raineth

If you do plan on having two dogs, it's probably better as a long-term plan. Two puppies together is asking for trouble. Better to have the first dog fully trained before adding the second one. Also two dogs is more than twice the amount of work than one dog. Well it is in my experience anyway. Twice the walks, twice the training, twice the nail clipping, twice the grooming, twice the vet visits etc.

See when I read that bolded bit, it said to me, that the dog would be spending nearly all its time in the garage and very little time with you in the house.

Oh so the dog will be allowed in the house with you when you're home? Because in your first post it sounded like the dog would only be allowed in the house very rarely. Ofcourse people here work. It's just that if you combine being gone from 9-5 with also then not allowing the dog in the house with you when you're home, then you end up with a dog that is alone for vast amounts of time.

What a gorgeous Poodle! I love the shot where the glasses are wonky on her head :laugh: very cute. Em's so talented, she doesn't need to be glamorous too!

If you both work 9-5 and the dog is not really allowed inside, then realistically how much contact with you is this dog going to have every day? Please be realistic when thinking about this. How much time do you currently spend outside before and after work? What if it's hot, or really cold, or raining, how much time do you spend in the garage or outside in bad weather? The thing with dogs is that generally the more biddable ones are even less likely to be able to handle minimal human contact. Also if the dog is to be largely outside, you may find that a non or low- shedding coat would be more work than a shedding coat as these coats tend to catch and hold onto more debris as a general rule. Also dogs who are outside at night are much more likely to become barkers. What is it that you object to about having the dog inside when you are home? Allowing your dog inside when you're home is a very easy way to ensure it has company. Most dogs thrive in company, it is the most important thing to them. Also when your dog is inside it's so much easier to grab a minute here and there to do some training.

well no, I don't think that's a great diet either, there's no calcium in it for one thing. I tend to feel sorry for the dogs who are not really part of the family and never get out of the backyard. I also feel sorry for the fluffy dogs I see who are very matted

As the owner of a dog I do consider my responsibility to keep other safe from my dog. I would never give my dogs bones in the backyard if I was going to have a child visitor over using the backyard, and my dogs don't even show any signs of resource guarding. I'm he one with the dog, so it's my responsibility to understand enough about my dog to keep others safe from it.

Aren't they great!

She does not take at all to crating. We did think it might be an option at one point but she tries very hard to dig her way out and that ends in her tearing her pads up, so it's just not worth it at this point. She is generally outside when she can't be watched, that's good advice. Sorry Steph, I had only read your first post when I replied. I wonder whether you could set up a little pen for her in part of the house instead? Make it a calm, happy place similar to what a crate would do, but it might not make her panic in the same way as a crate does? Control Unleashed is a book that has lots of exercises in it to teach your dog to relax. Rosie sounds like a perfect candidate for them :) I would also be really looking at training calm behaviour as you would with any other behaviour. In both people and dogs, emotions can be induced by adopting the body posture (or in humans, the facial expressions) associated with those emotions. If you reward her for calm and relaxed body language her emotions should follow. However my guess is that you need to address the anxiety first as there is probably little chance of her being able to relax as she is continually pushed into an anxious state, and it can take ages for those hormones to leave the body.

This aspect call for a behaviourist I think. You can however have a good look at BAT and counter conditioning principle while you wait for the behaviourist visit which should give her some relief from a few of her phobias. The key is to go slowly, keeping the dog under threshold :)

Hi there I'm just going to go through the first part first :) Try teaching her to give it to you. I have a kleptomaniac Dane. She was exactly like your Rosie, except more strategic about it :) Does she know 'give'? If not teach her 'give' with a big reward every time she takes something. Then start to encourage her to come to you before you ask her to give. Before you know it when she steals things she will bring them to you. My Delta has brought me everything from roast chickens, kids lunches and dead birds. Clearly this does not suppress the behaviour, but makes it much safer and more manageable. Once she has got it, continue to reward her for bringing things to you, whether it be with praise, a pat, or a treat. Secondly, it sounds like she has way too much freedom. Is she crate trained? If not the time is now :) Make it a nice place, and really use it. Whenever you are busy she should be in the crate. This is too much. Try spending half the amount of time that you are getting her to do stuff, teaching her how to do nothing. Catch her calm and calmly reward her. Sit with her on her bed and stroke her in a relaxing way. Spend time with her chilling out, so she learns that calm behaviours are nice and pleasant and rewarding too :) It is understandable when a dog is being very challenging for you to feel fed up and tired. If you feel like your relationship with her is being really affected by these behaviours of hers, every day try to jot down in a little notebook something fun, clever, good or pleasant that she did that day, or something you love about her. This helps to train your mind to also focus on her positives and not get so worn down with the other stuff :)

