Our new foster pups are Koolie x and sooo much fun. I have never fostered herding dogs and it blows my mind how different they play and they are already stalking my feet. At least they are not trying to shred everything like terriers 😂 Their mum is a working Koolie and dad a hound type of hunting dog from North Queensland. Send any herding x hunting puppy tips my way 😅

The start of this block wasn’t particularly exciting, hence the lack of posts. Still daily training, but nothing of particular note. However, from Friday to Sunday, both dogs had hoopers workshops with Lisa Jordan. Lisa remembered Kairo and commented (multiple times!) on how much she had improved! I always find it hard to see progress in my own dogs, since it’s so gradual, so it’s nice to hear from someone else. Aside from the actual hoopers, Kairo had 2 more wins - holding her start line wait and bringing the toy back! Amigo hadn’t trained with Lisa before, and I don’t put much time into his hoopers training, but I’m always impressed with how quickly he learns. He’s a very visual dog (whereas Kairo prefers verbal cues) but quickly understood the new handling style without any arm signals. He’s such a superstar - imagine what he could achieve with a more dedicated handler!

Since I posted about this new project dog I saved from the pound a lot of people have asked what his story is. I made a quick video to explain. 👇

I’ve been discovering lots of different ways to use a chin rest recently, so decided to make that the next challenge. My videos don’t want to load today, so hopefully this explanation is clear enough. Feel free to ask questions if anything doesn’t make sense. I’ll try to add videos in the comments. Step 1 - Luring I find it works best to start with a larger target, rather than your hand for 2 reasons: it’s easier for the dog to get it right and you have both hands free. My usual choice is the seat of a chair, but you may need a lower item for smaller dogs. Start by luring the dog to bring their head over the target. At first, reward them even if their chin doesn’t fully touch. I like to reward in position then release and bring them back again. Step 2 - Fading the Lure Once they are consistently performing the behaviour, start to fade out the lure. The goal is for the dog to offer the behaviour themselves. Step 3 - Introduce Verbal Cue Each time the dog offers the behaviour, give your verbal cue before rewarding. Step 4 - Transfer to Other Items Once you have a strong verbal cue, you can transfer the behaviour to other items. To start with, cue ‘chin’ and point to the object. A useful second item is a chin rest to your hand. Step 5 - Start Training Tricks! There are lots of different ways to use a chin rest, so here are a few of my favourites: 1. Retrieve: Chin rest is a great tool for building a retrieve to hand. When the dog picks up the article, cue chin so they return to a steady position. Tilt your hand upwards to gain the high head position which some sports prefer. 2. Sad/guilty: A chin rest on the floor whilst the dog is in a down makes for a cute little sad face. 3. Hide head: Once you have a solid chin rest on a chair, you can introduce a pillow for the dog to hide under. Start by holding the pillow above the chair, and gradually lower it until the dog has to lift the pillow and rest their chin on the chair underneath. 4. Cooperative care: Gradually introduce movement of objects towards the dog’s head. This can then be used for skills like eye drops or cleaning ears.

Hey! I'm excited to welcome you to the community! Please leave a comment and tell us where you are from. Thanks, Nick P.S. Don't forget to watch the onboarding so you can make the most of the group.