Mrs Rusty Bucket

When I started training my dog, I had a slip collar and did check check check. But now I don't use the slip chain any more. I bribe my dog for attention with treats - but I'm not planning to do competition any time soon. At least I'd have to see how far I got just showing the treat at the start and the end for a run instead of between each exercise. We are working longer and longer between treats though which is good. For walking the burbs - checking slip collar or otherwise had never worked. The front attach harness stopped the pulling - ie it unbalances the dog that pulls and puts rotational force on that makes the dog turn to face the handler instead of direction pulling... so no gain for dog, dog stops pulling - worked on my dog. For "checking" instead I stop and call her back to me. If I just stop, she just sits, and as soon as I walk to catch up to her, she walks too so she's no closer. But if I call her - she knows to come back. And I just repeat lots until she stops pulling and then loads of praise. Treats don't work when we're on the footpaths- she just isn't interested. Walk, dog pulls or reaches end of lead, stop, call, dog returns, start walking, dog works to end of lead, stop call, repeat...

Would depend on loads of things. Like how serious the competition was - ie is it State or National level or just club/regional level? Does the handler know these judges - quite likely that a breeder would know the judges, cos often the judges breed too. Is it the handler's local club? Is the handler related to the judges eg one partner showing, the other judging. Not sure if this is allowed either. And if I was the steward - I wouldn't accept munchies from a stranger but I would from someone I knew as honorable and not a win at all costs kind of person. I have been steward for an agility comp and of course I knew all the people from my club and since then, know quite a few from other clubs and some of the judges too. If I was competing, I'd probably wait until after my run before offering to share munchies. When I was stewarding - didn't have time for munchies during a class.

On the move, there would be a lot more "input" for a dog to deal with. And a dog would have to pay some attention to where the pack was, just to keep up and that would leave less time for eyeing off approaching dogs. Just sitting around, there would be plenty of time for a dog to fixate on an approaching SWF. I had a similar problem at dog class tonight. After class, I'm chatting. Dog is on lead. Dog not doing much but spots a possum going for a ground walk - "over there". Goes BUNTA. Possums were active during class but she only got distracted by possum poo - under her nose, didn't have time to check out what was going on "over there". Oh and when she wants to chase the neighbour's cat, she wags her tail. She's very happy but it doesn't mean that she wants to make friends with the cat. :S

Our obedience club doesn't like to train when it's too wet - because the ground floods, it gets slippery and covered in flood debris. So there is a real risk (it happens) of handlers falling over, and the dogs get mighty distracted with all the new yummy smells. I've been told training agility when it's wet and slippery can risk injury to dog and handler if they slip and / or fall over. So I guess it's a matter of deciding if there is good grip or if the place is too slippery. My club's worst time of year is Autumn when the tree leaves and rain grease up the ground something special. Need spiked boots to stay right side up.

I taught my dog to speak on command. She now makes just enough noise to get the treat. It's a fast way to shut her up. Give command and watch her eyes cross as she tries to remember what she needs to do to get the treat that goes with this command. Definitely not barking her head off, unless she was already. But the treat itself usually gives me enough quiet time to say "quiet". And treat again. I work on trying to teach her that the cat in the tree next door overlooking our fence, is not worth barking at. Not exactly winning yet but we're working on it. If I yell, she thinks I'm joining in and barks more. If I say "oops" or "nope" or "enough" or "leave it" in neutral tones - it usually gets her attention, because all that goes with a "training session" and the chance to get treats. Especially "leave it". Ie, leave that, come here, get yummy treat and a pat. Sometimes if she's really bad I shut the door on her. She really doesn't like being separated from me and she knows I won't open the door till she's quiet. Bizarrely, when I go out, she's generally quiet. Even if someone comes to the door and rings the door bell. Cos I'm not there to open the door I suppose. Though I'm not sure how the gas meter man would go if I was away and she was outside. Doesn't happen very often. But she hates the gas meter man.

You should try typing with an European keyboard where they rearrange the a, q, w, z, and @ key. Now send an email. Eek. So I have noticed that whenever anyone starts a spelling/grammar nazi/pedant thread, cos they just can't help it, that someone else will always post in it - whether the thread was directed at them or not, that they were offended. And we've even got an apology thread about what an apology is... I digress. So I've been accused of having a superiority complex just because I sometimes use words of more than one sylable, or prefer a higher percentage of accurate spelling and grammar. I just find those posts easier to read. I haven't yet become fluent in SMS m8. Or phonetic spelling. Sigh. So if you want to communicate with me, it helps if you can write in semi - formal English. So on the radio this morning, someone complained that Julia Guillard's lack of good diction makes her seem uneducated, and as the representative of the Australian people - confirms every Pomme's image of the savage colonial peasant. Great. I happen to *agree* with that caller. And then someone rings up and calls the guy a class snob. The truth is Julia had an excellent education, her parents do not speak the same way she does, and neither do the people at the schools she attended. I think - that like Bob Hawke -who came back from England with a very posh accent after his Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford Uni - Julia learned to speak "Union" in order to get ahead (and be under-estimated by her competition), in her chosen field of politics. Quite a few on the labor side of politics have done this. I think she could drop it now. Or maybe she maintains it to let the Unions know she hasn't forgotten them. And nearly forgot... My fingers - and I do touch type - have learned certain patterns for words so sometimes I think which variety of word I want and then depending how alert I am (not), something else gets typed. So while I hate the your/you're/yore/yaw and there/their/they're variety of malaprops - I commit the crime myself, from time to time. Of course if you enjoy malapropisms - you would enjoy Kath and Kim. You are effluent, darling. I have little tricks for remembering some words like "ice" is a noun, so is "advice" etc and "stationary" is what parked "cars" are. And I have yet to reliably get right "separate" and "desperate". And then there are people who use big words that mean the exact opposite to the sense they intended. Can't think of any specific right now but it always trips me up when I see it. WTF? Ok, enough for now.

