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dee lee

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Everything posted by dee lee

  1. Ahh know that feeling!!! Honey is much the same, life is just so wonderful to her! She is my first goldie and I am finding that its a slow conditioning process. Anecdotally, they seem to be eager to please but a bit slower on the uptake than say labs. I am seeing signs of improvement but I expect it to be a looooong time before I am completely happy with her reliability. Til then I am going to safe walking areas, practising eternal vigilance and putting her onlead at the first indication of her drive kicking in (her ears are VERY obvious !).
  2. There seem to be quite a few of us Goldie owners who have trouble with recall!! My dog loves treats and will recall 100% of the time .... except when she sees a bird under her nose/food on the ground/plane-vapour trail (dont ask ). I only recently realised that it was as big a problem as it is (she is ball obssessed so I hadnt noticed until we stopped ball throwing for a bit ) and I am furiously working on it now. I asked a similar question in the training forum and got some great advice. Here is the link. Today I started training her to WAIT til I have thrown her ball and give her the signal to "go get it". I think that, as was suggested to me, a big part of her problem is bolting off so I hope this will assist in that. Good luck, I know how stressful it is!
  3. Sounds just like Honey!! Except for the devotion- she is a complete tart and will take pats ALL DAY from anyone who will do it. Typical Labs! Mine would fail too. He just wants to lick everyone to death! They are GRs!! ;)
  4. For what its worth I think that the SWF's owner was right to feel uncomfortable about the situation, but I dont see your dog's behaviour as being overly bad, just being a typical silly pup. My dog would not like your dog bounding up to her and if he was to jump on her she would tell him off and walk away. At the park where we go most days there used to be a pack of dog owners and their young silly dogs. Whenever we would walk anywhere near them they would be over bearing and rudely behaved to both Honey and I. So I was obviously at pains to avoid them. One in particular was an absolute PITA, a pushy welsh springer girl who would harrass any dog or person in her vicinity, especially if they were using balls- which she would steal. She was allowed to get away with murder- I never saw her owner exert a single bit of control over her. I learnt to stop any ball throwing within her view. Now the funny thing is, recently the little pack of owners seems to have disbanded. Of them all only this WSS seems to still come, and wouldnt you know it, without all her little "friends" she seems quite well behaved!!! This seems to support the theory that I subscribe to, which is that standing around watching and chatting while your dog rumbles and plays, means that your dog is learning from the other dogs how to behave, not you. Unfortunately that behaviour is not necessarily the most acceptable, especially in a public park. Not to mention that you run the risk of other dogs becoming much more fun than you to your dog. I believe the best way to deal with offlead dog parks is to walk through them. Allow your dog to socialise briefly but then keep walking, keeping your dog's attention on you.
  5. This has been my experience. Honey is not overly social and, if she finds the play overtures of other dogs too much, will behave much as you describe. Her body language when she does it makes it very clear to me that she is looking for me to save her. Which I do by moving between her and the other dog/s and walking her away somewhere else. If the dogs follow us I will shoo them away. At 18 months, Fudge is now a mature dog, no longer technically a puppy. Where she may have been happy to play with all dogs previously, she may prefer only to play with specific dogs now. That is fine, dogs dont NEED to play with other dogs all the time. I would suggest that if she shows signs of feeling uncomfortable again, you remove her from the stress and then distract her by playing a game.
  6. WOW. I'm speechless! I'm glad you are ok!!
  7. I find having a mail slot in the front door really keeps Honey occupied... Especially if new credit cards get delivered.. Sorry, I'm no help- I'm in the same boat Fran, looking forward to some good tips! :D
  8. Like I said, I too have owned a DA dog and taken precautions (mine remained onlead as she couldn't be trusted at all)- it is the only responsible thing to do. If you know you have a DA dog, and can call it away before an attack then thats not a problem. If your DA dog was to attack mine while offlead and you could NOT prevent it, then that is extremely negligent. Taking a DA dog to an offlead park has to be a matter of management (as you obviously know ). This guy walked right up to us, did not try to avoid us in the slightest. I only twigged there might be a prob when his dog started to stiff leg walk when it was within close range and its hackles went up. The owner looked distinctly nervous at that point. I have no doubt he knew the dog was about to attack as he scurried over and was able to grab his dog once it did. Honey was walking right next to me the whole time.
  9. Thanks everyone, I didn't report it because I wasn't sure what to do and the guy had left the park by the time I'd finished checking that Honey was ok. Dogmad, I'm glad you mentioned Centennial Park!- it is within the Centennial Parklands so I will call their rangers- who are brilliant, much better than dealing with the council. Seeing the guy with his dog offlead again worried me quite a bit, but as well as being fearful, it really bugs me considering how careful I have been in the past making sure my DA dog couldnt get to other dogs.
