FE145: First Things First - Puppy Foundations for a Bright Future

Lesson: The Vito Game

The vito game is a really fun pattern game that can help build all sorts of behaviors. I kind of think of it as a way to introduce shaping in a really simple way.  We are going to use it here to shape going around a prop – like a traffic cone, jump standard, plunger- ideally, something fairly stable that is at least eye level high for your puppy. 

First, we'll establish the base pattern which is moving between two reward locations. I recommend using a pair of dishes- this will work great since we just introduced the dish cue last week. 

Before you get training, set up your training location so that you have your two dishes in front of you- about a foot apart. You'll want to be sitting on the floor so that you are facing the bowls and can easily and quickly deposit treats into them. You'll need to have sufficient room on the opposite side of the bowls for your puppy to move back and forth. 

Get ready with some treats that your puppy can chew and swallow quickly- this is important for this exercise- slow chewy treats won't work. You'll need to be able to easily access them with both hands, so consider where you'll store them (you can also preload several treats into each hand if that helps). 

The vito game will progress pretty fast at first, for most puppies, but you'll want to keep the sessions very short and upbeat. Don't progress to the next step until you are getting good flow on the current one, and only do a couple of short sessions each day. Make a note in your training records where you left off so you can pick up at a slightly easier point then that the next day and continue to progress. 

Step 1- Place a cookie in Bowl 1- and as your puppy eats it- cue Dish! - and then place a cookie in Bowl 2. Ideally your puppy will see you place that cookie, scoot over to the next bowl.  As puppy eats that one, cue Dish! And place another in Bowl 1.  Do several (5-6) back and forth repetitions, and then take a break. It should feel fairly flowy and some puppies will be really quick at this, so it can get tiring fast! 

Here is a demo that shows this process- note that for this dog, my cue word was 'yes' instead of dish - you want to use whichever word you taught last week to mean 'get the cookie from the dish!' 

Step 2. Expand the distance between the bowls – so about 2 feet apart. You still need to be able to reach the bowls but we want the puppy to move more. Do another short session (5-6 back and forths). Take a break, moving onto the next step when your puppy is quickly moving to the next bowl as soon as you cue Dish! 

Step 3. 

It's time to add your prop! You'll want to place it directly between the two bowls so that your puppy's movement pattern doesn't really change from step 2 as they go from bowl to bowl. Continue to place a treat, cue Dish!- and place a treat in the next dish, with that back and forth, for 5-6 repetitions. 

Step 4. 

Here is where the shaping comes in. Slide bowls back towards you just an inch or two, so that they are no longer directly in line with your prop.   We want this to be a really gradual change to the picture- so that the puppy barely notices it- and so that they continue to go back and forth between the bowls, while going around the outside of the prop. Moving the bowls too far at once will invite the puppy to cut around the prop and take the 'inside' route nearer to you- which we do not want.  Remember to keep this session nice and short!

Step 5

As long as your puppy continues to be going successfully around the outside of your prop as he travels from bowl to bowl, you can keep sliding the bowls in your direction an inch or two at a time every time you play this game. This builds the distance that your puppy will go around the prop with great confidence! 

Step 6- Adding Your cue

When your bowls are sufficiently out of line with your prop, and your puppy is eagerly predicting to go out, around the prop, and to the next bowl with great success, you can introduce your cue word. I say 'Around'. You'll give your cue word just as your puppy is starting to go out and around the prop. 

Increasing the challenge:

Once your puppy has gotten the hang of going around your prop, we can start to change the picture a bit. Start by removing the bowls and wait for your puppy to offer to go around- reward from each hand! You can progress through all of the steps- likely very quickly- with this new picture. Do the same thing again, starting the process over, when you stand up off the floor. 

Troubleshooting: What do you do if the puppy cuts inside the prop, instead of going around it? 

- If it just happens once, carry on like it didn't happen. Everyone slips up sometimes! 

- If it happens more than once, stop and simplify your set up- move yourself and the bowls closer to the prop so there is less space, and less likelihood, of the puppy going on the inside route. Make sure when you do change the position of the bowls in comparison to the prop, that you are doing it very gradually.