:45:00.000-07:00

Today I was in the kitchen cleaning up and she kept going over to the towels that are hanging over my oven door and pulling them off so they dropped to the floor. I told her no several times and then she gave me that 1/2 cocked head like "What? I don't understand?" Then, I realized she was thinking she was supposed to pull them to open the door like she does when I tie the knotted rag on the cabinet doors, drawers, and refrigerator when I want her to open them. haha... She thought she was doing a good thing and couldn't figure out why I kept telling her no. So, I showed her the knotted rag and tied it on a door and said "this one, you pull" then showed her the regular towels hanging on the oven door and told her "these, you don't pull". She seemed to understand almost immediatly and didn't pull the towels down again.

UUHHH OHHHH... SHOULD I HAVE TO WAITED?

2004-08-15T06:22:00.000-07:00

I have already taught Skyler that when I get her food and put it in her bowl she is not to jump on me or lunge for the bowl as soon as I set it on the floor. She waits for the "go ahead" command and does this consistently. Well, this morning I was busy, doing so many things at once. She was outside on her lead going potty and I put the food in the bowl and put it on the floor, not even thinking about it. Well, I let her back in and she knows the routine... next comes breakfast. She went over to the bowl and started eating. I thought about the fact that I forgot to keep the bowl out of reach and make her "wait" but thought, hey, she's so good about that all the time, just let her eat it, it's already on the floor waiting for her. But just then, she backed away from the bowl all of a sudden (about 2 feet back) and sat down. Then she looked at me with this sort of guilty look that Boxers are so good at. ha-ha... she was waiting for the command to "go ahead and eat it" so I told her "wait", "yes", "good girl" and gave her the okay. It was funny.

SLOPPY, WET BOXER KISSES ARE NOT FOR EVERYONE DEAR!

2004-08-14T19:19:00.000-07:00

Today, my step-daughter came over with her 6 month old baby since I am training her to work for me part-time. Skyler had a hard time controlling herself around Baby Brittany. She didn't jump on her but wanted to keep licking her hands and face. Baby Brittany thought this was funny but I knew it would get very old to her after a while so I had to keep telling Skyler "no, don't lick". Boy, it was a long day dealing with that but I think it will be a good training lesson for her now that they'll be coming over a lot so we can get her to stop doing that to everyone she sees. After all, not everyone enjoys a big, sloppy, Boxer kiss! So we're teaching her it's okay to lick us when we first come home or when we ask for one. She loves giving her daddy kisses when he gets home from work! And that's okay, as long as she doesn't keep doing it over a minute or so. :)

WATCHING ALL THOSE RERUNS OF MAGNUM P.I. MUST HAVE PAYED OFF!

2004-08-11T13:08:00.000-07:00

We've been working on the "turn around" command and she's finally getting it! Also, her "stay" command is coming along great. I was having trouble getting her to stay as soon as I was out of her sight so I figured out an easy way to see her when she couldn't see me. I had her "stay" in the kitchen and I walked around the large counter into the dining room where I could see her reflection in the front of the stove. I am such a Private Dectective. Think I should get a license? teehee... So, each time she would start to get up I would immediatly go right back in there (only a few feet away) and correct her and make her go back to the same spot and "stay" again. Poor thing, mommy taking advantage of her being deaf again. HEY, YOU GOTTA DO WHAT YOU GOTTA DO! It only took a few times doing this and now she's staying for up to almost 3 minutes at a time (Give her a break now,okay? She doesn't have ADD, she's just a baby!) ha-ha

Another thing we've been working on is I tell her "stay", "you wait here", "I'll be right back". Then I would leave the room and close the door. She used to scratch at the door after a few minutes but now stays in there and waits for me for up to @ 10 minutes at a time and doesn't scratch at the door. I always reward her with special treats and lots of hugs and kisses. :)

Would You want YOUR DOG doing this???