  10. A couple of weeks ago Honey and I had a run in with a particular owner and dog at our regular offlead park. Honey was attacked, no harm done- thank god she has a thick ruff!- but it was scary. The guy was helpful but judging by some comments he made, obviously had some indication that his dog can be aggressive. He also did not stick around to see if Honey had been hurt at all - it was clear there was no blood but she was yelping (from fear I suppose). I had the misfortune to see them again this morning . I was able to avoid them this time but I noticed another dog walker was nervously avoiding them too which made me think perhaps we are not the only ones who have had trouble with them. Question I have is, if something were to happen again- what could I do about it? I would call the ranger, but surely there's not much they could do if they have left the park? Mind you, it wont be happening to us again- the park is a large open one, Honey and I can easily avoid other dogs (and usually do)- but I'd like to be prepared if I witness it again.
  11. But Labradoodles are MUCH woosier looking!!! :cool: Standard poodles in a same length all over clip (sorry dont know what thats called) are hardly girly. I'm with you- spectacular. Has he ever seen a standard poodle? He might change his mind if he did.
  12. When we first got Honey she was petrified of the car (GRR told me the guy they rescued her off had tried to hit Honey when she wouldnt get into the car, so its not suprising ). I had to get into the back of our car and have her virtually put in my lap. With lots of positive experiences and a few treats she is a LOT better and will hop in by herself when I ask her to. Never overly happy about it though and she will pant the whole trip. :cool: Bartok, I'd tempt him in with treats. yep he is being a butt head, but rather than thinking you are rewarding him for that- think of it as manipulating him into doing something he doesnt want to do.
  13. I use advocate on my dog and cat. It has been the only flea prevention that worked in my house. I guess it would depend on whether you actually get fleas in your area. If they arent a big issue where you live, I would skip it and go with just the wormers and use tick prevention when you need it (btw Advocate offers no tick protection anyway). If you do get fleas, personally I'd stick with Advocate if it works, because I find flea allergy is much worse than dry allergic skin. I had trouble over summer in trying to eradicate fleas, both on and off my dog, and she developed sores and hair loss, which were equally tricky to get rid of. I felt so bad for her. As for natural remedies like garlic in the food and rosemary/lemon rinses, tried them a couple of years ago on my staffy x and had absolutely zero success. If you are concerned about Advocate, you arent going to like Comfortis. Do a search in the health forum on it and you will get a lot of people complaining about the chemicals in it. It is basically a monthly Capstar.
  14. The main thing is to ignore the sooking, and only let her out of the run when she is quiet. You don't want her to think that making noise will cause you to come over and let her out. Just start with small amounts of time, and build up each day slowly to the maximum time the dog will be left alone. Some dogs react a lot worse than just sooking, so you are off to a good start if that is all she is doing. Could you drive the dog to a park to exercise with a ball in the mornings? That might be a solution if your five year old is not up for a long walk. All this is a bit of hard work, but your dog will get into a good routine if you persevere, and you will be pleased you put in the effort now. to all of this! Re your 5 year old- I have a 5 and a 7 year old and most of the time I take Honey for her exercise at 6am, but when my OH works early (like this week), Honey and I drop the kids off at school at around 8.30 (there is teacher supervision from then) and go straight to the park from there. I am lucky in that I dont have to leave home until 10am though, maybe thats not do-able for you? Honey LOVES her ball, if I ever have to take the kids we go to the local park and throw the ball for half an hour and do some training (while the kids climb the trees!). She is usually pooped when we get home. Have you tried ball throwing for your dog? She is a retriever - most love it, and when you have kids its a lifesaver when you are short on time. Also, if you are anxious when leaving, you are going to make her anxious. When I leave I give Honey a couple of frozen chicken necks in her bowl, she thinks "whoo hoo, she's leaving here comes the treat!!" and by the time they have finished you are gone, they have been distracted while you are worrying about leaving and they settle down for a rest.
  15. Took some tasty tasty ham for treats to the park today, did some ball tossing AND some recall practice. Also played chasey and treated BIG. She did really well. The naughty bugger did bolt off from me at one point but when I called COME she came back!! Unfortunately she bolted off again before I could grab her , but then did come back again when I called again! Not perfect but at least I am starting to see some results now, which makes a huge difference to me! Thanks for your tips and reinforcement that I am going in the right direction!
  16. Snowball, I came home to a half chewed new credit card today so I'm interested in the answers here! In Honey's "defence" she is not destructive but a mail eater, she likes to suck and chew paper like its chewing gum. Unfortunately she is kept inside when we are at work and we have a mail slot in the front door. We have had to rig up a bag to catch mail - but the system failed today and the new credit card/letter fell on the floor .). 6 bloody letters and it was the only one that fell out. Typical! I have used Kongs and bones before and they are great, but considering we have Honey inside and I dont want raw meat smeared around the place- can anyone recommend toys that drop dry food or are fun? To be honest, I have never found that strenuous morning exercise has made my dogs any less destructive when left alone for work hours.
  17. Saxonpup, we jog together 3 times a week so me running is not very exciting to her. I might try to ramp up her excitement by playing some chasey games, see if that helps. Gspsplease, that sounds like a good idea with the collar grab, I havent heard that before! I have tried the hiding trick- it seems to work quite well when we are somewhere new to Honey, she does a lot of checking in (which I heavily treat ), but a second visit to the same place is a lot less successful. The whistle is looking better and better. Just have to get one!
