What Commands Do You Teach a Guide Dog?

One question I often get concerning Stetson (my guide dog puppy in training) is does he know any tricks. As a puppy raiser we are not supposed to teach our Guide Dog puppies any tricks. We have a specific list of commands that we must adhere to. There are actually only nine primary commands on our list. For those of you who were wondering what commands we teach our puppies…here’s the list (this list comes directly from a printout I have from Guide Dogs of America):

1. SIT: The proper positioning would be for the puppy to be on the handlers left side facing the same direction. Place the puppy’s rump on the ground. The puppy must remain in a sitting position with the aid of the STAY command until told to do otherwise by the handler. The ultimate goal should be for 3 minutes.
2. DOWN: The proper positioning would be for the puppy to be on the handler’s left side facing the same direction. The puppy must lie down on the ground with his elbows hitting the floor. The puppy then must remain in a down position with the aid of the STAY command until told to do otherwise by the handler. The ultimate goal should be 5 minutes.
3. STAND: The proper positioning would be for the puppy to be on the handler’s left side facing the same direction. The puppy must be up on all four feet and remain in a standing position with the aid of the STAY command until told to do otherwise by the handler.
4. STAY: (remain in exact place) When used this command serves to help aid the puppy in extending the time of the SIT, DOWN, and STAND commands.
5. COME: When the dog hearshis name and the command “come” he should immediately respond and come to you.
6. FORMAL COME: From any position relative to the handler, the puppy returns to the handler, coming to the handlers left side and turning into the handler and ending up facing forward in a sit position at the left side of the handler. ie…the puppy should not become engaged in any distractions when on his return to the handler.
7. GET BUSY: Tells the puppy to urinate and defecate on lead. The puppy should be able to relieve himself on a variety of surfaces (grass, rocks, cement, dirt, etc..) The dog should be commanded to GET BUSY and the handler should not allow the puppy to do it on its own free will when out on a walk.
8. LEAVE IT: Verbal corrections for stopping unwanted behaviors from the puppy. It should be used for such behaviors as excessive smelling, jumping up, excitable greetings, growling or barking etc.
9. O.K.: Releases the puppy from any command that had previously been given by the handler.

Those are the 9 commands on our primary commands list. Of course there are a few others I can think of off the top of my head including NO _____, WAIT, and HERE.

• NO ____: I use NO pretty much the same way I use LEAVE IT. It’s used to discourage an unwanted behavior and often used in conjunction with another word such as NO DOG or NO SNIFF.
• WAIT: This command should not be confused with STAY. WAIT is like putting up a barrier that your dogs should not cross. When your dog is in a WAIT command they can be sitting, standing, or down and moving between positions as long as they don’t cross the barrier. However, when a dog is in a STAY the dog should not leave their position. For instance, if the STAY command is given while the dog is sitting then the dog should not leave the sit position until released with the O.K. command by the handler.
• HERE: This is the same as the regular COME command (not to be confused with the FORMAL COME command).

That’s about all I can remember right now. If there are any GDA puppy raisers out there reading this article let me know if I’m missing any important commands on this list.

Training My Guide Dog

I’m required to take my Guide Dog, Stetson to at least one (6 week) puppy training class and one (6 week) basic obedience class while he’s with me for the next year and half. So far we’ve attended two (6 week) puppy training classes and are on our third (6 week) basic obedience class. Tammy, our Orange County group leader holds our puppy training classes in Anaheim Hills. Ramona is the Training Director of California Academy of Dog Behavior and she teaches our basic obedience classes. Ramona worked nine years at Guide Dogs of America in Sylmar where she was responsible for helping foster families that took adorable 8 week old pups home to raise to be guide dogs. Needless to say, Ramona knows exactly what to teach us and our Guide Dog puppies in training.

Since I received Stetson last February we’ve been attending training classes once a week every Tuesday. What did we learn in training class yesterday? Well for starters, Ramona had our training area covered with dog toys…our dogs can’t be distracted by dog toy when they’re working as guide dogs. Anytime Stetson went to pick up a toy I had to tell him “No” or “Leave it” and give him a leash correction.