2004-08-05T12:57:00.000-07:00

Every morning when we get up, I let her outside my back sliding glass doors with a 25' lead attached. I feed her out there and it allows her to enjoy the morning scenery including our dog, Abby who stays "mostly" outside by her choice. She's @ 25 yards away in her doghouse. when Skyler wants in she will scratch at the door to let me know. Today, however, was very different...

Not 1 but 2 Major Breakthroughs!

I was in my office down the hall when I heard her walking around in the kitchen! SHE OPENED THE DOOR AND LET HERSELF IN! Hhhhmmm... How did she get in the sliding glass door? Well, I'm not sure but she DID! And not only did she do that but she went to that kitchen cabinet door again, opened it, and got her treats! (She also pulled out a trash bag that was left laying on the floor but undisturbed.) I gave her the "Wow, Great job!" sign again. She still looks at me with that guilty look like she's not sure why I'm so happy about this. teehee... She has no idea that this is a beginning skill that will be used later on to have her go and get things out of cabinets, refrigerators, etc... for me when I am unable. But, lots more training involved to get her to that point.

THE SNEAKY LITTLE THIEF MADE ME SO PROUD!

2004-08-04T08:44:00.000-07:00

A Major Breakthrough!

While my husband and I were eating dinner I heard her bumping the cabinet in the kitchen, then heard her chewing on something. I went and looked and, behold! She had figured out how to get into the cabinet! Since I didn't actually see her do this I wasn't sure what technique she used to do it, the towel, or maybe pushing the handle or pawing at the door itself. I sneaked up on her (not difficult to do since she's deaf). I think at first she thought she was in trouble but I quickly gave her the "wow, great!" sign and rewarded her with hugs, kisses, and a jackpot of more treats. She did it one more time during dinner but I still didn't catch her doing it so I'll be closely spying on her in the next week to see how she's actually doing it. :) But, I rewarded her in the same way so hopefully she'll learn this is a good thing that I want her to do.

I will note that this is a situation where I will have to do some rearranging of my cabinet contents to make sure she doesn't get into anything she's not supposed to, that could harm her, or something that she might chew up and destroy (she's never done that but there's a first time for everything! So, I am taking precautions...
Time to "Baby-Proof" the cabinets! But... SUCCESS! :)

GET SMART, WILL YOU??? NO, NOT SKYLER, ME!

2004-08-03T21:37:00.000-07:00

I FINALLY got smart and decided to take the treats out of the knots in the towel since this was only distracting her (still licking at the towel but not pulling on it). I showed her that there were BETTER treats inside the cabinet if she would just pull on the towel. I demonstrated it, pulling the towel and opeining the door letting her stick her nose in and see the treats but not letting her have them (I felt so mean). We practiced the tricks she already knows and I rewarded her for those with treats, hugs, kisses, and playing with some favorite toys. Time for bed now. She's starting to comprehend what the sign for "go to sleep" is but not sure what bed she's supposed to get in, hers, or mine (since she sometimes sleeps with me, other times in her own bed). She'll stand next to her bed and look at me. I have to coax her into it and keep reinforcing the "go lay down in "YOUR" bed and "go to sleep" ) I'm working on that, trying to slow down and make sure she understands each sign before going to the next.

JUST LIKE MOMMY... NEEDS HER CIGARETTES AND COFFEE!

2004-07-30T18:32:00.000-07:00

Did I mention Skyler likes cigarettes? Very strange, my previous Boxer, Brandy, always hated cigaretttes and the smoke would make her sneeze. She'd give me a dirty look and go sulk in a corner making me feel guilty for being a "Bad Mommy". Well, Not Skyler! She LOVES THEM!

