Every Dog Has Its (Off) Day

The saying goes that every dog has its day. Well, it’s also true that every dog has its off day.

Last Wednesday was Irwin’s off day, although the day did end with a smile.

In puppy class that evening, he was full of energy. We start every puppy class with puppy massage, which usually relaxes him. This time, however, he got so excited that Donna had to put him in a down-stay and ignore him.

Next, they practiced “get dressed.” On this cue, Irwin usually walks right into his harness to have it buckled on him, and once it’s unbuckled again, he walks backwards out of it. At puppy class, he performed the behavior, but not the way he usually does. This time he groaned every time he walked into the harness, like it was a huge effort to do it.

They then practiced sit, down, and stay while Donna was sitting on the floor, and Irwin did well with that. Later, they walked around outside, and Donna purposefully walked him passed several dogs to see what he would do. Irwin did well, only slightly pulling. He was much more focused.

We try to play a game a puppy class, and that evening, we had our puppy raisers switch dogs. “Irwin was so ‘hyped’ for his new handler, going down, then sit, then down like a crazy dog,” says Donna. “He eventually calmed for them, and he was able to stay in a down while she walked around him.”

Jim and Donna usually go out to dinner after puppy class, and Irwin is usually on his best behavior. Well, dinner that night was a challenge. They went to Carrabba’s Italian Grill, and Donna decided to use the comfort trainer. The restaurant was busy and crowded. Just as the hostess was about to lead them back to their table, Irwin decided to try to rub his comfort trainer off by rolling around on the floor. Donna told him to leave it and asked him to stand, which he did, and they followed the hostess to their table. They had a very narrow aisle to walk through, and Irwin did a prance step, still trying to paw off his comfort trainer. He was drawing attention from the other diners.

Donna decided that Irwin needed some time to get refocused, so she noted where their table was and took Irwin outside. Going outside not only gave Irwin a chance to get focused, but it gave Donna the opportunity to recompose herself. Being out in public with a dog who’s misbehaving can be stressful. The dog then picks up on that anxiety, which can sometimes make the situation even more difficult. However, by taking a moment to relax, Donna was able to successfully walk Irwin to their table, with the help of some power treats—cheese!

Irwin went under the table nicely, but soon he started his “crazy dog” rolling to try to get his comfort trainer off again. Donna waited for his to stop, then cued him to “visit” (put his head in her lap). She removed the comfort trainer. After that, Irwin did much better. He actually ended up sleeping while Jim and Donna ate. When they were ready to leave, Irwin did another “visit” to have the comfort trainer put back on for the walk out of the restaurant.

“It was not the most relaxing meal or the best puppy class, but we made it through smiling,” says Donna.

Puppies Busy Learning

SSD Queen Mab’s eyes drooped from her puppy massage at the start of puppy class, but once it was time to work, she snapped to attention.

We always start our puppy classes with puppy massage. Puppy class can be very exciting for a dog because they get to see other dogs that they haven’t seen in a while. Puppy massage is a way to calm them down, resulting in a relaxed pup that can focus on the cues its puppy raiser gives it.  

In yesterday’s puppy class, we started preparing for the types of things that might appear on the end of semester evaluations. Three of the cues were “fix,” “visit,” and “back.”

“Fix” is useful when a dog gets tangled in the leash. On the cue “fix,” the dog will lift its paws until its legs aren’t tangled in the leash anymore.

“Visit” is an excellent way to bring the dog closer to you, and it’s one of the cues that all of our dogs need to know. On cue, the dog puts its chin in a person’s hand or on their lap and holds it there for an indefinitely amount of time.

Watch SSD Nook start to learn “visit.” Her puppy raiser clicks as soon as Nook’s chin hits her hand. When Nook experiments and tries jumping, her puppy raiser quickly moves her hand away.

