Dog Logics

Puggles....how old is your dog? Is the blindness and deafness age related? Remember dogs can feel vibrations we don't even notice so may well be stimulated into barking by sensations he'll be feeling. Make a point of trying to reinforce the quiet moments by using nice treats. Be careful not to reinforce the point where he is barking so you'll need to wait for a few seconds of silence and then reward. Perhaps try leaving him in his pen with a buster cube filled with nice treats or some of his kibble to keep him occupied rather then being left in silent darkness. You may have to feed his whole meal in portions inside a buster cube or activity ball so that he spends his time earning his food and not barking. If its age related it can be a form a senility and that is much harder to deal with. Check that he has no other health issues as pain can cause constant irritation and an inability to rest. Good luck.

Herding_guy you are correct I wrote that rather badly I too would not like it if my dogs bit or grabbed at sheep. I was trying to explain if you were assessing the dog what sort of behavior was he showing and from this you would determine if he was showing instinct to work and was he suitable for the job. If assessing I tend to allow the dog to make the moves when I say "eating sheep lollies" I am talking about the dog that has been brought into a pen with say three sheep and instead of looking at the sheep he's off eating lollies. I am not referring to what a dog would do to release stress from to much pressure during training.Dogs under stress will also grab and bite at sheep so I guess perhaps I should have written a little more clearly. Thank you for picking me up on that. :D

Hi Jesomil Much depends on the breed. Kelpies, Border Collies, Australian Shepherd and Australian Cattle Dog would generally have more of the working lines still in their genes whereas the German Shepherd, Rottweiller and other herding breeds have not been used for herding purposes for so long may well have diminished instincts. Also some breeds are gathers and others are herders so once again each will have a slight variation on what instinct they show if any. Superminty is correct It must always be remembered that dogs are predators so most will show interest in any form of livestock but this will not necessarily mean the dog has 'working instinct.' Herding_guy Yes, this is instinct but will not always show up in dogs that lack confidence. Pup's and the softer dog will generally not head until they have worked on balancing for awhile and become more confident at being able to move sheep. Not every herding dog has that special 'get out do the job' temperament some have to be schooled and trained to encourage the development of instinct and then the handler can put command over instinct. To assess instinct I would have some good dog broke sheep in a small round yard and then introduce the dog making sure I am in a position to protect the sheep. The dog should show an inclination to want to move sheep by either moving to the head (confident dog) or to-wards the tail (dogs lacking confidence) then if I move my posture and position correctly the dog should try to work in balance to me but of course you are then helping the dog but not telling it what to do. One with instinct will begin to catch on to how the game works by moving into a position which controls the sheep to the handler and in co-operation with the handler. The dog that wonders off to eat sheep lollies or pee on a post would be said to lack interest and therefore not process instinct. The dog that rushes straight for the nearest is generally sizing up the best quality sheep steaks and is running on predatory instinct so again not a likely candidate for herding. For the skilled eye one would look to see if the dog had 'eye', is he a dog that bites and grabs, has he got a natural cast, will he go to the head or the rear, in dogs bred to work going to the tail end is rare but it can happen, what body posture is displayed dropping low almost crawling along. If you think your dog might be suited then the best thing to do is go along to a Herding Day and watch, talk to the instructors and I'm sure they will be happy to advise and even have a look at your dog for you. It's great fun and a good challenge for handlers too.

Hi Brooke, Many breeds can become over active, lots of energy, ready for anything at any time, move your big toe and they torpedo to the door. Lovely healthy happy dog but not good for your nerves and in the end its not good for the dog. Some dogs are lay back cool headed personalities and others have to be taught to 'chill out.' I have several dogs and two of mine are real life torpedo's given half the chance they too would spend all day hurtling around. All the dogs get a really good free run for over an hour on the local golf course as I walk up and down the length of 18 fairways. Then they get training, are used for demonstrations during my classes, attend fixtures etc so definitely not short on both the physical and mental exercise. But some dogs need to be taught to calm down and take time out. I use crates and my dogs will often go and lay in them out of their own free choice, they don't see it as punishment at all. As youngsters when I see constant over activity I'll call the dog up ask him to go into his crate and reward with a few treats, a chew bone or pigs ear and then shut them in. If they winge I just ignore it, this generally only occurs the first few times as the dog really wants to get out and buzz around. In no time they accept it as time out and relax after a few weeks or months, depending on the dog, of practice the need to hype generally stops. All my dogs will go out and play and chase but when inside they are happy to laze around and allow me to get on with whatever I am trying to do. Don't allow the human emotion to cloud what in reality is best for you and your dog. Providing you teach Ben in a positive way to go into his crate and take time out and you don't walk around with the 'guilty' look he'll be fine in no time and you'll have a dog that you can enjoy for many years to come. Just begin with half an hour several times a day then increase the time in the crate and lessen the repetitions. If you can't teach Ben to act calmly at home it will eventually reflect on everything else you do with him away from home. Good luck.

