00:10 S1
On Vision Australia Radio, you're listening to the Seeing Eye Dogs Show - with me, your host, Harriet Moffat. Today I've got two interviews for you. The first is with puppy development trainer Abby Howes, who's going to be talking to us about what to do with your puppy or dog on rainy days. We're going to talk about inside enrichment, what you can do at home, and wet weather activities suitable for any dog, whether they're a working seeing eye dog, a puppy in training, or a pet dog. So if you are seeing some poor weather and wondering what to do to entertain or exercise your dog, these tips are perfect for that. Then I'm going to play a short clip of my interview with puppy carer Alicia Watson about her life as a puppy carer and caring in a school.
We are looking for puppy carers now in parts of New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria. So if you are interested in finding out about being a puppy carer, keep listening or you can head to our website at Sydney Datavision Australia. Org. Now let's kick off this episode with some wet weather dog enrichment tips with Abby. Hi Abby, thank you for joining me on the show today.
01:21 S2
Hi. Thanks for having me back.
01:22 S1
It's it's been a bit of a while, but we're going to talk about some rainy day activities because for a lot of us around the country now, it's pretty gross and rainy all the time.
01:31 S2
Yeah, we get a few glimpses of blue sky to get our hopes up, and then the rain comes down again. So lots of rainy day activities occurring with my puppies. So hopefully we can share something to do with your puppies and your dogs in this wet, wet weather.
01:45 S1
So I mean, it is pretty important for seeing the puppies and the working dogs to be kind of happy and comfortable, you know, walking and working in the odd bit of rain. It's not always possible or even safe to kind of walk when the weather's really poor, you know, slippery slidey all of that for our working and training dogs or puppies? What types of outings or activities can you do inside?
02:07 S2
Absolutely. So it is absolutely vital that our puppies and our working dogs are comfortable and happy. Walking outside in the rain, um, and working in those sort of wet weather conditions, those dark, dreary, misty skies that we've been having as long as it's a safe conditions to be outside. So if it is thunder, lightning, stay inside and just watch that beautiful weather outside the window. Your puppies might snooze along to the sounds of it, but having some activities that you can do that make use of that weather is really, really useful.
So, for instance, not all puppies are going to love getting their paws wet... so taking a break in between downpours of rain to take your puppy out, to have a play in the puddles and get used to that wet feeling on their paws can be a really beneficial training exercise for them, for when they're out walking and you happen to get caught out in a little bit of rain that we didn't anticipate, and there are some puddles that they have to walk through because it's not always safe to avoid or go around them. And if you've got little kids that want to come out to chuck some welly boots on them and they can go have a splash around in the puddles. And honestly, even the big kids like me have a lot of fun doing that.
Other things that you might enjoy doing in the rain that are also useful training activities are working on your dog, not scenting because when that rain is out, all that water in the air, um, really does intensify all those smells out in the world. So it's a great opportunity to focus your training on head up, nose up, not sticking their nose in every rose bush that they go past. As nice as it is to stop and smell the roses every now and then, or building into working in some indoor spaces that you may not get the chance to use... as widely at other times of year. So heading to your shopping centre. So you're still getting out and about, and exploring new spaces, but just finding ones that are indoors, to avoid some rain.
04:00 S1
What are the types of signs that your dog might be bored or need some stimulation or exercise?
04:07 S2
There are some signs that we can see that our dogs might need to get up to a little bit more and have a little bit more in terms of mental stimulation or even just exercise. And sometimes they do just need a little bit of physical activity to get their bodies moving. A really easy one is that they're moving around and they're getting into a lot more than they would typically. Now, if you've got a dog who's a bit of a busy body anyway, this one might not be the easiest signal to spot. But sometimes our dogs that are usually really relaxed and happy and calm at home are suddenly having a look on top of your counters and having a little bit of a nosey around and trying to find things to entertain themselves and enrich their day.
But perhaps they might not normally be interested in their toys aren't quite enough, and other things that you might see is that they're kind of leading you towards they're seeking out the doors or sitting by the windows, kind of dreaming off into the distance about heading outside, or the amount that they're sleeping may reduce. So you may find that they're kind of up and about a bit more. They may be relaxing next to at your desk while you work, but their eyes are open when they usually be asleep. These can all be great indicators that they're just not getting enough to settle and soothe them across the rest of the day.
In the evening, you may also find that there are changes to their sleeping pattern. They're not sleeping as long as they typically would, or you're struggling to get them down to settle, um, particularly for those younger pups. Now, that is a little bit separate to making sure that they have nice warm beds. And their beds are kept away from any glass windows - particularly if you only have single glaze just because in this wet weather, they can get quite cold and that can disturb their sleep. So if they're nice and warm, they've got a nice cozy bed or some blankets, even sometimes popping... some extra, extra softness in there, to help keep them warm. If none of that is helping, it may be a good sign that they're just simply not doing enough and we need to work in some other activities.
