Robbie's Graduation

Robbie graduated from his Dog Romp 2 class last week. We worked on the following things in the class:

• Look At That
• Sit-stay (with distractions)
• Down-stay (with distractions)
• Loose leash walking
• Ring a bell
• CGC: Greeting a friendly stranger

He would typically bark as people entered the building and then settle right down. I have decided to repeat the class with him so that we will have a better foundation for the Rally class that follows.

Ring a Bell

Robbie has improved greatly over the past week:

He sits with one verbal cue and will hold the sit for 10 seconds and while I back up and return for 5 feet.

He downs with one cue and no longer needs to paw me before he downs. He will also hold the down for 3 seconds and while I back up two feet.

He will touch my hand with his nose when I cue him. He will jump up to touch my hand. He will also touch a target stick and he will follow the target stick about 2 feet in order to touch it.

He will place his paw in my hand when cued. He will also paw a bell when the bell is presented to him. I have begun introducing a verbal cue for paw/hand (shake) and paw/bell (ring).

Robbie's Practice

Robbie has also been working on new behaviors. We are getting ready to start a new class in a week and I have been polishing some of his cues.

Sit
Robbie is quite good at sit. I have introduced a verbal cue and he will sit when given the verbal cue, the hand signal and both together. We have begun working on distance (3 steps back, 2 steps sideways) and duration (5 seconds).

Down
Robbie has some superstitious behavior trained into his down. He thinks that he has to touch me with his paw - sometimes on the hand, sometimes on the leg, sometimes on the foot. He will sometimes even jump up and paw my hand while I hold it up and then do a down. This is because I worked on touch, paw and down all together and he confused the three. So now, I am working on asking for a down (90% fluency), giving a hand signal while standing (95% fluency) and not clicking for the superstitious behavior. So, if he downs, but paws me first, no click. I have also been working on duration (3 seconds) and distance (2 steps back).

Touch
Robbie will jump up to touch my hand, touch either hand and touch a target stick. He does not yet follow a moving hand or target stick, so we are working on that.

Paw/Shake
This a default behavior for Robbie. He loves to paw things. I have not yet introduced a verbal cue for this. He will paw a cupped hand (which is the hand signal I use) and will paw a bell. I plan to ask him to do a high five, too, but we haven't trained it.

Some other behaviors that we might need to work on but haven't: loose leash walking, heeling, recalls, and any other behaviors that Ella has been working on.

Robbie and I have also been working on some Control Unleashed work, too, in preparation for the class. We works a few times with children and in the car at busy places. We still need to generalize many of the listed behaviors and work on proofing them.

Step stool training - part 1

Ella and I have begun training rear end awareness using a step stool. The trainer in the previous post's video used a book and we will eventually phase to that, but the higher step stool works better for us right now (I do not have to bend as far to deliver treats and Ella knows she is on something).

Session 1 - last Thursday

Ella does not shape very well. She tends to offer behaviors that she is fluent in, rather than thinking about what I just clicked and repeating that. So, when I train with Ella, I often have to lure her a bit and then she will make huge jumps in understanding.

I started the session and tried to shape her to step on the step stool. After a minute or two, she was offering to paw the stool, which was amazing, since she doesn't usually paw things. But, she would not go further than that and started to get frustrated. So, I took out a treat and lured her up there (front feet). After luring 3 times, she offered the behavior without luring. Then, when she was offering the behavior, I upped my criteria to have some duration (3 seconds).

Session length: 5 minutes (after shaping portion)

Non-session work

I store the step stool next to the container that I keep the dog food in. This really solidified Ella's confidence in getting on and off the stool, since she was able to see into the container and that was rewarding to her. As I scooped out food, I would occasionally give her a piece to reward her.

Session 2 - Sunday

Ella immediately offered front paws on the stool at the beginning of the session. In fact, she offered a little too much behavior. She was all over that stool. Front paws on, one paw on, four paws on, jump over, circle the stool. So, I asked for a long down and she calmed.

I then indicated that I wanted her to put her front paws on the stool (up). I asked for duration a few times (7 seconds). Then, I asked her to stay in position while I moved. I only moved one step to the left or one to the right.

My final goal is to move into her so that she has to shift her back feet around the stool in a circle. This is a pivot and she has to be able to do them in both directions (this is important for Rally).