Anyway, I accidently left a cigarette on my desk today and she was trying to eat it when I returned. Later today, my mother-in-law and I went outside for no more than 10 minutes with her in the house alone. We came back to find that she had scoured the entire house in that short time, getting into ashtrays, trash cans, wherever there were cigarette butts and knocked them over and got into them. I don't think she missed one place in the house. She chews on them, then spits out the filter. We keep joking that maybe we should get her some chewing tobacco. haha... No, it's bad enough I have the habit, we don't need her to be addicted too! So, we have to be super careful now to get rid of all of them and empty all the ashtrays a lot. oH, AND SHE LOVES COFFEE TOO! Just like mom, needs her caffeine & Nicotine to function well.:)

SHE'D BE DOING GREAT IF I'D QUIT MAKING MISTAKES! :)

2004-07-27T23:18:00.000-07:00

Skyler is @ 16 weeks old today! She's almost completely mastered the potty breaking, only occasionally making a mistake which is actually MY mistake for not watching her. I'm trying to keep her right next to me for the next week so she'll continue to do good. :)

WHO'S THE COLLEGE GRADUATE HERE ANYWAY?

2004-07-27T06:34:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to teach Skyler to open a cabinet door since the refrigerator door with the towel hanging from it wasn't proving to be a success. I decided I'd better start with a door that was lower to the ground and easier to open. So I tied the knotted towel to the door and at first I put treats inside the knots of the towel (again!) thinking she would want to grab the towel and pull on it, which would cause the cabinet door to open. Well, this didn't work. She would just lick at the towel knots to try to get to them but didn't actually pull on it. so I took the treats out of the towel knots. I put new, even more enticing treat INSIDE the shelf of the cabinet itself and showed her where these were. She was DEFINITELY interested in this but still can't figure out how to open that door to get to them. But, I keep showing her that they're in there daily and then pulling on the towel showing her that's how she can get to them. We'll see what happens...

SHE'S GOT THE GOODS... HOLD IT, HOLD IT...

2004-07-27T06:21:00.000-07:00

Skyler actually carried 2 small items for me yesterday from my kitchen to my office but this is still something new we're working on). I couldn't get her to pick them up, had to physically put them in her mouth and have her hold them. Then signed "good, stay" (couldn't remember what the sign was for "hold" so I made a gripping sign with my hand and quickly told her to "come one!", signing "good" the whole way down the hall to my office. She carried them the whole way and let me take them from her. :)

THE "TUG OF WAR" GAME - WHO'S WINNING THIS GAME?

2004-07-24T17:43:00.000-07:00

The refrigerator training is to not working with the method I've been using. So, I change the game plan, so I took it off and tried to play "Tug of War" with her using the towel. She normally loves this game but I swear, she just wasn't into it, too concerned about the treats inside it and just licking the towel...uuuhhhh....DUHHHHH..... We had to try something different but needed a break so I "threw in the towel" so to speak, played with her using her other toys and called it a day. I have to get my training books out and consult and/or put my thinking cap on. Oh well, aaahhhh.... tomorrow's another day. :)

LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME NOW! :)

2004-07-20T04:46:00.000-07:00

Skyler is understanding the "Look at me" sign pretty well (I tap 3 times near my right eye), and she's responding about 80% of the time as long as I ALREADY have her attention. This is very important for her and ME since she's deaf.

I have been using my clicker if she's within 7 ft. of me to get her attention since as long as there's no other sounds around she can hear it and that's been working great. The Clicker training method is great for hearing dogs but I've modified it a bit for her since she usually can't hear it (In case you're wondering...I bought the Clicker training manual and clicker before I knew I was going to have a deaf dog). I always tell her "GOOD" and have learned to use my facial expressions a lot as well as head movements since often I will have my hands full and can't use my fingers to sign to her. Good thing we live in the country since I'd probably look pretty strange making all these faces at her and swinging my head in all directions... ha-ha. It will be nice when I can get her a dog backpack to carry some things too. She needs to start pulling her weight around here. teehee...

If she's further than 7 ft. or so I use the laser pointer and she'll follow it to me and but she's smart enough to realize where the light is coming from and wants to look at THAT so I have to be careful she's not staring at the laser light directly which could harm her eyes. By then I have her attention and give the "LOOK AT ME" sign, followed by "YES, GOOD!" and turn the laser pointer off. The laser pointer has 45 different changeable heads by the way so I change it so there's always a different image. Right now we're using the big smiley face. I thought that was appropriate. :) But... we do have to get a better, and of course more expensive laser pointer since this one's just a cheapie and it's not bright enough for her to see outside in the daylight or if it's aimed on the grass. We don't use the laser pointer very often since I want it to be a "Special Treat" and not something she's so used to seeing that she might think "Big Deal, who cares about that!"

