Michelleva

In answer to your question, this dog had no interest in the soccer ball. My son was off chasing it maybe 20 metres from me and the dog. He never looked at the ball, he only had eyes for my dog. The reason he ran into my legs is becauses he was trying to get to my dog, and my dog got scared so tried to get as close as possible to me. Not once did my dog bark, or even look at this dog till it was charging for us.. It feels like some people think I'm at fault here, thats really disappointing. I'm a pet lover and wish the dog no harm, I would just like all owners to behave in a responsible manner. I have had a couple of occasions where my dog has slipped the lead, I've called her and she's come straight back.. and don't worry she's not perfect and neither am I, far from it actually. I'm really sorry if you thought I was blaming you in any way, it was not my intention at all. I wasn't saying you or your dog did anything wrong. I thought I'd indicated the Staffy guy should have done more on a lot of levels. The Q I asked about if we notice any behaviour like the one you described was not implying blame or a failing on your part, just a genuine Q about wanting to know when to act (for my own knowledge) My sincere apologies again for any hurt caused. No need to apologise, your question was genuine and taken as it was intended.

Michelleva, you have my understanding. OK, even if it's accepted it was accidental in that the dog broke its lead to charge you. The owner bears taking responsibility for the consequences. Your leg was barrelled into, causing real pain and you were understandably shaken at a dog charging you & your sheltie. I would expect an apology from the man, genuine concern if you'd been injured and checking that you were OK, before moving on with his dog. Thank you Mita.. thankfully my foot is fine.. he showed no concern for me or my dog.. he just made a hasty retreat... but I haven't been keen to take my doggy for a walk since then..

This is copied from the casey council website, which is where I reside. What about unleashed dogs that cause a nuisance? If your dog rushes at, chases, bites or attacks a person and/or another animal, you may be liable for any damages your dog/s causes. It may also include an incident being investigated, for any alleged breaches under the Local Law and / or Domestic Animals Act 1994 No.81. Infringement notices may be issued or the matter may referred to Court. It is important for dog owners to remember that they must exercise their rights with common sense and that includes making sure their dog is under effective control and able to be restrained if required. Therefore I reserve the right to judge ANYONE who comes near me and doesn't have effective control over their dog.

In answer to your question, this dog had no interest in the soccer ball. My son was off chasing it maybe 20 metres from me and the dog. He never looked at the ball, he only had eyes for my dog. The reason he ran into my legs is becauses he was trying to get to my dog, and my dog got scared so tried to get as close as possible to me. Not once did my dog bark, or even look at this dog till it was charging for us.. It feels like some people think I'm at fault here, thats really disappointing. I'm a pet lover and wish the dog no harm, I would just like all owners to behave in a responsible manner. I have had a couple of occasions where my dog has slipped the lead, I've called her and she's come straight back.. and don't worry she's not perfect and neither am I, far from it actually.

My dog hadn't even noticed this dog, until he was in her face. We were miles away in the playground, he was initially on the other side of the oval. If anything this dog, was VERY interested in my dog, the owner kept yanking on the lead, because he was staring at my dog in an obsessive manner. I was aware of it from the second it entered the oval. I stupidly believed that because it was restrained it would be ok, obviously not. I don't think the dog was aggressive, because once he got to us, he just stood over my dog, but who knows what his intentions were.

Sas, don't you think the owner has some sort of responibility to teach the dog the COME command.. this wasn't an 8 week old puppy, it was probably an 8 month old tank! I also have the right to walk my dog in public without being charged by yet another dog that an owner can't control. If you can't control a MUSCLEY strong willed dog, don't own one! Ok that the end of my venting.

I read the link and it was interesting.. basically I should be standing tall and saying NO in a loud but assertive voice.. there's only one problem when I get scared, I freeze up, I am unable to say anything. I've been like that my whole life.. and something I need to work on. I think carrying an umbrella to use to block a dog could help. I do want to say that although I've been charged by these dogs, they haven't gone to attack me or my dog.. not so far anyway, but the rushing at me, scares me half to death. And the owner was sorry, its not like he was intentionally letting his dog run off lead, I was just in too much shock to have a real conversation with him, I was actually shaking.

He said it was a puppy, I don't know how old, I didn't hang around for a friendly chat. But it felt like someone rolled a boulder into the back of my legs.. I'll check out the link.

I was trying to pick my sheltie up as soon as I saw it charging at us. But he was there in literally 1 - 2 seconds. He certainly didn't seem vicious, but still scared the crap out of me. I think I better ice my foot, its really sore in one spot. I think a big stick or an umbrella might be necessary. Its sad that you have to think about things like that.

