More chin targeting fun with Sienna

This is our next session with Sienna.  Now she is comfortable with the chin target game we begin introducing additional aspects.

I thought it might be nice to see my wonderful view during this training.

The most amazing part of the training this week is the fact she is wearing a lead! The sight of a lead can make her flighty and panic. We leave the lead attached to the harness, trailing on the ground to get used to the weight and feel of it.

Unfortunately I “chopped off” her ears in this short video clip but she allows me to touch her ear while keeping her chin on the mat.

In the next video clip you can see she feels at ease with me touching her left ear but when I attempt to touch her right ear, her head lifts up.  Clear communication from Sienna – I am not comfortable with that.  It is essential we stop right away to build her confidence and let her know she is being listened to. She places her chin down again and I am able to touch her right ear this time. You can actually see her relax into the target area in this clip.

She can be sensitive about her collar or the harness being touched or moved around so I am introducing touch to the collar next. Again, she lifts her head so I stop immediately. As soon as she places her chin down, giving me permission to continue, I introduce the touch again and she keeps her chin down.

In the next video clip I attempt to touch her right ear again but this time she moves her head. I stop. As soon as her chin is down I repeat the action and she keeps her chin on the blanket for a sustained ear inspection. On my next attempt, she lifts her head again so I stop. It is essential we listen to what the dog is saying rather than continuing. A dog may “put up with” something but this is not fear free!

Our chin targeting game continues but this time there are two people looking around the kennels. We agreed beforehand that this would be an excellent introduction to having other people present in the room during handling – when dogs visit a veterinary clinic there are usually at least two people in the room, sometimes three if a nurse is also needed.

Sienna can be a little flighty with new people but watch the video clip below and see just how well she did. This is because she really enjoys the chin game. She looks at them, assesses the situation and then returns to the game. She even allows me to touch her collar and her ears in their presence!

In the next video clip, we introduce unseen hands and touching her mouth. Eventually, we want to be able to inspect her gums and teeth but need to take our time with this.

Up until now, I have made sure she can see my hands and what they are doing. This time, my right hand that I use to touch her, comes from out of view. You will see me pause the movement of my hand when she briefly lifts her chin to look. She then places her chin down again so I continue moving my hand towards her. I take the training back a step and avoid immediately touching her with an unseen hand – this would be too difficult as we need to work up to this.  Look how well she did!