Gotta get that remote control vibrating collar (they call it a pet pager) as soon as possible! But again... even more expensive and my funds are limited at the moment. I've shopped around for them online a lot. The really super-good ones with a long range are over $300.00. I've found them for as little as $76.00 but those only work for @ 100 yds. We won't usually need that far of a range anyway but it would be nice to know if she did take off running for some reason I could get her attention right away to prevent a possible disaster such as her running into the street and getting hit by a car. We live in the country with quite a bit of road frontage but the main street off our driveway is extremely busy at times and people drive @ 55 mph on it, pretty much like it's a state highway even though it's not. But, sadly, I can't even afford the $76.00 one right now. My poor husband was out of work for 8 months when the Qualex plant(a div of Kodak) he worked at in Cincinnati closed and we are still trying to recover from that. He has a job now but is working 3rd shift and the hours are too much for him to adjust to at age 50, especially since he has serious health problems himself.

More later... Gotta get back to work and make $$$ MO' MONEY! $$$ I'm trying to get some good help hired so it will free up some of my time to do "Normal" things and get out of cyber world for a while. By the way, if you know of anyone looking for an online job, a REAL one, not like the usual SCAMS that are always out there these days... PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE...

Check out the employment page on my website from the link below. I also have local opportunities available if there's anyone near our location looking for a job, part time or full time.

We live @ 12 miles from Batesville, Indiana, 12 miles from Harrison, Ohio, 12 mls.
from Lawrenceburg, Indiana (Literally 12 miles from almost everyone! teehee... Oh yeah,@ 20 miles from Florence, Kentucky too. So if you live close check out the local job positions I have available.... Fashion Photographer, eBay Auction Trading Assistant, and more to come very soon.

It's so difficult to get people to respond to "Online Job, work at home" Opportunity Ads since they're getting so used to seeing all the CRAP out there... they don't know who to believe and I don't blame them. Makes it tough for the few of us who do have an honest, REAL Job available for them. I miss the good old days online when there was more honesty out there, not to mention FREE STUFF! JEEZE, They charge for EVERYTHING now! It's ridiculous! I saw recently that people are actually charging for simple webpage counters! (If you need one by the way just email me, I still know places to get lots of cool, nifty ones for FREE.

***Sorry for getting off on a tangent!*** Someone stop me please! ... making a note now on my ever-growing, extremely HUGE and unrealistic, inhumanly impossible, "to-do list" of yet another subject to write an article on and publish in some e-magazines (I write a lot of articles) or maybe another blog.... hhhmmm...

Sooo...I'm off my tangent now but truly, if you're looking for a GREAT JOB.... Online work or local... Changing the subject for a sec (I think I may have developed A.D.D.),I'm starting to "sign" to everyone, everywhere now. I think I "sign" in my sleep, that is when I actually do sleep those incredibly long 3-4 hours a night... teehee... If only I could get the rest of the world to get on MY schedule and work 12-18 hour shifts, darn, what lazy *&*+^&%$@# 's!

LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME NOW! (Okay, that's finally the link!)

Skyler will thank you too with lots of slobbery Boxer kisses since I'll have more time to spend playing instead of working.

But for now... Back to the grind! (Skyler is puffing and sighing now, collapsing
on the daybed in my office most likely thinking "might as well get comfortable
and take a nap"). Don't you feel sorry for her, knowing you could relieve her of this plight! Go check out those jobs! :)

GEE, WHAT A LONG POST, PROBABLY LOST YOUR ATTENTION HOURS AGO and I sincerely apologize. I'll try to be less wordy next time, I promise. Can you tell I write a lot of articles? :)

Mindy (Skyler's here too but she's snoring)

IS IT TOO EARLY TO TEACH "OPEN THE FRIDGE"?

