Busy times and correcting an overly friendly vocal pup.

Well, it has been quite some time since I have had the chance to get on here and post. Life is hectic and crazy for us all, then throw in a couple pups and it seems like "free time" is a mythical creature that doesn't exist.

When I set out on this adventure with Gunnar, I never imagined where it would lead. It all began with a friend wanting a husky but needing a service dog. Months of research, extensive conversations and then finally finding the puppy that would become Gunnar. Boy how things have changed over the last 15 months. It has been challenging at times, but also one of the most rewarding things I have ever done. So many of you often ask how I could possibly give him up...and there are days where I wonder that too, but then I realize, that Gunnar has been trained with a purpose. Hes been trained to help one of my best friends be able to live his life in ways that he might not have been able to without him. Lucky for me, Gunnar will be in my life daily as Tom will work with us. Not only to continue his healing, but to help so many men and women that have faced and are facing the challenges that he is working so hard to overcome right now.

Then came along Scout....boy did I get a double dose of husky in that one. Everything Gunnar never did, Scout has done ten fold. Gunnar was a shy guy, not interested in anything, and a natural for a service dog. He was more interested in pleasing us and staying close by to ensure our safety. Scout on the other hand is the dare devil of the two, investigating everything, jumping off things Gunnar still wouldn't consider to this day. Gunnar is a quiet laid back husky that can hang out on the couch all day if I need him too, while Scout needs something to chew and to regularly beat Gunnar up as any 6 month old puppy desires. However, a few things are noticeably different between them and requiring different and more training. Scout is very food driven, and therefor likes to ask for his cookies, and anything else he may want and while his barking is getting less, its a long fought battle of consistent training with him to teach him when it is appropriate and when its not. As some of you might know, Will's (dad) life long mission of over 30 years is "Loving People to Life" which is why we use "Loving Veterans to Life", well Scout has certainly taken that mission to heart, and there is not a person that we meet that he doesn't want to give a quick lick and hello to to make them smile. Its something that we love about him, but also something he has to learn to wait for a command to do. Not every person wants a hello, and not everyone is as happy to see him as he is them. Some people can be fearful, some don't care for dogs, some may be in a rush or whatever the case may be, regardless, as a service dog he needs to learn to control those impulses and wait for the command "ok, say hi".

So how do we fix these problems? Different books, different trainers, different websites all have different suggestions, different magical answers and super inventions that make them stop in 2 seconds if you spend a million dollars on their inventions.

Lets start with the barking and being overly vocal. Scout loves to bark to get whatever he wants, whether it s a cookie after he feels he has waited long enough, the chew that Gunnar has because his isn't good enough, or breakfast at 4am instead of 6:30am. Those just name a few. A lot of people have suggested spray bottles which I personally disagree with as its a form of punishment and with all our training, we try to positively redirect the dogs from what we don't want them doing to what we do want them doing. Saying "quiet" over and over to your dog who continues to bark is meaningless, if you have to say a command multiple times it looses its impact, and quite honestly the dog is thinking "cool, they are barking with me!". While there are some cases where an E-Collar may be needed, there are those that are for and against it. My personal opinion is that if its used properly it can be an effective training tool, though I would strongly recommend and encourage one that has a remote with 3 functions and the ability to control the levels. Those 3 functions being a warning beep, a vibrate and as a last resort a shock. The beep is an auditory cue that interrupts the dog and if that doesn't work, the vibrate is a physical cue that also interrupts the dog. 90% of the time, those that use the E-Collar will find that these two functions are all you need and cause no harm to the dog.
With Scout, I redirect him. If he decides to start barking. First he is asked to "quiet", 50% of the time he stops immediately, and in drama queen fashion pouts into another room. The other 50%  I give him a command that he knows such as "house" or "come" as repeating "quiet" does nothing. Once he has done that, I praise him for following the command and give him a few extra seconds before praising him for being quiet. Simply saying "no" or "quiet" too many times teaches the dog that they can continue doing what they are doing because that command has no significance or meaning to them. Scout has come a long way from where he was with his barking and he is gradually getting better. He is also a dog that very much wants to please who ever is working with him and strives to get that "yes! Good boy" followed with a cookie.