I'm glad to hear she's had a happy day :) Yes I think that must be one of the hardest things about the epilepsy, it's very dramatic and distressing when she is having a seizure, unlike some other conditions which can be a lot more invisible. Fantastic work guys I can definitely relate to what you were saying about different techniques at different stages. I know with Del, that it wasn't until we did BAT that we started making any improvements. Then we meeded to switch mainly to CC, with some singsong voice thrown in (I find this really helps) to get more improvement. While she is so confident at club now that I'm finding that to get to the next level I am increasing her arousal by playing with her. I was advised to do this in the beginning, but it didn't work for us at all, as having her in a higher state of arousal made her more volatile and unpredictable and more likely to react. While out on walks where she can be a little more stressed, we are still not ready to increase her arousal levels. Interestingly, at club there is a Dobe. He is well behaved and non-provocative. But Del finds him very challenging because of his natural 'upright' conformation and he has a gay tail which means his tail is kind of permanently arched over his back. He remains the only dog to really trouble her at club. Ironically I think if we were able to get closer to him she would probably notice his soft expression and other body language that indicates his state of mind, but until then I think she will remain very suspicious of him!

I also don't believe in being a pack leader in terms of dominance. But i do believe in the importance of leadership with your dogs.

Mine was for sure. I don't like it either. I would never do it, I find it quite distasteful, but there are def finitely worse things, and if he gives his dog, love, affection, exercise, food, vet care and mental stimulation then that to me is the most important thing.

I think it's very funny! It makes me want to be pushed around in one of those cars

hmm yeah sounds like a second opinion would be worthwhile. It doesn't sound right does it? But of course I'm not a vet and I really know hardly anything about the condition.

oh I am really sorry to hear that BC Crazy that must be so hard on both of you I don't know for sure, but from what I've heard, it can be quite tricky getting medication for epilepsy right, but once it is right, it is very reliable and effective? I hope this is the case with Stella and there is smooth sailing ahead for her :)

Hi everyone! It's been quiet in here lately. How is everyone going?

Two is definitely my limit. I really can't imagine having more than that. Next time I would like to go back to having one. However I do really love the fact that they get along well and enjoy each others' company. I will definitely miss that if/when we go to having one. Having said that, two Digby's would be ok. he is very easy and laid back. Two Del's would be very exhausting, although, if I did have two Del's they would play for hours and hours every day and make each other very happy. There would also be many more happy tail whippings and we would never go a minute without being told how much we're loved. It would be crazy :laugh:

so, so, so adorable! Congratulations!!! You know the time from now until you get here is going to go soooo slowly right? :laugh:

a loud YES from me here . if this boy has life threatening health issues - the professionals can train a dog to assist/work in the best way possible for him and his family. I would think they will also pick a robust and patient dog to cope with the loudness and erratic behaviour .... I feel a trained dog here could be a very useful extra pair of ears, and a nose & eyes could pick up health crises earlier ...plus being a comfort to the little one , and a calming influence on the family ... totally agree with this. I really don't think going down the route of training the dog herself is wise. Check out Righteous Pups: http://www.righteouspups.org.au/

I love Trixie!

She looks lovely :) and I just love that pic of her with the rottie pup There were 3 dobes at the riding school I learnt to ride at; they were my first experience of dobes. Lilly and Kirk were just beautiful, beautiful dogs. Lilly especially was one of those extra special dogs with a sixth sense for how to behave in any situation. These two really made me appreciate how fantastic dobes are :) The other dobe, was sadly a complete nutcase and one of the scariest dogs I have ever met... but she had a very troubled beginning and came from a less than ethical place and I certainly don't attribute her scariness to her breed. It's really good to hear of such a strong bond between you and your girl :)

Get well Fur Panto!

x a billion I'd much rather dogs than children in a cafe! Yep, me too. I don't necessarily think it's a dogs vs kids debate, I think some people are just trying to make the point that there are more scenarios likely to annoy someone sitting at a cafe other than someone's quiet dog under a table - out of control kids being one of them. I have the same opinion on kids and dogs at cafes - the more the merrier as long as they are well behaved, in control and aren't bothering anyone else :) If people say there are more scenarios likely to annoy people at cafes than dogs, I'd agree with that. But that's not what was said and I find the comparison irrelevant, almost a straw man argument. If you replaced the word 'children' in the quotes above with the name of any other minority group I wouldn't like it either.