2004-07-17T22:23:00.000-07:00

I tied a knotted towel to the refrigerator door and put hidden treats in the towel AND inside the lowest shelf in refrigerator. I showed her all of these several times, smiling and signing to her that it was "good" to pull on the towel! Look what was in the towel if she could pull on it and stretch it enough to get the treats out! Not only that, but once she did get the fridge door open, there were even more treats for her on the bottom shelf. I demonstrated this process to her several times but all she did was lick the towel, trying to get the treats out of it. Hhhhmm... So, I just left it there to see if she would finally figure it out.

NO, UNDER THE DESK IS NOT YOUR "CAVE"!

2004-07-10T10:19:00.000-07:00

For some reason, every dog I've ever owned has always wanted to lay under my desk when I'm working. Well, my last dog was a 95 lb. German Shephard who would literally squeeze her way in the small space, she was so large she couldn't even trun around. The experts say it's due to a natural instinct that stems from their ancestors, basically "wild dogs" who searched for caves or small places to hide from predators. Well, seeing as there are no predators in our house I was determined to train Skyler to not lay under my desk. Not only are there lots of computer cables, electrical wires, and phones cords that she could possibly get an urge to chew on and hurt herself and/or my equipment... but the plain simple fact is that it gets irritating when I have to change positions, move my chair, etc... So, I've been consistently telling her no everytime she tries to climb under it. I had to literally resort to blocking it with everything imaginable and she would try everything she could to get in somehow. Finally, I made her a "den" next to my desk out of pillows in a corner and eventually plan on making it even more like a real "den" for her. She didn't think much of it but today was the first day she didn't even attempt to get under my desk. Hurray!

SO MANY CATS... SO LITTLE TIME...

2004-07-07T07:13:00.000-07:00

New focus for the week... "Be gentle" with the cats when playing with them!

Getting better everday at this since I've been correcting her and showing her how to be gentle although the cats tend to agg her on so it can be difficult! ha-ha...

I'm also trying to get her to "be gentle" with our ducks but the poor things are still leary of her since the pouncing episode the day before. :)

BACK FROM VACATION

2004-07-05T00:07:00.000-07:00

Back from vacation. We all loved the cabin, especially Skyler who made herself right at home instantly, checking out all the rooms and was especially excited to discover that we had brought her bed and a huge bag of her favorite toys! She decided to flop down on an area rug in the living room in front of the fireplace and take a nap. I think she wanted to stay forever (as we did). :) She did great the entire time except for trying to chase a kid on a 4 wheeler yesterday. That was scary! Luckily, the 8 year old boy was smart enough to slow down and then stop so we could get her. Our mistake for letting her run around the area, thinking no way would she run up the driveway. Oops... we won't do that again.

Skyler was excited to see the ducks again (we let them roam around the farm). She likes to chase them but I've been trying to correct her when she does this, telling her no. Then they come up to her like they do the other dogs (they actually sleep next to one of our dogs that stays outside! ha-ha He's old and likes their company). Well, today she got a little TOO excited to see them and actually pinned one down on the porch, trying to wrestle with it like she does the other dogs and cats. Luckily, my husband was there to come to the rescue and get her off poor "Donald" (Our ducks are named "Donald & Daisy", original, huh? ha-ha). She was given the "bad, non-no" sign" and put in the house. From now on, no more running free until she understands about being gentle to the ducks and that they're not other dogs she can wrestle with! ha-ha... :)

OUR FIRST ROAD TRIP

2004-07-01T04:55:00.000-07:00

We're leaving for a short 3 day weekend vacation today and taking Skyler on her 1st trip. We're going to stay in a little cabin in Kentucky called "Chop Chestnut Cabins & Camping Ground", located close to The Red River Gourge and Natural Bridge. We'll be sure to take plenty of pictures and post them on her website!