This is the second time in the last few weeks I've had an out of control dog charging at me and my dog... We were up at the local footy oval.. I had my 6yo son with me and we were kicking a soccer ball around with the dog, then we went to the playground. I saw him arrive, with the dog on a lead, but I could see this dog kept looking at my dog.. but it was miles away and on lead so I didn't worry too much. Then we were leaving, the dog broke the lead and just charged at me and my dog.. he slammed into my legs that hard, he knocked one of my slip on shoes off. I'm lucky to not get bowled over. I was trying to pick my dog up, but he was there in less than 2 seconds.. It looked like a staffy and the guy said he broke the lead, of course had no recall. He was yelling at me from the oval he won't do anything.. well stuff you mate, I'm not taking any chances... it really shook me up.. I'm still shaking. Thank God my son wasn't close to me. My ankle still hurts, I think I rolled it a bit. The guy made a hasty exit.. I suspect he was feeling rather guilty. The dog was wearing a cheap looking harness.. and the thing was 100% muscle... I think he needs a lesson in how to restrain a dog like that.

Just want to send some positive vibes for your girl Ness. We went through the luxating patella surgery with our sheltie, she ended up with 2 surgeries and it hasn't been successful. Even with all the time and rehab, I followed the vets advice to the letter and she somehow damaged the knee and now has a permanent limp. Its a hard road, so my thoughts are with you.

Thanks guys, she's incredibly cute.. but no longer ruling the roost here. We're not there yet, but definitely seeing improvement. The times she's really escalated has dropped dramatically. I only remember hearing the real fast woo woo woo bark(howl) thing once this week. She seems to be at her most alert/excited when she does that. As I keep saying to hubby she didn't get this way overnight, and it won't be fixed overnight either, as long as I see things getting better each day, I'm happy. I'm training hubby at the same time, so its an interesting excercise! :laugh:

At dog obedience we were taught to have the dog on lead, get it to sit and focussed on you then start running backwards, calling the dog to come at the same time. When the dog comes, you reward. It worked for our dog.

I would just like to post a bit of a positive update on my yappy fluffer... I took your advice Erny and have been using the word enough, she's starting to respond to the word on its own, which is HUGE!! This morning we had a major breakthrough, we have a little terrier thing that lives next door, he barks quite a bit too and when he barks, Georgia barks back.. well just now he's been barking, I was watching her, fully expecting her to react. Her ears went up, then nothing... absolutely NO REACTION... And it hasn't been that long that I've been working so intensely with her.. just proves my theory, she's a smart one, probably smarter than me.. LOL This is my smiley girl.

I used this as a part of my technique with my own boy whilst he was growing up and learning what a territory trespass was (and wasn't). If he barks now, it is usually only once (unless a trespass is still threatened) and then simply runs to see me, wherever I might be in the house. If you can improve things this way, I think that is a bonus. I like my dog to know that barking is ok under certain situations. However, unfortunately some dogs are way over the top and the pressure of the neighbourhood can be overwhelming for everyone. ETA: You are SPOT ON (refer my highlights). ETA: Try putting a word in to teach her to stop. I use the word "enough". It has a carry through to different things now, in different circumstances. In my instance (it might not suit yours) my boy is only "in trouble" if he barks beyond the word "enough". This doesn't work for dogs whose barking issues extend to times when owners are not home. Thanks Erny, I will add the word, enough seems appropriate too. Well today has been a successful day. She had a couple of times where she got really worked up, but I nipped them in the bud. I was outside doing some stuff and enjoying the sunshine so I thought its the perfect opportunity for her to continue learning. At one stage she got really worked up by kids in one of the neighbouring yards, so I bought her crate outside, put her in and ignored her. She continued barking in the crate, which I ignored. At the time it felt like ages, but it was probably 5 mins, I just kept doing my own thing. Then I realised she's quiet AND calm. So I let her out again. After that, she would let out one yap, then come running sit at my feet waiting for a treat.. :laugh: she's a smart dog, and I don't believe for a second that she can't learn the appropriate behaviour. I do feel responsible for letting this behaviour go on this long. I was really strict with her when we adopted her, I was determined to not own a ratbag annoying dog. Then she had health issues, two knee operations to be precise and we all felt so sorry for her, we let her get away with much more than she did in the beginning. But a few months ago I realised she's happy, she's not in pain and she's living in the moment. So we need to do the same, at that point the pity party stopped. Now its onwards and upwards, I'm committed.. because IF I can have a nicely behaved dog, hubby might let me get a second one in the future.. so there's something in it for me and Georgia.

