It's yer choice Susan Garrett

[Sez1]

Join our free community today.

Connect with other like-minded dog lovers!

Login or Register

Hi all,
I have been trying to improve my dog"s leave it response with some progress. However, l am wondering if Susan Garrett's 'It's yer choice" training would have better results.
I am concerned though that l might just confuse him. What are your thoughts?

 

[JudyN]

'It's yer choice' worked really well for my dog, though I'm not sure it translated into a real-life situation. Even if I accidentally dropped a treat in 'It's yer choice' he'd be on it like a shot, knowing it wasn't a part of the plan!

In what way do you think it might confuse your dog? I dare say it might depend on how you're training him at the moment.

 

[Sez1]

'It's yer choice' worked really well for my dog, though I'm not sure it translated into a real-life situation. Even if I accidentally dropped a treat in 'It's yer choice' he'd be on it like a shot, knowing it wasn't a part of the plan!

In what way do you think it might confuse your dog? I dare say it might depend on how you're training him at the moment.

Well he understands what leave it means and has "some' impulse control but l have been saying leave it which requires me to be there and quick enough to say it. Even then if the temptation is too great.,he will go for whatever. Apparently the yer choice game encourages the dog to develop better impulse control and look from the object to you for permission and reward. ( I think .)
Leave it is implied. You give permission to take or you give the treat.
Asher requires me to tell him to leave things. I think that with this training he will eventually leave things first before seeing it he can take it. Thus it might improve my chances of stopping his scavenging. Susan Garrett does make things sound complicated.

 

[JudyN]

It's a long time since I did it, so I'm having to dig into the dark recesses of my brain...

I didn't use IYC to teach leave as such, but to improve self-control, which is never a bad thing and will help with training and behaviour more generally. So if in a situation like seeing a cat, it (possibly) helped him realise that there were options other than hurling himself to the end of the lead and yelling obscenities, and that if he controlled his urge and walked calmly(ish) past he'd make me very happy and get him a treat. It also made him think, and we extended it to other games, like walking from carpet tile to carpet tile, each on my command, from one end of the room to a treat at the other end.

Ao IMO, it's very worth doing, and as it isn't so much about teaching leave but just controlling your impulses, I don't think it should confuse your dog. And it might help with leave if it helps him listen to you and control his impulses.

 

[Sez1]

It's a long time since I did it, so I'm having to dig into the dark recesses of my brain...

I didn't use IYC to teach leave as such, but to improve self-control, which is never a bad thing and will help with training and behaviour more generally. So if in a situation like seeing a cat, it (possibly) helped him realise that there were options other than hurling himself to the end of the lead and yelling obscenities, and that if he controlled his urge and walked calmly(ish) past he'd make me very happy and get him a treat. It also made him think, and we extended it to other games, like walking from carpet tile to carpet tile, each on my command, from one end of the room to a treat at the other end.

Ao IMO, it's very worth doing, and as it isn't so much about teaching leave but just controlling your impulses, I don't think it should confuse your dog. And it might help with leave if it helps him listen to you and control his impulses.

Thanks for your reply. I will play the game. It can't hurt and he is very quick to react so impulse control is very important. By the way he now hesitates and looks to me when he sees a cat or bird (he discovered how nice birds taste!) as if to say, "Do I have to leave this?"