Watch SSD Queen Mab practice “visit.” Notice that when Mab wiggles her head around, her puppy raiser pulls her hand back, waits for Mab to settle, and then presents her hand again. Also notice that by the end of the video, her puppy raiser is asking for a visit by placing her open palm on her lap. This is the first step to getting Mab to do “visit” by putting her head on her puppy raiser’s lap without the hand signal.

Next we practiced “back,” another cue that all of our dogs need to know. Our goal is to have the dog walk backwards in a straight line. To train this cue, we start with the dog in a chute so that the dog can only move backward. When the dog takes a step back, we click and treat. Gradually, we hold the click until the dog is taking more steps back. Once the dog is consistently walking backward, we move out of the chute to practice.

We don’t add the cue “back” until the dog can consistently take seven steps backward in the middle of a room. Why seven steps? That’s the approximate number of steps a dog will need to take to open a door using a pull strap. (The dog grabs the pull strap that’s attached to the door, pulls, and backs up.)

Watch SSD Beaker take a few steps back while he’s in a chute.

SSD Falstaff moves backward while his puppy raiser stands still at the front of the chute.

SSD Honeydew loves the cue “back.” Watch her enthusiasm as she trots backward for her puppy raiser.

 

We closed out the class with a game that we call “Puppy 911.” Our puppy raisers and dogs form two teams, each behind a bucket of water. Puppy raisers need to fill a cup with water and dump it in a bucket several feet away, all while their puppy walks on a loose leash. To add an extra challenge, puppy raisers had to hold the cup of water and the leash in the same hand.

The Puppy 911 game is great experience for the dog because they get to practice loose leash walking in an exciting situation. And just think: If a puppy raiser can hold the leash and carry a cup of water with spilling, then that dog’s future partner will be able to hold the leash and carry a cup of coffee from the cashier to their table in a coffee shop.

The Public Access Test - SSD Puppy Evaluation Style

SSD Julia is only 10 months old, but she already took the public access test. No, she's not quite ready to be placed with a partner. She simply took a version of the public access test as her puppy class semester evaluation.

At the end of every semester, we evaluate the puppies' progress. Since we have this wonderful new space in the Harrisburg Mall for our puppy classes, what better way to see the dogs' overall progress than to have them take a version of the public access test in the mall?

When service dogs and their partners take their public access test, it starts from the moment their partner opens the car door. The dog must wait patiently until cued to leave the car. After the required potty break, the dog and partner enter the building. At the beginning of her evaluation, SSD Julia and her puppy raiser Susan demonstrated loose leash walking. Not only did Julia need to walk on a loose leash in open spaces, but she had to stay right next to Susan when then went around corners. Watch the video of Julia and Susan turning the corner around a kiosk. Listen to how often Susan clicks Julia for staying on a loose leash. Lots of reinforcement in a challenging environment means the puppy has a greater chance of succeeding!



As part of loose leash walking, Susan had to drop the leash and Julia had to continue to remain focused and stay right by Susan's side. She did! She even picked up her leash afterwards. (For our puppy raisers, please note that picking items up is an advanced skill and you shouldn't attempt to put it on cue unless you have received instructions from one of our trainers. We have a very specific method for training it. Some of our experienced puppy raisers have learned this method and have trained their puppies in it, but it is not a cue the dogs need to learn before entering advanced training.)

Another part of the public access test looks at the dog's ability to settle nicely under a table. For this, we headed to the food court. Susan selected a table and had Julia do a "down" so she was out of the way. Although she didn't go under the table, she was in a down between two chairs, so she was out of the way of anyone walking around the table. While in the food court, Julia also demonstrated "sit" and "down," with and without the distraction of food on the floor.

Since we have been working on the cue "lap" and having the dog get dressed in a comfort trainer, we added those skills to our puppy class version of the public access test. Watch Julia rest her front legs on Susan's lap. Note how Susan patiently re-cues her until she gives the correct behavior.



