wuffles

Go Charlie! We have noticed something similar with our boy who came to us quite the scaredy-dog. He's grown in confidence so much that he's actually becoming a pain in the bum Although Ava annoys him, he loves having another dog to boss around and who fawns over him

Our boy doesn't particularly like most new places, especially other people's houses, but he's still an easy and lovely dog to live with. He's great with people and other dogs, but when we got him at 3 years old he hadn't been exposed to much and was scared of plastic bags, pots and pans, phones ringing, microwave beeping, traffic... he now doesn't even flinch if we drop a pan on the floor close to him (it did take two years to get him this far). He still won't walk on slippery surfaces, and he can be cautious when put in situations he hasn't been in before. He's happy in his own company and not a velcro dog, but that's not a "problem" as far as I'm concerned, that's just him. He's a low maintenance, social and friendly dog with a few quirks A lot of dogs don't turn out how we expect, but that doesn't make us love them any less :D

I am not an expert, I have only met a few. I've met some that are confident and outgoing and some that are more timid. I was researching TTs when we got our puppy and I didn't read anything about them being timid, so it may just be a fluke that I've met some shy ones

Oooh, I forgot about TTs, great little dogs The only thing I'd be careful of (although this is the same with all breeds really) is to make sure you get a confident puppy for dog sports, as I have met some very shy TTs.

I also like the idea of corgis, swedish valls and collie rough. Even though the collies are larger, the ones I have met would be relatively easy for a child to handle.

You mean other people can get their dogs to pose together WITHOUT treat bribery?

She can borrow Ava for a few days to see what some Aussie pups are like Even if they have sweet mismarked faces ;) I think taking Mindy to uni with you is setting her up nicely for her possible next life I think that most dogs are happiest when they are with you, even if it's doing something boring. Edited to add: Does Mindy know many tricks? Not sure if you're allowed to teach them, but I find that my OH, although he loves Ava, gets annoyed with her puppiness often. I encourage him to run through her tricks and he has fun doing that and gives her cuddles afterwards because it's so cute. Play dead, roll over, etc. are ones that seem to impress people.

I will admit I have a present-giver as well and have received a poo gift a few times Thankfully she doesn't eat it, just gives it to her mummy.

We found one of our Kongs completely submerged in a puddle of water the other day.

Completely normal and IMO good behaviour.

I love the play bow one!

Mine would both eat until they popped.

I use Filtabac.. I like it because it has a nice consistency, thick enough to apply easily. It's also pretty affordable and doubles up as an antiseptic for minor grazes and cuts

What a wonderful tribute to Paddy. My little girl is smart, and naughty, but I hope some day she grows up to be just like Paddy.

I think Ava's tongue was out because she was eating in her sleep And Satchmo's eye is like that because he was asleep, but the skin was pulled too tight for the eye to close properly I love my spethal puppies.

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How about Eloise? I don't think it's French but it sounds like it

I have one very, very stubborn boy and one very compliant happy girl We call our compliant dog "human smart" and our stubborn dog "dog smart". The main thing he does which I would call stubborn is ignoring known commands, even when he has been consistently rewarded for doing the right thing, and been ignored or punished (eg. put outside) for not complying in the past. He knows how to work it with other dogs and get his way with people through his own methods. He's that dog that all the other dogs follow and copy. He is the type of dog that, when recalled, will come and sit a metre away so that you can't reach him to put him back on leash. I would also agree in lacking motivation (or just a case of needing a different motivation than most dogs). The only time he ever gets excited about training is when I am also training our girl and he wants a piece of the action. I would love to have a really experienced trainer work with him for a few weeks just to see what they could get out of him.

Some people at my club have dogs that work really well with halters, with good focus and enthusiasm. I've seen some that shut down and some that just calm down.

Um... I got asked if I was a beginner today too remember :laugh: In all honesty, I think excitement at the start of an obedience class isn't something to be too worried about, especially at Elbie's age. Sure, it's annoying, but they are still young and it's a highly stimulating environment.

Ava's puppy license ran out at about 6 months. A little warning turned into a roar and a pin after that

I feel your pain as I had ACL surgery in May and at the time had a 5 month old puppy! Thankfully my puppy's pulling is pretty much under control now at 8 months, and I can walk both her and my other dog together without being worried about falling over. I still avoid hills and busy areas when I have both of them, though If I were you and you are feeling you cannot get good, consistent advice, I would get a behaviourist in to assess the situation and help you put a training program in place. Someone on here will have a recommendation for a good behaviourist in your area if you ask.

http://www.agilityclick.com/prod158.htm http://www.wagschoolbooks.com.au/shop/book...ty/wsblmb1.html http://scoobydogs.com/store/product.php?pr...=253&page=1 I am also in the process of reading "Click to Calm". Even though it's really targeted towards aggression, it's also useful for arousal in general. Edited to add: I use a front attach harness on my girl when she is likely to get very excited, and although it is brilliant and saves my arms, I would be careful with a really aroused dog as my girl has done flips and somersaults and landed in many awkward positions as the harness has restricted her normal movement. It did help me a LOT with being able to reinforce good behaviour, though, as my girl was also insensitive to a martingale. Now that she has learnt the correct behaviour with the help of the harness, she responds well to martingale corrections most of the time.

I can't help as Satch does the opposite... draaaaaaaggggssss really slowly when he knows we're on the way home