It's also really helpful to work in activities where your dog can hear the sounds of the rain without necessarily being outside. So things like sitting at the bus shelter and letting them hear the rain, um, on the rooftop can be really helpful for a lot of dogs... as well as listening to the sound of tyres going through puddles, the road noises and noise in general can really change in wet weather, so it can be a great opportunity to do some mental work if... not necessarily moving too far and doing a lot of that physical work, but do make sure they're still getting plenty of exercise, either in the breaks between weather or pop on your car and get out there and practice some light rain walks.
06:52 S1
What are the types of training activities that you might recommend? And I thought we might break it up into like kind of the younger puppies and then the slightly older puppies or dogs?
06:59 S2
Absolutely... so there's lots of things that we can do. So for our younger puppies, even just refreshing on their basic obedience cues. So their sits, their downs, their stays, their on your beds. I mean, that's going to be great for all of your dogs and building up the expectations of how quickly you expect them to respond to that cue for a younger puppy, you might still be at the food lure stage where you're luring them into that shape. Can you get them to just an empty hand lure where there's no kibble in your hand, and they just get that mark and reward after? For your older dogs, it might be that they usually sit within ten seconds of you asking, can you get that down to seven seconds and focus, really focus on the speed at which they respond to you, and then really focusing on duration for any of those activities?
So for your little puppies, if they hold their sit, do they immediately slide into that beautiful down, or can they hold and stay in that set for 2 or 3 seconds until you ask for that Down, working on those skills. But they do have to think a little bit and you sort of change and build your expectations. Those progressions are what's going to have the greatest... challenge level mentally for you and your puppy. But do make sure that you're getting those rewards in when they do get it right and that you're not progressing too quickly. It's always good to try and get at least 3 to 10 repetitions before you progress, depending on your dog's learning style... so that you're not rushing them through it.
Because we do want this to be something that they retain. Older dogs you may work on inside recall, or puppy ping pong. As you may have heard, it referred to where you make use of multiple people in your house if you have them available to you, and you call them between yourself and the other person, rewarding them when they come, making sure they do a really nice fit when they get to you so they don't go skidding. If you've got hardwood floors, maybe worth popping some sort of mat down so your dog has something to help them stop. Because they do have those gorgeous fluffy paws that can look a bit like socks on the hardwood floor. We don't need any Tom Cruise style puppy surfing.
Another really great activity is building up your On your bed or On your mat cue, and working on the distance from which your puppy can be successful at getting onto their bed or their mat, depending on which term you're using. Some puppies you're going to be standing next to it. But for your older puppies you want to be working on. If I'm in the kitchen and I'm making a cup of coffee and I have my back to the dog and I tell them to go on their bed, can they do that? If I'm walking down the hallway and I give that cue, can they do that? So starting to work that cue into everyday life, rather than just setting it up as a training session, so to speak.
09:42 S1
And when you are teaching that, is that one that you'd also add a bit of duration when they're kind of quite comfortable with that.
09:48 S2
Absolutely. So I always sort of recommend you want to work on your distance or your duration. Never try to achieve both at the same time. It can get too confusing for your puppy, but any of those activities have opportunities for you to work on the distance. Um, so your distance will be. How far away can I ask? How far can I move away from the bed before you start to worry and come to follow me? That's your distance element. Your duration is how long can you hold that behavior? So how long can you stay in the sit? How long can you... stay on your bed for before you break that cue? Ideally, it wants to be when you then say, okay, all finished, and puppy comes running off.
But building that duration up. So for some puppies, you might be starting with, you know, a eight week old puppy that's just gone home, you might be working with one second intervals, a ten month old puppy. You could be working with 3 or 4 minute intervals and building those up. But really working on fine tuning the skills they have. It's also a great refresher for them to take that time when it's rainy and not so pleasant to be outside to do that, because it's only going to help them thrive when you try to use those skills in another setting.
11:00 S1
I was going to say, because then we add the... that additional day of distraction, don't we? What we have to kind of if you're practicing it at home, it's going to help you. Then when you're building up with a few more distractions. Exactly.