When our dogs are placed with their partners as working service dogs, they sometimes wear a comfort trainer to make it easier for their partner to handle the dog. Since we already have our dogs "get dressed" in their service dog harness, we thought it would be great if they could also stick their noses right into the comfort trainer. We actually got the idea from SSD Dylan's puppy raisers. In one of their semester evaluations, they demonstrated how Dylan sticks his nose right through the comfort trainer to make it very easy for his puppy raisers to put it on him. In this video, Susan uses the loop of the leash instead of a comfort trainer to practice the behavior. See how Julia sticks her nose through the loop and stays there?



We also evaluate the dogs' focus around distractions. While Julia was walking on a loose leash, we dropped a clipboard a few feet behind her. We also pushed a shopping cart around her. We even enlisted the help of a young boy walking through the mall with his older siblings. He got to pet Julia while she demonstrated how she can stay focused on her puppy raiser!

Julia also had to demonstrate walking calmly up stairs and entering and exiting an elevator.

We hope that by using the public access test as the basis for this semester's puppy evaluation that our puppy raisers got a better idea of what the dogs will need to learn before they can become working service dogs. The semester evaluations are less of a test and more of a way to discover each dog's strengths and areas that need a little work. We're looking forward to the next semester and watching the dogs build on what they have already learned!

Dogs Play Golf?

Our dogs may not be able to swing a golf club, but that doesn't mean they can't play golf! Our trainers and puppy coordinator created a new game to practice stays and recalls - puppy mini golf! We marked off two squares approximately 10 yards apart. Each puppy raiser had to put their dog in a down- or sit-stay in the first square. While the dog stayed, the puppy raiser walked to the other square and called their dog. At the cue, the dog needed to run directly towards their puppy raiser and sit inside the other square. If the dog successfully did that, they got a hole in one!

Every time the puppy raiser gave the cue "come," the dog got a point. And just like in mini golf, sometimes it takes more than one try to sink a putt, or in this case, get the dog to sit in the square. Some of our puppy raisers chose to take the extra points to make sure that their dog was successful - which was great! Instead of walking all the way to the other square while the dog stayed, some puppy raisers only walked a few feet away and then called their dog. It may have taken a little longer, but by breaking the distance into smaller increments, the dogs were successfully able to reach the second square and sit.

Whenever we play games in class or work on any cues and behaviors, we love to see our puppy raisers setting their dogs up for success!

Watch videos of some of our dogs playing puppy golf.

SSD Dylan demonstrates his speedy recall. Look at how quickly he gets to his puppy raiser!



SSD Rummy learned the hand signal for "come" and as soon as she sees it, she trots right over to her puppy raiser.



Watch how SSD Yahtzee's puppy raiser sets him up for success. Because down-stays are challenging for him right now, she doesn't go very far away before calling him. And watch what she does to reward him for successfully completing the behavior!



We also started shaping the dogs to perform a new behavior - sticking their nose through a comfort trainer! When our dogs are placed as working service dogs, they sometimes wear a comfort trainer. The comfort trainer gives their partner more control over the dog, which can be very helpful for the person, depending on their disability. And if the dogs learn to put their nose through the comfort trainer right from the start, it will be much easier for their future partners.

Watch SSD Topaz learn to stick his nose through a loop. Rather than give all the dogs a comfort trainer, we had their puppy raisers start shaping the behavior by having the dogs put their noses through a loop in the leash. For now, Topaz's puppy raiser is just clicking and treating him for touching the loop with his nose.




The dogs in training are also learning "lap." On cue, the dog rests his front paws in his handler's lap. This behavior is especially helpful for bringing the dog closer to his handler. While the dog in on the person's lap, his ears and teeth can be cleaned and he may even get dressed in his comfort trainer, if he wears one.



SSD Lily also practices "lap." Watch how her puppy raiser treats her while she's still in her lap.



This was an exciting puppy class for us, and not just because we played a new game. This was our first puppy class at our new location! We now hold puppy class in our new "store" in the Harrisburg Mall. We're very excited to have more space for the dogs to learn and practice new skills! If you're in the Harrisburg Mall on Wednesday evenings, you'll be able to see the dogs practicing.

