Touch training with scrumpy the pup
Training the Touch cue is one of my favourite things to teach with puppies, its a great way to build your bond with your pup but it not only helps teach them to listen to cues but also to listen to your hand signals which helps with all aspects of training.
Touch training can also aid with your recall, it's a great way to get them to come in close to you, the hand signals is a great way to draw them in, it helps encourage them to come. Some pups can get in to the habit of coming back, but not coming close enough to you, so you could put their lead on for example. It's also good if you need pup to come close to you but recall isn't required, in the case where you just need pup to move out the way or come through the door so you can close it etc, so your not over using recall because using recall to often and when it's not really required can make the potency of the cue wear out. It's like the saying "that's my name don't wear it out" so It's a handy alternative.
It can also help grow their confidence in you to help them feel secure and safe around you which entail makes them more likely to listen to you. If your pup is nervous it can also help them feel more comfortable with hands and hands being near their face . It's also a behaviour to ask for when their doing something you don't want, giving them an alternative that also works their brain and stimulates them. A good example of ignoring the bad and rewarding the good, in this case where providing the alternative. You can also use touch training to help when training out behavioural issues, also used for desensitisation, and is a great way to build their confidence in a environment they feel nerves in, Creating positive associations.
Touch training isn’t just a fancy trick like teaching your pup to give you their paw or sit like a meerkat, it's a trick that can actually be used in day to day life and aid in various parts of your training. You can even take touch training further and start to add duration to how long they touch your hand for which you can then use that to help with teaching them to let you touch their face, and then wiping their eyes, and then applying medication if the time comes they need it.
Touch training is a relatively easy thing to teach because of their natural inquisitiveness leads them to your hand because they are used to food coming from your hands, you simply reward them when they do, then you just add a cue to it.
I do find using a marker or a clicker is needed for teaching this cue, because you need to let the pup know what it is you want at the exact moment they do it. I also find the pup picks up the training quicker when a clicker or marker is used. A marker could be a distinctive word you use only for this purpose, some people say "yes" as their marker what ever works for you, just remember timing is key. Like all training it needs to be practiced repeatedly and practiced in various environments with varying levels of distractions.
A nice and short Training blog, if you got this far thanks for sticking through the bad grammar and spelling mistakes. This is the first time I have done a voice over in my videos so I hope you can understand me clearly.
Scrumpy, 10 week old at the time this video was made. Smooth Cockapoo.
Comments