Quickasyoucan

No offence to the OP either, but you have to not only want to change your dog's behaviour, but moreover believe you can. If every time someone offers a tip you say, yes but my dog is special so I can't do that, that's not admitting you see the possibility of change, that's limiting yourself before you even try. Whatever people's belief in methods I think there is general agreement about the role of the owner in either subconsciously (or consciously) influencing a dogs behaviour for the better or for the worse. Until you change your own mindset, not much is going to work for you whatever advice you ar given. Obviously some things are not within the bounds of possibility, my nearly 7 year old staffy x is never going to be an agility or obedience champion, but loose leash walking and calm behaviour on walks or towards other dogs shouldn't be beyond the bounds of possibility for any pet owner - and I am an average pet owner.

Here's an approach you can try: - put a well-fitted martingale or whippet collar on him (not a sloppy fit) - put his harness on him - clip the leash to the harness and walk for 10 minutes, find somewhere quiet and without too many distractions - clip the leash to the collar and work on loose leash walking for 2-5 minutes - go back to the harness and walk how you normally walk - repeat daily, building up the amount of time you do loose leash walking on the collar Make a rule for the rest of his life - if the leash is clipped to the collar, you are going to do consistent loose leash walking training. At all other times, use the harness instead. Could the OP not build up to walking on the martingale with a line or second leash fixed to the harness for backup same way as you might use a martingale for back up on a prong (in case it pops open). It would seem easier to give corrections on a martingale than a harness, I would think the harness just gives more consistent traction for the dog to pull. Certainly that way with my dog when he wore a harness. I've seen too many consistent pullers walking on a loose lead with the right person not to believe this dog could not walk on a loose leash in the right situation. If you have seen it done it really does take less than 15 mins. My own dog pulled consistently and hard for about 4 years. Went to the right trainer, he now walks consistently on a loose leash (on a martingale) not comp heeling but that's not what I was trying to achieve. if the lead goes tight now he selfcorrects. Went to obedience classes at the start of those 4 years, the "trainer" said, he's a staffy he will always pull - uh no

That reminds me even though my dog jumps up on the bed at all other times during the day, when it comes to night time and he wants to go to bed, he waits for me to lift him up. God how stupid am I. ;)

If my dog wants me to get up, usually at some ungodly hour, first of all he will shake his head to make his ears make a flapping sound, if that doesn't work he will go around the bed and rub/bash his body against each side to see if that makes me move. If that fails he will jump on the bed and sit and stare at me. Last thing he will do is stick his nose near my face and lick me! He does the same routine each time, it is so bizarre!! It is like the war of attrition gradually he grinds me down. ;) Bizarrely he has never whined or barked at me (though he certainly can do both), he is like a silent assassin ;)

Mine is on Eagle Pack Holistic. He was itchy on Eukanuba no probs on Eagle Pack Holistic. We get ours from the Natural Pet Store too. They have a range of the "healthy" ones. ETA I see you are in Perth but you coudl have a gander on their website for info.

I hope Shell comes back cos I wanted to ask her about Zero who she has done great things with and we met her at K9 Force's Aggression Workshop hence me wanting to use her as an example as I don't have first hand knowledge of anyone else's dog. I wanted to know if she thinks that Zero woudl exhibit aggression if he wasn't with her. Come back Shell

Sorry meant to add one more thing, I think aggressive behaviour can also depend strongly on the handler. A fear aggressive dog might show few signs of aggression with an experienced to quote cesar "calm assertive" handler, but with an inexperienced fearful owner it might be a whole different kettle of fish. So a dog could be rehomed to a person who either naturally or through experience has a personality that causes the dog's aggression to "disappear" is that a cure or a management strategy? ETA cos I can't spell.

And the problem is that whilst you might be able to get a dog comfortable in a certain situation, how do you know that another different situation that you have not yet encountered might provoke an aggressive response. I find that with behaviour whilst outward patterns of execution might be the same, can be somewhat shifting as to triggers. As an example my own dog used to find cars a trigger for prey drive, I don't remember actively working to supress it, maybe I did (well he wasn't allowed off leash), but gradually it moved to speedboats, then to the infamous skateboards. He is great around skateboards now, but would I trust him if I wasn't there no.

I am really interested too, as Aidan mentioned, as to what is defined as aggression? We have had dogs when I grew up who seemed to like pretty much every dog they came across, but there would always be that one dog who would provoke an aggressive response, by that I mean alert, staring, hackles, posturing. Is that aggression, or is that a response to behaviour shown by the other dog? I always like to think of using "universal precautions" when dealing with meetings between dogs. Even if you consider your dog not to be aggressive, how do you know whether a certain situation, animal etc might provoke a response in your dog? After all we meet people with whom we just do not get along, it is a fact of life. I know it is somewhat off topic but I really would like to understand what is defined as aggression. ETA I don't understand what "civil aggression" means as per the previous topic.