Session length: 5 minutes

Session 3 - Wednesday

During this session, we worked on varying durations (up to 10 seconds) and movement from me. While she did really well with duration, she was not keen on maintaining her feet on the stool while I moved. So, I need to change how I am doing that portion.

Session length: 3 minutes

Session 4 - Thursday

During this session, we worked on movement. Ella still steps off the stool when I move into her (from the right or the left). So, I stopped and I worked on getting her to be on the stool in heel position - she was only C/T when she was on the stool in heel position.

Session length: 3 minutes

Session 5 - Friday morning

I decided to lure Ella during this session. When she was on the stool, I held a treat in my left hand, stood next to her and moved into her space (to my left). She had to shift her back feet. As soon as she shifted, C/T. I upped criteria for this very quickly - if she wanted the treat, she had to move her feet a quarter turn around the stool.

Session length: 5 minutes.

Tonight and this weekend, I will be working with Ella to move around the stool next to me, both to the left and to the right. I should also point out that I do similar session of this with Robbie. He is not to the level that Ella is yet, though, since he is also working on perfecting his down.

Tricks

The ClickSolutions website has a lovely list of tricks we can teach. Let’s see how many Ella and Robbie know.

Ella
Nose touch to hand
Circle around me
Nose touch to other objects

Robbie
Nose touch to hand
Shake hands
Ring bell with paw

Last night, we worked with a step stool. I want them to put both front feet on the stool. Eventually, I want all feet on the stool and I also want just the back feet on the stool. This is a fun trick to teach and also serves to stretch and strengthen muscles. It is a helpful trick to know for agility.

Ella took to the step stool like a fish to water. “What, you want me to get up on this for food? O-KAY!” It took less than 5 minutes to have all four feet on that stool. Probably, having done this in the past helped:

Robbie was a different story. He walked around the stool. Sniffed the stool (click). Bumped the stool (click). Luring him with food didn’t work – he gave up quite quickly. So, I put my hand flat on the middle of the stool with the palm up. He pawed my hand (click). Pawed hand (click). Pawed hand (click). I moved my hand to the edge furthest away from Robbie. He pawed the stool (click). Pawed stool (click). We did this 10 or so more times. Then I lowered my hand to below the stool’s edge. He looked at my hand, looked at me, looked at my hand and walked around the stool. I moved my hand so he couldn’t paw it. He went back around the stool, I put my hand back. One paw went onto the stool (click). Paw on the stool again (click). Paw on the stool again (NO click). He looked at me, looked at my hand, put one paw on the stool (NO click) and then pawed my hand with the other paw (click with JACKPOT). When I next cued him to get up on the stool, he put both paws.

Robbie and I then worked a little on pawing a Staples Easy button. He paws it just fine, but doesn’t paw it hard enough to make it speak, so we have to work on that a little.

Then I asked Robbie to down. He wanted to paw my hand (no click) and thought about things and then downed. I will be working on requiring faster responses to the cue with this one.

Front & Rear Crosses - Ella

Ella and I practiced front and rear crosses last night. She gets very excited when I bring the treat bag out and jumps onto the couch and lies down. I have to spend a minute or two getting her to stay on the floor so that we can train.

The beginning step of a front cross is quite easy for us to practice, since she stays in place while I do my footwork. Since one of the skills for Rally is for her to sit while I walk around her, she has this first step down!

Rear crosses were harder. I have been focusing on rear crosses where Ella turns to the right. I hold the treat in my right hand for right turns and my left hand for left turns.

She really resisted turning to the right. Funny, since turning to the left was easy and fun for her. For a while, I thought that it might be a physical limitation. Maybe it pained her to turn in a small circle to the right. Every time we would get to 3 o’clock, she would sit.

Since she will touch a target stick, I decided to try that next. I asked her to touch and she would follow the stick to about 4 o’clock and then stop following. We tried this a few times and it wasn’t really working. She and I will have to work on following a target stick farther and in more complex patterns.

I finally figured out that she thought that I wanted her to sit, since she was originally taught sit by holding the treat over her head. When she was at my side and the lure reached 3, it was above her head, just because of her size and how far I was bending.

As soon as I realized this, I lowered the treat as I lured her in a circle and – lo! She turned all the way. I clicked and she got a jackpot. We worked on this about 10 more times. Each time that she turned, her body became more fluid.

We ended the session with some puppy sit ups.