Training a dog 'In Drive' be it prey drive, toy drive or food drive is a means of giving a dog such a high that training and learning become the dogs focus because it's rewarding both mentally, emotionally and physically. However, it will not work on every dog much will depend on the dogs previous life and learning history, age and health both mental and physical. Drive which is instigated by the owner provides if you like an 'alpha' roll...all good things happen when the Boss is around. If you are dealing with behavioral problems such as Separation Anxiety, Storm or thunder phobia then the dog is controlled by his emotional state and is not capable of learning at the time of stress. This is classed as Classical Conditioning. :D An example of Classical Conditioning could be the sound of the dentist drill causes you to become agitated....you have no control over these responses. Therefore, in Classical Conditioning behavior is autonomous, reactive to stimuli, usually emotionally triggered, and uncontrollable. If a dog is escaping due to Classical Conditioning it can be very distressing for both the dog and the owner and is not always fixable. Behavior modification by desensitizing may help and adequate containment is vital. Dogs will escape because they are bored and roaming will reward the behavior in so many ways - other dogs to play with, people, nice smelly bins or road kill, the smell of other dogs walked in the area and so on all of which are going to be far more interesting than hours spent in a boring back yard. Owners should ensure they have fencing adequate for their breed some breeds are very good at climbing so in some instances mesh or wire would not be suitable, others will dig so the fence needs to be buried or a concrete pen used for containment. Gates need to be self shutting and locked in the owners absence preferable dogs should be contained to the rear of the house so that there is little reason for visitors to open gates entering the rear of the property when there is access to the front door. Hope this has shed some light on what appears to be a rather over heated topic.

Pity people have to turn nasty over dog issues, perhaps just a human trait. Dogs do what ever it takes to get them what they want...that's the nuts and bolts of dogs behavior good or bad. Depending on the breed a person chooses training is going to vary, not all dogs train the same but ALL dogs are trainable if the human involved understands the drive and instinct of their particular breed. Contrary to belief dogs are not born with problems they are learned/acquired by being reinforced by the environment and or the owner. The escape artist is a challenge and depending on the the stimuli it can be easily controlled or in some cases almost impossible past confining a dog to a very well constructed dog run. I have just taken on a rescue Border Collie who can clear 6 feet without the slightest effort....his drive sheep! Wonder why? Could be because his instinct is connected to herding nothing at all to do with training, work, food or if he likes his owner. In my situation I have a rural property, sheep and a mix of gun dogs and herding dogs. My dogs are all trained in multiple fields all are capable of jumping my fences but will only do so if ask too. I'll never know the history behind the rescue dog but one sniff of a sheep and he's gone.... Training plays a huge roll. Firstly due to high drive in this dog being related to sheep I use the sheep in his training program. This is training the dog according to his instincts. In a small yard he learns he has to STOP when I ask him to and the reward then is to herd the sheep around the yard once or twice then another STOP the first few Stops are really just brief pauses before the dog is released and then over time the STOP is held longer. Using a small pen I can place myself between the sheep and the dog hence he can not get to the sheep unless he works to my conditions. He's rewarded by getting what he wants 'sheep'when he gives me what I want 'STOP'...and so on. Once I have a good Stop in place I can then start to ask him to come to me from a Stop position again I'm very close to the dog...as he begins to understand the contract and shows willingness to comply we move into a big round yard, small paddock and so on the distance between the handler, myself, and the dog increases in stages and I over time will have a strong enough control to call him off the sheep as required. In time if he jumps the fence I should be able to call him back. But if I'm not able to supervise this dog will always have to be left in a secure run. The same applies to any breed train according to the instinct and keep an escape artist in a secure run when not supervised. We would not expect a reformed alcoholic to sit midst an array of open bottles of booze and not give way to temptation so why expect any dog not to give way to his natural drive and instinct. Within all breeds some will have high drive and others little or no drive. I have one little Border Collie bitch and show her sheep and she gives me a look that says "You want them you go get them - smelly dirty things, I'm too beautiful to go messing up my fur." Great little obedience dog who can strut her stuff on manicured arena's but not prone to running a muck in the paddock. I used sheep as an example as most people would understand the drive related issue. Beagles would be scent, sight hounds are caught by the slightest movement far in the distance, the good old Labrador just think 'food' and so on. Hope this has added some constructive input to the original question.