training talk || v.2 open

[caf.]

so sorry i couldn't respond earlier! i've been out of town, thankfully i now have an internet connection, aha.

that's a real shame, i remember you mentioning it in the old thread. still, so sorry for your loss; it's terribly hard to lose them so early.

everyone has their specialties with animals, for sure. i'd like to work with my dogs more, i'm just not sure what i'd...do with them, i suppose. both sit, lay down, and get onto and off of the couches and chairs on command (more useful than you'd think, when you need them out of your way to move large objects through the house and such); the big dog will run in the backyard with me and has a really good shake, and the little one fetches and catches very well. i suppose i could work on recall with the big dog some more, since he has a penchant for running out the front door and, while he does come back, sometimes does so...more on his terms. it's hard to work with my parents on it, since they don't really see eye-to-eye with me on training, but the least i could do is get him reliably coming to me on command.

that's exciting! so far, it looks like i'll be able to keep my horse through college since we'll be able to lease him to a young rider, which will cover his expenses and keep his show record tidy; i hope at least after that i'll be able to set him up in inexpensive board and keep him through the end of his life. i'd love to get a mustang someday to mess around with, but it looks like it will be well over a decade if that happens, especially if i choose to go to medical or vet school after all.

[Winstalgia]

It's fine, no rush XD

Once you get the basics down teach them tricks for fun, if you want! I'd definitely get sit, follow, stay, come, out, don't touch, + release. Those commands could save your dog's life one day. You have a horse so I'm assuming you live in a less-busy area, although that's not entirely true in all cases. I take horse back riding lessons once a week and it's next to a busy street/area. I'm rambling whoops.

It's hard to get other members of the household to participate. The first commands I teach dogs if I train them is sit, stay, + come. And then I'll add usually out + don't touch after that, but it depends on what the dog needs to learn first. c:

That's good, I still don't know much about horses. I'm still learning how to care for them properly, but I know how to ride. I ride a pretty easy-going guy. I've been wanting to do shows + stuff, so I may start going to a place where I can jump and possibly do shows/competitions. Maybe after I get a horse though.

[caf.]

ack, i keep getting distracted each time i open this topic up! nevertheless, here i am lol, though i truthfully don't think i have too much to say.

we actually live in a semi-busy area (the horse is at a boarding stable about 20 minutes away from my house), but fortunately my neighborhood is still growing so we have some time. i definitely do need to work on their recalls, though, you make a good point. especially since the big dog is a rescue who presumably ended up in the rescue by running away from home, aha. it looks like i'm not gonna be able to convince my dad to use a leash with him, so i guess it'll have to do as the next best thing.

horse care is rough, i totally get it. since my horse is kept at a boarding stable, i'm not responsible for his care save for at shows and summer camp, but since i work at the barn part-time i certainly have gotten a feel for the labor-intensive work. that's exciting, though, best of luck to you! it took me some time to get started showing, but i haven't turned back since (though, to be honest, i'm probably done jumping after this year - by the time i have a degree and all, i'll probably want to turn more to training than to competition).

i take back my earlier statement, actually, thinking about my feeding job. so here's a story turned rant: there are two large, bay ex-racehorse geldings at my barn who are really almost identical in personality, except i love one of them and absolutely despise the other (funnily enough, my horse loves the same one i do and hates the other one, but that's another story). the horses - let's call them Z and T - are both...dumber than a box of rocks, for lack of a better term, and at the time of their purchase had all the ground manners of a freight train. both horses have repeatedly run me over, gotten away from me and bolted all over the property, bitten me, and so forth. the difference is, Z's owner recognized what a disastrous monster he was and got all over his case until he improved. he can still be pushy with me and i've had to chase him out of a stall once or twice, but his short comings are much more forgivable when i know his owner is trying to fix them. T's owner, on the other hand, believes that since she is his owner and nobody else works with him regularly, that she can let him get away with more. as a result, he's still an absolute monster; i really hate being overly rough with horses, but i've on several occasions had to turn to a whip or the end of a lead rope to keep from getting seriously hurt handling him. it really doesn't help that she works the same job i do, so she lets him get away with things when she's feeding him that come back to bite all of the other farm workers that have to deal with him. what frustrates me so intensely is that she cannot get it through her head that she isn't the only person who has to deal with T's nonsense; the vet, the farrier, the stablehands, my trainer, and anyone else who has to be near him all end up suffering for his behavior. moreover, as she is a minor, he is really her parents' financial responsibility, and due to his behavior, he's virtually worthless; should they ever end up in serious trouble and be forced to sell him, i really don't know that they'll be able to.

i know i'm preaching to the choir here, but it deeply gets under my skin when people don't realize that it's almost never just them that has to deal with their animals. the best favor i can do for my horse, i think, is to train him well so that he has a good shot at landing in good hands if he can't stay in mine. he may be a bit of a mess under saddle, but by god, does he tie, load, bathe, and lead like a champ. plus, i think it would kill me inside if he ever hurt someone as a direct result of a gap in my own training; the least i can do for the people i pay to take care of him when i'm not around is make sure he's good for them.

ugh, anyways, rant over. this is certainly something i hear in all animal circles, though, particularly from veterinarians, so i'm glad i'm at least in good company.