Robbie practiced down a few times. Then, he had a bath.

Road Trip!

Robbie, Ella and I went on a short road trip Sunday. We traveled up to visit Kathy and her shelties and to see how Charlie, Kathy’s new foster, was doing. It was a beautiful day for it!

Before we left, Robbie and I did a little training. He touched my hand with no lure, did a few downs with no lures and sat (slowly). Gosh, we really need to work on the speed of his sit!

Then we piled into the car. We stopped at Petco for some styptic powder before we got to Kathy’s. R&E accompanied me into the store. Ella has been in big box pet stores on many occasions and she handled the visit quite well. She looked around, took treats from me, and was not really scared.

Robbie, on the other hand, was over threshold – he wouldn’t take treats. But, even though he wouldn’t take treats, he was very interested in the sights and smells. It was just after the store opened for the day, so there were very few customers and no one bothered us. Robbie followed Ella’s lead but his tail was slightly tucked and he was quite happy to leave once we cashed out.

At Kathy's, Ella and Robbie stayed in the car while I went inside and helped with nails and grooming. Everyone had their nails trimmed and everyone behaved quite well. Charlie was a bit standoffish, but he willing took treats from me when I sat next to him on the couch. He will make a fine sheltie for someone!

Then Kathy let her dogs out into the fenced in area and everyone had a barkfest – Robbie and Ella decided that they wanted to be in the car (on the other side of the fence). This, plus the pet store, made Robbie a little more reactive that day.

We went home and I did a few chores and then we all had a nice nap.

For dinner, we went to my mother’s house and my nieces came, too. Robbie reacts to my nieces by barking at them. He reacts when they move quickly and when they are noisy. If they sit quietly, he ignores them.

Robbie and I did some training so that he would not bark at the girls while they moved around and the girls were quite good about moving slowly when they were in the room with him.

Most of the time, Robbie and I stayed in the kitchen and the girls stayed in the living room with their grandfather. This kept two rooms between us and was just enough so that Robbie could focus on me while we trained. When Robbie turned his head in the direction of the living room (he was focusing on the noise they were making), I clicked and treated him. We did this for about 15 minutes while my mom and sister finished getting dinner ready.

Robbie barked once or twice at my oldest niece before we sat down to dinner, but responded nicely to me (he came for a treat when I clicked him for not barking) and then he laid quietly in the corner while everyone ate. He was given treats for this nice behavior.

We left soon after dinner so he was only exposed to the girls for a short amount of time. He did really well with this and I was pleased with his progress. And, I was pleased with how well the girls did, too!

While this was not the ideal training set up, I managed to make it work well for all of us. It took a lot of concentration on my part and I would not make all the sessions like this, but it did give me a good idea of where Robbie’s threshold was for the girls.

Training - Ella and Robbie

Saturday

Ella, Robbie and I drove down to the Post Office. Well, I drove and they rode. The parking lot was quite full, so I had a lot of opportunities to play "Catch a Glance" with Robbie. There was a man in a baseball cap driving a loud truck, an older lady with a walker and then an older couple who had bulky jackets on. There were a few more people, but those listed are the ones that stood out.

We sat in the car and Robbie was clicked and treated for watching quietly. We trained while sitting in the car. He watched (and I clicked) as the people pulled up in their cars, got out of their cars, walked into the PO, walked around in the PO (Robbie could see them through the windows), walked back to their cars, climbed in and drove off. He woofed once, showed tight whiskers once (this happens right before he makes the woof) and watched nicely the rest of the time.

Ella heard the same click that Robbie did, so essentially was clicked for staring intently at the treat bag. This might seem like a bad thing, but I think it really helped with our session on Sunday.

When I left the car to get my mail, Robbie watched quietly for me, but did not bark. Yippee!! That is awesome progress for him.

At home, Ella and Robbie each practiced with me for 5 minutes individually:

• Ella practiced sit-stay (with me walking around the corner and back), down, touch (target stick) and heeling between the living room and kitchen.
• Robbie practiced sit, down, attention and touch. He is really slow on the sit and tends to stare at my hand that is holding the clicker, so I have to remember to hide it behind my back. I lured the down, which he picked up on quite quickly. The next time we practice, I will only lure him once or twice to see if he is getting it quicker. Robbie only has one behavior on cue right now - sit.

