Grey

hey i'm not sure how relevant/applicable or even welcome this comment is- but i'll put it out there anyway lol there is always the possibility of putting an elizabethan collar on your girl - it should (by rights heheh) limit her ability to lick your boy and allow his ears to heal? just a short term option that may help a bit to get that healing process going :-)

for sure! i am very conscious of how the cats are affected throughout the elimination of this behaviour - being much smaller and 'squishier' despite pups best intentions - injuries can and do happen i realise. at the moment i am wearing a treat pouch around the house and redirecting her attention as has been suggested - hopefully i can nip this problem once and for all :-)

thanks so much for the advice - muchly appreciated

hi guys :-) i was hoping i could lay my situation out for you all and hopefully get some ideas on solutions i have a 17 month old gsd (female, desexed) who is coming along in training very nicely. I have a housemate (who gets along her with fantastically) and 2 cats (1 indoor 24/7, one outdoor in day, indoor at night). Now Skylla loves the cats - alot. and they put up with her - she tries to play with them but sometimes a tad too enthusiastically and they get grumpy and move to higher ground. I went thru a few differing techniques when she dived after them if they ran - from crating to 'on the bed' to simply distraction and a few sits and stands and then 'free' but the behaviour never really went away - it is better, but she still is terribly interested in them - no nasty behaviour i stress, simply nosing them and herding them close to her and having to be involved in all that they are doing at the time. Neither of these cats has injured her or fought back (and both have proven to be capable of it with other animals including dogs) so i get the impression they are simply annnoyed at her rather than feeling in danger. Recently i have noticed that if i am not around and it is just the housemate home or in the room, she doesn't chase them or snuffle them or really even look at them - but as soon as i come outside, or enter the room she will run to them and annoy them. She will run outside to the elder cat if he is crying at the door in the morning to go outside, but other than that, he sleeps undisturbed thru the night whilst she sleeps in my room. We noticed this the other day, when the indoor cat was wandering around on a leash in the back yard, whilst i was in the study Skylla slept in shade at housemate's side, as soon as i came outside to the backyard she was incessantly at the cat standing over the top of him and annoying him. when i went in she went back to calm. housemate mentioned this calmness is quite normal for her around the cats, maybe an issue every now and then, but in no way the amount it is when i am home, so i also asked my mother who said when she has had to pop over while i am at work there is no issue either. Is this an attention seeking thing? how do i begin to combat this since it appears i am feeding the behaviour by paying attention and correcting her when she does harrass them? thanks heaps for reading the essay, i appreciate any advice put forward

Cesar made it pretty clear (to me anyway haha) during his seminar that although you can teach your dog to walk on a treadmill it is in no way a substitute for taking your dog outside for a walk - it is a last resort to tide them over till you can take them out and interact i am still to take my girl to my mum's to get her on there to try out his technique for introducing them.. i will let you know heheh

oh no you misunderstand me i understand what you meant, i was just being silly and thought i would share my giggle moment - if i dont laugh about this i will be angry, and there is no point to that as, to be honest, my one-off financial loss is nothing compared to what the trainers that lost their jobs would be experiencing. thanks for clarifying, and your pointers on what to look for, depending on how the training goes at croydon i will likely utilise them in my search

i'm sorry, but i really had to have a laugh reading about how we get what we pay for in terms of future dog training.. approximately 700 dollars paid in advance to ADT and finding myself and pup 4 weeks into level 4 when the sh*t hit the fan doesn't really lend that statement too much credence i LOVED the adt style of training and am really going to miss the two ladies who were pivotal in being able to address some of the behavioural issues i was facing with Skylla, but now its back to croydon. Sorry, no point whatsoever to this post, other than to share the small giggle i had to myself as perusing this thread. carry on now...

yes, that's generally what a vacc is - an introduction of the virus to the immune system so that the body knows how to recognise the virus and fight it off quickly should it present again. It is not uncommon for dogs that are given the intranasal spray to show symptoms of kennel cough - this is the negative side to the positives of it. It shouldn't last too long, but if the coughing becomes distressing for yourself or the dog then give the vet a ring, they may be able to prescribe some cough mixture to alleviate the symptoms hope this helps

lol i was pretty lucky and found a fair few of Skylla's baby teeth, including an impressive canine which i was over the moon about. at the mo they are in a specimen jar from work, and eventually i am going to put them in amber or some other preserving type of thing, maybe use it as a paperweight on my desk or some such :-) my mother reckons i should make a brooch out of them, but i am hoping she was joking in answer to a question before - it is more than common for pups to swallow their baby teeth :-)

i'm sorry you and your boy had such a terrible experience with a vet midol, but try not to tar them all with the same brush - not ALL vets are terrible, most are actually extremely compassionate and try hard to help their patients. Unfortunately, as you appear to have found, as with all professions, a small minority can ruin it for the majority in the public eye. i have worked with some really terrible vets that made me ropable (sp?) with anger as to how they treat their patients , but luckily the clinic i am at now is comprised of incredibly compassionate and sympathetic vets and nurses who care for their patients as they would their own furry kids :-) there is hope out there!

