# lack of focus



## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

I'm getting a little frustrated with Flip and his distractability. When he's focused, he's totally focused. When he's not, he's totally not. I keep reminding myself that he's still young and hopefully will get more focus with age. I'm just used to working with Conner, whom I would let the cat hang off of while training and it would just make him work that much harder to pay attention to me and his work. But different dog, different challenges... 

I guess once I'm able to successfully train Flip with Colby playing in the area I'll know he's ready for the ring. I just hope he does get to that point some day, because he's sure not there yet!


----------



## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Something I hated last year, but know it helped... watch exercises. 

Our teacher started each class with 15 minutes of watch + heel work (everyone stood in a circle around the room with their dogs, one person would do a heel+watch while weaving around the other people and dogs who were all doing stays+watches). 

If we weren't doing heel work, then she was coming up and doing approaches with crumpled paper or tennis balls or treats. And we weren't allowed to touch our dogs or use our hands to direct attention to our faces.

I HATED IT. 

But I'm glad we did all that 'groundwork'.


----------



## RedDogs (Jan 30, 2010)

Our hardest state right now is when Gryff is super focused, responsive, great, but it "feels" like he's not with me. Those watching can't see his outward focus but if they work him, they do feel it. There's nothing specific that we see... it's very interesting. Typically we just lower criteria or change the framework to get him working properly again.


----------



## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

It's pretty obvious when Flip isn't focused. You'll see him lunging at the distraction. Or, if off leash, running to the distraction. I think that's going to be our focus in training for awhile, just teaching him to stay in my area in spite of something really fun going on close by.


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

Jodie, what's the "consequence" for losing focus?
I think that's what you need to address.


----------



## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

If it makes you feel better my instructor told me that Scout has the attention span of a gnat : and that wasn't that long ago. Our first lesson at 6 months she told me Scout was a pushy alpha bitch (and she's right, but I didn't see it at that point).

She has gotten a little better and hopefully will continue to get better. I think Flip will get better you just need to give him time. Just think--you don't plan on showing until he is 3 anyway, right?


----------



## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

Barb, that's where I'm having trouble deciding what to do. My typical correction for not paying attention is a butt tag followed by fun game with me. But I think with Flip I will either have to increase the correction a little or increase the amount of "fun" of the game. Or some of both.

Or maybe I'm just pushing the issue too much right now. Last night I had Colby in the backyard with us while we were training, and Flip just could not concentrate at all because that's his buddy that he's used to running around like a maniac with. I'm not sure if I should back off something that is so distracting to him until he's a little older and more mature, or if I should teach him now that it doesn't matter what is going on around him he needs to pay attention to me and what I'm asking of him.

I do think I am going to put the ecollar on him for when he tries to run away toward the distraction. In my mind it's one thing to look at a distraction, but it's a totally other thing to actually run away from me to go over to it while we're in the middle of training.


----------



## AmberSunrise (Apr 1, 2009)

Focus - boy oh boy - why doesn't the drive for focus come automatically packaged with the drive to work? LOL

If it helps, Towhee is starting to be able to focus while in agility class (indoors) and in field class .. she is also starting to focus while working obedience but I am still in light distraction areas, and people still can't bend over towards her unless they WANT a golden hug. But these past few months have seen a huge improvement - people that met her last year are amazed at how she is settling with a bit of maturity and a consistent environment.

Flip will surprise you I'll bet .. a little at a time you'll be training and say 'hey, he just focused on me and I'm 3 feet away from _____, what a good dog'


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

I think with Flip you may have to do both.. I think at this point I'd have a long line, leash, or tether on him all the time until he works past it. Learning he can run away is going to come back and bite you in the butt at some point in the ring otherwise. The leash or tether would be self-correcting; if he tries to run away, he's going to correct himself.
I like the butt tags, too, but if they're moving fast enough you can't get them. But what *might* work is to have a really fascinating toy (noisy) in your pocket, which he doesn't know you have, and if he loses the focus and turns away from you, start playing with it yourself (I always felt stupid doing this, but hey, it works) where he can see you having a great time with it, laughing, throwing it, just having a blast, maybe running backward or away from him. But HE can't have it. He lost his focus. That way it's not a lure or a reward, it's actually a punishment for not paying attention to you.
Get him back to focus at the task at hand, even briefly, and THEN interact with him with the toy. 
I'm not explaining this very well.