11:12 S2
And you can build those distractions out at home as well. If you've got kids in the house, get them playing a game and they can become a distraction that the dog has to ignore as they go past or sit on their bed. You can even practice polite greeting manners with other people that may be in your home. Get them to stand there and be all exciting. And that's almost harder, a harder challenge for your puppy because they're usually people that they can engage with freely. But we're practicing on your lead walking and approaching politely, so that's really great space to make use of those other distractions or practicing your distractions like, Oh, I've dropped some socks. If your dog's particularly interested in borrowing your sweaty gym socks to have a good old sniff of or... leaving tempting things on counters and working on your dog's ability to be in a space where there's no... engaging with the temptations that might be left on lower surfaces.
Training is one of your best forms of enrichment, because it captures a lot of opportunities for your dog to get value out of its environment, as well as from its peers, which in this case would be us, the people training them. Training is a fantastic form of enrichment, and really one that does get overlooked. Regardless of whether your dog is a puppy, is out working or is just a pet. Training is your number one enrichment, and not only does it make their engagement with the outside world much more pleasant, it just helps them enjoy life having that challenge and that learning. If you think about people we love to find new ways to challenge ourselves and grow. Our dogs are exactly the same and we want to set them up for those. But there are also other forms of enrichment, so play is a great one... we're not obviously going to let go and let our puppies go play in the mud. Unless you particularly enjoy having a swamp monster at home.
But there are ways that they can engage with play at home. Rotating your toys is a great one so that your dog's not getting bored of the same toys being out and freely available. So that's another great play opportunity. There is also enrichment in settling. Teaching your dog to settle and watch the world go by is an amazing form of enrichment for them, because they get to watch what's going on. So when I spoke about watching and listening to the sounds of the rain and the weather and the storms and all that kind of stuff, the wind that's actually enrichment to your dog is taking in information and processing it and learning.
13:46 S1
If you've got like a covered veranda, you know, maybe just sit out there and watch anyone or cars driving past or...
13:52 S2
A good cup of tea and you'll be having a great evening.
13:54 S1
So are there any other kind of forms of enrichment that you can use whilst you know you're busy? So, you know, potentially I guess hopefully you've got you can supervise them but you maybe aren't able to actively participate.
14:06 S2
So the kinds of enrichments where, you know, your puppy probably needs a little bit more than you've been able to give them that day, but you've still got to cook dinner, and you know that the rain is going to break in about an hour, and that's going to be your chance that you're more comfortable getting outside because it's been I don't know about where you are, but I've had hail, the last few days and I'm not I'm not venturing out in that. So you've got your classics, your your bone shoes, your kongs, they're all great options. Keep in mind that their food should account for any food toy that you're giving... whether that be something like a Kong where they're getting it packed and they're working on that, whether that be something more like a wobbler toy where you're putting the dry kibble in directly, those are great options.
Other things that you might be looking at to help settle your puppy is actually using some enriched crate time. So crate and toys and getting that building of comfort and crate, that's a really, really useful one. But also working on boundary... activities. So you might be in the kitchen cooking and you can actually work on puppy being out of the kitchen and have depending on your dog's reward system, you may use a food based reward which is a little bit more involved. Or if you have a dog who's super responsive to praise, using that praise when they stay out of the kitchen, having a visual spot for them not to cross is really helpful for those kind of activities, and also just making sure that they have safe toys available to them that are different.
So if you've got soft toys out, make sure there's also a hard toy out. If you've got toys that have an involved components, making sure you also have toys that they can just kind of chew on. Chewing is a really soothing and enriching activity for them, so making sure they have that and cuddle time too. Lots of cuddle time, grooming all of those can be enriching behaviors, so working on utilising those at the times when you can be more involved and saving your toys, your kongs, your wobblers for times when you are less involved is a really great way to manage some variety. And that variety is going to create that mental enrichment as well. So you're kind of getting to lots of enrichment for the price of one.
16:23 S1
There lots of different types. And I guess you're kind of just tailoring that to you and the dog and kind of what works at the time then.
16:30 S2
Absolutely. So I always sort of say think of it as like what I find enriching. You might not. So I might find sitting down with a book really enriching... but you might prefer sitting down and watching a classic movie. So not all dogs are going to find the same things as valuable as others. And you can test this out. You can present two options, and the one that your dog goes to two times out of three is typically going to be the one that they find more interesting, more engaging, and more enriching. So you can actually then start to like, level up how valuable your dog finds certain enrichment activities.
But think about it that way. Yeah, not every dog is going to find the same things as enriching the same way that people don't. Some people want to go rock climbing. Some people would prefer to go sailing. Some people would prefer to sit on the beach and watch everybody else do those activities.
17:16 S1
They're sitting on the beach. Sounds like a really great idea, except for in the context of our rainy weather conversation.
