Our family wanted to say Thank You for the amazing experience we've had with Wags & Wiggles. We had been attending another daycare in RSM and at a friend's suggestion we tried W&W. The play space was so clean and large. We loved how many staff were present with the dogs. The difference in care was very evident.
We signed up for an inhome private training session. We were pleased that our dog was actually learning versus being lured around with food. We learned about body blocks to control
unwanted behavior and it really helped with our jumping and door bolting problems.
Now that we are W&W converts, we can't help spread the word enough. Maggie is signed up for summer
board & train too. Thanks for everything!
-- Dee, Tim & Maggie, Rancho Santa Margarita
BODY BLOCKS
What is a body block? It is physically placing your body in front of your dog to redirect their focus on to you. It is also used to redirect the dog's movement to a different space or position.
Why not just grab the dog? If you learn to control space using your own body or energy, you will have the "anytime, anywhere" type of control over your dog. You won't need food, leashes, or collars. Dogs also sometimes become "leash wise" and only behave a certain way if on leash. When new employees join the daycare staff, we often compare ourselves to the border collies of the dog world who constantly use control of space to manage their flock.
When should I use a body block?
To block your dog's view of something your dog reacts to
To get your dogs attention
To prevent dog from escaping through doorways, gates, and kennels
To backup a leave it cue
To keep your dog off furniture
To block their access from toys and/or food for resource guarders
To establish a personal space bubble which helps leadership
To backup a stay cue
If you need your dog to move, step into them to back them up. You can use your legs/torso/ hands to keep them from moving or to get them to move. Just make sure you're not grabbing, hitting, or pushing your dog to get them to move. You can even use a click/treat for moving away in the beginning. Be sure to toss the reward in the direction you want the dog to go.
How Do I Body Block? Example: EX: Picture 1 shows Pam sitting in a chair and Parker the Border Collie jumping into her lap. In order to reclaim her space and get Parker to move away, Pam gets up and steps into him to back him out of her space as seen in Picture 2. Notice Pam does not use her hands to push him away. When Pam sits back in her chair Parker stays an appropriate distance away from the space bubble that Pam has created (Picture 3). Pam can repeat this process as necessary to maintain her space bubble.
Final Comments: Space management is essential when owning a dog and even more crucial when you have a pack. If you have a dog that bolts pass you, make yourself larger by spreading out your arms and legs. Try to teach body blocks in a smaller space to start so that the dog can't get past you quite as easy. React quickly, stay silent, and let your
body do the talking. The key is to claim the space before they do. Body blocks may look like goalie type manuevers, side to side blocking, leaning into the dog, or just stepping into their path.
