How well trained is your Frenchie?

Cbrugs · Nov 25, 2013

I was just wondering how well trained other Frenchies are cause Jax is pretty stubborn. We did puppy classes a few months ago to learn sit, stay, come, lay down, drop it, leave it, no jumping when greeting, etc. and the only time he does any of these commands is if he is going to get a treat. He was the disruptive one during classes, just wanted to play with the other puppies and would just bark at them

. I was thinking of doing a few private training classes after the holidays. I did read in a Frenchie book that if you wanted a well-trained, obedient dog, don't get a Frenchie.

Julie Stevenson · Nov 25, 2013

LOL - So many people go into the group training classes expecting their dogs to come out better behaved. I always started my group classes with this:

"If you are here to train your dog, please be advised the hour that you are here each week your dog will "NOT" learn anything. He will be too distracted to really learn anything. The best advise I can give all of you is to listen to my instruction so you know HOW to train your dog at home. The real learning comes in during the one on one sessions at home that you need to do daily. Preferrably a couple times a day especially if they are puppies. Puppies have very SHORT attention spans so limit training sessions to 5 to 10 mins 2 to 3 times a day. Have them sit for food. Practice with them in the house in the yard, bedrooms. All over the place so they learn to listen in different areas. Once your dog can do the commands well at home, THEN you can begin to train wth distractions like this environment.

So my advise, private training is a great option. BUT if you have already been through the group classes, you really should have all the info you need to train Jax yourself. It's all about patience and persistance. You have to be persistent and consistent. If it's no jumping up on people, then it have to be no jumping on people all the time and each time he does it you have correct the behavior. Remember that praise is just as important as correction. They need to know what is ok and what is not and you want them to work for the good praise, not the negative.

NOW - how well is my dog trained? LOL Umm the good ol saying it true the trainer is probably worse than the students in the classes. My boy is S P O I L E D!!!!!! I have not done any real standard obedience training with him. I have only done behavior training with him so far. He knows when it's time to stop playing, he knows sit for his food. He does not pull on the leash he walks behind me so heal isn't an issue. My big thing is working on not chasing him when he has something I don't want him to have. I need to keep some pieces of his food in the kitchen so when he gets something I can show him the treat and exchange the food for the thing he has that he's not suppose to have. Getting into the chase game is difficult because he's always getting stuff and he's like GREASE LIGHTING. LOL

IF you have questions and you want to save yourself some money - feel free to private message me or post a thread on here. I'm on here every day and I can answer any questions you have about training Jax.

Happy to help.

Julie Stevenson · Nov 25, 2013

I should also point out that yes our boys "frenchies" do tend to be on the stubborn side, which means we as the alpha and trainers have to be even more persistent and consistent with our expectations. Ollie is stubborn, but when I change my voice tone he knows I mean business.

Probably one of your biggest training tools is your voice. Men tend to have an easier time training dogs. Do you know why? It's the lower tone of voice they have. When you correct change your tone to a lower and sharper tone. Make the correction short and loud. As soon as they respond, raise the tone to a happy level and pet them and praise for listening. Your dogs will come to learn that if they listen they get rewarded.

I will post a thread on treat training in the behavior and training section later today.

Cbrugs · Nov 25, 2013

Julie Stevenson said:
LOL - So many people go into the group training classes expecting their dogs to come out better behaved. I always started my group classes with this:

"If you are here to train your dog, please be advised the hour that you are here each week your dog will "NOT" learn anything. He will be too distracted to really learn anything. The best advise I can give all of you is to listen to my instruction so you know HOW to train your dog at home. The real learning comes in during the one on one sessions at home that you need to do daily. Preferrably a couple times a day especially if they are puppies. Puppies have very SHORT attention spans so limit training sessions to 5 to 10 mins 2 to 3 times a day. Have them sit for food. Practice with them in the house in the yard, bedrooms. All over the place so they learn to listen in different areas. Once your dog can do the commands well at home, THEN you can begin to train wth distractions like this environment.

So my advise, private training is a great option. BUT if you have already been through the group classes, you really should have all the info you need to train Jax yourself. It's all about patience and persistance. You have to be persistent and consistent. If it's no jumping up on people, then it have to be no jumping on people all the time and each time he does it you have correct the behavior. Remember that praise is just as important as correction. They need to know what is ok and what is not and you want them to work for the good praise, not the negative.

NOW - how well is my dog trained? LOL Umm the good ol saying it true the trainer is probably worse than the students in the classes. My boy is S P O I L E D!!!!!! I have not done any real standard obedience training with him. I have only done behavior training with him so far. He knows when it's time to stop playing, he knows sit for his food. He does not pull on the leash he walks behind me so heal isn't an issue. My big thing is working on not chasing him when he has something I don't want him to have. I need to keep some pieces of his food in the kitchen so when he gets something I can show him the treat and exchange the food for the thing he has that he's not suppose to have. Getting into the chase game is difficult because he's always getting stuff and he's like GREASE LIGHTING. LOL

IF you have questions and you want to save yourself some money - feel free to private message me or post a thread on here. I'm on here every day and I can answer any questions you have about training Jax. Happy to help.

