The Spotted Devil

Sorry!!!! I missed this! Congratulations to you both!!!!! Bring on Novice!

I'm lucky to have a dog highly motivated by food.....so, although taking off in the opposite direction is a trait common to Dallies, I've managed to train a really good recall (both formal for trialling and at the beach). The long line is a great place to start and all the ideas about being excited and turning/running away are great. For food rewards I use steamed chicken thighs, boiled egg, tinned salmon, ricotta cheese, yoghurt, apple, carrot and Nature's Gift training treats. I find alternating the type and amount of treats is great for keeping him guessing. The other really important thing is that once the dog really understands the command, alternate the treat reward with praise - the more unpredictable the better. Today, towards the end of Zig's beach run I called him back, praised him and gave him a scratch - when I released him he just hung around waiting for his food reward He came back like a bullet the next time too! I do at least 6 recalls at the beach and when he's put on lead he gets a bonus - it means that when I pull out the lead he bolts towards me instead of the opposite direction Be patient - it's one of the more difficult commands to teach if your dog adores smelling and leg-lifting and meeting other dogs!

Oh yep - been through that with my Dally :D I quickly learned the attitude "stuff the socially awkward moment" and do what's right for my relationship with the pup. That goes for meeting kids/people on a walk or in our house. I have no problem with educating adults or their kids on the right way to firstly ask if they can pat him then do so appropriately. Being assertive gets easier

Zig gets a chicken wing for his supper at bed time - although he loves his food with a passion I am fortunate that he is a very careful eater of meaty bones. How's the lad going, Blossom? Nice to see you around :D

Hi Spotted devil thanks for your input, when where at home the dogs are inside and outside, but sleep inside, but when we go out, they are outside , the only reason being is she the youngest would chew anything insight ? Maybe separation anxiety?????, They have a kong, toys, i leave a bone with my neighbour who gives it to them about an hour after we leave I always feel bad for the older one as he is such a gooood dog the only other time they would be left alone would be about 1 - 2 hours general shopping ect, My hubby's chemo is going ok , but he has been very ill at times , not good thanks again DD ;) Sorry you are going through such a rough time at the moment :D I know all about destructive teens in this house with a young Dally on the go :D I don't know your breed's traits so may be missing a few things that a Dachy owner could fill you in on. As I said, my Dal is rather destructive if left to his own devices but I am lucky to be home a fair bit. The very best way I've dealt with him is crate training - it's been an absolute life saver!!! I have an open crate in the laundry where he sleeps when I'm not home. Initially I put him in the crate with some treats in a Kong and stayed with him - as a young puppy he would fall asleep so I would leave him for a few minutes and get him up before he cried. I gradually increased the time he spent in there and always made it a positive place to be - yummy chicken wing for bedtime really helped I always make sure he's had a good walk or some serious obedience training....when I tell him it's "time for bye byes" he races to his crate, eats his treat and then sleeps soundly. If I get home from a short trip and get Zig up too soon he won't get out of his crate as he's quite settled. Basically, he's worked out that crate time = sleep time. He's rarely there for more than 4 hours at a time but, if he is, takes the opportunity to catch up on some sleep - he's extremely relaxed about it now and I can leave him without worrying. Zig is the type of dog that COULD suffer from separation anxiety as he is very attached to me and requires lots of mental stimulation. Left to his own devices in the backyard he would more than likely dig, chew, destroy and escape.....just because it's fun most likely! Hope some of that helps ;)

Sorry to pick on you TSD - but Gawd - this sounds like a certain lecturer from uni :D :D :p ;)

The dog could be stressed in the new environment OR it could be a learned behaviour from his past. As long as the dog can cope in a club environment, obedience training would be a good start. In your friend's situation, I would use lots of positive reinforcement and be sure I was very, very consistent so the dog knows exactly what behaviours will gain him a reward. Like any dog, what motivates the dog will be important - is it food? pats? good dog? tug game? fetch? Or all of them :rolleyes: However, don't make the mistake of feeling sorry for the dog because of his uncertain background - he needs structure and consistency in his life, not someone who will let him get away with inappropriate behaviour. If the dog can't cope with a club environment, definitely get in some professional help. Maybe do a search on "Satin Balls" etc for some ideas to put weight on. Tell your friend to be patient and enjoy the journey rather than be in a rush to fix everything all at once :D

Hi DD Although the neighbours think they're doing the right thing, they may well be inadvertently reinforcing the behaviour by giving the dog attention when she cries. I've heard rescue remedy can be quite effective but I think you need to get to the source of the problem as well. A couple of questions for you....When you are home, are the dogs inside or outside? When you are out, are the dogs inside or outside? How much time do the dogs spend alone apart from these six hours? It would really help for a start if you could give a little info along these lines :D Hope your husband's chemo is going as well as can be expected :rolleyes:

You can easily substitute half the walk time for some serious obedience and brain work - after a gallop on the beach my Dally snoozes for an hour before being ready to go again. Half an hour of training at the park leaves him completely exhausted and ready to sleep the day away :rolleyes: Rather than playing "fetch" I like to play "hide and seek" with different toys in the house (I put Zig in the hallway, show him the toy, then make him wait while I hide it - he luuuurves soft, squeaky toys and this is a good way to let him play with them without destroying them). Also try some clicker training ("touch" with the nose, "punch" with the paw, some shaping etc etc), basic obedience - heeling, sits, downs, stands, recalls etc.