Puppy Class for the Civil War and Games Pups

It seems like only yesterday that the Civil War and Games puppies were playing on the puppy cam. These puppies are now in the their last month of early socialization classes, and then they'll be able to join the rest of the dogs in training in our regular puppy classes.

Early socialization classes help the puppies get used to being around other dogs and performing behaviors in that environment. When these dogs grow up and become service dogs, they will need to be able to perform behaviors regardless of where they are. Early socialization lays the foundation and helps the dogs become very adaptable to change in their environment.

At the beginning of class, we had all of our puppy raisers take their dogs off leash so we could practice recalls. As soon as the puppies were off leash, they started romping around together, happy to have some playtime. Many of the puppies still came to their raisers when called. Our puppy raisers practice recalls as often as they can. A good recall can save a dog's life. Watch SSD Chamberlain bound back to his puppy raiser in the midst of playing with his littermates.



The puppies then practiced basic obedience. Each puppy does "sit" and "down" on cue, some on both the verbal and hand signal. Watch SSD Atari sit and give a down on cue.



SSD Harriet focuses on her puppy raiser and sits when asked. From a sit, she easily slides in to a down on cue.



When the puppies go out in public, they always draw quite a crowd of people wanting to pet them. Usually when people pet a dog, the dog will give that person it's attention. You've probably seen a dog wagging its tail and getting very excited when someone pets it. However, a service dog needs to stay focused on its handler, even when someone else is petting it. We start practicing greetings right from the start. When someone asks to pet a puppy in training, the puppy raiser makes sure their puppy is standing calmly with all four paws on the floor or is in a sit or down. Then while the person is petting the puppy, the puppy raiser gives the dog treats to keep them focused. If the puppy gets too excited, the puppy raiser may ask people to stop petting the puppy until they get them back under control.

Watch SSD Rummy stay focused on her puppy raiser while she's being petted.



In the next video, SSD Clara practices greetings. Note that as soon as she gets up and starts to pay attention to the person who's petting her, the person stops and Clara's puppy raiser works to get her attention again. Once Clara is sitting and focused again, she can be petted.



The last thing we worked on in class is the cue "go to bed." When given the cue, the dog should go to their dog bed or mat and lay down. This cue comes in handy when you're preparing food in the kitchen or when you're eating meals. Instead of being underfoot or begging for food, the dog should stay in a nice down-stay on their bed. Watch SSD Meade learn "go to bed." His puppy raiser is shaping the behavior, starting with tiny steps. Note how as soon as Meade puts his paw on the mat, he gets a click and treat. Eventually, he will only get a click and treat for having two paws on the mat, then three, then all four, then laying down and staying.



The Civil War and Games puppies are doing very well in their training, and we're looking forward to having them join our regular puppy classes at the end of May.

Don't forget about the Highmark Walk for a Healthy Community on May 14! Some of these puppies may be there, and if you sign up and raise money for the Walk, you may get to help some of these puppies practice their greetings!

Sign up for the Highmark Walk for a Healthy Community.

A Tempting Puppy Class

All of our puppy raisers came to puppy class with their dog in training, but this time, they didn't work with that dog in class. Halfway through puppy class, we had all of our raisers switch dogs. This was good practice for both the raisers and the dogs. The dogs had to learn to work with a new handler, and the raisers had to learn to communicate with another dog, and usually that dog was very different than their own dog. Both the dogs and puppy raisers improved their skills.

After switching dogs, we had everyone practice loose leash walking. Even though the dogs were working with different handlers, they did great! Watch the video of SSD Zappa, Topaz, Nubble and Yukon walk beside different handlers.



"Leave it" ranks right up there with loose leash walking when it comes to important service dog skills. It can be used to cue the dog to ignore a number of things, including food, people, other animals and objects. At puppy class, we had our puppy raisers practice "leave it" with their new dogs. To make it interesting, we played a version of Temptation Tower, the newest Dog Olympic Game!