Jax is BEYOND spoiled and he is definitely a mama's boy (and I don't mind)!. I learned a lot from the training and have probably slipped up and need to get back on it to get Jax back on track. He will sit for his food and treats without me having to tell him to. He doesn't lay down on command, I have to do the "lay down" motion with a treat and then he lays down.

Funny you mention having to chase Ollie whenever he has something he shouldn't because we have to chase Jax too! He just LOVES playing chase and while it was cute at first, it definitely can be bad especially if he is eating something he shouldn't. I usually have to bribe him with treats in order for him to come out from under the table. He does pretty good at walking, doesn't necessarily heel but he doesn't pull too much. The private training is NOT cheap so I might take you up on your office for advice on how to better train him. My biggest thing is wanting him to stay and come and not jumping on people. We have everyone coming over on Thanksgiving so I think what I will do is put his harness on, have some treats in hand and make him sit whenever someone comes in and then reward with treats and praise...Jax is more food motivated than praise motivated.

Julie Stevenson · Nov 25, 2013

Cbrugs said:
Jax is BEYOND spoiled and he is definitely a mama's boy (and I don't mind)!. I learned a lot from the training and have probably slipped up and need to get back on it to get Jax back on track. He will sit for his food and treats without me having to tell him to. He doesn't lay down on command, I have to do the "lay down" motion with a treat and then he lays down.

Funny you mention having to chase Ollie whenever he has something he shouldn't because we have to chase Jax too! He just LOVES playing chase and while it was cute at first, it definitely can be bad especially if he is eating something he shouldn't. I usually have to bribe him with treats in order for him to come out from under the table. He does pretty good at walking, doesn't necessarily heel but he doesn't pull too much. The private training is NOT cheap so I might take you up on your office for advice on how to better train him. My biggest thing is wanting him to stay and come and not jumping on people. We have everyone coming over on Thanksgiving so I think what I will do is put his harness on, have some treats in hand and make him sit whenever someone comes in and then reward with treats and praise...Jax is more food motivated than praise motivated.

Yes great idea for Thansgiving. Ollie jumps up too and we are working on that. Funny you mention table. Ollie dives under the table and then zips around the chairs and I can NEVER catch him. It was funny at first but now it's just hard. I have to out smart him with food.

pbois · Nov 25, 2013

Well......as I have said previous we are a Labrador household and our Labs are very obedient because they are working dogs and have to be. When I was researching/talking with breeders the first thing most of them said to me when finding out about our involvement in Labs was, "Frenchie's aren't Labs so don't expect them to be", in which I always said.....I know... Lol. So I went into owning a Frenchie not expecting much from him. We started in group obedience classes and puppy socialization classes pretty early and I have been very pleased with how obedient Bolt is. Even the instructors have told me to pursue competitive obedience or even agility because of his attentiveness and trainability. Now having said that, at home he does almost anything he wants.....lol......but when we are out and about or at training he knows he needs to put on his thinking cap. Not sure if he is an anomaly in the Frenchie world or not because he is my first, but so far I've been very pleased.

Cbrugs · Nov 25, 2013

pbois said:
Well......as I have said previous we are a Labrador household and our Labs are very obedient because they are working dogs and have to be. When I was researching/talking with breeders the first thing most of them said to me when finding out about our involvement in Labs was, "Frenchie's aren't Labs so don't expect them to be", in which I always said.....I know... Lol. So I went into owning a Frenchie not expecting much from him. We started in group obedience classes and puppy socialization classes pretty early and I have been very pleased with how obedient Bolt is. Even the instructors have told me to pursue competitive obedience or even agility because of his attentiveness and trainability. Now having said that, at home he does almost anything he wants.....lol......but when we are out and about or at training he knows he needs to put on his thinking cap. Not sure if he is an anomaly in the Frenchie world or not because he is my first, but so far I've been very pleased.

Sounds like you are lucky with Bolt! I knew going into this that Frenchies weren't necessarily the easiest breed to train but they are just so darn cute, I didn't care! I know Jax is smart, he just likes to be stubborn and does what he wants, when he wants. He knows what "NO" means when he is getting into something he shouldn't but he will stop, look at you and then go right back to it.

Cbrugs · Nov 25, 2013

Julie Stevenson said:
Yes great idea for Thansgiving. Ollie jumps up too and we are working on that. Funny you mention table. Ollie dives under the table and then zips around the chairs and I can NEVER catch him. It was funny at first but now it's just hard. I have to out smart him with food.

