ChristineX

I've had two male dogs - Quin, ex-stud dog, not neutured - but he was always a pleasure to handle even in the presence of on heat females. However, he was definately a target for any male dog looking for a fight. Duke - desexed at approx 2 years old - rescue dog - no change in behaviour at all - he remained, and remains at 5, a nutcase. However, he stopped getting mugged by other dogs, which for me has been very important. Vet said "he'll be sleepy and wont want to eat" - umm - I had to tie him up to stop the non-stop zoomies, and he stole everything edible in sight. Like everything, there are positives and minuses in getting your dog desexed, and you need to weigh them up for your dog and your situation.

I'd recommend contacting K9Pro - steve courtney. He's a professional dog trainer, very highly thought of here on DOL and often helps people with dangerous dog orders.

Propalin did not work for Kate - but twice weekly a couple of good=o's did = she is intolerant to most meats so is on Z/D low allergen kibble which, it turns out, makes her incontinent. Only meat she tolerates is beef, and only for short term. Makes for interesting ice breaker with new vets .....

My 'favourite' was "I've finished my degree and I'm going back to China and I cant take the dogs" (two jack russels, non sterilised, litter sister and brother) They were 9 months old.

On the whole, i'm happy with duke - no screaming or hysterics. Unfortunately, the small dogs did tick off all the boxes on 'self-propelled toys' which was not good, but we got him in the water (thank you Mason - he really was trying to play with you), and he was trying his best to be sociable with the larger dogs - too much so, he got really frustrated that they didn't pick up on the signals! Thank you guys, it was a great (short) morning out! Dxenion - anytime you want to swap your guy for Duke - just let me know! Loved him in the car park!

and the club in Vic Park too Perth Training and Obediance dog club - (okay, I'm biased being a member)

Hi all, I am thinking of coming - but if I do I will bring Duke - he is under instructions from Deb Nook to start swimming - I figure if I try this with you lot around, someone can give me advice, and someone will be there to pull us out of the water if required - I have NO idea if he can swim! (actually, I can't remember if I can either) Kate gets to stay home this time, with Duke around, she plays bodyguard (pushes other dogs away, which is rather hilarious when the other dog is a great dane cross and she only comes up to its knees). So let me just check - dog, leash, towels, water plus bowls, neck chain to hang car key from - anything else that should come along?

Hi staffyluv, it sounds like the kelpie re-directed onto your staffy - recruiting some kid skateboarders sounds like a good idea, but leave the staffy at home for a while until the kelpie is coping better, then add the staffy in. Try the look at that game, but start with the skateboards well across the other side of the road to begin with. Also check the kelpie out with bikes and prams as well, and see if that noise also affects him. And Happy New Year!

Normal advice is - separation, some people I have read about do a lot of one dog crated, one out and rotate, with any time that both are out there is very close supervision. Also upping the NILIF for both dogs, upping leadership (although mini's can be so damn fast), maybe having separate 'rest spots', ie if they are in a room, each has a designated place to be in (and not,of course, next to each other). I do know where you are coming from, when I got Duke - umm, he's rather dog dominate and quite happy to put holes in Kate's head to prove it. Never more than a puncture of the skin, and I am not sure what I would have done if it had not been clear that Kate absolutely adored him ..... As my rules have gotten clearer, and my leadership better and I now have crates (and Duke will now give a quick look my way before launching into Kate which gives me a chance to say NO) there have been no punctures for about a year and a half. He's quite willing to have noisy snarling 'alpha rolling' when food is involved, though, so I manage that carefully. (explaining this to one's mother, however, is a great deal more difficult) I had a lot of help from duke's dog shrink - but Christmas time its hard to get anyone's attention. But Zamba may be at a time in her life when she wants a lot more space (at 10, Kate no longer wants to know other dogs, she has duke and that is enough for her), and it will take your new dog time to learn all the rules and give her that space. Hopefully much faster than it took duke, although I always think that if I had known more about strong leadership etc, I could have sorted thru his issues in much quicker time. I hope this has been of help

My Chrissie present (from my non-doggy mum) - Structure in Action. I believe it will be read to pieces!

From working in cancer (paperwork side), a lot of small meals, very high in protien and calories. And get onto another vet asap, cancer goes very fast, and if your dog is losing weight fast, the cancer is growing fast too. Six weeks, particularly if the cancer is already comrpressing the windpipe, could see your dog already dead.

You could try a good canine chiropracter. I know of one in Perth, but the commute may be a bit long for you. Duke gets his back put into place on a regular basis these days. the vets just sent me home with painkillers!