We gave each raiser a four dog biscuits, and they had one minute to build a tower and have their dog practice leave it. At the end of the minute, we gave everyone four more biscuits. They rebuilt their tower. Each time we increased the difficulty for the dogs by adding more biscuits, but the dogs were doing so well that we had to make it even more challenging. We had our raisers build a tower, then stand up, all while their dog remained in a down-stay. When the dogs succeeded at that, we had our raisers not only stand up, but also walk to the middle of the room. And the dogs didn't budge!

In this video, SSD Taz watches his handler build a tower of dog biscuits. Watch his face. You can tell that he really wants those biscuits, but he still doesn't try to eat them.



SSD Rio is like a statue when she plays Temptation Tower. Her handler told her "leave it," so she doesn't try to eat the biscuits, but she stares at them.



Before everyone switched dogs, we practiced the cues "under" and "paw." Watch SSD Dylan present his paw in cue for his puppy raiser. "Paw" is useful for nail clipping. We clip all of our dogs' nails, and we want the dog to be a willing participant. We train the dogs to offer their paw and let us clip their nails.



It was a fun puppy class, and we think our dogs and puppy raisers are going to be well prepared for their evaluations next week!

Nubble Knows the Routine

It's funny how dogs quickly pick up on our routines. SSD Nubble certainly knows his puppy raiser's work-day routine. Every morning, they do a little bit of training before Donna gets ready for work. Nubble then curls up on his favorite spot on the couch and relaxes. As soon as he sees Donna in her uniform shirt, he hops off the couch and goes right into his crate. Donna hasn't had to cue him to go into his crate for at least three months!

If you've been following Nubble, you know that stairs are a real challenge for him. One year ago, he would pull Donna up the stairs. Today, he will walk calmly beside Donna as they go up the stairs. How did this change happen? Lots of practice! They would practice stairs any chance they got. In fact, it got to the point where Nubble just assumed they would be going up any stairs they came across. Once Donna realized this, she eased up on practicing so that Nubble wouldn't start to get stressed every time he saw a set of stairs. The big breakthrough came in February. Nubble finally went down Donna's basement stairs! They have also been practicing going up those stairs. Last time, he walked up, stopped midway and turned around to go up backwards, then changed his mind and walked the proper way up the rest of the stairs! Now Donna can sometimes stop midway up the stairs and Nubble will continue going up the correct way. Great job, Nubble and Donna!

Nubble has been going to puppy classes in our Northeast Puppy Raising Program and in Harrisburg to help him get used to being around other dogs. He has made wonderful progress! At the Harrisburg puppy class, he would bark at some of the dogs, particularly SSD Taz, but last week, both dogs made it through the entire class without barking! And when Nubble does bark at another dog, he now does a much better job re-focusing and ignoring the dog. Although he still isn't too sure about puppies SSD Ben and SSD Cassie in the Northeast, he and Donna are working on it.

Nubble certainly enjoys going to puppy classes! When Donna and Lindsey go to classes in the Northeast, they take the turnpike. Puppy class is located about 1/4 mile off the exit. Nubble relaxes in the car, but as soon as they go through the toll booth, he lets out a little excited whine. He knows he's going to puppy class, and he's happy! Last week on the way home from the Harrisburg class, Donna and Lindsey took the turnpike. When they got to the toll booth to get off the turnpike, Nubble looked around and let out an excited whine, but he seemed confused. As soon as he realized they weren't going to the Northeast puppy class, he laid down and went back to sleep.

Nubble enjoys shopping, and regularly goes into stores with Donna. When they go into pet store, though, he has a tendency to pick out his own stuffed animals from the lower shelves. And while Donna puts the stuffed animal back, Nubble grabs another one! Our volunteer trainer in the Northeast suggested putting Nubble in a down-stay while Donna is returning the toy. So far, it has been working very well. Donna has also become more aware of Nubble's environment, and they practice "leave it."

This past weekend, they went to the Berkshire Mall. It was packed because there was a car show inside. Despite the crowd, Nubble did very well with greetings.

He has certainly come a long way!

