Zug Zug

I'm so glad I saw this thread! I would never have thought of a onesie but that is a fantastic idea - I'm going to try it this year with my two. I too have trouble with grass seeds in the yard. We have spent years trying very hard to get rid of that kind of grass from the garden - got a big shock when we moved to this house and started having this problem - we had no grass at all in our previous garden so no grass seeds and no problems. My bichon got very sick when a grass seed got deep into his ear in our first year here. I'm paranoid about it now. Off to buy a onesie to fit him - I wonder if they'll let me bring him along for a fitting!?

I take Polaramine for my allergies. They leave me SERIOUSLY dopey - and I'm normally a fairly motivated person. I had to take one at a dog trial last year. Had just finished the stays with my dog in CCD, and had a while to wait until the presentation (we passed - a miracle that I worked a very long time for). Anyway, there was all this dog hair in the air and it was starting to get to me so I took a tablet and that was it - I just sat down then thought 'I'll just lie down for a minute' and I fell fast asleep on the grass. Dog went to sleep by my side. Didn't wake up until someone was trying to drive their station wagon onto the oval and they had to wake me up to move me. Luckily, we didn't miss the presentations. And this is typical of my experience with Polaramine - but it's the only drug I've found that works with my allergies so it's better than being sick. But yes, it is a seriously dopey-making medication so I think trying a change may be a good option. I also think giving obed training a break and after a while just doing less serious things (perhaps some silly tricks) to keep things light-hearted is also very good advice. If the dog's switching off and you're stressed you'll be putting pressure on your dog and that just leads to more stress in my experience.

Tried a halti? Worked brilliantly on my puller - she used to pull until she choked and just keep pulling and keep choking. Halti on - problem solved instantly. Without it she would never have got walked she was awful. Some people seem to think they're harsh but I've never understood why. But then my puller only weighs 11 kgs so perhaps on a 40kg dog it's a different issue.

Reading what you've written here it sounds like you're feeling quite attached to this dog already. Just remember that a smart, playful, willing dog can also be a fearful/possessive/aggressive dog if the right buttons are pushed. These positive behaviours do not mean the aggression is not a serious problem. I actually think a dog growling at a person is a serious issue. I also know that dogs with aggression issues are not necessarily bad dogs (I have one). But I also know that taking on a dog with aggression issues means 'day in day out' vigilance for the new owner - for the rest of that dog's life. In a rescue situation, many people will be unable to handle that responsibility. It can be very challenging. The advice from others to have the dog assessed carefully is really sound advice. Gives you a more objective basis for a decision about what to do about this dog. Maybe you're a little close to the situation to step back and have a clear look (I would be) - hence the confusion you've written about here (perfectly understandable). And I agree with you that the fact that the previous owners said no previous growling means little. Sounds like they weren't dog-wise people and they would be dealing with guilt etc. too so I think your instincts to treat that information as suspect are spot on.

Yes! Agree with all that - and in particular the bit at the end about staying on the front foot with your neighbours. Tell them everything you're doing to make the situation better. Tell them how concerned you are and how you respect their need for peace and quiet. Write to them or visit them in person if need be - it reminds them that you are a human being and that will help remind them to treat you with respect in return. I had a similar problem once. I wrote to all my near neighbours apologising profusely for the noise my young dog had been making (now the silent one, ironically - he was easily fixed). I told them everything I was doing to address the problem, gave them all my home number to contact me if they needed to, and encouraged them to make contact with me if they had specific needs or concerns. (They were basically safe people - home number thing obviously a judgement call.) Some of them did contact me - mostly to say 'that's great' and to let me know how supportive they were and to thank me for the letter and the efforts I was making. Which was such a relief - I'd been starting to feel like a woman in a bunker with 2 kids and a dog. When in fact it was quite a friendly neighbourhood and all worked out really well. Hang in there - and I agree with the comments about Cesar Milan's work too. Exercise and discipline are so important! And so many small dogs are really smart so their brains needs to be made busy and their bodies tired to help them relax.

Not an easy issue to deal with - particularly given the problem behaviour happens when you are out of the house and therefore not available to respond. One of mine has bad separation anxiety - she's utterly inconsolable when left alone (fine when my other dog is with her). Not a problem I've been able to eradicate except for the lucky fact that she is bonded both to us and the other dog - so her panic attacks occur only rarely. But I did have a situation early last year where my other dog was away overnight (in the pound - don't ask) and she slept in our bedroom overnight but had to go outside for the following morning. I'd left notes for all the neighbours warning them that she'd be making some noise, no we were not torturing her and would have the problem under control by lunchtime. Nonetheless when i returned home before lunch with my other dog (thank goodness!) my lovely next door neighbour was standing at my gate talking to my crying lonely dog trying to console her and stop the crying. Nothing worked - until she saw her little buddy again. Can get to be a bigger problem as they get older in my experience. Good idea to have a professional trainer to give you some advice. I think there is a professional trainer on this site called 'K-9' something - worth sending them a message to ask for suggestions to tide you over?