What is a leash correction? From the AllExperts.com website

Trainers who use training collars advise handlers to make the leash/collar correction a quick motion that sharply tightens the training collar about the dog’s neck. Then the handler should immediately release pressure; if the collar was put on correctly, the links should immediately loosen up in response. Otherwise, if the training collar remains tight, the dog won’t be able to distinguish between an intentional correction and the handler simply pulling on the dog’s neck for no reason. The dog will quickly get accustomed to being uncomfortable, rendering the training collar useless (and possibly leading to a hurt neck or throat).

The slip collar is a training collar only. It should be on your dog only when training and under your direct control. If your dog is running free and having a blast being off lead then it shouldn’t be wearing a slip collar. I have seen a dog, wearing a chain slip collar, run and jump through a brush pile. The free ring got caught in a branch effectively hanging the dog. In this instance the owner was close enough to see what had happed and immediately rescued the dog, this is not always the outcome.

Because we all forget from time to time I wanted to add these pictures of the correct and incorrect ways to put on a training collar. Of course this assumes that you heel your dog on your left side.

We also worked on greetings. It’s important that when you are with your guide dog you can successfully meet other people with out having reactions from your dog, negative or positive. For instance, Stetson did two things wrong when meeting Ramona. In this scenario Ramona asked if she could say hello to Stetson. I said “Yes, but he must remain seated and calm. If he gets up or does not remain calm then please step back while I correct him. When he has been corrected (back in sitting position and calm) you may come back and pet him.” Stetson’s first reaction was to lunge forward to greet her. That’s a no no…he should sit in position and remain calm. I gave him a lease correction and got him back in a sitting position. The second time Ramona came to Stetson he remained seated, was a little excited but acceptable, the only problem was he started putting his paws on Ramona. This is another unfavorable reaction. He must learn nut to put his paws on someone who is petting him. Stetson did very well with several other greetings, but when he saw another puppy raiser named Setsu he got really excited. It was very difficult just gettting him back in the sit position. I’d have to say Stetson was a failure when greeting Setsu. And why was Stetson so excited to see Setsu? Two weeks ago Stetson spent the weekend with Setsu and Setsu’s guide dog puppy Sachi. I’m not too sure what to do in this situation and will have to talk to Ramona about how to keep Stetson calm when greeting people he knows. By the way, Sachi just went to Guide Dogs of America for her formal training with her littermate Smitty. Good luck to the two of them!

We always work on heeling and usually start the session off with a ten minute walk. Yesterday we worked on heeling, but instead of taking our normal route we walked in straight lines and did “about faces” - basically walking straight then do a 180 degree turn and walk the other direction. This helps the dogs keep their eye on their handler because every “about face” results in a change of direction and if the dog is not paying attention they give themselves a correction (by walking in the wrong direction). After a couple “about faces” Stetson got the hang of it and started paying attention to me.

Finally, we ended the session with “Sit Stays” and “Down Stays.” A “Sit Stay” is basically when you tell your dog to “sit” then tell him to “stay” then move several feet away for anywhere from a few seconds to several minutes (depending on your dogs skill level). Stetson does pretty well with these commands. He stayed in position the entire time during “sit stay.” I think his time was 2 minutes 20 seconds. He got up one time during the “down stay.” I think the time during down stay was 3 minutes 20 seconds.

That was the end of training. I’m a groomsman in a wedding this weekend so Stetson will be staying with another puppy raising family. I’m sure he’ll have a great time with the family and their puppy in training, Dustin.

My Dog Eats So Fast He Vomits

I have a labrador retriever and from what I’ve heard they are prone to overeating as well as eating way too fast. As a puppy Stetson would eat his cup of food in probably under 20 seconds…pretty much just inhaling the food. A few times a week he’d vomit uneaten kibble in the middle of this feeding frenzy. Even when he wasn’t vomiting he’d sometime stop in the middle of eating and just sit there with his nose facing straight towards the ceiling as if he had kibble stuck in his throat and was trying to relax and get it down to his stomach. Needless to say this was very much a problem for both me and my dog. I didn’t like cleaning up vomit and I’m pretty sure he didn’t like vomiting. Here’s a list of things people recommended I try:

1. Put a rock in his bowl - I tried this and it worked okay, but I didn’t want to bring a rock with me any time Stetson and I weren’t at home
2. Use a Bundt Pan - I didn’t try this one, but could see how it would work
3. Use a large flat pan - I tried this one and it worked for Stetson. The only problem was I didn’t have a pan that I wanted to use exclusively for Stetson and not use for cooking (kind of a lame excuse, but i wanted an actual dog product).
4. Softball in Bowl - I didn’t try this one either, but would expect that as a bigger dog Stetson would just remove the ball from the bowl before eating.
5. Brake-Fast Doggie Bowl - At doggie obedience class they were selling this bowl which basically has three prongs to prevent the dog from eating extremely fast. This is the solution I’m currently using.