17:21 S2
Well, exactly. Yeah. I mean, some people would enjoy sitting out there in the rain. I mean, if there's whales to watch, you might tempt me out there, but there's definitely ways to enjoy that rain for training purposes, whether that be outside or whether that be inside.
17:36 S1
Is there anything else that we've kind of missed or that you think would be good to mention, Ari. You know, rainy weather. What to do with your dog.
17:43 S2
The number one thing that I think it's always worth mentioning is it is really valuable to get your puppy used to you cleaning their ears. If they've been out in a lot of rain just to help prevent any ear infections. And don't be afraid to take your puppy out in the rain and have them learn, as long as you don't mind getting a little bit wet. It's really, really valuable for them to learn because you never know. At least I'm in Melbourne. I could get caught out in any kind of weather, any point of the day. So if you can use it to build up your dog's confidence, go ahead and do so because we want to make the most of this weather while we have it. Because in a few months time we'll be talking about how do we train our dogs when it's too hot to go outside?
18:23 S1
Awesome. Well, thank you so much for coming on the show and talking rainy weather.
18:26 S2
Thanks for having me.
18:33 S1
You're listening to the Seeing Eye Dogs Show on Vision Australia Radio. That was puppy development trainer Abby Howes talking wet weather enrichment. Now we're going to play a short clip from my interview with Alicia Watson, a puppy carer, talking about her life as a puppy carer and working with a puppy in a school. I hope you enjoy. Hi Alicia, thank you for joining me on the show today.
18:52 S3
Thank you for inviting me. I'm always happy to talk about dogs.
18:56 S1
Could you please start by introducing yourself and tell us what your role is at seeing eye dogs?
19:01 S3
I work as a teacher in a primary school setting, and I've been a puppy carer for... I'm going into my sixth year this year and I usually don't have a break in between puppies. I usually see one puppy through and then start straight away with another, because I just find that it's really addictive and some carers like to have a little break in between. But I just love it so much and I feel really privileged to have the opportunity to be a puppy carer, because I just think it's such an important job and it's just something that brings about a lot of happiness for me personally.
19:33 S1
What made you decide to get involved?
19:35 S3
I actually got a letter sent to my school. It was actually just addressed to the school, asking whether anyone on staff would be interested in being a puppy carer, and it was just coincidental that I had shared my interest with other office staff before. And when they opened up the mail and found this letter, somebody pigeonholed it to me for my attention and I rang up seeing Eye Dogs and I thought, oh, maybe being a full time worker, maybe that would rule me out. But I thought I would ring up and ask all about it. And when I found out in my position, I was still eligible to be able to take on a puppy full time whilst at work. I was just so excited and I couldn't wait to get involved. So that's I guess, how it came about. I didn't really know much about seeing eye dogs, to be really honest, until I followed through with the flyer that had been dropped off at school, so I felt like it was meant to be.
20:28 S1
I was going to say it sounds a little bit like fate.
20:30 S3
Well, I think it was because I've just loved it so much. And to be really honest, I look back sometimes I think, what did I ever do before I did this? Because I feel like this has really become a big part of my own identity. You know, I love it so much, and I feel like a lot of conversations I have with people and people that are now a big part of my life, like my friendship groups and things like that. I think as you get older, you know, you still always have friends in different facets. But I think the friends that I've made through seeing eye dogs, I probably have more of more of an involvement with now, and it's probably because we arranged dates to take our pups out and things like that.
So yeah, I feel I feel like it's definitely become a really big part of, you know, who I am. And I don't think prior to getting involved with seeing eye dogs, I ever really had a hobby or a really big interest personally. Like, I sort of I think, you know, as you know, a wife or a mum or, you know, in the different roles you have, you do things for other people and your days are filled with other things. But yeah, I don't think I ever really did anything for myself like this until getting involved with seeing eye dogs. So definitely a big passion for me.
21:41 S1
So what do you like the most about caring?
21:44 S3
I think everything really. I mean, I sort of look at, you know, I love animals, I've always loved, I've always been a dog lover, and I've always had had a really soft spot for Labradors and retrievers. I think basically just I love the training, I love, I love learning from the puppy development trainers, watching them work with the puppies, and then having time to practice that with a puppy in my own home or my own workplace. I feel like having a puppy makes you a lot more sociable. I think it helps you develop your own confidence as well. I feel as though you know the interactions that you have with people, with members of the community.
I mean, all the time I went to the supermarket, I probably never chat really too much with the people in the supermarket. They don't know my name, but I walk in and I always know my pup's name. And I hear, hi, Igor. Hi, Igor. Yelling out to my latest puppy. I don't know, I feel like it brings happiness around you with the people in the community, with the interactions that you have. Everybody loves the puppy. Everybody's interested in, you know what I do and they want to ask questions about it. Puppy caring and about the training. I guess I just enjoy the interactions that I have. And of course, the fact that you get to take the pup everywhere you go, that it's such a big part of your life, going out for dinner and taking the pup with you and going to the supermarket and day to day life.