If the dog is exhibiting a true stereotypical behaviour (rather than a redirected behaviour which tends to be more short term although the distinction is blurry), it can be very difficult to treat. The physiology behind these sorts of behaviours is not well understood, but it appears to be a coping mechanism for stressful situations. I like PF's idea of putting the dog in an environment where he can't perform the behaviour. I have been dealing with stereotypical washing in one of my cats that came from a breeder - Lilly was a breeding queen who was chronically stressed after having a caesarean, loosing kittens and subsequently being spayed. When she came to me she was as skinny as a rake, very shy and her stomach/abdomen and inside hind legs were completely licked raw :D My approach was to work on getting her to feel more comfortable and secure in her environment - got her eating well and really comfortable with us and my other cat (who is actually her daughter ). Although I couldn't supervise her all the time, I worked on finding things to distract her from her compulsive washing such as calling her when she was washing her tummy and praising her for stopping or distracting her with a toy or some petting. She has been with us for 2 years and has really come out of her shell - she eats with relish, washes Bronte within an inch of her life, plays when she isn't sleeping and gets up to LOTS of mischief....which I think is an excellent sign :rolleyes: What I can't believe is that she is STILL improving! Every now and again I think I know the "true Lilly" but she continues to surprise us - getting snugglier and more content than we ever thought possible. As for her tummy, she still washes it but not nearly as much as she used to and it has a fluffy, down-like covering now. So, the problem is that she is far from being stressed but the washing has become so ingrained in her behaviour it's very difficult to break. Sorry for the long story, but my point is that there may not be a quick fix although persistence and patience will get your friend a long way

They sound great, Alison - the frames I get are pretty lean. I live Bayside but am at Melbourne Uni and OH works at the RAAF base in Laverton so we've got a bit of flexibility ETA: Just got back from the local supermarket - do you know how hard it is to find full fat anything????

Not THAT many years ago, surely Persephone More ideas - thankyou

So many good suggestions :D Bath time can be unsettling for the most confident of dogs sometimes - I use a very calm "steady", calm behaviour is rewarded with a "good dog" and once he's had his mad run around the lounge room he gets a favourite food reward. For the bathing process, apart from taking it slowly, can you teach an alternative behaviour such as "watch"? I find it invaluable for a highly distractable dog and perhaps it would help a fearful dog. It just gives the dog something to focus on rather than thinking about the dog that is going past or planning his escape route from the bath :D It also gives you the opportunity to reward appropriate behaviour!

It's always the way, sandgrubber :D Especially me being an ex-pat West Aussie Ashka, your doglet ( ) sounds delightfully spoiled....with tastes similar to my cats :D Again, thanks for all the ideas - most helpful. I'll start with the cottage cheese and see how he goes - will update in a few days.

Thanks! All that traveling sounds fantastic....just love to take a holiday like that around Tassie one day

Thanks Ashka for your suggestions Do you use the Niulife Coconut Oil? That's what I got on a google search. PP - come to think of it, the cheese was a rather rich cheddar I'll definitely try him on a bit of full fat cottage cheese and see how he goes - thanks for the suggestion! Actually, I might even put it in a small container like I do with the salmon and use it as another training treat - his eyes will probably fall out of his spotty head with delight

Thanks PP - will try it with caution as my last attempt to give Ziggy cheese as a training treat didn't end well

I know the usual approach is to include fatty cuts of meat in the diet or to use a working dog premium food.....however as Dallies are prone to breed-specific urinary stones, which are dependent on the amount and type of dietary protein, this makes it a bit difficult! Currently Zig is on Eagle Pack - the only premium food I have found with a low purine protein source (i.e. chicken/pork) and 20% protein. Of course, it's a weight loss formula and therefore low fat so he's missing out a bit. He gets about 3 and a half cups a day, a chicken wing for supper, training treats include steamed chicken, boiled egg, tinned salmon in oil and Nature's Gift treats. Once or twice a week his dinner is a chicken frame instead of his dry food. Note that I avoid preservatives/colours etc like the plague. Being a teenage Dally he is pretty active when he's awake and is just beginning to really fill out - being from late maturing lines it's suddenly becoming quite hard to keep weight on him without upping his dietary protein. Any suggestions for an all-encompassing oil supplement would be most welcome

I don't attend a dog club....but will hopefully find the time to join one shortly to get a bit of ring practice. The main reason why I haven't is that I know how I want to train my dog and want to keep it fun! Zig's just not the sort of dog that would have coped well with heeling for 20 minutes in a class full of other dogs I've gradually increased his distraction training to the point where, after the Dally Club Open Show yesterday, I put him through his paces in the ring - it was miserably cold and wet and there were dogs and people everywhere so lots of lovely sights and smells but he had barely an eye or nose for anything else but me I was absolutely delighted with him! Just need to find a free weekend now - darn Uni :D

Just keep running, just keep running......

She's looking lovely DD Really enjoying herself which, for me, is the No. 1 thing!

Not sure if it's helpful, but I've got a mad tail wagger here too. What I've done is taught Zig the command "Steady" which generally means "stop being a git" and I use it in many situations e.g. approaching another dog when he's in a silly puppy mood or getting too far ahead when walking on lead or very hyperactive when I get home. If he's in a narrow hallway etc I just ask him to steady and he's very careful - kind of hard to explain as I've been working on it since he was a young 'un and don't really know how I've taught it

Channel the madness

Exactly! Actually, not quite! They belong to the order Carnivora.....which includes carnivores, omnivores and herbivores. ETA: Science itself is not set in stone either - there are disagreements, changes in direction etc. Unfortunately, just because it's published in a scientific journal doesn't mean it's good science either!!!!

I take your point - I haven't seen the science to back up either argument so will remain on the fence until then However, there seems to be a focus on what dogs like to eat as opposed to what they are capable of digesting and processing - so perhaps we are coming at this from 2 different perspectives and are simply at cross-purposes (not uncommon in science!!!) Preferentially, a dog may be a carnivore but biologically, they are an omnivore