The Brake-Fast Dog Food Bowl has been working great for Stetson and definitely slows his eating down. I purchased it while attending Sue Myles Companion Dogs training class in Fountain Valley. By the way, Sue Myles is a great dog trainer and I highly recommend anyone to attend her group training classes. She has a real enthusiasm for her work with both people and dogs and also offers many great products and treats that you won’t find at your regular dog or pet store.

A couple website you might want to visit if you are interested in this bowl are the Brake-Fast Dog Food Bowl amazon product website and another site I stumbled across that had a short review and plenty of comments called Strange New Products(Brake Fast Dog Bowl Review) .

I’d like to hear your comments on this product. Have you used this product? What do you do to prevent your dog from eating too fast?

10 differences between Guide Dog Puppy in Training and your Pet

I’ve raised several dogs as my personal pets, but Stetson is my first Guide Dog Puppy in Training. There are lots of similarities and differences in their training. Today we’re going to focus on 10 of those differences.

Number 1 - Guide Dogs in training require plenty of socialization. Although you should always do your best to socialize your pet dog and present him with many different situations, a guide dog must also go anywhere the general public is allowed. Stetson goes to the movie theater, amusement parks, grocery shopping, traveling on buses, trains, planes, and automobiles, the shopping mall, to my office at work,…basically everywhere I go. This is important because Stetson must not be distracted by the different smells, sights, and people he may meet in these many different situations. Of course it is also important that any activity your Guide Dog in training is presented with be age appropriate. For instance, it is recommended that a Guide Dog in training not be in a heavy traffic area like Disneyland until the puppy is over 12 months of age.

Remember it’s important to socialize your regular pet dog as well. My dog Linus as a puppy went with me to the outdoor mall, outside the grocery store (to meet people), camping, and outdoor restaurants. My goal for Linus was to allow him to meet all different people and be put into many different situations, so he would be accustomed to meeting other people and dogs.

Number 2 - No tennis balls or frisbees. Why can’t Stetson play with these toys? Mainly because he will see these object quite frequently and must not be distracted. When Stetson some day is leading a blind person he can’t suddenly try to chase a ball or frisbee. That would definitely be bad.

Number 3 - There are specific commands Stetson must learn and we shouldn’t teach him anymore. The reason Stetson shouldn’t learn anything more than the commands specified by Guide Dogs of America is because in his formal training he will be learning more advanced techniques and anything beyond his basic obedience commands may interfere with his more advanced commands.

Number 4 - He’s not allowed on the furniture. This is a rule for a lot of pets, but Stetson must stay off the furniture.

Number 5 - He must be taught to pee and poop on command and must never go to the bathroom when in his jacket. The command is “Get Busy”

Number 6 - He’s not allowed to sniff. He can only sniff right before he goes to the bathroom. Other than that…no sniffing allowed.

Number 7 - No territorial marking. Both male and female dogs will mark. You might notice male dogs marking when they lift their legs.

Number 8 - When riding in the car Stetson must ride on the floor boards on the passenger side. This is for both safety and practical reasons. He is safe away from the airbag and when he’s riding with his blind partner he will be on the floorboards.

Number 9 - Stetson’s not allowed to go to dog parks or beaches. However, he can go to the regular beach.

Number 10 - When unsupervised Stetson must stay in his crate. It’s not too big a problem because he goes everywhere with me, but once in a while I cannot take him and he must stay home. When Stetson is home alone he must remain in the crate while my pet dog Linus roams the house.

One final thing, I guess we’ll call it number 11. Guide Dog puppies in training are not trained with food treats. Instead they receive lots of praise from their handlers. I’m sure there are many other differences I have yet to mention. When I think of them I’ll make some additions in the comments section of this article.