... someone who doesn't like to kid themselves, or their clients. I commend them. I like this statement too. My personal belief is that ingrained behaviours of any type can't be "cured", but they certainly can be managed with appropriate input from the owner and after all that is our responsibility as owners isn't it in the human world where dogs live. Maybe if a dog had a tendency towards certain behaviours at a very young age for whatever reason, that could be "cured" by redirection or some other means but once neural pathways have been burned behaviour becomes ingrained (in humans too). I don't know enough about aggression to comment specifically on that but that's my 5 cents worth from my own experiences (human and dog!).

Now that's what I call commitment. Steve sorted out our problems (well the dog related ones ) will definitely be worth the VERY VERY long drive!

Cosmolo I would say no Linky => http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/sa/cons...2000237/s8.html The Animal Welfare act has a maximum fine for breach of $10k.

You seem very averse to making any changes whatsoever in case it affects how you look. Maybe you should leave the dog at home unless it is strictly necessary. That said, I think the crate idea, covered if necessary is a great one. I remember watching something where they restricted a dogs view and it seemed to work magically to stop them getting aroused. Presumably you could also lash a crate down rather than having to bolt it. I have some friends with a Ute who used a crate to pick up rescue dogs and did just that, they certainly didn't drill holes in the floor of their ute when it was only used every now and then. However, if it is to much trouble ... it sort of comes across from tone of your posts that your dogs are a bit of a nuisance to you.

The issue as I see it is not the fitting of a head collar to a pup, but the impact on the pup physically (they can lead to neck issues) AND the real need for this level of control on a very young puppy. There is no trainer involved here.. just an owner and one that proposes to have this pup walked in head collar by children. There is no way I'd ever allow a child to control a pup with a head collar... they don't have the understanding as to how the collar affects the pup and the potential for injury is too great. I'm not real keen on kids controlling dogs with head collars at all.. kids can be rough. Walk the puppy yourself until she has better manners OR attach a second leash to a flat collar and allow the child to take the second one. Rest assured a motivated pup will lunge and pull on the head collar, not only learning the wrong lessons but potentially doing itself permanent damage in the process. Pups need to be taught manners before children can safely control them. Best Mum do the walking with the kids helping out on a second lead as suggested. Pup will be safer and Mum will have control. Sound advice as usual PF. I have done the second lead thing quite a few times with nieces and friends kids who wanted to "have a go" in a quiet place walking my dog. No way would I ever let them walk him alone as one pull in the wrong direction and it could all go horribly wrong. I have also seen so many dogs fighting headcollars, I just can't see how people can say it is an "excellent tool" and it most definitely IS and adversive. I used to use a harness on my dog, just gave him more traction to pull Since the pup is relatively young if it were me I would be going for a one on one with a good trainer and seeing if I could put a program in place that really worked. Nothing to stop the kids having a practice once that has been established in the back garden, but I wouldn't risk it in public with young kids.

Like others said, I would scale back to something that I knew we coudl achieve and reward for that so we could finish on a good note. I was wondering myself how much our own mood affects a dog rather than the other way round, I would tend to think it is us that are not the constant.

Since I am not a trainer so probably qualify as Joe public, from my point of view, the outcome I want is a happy "balanced dog", I don't care if he wins titles, heels perfectly, I want him to live a good, happy life - that is my goal and I suspect the goal of many people who would be classed as Joe public. The way to achieve that is clearly not the one size fits all method as every individual dog is different (albeit there are obviously some areas of communality), so I would want a trainer who is prepared to use the method that is suitable for me and my dog not someone with an entrenched belief that only one way is the right way. Also not having years and years of training, I want that achieved in the most efficacious, safe (for me and the dog) way. I don't mean I want it all I want it now, but equally I don't want my dog to continue to live in an unbalanced state if there is a quicker method to resolve the problem safely and without harming my dog. To give an example, my own dog was an entrenched "chaser", started off with cars, moved to skateboards. I got him at 10 months or so and I am pretty sure the behaviour was hard wired by that stage. I can only describe him as an addict, he can spot or hear a skateboard a mile off and was always in an uncomfortable state of semi-arousal looking for the next trigger. Even though he was on leash the vocalising, lunging etc not only made it unpleasant to walk him and I feared for something to happen. A year or so on, by a mixture of corrections (not punishment in my eyes) and positive redirection of his prey drive into more acceptable "goals", he is a different dog. The addiction to skateboards has not gone away (I don't think it will) but he knows through the use of corrections, that there will be a consequence if he tries to chase them, so he doesn't he sort of looks as if to say, yeah I am not allowed and moves quickly on. Does he walk around with his tail between his legs, dreading the next correction, no. He strolls along, tension relieved and I truly believe he is a more balanced individual. I also dont believe with my level of skill I could have achieved this on a reward basis only. I could have waived a roasted chicken in his face and he would have chosen the skateboard. I think my relationship with my dog is better and he is leading a much more stress free life, we don't live our own lives without boundaries, we know that if we drive too fast we will receive a correction (from the police), if we bang our heads against a wall it will hurt (its how we learn) why should dogs be any different - I don't view a correction as punishment, I view it as guidance. Anyway I guess what I am trying to say, is I care less about arguments about what a trainer calls themselves, I want someone with an open mind, who clearly loves animals, and who gets the best out of my dog using the methods that work best for him.