we have just started bike riding with our 10 month old shepherd - we bought a 'walkydog' bike thingo which friends have suggested from their personal experiences. This seems fantastic and appears to have a fair amount of success in terms of keeping her away from feet and wheels and reducing liklihood of bike being pulled by her, apart from the fact she still hasnt learnt to loose lead walk yet so unless pedalling really really fast she lunges and tries to choke herself we have put it away until heel and loose lead training have succeeded.... i will be watching this thread though for tips and tricks - thanks! (disclaimer: being able to get the walkydog bike attachment through work at cost price was prob the only reason we went ahead and spent the money.. although work mates rave about it and their success with the product....) *edit for being unable to spell*

ahh ok.. and no no, it isnt just free run time when we go, it is chasing a tennis ball (i find she has no inclination to wander or be away from me when i have a tennis ball in my hand - but i am not allowed to use tennis balls at dog school lol) and i incorporate a lot of recall work, sits and drops etc, we are just starting to get into the stays, but no food reward, just a throw of the ball as reward seems enough at present. We have not mastered distance commands.. i have her attention and i command, but she returns to me and then does what i ask, so i need a bit more work on that aspect!

really? i will try that, it's just all i have been told and read indicate that the best time to do training like that is after she has gotten all her initial energy out and therefore once she is a little bit more relaxed she will have a higher chance of succeeding (reinforced by her perfect heel all the way home after such runs!).. I am no expert though so i am open to all suggestions from those who have done all this before Thanks i will try that on monday after the sports clubs release the oval again

thanks so much! i will incorporate the suggestions tomorrow after our run in the park thanks again for your time and responses :cool:

thanks for the welcome i think you may be right, and i will bring the big guns out in terms of what treat is being used tomorrow. And i also agree, i was wary of the halti as i knew it would help control her (strength wise) but i dont want her on a halti forever and i almost viewed it as having to train once, then all over again once i took halti off.

I am kind of biased - but yup, she is just lovely!! he he! We are enrolled in group training at the moment, third class this weekend and i will harrass the trainer then as well, but was hoping for some more input as last week we touched on loose lead walking and his advice was toy or food reward, which sometimes works really well, but generally only in the loungeroom where no distractions, outside, or AT dog school and they are ignored. The other option was when she surges to catch her attention with the toy - however she looks then ignores that as well outside the house. Oh - and you are right, i realise that this is not the equipment, nor Skylla's fault, it is all my issue, and my technique, i am open to all suggestions as I really want to improve! Treats - i have tried dried liver (which worked well to teach her to return inside at night after toilet runs) but now doesnt cut it, along with some other nibbly stuff. I am thinking i may have to graduate to raw meat/cooked sausage or possibly roast beef cubes to make it great, although i was using cooked chicken the other day and as we were on the street she ignored it . pls forgive my ignorance, but how do i teach heel at home stationary? do i simply say 'heel' then yes and reward when she sits by my left side?

Hi there I realise that this has probably been done before, but i couldnt find anything that seemed specifically applicable to me, please bear with me if i have overlooked anything, i apologise if i have! I own (am owned? i fear this could be more apt) a 9.5 month old GSD. She has a lovely nature and we did puppy school so she is very well socialised to both people and dogs (cats she loves a little too much :S) and although i was training at home with her, i decided i was not progressing as fast as i would hope, and we are currently due for our 3rd week of basic training this sunday. When we go for walks, we started on a flat collar and as she grew in size and strength changed to a check chain (which is what my family dogs always had as i was growing up). I have had to get rid of the check chain however as I could not actually correct her with it, she constantly surges ahead and pulls to do her own thing, and at the risk of harming her through incorrect use I changed to a halti. This works relatively well - it is def. easier to restrain her when she surges - and when walking down the main street/shops in my suburb she heels to a certain extent (always on the left, head slightly ahead of my knee, but in close) although she will still surge ahead if i relax and get too confident My issue is that, depending on the time of day, where the sun is, the weather, the wind direction, exchange rate etc, she is not altogether food orientated so my attempts to 'yes' and treat as she heels correctly are a bit hit and miss as she hears the yes, then ignores the treat to surge ahead or look in another direction.. I have attempted toy reward instead, simply to get her attention, but dependent on random factors she often ignores that too Is there another way that i am missing? I have tried stopping still when she walks ahead, and she just surges, then stops and sniffs, comes back and circles behind to my left then walks ahead again.. (walks of one carlength have taken over 20 mins ) I turn direction, and she catches up, i 'yes' offer treat and 9/10 she will ignore to walk straight past me!! If by chance she circles to a heel then sits, i reward, cause i would like her to do that heel and sit in some off lead situations, but as soon as i start walking she surges off again. We have (almost) mastered sitting at all road cnrs and crossings and (again almost) mastered waiting for free command to enter and exit doorways and also to eat dinner.. BUT... Walks are not fun instances, however, i know she knows a heel, as once she is tired out (after off lead ball chasing in park or loo-oong walk) she will heel beautifully all the way home . We also have some issues with jumping to greet (especially nanna's who spoil her) but that is improving every day with ignoring and treating once flat on ground in drop or on back for belly scratch. i would really appreciate any assistance/tips etc or even a link to a related thread in case i really have wasted ppl's time :cool: Grey