tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2403681948899952643.post4633329311471802399..comments2023-06-12T05:28:41.710-07:00Comments on Life with Ranger: The Most Useful Things I Taught My DogUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2403681948899952643.post-77478348627934767952011-11-21T10:25:17.943-08:002011-11-21T10:25:17.943-08:00That's a lovely story Mozette. I love it that ...That's a lovely story Mozette. I love it that she only liked good literature.Kathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15220021390399819368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2403681948899952643.post-64811714815097107192011-11-21T04:55:32.308-08:002011-11-21T04:55:32.308-08:00Before our sweet little Staffie-cross had to be pu...Before our sweet little Staffie-cross had to be put to sleep, I taught her sign language. It came in great use when I let her go for a run in the park and wanted her to stop and stay and only used her name once loud enough for her to stop and look, then I signed the rest of the orders for her to sit and stay. I had some treats in the my pocket for her to munch on as rewards for being good when she did them... and that's how I taught her sign.<br />It took me a little over a year to teach her; and she wasn't a young dog either... quite old being around 11 or 12 at the time. So, you can't tell me you can't teach an old dog new tricks. Jessie lost her sight after that; and so her ability to understand me was lost too. But she still loved being patted and my blather that was my voice when I read LOTR to her during a thunderstorm (yep, she read a really high-brow kinda dog) was funny. She didn't like me reading any other kind of book... and I could open to any chapter of any book and just begin reading when the storms became too loud while she laid next to me and I sat on the floor with her. Weird kinda dog, eh?Mozettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16267731815392625679noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2403681948899952643.post-60627155669161300702011-11-18T22:39:15.541-08:002011-11-18T22:39:15.541-08:00Ranger knows shake (shake hands with the right paw...Ranger knows shake (shake hands with the right paw), high five (with the left paw) and dry (shake the water out of his coat). I love the yardstick idea and plan to steal it. <br /><br />Ranger also knows speak (whisper bark) bark (loud bark) and talk (although he's not as good at doing that when asked--very good at doing it when he wants). He recycles things for us. He can find any named family member and hidden treats. He's working on learning to carry a bucket. So far he's only willing to take it and set it on the ground holding it long enough to walk with it will take some work. <br /><br />Thanks for sharing Lilly's skills.Kathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15220021390399819368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2403681948899952643.post-75390684293039789592011-11-18T22:20:42.546-08:002011-11-18T22:20:42.546-08:00Lilly knows 'shake' which does not mean to...Lilly knows 'shake' which does not mean to handshake, rather to shake water off after a bath. It was easy to train using the natural instinct to shake--then to give a treat while saying the word 'shake.' She figured it out pretty quickly.<br /><br />She also knows 'go find daddy' which will have her tear through the house and attach my husband with great enthusiasm. I trained that on the sly--by arming hubby with cookies and taking Lilly to him for one, then walking her away--she was unwilling to leave so it didn't take many 'go find daddy's' for her to figure that one out. Poor man can never play hide and go seek. <br /><br />Her third expression came after we watched 'Meet the Fockers' We loved the "poop" symbol and started using it when we knew she needed to made a solid yard deposit. She will now eagerly bark if she has to go poo if you make the symbol--if you make it other wise she won't react at all even if she needs to go out. <br /><br />I am thinking of training her not to cross a yardstick. Then if I am mopping the floor or want to keep her out of a room I can just put down a stick rather than a true barrier. <br /><br />Our starter Golden,Jake, would get the newspaper, carry grocery sacks into the house, and deliver items to my husband. Lilly doesn't have Jake's retriever instincts so that is lost on her.The Grubbieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06425045918824909926noreply@blogger.com