[Guest]

As I was standing at the end of the garden in my dressing gown this morning, telling Oscar to do his 'job job', I just wondered whether other people have trained their labs to do their business to specific words.

At first we thought our trainer was a bit strange when he told us that as soon as we bought Oscar home we needed to have chosen a particular word for both actions and always say the relevant one gently as he was doing it, but it has proved to be so useful and one of the best things we have trained him.

Now if we're leaving Oscar at home for a few hours, or are taking him in the car and need to make sure he won't need to go while we're out or on the journey, we just take him out into the garden and tell him do his 'pss pss' or 'job job'.

It works brilliantly and since the age of about 12 weeks, Oscar has known exactly what the words mean and what he needs to do.

It helps too if we're on a walk with him on the lead and he'e been sniffing and walking in circles for ages and you want to get on with the walk, just to mention whichever you assume he needs seems to hurry him up a bit.

Seems so natural to us now, but just wondered if its something that a lot of you do, or if we're in the minority of those who send their dog out into the garden for a 'pss pss'!

Sarah x

 

[jibber]

we use "hurry up" as a generic term, and Molly does know what it means.
We preferred this to the "go potty" that was used in most of the books we read!

 

[Karen_theArtist]

"Go wee wees" is Corbie's key phrase .. applies to both that and the number twos or 'go poo poos' if you know he's wants one but hasn't done it yet - I let him out first thing in the morning and after he does a pee he tries to come in but I tell him not until he's done his poo poos, which he then promptly does! :lol:

 

[Rebel1]

i allways tell max to go puddles or go bizzies. he knows exactly what is required and gets on with it. ive also found that first thing in the morning when he sees me pick up the poopy bags he goes straight out and does his bizzies.

 

[Karen_theArtist]

I jsut hope the neighbours realise I'm talking to Corbie and not my other half ! :lol: :lol:

 

[Guest]

:lol:

I think all of our neighbours must know what the words mean too!

We were trying to be clever by not chosing words that we'd get embarrassed saying, but I think they may have cracked our very clever code

Last night, Oscar hadn't done his evening poo, so I sent down to the end of the garden telling him to go and do a 'job job'. As I was standing at the door waiting, I heard my neighbour say over the fence.. "oh Oscar, is it time to do a poo again!'

 

[Karen_theArtist]

:lol: That's so funny! :lol: Poor Oscar!

 

[Dana]

:lol: how embarrassing for Oscar!

We use "go potty" and I'm really wishing we would have used a different phrase. Turns out the neighbour 2 doors down is called Emma. I'm sure she loves hearing "Emma, let's go potty" at all hours. :lol: I'm just hoping my voice doesn't carry that far....

 

[Amandajvv]

My boys, 'Do business' and they know what that means. Only wish I'd known to teach them different words for numbers 'ones' and 'twos' :lol: save me standing like a fool, saying 'do business' after they've done half the job!

 

[Guest]

I never used a different word for each action either but saying hurry up (because my mum had used that phrase with her own dogs) usually did the trick. When I have my next puppy I think that is an excellent idea and will try it.
I also trained Ollie to tell me if he actually wanted to go as well. So I would ask him "Do you want to go out?" and he would either react like zebedee from the magic roundabout if he wanted to go out or look at me blankly like I was from some strange plannet then walk away if he didn't. If anyone looked after him I always told them just ask him if he needs to go out and he'll tell you, they never beleived me until they tried it.
It's amazing how we shape and mold these little guys and girls into how we want them to behave in our shared world.

Michaela

 

[Amandajvv]

Michaela,

You are so right, its amazing how we do shape and mould them. Things you dont consciously teach them - they learn. Some people think I am mad (as lab lovers I am sure you're on myside) that talking to them as they were little people in your life makes a big difference. They pick up things so quickly just by everyday talking they identify objects and people.

Mine respond to 'Who wants'.... the reaction is sit down and wait and cock head because the end of the sentence changes.
'Kisses' in which case the jump up on my lap (front paws of course) and wait for love. Or 'walkies' or 'treats' or a variety of things and they know what each one is or where it is kept, the treats the leashes etc.

