MaxSpots

I don't know if this helps, but something that stuck in my head concerning praise when a dog is fearful Is that your praise (or when you comfort them) is rewarding them for that thought... the fear thought of that moment. And thats how it gets reinforced Where as distraction, or praise for doing something else (like sit, down, heel, give them a job to do), and ignoring the fear episode, gets their mind off it. Sorry I'm not explaining it well They aren't thinking they'll get a pat.....They'll be thinking, " gee I was right to be scared and shake and whimper because my owner agrees with me" , By patting you are saying Yes, you were right to be scared, good dog.......... Just my understanding of it.

A bit of trivia about Jack and Jill and vinegar and brown paper Just did a google some snippets below ------------------------------------------- Vinegar and brown paper produces a substance known as DMSO. Dr. David Williams, in “Miracle Healer — DMSO”, says, “DMSO was shown to provide quick pain relief, stop headaches, and even speed healing of strains, sprains and burns.” ------------------------------------------------------------ Dimethyl Sulfoxide In the medical field DMSO is predominantly used as a topical analgesic, a vehicle for topical application of pharmaceuticals, as an anti-inflammatory and an antioxidant. It has been examined for the treatment of an extraordinary number of conditions and ailments. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved DMSO usage only for the palliative treatment of interstitial cystitis. Also, DMSO is commonly used in the veterinary field as a liniment for horses. -------------------------------------------------------- Because DMSO increases the rate of absorption of some compounds through organic tissues (including skin,) it could be used as a drug delivery system. ---------------------------------------------------------- DMSO can also irritate the skin; smooth skin is generally more susceptible to DMSO irritation than rough skin ----------------------------------------------------------

Second Fear Period (8 - 16 Months) http://www.k9force.net/index.html?row2col2=develop.html

Take a look at K9 Forces website, he has some info about fear periods that pups go through and when to slow down on the stimulation and outings. I can't remember details but I do remember when I read it that I realised I did all the wrong things with my dog during her fear period, I should have been more aware and not push her, and done different training at home during that time. I'll have a search and see if I can find what I'm going on about

some dosage info here, although it is in relation to snakes http://www.yaps.org.au/dogsnake.html

Thank goodness she's OK, it's so scarey My husband put snail pellets down a week after I got my dog (then a puppy) I rang him at work furious and said you'd better meet me at the vets, you've just poisoned my dog and I want you here to see what she's going through !!! and hung up. She was dribbling and shaking all over, I couldn't believe someone could be so stupid, heads were going to roll. To his credit he dropped everything and raced straight over and met us there, was so sorry, and said that he deliberately bought the "Dog repellant one" thinking of the new puppy, and the hardware told him dogs wouldn't eat it. Luckily Molly was treated in time, they gave her something to throw it all up...poor little thing, I don't remember what else they did, but she got through it. Hard lesson learnt by Hubby, not to believe packaging or sales people. And if he wants to keep snails off his orchids he'll have to do it by hand. David, so glad your dog is OK now

Good point !! My problem too, ruthless

does anyone have a copy of the book? it would be interesting to see if this review off Amazon is correct or not.. ie: does she get specific about the trainability of some breeds??? http://www.amazon.com/Dog-Listener-Communi...iews/0060089466

and this photo sort of shows the gravel and large pots ... looks messy as the leaves hadn't been raked in a while (Molly is jumping up in the air trying to catch the totem tennis ball

Your OH has said "it's the dogs or the garden" or something like that?? What is your garden like? At our old place we put in sleepers along the fenceline, abour 3ft out from the fence as a garden bed and put in Bangaloe Palms fairly thickly. and filled around the bases with fist sized river pebbles as a mulch. Added a sand pit Part of the lawn was replaced with pavers and decorative gravel. Other plants were put in heavy pots. And a vege patch up the back corner was fenced with reo mesh. As were small trees (with a ring of reo mesh) hope these ideas help added some pics that shows some of the pebbles and sandpit we have since moved , this new place has lawn and gardens with bark chips but she hasn't touched any of it, I think the habit was broken at the old place.

Hi pitty lover, I don't know symptoms to look for and I might be getting Bone density and Calcium deficiency mixed up. In my head they are related but I don't know the facts. When my "dog collecting" sister's dog was feeding puppies it needed calcium supplements and the vet mentioned ongoing bone problems for the mother and her pups due to the inadequate diet she was feeding, so thats why I mentioned it in relation to your situation. Only reason she found out (about the deficiency) was because I witnessed the dog have a slight fit while I was visiting and made her take it to the vet. That particular dog and all her pups were eventually surrendered to the RSPCA

I agree with your parents, she can't look after them herself (so far she isn't, and as you said you know she won't with the pup either ) definately find a home for the pup And maybe think about giving her an ultimatum; she either looks after their health needs properly or rehomes the others. Lets face it if she doesn't then the choice will be taken out of her hands through illness (worm, vaccinate, get vet treatement for the mum dog who probly has bone density issues now) You can't keep picking up the slack for these people, believe me I've tried (my sister who has had 10 dogs in as many years!! and countless other pets...it's sickening and you have to get tuff and cut them off..... not cut them off as a friend or sister, but put your foot down about pet care and what is the right thing for the animal)

Dogs will hang their tongues out to cool down Do you leave water out for her inside as well ? She'll drink when she's ready, was probly having too much fun to stop for a drink at the time

my bad......

I've always thought it was a "drive" thing where the urge to wander is more appealing than staying around the pack (family) When I was a kid yards were hardly fenced and dogs in general did just hang around. There were also the ones that wandered, annoyed other neighbours, got into fights, chased cars, got runover, went to the pound and were put to sleep. It was the norm for kids at school to say ...."my dog ran away" and rather than go look for it, expect it to come home eventually on it's own. When enough time passed, they'd get another pup. Or the other kids who would find a dog and take it home to ask mum if they could keep it. Thank goodness things have changed and people seem to value their dogs more....enough to ensure good fences anyway.