Training The (Non-Chompy) Calm Hold
Added 2025-07-28 15:00:05 +0000 UTCDenver is a chompy little guy without a natural calm hold, so I've avoided training the formal hold until now to give him some time for his brain to develop. After working on my chin rest for the last few months to the point that I can use it for cooperative care behaviors, I was finally ready to start combining it with hold training.
Note: if your chin rest is not super strong, this will not be an effective method.
The basics of this method is to combine a "take it" cue (dog grabs onto object) with the chin rest, following immediately and marking for stillness and increasing duration from there. Then quickly fading the chin rest hand from the equation.
I was trying a new piece of software on this one and unfortunately it didn't capture my screen sound for some reason so I've included my commentary version, along with a clean version with audio. But just assume I click right before I reach for food (and then you can watch the included "raw" video after the commentary).
There's a few different ways to train the hold, but this one seems to be working best for Denver.
Comments
I love that Denver is only a few months older than Hazel (also a lab) because you will always post exactly what we need like this post! Tysm Here’s to no more punctures in my water bottle 😂
Elizabeth
2025-07-28 21:36:31 +0000 UTCDefinitely need to work on this with my pup 😂 anything that goes near her mouth she thinks is for chewing
Smokey Blue
2025-07-28 19:39:43 +0000 UTCAh yes! You can actually do a moving chin rest for that and then delete the chin rest. So start with the stationary chin rest, and then moving with the chin rest, no object, and then add in object and slowly remove the chin rest. But also 7 months can be a tough age - some maturity might help as well!
Laura DeMaio Roy
2025-07-28 16:07:10 +0000 UTCOh I needed this!! My 7 mo Lab is so very chompy! As soon as I have the hold with stillness and progress to hold while walking she starts comping. I have taken breaks and started over on the hold 3 times. I was beginning to think that I had started too soon on the hold. It is a necessary task for my son in his wheelchair. We have hardwood floors and I need puppy to hold on to a retrieved item and follow my son to a rug where it is safe for puppy to paws up and place dropped times on my son’s lap.
Christina W
2025-07-28 15:51:27 +0000 UTC