Thanks for the info - glad to hear it's not just us with this difficulty. We're not pitching for the higher levels of obedience. My little guy is 11 years old and I won't be taking him that far. Perhaps CCD but that would be it for him I suspect - and even that depends on me being sure he's enjoying himself. More about quality time for him and me, than really looking to be competitive. So in my mind I'm thinking I really adore this dog and if he needs a little space while heeling that's fine. I'll get him in as close as I can with clicks and reinforcement, be patient and be happy with that. At the level we're working at, I'm thinking we'd lose some points in a CCD setting but could pass with that kind of approach. If not, well we're not playing for cattle stations! Good to hear I can relax a bit about his gaze not making it all the way up to my face. I do suspect that is a geometrical (and possibly medical) impossibility for a dog of his small stature. My medium sized dog does it comfortably - so I guess in this context size really does matter. Thanks for your replies. Next time I go to a trial I'm going to keep my eyes peeled for those amazing little Papillons and see how they (and their handlers) deal with this issue.

Should I take this to mean that small dog heeling position is a common problem then? Yes I'm working on getting him looking up at me but no way can he look all the way up to my face from all the way down there.

I've been trying to decide how close I should ask my bichon to heel to me. I'm thinking a few things. First - according to the rule book as far as I can make out it's supposed to be 'as close as practicable'. Very helpful. Second - pretty sensible for toy breeds to want to put a little bit of distance between their faces and our feet. They've learnt this lesson a few times in the kitchen, right? (I don't mean kicking them, more the kind of accidental tripping over them that sometimes happens with dogs that like to be close to you all the time.) Larger dogs - no problem - they can heel really close without their faces being anywhere near our feet. So I'm thinking maybe allow, say, 15-20 cms between my feet and my little dog. Wondering what other peoples' experiences and thoughts are.

I've heard people use various words - 'close' seems to be popular but I've heard other words also in trial situations. 'Walkies' would be funny in a Barbara Woodhouse kinda way Or maybe 'walking'? Essentially I think the choice of word is up to you, so long as it is only one single word. i.e. you can't say 'come with me' because that's 3 words.

From a safety perspective, is it worth also considering the use of an inside crate when you can't supervise closely? I too have a dog that has stolen chocolate. Twice - very scary. Both times she ate THE LOT and both times I was unaware for a few days until we found the empty wrapping and the penny dropped. Luckily she's built of steel and is okay. Now very careful with chocolate in the house but with 2 teenagers around not always easy. I didn't introduce a crate for my 2 (the dogs that is, not the teenagers but there's a thought ) until quite late in their lives - around 9 years old. They adjusted quickly and now they love it. They go there when I ask them to, sometimes of their own accord for a snooze. I pop them in the crate overnight, when we're eating, when visitors come over with little kids etc. It's very handy and is not a punishment - just a safe and useful routine they happily accept. These days, if I ask one of mine to do something she doesn't want to do she runs to the crate as if to say 'can't I just sit in here instead please?'. Usually when it's time for her to go outside on a cold day. Won't solve the stimulation problems and you wouldn't want to use it for long periods, but may help when you really do need to turn your back for a while.

Great scores for a first trial - well done! I missed out today - house-bound after recent spell in hospital. Thought long and hard about trying to con someone to give me a lift down there today just to watch, then thought better of it. Pity, really. Zamba's enthusiasm has gone through the roof since we attended the Sue Hogben seminars a month or so ago and we discovered the clicker. For the time being we're just doing some slow backyard heeling and bits and pieces until I'm back up to speed. Anyone know when the next trial dates are? I'd heard some of the advertised trials had been cancelled...?

I would love for Zamba to get her CD title this year. Perhaps too much to hope for, but it would be fantastic if it happened.

