Radio 2SM Breakfast Segment #13 with Kaye Browne

THIS WEEK: (Full transcript below)

Training '101' 
Just like kids, it takes time... and patience! - to train a dog. Given the recent 'disaster' of being left alone at home and causing a LOT of damage, Jessie sought the help of a professional dog trainer and gives Kaye an update on her new dog Moon's training progress!
Plus; 
Older pets. Is it ok to adopt them? Sadly there are many many animals in 'rescue' shelters for many reasons. Being lost or simply dumped, all looking for a safe new home. Kaye shares her experience adopting several older dogs and the issues to be aware of.

00'00" - Welcome
00'08" - Moon's Training Update
06'01" - Is It OK To Adopt Older Pets?

FULL TRANSCRIPT!:
RON: Time now for our weekly pet segment with Kaye Browne from VetTalk OnHold Kaye good morning... 

KAYE: Good morning to you!

RON: Look this is like a follow-up appointment we've been working on Jessie and her dog trying we're not sure if we're trying to train Jessie or the dog or the boyfriend someone in the house is getting trained but we need to be brought up to date, now our problem was she got a rescue dog and the two of them left the house and the dog nearly tore the door down, but now there's a training program underway and now take it up from there Jessie where are we up to with the dog?

JESSIE: Only the basics only the basics I think the big win was she now learn has learned to stay so before she gets stuck into her dinner we can actually make her wait and have a bit of patience but I'm still mainly concerned because she still has that severe separation anxiety and I think that's where we really need to start all of the basics and that stuff I feel like can come later but at the moment when you can't leave the house you're feeling kind of stuck.

RON: So how did you get to this point how did you achieve that?

JESSIE: Well I actually did enlist the help of an external puppy trainer because I obviously need help, I've never had to train a puppy before I've only had experience with dogs but given that we are treating our little rescue as a puppy I felt it was important so we've got this new trainer she's come in she's shown me the  benefits of using treats and to really sort of get that discipline going she's taught me how to do your training sessions so that they're short bursts of really intensive training then you have a break in the importance of play the importance of tone really really beneficial things which I hadn't really thought about beforehand.

RON: Alright Kaye, she's got the boyfriend up to that oh no that's the dog (LAUGHS!) she's got the dog up to that stage where do we go from here?

KAYE: Ok well look that's a really good start and well done Jess and I'm very glad you have sort of gone back to basics by treating Moon which is a great name for a little lunatic as you refer to her!! that really we need to start and set up a routine I'm so thrilled you've got a trainer to help you because there are lots and lots of really good dog clubs and professional dog trainers and there are a lot of people like me who've done the national dog training trainers course and basically we all use the same technique which is using methods that have been shown scientifically to actually work even across all breeds all sizes of dogs it works so I'm delighted that you've got the stay happening, I'm pleased about that... what do you say when it's okay for uh Moon to actually start eating what's your release word?

JESSIE: I was going to say you won't believe this.. OKAY! (LAUGHS!)

KAYE: Right okay well I would say that's fine if you want to use that and always use it, the only problem is that we use okay in conversation a fair bit so when you're just talking to your boyfriend you might not be aware of it but Moon might be in a stay and you say "OK, lets go and do blah!" and Moon thinks that's the release word!

So there are few little key things that we can do, now when I was taught to be a trainer the release word that I was taught was FREE! and I tend to use that a lot because it's no good getting dogs to do something if they don't know when they can stop doing it because a lot of people go "Okay I'm going to get my dog to sit now." And they go "Sit sit sit sit sit." The dog goes "Do I sit at the first sit or do I sit on the sixth sit?" You know "What do I do and when?" 

So a couple of things I'm hoping the puppy trainer has asked you to put Moon on a lead when you ask Moon to do something even if it's not just eating dinner but to get a treat or to do anything really then you can give whatever it is you want her to do whether it's stay or watch... watch is a good one you want her to look at you and then you need to mark that she's done the right thing and again a marker you hear probably people talk about clicker tr