Yeah, I find it just such a pleasant, positive experience. Always having a four legged friend by your side. And obviously if you had a pet dog, you wouldn't be doing that. You wouldn't be able to take them everywhere with you. But it is really quite nice being able to have them become such a big part of your life. But yeah, the training, I just enjoy it so much. I just enjoy going places with other carers and just learning more about dogs and being able to read their behaviors and know what they're telling you, and it's really a big learning curve, I think is a big thing. It's really quite interesting meeting, meeting each pup, getting to know them and finding out what their needs are and practicing really good behavior. That's that's really a fun thing, I think.
23:48 S1
So you've mentioned a little bit about your current puppy.
23:52 S3
Igor is my first yellow lab. I've had eight black labs before, so quite exciting getting a different color just because I've always loved my black labs. But I think, you know, the kids at school would always say to me, when are you getting a different color? One are they all black? Yeah, no. Igor was my first yellow lab, and he settled in really well to school. We had school photos last week at school and he was quite the little poser. I think he really likes the camera. And sometimes I'm looking forward to seeing the school photos, because I know with a black Labrador, they're not always very easy to photograph. I think even with the lighting, sometimes it's really hard to see their special features. They don't always photograph as well indoors.
Yeah, we had his photographs the other day and he sat really still and he tilted his head. I think he was really enjoying that. In fact, the photographer, I think, I think he took about seven individual shots of him. So I'm looking forward to seeing what comes out of that. Yeah, he's turned five months and he walks nicely and he loves meeting people. He loves children. I think working in a primary school, even when I'm out, if he hears kids voices, the tail starts wagging and he's looking around as if, you know, do I know that child? So he's a really happy boy. And in my classroom he sleeps on a trampoline bed. Usually he sort of gets up when the kids walk into the room and goes over and greets them. And then he lies on his bed and he's a bit of a snorer.
So the kids really quite like his sleep time, because usually he's quite noisy with his snoring, and there's often giggles in the classroom listening to him. Or if he's having a, you know, a bad dream. And we hear the puppy crying. So he's quite entertaining, but very well behaved in the classroom and definitely, um, very, very sociable and loves children. So it's been fun.
25:38 S1
That sounds like a quite positive experience then, for the kind of school community, I guess.
25:43 S3
The whole school community have always embraced the puppies that I've had, and to be honest, I have had some children in my classes over the years that have been afraid of dogs, and I find that by the end of the year, those kids are now, you know, much more confident in engaging with the pup. And I never, I never sort of push the pup on kids if they don't want the pup to come near them, I make sure that they don't. You know, I want kids to feel comfortable, but if they want to come up and have a pet when the coat's not on, and if they want to engage with the pup, that's okay.
And I actually had a family come up to me at the end of the school year and thank me because they said they'd always wanted to get a dog in their family, but the child that I taught was afraid of dogs. You know, by the end of the year, the child, you know, was quite confident with the pup. And the following year they got their own puppy. So they were really excited that, you know, they can see the benefits that. And you also have to teach kids too, that obviously these dogs in schools because you know, they are. And of course you watch all the interactions with them and you have to teach the kids, you know, about being gentle in the way that they pat, not pulling tails and things like that.
But I think it's also about educating them that you can't just go up to any dog and pat them. And that's part of the education process as well, about the way you approach dogs and knowing that you should always ask the owner first before you reach your hand out to pat the dog and that sort of thing. So I think it's great for the kids to learn that, and I think the whole school community have always been. I feel like the morale amongst staff is lifted. You know, everybody can be feeling a bit overwhelmed or having a bad day, and then all of a sudden they see this pup. I feel like the pups really lift the mood of everybody around them.
27:36 S1
You've been listening to the Seeing Eye Dogs Show on Vision Australia Radio. I hope you enjoyed my interviews with puppy development trainer Abby Howes and puppy carer Alicia Watson. If you'd like to find out more about seeing eye dogs, the work we do, becoming a client, or how you can help. Head to our website at SED Vision Australia dot org. In particular, we are looking for puppy carers. So if Leisha's interview has inspired you and you're interested in finding out about joining our carer community, head to that website and find out about puppy caring. We'd love to hear from you if you think you can help.
Thank you for listening to the Seeing Eye Dogs Show and don't forget to tune in, same time next week for another episode of The Seeing Eye Dogs Show.