  18. The penny has dropped- Kavik, your post made me realise that I am just not practising it enough. I thought- yep, I am doing all these things, I wonder when Honey will "get it". BUT... If Im honest with myself, because of the nature of our exercise sessions, I am not reinforcing the recall enough. Having her stay close because she is playing fetch or trying to keep up is NOT recalling. So therefore, I really have only been concentrating on it for the last week or so. I may have to rethink our exercising.
  19. I think she may be a beagle in goldie clothing! She would make a great hunting dog if I was able to channel her behaviour for good instead of evil! You are right, the bolting is the problem. I havent called her after she has bolted, mostly because I am 99% sure that she wont come immediately and dont want to waste the command. I usually wait until I can see that her fascination has waned a little and then call her. Doesnt work straight away but she will do a roundabout recall. Actually I did call out STOP the other day and thats what got her back to me (its her strongest command- when we onlead walk she has to stop and sit when I say STOP). Personality wise she is a bit of a ditz when we train, all enthusiasm with no finesse . She is keen but scatty.
  20. Saxonpup- I have already been trying all those things you mentioned, unfortunately as happy as she is to please, Honey is a bit slow on the uptake. Bless her but she is not the sharpest tool in the shed. Hopefully we will get there sooner rather than later- especially with help from my doler friends. You aren't provided she doesn't cotton on to "run off + return = treat". Some dogs never do. But if it were me I'd go after her and get her. I cant go get her- she is usually running round (barking at the sky ). I wish I could, then she'd get the message: bolt off and you go onlead. But by the time I could get to her she is usually running back to me. I keep thinking that i need to make her understand that running off is wrong. Though perhaps I am looking at it all wrong . Previously I've used correction in training (not with Honey so much though) and there is no way to apply an aversive in this instance (aside from a long line). I guess I should be looking at making her think returning to me immediately is good. Which is what I am trying to do.. Thanks Corvus, thats really kind of you, but Im going to look at buying it- it sounds like a very good investment. 4paws- thanks for that, I'll have a close look when I get a whistle! On our walk today, I took the ball and there wasn't much distraction so Honey was really good. Only problem was, she tends to bolt off for a drink when she is thirsty, its hard to fault her for that but I just dont like her bolting off for it with out me.
  21. Golden Rules- NOOOOooooooo!!!!!! I have heard someone say that before about rescue dogs. I often think about that as she runs off and I stand there slapping my forehead ... Though it is very reassuring to know you are in the same boat. Megan, thanks for the great tips! I totally agree with this- both with the running off risk and the safety- with these non activity focused walks I have been taking her to big parks where she cant run out (she wont run out of my view than god). I still worry though. TLC- I really like the idea of a whistle, especially since I wonder if the COME command might be a bit compromised by now. Where do you get whistles?
  22. Well, I have just recently discovered that Honey's recall is complete shite. Our regular exercise regime involves me jogging with her or me throwing a ball for her. With both activities her recall is pretty good because her focus is on keeping up with me or on the ball. In the last week I have had a cold and I also thought she could do with a break from the strenuous exercise, so we have just been walking onlead on the street to a couple of different offlead parks. I have been using it as an opportunity to improve her recall reliability. I have been doing this all along but have wanted to improve it as she will occasionally bolt off if she sees (for example) plane vapour trails and its can be bloody dangerous depending where I am (we have been in safe/fenced places this week luckily). I have been bringing lots of treats, rewarding heavily, only calling when I know she will come etc. Low distraction levels all is good. However I am having trouble building up to higher distraction- she is just oh so happy to be chasing those vapour trails. So a couple of questions please. 1. When she does do her bolt off, what should I do? I dont call her once she has bolted because I know it wont work. She does come back after she has had her fun and I always praise her for that but I feel that I am rewarding her for bolting off. 2. If I was to use a long line (which is my next step I think) what do I do to get her to come back to me? Give a little tug on the line if I call and she doesn't turn to me? She is taking a very long time to improve on her looselead walking so I am a bit concerned that a long line will just be an extension of that and she wont learn that she must come back. Argh, she is a divine dog, the sheer joy of her bounding around and sniffing at the park, just for the sake of it, is lovely to watch. She is not racing off "giving me the finger" as I have had previous dogs do, but just hasnt learnt it isnt ok. She returns with a look of "wow did you see that, how great was that??!" I need to get on top of this so I can not worry about her getting hurt. For those that dont know, Honey is a 3 year old rescue GR I have had for about 5 months. Her history is such that she did not spend much time out of her yard. Phew that was long, sorry! Hope you guys can help.
  23. You are very severely handicapped being in Brisbane, LB. I think you'd have to fight off all the Sydney DOLers Oh yes, there is fierce competition. btw CW, can I steal borrow her? Just for a little while.
  24. Oh Tilly... this story has me in tears. That poor poor baby. It must break your heart to witness the whole tragedy.
  25. I feel a bit like that too, deelee, but I don't have the energy. Gorgeous pix, B.B. Good point. Actually, I dont think I have the room! Sorry BB, might have to steal CharlesWentworth's little fluffy bum instead.
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