Showing my dog.?

Question

I show my dog in a program called 4-H. I show him in obediance and showmanship and agility. I am really into obediance showmanship and agility. My dog is awesome at agility when we are at home, but when we show anywhere else, he smells everything and could care less! What should i do?

Answer 1

ive found having extreemly good lures helps...
pure liver treats thend to be a favorite, they smell strong enough and when the dog knows what they are, belive me, if he knows you have them his eyes are all on you...

to start let him have one little bit, get him used to the taste...any strong scented treat he enjoys will work...and then start working on the look at me comand, using the treat lure his eyes towards your face and say "look at me" click and treat when his eyes hit your face...

after some training simply using the words look at me or simply pointing to your face, and sporadic treating will keep his focus on you...
when at shows and he decides he wants to sniff give him the look at me signal.

good luck! showing is awsome....im trying to get my lil sis involved in 4H

Answer 2

Hi there! I'm so glad to hear you're active with your dog!
You can check and see if there are any agility training classes close to your area. Dogs always work the best in their own backyard :-) They need training around other dogs, smells, surroundings.
You can do a search on the AKC website to find a local kennel club and see if they offer classes. Our club offers conformation, obedience, agility...
Keep up the good work and remember to be patient and have fun!

Answer 3

You need to practice in more than one place. Some dogs can be trained to a certain spot. They'll perform perfectly at home, but when faced with a different place, distractions and new smells, they are clueless.

When you practice in several places, the dog learns that no matter where you go the training still stands.

Dogs can be suprisingly perceptive, for example if you everytime you work with your dog you wear a certain pair of shoes, and then one day wear different ones, the dog may not respond to commands. Put the old pair on and viola dog is retrained. You can do this with collars as well.

That is why its important to change things up a bit so your dog can handle the changes, the distractions etc. I used collars to signal what type of work my dog would be doing. She'd do her commands anytime, but when you put a certain collar or harness on her, she knew it was time for business.

Answer 4

Teach your dog the "pay attention" command. Start with a clicker, and choose a word, like "watch me", "attention", or the German word "atchung". Say the word, and when he looks at you, click and give a treat. He will soon learn that looking at you brings good things. You have to be consistent, and since you have taught your dog agility, you already know about training your dog and rewarding it for good behavior. You want him/her to learn that looking at you is FUN! Dogs do what works, so if smelling things is more fun than listening to you, that's what he will do.

Answer 5

Talk to your instructor about this situation. My thoughts are to take the dog to more public places and work his obedience with him. When he starts the sniffing around, tell him 'no' or 'leave it' or whatever command is used to make him stop a behavior or action. The more you get him out to other places besides home, the more common 'strange' places with become to him and his curiosity will wane. He will better be able to pay attention to what you want of him. Take him to Petsmart/Petco, the park, walking in different neighborhoods and in commercial areas. You have to get him comfortable and relaxed with being in different places with strange sounds and scents.

Answer 6

I am glad tyo hear you are enjoying your 4H experience. Try training with your dog in as many loud, noisy places as you can so that the novelty of being somewhere different wears off. I know finding such places is difficult, but it will be worth it. Try state parks, local parks, fairs, horse shows, etc. Try to stay off to the sidelines, but still close enough to the action so as to not interfere with the events. Enter your dog in parades and local fun shows as well.

Answer 7

You need to start taking him to new and often strange places and situations, on a leash in a full heal, get him used to distractions, and take him where there are lots of dogs on leash again and don't let him interact at all. After he has been in lots of different situations then dog show "excitement" will not be so curious.

Answer 8

I also show my dog, but, in a different venue than you do. The answer is to train and expose the dog to an many different training clubs as possible. When I compete, I take the dog to as many different places as possible and demand that he works in all of them. Many dogs do really well in their home field but "lose" it when they have to go to a new one. Train as I mentioned above and expose as much as you can. Demand that he performs regardless of where you are. Good luck.

Answer 9

I realize this is probably tough to do, but if possible, try to acclimate him to the location and its smells beforehand. He's distracted because he wants to learn about his unfamiliar environment.