Another Doggle Question

It's probably not the case for your situation but when Archie tries to take his doggles off it's usually because the drips of slobber blown back onto the lenses have made his doggles nearly impossible to see through. A quick cleaning and he's ready to wear them again. Good luck!

With Persis she wore Doggles from the first time she rode with at 9 weeks. She knows that when she rides she wears them. Our older Pitbull/Lab/Ridgeback wants no part of any of it. How old is Maddie?

Maddie has just turned 2. We started working with the Doggles at about 20 months, but she hasn't accepted 'em, just tolerated 'em. Maybe I should've started earlier?

Hard telling, not knowing. My mother in laws dog is 3 and we put doggles on him for the first time when we took him for a ride. He loved the ride, looked all around and never messed with the doggles. I guess some dogs are more compliant than others.

My dog is 7 and I'm trying to train her to use her doggles and to enjoy the sidecar. She tolerates the goggles for about 30 seconds, the sidecar is easier, because I can tether her in. Any tips on how to train her would be appreciated.

I am no dog trainer, but have found that teaching dogs usually consists of lots of patience and consistency on the part of the trainer and rewards for the dog.

With our dog we made a big deal of her wearing the doggles in the house when we first put them on. Told her how pretty she was etc and anytime she started to take them off we would readjust them, praise her and give her a treat. If you do that in the sidecar just sitting in the drive, maybe he/she will get the idea. The last thing you want is a dog distracting you about doggles while actually driving on the road.

But all dogs are different. We have a Terrier that rides like a champ, loves the doggles and thinks she is a movie star because she is always getting her picture taken when we stop, but I am having a real hard time getting her to simply " lie down" on command.

Here are the suggestions from http://www.doggles.com/tips.html: "Most dogs will readily accept Doggles after a short adjustment period. Training your dog to wear the goggles can be accomplished in a small amount of time if you follow these easy steps: 1) Don't put the goggles on your dog while indoors. Imagine yourself wearing dark tinted glasses inside. You cannot see, and neither can your dog. 2) When you first put the goggles on your dog, don't let him paw at the glasses or roll to get them off. Reassure him that its okay. Take him immediately to bright sunlight and let him realize that he can see with them on. Walk around, get his mind off the goggles. 3) Try to go through this routine as often as possible. The number of training sessions required depends on your dog."I also worked with Maddie by taking her for walks while wearing the doggles, but she's yet to "forget" she's wearing them. And I second the problem of distractions with the doggles while driving. Trying to watch the dog at 60mph becomes quite a safety issue.

As usual I didn't read the directions.....lucky I had an easy pooch to train ..at least about the doggles..

Thank you very much, I've taken your suggestions for training and started tonight. Using the treats she kept the doggles on longer than she ever has. Thanks again.

With most dog training, frequent treats and praise to reward desired behavior are the ticket. Also, always start off with short intervals of wearing the doggles 30secs-1 minute to start with, outdoors in the light.
As they become more familiar and less fussy about them, extend the length of time that they are on the dog gradually. Again, offers of praise and treats when you put them on and at intervals while they are on. Also reward dog when you take them off. The dog will eventually associate the doggles with praise, treats, and sidecar rides, and be quite happy about it, usually.

I am really lucky my two (white Shepherd and Choc Lab) took to the GTL Hanny like fish to water. The nice thing about the Hanny is the way it is setup with the screen and fan is they can put their heads outside the screen like a car window when they want and when it gets to windy watch through the windshield with the fan blowing on them at full speed. No worry about goggles. They love the sidecar and the ability to either fly free or duck for cover under the safety of the windshield. The extra wide seat provides just the right amount of space for them.

I want to come back as one of them in my next life.

Hey boxer, thanks for the suggestion re: short training periods. I've tried 5 & 10 minute streches, so I will next work on short stints here around the house. Maybe that'll will "learn her." And yno, I've already been admiring the larger sidecars with more protection with your comments in mind.