Fun and Games at Puppy Class

An obstacle course, Doggy Limbo, tickets for prizes - sounds more like PawsAbilities than puppy class!

We decided to do something a little different at last week's puppy class. Instead of having everyone sit around the room and practice different skills, we created an obstacle course through the hallways. In the obstacle course, the dogs had to practice going under a chair, down with distractions, self control at the food bowl, leave it, go on through a tunnel, walking over strange surfaces, and loose leash walking. The dogs and their puppy raisers had a blast!

We also played Doggy Limbo - a great way for the dogs to practice maneuvering themselves through challenging spaces.

SSD Jagger waits patiently for his puppy raiser to ask him to go through to the other side.

SSD Opal scoots under the limbo stick. To help her keep her body low, her puppy raiser drags a treat along the floor.

Eventually, it came down to SSD Falcon, a black poodle, and SSD Peach Pie, a black lab.

SSD Falcon demonstrates the "poodle scooch" method of moving under the limbo stick. Even though he's a tall dog, he was able to keep himself right next to the floor as he scooting under the limbo stick. Eventually, though, the limbo stick moved down too low.

SSD Peach Pie stays in a nice down before she did the "lab crawl" under the limbo stick to win the game!

We also introduced a new method of training, called TAGteaching. We learned this method of teaching at the Clicker Expo.

What is TAGteaching? It's clicker training for people! Everyone puts their name on a bunch of raffle tickets, and then when they see someone doing something good with their dogs (such as loose leash walking, recognizing when their dog needs a break, etc.), they give that person a raffle ticket. Recipients also put their names on the tickets. Those tickets can then be used for the raffles at our puppy lectures, and every time a ticket is drawn, the people who gave and received that ticket win a prize!

We think this will be a fun new way to train our dogs and reward our puppy raisers for doing an awesome job!

Fun and Games at Puppy Class

It's a new semester of puppy class, and the dogs are learning some new behaviors.

The puppies in training are going to start working the cue "paw," where the dog calmly places his paw in his handler's hand. On the surface, this seems like it's just a cute trick, having the dog shake hands. However, it can be very important for nail clipping. All of our dogs must be comfortable having their nails cut, and "paw" can be used to have the dog give his handler his paw so his nails can be cut.

The puppies are also learning to use a target stick. A target stick is a piece of duct tape at the end of a wooden dowel or some sort of stick. Goal is to have the dog calmly touch his nose to the duct tape. This teaches the dog to target duct tape with his nose, and we can then use this skill to teach more advance behaviors, such as pushing a button to open an automatic door or touching a person's leg to alert them to a sound.

Watch SSD Rio touch the target stick with her nose.



Loose leash walking is one of the most important skills a service dog can have. The dog must learn self control to walk nicely beside his handler with the leash in a loose J shape. There are many methods of teaching loose leash walking, and the method you use depends on the situation. In the new method we taught last night, handlers walk backwards while the dog walks forward on a loose leash. Handlers click and treat the dog for walking on a loose leash. This method is often successful because the dogs are not used to pulling when they're walking toward you, so they should be walking on a loose leash.

Watch SSD Sienna, SSD Zappa and SSD Nubble, who joined us from the Northeast, demonstrate the new method of training loose leash walking.









Although loose leash walking is an extremely important skill for service dogs, it's not the most exciting skill to teach. To make it more fun, we played musical hoops. Musical hoops is a game similar to musical chairs, only we substitute hula hoops for chairs. The hoops are arranged in a circle and while the music is playing, the dogs must walk around the circle on a loose leash. When the music stops, each dog must sit with at least two paws in a hoop. Of course, there is one less hoop than there are dogs. The dog without a hoop was eliminated from the game, we removed one hoop, and the dogs continued walking on a loose leash. We continued playing until there was only one dog left. All of the other dogs practiced very nice down-stays.

Watch SSD Jagger, SSD Nubble, SSD Taz, SSD Topaz and SSD Yukon play musical hoops.