Sunday

Ella and I attended the sheltie club's rally practice on Sunday morning. It was an hour long practice. There is no instruction - people just get together with their dogs and set up some practice Rally courses.

Ella tends to lag and not make eye contact with me when we heel.

• One possible reason for this might be because I have taught her to lag. I don't really think so, though, because I have always clicked her for heeling in the proper position.
• Another reason might be because she learned to lag when I had terrible ring nerves at our first trial. Again, this might be a small factor, but not enough to make her lag all the time.
• The third reason that she might lag could be because I have not taught her how to heel everywhere. In other words, she heels great at home - trotting nicely, eyes on me, happy sheltie smile. But, she does not do this other places. So, I haven't proofed (generalized and added distractions) her enough!

When I first taught Ella to heel, we used a target stick (she is too short for me to get her to touch my hand while I am walking normally). In order to use one, your dog needs to know how to "touch." Ella will try to touch that target stick while I am trotting, while I hold it above her head or if she has to jump up on stuff to get to it. I have proofed Ella well on "touch."

So, I hold the target stick in heel postion and ask Ella to touch it. She gets clicked for touching it when I give her the cue while I am walking. I drop the treat on the floor and I continue walking while she picks it up. Then I ask her to touch the stick again, so that she has to run to get back into heel postion. She likes this game and will target that stick even when we do about turns and 360 turns.

She would also walk alongside me and look up happily. This might be due to our special work on Saturday where she got clicked for looking at the treat bag - she would look at my face and then the treat bag while we were heeling on Sunday. I would often click her when her eyes met mine and she was maintaining heel (when she hadn't been cued for touching the target).

We practiced heeling for at least 20 minutes. Then, we practiced heeling with a sit. That means that Ella stops when I stop and sits while maintaining heel position. The clicker came in very handy with this, since she tended to forge ahead of me and not pay attention to when I was stopping. She would sit 10 inches forward of where she should be. So, I would have her touch the stick, then stop and ask her to sit.

After a few times, she was sitting on one cue of sit (no touch cue) in heel position. Ella has been clicker trained since she was a pup, so is very clicker saavy and learns very quickly now.

We then joined the other two people and walked through some cones in order to practice the serpentine and the spiral signs. The first time we tried it, Ella did not maintain heel position. So, I sped up my pace and used the taget stick frequently. After that, I just pointed with my finger to heel postion and she maintained it (I will fade the pointing once she is reliably holding that position and I have introduced the "heel" cue).

We then ran a course. We did a sit, moving side step right (which we need to work on), halt 1-2-3 sit (which she did perfectly), slow pace (again, she maintained heel), spriral, serpentine (she knocked a cone over) and an about turn.

We still need to work a lot on heeling, since this is the place where our performace will break down. But, she did an amazing job yesterday. I am very proud of her.

Robbie's Private Lesson

Robbie and I had a private lesson yesterday with Sumac Grant-Johnson. Her training facility, Wag-It in Lincolnville, is awesome! Sumac is a clicker and positive reinforcement trainer, like I am. That means that she does not train using collar pops (jerk on the leash) or other types of positive punishment. It has been difficult to find a trainer that will work with my dogs the same way that I do. Physical punishment like collar pops may work in the short term and they can seem to work faster. But that might not be the case – the dog might just be repressing the problem behavior. My preferred methods actually change the fundamental way a dog feels (in a good way) and that works better in the long term. It also works better for my peace of mind, since I am not adding to my dog's stress.

Robbie is reactive to things around him. He is also hyper-vigilant (constantly scanning his environment).

I had to choose what 3 things I wanted to work on. This was difficult, since Robbie’s 3 things tie together. I chose his barking, his running towards and barking at strangers and his issues with children. All three of these things relate to Robbie’s confidence. All three are also triggered by movement, which is a part of his breed heritage. Herding breeds work with movement and are attuned to it.

So, we played a few games with Robbie.

The first one was targeting my finger. He will target my finger as long as I stand still. We have to work on him targeting while I am moving. To do this, I am going to teach him to target a target stick instead, since he is so little and I can’t move and bend over at the same time! Targeting is a good way to get your dog’s attention.

The second game was Sumac’s version of the “Look at That” game, developed by Leslie McDevitt in her book Control Unleashed. Sumac calls her version “Catch a Glance” (CAG) and does not introduce a verbal cue like Leslie does. This game helps me to help Robbie acknowledge something in his environment and then refocus on me. We played this game for quite a while – when the heater came on, when it went off, when the trainer moved suddenly, etc.

