Click & Treat Training Kit by Gary Wilkes clickandtreat.com is the best
clicker video I’d seen to date. It is very excellently produced and covers all
the basics and some advanced techniques as well. The only minor criticism is
that the menu process does not automatically progress to the next topic and therefore
is a bit laborious. One particular point of interest is that Karen Pryor, in
her book Don’t Shoot the Dog, credits Gary Wilkes as the person who, in 1992,
actually introduced the clicker as the event marker of choice in the training
of dogs. When, in an email to Gary,
I mentioned this, here was his reply: "Karen has a flair for story telling that often implies an ethereal osmosis rather than hard work and diligence. The actual time-frame was 1987 to 1992. I clicker trained more than 1,000 dogs, professionally, during that time. She didn't bother to mention that the process was the result of a firm foundation in Pavlovian conditioning and the context of behavior modification for veterinary referral clients. So, no, I didn't just happen to find a clicker at a novelty store - but it makes a great story. Regards, Gary Wilkes." I own it.
Clicker Magic starring Karen Pryor karenpryor.com reviews
the basics of what is known as “operant conditioning” utilizing a sound
generating device, the clicker, to train animals in general, and dogs in
particular. Pryor demonstrates various dog obedience behaviors she wants to
train. In one segment she shows a woman training an apprehensive mule to enter
a horse shower stall. On the previous day the animal had violently bolted away
from this stall, dragging the trainer. The slow, steady progress of the mule,
and the patience of the trainer was very illustrative. In the final segment, a
women, who appears to be a “typical” pet owner, (not a professional animal
trainer) clicker trains a cat to run a complex agility course. If I hadn’t seen
it, I would have said it was impossible to train a cat to do anything! This DVD
is well worth the cost. I own it!
Crate Training Your Puppy by Midwest Homes for Pets midwesthomes4pets.com.
Offered by phone from Midwest (800 428-8560),
the cost probably only covers the shipping and handling. It is cartoon drawings
with voice-over narrations. Crate training is covered in many of the books, and
even in some of the videos. If you can’t find the information anywhere else,
this DVD will help; I own it! In preparing this post, I was unable to find this on the web, perhaps a phone call to their 800 number would yield results.
Dog Grooming at Home by Home Kuts Video is a VHS tape
that I found at our local library and to be blunt, it was boring and
amateurish. I suppose that as long as you don’t injure your dog with the
scissors or clippers, the worst case scenario is that your dog ends up looking
like the groomer (you) was taking some mind altering substance! The message that I got, came through loud
and clear: professional quality dog grooming, in the form of clipping and
trimming, really should be left to the professionals. In preparing this post, I was unable to find this video anywhere! Even our local library doesn't have it!
Doggie Repair Kit by Gary Wilkes clickandtreat.com discusses
various ways to deal with doggie problem behaviors in either a positive manner,
or at least in a corrective manner that in no way can harm the dog. Some of Gary’s solutions are quite
novel and effective. This one was fun to watch! I own it.
Dogs for Dummies by Jenny Taylor, DVM is a 70 minute
presentation that is a companion to the book of the same title. She covers a
lot of material, from choosing a particular dog, to buying the right
accessories and equipment, house-training, and basic obedience training. Since Taylor is a veterinarian,
other basic health topics are also discussed. Of all of the videos, this one
should be first on the list for viewing; it is foundational. This DVD is a
keeper. I do not own it because it was available at my local library, across
the street from my office and I have borrowed it twice!
Game Dog 2nd Edition with Charles T.
Jurney familydogs.com is a 70 minute presentation based on the tried and
proven training techniques popularized by the late Richard Wolters. Jurney
advocates starting with a puppy 49 days (7 weeks) old and continuing through
adulthood. The training starts with the basics of Sit, Stay, and Come and then
builds on these skills with various retrieving skills and exercises. I found
the initial training to be a bit old school, but they must have merit because
the retrieving exercises resulted in a very impressive dog having championship
level skills and behaviors. There is no question that Charles Jurney is an
experienced, effective, canine field trainer. In the bonus material, Jurney
shows the training technique of training the dog to accept the dumbbell into
his mouth, using the removal of pain to the dog’s toe. It was at that point
that I stopped watching. One final point, when reading a book, you either
accept or reject the author’s premises. When watching a video, however, you can
get your own impressions and come to your own conclusions. One of the points
that the non-aversive trainers make is that using food treats transforms the
dogs into happy, tail-wagging cooperators as opposed to just submitting compliers.
When you watch any of the non-aversion videos, the dogs learn quickly and they
appear to be having a ball! On this video, during the early Sit, Stay, and Come
training, the dogs do not appear to be particularly “happy” although they are
somewhat complaint. On the other hand, by the time the dogs are actually
retrieving, that is, doing those behaviors for which they have been bred and
trained, the change in demeanor to one of happy, cooperative, co-workers is
obvious.
Good Puppy by Jeanne Carlson is a video specifically
recommend by The Monks of New Skete in their book Art of Raising a Puppy.
I wanted to learn about puppy/dog massage and this video does cover this
particular topic towards the end of the tape. Guess what – massage is not
rocket science, and I probably could have figured out all I needed to know
without buying this tape. Truth is, you do not know whether that pastry tastes
as good as it looks until you buy it and bite into it. Carlson also has a
number of puppy training techniques, but she came across as a bit cold and abrupt.
I own it.
Living with Your Dog by Jack and Wendy Volhard volhard.com
was one of the last DVD’s I watched before I actually acquired a puppy. On
every level, the quality of this presentation is top of the top. Jack and Wendy
are the Dean and Deaness (there should be a term for a female dean, but in our
politically correct, gender neutral society this is frowned upon) of dog
training. The Volhard method of dog training is shown, sequence by sequence.
Jack and Wendy come across as patient, experienced, and caring. Jack uses the
fewest number of words interacting with the dogs, (and I suspect with people as
well) and the results he gets are a testimony of his techniques and practices.
Anyone who follows these methods will get the same results. This was one of the
best video presentations I’ve seen. I own it.
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