sheena

I am not sure how this would compare to using a voice marker or clapping, but using the clicker, I have just shaped (no voice or body language) my girl in less than 5 minutes, & half a handful of kibble, to "go to mat" lie down & stay there until released & she even tossed in crossed paws for good measure. This is the first time I have tried to teach "go to mat" & not one word was spoken.

Thanks Buddy1....I don't think the metal drums are acceptable any more as the ANKC rules state that the one metre tunnel must be "flexible". I need one that I can lend to the club for training & competition.

I have found this one here Collapsible Chute, but it is probably a little expensive, but if anyone can recommend their quality, I could have another look :)

The clicker is used for marking very small increments when teaching a new behaviour ie. shaping & is ALWAYS followed by a treat. It would be very hard to be as precise with a clap & follow it up with a treat EVERY time. Maybe you don't understand the principles behind using the clicker. You can use a word like "yes", but remember if you are going to use this as your "marker" then forever more...every time you say "yes" even if you are not directly addressing your dog, you are going to have to reward the dog, just like you do when you use a clicker. Otherwise the true meaning (as a mark) will lose its value. I reserve the word "yes" for marking such things as correct weave pole entry or correct obstacle when training discrimination & she has come to know that when I say "yes" in training then it is the green light for her to continue on & somewhere down the track she will receive a reward. Does that make sense It is not hard to remember to put a clicker in your pocket or treat pouch every time you know you are going to be training. I have them all over the house :laugh: I would suggest you get hold of a little book, from Clean Run called "Clicker Training for Dogs...getting started" by Karen Pryor.

Thanks Nekhbet. I have one of their normal yellow tunnels & it is not lasting as well as the vinyl one I bought from ADAA. It has a bit of trouble keeping it's shape. I din't know that they made the collapsible chute as well. Thanks for the link :)

Thanks Vickie. I will drop her a line. Years ago when I wanted some of those tunnel bags, I couldn't find anyone in Oz who made them & had to get them from America. Thanks again for your help. :)

I am wanting to buy a competition grade collapsible chute. I already have one of the cheap nylon ones, but for proper training I would like to get a proper one that meets competition regulations. I can justify the cost, as our local club doesn't have one yet & they could use ours for training & competition. So any ideas

In snooker, I found the hardest part was getting the dog to actually run past obstacles which would normally be taken, so she wouldn't accidently take the same red twice, for example. So I taught my girl "side" so now in the middle of a game, I can call her "to side" & tap my leg which side & she will come into me & run close, ignoring all obstacles & focusing on me, till I tell her to take the right obstacle. It has helped heaps. I love all the games, now that I understand them...you just have to train your dog accordingly :)

Tamara, to be quite realistic, you could put a questions on here titled "I am thinking of feeding my dog prime chicken breast" & you would still get negative comments. Not every food agrees with every dog, no matter what the brand. For every dog that doesn't do well on BH there is probably 100 out there that are thriving on it. My dogs do well on it & have been on it for two years...we sell it to others & havn't had any negative feedback form our clients, but have had lots of positives. It's what works well for your dog that you have to decide.

She only gets about 50% dry black hawk, which she has been on for two years. The rest she gets is turkey neck daily, homemade, healthy training treats, & often fish, meat or eggs. The first time in 5 years so that's not too bad. Her stools are lovely & firm & she has to work to get them out...never runny & only a couple of times a day. I did read somewhere, or maybe it was the vet that told me (can't remember) that it was a genetic thing.

Took her to the vet today & Yes, she had blocked anal glands. Vet only charged my $26, so for that, I don't think I would bother doing it myself. How often does it need to be done...I forgot to ask the vet. I guess it depends on the dog, & every case is different.

No he doesn't look to be the size of a staghound, but I did say wolfhound x before I saw the picture. He doesn't look to be much taller than my BC boy, but my guy is only 21 kilos & very fit. Please IF he is a pure BC then get a heap of weight off him. He is probably in pain from sore joints & that is why he is snapping at you.

