After that, I decided we needed to work on ignoring the chickens. Fizz is a rambunctious 8 month old puppy, and I knew this would be an adventure for both of us. Following are 2 videos, successive in nature. Beware, the first one is LONG and if you're on a slow connection...........it may take awhile!
We did very well with ignoring the chickens initially. I also saw that chicken smells and food rewards were of higher value than playing tug at that moment. I always want playing with me to be of highest value, so we took an extended 'balance break' to work on play/work/reward and build up the bank account of our relationship in this new context.
In part 2, we go up to see the chickens, and again, a small chase ensues. It took me about 30 sec to get hold of the long line. No chickens were harmed, and Fizz was definitely not in 'kill' mode, but rather in 'chasing is FUN' mode. You can see how much less responsive she is to me after the chasing.
Again, WONDERFUL information for me as a trainer, in knowing how to work through this and to see what her weak spots are. When James gets chickens upset by trying to grab them, she gets MUCH more keyed in on them. We will continue to work through this, and I will use kids to roust/wrangle chickens, in order to create high level attraction/distraction for Fizz.
Of interest, at dinnertime, she was out again, and once again, stupid chickens decided to leave the kennel. I heard upset chirping and went out to find Fizz chasing a Barred Rock, but again, not in a frenzied state, and not to kill. The B.R. ran under a bush, and I called her once, and she flew to me. GOOD girl!!!!!!!!! We ran inside and she got about 1/4 of a bratwurst. :) I'm very happy with her responses to me, which are not really based in much training in this context, but rather on our relationship. A wonderful reading of the barometer! :)
