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HOW TO BE A SUCCESSFUL
MULTI-TASKING DOG TRAINER One of the
greatest attributes about our Golden Retrievers is that they can compete in
multiple venues. They are the best
breed of dog to multi-task, but to bring out all their talents you, as their
trainer, must also be good at multi-tasking.
As the owner of one dog who attained 23 titles (before the advent of
agility titles) and another of a dog who is currently working on her 42nd
title, I like to fashion myself as the “Queen” of multi-tasking dog
training. Frequently I will hear
people say – How do you find the time? Even
with a full-time job, volunteering for many jobs in all-breed and specialty
clubs, I find if you keep yourself organized it can be done! First,
start with a goal! At the
beginning of each calendar year, I write down each dog’s name and what titles
I hope to accomplish with them. From
there, I decide which title will come first.
Although all titles might not be accomplished in that calendar year, I
have found that having a goal, or multiple goals for the dog will bring me
closer, if not at the title we hope to obtain.
This avoids the trap of saying – Someday I would like to…….. Next,
develop a lesson plan! What type of training is necessary to accomplish the
title and where do I have to go to obtain the information I need.
I also find that it is very helpful to keep a journal, for several
reasons. One, the journal tells me
how the dog is progressing toward the title, especially if I am learning a new
skill. Two, the journal keeps me
training. Who would want a journal
with no entries? And, if I happen to
get a little lazy in my training, my journal will tell me – get training –
because without that the dog will not learn. Next,
set a schedule! Schedules are
necessary for a couple of reasons. If you set your schedule to practice
obedience on Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 6 pm, you will adhere to that
schedule. Then if your agility
practice is scheduled for Tuesdays and Thursdays, you will not be tempted to
blow it off and sit in front of the computer playing games.
I’m a PDA owner so I put a repeating schedule right in my Palm, just
like my regular appointments for my job, but you can use your paper calendar in
the same way. I’ve also found that
if you plan to practice with your dog as the first thing you do when you come
home from work, you will always adhere
to that schedule, rather than getting involved in something yucky like laundry
or housecleaning and forget to get to training. Finally,
set your training schedule to do more than one thing! For
instance, years ago, I had a dog I was doing field work with, and also tracking.
I found I could lay a track for my dog, go run some field marks and then
come back and lay a nicely aged track. You
can also set up some jumps for agility and obedience and alternate between the
two if you have a decent space for a training area.
You will find that your dog can easily train for several venues at one
time with just a little forethought on your part of setting it up. Busy
people’s tip! To save time gathering all the items you will need for a
particular venue, have a training bag with those items all packed and ready to
take out the door with you! Happy
Training! |
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