Wow - a long thread and I think this all just shows how difficult dog-dog aggression can be to manage. I agree - advice very welcome! My dogs sit at opposite ends of this spectrum - one is the type who seems able to disarm even the prickliest canine approach, the other has a very low fight threshold and picks fights in very unwise circumstances at times. She is quite small - I have wondered at times 'what on earth are you thinking of?' but I know she's not really thinking at those moments - just reacting... I don't think it's easy, but have come to the decision that my snappy dog goes nowhere off leash. No dogs parks (definitely not!), no running on the beach, nothing like that. We do formal obedience where she is under my close supervision and instruction, and the other dogs are equally focussed on their owners. She mixes with my other dog (her best mate), and a very short list of trusted dogs of other friends, with very careful introductions to ensure they interact well. And I'll tell you, that's a list of only 2 other dogs and that's it. It's definitely fear-based with her. Hard to put a single explanation on why - she was a pound dog, but we were also interrupted during an evening walk when she was about 3 by 2 very large dogs who proceeded to circle us very menacingly. I got scared, angry and protective all at once (as it sounds like most of us would) and picked her up (I've since been told this was very unwise for my own safety) and told the 2 circling dogs to GO HOME! (...and other stronger things which I won't repeat.) There was no owner in sight, and it was fairly late at night. Luckily they thought I was tougher than I actually am and they left. Now, maybe that influenced her behaviour now, maybe not. She's getting on a bit now and my focus is on managing her aggression, which is part of how she is wired up now I think. I definitely reward her for ignoring other dogs. I don't find any point in punishing bad reactions by her - I focus on separating them (she's on lead remember) and make a mental note I should not have let that develop. Requires vigilance. It's sad, though. She misses out on a lot. When younger she loved playing with other dogs, and still does with her short list of canine buddies. She would love to run on the beach. And I think that's why people have shown such a strong interest in this thread - mixing with other dogs is a great joy for our canine friends when it can be done safely. And you know, even on lead it can be dicey. I was on the beach with my beautiful but snappy dog a few weeks back. She was on lead, so was everyone else's dog (I went at on-lead-only time). And yet someone bowled right on up behind me with a MASSIVE dog and thought he could sneak up for a play. My dog looks soft and friendly (see picture - the dark one). She is not. Luckily his dog was and we got them apart before anything happened. But his dog weighed at least 80kg and my heart nearly stopped. You get sick of hearing yourself say 'No, please don't, she's not as friendly as she looks.'

Yeah very good thoughts. Both illustrated beautifully by my Bichon - lots of bending and being careful to pick the right food to inspire him. Perhaps an interest in balls/toys and chasing might be worth considering as well?

What? Inventing new ways to do something? Now that sounds like my poodle cross in her hey-day.

As someone with an allergy to dog fur, and with a recent dog obedience addiction, I'm interested to hear from those of you with more experience in trialing about low allergy breeds that love obedience and agility work. There are lots of breeds that don't shed their hair. Poodles, irish water spaniels, portugese water dogs, tibetan terriers (I think but not really sure), schnauzers, lagottos, and I'm sure the list goes on. I would love to hear from people with trialing experience - what have you seen from these breeds (I know some of them are quite rare breeds) and how do they take to the ring? I've seen some poodles work really nicely. What about some of the others? I know it's a lot about the individual dog too, so please don't get me wrong I'm not expecting that whole breeds behave the same way. But we all know some breeds really love to work - watching Border Collies at trials reminds me of this on a regular basis.

I'm so glad I asked! I've been doing my best with a little bit of information, so that's really helpful and lots to think about. I've ordered some clicker training books over the web this week but they haven't arrived yet. Bummer - I was looking forward to a rainy weekend in bed with some books. Hmm - no I never really taught Zamba to target heel position. That was the first time I saw that done at the seminars last week. Great idea, so I've started it a little but she doesn't really know it yet. She keeps moving too far in front and staring at me as if to say 'I am SO in the right position!' but we'll get there. I have no idea how to get her to move backwards and wiggle her bum up behind me, but I guess that'll come in time. Zamba's very much a 'let's move forwards' kind of a dog. Bit of background - she's 11 years old but still very healthy and very active (vet agrees). She has the kind of brain that needs to be kept busy, or she'll get busy doing all the wrong things. Formal(ish) training for nearly 5 years now but I've taken it pretty cruisy and we got hooked slowly. She got her CCD last year. I am very proud - although we failed a lot of trials to get there! We even won a trophy for first place in CCD at the German Shepherd club! My 2 girls were there to see it or they would never have believed me. Husband still suspects I stole the trophy from someone else. My kids taught her lots of tricks when she was young - so she has had several 'trainers' all of whom have given her different signals and things to do. If you watch her closely, you'll still see her lift her paw when she sits a lot of the time, because when my daughters (now 16) were younger they taught her to sit, then shake hands. She must have done it 10 times a day for most of her life. So she sits, and often lifts her paw to say 'please'. No-one seems to mind, though. Now I know this will sound like a very slow start to many of you but please remember a few things. 1 - I haven't done this before so she's working with a learner. 2 - she's very smart and more than a little bonkers so I've had my work cut out for me. 3 - her earlier years were spent being dressed up like a horse and jumping home-made show-jumping obstacles in the backyard for my 2 girls (and preventing them from expecting our Bichon to do silly stuff like that - not his cup of tea). She loved every moment - but a few years ago they grew out of the 'backyard dog play' phase - and I grew back into it! So she's been busy, but real obedience is new to us both and we will never reach UD. I do (however) have my sights set on a CD title for Zamba. That would be wonderful and prove that even formerly bonkers dogs can work off-lead. Sigh! (Okay, maybe secretly I have hopes for CDX but all depends on her being healthy and happy. She has separation anxiety problems so I'm not sure about stays out of sight, either.) Having said that, it's her bonkers hyper energy that really got us this far, and she's a lot calmer than she used to be. It's also what got her into the pound, which is where I found her when she was about 2 years old. So many stories I could tell - suffice to say our house and yard were encased in weld-mesh in her early days. She even crashed through windows to come and greet me on my return from work once. And she climbs trees. Focus is a skill that is coming to Zamba late in life! I take the point about breaking it off sooner. And you're right - she's foxing to a large extent because she knows what to do. No question really - when there's food there she just does it so it's all there in her head. I'll work on rewarding the good stuff sooner (you're right she was heeling nicely for 20+ steps with food around so I was expecting long stints from her too often I think) and cutting off as soon as she looks away. Thanks - I'll let you know how we get on.