Even Puppies Take Tests

Even puppies have to take tests. Our service dogs-in-training had their evaluations on Wednesday to see how the puppies are doing in their training.

Each puppy and it puppy raisers met individually with one of our trainers, and they went over all of the things we've been doing in puppy class. In fact, evaluations are less like tests and more like one-on-one puppy classes.

SSD Taz's evaluation started as soon as the trainer called him back to the room. He and his puppy raiser had to demonstrate loose leash walking. Loose leash walking is one of the most important things a dog can learn. To help the dog be successful, puppy raisers need to be constantly aware of their environment. If there are any distractions, such as other dogs, food, etc., the puppy raiser needs to be prepared and take measures to help the dog continue to walk on a loose leash. For example, we put a tray full of dog food on the floor in Taz's evaluation area. Taz did great when he first walked in the room. He stayed focused on his puppy raiser and completely ignored the food. Later, when he did notice it, his puppy raiser, Kelly, asked the trainer to pick up the food because it would be too much of a distraction for Taz.

When puppy raisers or partners are working out in public, for example in a restaurant, it's perfectly fine to ask someone to sweep up the floor around your table so the dog isn't distracted. We want the dogs to be successful, and we try to make it as easy as possible for them. If a service dog-in-training or even a service dog is focusing on a french fry in the aisle, it's going to be very hard for them to focus on their handler, and they may even try to bolt for the fry, causing a disruption in the restaurant.

Once Taz and his puppy raisers got into the room, we started with body handling. Service dogs need to be comfortable being touched everywhere, without nipping at their handler's hands. Kelly checked Taz's teeth, ears and feet, all places where dogs might not necessarily enjoy being touched.



Next we did basic obedience, such as sit, down, stand and stay. Watch Taz sit, down and stand!

Recalls are right up there with loose leash walking, in terms of importance. A good recall can save a dog's life. In this video, Taz comes right to his puppy raiser when she calls him.




Puppy class is divided into semesters, and this semester, we had been working on the cues "get dressed" and "heel." Taz demonstrated his progress in putting his head through his harness. To teach "heel," we use a box to anchor the dog's front feet so he just swings his back feet around until he's in the heel position. We use the box because not only does it help create a nice, snappy "heel," but it also helps our puppy raisers learn about shaping. They need to break down the "heel" behavior into tiny steps in order to teach it. Here, Taz demonstrates how to use the heel box. Watch how his back feet move while his front feet remain stationary.



Finally, we looked at greetings. If the handler gives someone permission to pet their dog, the dog must stay calm and focused while they're being petted. However, the handler does not have to say yes when someone asks to pet the dog. Service dogs and service dogs-in-training are working dogs, and the handler has the right to ask people not to pet their dog.

Taz and the other dogs-in-training did well on their evaluations. We're looking forward to the next semester of puppy classes!

Bobbing for Tennis Balls

We couldn't let Halloween go by without dressing up the dogs! Here are some of the videos and photos from our Halloween party. Enjoy!

What Halloween party would be complete without bobbing for apples? Instead of apples, we used tennis balls.



The dogs seemed more interested in drinking the water than grabbing a tennis ball, though, so we decided that the dogs just needed to touch the tennis ball with their noses.



Each tennis ball was numbered, and the dogs got prized based on what number they picked.

The dogs and their puppy raisers had some great costumes!

SSD Yukon

SSD Jagger the Penn State football player

SSD Lavender the crayon. She's from the Crayon litter!

Basil the skunk

SSD Scotia the cat

SSD Peach Pie the hot dog

SSD Sienna the chicken

SSD Taz, the bat

SSD Teddy

SSD Topaz

SSD Grace the Steelers fan

Some of the puppy raisers dressed up. This husband and wife team switched identities for the evening!

We had a wonderful time!

Our Trip to Zoo America

What could be better than going to the zoo on a beautiful Saturday afternoon? Going to the zoo with a service dog-in-training!

