Help Needed With Self Stacking, pleeeeeease…

[saba]

Wow Kiroja, that is exactly what I was hoping someone would write :). I dont have those stilt thingys, and Im not even sure if they are available in Australia either ??? The soup cans/bricks sound just the thing to start her off on. Wonderful tip, thank you…

I think the second part of the training sounds like it might be a bit more work, but, the end result is worth it, for sure :D. I will start her training today, and hopefully she will nearly be there for her next shows on the 18th and 19th April...

Thanks again :).

[kiroja]

I think Happy Legs will ship overseas, you'd have to check with them.

http://happylegs.com/

There's also a couple others on the market now that aren't quite so pricey.

http://www.staxrite.com/

Also check on Ebay, you might be able to find a used one on there somewhere?

[saba]

Thanks r those links. It certainly seems as if 1 of the products is preferred over the other :).

My hubby is very handy with carpentry jobs. I think he might have a new job to do this weekend :D… They look quits easy to put together. Thanks for the links though, it gives us a good look at how they were made...

[kiroja]

Yes, if you have someone mechanically inclined, it would be much cheaper to make your own! lol

[saba]

Hubby just looked at them, and he says he can probably make them, for a fraction of the charges, especially as we need to get them sent to Aus as well :).

Suggested to him that he could make them, take them to shows, sell them for a motza, and retire from his day job ;).

Ochre has just had her first lesson, doing exactly what you said Kiroja, and Im sure if I can get my hands to work properly, we will have this done in no time :D. I think its my clumsiness that will hold her back… Trying to hold the lead, pull the lead out, side to side, watching where her feet were going, etc, etc..........................Oh dear........ I never was blessed with great co-ordination skills o:o... Im just hope that she can see what Im trying to do, and catch on quickly !!! One can only hope !!!

[Maya]

Im just teaching Maya this at the moment. My two other breeds (pugs and labs) both are "free standing" dogs when shown over here so you dont touch their legs at all. They must be taught to stack themselves on command. I actually have never had too much trouble teaching it. I just say whatever word i want to be the stacking command (i just use "stand") as i place their feet where i want them, and then lots of praise and a treat and pretty soon they will do it on command without me placing them at all. What takes the time is getting them to stand 4-square on command, but that is just practice

Maya is picking it up pretty quickly. She will stand still when i tell her to, im just now starting to get her to stretch herself out and stand 4-square when i tell her to stand. I wouldnt expect a puppy to have perfected that by the time they are in the ring (6 months here), but by the time they are about 12 months they seem to have it down pretty well

[renaultf1]

@saba:

Hubby just looked at them, and he says he can probably make them, for a fraction of the charges, especially as we need to get them sent to Aus as well :).

Suggested to him that he could make them, take them to shows, sell them for a motza, and retire from his day job ;).

Ochre has just had her first lesson, doing exactly what you said Kiroja, and Im sure if I can get my hands to work properly, we will have this done in no time :D. I think its my clumsiness that will hold her back… Trying to hold the lead, pull the lead out, side to side, watching where her feet were going, etc, etc..........................Oh dear........ I never was blessed with great co-ordination skills o:o... Im just hope that she can see what Im trying to do, and catch on quickly !!! One can only hope !!!

Hey Saba, I just got a set of Happy Legs that a friend of a friend made for me out of cherry wood. The nice thing about your hubby doing it it can be made of really nice wood…and a lot cheaper than anything I could find online! :D:D

[saba]

Thanks for the reply Maya…

So to teach your guys, Pugs, Labs or B's, do you do what Kiroja does, or something different ??? It makes perfect sense, now it has been explained to me :). Im hoping that by 12 months she would be doing it quite reliably too !!!

I use the word "stand" when I put her on the table, so she knows that I want her to be still and allow me to place her feet. I thought I would use the word "stack", but it sounds too similar to stand, so I will go to bed soon, dreaming of a word to use for her :D. Geez I think I need to get a life !!!

Hey renaultf1, I agree with you. I think Hubby will make me some, done to my specification, to suit the B's and the ACD's, in beautiful Huon Pine, with our prefix on it just like the Staxrite ones are doing now... BEAUTIFUL :).

[Maya]

Well, i personally would never use the stilt things as i dont agree with them. I try to make everything a game for my pups in training and i dont like the idea of them being forced to stand still for fear of falling.

But the second bit about pulling left/right to square them up i do once they are used to what "stand" means. But yeah, just lots of practice. With maya i do it on walks just ask her to stand for a treat, move the treat slightly forward if i want to stretch her out a bit more. It is probably a longer process than the stilts but it's always worked for me

[basi]

@Maya:

Well, i personally would never use the stilt things as i dont agree with them. I try to make everything a game for my pups in training and i dont like the idea of them being forced to stand still for fear of falling.