[Winstalgia]

Honestly, I'd force my Dad to use a leash if my dog wasn't trained, lol.

Some people are just completely oblivious to see how their animals behavior affects others, not just them. One day it'll come back and bite her though, at least if she doesn't get his behavior taken care anytime soon. But yeah, it'd be hard to sell a horse like that; definitely. I know I wouldn't wanna buy a horse that acts like that.

I feel bad for typing so little compared to you; but I honestly didn't know what else to say.

[caf.]

i have tried with my dad - it's resulted in numerous fights - at this point, the best i can do is do what i can with the dog's training and hope the dog loves my dad as much as my dad thinks he does so that he always comes home lol. it's just a disconnect between my dad's ideas on training and enrichment and mine, i suppose; he seems to think that i don't do enough with the dog for fun, but still gives me funny looks when i take him on a run with a leash, get him and the other dog chasing each other around the backyard, or try getting him to play with toys. ultimately, though, he's not "my dog" per se, so i do my best and acknowledge that i might never be fully satisfied with their handling of him. i at least have a few months left before i leave for school, so i'll see if i can't get something done before summer starts.

i and every other stablehand have talked to her about this, but she doesn't seem to listen, even when we point out how the horse's behavior directly harms us. i hate being unnecessarily cruel to animals, as anyone should - there's no part of me that wants to be super rough with that horse - but it's come to be a question of safety, and i really hate that it's gotten to that point. the horse doesn't enjoy it either no doubt, but i don't have the time to train him over the half hour i usually spend handling him, and even if i did, it's frankly not my responsibility. i don't know, still rambling, the whole situation just irks me to no end, and i hate that it's starting to make me hate the job even more (to be fair, there are two other problem horses that also get under my skin, but both of them combined aren't nearly as dangerous).

don't worry about it, i honestly just needed to get it off my chest lol. at least the other stablehands are willing to commiserate with me over this. i fully understand that a boarding stable of 23 horses is going to have some problem children, no doubt, it's just frustrating that this is all so completely preventable with just a few hours of honest work. i am kinda glad that i shied away from the veterinary industry when i did lol; i love medicine and animals and all, but knowing how stressed, untrained animals can be in that situation, i am rather glad i decided clinical research was more my style. props to anyone who goes into that industry, honestly; it's incredible work they do, but the stress and unpredictability seems unbearable for most. then again, i could change my mind again - we'll just see where college and grad school take me!

[Winstalgia]

yeah, at least try to get something worked out before you leave.

Eventually she may see how the horse acts/acknowledge it more than she does to the point she'll act and do something about it. Maybe when she's older.

I saw Marty and Stella again today. Stella for some reason thought she could jump on me, even though she never does and knows not to, especially with me. I simply had to ignore her but when she did so another two times I clicked her on the nose. Which I prefer not to do but that's the only way she'll stop. she also wouldn't sit still when I was cleaning her paws-instructions for after they're done playing outside like she usually does.

I need to teach them-At least marty, how to shut it as well.

[caf.]

i'll do my best with both, aha. it's certainly time to break out the training books, since i've gotten rusty on recalls (my previous dogs recalled pretty naturally without too much effort on my end). should be a fun exercise, at least, and hopefully will make everyone feel a little better about things!

ah, that's always frustrating - my big dog surprised me last night by jumping up and trying to nab a piece of pizza out of my hands, even though he hasn't pulled that one in years. luckily, he didn't try again after i reprimanded him with my voice and told him to sit, but it's always bothersome when they do something like that after not trying it for awhile.

if you have any insights on teaching dogs to stop barking, i'd love to hear them - i've tried everything with my sheltie, but you know how they can be, especially the less bright ones (bless him, he's a sweet little dog, just...with the attention span of a goldfish). that said, we've certainly made progress in getting him to come inside when called, which is a step in the right direction.

ugh, i'm so frustrated - it's raining so much here, i haven't gotten to see my horse in quite some time now. i was really hoping i'd be able to do some more jump schooling at liberty, but the arena's still too soggy for anything other than flatwork. i'm debating on whether to try and ride today in the slop, or just hold off and do a more intensive session tomorrow.

[Winstalgia]

yeah, good luck!

I've never taught a dog how to be quiet though, but I don't expect it to be hard either.

It's days later, what'd you do?

[Faded...]

I'd like to be added as a
member!

Username:Rainbowhorse77
Species: (can be multiple)Horses, goats.

[Mycorrhizae]

I'd like to be added as a
member!

Username: Mycorrhizae
Species: Cats, dogs, raptors, corvids