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

Jodie, I just re-read what you wrote, your typical is a butt tag followed by a fun game with you...
that's actually rewarding the lack of focus, which is why I suggested what I did in the previous post. You can play, but he can't, until he's back in focus.


----------



## K9-Design (Jan 18, 2009)

How does he respond to correction? I am nervous with my guys to do too much of a correction in an obedience setting -- to put a negative/downer correction into things. To me a leash pop is not a negative even with a pinch collar as it is over quickly and not a personal thing from me ----- Fisher responds to collar pop but Slater just doesn't get that. Or at least he didn't the last time I tried it. No I'm not pure positive but I'm just finding that negative corrections aren't my MO in obedience any more. 
I know with Slater -- we mainly practice obedience in front of my house in the street or at one of our church fields...not terribly distracting but not a vacuum either. I would rather *ask less* and get compliancy with attention and good attitude with a distraction present than to *ask for the normal* and get it but with some struggle to maintain attention and attitude. 
Now with Fisher he is not terribly distractable, it's never been a big issue. And if I try to train with a super major purposefully distracting thing, like someone tempting him with treats or whatever, he turns himself inside out to AVOID the distraction to the point where he messes up even more than if he briefly lost focus by looking at the distraction in the first place. So it's sort of a balancing act -- I find with my guys I'd prefer to just practice in lots of different places and put out inanimate objects for them to ignore, rather than baiting them to screw up with active distractions. Who knows, this is sort of me rambling!!!!


----------



## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

Glad you're chiming in Anney. Part of my problem in training Flip is he barely responds to corrections at all. I know levels of corrections are relative to each dog, but I'm afraid that by trying to reach the appropriate level for him I'll go overboard. I do find he responds well to the ecollar. I'm not crazy about using an ecollar for obedience work, but his response to it is so good (giving me the appropriate action I'm asking for without negative backlash), that I find myself using it more and more in his obedience work. 

I think for now I'm going to back off the distraction (I wasn't purposefully trying to work distractions with him last night, Colby just slipped out of the back door when I went to train so I let him stay out) while we're doing actual exercises until I can get him to stay with me with those distractions present. No point in trying to make him heel if I know his brain isn't with me. So I guess later today I'll go outside with the dogs and just work on Flip staying with me while the other dogs are playing.


----------



## sammydog (Aug 23, 2008)

I have been working on Mira with focus as well, focus focus focus. Especially the last week since Barley cut his paw I have backed off the agility training with both of them, because he gets so upset that he cannot play. So we have just been working on focusing. It is very challenging! Good to read some of the training suggestions...


----------



## Maxs Mom (Mar 22, 2008)

Teddi has an on/off switch too. When she is focused you can get her to do ANYTHING. She amazes me how well she understands requests when she is focused and has her desire to please mode on. However in other situations... she is AWFUL! We stop doing whatever because she won't do it. However that too appears to be a reward to her. So I need to learn how to make her do whatever, and that is not always easy. For instance, retrieves, I can't put a long line on her as she won't go out, but if I don't she won't come in. She is very aggravating. 

Actually she is a spoiled rotten brat who manipulates us and gets her way. We are working on that.


----------



## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

Well I took all four dogs outside with Flip wearing the ecollar. I took him off away from the others and just got him engaged in playing with me. We did some walking around, tugging, playing, with two nicks in there for trying to leave me. After that I felt like I had his attention better and we actually did some OFF LEASH heeling with the other dogs back there with us. Not too much since we haven't technically started off leash heeling, just like five steps, left turn, release and repeat a few times.

I'm still not crazy about using the ecollar for obedience training not because I think it's too harsh (I'm only using a 1 or 2 out of 8 levels), but because I not only can't trial in it, I also can't take it many places to train, and I don't want him becoming wise to that fact.


----------



## samchu_mammy (Jun 20, 2008)

Sigh... Big trouble of trying to make Sam focusing on me here as well.. I am opposing e-collar, but dunno what else I can 'punish' him, sigh!! tough training road~


----------

