The Ten Best Dog Training Tips
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As others have mentioned, seizure alerting isn't something that can generally be formally trained. Fifteen percent of dogs do it naturally. So to create a seizure alert dog you start first by finding a dog that has that natural talent and the temperament and health to become a service dog.
What is more common is to train a dog to be a seizure response dog rather than a seizure alert dog. Seizure response dogs assist their owner during and immediately after a seizure by getting help, clearing the airway of vomit, and gently restraining their partner from injury.
Now to training. The CGC is a good test of the quality of pet dogs. It is not by itself an adequate test of temperament for a service dog or a test of public access skills. Dogs should be able to pass a CGC before they begin training for public access in public, but a CGC doesn't mean they are actually ready to work in public.
Here are the other things they need to learn before becoming a service dog:
core skills:
http://www.deltasociety.org/download/sd_…
task training:
http://www.iaadp.org/tasks.html
public access:
http://www.iaadp.org/iaadp-minimum-train…
http://www.assistancedogsinternational.o…
Few people have the skill to assess for temperament and do the amount and level of training required to turn a dog into a service dog. Since you don't yet have that level of experience, you should either seek out a dog from a program, or seek a private trainer to either train your dog or coach you through the process.
Here's an article to help you find a program or trainer:
http://servicedogcentral.org/content/nod…
In addition to temperament testing before you commit to an average of 18 months of training, you should also have your vet perform some heath tests, including OFA films for both hips and elbows, a cardiac check, CERF, and blood panel to check organ function (including thyroid function). It can be heartbreaking to invest a lot of time and training in a dog who has to retire early due to health issues. Health screening helps increase your odds the dog you want to train can work comfortably and safely for several years.
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Re: training alerts.
Generally, this is not possible. In order to train a dog to respond to whatever it is a person about to have a seizure gives off, the trainer must be able to control that signal or at the very least recognize when it is present. This is something humans cannot do. The only way I've seen it done successfully is to piggy back train a young dog off of an existing alert dog. The natural alert dog is used to identify when the signal is present. However, I have never seen a dog trained this way come close in quality to a natural alerter. They are not as reliable, do not give as much advance warning, and do not generalize as well.
Helpful Tips on Dog Training
- Is your seizure disorder disabling? You only qualify for a service dog if you are disabled, meaning you have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.
Do you want a seizure response dog? Or a seizure alert dog?
A seizure response dog is a dog that does tasks during and after the person's seizure, such as keeping the person from hurting themselves, going to get help/calling 911, and guiding a person to a safe place to recuperate from the affect of the seizure.
A seizure alert dog is a dog that alerts the person that they are going to have an epileptic seizure before the seizure happens. The dog often also does seizure response tasks once the seizure takes place.
Do know that many dogs, even those bred specifically for service work from good working dog lines, do not have what it takes to become a service dog. Your pet very well may not be service dog material, especially if you want a seizure alert dog.
Training a service dog takes a long time - about two years. And not all dogs can be trained to alert to seizures. Many dogs do it naturally and some dogs can be trained to do it with scent discrimination, but many dogs will never alert.
Some good starting places would be to contact the International Association of Assistance Dog Partners (IAADP) - see their Web site at http://www.iaadp.org - and check out Assistance Dog International member programs (most will not train your own pet, but give you a new dog, some may allow you to still keep your pet) - http://www.adionline.org . You can also join service dog Yahoo! Groups to get more information on service dogs, what it is like to have a service dog, what the downfalls of having a service dog are, where people got their seizure alert dogs from, etc. There are many to choose from.
While having a CGC (Canine Good Citizen certificate) on any dog is a nice thing, CGCs are designed for pet dogs. Service dogs need a LOT more public access training than that of a CGC dog, as they have to behave impeccably in public. A dog whose only public access is a CGC is not ready to be a service dog.
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There has been some success with training medical alerts (epileptic seizures and diabetic lows/highs mostly), but not every dog can be trained to alert to them. It is not an easy process and takes a good trainer, but it is possible with some dogs who previously did not alert naturally. There are very few service dog programs who take on training this task. There are a few private trainers who are willing to take it on, as well. A program that trains diabetic alerts spoke at last year's IAADP conference. - The thing with this type of training is that your dog almost has to display that he is able to detect he seizures.. not all dogs have that ability.
Your best resource on service dogs is Delta Society.. you can search there for information on training, laws, etc.. www.deltasociety.org - Contact your epilepsy foundation. They can probably direct you to specialised trainers in this area. What you want is a medical alert dog.
I wish you the best of luck. - I like to train my own dog better so they can know you more as a respectively owner not the trainer
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