It's hard with no jumping because when I get home after being gone all day, he is so excited to see me and I love his jumps and kisses but I know it's not ok for him to do that with other people. And yup...Jax heads directly for under the table because he knows we can't get him under there and I usually have to lure him out with treats. But he is getting smarter! Yesterday I had a biscuit, he came out to get the biscuit and then ran right back under the table. So silly but so lovable!

Julie Stevenson · Nov 25, 2013

Cbrugs said:
Sounds like you are lucky with Bolt! I knew going into this that Frenchies weren't necessarily the easiest breed to train but they are just so darn cute, I didn't care! I know Jax is smart, he just likes to be stubborn and does what he wants, when he wants. He knows what "NO" means when he is getting into something he shouldn't but he will stop, look at you and then go right back to it.

Ollie is the same way. I have to go and stop him each time we see him doing something he's not suppose to do. Puppies. Aren't they just loads of FUN. LOL

Julie Stevenson · Nov 25, 2013

Cbrugs said:
It's hard with no jumping because when I get home after being gone all day, he is so excited to see me and I love his jumps and kisses but I know it's not ok for him to do that with other people. And yup...Jax heads directly for under the table because he knows we can't get him under there and I usually have to lure him out with treats. But he is getting smarter! Yesterday I had a biscuit, he came out to get the biscuit and then ran right back under the table. So silly but so lovable!

Your better than me...I have been crawling UNDER the table after him and still chasing.....DUH Julie take your own advise and use the treats to get him out. LOL

kitkatmummy25 · Nov 26, 2013

We did puppy training with one of our foster dogs a Parsons Terrier puppy OMG it was a nightmare she would do all the commands brilliantly at home then when we were in puppy class it was like taking a squirming, barking ferret on a lead

We used to do the walk of shame every week, did the course twice and failed twice! We didn't do puppy classes with Winston (but he did go to puppy playgroup) as we trained him at home with all the homework sheets from the puppy training. He's very good he follows his commands at home and when out walking. He walks brilliantly off lead and his recall is excellent. He's quite laid back though, he's never chewed etc. New Pup Hugo though he's a bit of a terror, loves chewing, barks excessively when the someone goes in and out of the front door which is annoying us & Winston and he's helping with that as I've noticed last few times Hugo has done it Winston has 'mouthed' him on the cheek area and sort of shoved him gently and Hugo's taken the hint.

Taking Hugo to puppy playgroup next week it's for pups from 9 weeks to approx. 18-20 weeks they get to play together for 30 mins, it's great fun meeting all the different breeds of puppies

trishkidd24 · Nov 26, 2013

I am a terrible pack leader.... Marg is 7 months old and all she knows how to do is sit ha.... We did the puppy classes where basically they go over introductory obedience and then the last 20 minutes let the puppies all play together (this was always my favorite part). I have gone through obedience classes with both of my males and both passed. My golden ret. would get a toy as a reward for tricks and obedience, and my pit/boxer refused to do anything unless there was a treat in my hand... I am considering enrolling marg in an actual obedience class early next year, I would like to wait till she is a little older.
It's just hard for me to discipline her or try to train her... Ha I get easily distracted with how cute or funny she is being...

Cbrugs · Nov 26, 2013

trishkidd24 said:
I am a terrible pack leader.... Marg is 7 months old and all she knows how to do is sit ha.... We did the puppy classes where basically they go over introductory obedience and then the last 20 minutes let the puppies all play together (this was always my favorite part). I have gone through obedience classes with both of my males and both passed. My golden ret. would get a toy as a reward for tricks and obedience, and my pit/boxer refused to do anything unless there was a treat in my hand... I am considering enrolling marg in an actual obedience class early next year, I would like to wait till she is a little older.
It's just hard for me to discipline her or try to train her... Ha I get easily distracted with how cute or funny she is being...

I'm exactly the same way! They are so cute and silly that it is hard to discipline them when they are doing something naughty and not listening. I was going to enroll Jax again in the next class but he was so disruptive last time, I am thinking about a few private lessons. Jax and Marg are about the same age, 7 months. When is her birthday? Jax turns 1 on April 8.

kim · Nov 26, 2013

Piper is 5 months and she only knows sit and dance.

trishkidd24 · Nov 26, 2013

Cbrugs said:
I'm exactly the same way! They are so cute and silly that it is hard to discipline them when they are doing something naughty and not listening. I was going to enroll Jax again in the next class but he was so disruptive last time, I am thinking about a few private lessons. Jax and Marg are about the same age, 7 months. When is her birthday? Jax turns 1 on April 8.