Robbie and I also played frisbee for awhile. He loves to play fetch almost as much as he loves food, so this was a great way to get him to stop focusing on his fears and to get used to the building. While throwing the frisbee, I accidentally threw it too close to the agility tunnel. Robbie ran to the frisbee and then ran away, without the frisbee. Sumac spent some time showing me how to get Robbie used to being near the tunnel using food. After that, when the frisbee would land close to the tunnel, he would run to the frisbee, pause and then sniff the tunnel. Then he would pick up the frisbee and bring it back.

My job now is to take Robbie places and play the CAG game with him at a distance from the things that bother him. As he gets better at it, we will move closer. While we are training, I can not allow him to engage in his fearful behavior towards what he is afraid of. In order to do that without confrontation, I have to limit Robbie’s exposure to children (his biggest fear) while we work on this. And, I have to set up times when we specifically train.

This is going to take work, patience and commitment. But, if you could have seen the improvement that I saw in him when we left the building! Not only that, but I felt much more confident that I could help him with these issues. More motivated, too.

As we were driving away, we had to stop on the road to allow a truck to pull another truck out of the snow bank. The people around the truck had on firemen uniforms and hats. Robbie and I played CAG for a minute or two and then he just quietly watched their unsuccessful (and then successful) attempts to get that truck out. No hard eyes or stiff whiskers. His posture was soft and relaxed.

He was the same way when we went through the McDonald’s drive through so I could get a cocoa. There were even 2 dogs barking at each other from different cars. He would normally have chimed right in, but we played CAG and he just watched. He just watched as I handed the money over and just watched as I got my cocoa. He also just watched as we passed a crew of electric line workers.

Then he napped the rest of the way home. In his own seat. He was really pooped.

While I saw improvement yesterday, we still have a lot of work to do. My next goal for him is for him to be ready for a class in March.

I think that he and I will take a ride to Walmart Friday night (if the weather isn't bad) and sit in the parking lot, people watch and play CAG. That way, we can see all kinds of people, but do not have to interact with them just yet (i.e., they won't want to pet him if he is in my car).

Pawprint

From Robbie's good back leg.

Frisbee!

Robbie says that Ella has been taking up too much time in this blog and that he is getting a little miffed about it. So, he decided to run so fast that Ella couldn't keep up and he could get a picture all to himself.

He wants to show you his new sheltie-sized frisbee. It is a Puppy Kong Frisbee and it is just the right size for little shelties and just the right softness for tug!

He is actually thinking in the above photo: "If I drop this frisbee, how long before you throw it again?"

Classes

I spend so much time with the foster dogs that my own dogs aren't getting the training they need. They get plenty of attention, but their obedience skills are lacking. Here are the things I want to fix in my own dogs:

Ella steals food as often as she can. She will steal candy from babies! Right out of their mouths. She isn't growling or anything, just stealing. I would like Ella to learn a really good "Leave It" this year.

Maggie has awful recall (come). She takes off any chance she gets. She comes back, but in her own, sweet time. This can be nerve wracking when she does this in the fall, during hunting season. I would like Maggie to have a more reliable recall.

Robbie is afraid of strangers, especially men, and children. I would like Robbie to learn to approach strangers without alarm barking.

Bear is also afraid of strangers. It is much harder to get Bear used to strangers, since he is deaf. However, my goal this year for Bear is to take him more places where we can safely get him used to new people.

Spirit has improved so much since she came to me. But, she really needs more basic training, including sit! So, I would like to teach Spirit how to allow collar grabs from me and how to sit to take treats.

I could probably teach all of this at home. In fact, I know I could teach this. But, setting aside the time to spend with each dog individually is really difficult! I have decided that the best way for me to meet these goals is the sign each of my dogs up for a class:

I have signed Ella up for a level 2 class - we will be working on a longer down, stay, recall and better heeling. And, while we wait for class to start, we will be working on leave it. Ella's class starts April 29.

I have signed Maggie up for a basic obedience class. She already knows many of the cues, but the classroom setting will help get her ready for the level 2 classes, which work on recall much more. Maggie's class starts May 31.