Oh no it went really badly this morning. I need help! Zamba has been working so well with clicker and food on duration heeling, so I thought 'okay, I'll try doing it without the food on me, and have food in a container inside the circle and run over for it after the click'. Which was demonstrated on the weekend. So I thought 'yeah, this can work'. And it all seemed way too easy having the food on me all the time and I thought she needed a challenge. She started out okay, and then started lagging, walking wide, doing all the wrong things. Pretty soon I was struggling to find anything I could click. It just all came undone - the spring went out of her step and neither of us were enjoying ourselves anymore. I had to work really hard to find something pathetically easy (but well done) to click and treat at the end. And then worked on something else to finish on a happier note. But oh no - how to start again on duration heeling? Back to having food on me? Or push ahead with the idea of running across to the food so she doesn't stay completely dependant on the food being nearby?

I had a go at getting Zamba to hold the dumbbell steady last night - i.e. click only when steady then take the dumbbell quickly and reward. She has always mouthed it impatiently - way too keen to get it out of her mouth and get to that treat she knows is coming or to the next retrieve. She caught on straight away. I was getting some nice, firm holds with intent looks into my eyes. I'll keep training for that but I could tell she had worked it out. There was this 'aha!' look in her eyes. Heeling going okay. Still lots of work to do but having fun doing it. Wet grass still a bit distracting at times as is rolling over and trying to rub that raincoat off her back. Far better at end of session than at beginning. I keep forgetting to take her over for a wee before we start! Bichon moving slowly - but he's still the perfect dog to have up on the bed when you're sick.

I went to Friday's forum and Sunday afternoon. Very inspiring for a learner like me. Lots of new ideas and some fun techniques to get my dog all excited again (she was getting a little bored). I heard some rumblings after the first session that the demonstrations were mainly on pre-trained dogs, with some people a little unsure how it would all go with lower-drive, laid-back souls who didn't already 'know the ropes'. I have an 11 year old bichon at home who fits this description perfectly. Never really enjoyed obedience training much. Tolerated the basics for my sake but has always preferred a nice pat on the couch. Very easy to live with, but much harder to motivate than my poodle cross. One of the rare souls who really does prefer a pat to a piece of food, unless it's really very very good food (metwurst can get his ears to prick up). Anyway, I went out on Saturday morning and bought a clicker and came home and tried some stuff with both my dogs. As always, the poodle cross caught on extremely quickly (it's a worry - I think she's smarter than me). Life is a game again and she's delighted. She stuck very, very close to me in the park last night while I threw food all over the grass. We're having lots of fun with it. And her enjoyment is contagious - I'm having fun too. The bichon takes life a lot more slowly, but he was clearly enjoying himself and did catch on. By the end of 5 mins last night (after Sunday's forum) he was finding heel position relatively quickly. Which for him is progress - all things are relative, aren't they? Mind you, when I pick up his lead to go for a walk he can bounce around like a puppy so there's more work to do to get that kind of response from him to training. I loved it, and am very grateful to Brian and others for organising the forums. I'd never been exposed to clicker training and have no doubt it's going to help me greatly to keep my dog switched on to the right things. Brilliant - and amazing value for money for 2 such long forums packed with useful information. One big scary thing she said - 'If your dog can't heel with eyes on you consistently for 5 minutes without reward you are not ring ready.' Gulp! We've got some work to do.