I've had it happen once where the links kind of reversed out of each other, do you think that is what is happening? I usually use a loose martingale as back up (kind of like a safety chain on a bracelet), as I know it can happen, though not often and I did think it was usually when the pp was a bit loose though? Maybe some more experience person can shed some light. If the links appear strong though, it would have to be that they are not springing apart unless they are bent out of shape or something

He has a beautiful kind face. I love the solids. Nice of you to make him a fort of his own

I wanted to ask whether cruciate problems are an issue in the breed. I have a friend who has had 2 rotties and both have done cruciates at an early age despite him second time around being extra cautious with weight etc. Admittedly the first dog was from a byb but the second is from a registered breeder. I have also met a few other people with rotties who have had similar issues - again not sure whether they were byb or registered. Also is there a variation in coat as some rotties I have met have quite long thick coats others seem quite smooth.

I always find your posts quite amusing, if a bit long, but I do suffer from the "wordy" disease myself on occasions. On occasions you do come across as arrogant, the written word does not allow for nuances. But it's great that you are aware of that and you don't come across as taking yourself too seriously. It would be a boring world if we all agreed. My only mantra in life is never think you know everything, as you can never stop learning. I am happy to be proved wrong about something, nothing more boring than someone who "knows" they are right and everyone else is wrong. BTW I saw my first wild hare the other day. Never seen one before, was so excited, actually thought of you and yours!

Was this dog here? I am confused. I only ask as isn't the world dog games on? I just wondered if they had dogs from o/s and in that case how quarantine was managed. Also RIP poor dog, I hope that you felt no pain.

An APBT probably hasnt put a child in hospital thats the point. It sure would be In this case? We don't know for sure either way. But bear in mind this was not an attack by an unknown dog in a public place. It occured in the family home. You've got to choose your battles and the odds are pretty evenly balanced on whether breed ID is correct. I honestly think we've got to get past the "was it a pitty or wasn't it" arguments because we're doing the same thing discussing these attacks that the media does.. focussing on the breed. We know that dogs that attack people have a fairly predictible profile of which breed is only one part. What do we know about? The dogs origins.. .raised and socialised well as a puppy, not well socialised or recently acquired. My guess is No. 2 or No. 3 Age and sex: profile says young, male and entire... but no reporting on that. How was dog living? Inside with kids, outside, was it exercised and trained? And just for my interest.. I wonder what its name was... I bet it was a tough one. Get the media to focus on the idea of the profile of a dangerous dog (God knows they love it for criminals) and they might just get past breed. We all know such dogs are made, not born. Now to get the media to grab onto that. And last but not least.. where was the adult supervion? In this case, it sounds like it was there, but not effective. :D I read the pit bull placebo and it really raised some interesting points in relation to media reporting and how it has changed over the years. Talked about how reporting in the early 20th century would often actually give some background to the dog, the social situation and even in some cases mention the role of the victim in taunting the dog. Talks about now how a dog that can be referred to as a "family dog" has on more than one occasion been found to be a half-starved abused chained animal that just happens to "reside" at the same address as the family. But it also does say that over the decades the bloodhound, the GSD, the rottie and now the pitbull have suffered because the more that a breed gets portrayed as tough, the more it attracts the wrong kind of owners who keep dogs in the kind of conditions that fosters a climate for such attacks. I would love to see a non-breed specific study done on percentage of serious dog attacks and the relationship with socio economic status, living conditions, criminality and the like. I believe it has already been ascertained that a very high percentage of fatal dog attacks in USA are by chained dogs.

I 100% agree. But why is it then that time and time again we have the labrador being touted in the media as the perfect family pet (no effort required and fine for the novice) and time and time again I come across labs that are either grossly overweight or bad mannered because the owners seem to believe that no training is required and just because their large dog isn't aggressive bad manners is okay. Where is this myth coming from? I completely understand why labs are popular they are great dogs but surely lab breeders must be dismayed by the fact that they fall into the hands of people who are unable or unwilling to give them the lives they deserve. I like labs, I like the breed description of labs, I love to see labs working be it as gundogs, seeing eye dogs or drug detector dogs, but there are too many members of joe public out there who own labs who shouldn't, or don't understand that they can sometimes be a large boisterous dog that needs correct training and upbringing. ETA: clarification.

Ive got a K9 Force leather one too though it is my second because I chopped my first in half with a pair of very large tree clippers That was completely user error and nothing to do with the quality of the lead. Unfortunately nothing anyone can do about idiots Lead quality is v important to me. I met a poor lady whose daughter had lost her beloved stafford at a busy junction near Moore Park. She was waiting at the lights with the dog on lead, dog saw something across the road, pulled, lead snapped and dog went under a car. So sad. I wouldn't risk a cheap lead particularly if you have a strong breed who is given to the odd lunge.

The dogs on page 4 are deeply offended ;) Well there is SBT 123's Brett's pic in the Stafford forum with his little crown jewels on display, do you mean that kind of sexy