I have planned out when I need to sign Robbie up for his Level 1 class and when to sign Maggie up for the Level 2. If Ella does well during the Level 2 class, then I will sign her up for the Canine Good Citizen (CGC) class.

Bear will get to take a class late this fall. In the meantime, I will begin setting up meetings with friends to get Bear used to strangers. I will be doing the same with Spirit.

Give

Robbie is a dog that loves to play fetch and tug, often at the same time. In fact, I never had to teach Robbie (or Bear) to bring a toy back. They realized on their own that if they brought the toy back, then I would throw it again. And, they would have a fun game to play. Bear brings the toy back and drops it near me.

Robbie, on the other hand, wants to play tug before he really lets go of the toy. He will often drop the ball and then try to grab it before I can pick it up. Sometimes, he grabs fingers instead of toys, which doesn't break the skin, but does hurt. So, Robbie and I have been working on “Give.”

First, though, I want to explain why I use the term“give” instead of “drop it.” Say, out loud, the term“drop it” as though you are talking to your dog. Do you find that your voice automatically lowers a bit and you become a little more stern or serious?

I grew up giving dogs commands. I did not ask them to do something: I told them to do something. Now, I prefer to think of my relationship with my pets as a partnership. I give them things they need and they, in return, worship the ground I walk on (just kidding). Seriously, though, I want my partnership with my pets to be loving and caring.

Now say the word “give.” It doesn’t have the same tone, does it? It is more difficult to make that word stern, at least for me. You could also use the word“trade.”

So, in order for Robbie and me to work on “give,” we need a few tools:

• A toy. If Robbie resource guards toys from me, I would choose a low value toy for this, like a rope toy, since he doesn’t really like those. Since Robbie doesn’t guard, I am going to use a fleece tug at first and work up to a ball.


• High value treats. Wellness Pure Rewards Jerky is great for this. So are tiny pieces of dehydrated hot dog. I have prepared for training by making all my treats about the size of a pea (use scissors). And, as a side note, biscuits do not make good training treats. They are bland and most dogs don’t go crazy enough for them. Instead, use what I call “puppy crack.” This is any treat that a dog will do anything for: Duck Breast, Jerky, Chicken, hot dogs, cheese, etc.


• A treat bag is also helpful, since many high value treats are greasy. The bag keeps your pockets clean. I prefer the Gentle Leader French Hinge Bag.

So, Robbie and I go to a quiet place and I give him a few treats to get him warmed up. Then I offer him the tug. He starts pulling and I show him the treat and click when he drops the toy to take it. We repeat this many times over many sessions. Each session might only be a few minutes. We always end our session with a really good tug and then a “jackpot” of treats. When he lets go the final time, I give him 15-20 treats right in a row.

The next step is to have him place the toy in my open hand. It might take awhile and my clicker will come in handy for this. As soon as Robbie brings me the toy and nudges my hand with it, I’ll click and then give him a treat. We’ll do this for a few sessions.

Then I’ll expect him to nudge the toy in my open palm. Click then treat. He WILL figure this out on his own, trust me. I’ll just wait patiently until he figures it out, with my hand open so he can get the hint. Then he’ll have to drop the toy in my palm. Click and treat each time.

Once he consistently drops the toy in my open palm, I will show him my open palm, say“give,” and when he does, click and treat. I might have to help him here by shaping this a little. He might just drop the toy for a second at first. Then 2 seconds, then three until he lets go of it and lets it be for as long as I want. The clicker is really helpful for this, since timing is everything.

Once Robbie is successfully giving me a toy in my open palm when I say “give,” I will start randomly giving him treats – maybe every three times or every fourth. This will help the behavior be resistant to extinction (he will remember it for a very long time and do it without treats). Eventually, I won’t need to clicker at all and only once in a while will I need treats. And, for Robbie, the playing of tug or fetch is reinforcing in and of itself, so treats might not even be needed.

By working with Robbie in this way, I will have accomplished a number of things:

• Robbie has learned how to politely play with toys and to give them up when asked.


• Robbie has learned to think for himself while we were training – he has to figure out what I want.


• Robbie has become more confident, since his problem solving skills are improving.


• Our relationship is stronger, since we worked as a team towards a common goal.


• I have a better trained dog and I haven’t had to use punishment to do so!

Right now, Robbie and I are still on the first step. But, I know where I want us to go in the future, so am able to measure our progress and will rejoice when we reach the final goal.