Recent content by PopeHolySmoke

Ah, 21.2% expert escape artist!

When I was a kid my neighbors had a GSD and I've loved the breed ever since. My first dog as an adult was a GSD - Husky mix and I could see which traits came from the GSD half, so when I started working dogs I knew I was going to have GSDs. After 20+ years of living with GSDs, I don't think I...

I don't use the AKC breed standard as they change it slightly from the FCI / SV. The SV as the original breed club is the breed "owner" and responsible for the standard while the FCI is responsible for publishing and maintaining the standard. Per the published standard: The height at the...

For brushes, I use the Hertzco self cleaning slicker brush year round and then a Furminator during the bi-annual coat blow. I also keep a grooming rake on hand for removing burrs and such because we spend a lot of time in the woods. As for keeping him entertained, GSDs need far more mental...

I long ago lost count of the number of times I've screwed up and every time my dog was like, Is OK hoomin, you'll get it next time. Our dogs are more resilient than we give them credit for, even moreso if you train them well.

I do think that has a lot to do with it, particularly in breeds that were bred to have a close working relationship with their handler. Handlers that are calm and even keeled usually have a dog that works similarly and handlers that are high strung have dogs like that. Once in awhile you see...

I've had a male GSD/Husky mix (complete goofball) and 2 female GSDs that I've worked in SAR. Both times I got a female because that was the puppy my breeder thought would be best for the work. Anecdotally from what I've seen in the SAR dogs, females tnd to be much more serious while males have...

Ideal for her is probably 6" without melting although she loves it when we get that rare 10 - 12". We're in the slush zone, so when we do get snow, it often has a frozen top layer. And that's no good for her knees even though she thinks it's fine.

Yep. We don't get a ton of snow and my girl is very much a snow dog. She's unhappy if it's not deep enough to cover the ball when I throw it because a snow covered ball is more of a challenge to find.

You hit the nail on the head right there. Whether it's a pet dog or a working dog, for me it is all about building a relationship with my dog where we trust each other implicitly. She knows what I am going to do in a given situation, I know what she will do, and we have a fall back behavior...

My girl with her BFF that lives next door. We got 3" of snow overnight and they were super wound up this morning.

I would say this is more a philosophy of rewards than a particular method as it can be used with any training method that uses rewards. While I primarily use positive reinforcement / operant conditioning, I have teammates that use other methods and styles, and the reward philosophy works...

I think it's a great topic. In my experience most people don't understand the relative value of rewards to the dog, the difference between food and play rewards and when to use them, and their dog's preferences. A reward that's high value to the dog at home may have zero value in a new...

For me, it's doing my dog's job searching for missing people. Even in the search has no results, it's still great because any day you get to spend in the woods with your dog is a good day. And it's a bonus if it gets me out of work. For non work, it's hiking and letting her have a multi-hour...

I use those same principles when training obedience. If my plan is to do 5 reps and the first one is perfect, I do a jackpot with lots of praise and we're done for at least an hour. But I will come back later and do more reps. And to be fair, most of the times it's a one and done with SAR...