The rain had eased a little today so I decided to take Sienna for a walk along the disused railway track. We have three such train tracks near us, but this one is the nearest.
The plan was to walk about 5 miles – 2.5 out and 2.5 back. We managed it, but she was obviously flagging a bit towards the end. Didn't stop her exploring off the track though.
Right now, she’s lying in front of the fire drying off! Within
a very few minutes she was covered in mud. It’s like the mud sees her coming,
lies in wait, then jumps up and splashes itself all over her. The beautiful
white plume on the end of her tail was completely black; the rest of her tail
was disgustingly bedraggled. She even managed to get mud right up her chest and
under her chin!
Her behaviour is amazing - well, compared with a highly reactive dog, this one's a dream come true. She happily ignores other people, other dogs (if the owner coming the other way put their dog on a lead, so did I, but otherwise she was off lead) and we encountered a cyclist. I made her wait (not sit, because it was so wet) and she stayed next to me until he had passed and I released her. I didn't have to hold her - just a 'wait' command was enough, and she didn't bother with the bike at all. It's all so different, I'm having trouble coming to terms with having a bomb proof dog.
Anyway, we have a plan: I want to take her long distance hiking and sometimes multi-day hiking trips, such as the Cotswold Way. But although she is fit and healthy, she needs to build her stamina and endurance for longer distances. She also needs to be more solid on commands from a distance. Her recall is good, but she does run off further than I’d like. So this morning we played a game of hide and seek – when she got too far ahead, I stood behind a tree. As soon as she realised I was out of sight, she came trotting back. The idea is she will be more consistent about ‘checking in’ (to see if I’m still there) and realise that it pays to remain closer to me as I might just ‘disappear’. It needs a bit of work!
So that’s the object of the plan. What of the plan itself?
First I intend to work on consolidating her basic commands, such as sit, down, wait, etc. She still pulls, though that is improving, so we are still working on that and will introduce ‘heel’ as soon as we can. Loose lead walking is our current focus. I have devised a two week plan to cover those basics, followed by a six week plan to improve her obedience and her ‘instant’ compliance. The improvement section will also start work on distance commands. There are some specific commands for trail hiking, so we will also introduce those.
14 day basics plan:
|
Days 1-4 |
Watch/focus |
|
Days 5-7 |
Continue with previous work and add: |
|
Days 8-11 |
Continue with previous work and add: |
|
Days 12-14 |
Continue with previous work and add: |
|
Notes: |
1. Reward when she looks without being asked 2. A fast ‘down’ is vital as a safety measure 3. Recall to the front (‘present’) 4. Recall to the left side (‘finish’) |
As we started on a Thursday, I might extend this a couple of days, or, if she proves a willing pupil, it could be cut short a little. In any event, I prefer to start on a Sunday, being the first day of the week.
The intermediate stage is a little harder, because she already knows most of the commands. It’s just a matter of honing her compliance really and extending what she knows and does. This stage will introduce some scent work too for mental stimulation and interest.
I borrowed this from the internet:
Phase 1: weeks 1-2: Precision and Proofing
1. Duration for ‘stay’ and ‘wait’; build from 30s to 2 mins (longer if she is willing)
2. Distance: ‘sit’ and ‘down’ from 5-10 paces. Use hand signals as well as vocalisations.
3. Teach ‘place’ (‘mat’) until released
Phase 2: weeks 3-4: Engagement and Distraction
1. Proofing: practice known commands with distractions, such as people walking by
2. Heel:
a. loose lead walking -> auto sits (sits whenever I stop)
b. Loose lead walking: different paces (slow, fast and halt)
3. Emergency stop: command ‘drop’ while the dog is moving
Phase 3: weeks 5-6
1. Long distance recall in open spaces
2. Out of sight stays
3. Start scent work
a. Find it games
b. Retrieval: take it/hold it games
4. Daily schedule:
a. Morning walk
i. exercise including ball fetch – 30-50 mins
ii. precision drills – 10 mins
b. Midday: - 15 mins total – choose from:
i. puzzle toys
ii. Muffin tin find it game
iii. Box hide game
c. Evening: 30-40 mins total
i. Heelwork on evening walk or indoors if not ready
ii. Practice commands in distraction environment
Scent work:
1. Muffin tin
2. Box hides
3. Scented toy retrieval
4. Advanced scenting (target odours)
5. Multi room hides
In addition to obedience, I need to get her walking more. As I said, this morning she was definitely tired towards the end. She was still running ahead (off lead) , sniffing everything and exploring the environments to the side of the track, but she was definitely slower. So her endurance and distance both need to improve, so I have a schedule for that too:
|
|
Daily 5-6 days per week |
Long walk |
Notes |
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Starting point: |
4.5 miles + 1 mile daily |
|
|
|
Weeks 1-3 |
4.5 to 5 miles |
Wk 1: 6 miles Wk 3: 7 to 7.5 miles |
Walk on gravel tracks to toughen pads |
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Week 4 |
3 miles |
4.5 miles |
Recovery |
|
Weeks 5-7 |
5 to 6 miles |
Wk 5: 8.5 miles Wk 7: 10 miles |
Include 200 – 400 meters of elevation |
|
Week 8 |
4 miles |
6 miles |
Recovery |
|
Weeks 9-11 |
6 to 7 miles |
Wk 9: 12 miles Wk 11: 15 miles |
Check for limping or stiffness etc |
|
Week 12 |
3 miles (tapering) |
THE HIKE |
Recovery |
I might not walk the ‘daily’ walk every day, but might do it every other day and a slightly shorter one on the days in between. I might also do a longer walk every week, rather than every other week as suggested here. I’m also not planning to do 15 miles or more for the actual hike, but this is a guide to help Sienna develop her ability to do long hikes.
Right now, I have very filthy (but happy) a dog to bath!
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