Hike Training: Pick It Up

My wife and I have always loved hiking, and both of us feel that the experience is enhanced even more by having our Goldens along with us.

Because we're out there to have fun, I tend to resist using the occasion of a hike to do training, but over time, I've come to feel that attitude is a mistake. I now think a dog can learn some poor habits under that attitude — for example, learning that the recall is optional — and I've now reconciled myself to the idea that some rules should always be in effect.

On a hike just yesterday, I noticed another example of not maintaining that concept. I realized for the first time that both Lumi and Laddie frequently drop the dummies they've been retrieving, playing tug with, and carrying around. They drop them to sniff, to eliminate, to explore, to pick up some alternative toy, and so forth.

I've always seen them doing such things, but yesterday for the first time that they exhibit a similar lackadaisical attitude about their returns in event situations. "I need to relive myself," the dog thinks, or "Hmm, this looks like an interesting bit of shrubbery to nose around in." So they drop their bird and off they go. Then, maybe they remember the bird and pick it back up again, or maybe it has now somehow become passé or distasteful.

So yesterday I came up with a new rule. Every time either dog put his or her training dummy down for an instant, I immediately called, "Pick it up." If the dog ignored me, I rushed to the side, gestured to the dummy, and again said "pick it up", as many times as necessary. The dog could do anything else — engage me in a game of tug, watch me throw the dummy and run to retrieve it, trot along carrying it, engage in any other activity without dropping it, or give it to me to carry — any other option except drop it.

I'm hoping that as that rule becomes consistently ingrained during future walks, a time will come when neither dog ever needs to be reminded again. At that point, I'll have a usable cue for a test if it's needed — "pick it up" — or better still, the training will carry over to event conditions as well.

Wouldn't that be nice?