Now, what about the innocent and over friendly pup. Man is this a challenge. Its very hard not to want to let Scout love on everyone that wants to see him. This is one of the many reasons that Scout will be dual trained as a service dog and a therapy dog. How can you have both you ask? Many veterans are finding therapy in helping their fellow veterans and often visit friends in the hospital. Their service dogs of course accompany them to assist them with any needs they might have, but under the handlers permission, the dogs are able to love on some of the patients and brightening their day. It is also a great non invasive way to introduce service dogs and what they can do for our recovering veterans. Take our buddy Midas for example. He serves his handler Juan flawlessly. Even if Midas is enjoying some free time he is always on alert and frequently checks in just to ensure his dad is ok. However, Juan and Midas visit the hospitals from time to time so that Juan can talk with other veterans, thank them for what they have done, let them know that things get better, and share what Midas has done for him all while Midas is giving them some kisses and love that they have been missing.

When out in public, Scout desires to say hi to everyone, and unfortunately, I do not allow him until the end of our training session, or if it happens to be a child that has done the right thing in ignoring the dogs, and politely asking if they can pet them. Why? I want to take a moment to reward the child for how they approached us and explain a little of what the dogs will do, and why it was important that they asked how they did. Believe it or not, our biggest challenges comes from all you adults! So when Scout sees someone or someone approaches him, I say leave it and quickly reward him with a treat when he focuses his attention on me. For those that continue to approach, I ask Scout to "front sit" so that he is facing me and his attention is on me. This prevents him from trying to sneak in a little love, and gives me a moment to explain to the approaching person that Scout is in training, and part of that training is learning to ignore people. As soon as the person or distraction has passed, Scout receives much praise and many cookies much to Gunnars dismay, and he is learning that he can't say hi to everyone that enters "his bubble".

Many often think that huskies are incapable of this line of work, when in reality they are very capable. They are incredibly smart, highly motivated, and eager to please. While they are high energy, most forget that in addition to physical exercise, they need mental exercise. So if your husky is running your life, destroying your yard or your house, its because they are bored. Much like you and me, they need a purpose. So think of something that might help you out around the house, that can also keep them busy. As I have said in previous posts. Once we bring home a dog, we owe it to them to train them and raise them into the dogs we want them to be. This requires, time, commitment, love, patience and most of all CONSISTENCY. If you are not willing to work with your dog on a daily basis for at least 20 minutes, then you should not expect it to behave naturally on its own.

In addition to all their training, I am fortunate enough to have Gunnar and Scout with me all the time with the exception of two beautiful days each week when they go to doggy day care at Gibsons allowing me time to catch up on work! I think many of you are under the impression that I am a full time trainer, when in reality, their training is what I do in my "spare time". I am the co founder and executive director for Valiant Veterans and the executive director for the LiveLife Center. The LiveLife Center will be the actual center where we house all of our programs of Valiant Veterans which include the Gunnar Center, music therapy, art therapy, counseling, peer groups, and more, all of which I am currently facilitating and designing...in addition to planning 4 major events each year! I am very grateful and blessed to have the opportunity to train these boys and expose them to a variety of situations that my non paying job presents. Yup, thats right! Right now I am 100% a volunteer to everything I am doing. The money we work hard to raise, are to benefit the programs we have and to establish the LiveLife Center, and right now, we aren't in a place where Will or myself can take a paycheck. Thanks to smart savings and tax refund I have managed, and some odd jobs here and there help, same goes for him. So for those of you that consistently comment on how dedicated we are, its because we truly are passionate about what we are doing and strive to make a significant impact in the lives of the veterans that we serve. They have fought and served for us, and now it is our turn to fight and serve them.

If you would like to join us in taking a stand against veterans suicide and help us raise much needed funds for the Gunnar Center, please join our $22 from 22 for 22 campaign. It is our hope that 22 people each day will donate $22 and we hope to do this for 22 days. We are now into day 6 and the numbers are starting to decline. So please join us in Loving Veterans to Life!
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