Harley and Jasmine

So Wednesday, I started training two new little Yorkshire Terrier puppies. Harley is 9 months old, and Jasmine is 4 months old. They are as cute as they know how to be, and if Jazzy wagged her little puppy tail any harder, it would fall off for sure! She is completely enthusiastic about life, and as busy as any toddler!! Harley is the more calm puppy, more of a lover than a busybody, and he definitely wants all of the attention, all of the time!!

I really, really love watching owners see their dogs begin to learn how to learn. Most of my training is "show and tell" where I work with the dogs, showing the owner what to do, and telling them how to do it. Often, my first lesson begins with just letting the dog figure out how to earn a treat. Usually, they are all over the place with excitement, jumping up on me, pulling on the leash, sniffing, being silly, etc. Once dogs cue into me, however, they are all focus and offer the behavior I want in a very, very short time. I do all of this without putting a hand of correction on the leash or speaking a word of command to them. Owners just marvel at how quickly their dogs figure things out, and for owners with really, really naughty dogs, they often feel a tremendous sense of relief that their dog can and will learn how to behave!! For me, the fun is in watching not only the dogs learn, but the joy of seeing their owners watching their dogs! It's similar to parents who have chosen the perfect Christmas gift and they are watching their child unwrap it!

Harley was much more calm to start, but he was the one who took longer to figure things out. When he got his treat, he was all over wiggly with excitement, and wanted to kiss to say thank you! And then we'd start the process all over, because his attention and focus was all over the place again. But what a little dear he is! He decided that it made sense to stay close to me, because he liked getting some treats and praise from mel!! He will probably take a little longer to learn the commands, because he's not as focused, and he didn't seem to grasp that I wanted him to continue with a specific behavior. Over time, that may change, as he figures out that that words have meanings, and can focus long enough to learn them! Dogs like Harley often take a bit longer at the front end of their training, but once they learn a specific command or behavior, they're often more than willing to offer it up, because they like the attention that results from compliance.

Jazzy, was definitely more interesting to watch! She was almost hyper with excitement and busy-ness in her surrounding environment, exploring as far as the leash would allow. However, she caught on to what I wanted almost immediately, but she stayed at a distance, to keep her independence. To start with, I had to really lean or take a step toward her to give her a treat. Where Harley was willing to stay close to me, Jasmine looked at me with savvy eyes that said, "This is some kind of trick, right?" She offered me the behavior I wanted much more consistently, and much more quickly than her big brother, her little tail going crazy the whole time. She was also willing to accept some praise without losing her focus, which is amazing given her little personality! She's going to be the one who will catch on more quickly to the commands, but she's also the one who will be much more independent, having a "make me" attitude. She was happy to get some treats and loving, but she wasn't initially willing to get very close to me to get them. Some of that may be that she doesn't trust me yet, but it's more likely because she's a terrier and wants to maintain her level of "terrier decorum" by accepting treats and pets from a distance as a show of her independence. After all, she could lose her "Terrier Club Card" for complete and shameless compliance to what I want from her, right?

Many people see Yorkies and think that they are really cute little lap dogs. They seem to forget that the second half of their name is TERRIER!! They may indeed be cute, darling little dogs, but they are also feisty, independent little terriers who know what they want and just how to get it! I know that I'm really going to enjoy training them, watching them learn and grow and helping to shape those sweet little personalities into dogs who will be furry friends for life!!