Hi Sharna3 :D Your vet has better prices than mine! I got charged over a hundred dollars for the diffuser (got my brother to go online for the collar). It does sound as though the dap was keeping things together, if trouble started after they ran out. Here's hoping peace comes back to your household

Hi Sylvie, you would need to teach them to be on their own. How about starting with a baby gate with one on each side to start with? And take them for walks one at a time, or if your partner is willing, each of you goes round the park in a different direction with them. Cold turkey is a hard way to teach them to be okay on their own. Its a good idea though, as it diminishes stress if something were to happen to one of them. Did anyone suggest using NILIF? And if one pushes in to block you patting the other, say "wait your turn" and go back to patting the original one. You might need to do a fair bit of blocking etc to start with, but they can learn to tone down their resource guarding.

I have irish terriers - but the male (duke) is definately the more dominant dog. and quite happy to put holes in Kate to prove it. Along with learning about reactivity etc etc, I have learnt a lot about living with dog dominant dogs. I think we've been lucky duke doesnt feel the need to show every dog he meets that he is dominant these days, but it only takes two eyeblinks for things to get out of control. (we've moved in with mum, and trying to explain why you don't feed the dogs if you don't crate one of them - she's still in shock at how fast duke gets aggressive in the presence of food) to the OP - what about trying a couple of dap collars? (now called adaptil collars). Like dap diffusers, only set off by the dogs body heat. It may help keep things calmer while order gets re-established. Online is the quickest way (and cheapest) to get hold of them. While they don't work for every dog in every situation, I think acute stress and anxiety could well be the situation they work best in. Good luck. ChristineX

And she knows pretty much everyone in Perth who does behav.modific, so she can always refer you on. On the other hand, 3 and a half years from starting to see Kathy - there was an improvement pretty much straight away, and now this year duke has turned into pretty much a normal dog (vet asked if I'd exchanged him for another dog) I am not sure I will cope!! :D

I got the dap diffuser a couple of days before the dap collar arived - the dap diffuser made a bit of difference, and the collar a massive amount of difference. (thread in Obed etc) But, Kate's problems stemmed completely from stress and anxiety in turning from a house dog into an outside dog, and in her case, this made a difference. Interestingly, Duke, who had no problems converting from inside to outside, chucked Kate out of her crate (its smaller) and took up residence as close to the dap diffuser as he could!! But he is a strange strange dog.

Just to let the readers know, first night with no noise whatsoever!

Well, last night Kate was noisy between 10 and 11 only. so far tonight it is 9.30 pm, and there is lovely peaceful quiet! It would appear that the adaptil collar is indeed helpful in her situation! :D

For those people reading along, the DAP didn't quite keep things quiet, but there is no doubt both the dogs slept well! Kate has also spent her first night with the Adaptil Collar (DAP in a collar) - silly brother bought the medium/large dog one - Kate's neck is actually very small its just the hair that makes it look substantial! The first night - no reduction in frequency, but the duration and loudness/intensity have definately dropped, which makes me think that it is helping regulate her stress and anxiety levels. She is also looking much less stressed in the mornings, and when I come home from work. Duke is in heaven - mum - who does not like dogs - feeds them morning tea and lunch! (cut up peanut butter sandwiches and apples). I will so need the DAP when we all move back to the new house next year!!

Yep, left clothing etc and Kate is crate trained - it just seems to be the absence of my presence when I am on the property! Both crates have now been moved into the shed with the dap diffuser - and we all hope for a quiet night. And hoping that this week sees the barking slowly dwindle to the occasional yap. we'd all be happy with that.

Hi Lavendergirl - because as usual, its not just a dog problem, but also a people problem. I'm going to make much more headway with the dogs, than I ever will with my mum, who at age 72 is tending to a little more paranoia and OCD every year. (not to mention she has all the ductch stubbornnes - push and her heels dig right in) It is her firm opinion - dogs outside, people inside and sleepouts are considered outside. I've already offered to sleep outside - firmly negated! I've got an adaptil collar on order, and my nice vet has sold me a dap diffuser which I am hoping will help until the collar arrives. It does look as though the DAP diffuser is helping, as Kate is currently happy to flake out on her back (like normal) rather than the curled up ball she's been using those few times she settles. My fingers are crossed!

Okay, talked to the dog shrink who suggests trying an adaptil collar (basically a DAP collar) in preference to bark collars since this is anxiety related and a bark collar could well do more harm than good. Anyone know of anywhere in Perth that sells them???

looking at what you have posted, your dog may need canine company. My female Irish Terrier does. Can you 'borrow' a dog for a while? Could someone maybe need a dog babysat for a while, ie while they are in hospital, overseas, have allergic family to stay? Maybe an elderly dog- if yours doesnt need a play companion- could work? Just some thoughts.

Darn it - missed out again! Also seem to have missed out on that polo shirt thread????? Story of my life.