Marg's birthday is May 10th. Ha the older she gets I swear the more we let her get away with and we have to stop being so lenient. Like yesterday she was flying around the house jumping onto the couch, off of the couch, over the back of the couch, and then on top of the cat (cat was not pleased with this).. ha It was so funny, we were laughing hard, BUT I started thinking this isn't a good behavior, our dogs are allowed on the couch but not running all over it jumping off and attacking the cat. ha We should have stopped her but she was so cute its hard.... ha

Cbrugs · Nov 26, 2013

Jax does the same thing with jumping on and off the couch, especially when people come over. It's so hard to calm him down when he gets in that "mood." My BF just told me the other day to stop letting Jax do whatever he wants. My response...but he's my baby and he's soooo cute and I love him!

trishkidd24 · Nov 26, 2013

Cbrugs said:
Jax does the same thing with jumping on and off the couch, especially when people come over. It's so hard to calm him down when he gets in that "mood." My BF just told me the other day to stop letting Jax do whatever he wants. My response...but he's my baby and he's soooo cute and I love him!

Ha it is opposite in my house... I am the one constantly telling my husband we need to discipline more and try to stick to rules (like no dogs in the bed or on our new couch)... and he will whine.. "Hun, you cant make them sleep on the floor in their beds, that's mean"... or "One day they wont be here anymore and you will be happy we let them sleep in bed with us"... he's the big push over, which is one of my favorite thing about him

mhuinker · Nov 26, 2013

I went into this Frenchie ownership wanting to make sure I have a well behaved dog and even thought I would take obedience classes as well, which I still might, but I have to say, they are stubborn with a capital S T U B B O R N! Which, of course, I knew, but man o man! Leo knows his name..... when he wants to know it. Sometimes he will come when I call, sometimes, yeah, not so much! Anyway, my point to this is, I'm still struggling with his peeing in his crate.

It's not consistent, it's very sporadic, so I'm not sure why he is doing it. I'm hoping the old snip-snip (which happens tomorrow) will help with this issue..... just not so sure. Once I figure out how to get that habit under control, we will work on other things. I'm not the most consistent trainer either. Leo knows sit I think, unless he just happens to sit on his own because he is tired of standing, or he is actually listening to me, I don't know. I've tried to teach him shake which I thought would be the next easiest trick..... no luck yet. He is a work in progress!

But I love him no matter what.

Julie Stevenson · Nov 26, 2013

mhuinker said:
I went into this Frenchie ownership wanting to make sure I have a well behaved dog and even thought I would take obedience classes as well, which I still might, but I have to say, they are stubborn with a capital S T U B B O R N! Which, of course, I knew, but man o man! Leo knows his name..... when he wants to know it. Sometimes he will come when I call, sometimes, yeah, not so much! Anyway, my point to this is, I'm still struggling with his peeing in his crate. It's not consistent, it's very sporadic, so I'm not sure why he is doing it. I'm hoping the old snip-snip (which happens tomorrow) will help with this issue..... just not so sure. Once I figure out how to get that habit under control, we will work on other things. I'm not the most consistent trainer either. Leo knows sit I think, unless he just happens to sit on his own because he is tired of standing, or he is actually listening to me, I don't know. I've tried to teach him shake which I thought would be the next easiest trick..... no luck yet. He is a work in progress! But I love him no matter what.

Sometime neutering them does help. How old is Leo again? I'm sure you have told me or I have read it, but my memory sucks! LOL

When he does pee in the crate how long has he been in there? Could it be he just can't hold it anymore or maybe he didn't pee before he went in the crate? Ollie peed and pooped in the crate as a puppy and would only cry AFTER he made a mess....like hey I'm in here with my MESS COME CLEAN THIS UP. I used to get so frustrated with him. He was not supposed to pee or poop where he sleeps. But put him on the bed and that all stopped. WEIRD....My boy is strange, but I'm happier with him in bed with me for sure. He's a cuddle bug, after WILD MAN TIME is complete. WE have a routine where as soon as we get into bed he wants to play and play rough! The hubby plays hard with him and likes to smack him in the face, but I keep yelling at him cut that out! Get his toy and play with him, don't teach him to bite your hands dork! My man doesen't always get it.....

Cbrugs · Nov 26, 2013

trishkidd24 said:
Ha it is opposite in my house... I am the one constantly telling my husband we need to discipline more and try to stick to rules (like no dogs in the bed or on our new couch)... and he will whine.. "Hun, you cant make them sleep on the floor in their beds, that's mean"... or "One day they wont be here anymore and you will be happy we let them sleep in bed with us"... he's the big push over, which is one of my favorite thing about him

We were all for not letting Jax on the bed or couch but that didn't last long at all! He has been sleeping in the bed with us since the end of August and if he is napping in the living room, he is on the couch. I LOVE sleeping and cuddling with him though cause he is such a love bug!