My flat mate once brought home goldfish for a large tank and they were fascinated by it and just by saying to them once 'fishes' they clicked what it was and if I asked them where are the 'fishes' they'd run right to the glass tank to have a wonder. One even looked behind the tank to see where these 'fishes' were coming from.

Their understanding astounds me. For example. My husband hates them in the bedroom and I love it and dont mind it at all. So they sit outside the door when he is there. When he pops to the bathroom they run in get a cuddle and love, make themselves comfy and wait... then when the toilet flushes, they bolt out the room to sit outside the bedroom, looking as good as gold for their 'well done' from hubby. Now I didn't teach them that! They just figured it out as they are suckers for cuddles!!

 

[Guest]

I'm so glad I wasn't the only person to talk to my lab like he was a real person! But you're right they do pick up a lot more and learn so quickly especially how to get the best situation for themselves.
Sometimes my boyfriend could see Ollie wrapping me around his little pawpad until he had exactly what he wanted, it used to crack him up watching him do it.
Again, he never liked Ollie in the bedroom with us and Ollie would sneak in and lie by the side of me of me and check to see if my boyfriend was awake sometimes it backfired on us as Ollie would fall asleep and snore so loudly it would wake everyone up!
Ollie was such a good dog and I miss him terribly now that he's not around just stupid stuff like I have to pick up my own letters, sort out my washing (he was never very good at separating whites and colours though), fetch my own slippers, watch the oven while dinner cooked in there, clean the kitchen floor so much more than I did when he was around to help! And of course I miss the loving stares, moaning (he was a very vocal boy), nosepushing to indicate it's time for dinner, and cuddles and kisses.
They have a large fish tank at the vets in the waiting room and stangly Ollie was very hypnotised by them, I do wonder if he was thinking about his fish that he would be having for dinner that night. Your two obviously are very curious about the fish you have. It's all these little funny things they do that make us love them so much more - as if that's possible!

Michaela

 

[Amandajvv]

I always say treat a dog like a dog and he'll be have as no more than that. But treat them as if they are part of the family and the rewards are so much greater. They are such intelligent beings and it's a shame when they aren't allowed to put that to use, ie: talking to them, making them part of your everyday life - like the mail and kitchen floor!

How anyone can look at a dog and not want it to be part of their everyday lives is incomprehensible to me!

I'm sorry Ollie isn't with you anymore.

 

[Rebel1]

as i live alone my daughter gave me max as a companion. he has become so much more than that. he is 6 months old and allready knows me so well. as a friend he knows when i need a paw to lean on and a big sloppy kiss to make me feel better. as a confidant he will patiently sit and listen to all my problems. as a play mate he gets me out of the house when we go for walk. yes i talk to him all the time and yes he understands and responds to a lot of what i say. if they are clever enough to work out some of the daft words we use for for them going to the loo they can understand most things we say to them.

 

[Guest]

Since Corrie was a puppy I have always used and he understands Jobbies and Peesies. However, there are times when I let him out before I go to bed and say 'go and do peesies' and he looks at me as if to say 'Do I really have to go out in the cold!!

 

[Clare]

We have "busy" and "big big busy" in our garden! I have to be careful not to shout though as a much used footpath runs alongside one of our fences. When our oldest Lab needs a "big big busy" she does this funny thing whereby she paces backwards and forwards between our porch door and our patio door until she gets let out, we call it her door dance. Oddly though she has never ever been out either door to use the garden! Our youngest Lab just takes herself off to sit and wait by the kitchen door until you notice that she is missing and our middle Lab just seems to hold on forever!

 

[Marsupial]

Get Busy

'Get Busy' is Barneys word of command...although after 2 years of using it I still think he thinks I'm just talking to myself.

It doesn't help either when he sees me take a ball on our walk ( although being a semi pro magician I am used to 'palming' and hiding objects from people, I've not yet succeeded in getting his ball out without him noticing)

So...when he knows I have a ball...the thought "BALL, BALL, BALL" squeezes everything out of his tiny little mind, like the whole purpose of his Dad taking him out at this unearthly hour was for him purge his system of all his evils ( and believe me...some of his poops are pretty evil!)

I often come home with a fully loaded dog despite all the 'Get Busy' pleas :?

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