This is my pedigreed Sheltie.. she looks VERY similar to the one in the pic.

Thank you Zug Zug.. I do have the benefit of working from home, that helps a lot. She just had her first woof woof at the back door, she came straight away when called, then she sat and calmed down and got a treat... After her treat she sat at my feet and forgot what the woof was about. Now I need to stay consistant and I feel we'll get on top of it. I think the trick is to call her before she escalates.

Well not really, the house is really open plan. She usually carries on at the back door. I can close the door to make it a bit harder for her, but there's not much else I can do. Our kitchen, dining and family room is all one open plan room and where we spend most of our time. Hubby is out excercising her now, so she'll be pretty tired which helps a lot too.

How exactly would you cross a collie with a pom??? Is it even possible.. there's quite a size difference in those breeds.. its more likely to be a sheltie or sheltie cross IMO.

The dog looks remarkably like my tri-coloured sheltie... albeit a lot fatter. :laugh: Either way the doggy did good!

Thanks for the input guys, I hear you all. I'm not rushing out to buy a collar, but wondered if it could help her. For now I'll continue to train her using positive reinforcement and see how it goes. Its just the neighbour on one side she goes crazy at.. and they're not nice people so I don't want to rub them the wrong way. One thing I find is if I go outside with her, she's so much better. My feeling is I need to keep her focussed on me and not every little thing that goes on around her. Today she's getting all her food hand fed as a reward for good behaviour.

See a barking sheltie can be a good thing! :laugh: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2106218/Real-life-Lassie-Dog-saves-pensioners-life-hears-dementia-sufferer-tapping-pipe-following-fall.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

What about the citronella collars? I was looking at this one. http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/MULTIVET-INNOTEK-ANTI-BARK-CITRONELLA-SPRAY-DOG-COLLAR-/300641789193?pt=AU_Pet_Supplies&hash=item45ffa5a509 ETA - the training I've been doing with her has worked this week. I'm no longer getting worked up by her barking, just calmly calling her over, getting her to sit and treating her. At the moment she thinks all her Christmases have come at once.. she's getting bits of cut up carrot, they're her favourite. :laugh: I'm doing the same if she starts carrying on outside. She can be outside for 2 hours and I don't hear a peep, but other times she can be bad straight away. I think for the next few weeks I'll continue the positive training that I'm doing and see how we go. Shelties are sensitive little dogs, so the more positive I can make it the better. Another thing I'm trying is NILIF.. now every morning before she's allowed outside, she gets a 5 min brush, which she hates with a passion but tolerates because she's figured next is fun run around time.

I have a 2yo sheltie who is by definition a yappy little dog.. she doesn't bark all day and night by any stretch but she's very reactive to any noise that the neighbours might make, or if someone walks past the house. If she's outside she will almost attack the fence if she hears them in the backyard. She is an inside dog, but even when she's inside she can escalate very quickly. She has a high pitch bark and sometimes she goes woo, woo, woo and it almost sounds like a high pitch howl. In the past I've yelled at her, said NO, clapped hands, but none of it has really worked, if anything it makes her worse. One thing I've figured with her is I need to use a lot of non-verbal ways to train her. Any sound just excites her and when she's excited she barks. Actually I think she barks for every emotion she has. Soo... I've been thinking about getting a anti-bark collar, I know some are really expensive and there are cheap ones on Ebay. Can anyone recommend one that works well. I have no problem with a dog giving a warning bark, she just lacks the ability to stop, she just keeps going. The last few days I've been experimenting with being super positive. When she starts barking for no good reason, like the neighbours turned on a tap I call her in a happy voice and when she comes and sits, I give her a treat. At that point she forgets all about what she was barking at in the first place. Any info or advice is appreciated.

Now the cats are onto the fleece and are also having a good sniff. I've put it in the garage for now, we don't need any farm animals in the house. LOL I was going to have a go at spinning it.. that should be an interesting excercise with all my pets hovering over it. :laugh: And I agree its definitely the herding instinct.. she's probably confused why the smell isn't moving.. ETA - I officially an in love with alpaca's. The ones I met were so friendly and one was very dog like. She would come when called and got right up to my face, was happy to be patted. I also met a 5 day old baby, he was running around the yard like a little kid, just amazing animals.