SKYLER'S TRAINING PROGRESS

2004-06-30T21:28:00.000-07:00

Skyler is 12 weeks old and has mastered the commands:

* Sit
* Come (over 80% of the time, even with outside distractions of other animals or while playing with them. Children are the toughest challenge since she loves them sooo much!)
* Stay (up to @ 1.75 mins. so far)
* Down (and "lay down")
* Down & Stay (up to @ 1.25 mins. so far)
* Get up (from sit, stay, or down position - slow to respond at times, gets a little confused about some commands at times so we're mixing them up at unexpected times which is working well)
* Wait (She'll wait for me inside a room without barking, scratching at the door, etc... for up to 4 mins. so far)
* Wait (when being fed so she doesn't clamor for the bowl! She waits until I tell her OK)
* Shake hands (also learning how to give a hi-5 when she does something great!)
* "Leave it" - Will leave something alone if asked most of the time)
* "Drop it" If she has something in her mouth she will drop it over 85% of the time in a timely manner)
* Get out - Mainly from under my desk (her favorite spot of course!) - Takes her a little while but she does it. ha-ha...
* Back up - Still working on this and have to give her chest a little nudge but getting better every day.
* Turn around - Like when I to point to an area that I want her to sit. (Inconsistent but will do it eventually with a few commands). Still working on this daily.
WORKING ON NEW SKILLS:
* I am still working on getting her to retrieve items and bring them to me. This is a focus for the week.
* "Pick it up" - She doesn't quite comprehend this yet but we're focusing on this command this week too.

ALSO... Remember... She is almost completely deaf? (She can hear me clap very loud if within 7 ft. and no background noise or if she's around a corner). We use a combination of tools for this challenge including a laser pointer to get her attention and make her follow it back to me. We also use a combination of our own signs and ASL (American Sign Language). I was skeptical about this working but it was recommended and it really does work! I'm trying to find a "Dog Pager" which is a vibrating collar (no shock) that will get her attention and make her look for me. These are expensive but there's a site where someone gives you instructions on making your own if you're that ambitious. :)

P.S. Bought a safety harness for her (like a dog seat belt that attaches to the car seat belt). We have been using it over a week. She likes it as long as we're driving but as soon as we make a stop where she can't get out and go in she wriggles out of it, being nosey to see where I went if it's over a few minutes. So, I found that I might as well unhook her from the seat belt unless I want to go through the entire process of putting it back on her when I get back in the car.

Thanks for reading! There'll be more added as frequently as possible, if not every day.

Mindy & Skyler

THE CHALLENGE BEGINS

2004-05-30T17:24:00.000-07:00

Hi,
My name is Skyler and I am a deaf, white Boxer. I am 18 weeks old and live on 135 acres in a tiny rural town in Indiana. It's a bit of an unusual story about how I came to live here. If you're interested, you may read it here.

So, anyway...since I obviously have no fingers to type with, my human is kindly doing it for me. She thinks she's training me to be a service dog or something... whatever that's supposed to be. She has no idea that I'm really just doing all these ridiculous stunts because the rewards are fabulous! I've got HER trained pretty well in knowing which are the best, yummiest treats to buy. Sometimes we have to go to several stores before we get enough of the REALLY GOOD ones (I told you I had her trained!).

We've been keeping a text file of our progress from the day we began our training so this posting contains all of those below and we will add on as time permits.

My human mom, Mindy, has been pretty much living in "Cyberworld" so to speak since she had to quit her nursing job when the M.S. hit hard in 1995. She is a serious workaholic and admittedly a bit obsessive-compulsive about it. She was very depressed when she first got so sick. The worst part was not being able to work her nursing job in Vascular Surgery at Good Samaritan Hospital in Cincinnati, Ohio. But... It made her determined to start a new career and the logical thing was to do something on the internet even though she barely knew how to move a mouse! She's learned a lot since then and has managed to create 3 successful businesses online so we sure do spend a lot of time in our home office! Sometimes 12 hours a day 7 days a week. It's a good thing she married dad back in November of 2003 or we'd probably never leave cyberworld! But in spite of us working so much I've still managed to teach her quite a bit. Like... Hello! I need to go to the bathroom! No, I can't wait until you finish FTP'ing those files... told ya. She caught on pretty soon...

Anyway... here's a rundown of what we've accomplished so far...