But the second bit about pulling left/right to square them up i do once they are used to what "stand" means. But yeah, just lots of practice. With maya i do it on walks just ask her to stand for a treat, move the treat slightly forward if i want to stretch her out a bit more. It is probably a longer process than the stilts but it's always worked for me

Phew I'm glad i am not the only one that doesn't like these contraptions. I do the same as you Jessica yes it does take longer but much kinder on the dog.

[Maya]

@basi:

Phew I'm glad i am not the only one that doesn't like these contraptions. I do the same as you Jessica yes it does take longer but much kinder on the dog.

The way i look at it, i do showing as a hobby for fun, the dogs should find it fun too! Might mean she wont stand perfectly square and perfectly still everytime, but better than than just being programmed to do it like a robot! :rolleyes:

Each to their own and everything and i wouldn't criticise someone for using it, especially as i know its a very common thing in countries like America, but i just prefer to spend a little longer and not have the pup having any fear and stress during training

[basi]

@Maya:

The way i look at it, i do showing as a hobby for fun, the dogs should find it fun too! Might mean she wont stand perfectly square and perfectly still everytime, but better than than just being programmed to do it like a robot! :rolleyes:

Each to their own and everything and i wouldn't criticise someone for using it, especially as i know its a very common thing in countries like America, but i just prefer to spend a little longer and not have the pup having any fear and stress during training

I agree, not having ago at anyone as I know this is a common thing in the states but just not used in the UK, well not by anyone i know.

[Maya]

@basi:

I agree, not having ago at anyone as I know this is a common thing in the states but just not used in the UK, well not by anyone i know.

Oh, it is More than people know… Its still pretty frowned upon by the majority here so people dont talk about it, but i know of a couple of people in labs who use it, and also other breeds that i dont own.

I have dogs in for training for the ring sometimes and one person asked me to take theirs in and train it on these stilt things and got quite funny with me when i refused. But, its a principle thing, im sure she got someone else to train it quite happily :rolleyes:

[basi]

@Maya:

Oh, it is More than people know… Its still pretty frowned upon by the majority here so people dont talk about it, but i know of a couple of people in labs who use it, and also other breeds that i dont own.

I have dogs in for training for the ring sometimes and one person asked me to take theirs in and train it on these stilt things and got quite funny with me when i refused. But, its a principle thing, im sure she got someone else to train it quite happily :rolleyes:

I quite believe it:rolleyes:
It was mentioned it the breed notes once in the dog paper and was not spoke too highly of.

[Janneke]

@basi:

Phew I'm glad i am not the only one that doesn't like these contraptions. I do the same as you Jessica yes it does take longer but much kinder on the dog.

• 1.. I also think this isn't a kind way of learning a dog how to stand. Tillo had some troubles with stretching his hind legs. I learn him to keep them back by putting my feet in front of them and then asking him to walk to my hand. He got it in 2 seconds

[lvoss]

I think the dog's experience really depends on how you use the Happy Legs. I have had my dogs on them and they were rewarded for being on them. They were far more interested in eating cheese then being concerned about being on the stilts. I have never used them for an extended period of time. I also just hand stack and reward their holding the position, which is does the same thing. It can be helpful to start on the Happy Legs so they learn what it feels like to have their feet in that position. If they aren't comfortable on them then I don't use them.

[nomrbddgs]

I agree with Lisa. Some of my dogs love it (yum treats and goodies shoved in my face while I stand here) some hate it no matter what. I don't push the ones that don't like it. Mine free stack anyway, so that is not a huge issue with mine. I've used bait while they are on the ground and free stacked them that way.

[kiroja]

@lvoss:

I think the dog's experience really depends on how you use the Happy Legs. I have had my dogs on them and they were rewarded for being on them. They were far more interested in eating cheese then being concerned about being on the stilts. I have never used them for an extended period of time. I also just hand stack and reward their holding the position, which is does the same thing. It can be helpful to start on the Happy Legs so they learn what it feels like to have their feet in that position. If they aren't comfortable on them then I don't use them.

Same here. I don't use them very often, in fact didn't even use them on the last litter. But they do come in handy for learning certain things when the dog isn't getting it, especially adults and ADHD puppies. Also it makes the training session much faster, and happier for the dog. They get lots of praise, pets, and treats while they're up there. And since they're holding the position needed, it only takes a few seconds then we're off to do something else. And I actually have my dogs walk up onto them sorta with a little help and treats, so they learn right from the start that it's not really "falling", just a little uncomfortable standing with one foot on/one foot off. lol And believe me, they know they can jump off and run around the house playing keep away whenever they want to! I usually use them on the floor, not on a table except for picture taking times.

[saba]

Thanks for the help guys, I really appreciate it :).

Ochre's lessons are now in full swing, and despite my clumsiness, she seems to be just starting to pick up what Im trying to teach her :D.

[kiroja]

Awesome! Keep it up.