So Your Dog’s Not Lassie
by
Betty Fisher and Suzanne Delzio

Paperback 288 pages
Published 1998)
Publisher: HarperCollins (Australia)
ISBN: 0062734571

OK, Your dog doesn’t’ live to please you.  There, we've said it. Contrary to what you’ve always heard, not all dogs want to earn their owner’s approval.  Sometimes they seem as if they could not care less.  But this is no secret to you - you know your dog’s not Lassie.

With this book you will come to understand and appreciate that for hundreds of years dogs were bred for qualities like independence, dominance and determination.  While these traits make your dogs excellent hunters, trackers and fighters, they can make day-to-day living with your pet a real challenge.

Betty Fisher and Suzanne Delzio will teach you how to employ or overcome the traits that make your dog difficult to train.  They will show you how to use body language, food, voice, training structure and style to convince your stubborn dog to do what you ask.  Without force, you can turn your difficult dog into a perfect pet, or even a successful show dog.

Betty Fisher is an accomplished dog trainer who has been breeding and training for more than twenty-six years. She is an obedience judge for several national breed clubs and a tester for the American Temperament Test. Her own bulldogs have won numerous obedience awards.

Suzanne Delzio has written for Dog Fancy magazine and has been published in Ladies Home Journal in the LA Times. She trains her own to dogs for obedience and agility competition. They are co-authors of Caninestein: Unleashing the Genius in Your Dog.


Contents

Why Is My Dog So Hard To Train?
  • Dog’s Work for Humanity
  • Behavior Traits to Love and Hate
  • Why Train Your Independent Dog at All?

Before You Start - ATTITUDES AND EQUIPMENT THAT INSPIRE THE STUBBORN DOG
  • Equipment
  • Logistics: Where Should I Train?
  • How Often Should I Train My Reluctant Dog?
  • Beyond “I Just Want a Good Dog”: Visualizing Specific Behavior Goals
  • Increasing the Odds of Successfully Training the Independent Dog
  • Wily Canine Avoidance Tactics

We Can’t Both Be Boss - BECOMING THE PACK LEADER
  • Attitude Adjustment 101
  • You May Be Telling Your Dog You’re Subdominant
  • Earn Your Pack Leadership
  • Correcting Dominance the Intelligent Way
  • Contain Him Physically When You Can’t Be There

Body Language - GESTURES THAT SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS TO THE INDEPENDENT DOG
  • What the Dogs Say
  • Body Laguage Signals We (Often Unintentionally) Send to Our Dogs
  • Controlling Your Eyes, Containing You Dog
  • Body Laguage Signals: When to Use Which and Why
  • Balancing The Dog Training Team
  • Moving To Competition

Your Reward System - MR. MIND OF HIS OWN DEMANDS A GOOD ONE
  • Praising Good Behavior
  • Food
  • Toys
  • Petting
  • Life Rewards
  • Rewards Schedule
  • When Dog Does Wrong: Corrections
  • Your Independent Puppy
  • Moving to Competition

Training Treats - A FAT PAYCHECK FOR THE RELUCTANT WORKER
  • How Food Facilities Muscle Memory
  • A Cornucopia of Treats
  • Size and Amount of Treats
  • Holding the Treat, Guiding the Dog
  • Sequence of Training Steps
  • Troubleshooting
  • Recipes

Earth to Dog, Earth to Dog - GETTING AND KEEPING YOUR DOG’S ATTENTION
  • Is You Alpha Yet?
  • Getting Attention While Moving
  • Keeping Your Dog’s Attention on a Walk
  • Attention at a Distance with a Long Line Safety Net
  • Using a Long Down to Show Your Dog You Are in Charge

Sit, Down, and Stand - ASKING A LOT OF THE INDEPENDENT DOG
  • Teaching a New Exercise
  • Teaching the Sit
  • Teaching the Down
  • Teaching the Stand

Sane and Happy Heeling – WITH THE DOG WHO WALKS HIS OWN ROAD
  • Precision Heeling
  • Heeling’s Accompanying Tasks
  • Off-Lead Heeling
  • Moving To Competition

Stays - TEACHING YOUR DOG TO DO NOTHING
  • Teaching the Sit-Stay
  • Down-Stay
  • Stand-Stay
  • Adding Distractions: Reality Checks In …
  • Common Problems with Stays
  • Moving to Competition

Come to Papa - THE DOG WHO COMES BACK EVERY TIME
  • Teaching Your Independent Puppy to Come
  • Nonreturning Dog Remedy: The Recall Game
  • Distractions : The Proof in the Pudding
  • Real-Life Recalls
  • Moving to Competition
  • Troubleshooting

Retrieving - CHALLENGING THE UNMOTIVATED TO GREATNESS
  • Play Retrieving: A Good Place to Start
  • A Challenging  Retrieve Regimen
  • Body Language and Attitude in Retrieve Training
  • Retrieve and Your Independent Puppy
  • Teaching the Formal Retrieve
  • Retrieving Over a Jump
  • Troubleshooting the Retrieve
  • Retrieving When Conditions are Less than Ideal
  • Retrieving for Fun and Exercise
  • Advanced Retrieving

Jumping - HE FLIES THROUGH THE AIR FOR THE GREATEST OF TREATS
  • Special Precautions When Training The Independent Dogs to Jump
  • Teaching the Jump
  • Correcting Jumping Form
  • Teaching Your Dog to Jump on a Series
  • Moving to Competition Jumping
  • Troubleshooting Competitive Jumping Events
  • AKC Utility Directed Jumping

Competition - KEEPING YOUR INDEPENDENT DOG HAPPILY MOTIVATED IN THE SPOTLIGHT
  • Adjusting Your Attitude To Make Competition Fun For Your Dog
  • Keeping  Our Training and Competitive Demeanor Consistent
  • Preparation for Competitive Conditions
  • Where to Begin
  • At the Show

Appendix

Index

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This text is aimed at all owners of independent breeds, whether they're seeking an obedient companion or a successful show dog.

Outlining the eight traits that put dogs in the hard-to-train category, this text provides specific training techniques for overcoming them.
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