Last week I really noticed big changes in Bailey's alerting. One of the developments is that he's alerting Jason directly. So instead of pawing my leg when he picks up a low, he's signalling to Jason with increasing frequency.
He has alerted to Jason in the past but it has mostly been to me. The more direct interaction he has with him the better so I think this is a great sign. Jason is somewhat limited in the whole training & alerting process, largely given the fact that he's only 8 years old, and he depends on me to carry out the bulk of the responsibilities associated with Bailey's training and care. However Jason has always been involved as much as possible and I have made sure I've explained everything I'm doing and why, and what outcome I want to achieve so that he understands what's involved and can do one on one training with Bailey too. I have also tried my best to keep all the training exercises fun, for the sake of keeping Jason interested as well as Bailey. Jason has learnt how important it is to communicate to Bailey when he's done a good job alerting or training, and to give a reward so that Bailey knows that he's working for Jason too and not just me.
Children of this age are limited in understanding how much work is involved in looking after a pet, let alone a diabetic alert dog. So I'm starting to get him to do more of the daily tasks too, such as letting him in and out for toilet breaks and feeding him some of his meals. These may be small jobs but it helps to build Jason's self-confidence by giving him a sense of responsibility, and in turn, Bailey is becoming much more responsive to him in general.
My care and daily interaction with Bailey has inevitably lead to a strong bond being formed between us, and he will follow me from room to room not letting me out of his sight for a second. But when Jason is at home, I need him to focus solely on Jason. Don't get me wrong, Bailey knows who his person is and what his job is, but there are different team dynamics at play here compared to a team of just two, such as with the mature diabetic and their dog.
Also, any play between Jason and Bailey need be closely managed at all times too so that they don't engage in risky behaviour. I have on numerous occasions (although I'm happy to say not recently), I've had to sit Jason down and have a good talk with him about playing appropriate games with Bailey instead of the antagonistic kind.
Thankfully he now enjoys co-operative games with him such as Tug-of-War or fetch. Games like these are great to strengthen the bond between them and it's great to see Jason engaging with his dog in this way and preferring to do this than the numerous sedentary alternatives available.
By facilitating positive interactions between them, it will continue to build the love and respect they need to cement a successful partnership into the future.
He has alerted to Jason in the past but it has mostly been to me. The more direct interaction he has with him the better so I think this is a great sign. Jason is somewhat limited in the whole training & alerting process, largely given the fact that he's only 8 years old, and he depends on me to carry out the bulk of the responsibilities associated with Bailey's training and care. However Jason has always been involved as much as possible and I have made sure I've explained everything I'm doing and why, and what outcome I want to achieve so that he understands what's involved and can do one on one training with Bailey too. I have also tried my best to keep all the training exercises fun, for the sake of keeping Jason interested as well as Bailey. Jason has learnt how important it is to communicate to Bailey when he's done a good job alerting or training, and to give a reward so that Bailey knows that he's working for Jason too and not just me.
Children of this age are limited in understanding how much work is involved in looking after a pet, let alone a diabetic alert dog. So I'm starting to get him to do more of the daily tasks too, such as letting him in and out for toilet breaks and feeding him some of his meals. These may be small jobs but it helps to build Jason's self-confidence by giving him a sense of responsibility, and in turn, Bailey is becoming much more responsive to him in general.
My care and daily interaction with Bailey has inevitably lead to a strong bond being formed between us, and he will follow me from room to room not letting me out of his sight for a second. But when Jason is at home, I need him to focus solely on Jason. Don't get me wrong, Bailey knows who his person is and what his job is, but there are different team dynamics at play here compared to a team of just two, such as with the mature diabetic and their dog.
Also, any play between Jason and Bailey need be closely managed at all times too so that they don't engage in risky behaviour. I have on numerous occasions (although I'm happy to say not recently), I've had to sit Jason down and have a good talk with him about playing appropriate games with Bailey instead of the antagonistic kind.
Thankfully he now enjoys co-operative games with him such as Tug-of-War or fetch. Games like these are great to strengthen the bond between them and it's great to see Jason engaging with his dog in this way and preferring to do this than the numerous sedentary alternatives available.
By facilitating positive interactions between them, it will continue to build the love and respect they need to cement a successful partnership into the future.