Thanks everyone. I googled it & came up with a couple of Youtubes on "how to". So it's off to the vet on Monday. My poor girl...I am so used to her either smelling like roses or dead goanna, depending on what she has been rolling in.

He looks very much overweight to me. I mention that he might not be the breed you think he is, as it could be relevant as to why he is behaving the way he is...maybe...maybe not. Other BC people can come in here & correct me if I am wrong, but I have never seen a pure BC with those colourings before. He looks a lot like my daughters dog who had the heart attack, possibly brought on by being overweight. You were asking in another thread about your dog having problems breathing, so you definately know it has nothing to do with him being the size he is ?? If you care about your dog & want him to be with you for many years to come, then get some weight off him.

YUK...not looking forward to doing it myself

My daughter had a BC x Lab & at the most she weighed 30 kilos which was about 3 kilos overweight according to the vet. She collapsed & died suddenly at the age of 4 There is a lovely dog at our training who looks like a very large short-haired BC, but he is crossed with a wolfhound & there is no way he would weigh 40 kilo. ETA...in an earlier post you were worried about your dogs rapid breathing. As I said above, my daughter's 30 kilo BC x Lab, suddenly collapsed & died at the age of 4, from a possible heart attack. So if your dog is pure border collie, then you need to get its weight down to about 25 kilos, even if it is the tallest BC on record. If your vet says it is a good weight at 37.5 then you need a second opinion

Mine too....& they are not small BC's...how tall is he at the shoulder He sounds more like a wolfhound cross or something...What was his breeding...who were his parents How do you know he is a purebred

Thanks CavsRcute...there is nothing leaking & her bum appears quite clean, though I have noticed it a bit red once after she had been scooting, but only once. I have noticed that smell in friends dogs, both Golden Retrievers, & I have often thought it was because they live in small backyards, are fed rubbish food & their poop isn't always picked up. But that isn't the case with my girl, so I think I will pop her in to the vet. :)

I don't have KCC's but we sell BH to a few people who do (one is a breeder) & they keep coming back for more. Just get a small bag to start with & introduce it over about a week.

My BC girl for the last couple of weeks has slightly smelled of poo. It's not that she has any poo attached to her fur. She has been bathed & swims every day. Even after five days at the beach she still had the "poo" smell. Her coat is lovely & healthy & her poos havn't changed...they are still nice & firm & only a couple a day. She is bum scooting a bit, but has been wormed. I was wondering if it may be her anal glands, though I thought if it was, then she would smell really rotten. Nothing has changed in her diet & she doesn't fart or anything like that....just a slightly smelly bum.

I noticed this when I was a steward in the CD ring. A very experienced obedience/DWD competitors dog chucked in a few tricks in the heel pattern. It was the happiest dog in the ring though. Yep.....my girl does this & that was the end of any more obedience competitions for her :laugh: Mind you, her dancing is also coming undone, because she keeps pre-empting what I am going to want her to do & makes up her own routine. :D It is very hard to keep a straight face.

Anyone new going this year that hasn't been before & are all the usual's going??? :) We'll be there & have our new dog, Cricket, running this year in the Starters events Hope it's not as cold as it was last year ETA On my original entry, I put down that my second dog would be being handled by my OH who has joint membership with me. I am now being hit with an additional $40 fee for putting him down as the second dogs handler. Is this the normal thing. I have seen lots of dogs just being handed over to someone else to run on the day & I don't see them paying an additional fee. Has anyone else had to pay a fee for the 2nd handler.

This is what worries me about using it for thunder, as it is usually hot & humid when we get the thunderstorms in the middle of summer & I am worried she will overheat, especially since some of the storms go for hours

What size did you buy? I just brought home a large tonight to experiment with the Toller. It's Large size. I have just bought some velcro today to add to it.

Thanks...I think I will add an extra row of velcro. :) I brought it to fit her length, but she is really quite skinny under all the fur, even though I have been rudely told she is fat