Fifteen service dogs-in-training went to Zoo America for a puppy class outing. Throughout the year, we take the dogs on several outings so the dogs get experience working in public. Although our puppy raisers frequently take their dogs out in public, these special planned outings are also helpful for the puppy raisers because it gives them a chance to work in public while our trainers are right there to give support and answer any questions they might have.

Our Zoo America is always a fun outing, and it's a wonderful opportunity for the dogs and puppy raisers to practice their skills. With so many distractions, it's a challenge for the dogs to stay focused. Our puppy raisers were ready with power treats (treats like chicken, cheese, or other yummy things that the dog only gets in challenging situations), which really helped the dogs stay focused on their handlers.

Because the dogs were around so many different animals, it was a great opportunity for puppy raisers to practice reading their dog's body language. They needed to watch their dog to make sure that they weren't becoming too excited or stressed from the zoo animals. For example, when we stopped at the wolves' area, we paid special attention to the dogs, and if they started to get too excited, or started barking, the puppy raiser removed them from the area. SSD Topaz approaches the wolves in this video. You can tell from his body language that he is aware of the wolves, which are about twenty feet in front of him. However, he is still able to focus on this puppy raiser - see how he turns and looks at her? As soon as he gives her his attention, she clicks and treats.



In addition to watching the dogs' body language, we also paid close attention to the zoo animals' behavior because we did not want to upset them or cause too much stress. We had to be especially watchful in the wolves' area, because as soon as the alpha wolf smelled the dogs, he started pacing. If he and the females of the pack started to get stressed, we removed the dogs, even if the dogs were just sitting there quietly observing. In this video of the wolves, you can see the male wolf pacing back and forth. You can tell that he's very aware of the dogs, although at this point he is not overly stressed about it.



All of the dogs were very interested in the wolves. Can you guess what other animal almost all of the dogs were extremely interested in? The fish! At the bears' area, you can watch the fish through the glass, and almost every dog that saw them was fascinated by them, especially since they have probably never seen a fish before. SSD Topaz wasn't entirely sure what to make of the fish, but he did a great job and didn't bark at them.



SSD Star and Falcon also though the fish were fascinating, but they are not so distracted that they can't pay attention to their handlers. Watch how Star's puppy raiser works with her to get her to walk nicely on a loose leash. Once they get to the fish, Star does an "up."



SSD Hendrix, on the other hand, wasn't interested in the fish at all.



SSD Journey, one of our dogs in advance training, spent some time near the bear's habitat. She seemed much more interested in her puppy raiser than in the bear, though. Even when her puppy raiser pointed to the bear, Journey just looked and then turned right back to her puppy raiser. Wonderful!



One of the most important skills a service dog can have is the ability to walk on a loose leash. Throughout our entire zoo outing, we continually worked on loose leash walking, which can be very challenging for dogs, especially when there are such great smells around. Loose leash walking is all about self control for the dogs. They need to ignore distractions and stay right next to their handler. In this video, SSD Grace works on loose leash walking. Watch what Grace's handler does when Grace starts to pull ahead. He stops, backs up until Grace comes back to him and turns around. Then when she starts loose leash walking again, he clicks and treats.



Why is loose leash walking so important? Imagine a balance dog and their partner walking along the sidewalk to get to the car. As they get close to a tree, the dog smells something wonderful. He lunges to get to it. His partner is thrown off balance and falls.

Now picture a service dog for a child with autism. While the parent is holding the leash, the child is holding a special strap attached to the dog's harness. If that dog pulls on the leash, the child is going to be pulled as well.

Loose leash walking is important, and the dogs need to do it all the time, in every environment. The zoo was a great place to practice!

Thank you to Zoo America!

We try to plan several outings for the dogs-in-training, and we're always open to suggestions. We look for places that have lots of sights, sounds and smells. For example, we've done a Ghosts of Gettysburg tour, Chocolate World, a memorial day parade, a bus ride, and National Night Out. If you have any ideas for other places in Central PA where we could take the dogs-in-training, please let us know in the comments. Thank you!