If I see other dogs on lead that my dog wants to greet - I call her back, put her on lead and have a discussion about saying hello with the other owner. If their dog is fear aggressive - I invite them to allow their dog to approach if it wants to and only if it wants to for a sniff - cos my dog will be upside down by way of non threatening greeting... We both watch the fearful dog for signs of anxiety and give it room to retreat if it wants - and we've had a few excellent greetings and even play that way. And no disasters so far - because the fearful dog won't approach unless it's feeling confident and unthreatened. And if the fearful dog doesn't approach we go our separate ways without fuss. The rottie I talked about - showed no signs of fear aggression, just aggression or over enthusiastic play or prey drive. Either way no fun. Barking and growling and lunging on the end of the lead should not be rewarded with a sniff let alone bite of the other dog. Sigh.

I would never drop my dog's lead so she could flee, unless I had in order to defend myself. The first dog to attack her was a whippet, she had no hope of out running it. Another dog that decided she was food was some sort of Egyptian Hunting hound type mix - again no hope of out running that. And the long legged bully breeds - it's a toss up - who'd win at running. A fleeing dog - like a fleeing cat - invites chase and aggression. Much better - in my opinion to stand your ground and make your dog stay with you where you can defend it. A whippet is well within my capability and hers - even if she doesn't know it. Every time she has run away from me and the aggressive dog, I've been unable to help her. Not something I want to allow or encourage. That stuff about picking up back legs and all "K9" handlers - WTF? Not all dog trainers make the same recommendations. And most that I know recommend staying out of dog fights unless you're willing to risk being attacked and bitten yourself. Of course if was my dog being attacked - I'm willing to have a go. But I try yelling first. Has worked on all the big dogs (and their owners) so far. It's only that one particular whippet, that I rate as bonkers and very unwhippet like in temperment, that I had to hit.

You might be able to scare them with the vague possibility of being sued for animal cruelty or something. Eg write a letter outlining the problems and likely consequences of their actions including selling to uninformed impulse buyers ie equals animal cruelty - which is against the law - yes? And maybe ask the RSPCA for advice. And if it's in a shopping centre - write the same problems and consequences letter to the centre management. But I do like the idea of handing out information flyers in front of the pet store. Especially to anyone who looks at the puppies. Bit of info about that breed - here you go...

vague rule of thumb for puppy exercise 5 minutes for each month of age. I know someone who had a rotti puppy and she wouldn't walk her longer than 10 minutes at around 3 or 4 months of age. The bigger the bones the more gentle you need to be and you can't really depend on the puppy to let you know. Maybe short sessions more often might work. And brain work. Eg free shaping with a clicker. http://www.clickandtreat.com/Clicker_Train.../clickstart.htm Of course I didn't find out this rule of thumb until my dog was about 6 months of age. And I was letting her set the pace. Ie we were doing half an hour or so twice a day on the local cricket ovals. But it was open format - ie she could run or not as she pleased. Back when she was a puppy it wasn't hard to out last her. Things are different now.

I've showed up in the rain, and when I'm not well. But not when Frosty is unwell. Um. Last week - I had tummy upset. So had to pay quick visits before and after training, proving Frosty can live with out me. Though she's fairly used to me disappearing in there now, she just waits. If I disappear somewhere she's not expecting - all hell breaks loose. Agility did not go well - as being chained to the porcelain bus meant I was late (sorry all), and therefore Frosty tried to meet and greet and get her possum poo fix during class. I think, for reasons Pele would understand - I really need to stop the possum poo fixing completely. Not that I've exactly been encouraging it. Sheesh. I have seen people just chuck stuff in that park that they think dogs or magpies might like, not to mention copious quantities of spilled treats from the previous class's training. The owners with puppies are so clumsy. We went out the back and practiced recalls - and of course - she was perfect. Sigh. I left early. Gut instinct, you might say. (I've seen emoticons for that but I'm not going to look for it).

Would depend on your parents. My agility instructor said he'd help look after my dog while I was away he always said "you won't get her back", and he, or rather his family and neighbours couldn't cope after a couple of nights. She drove them nuts. So people say they want your dog, but they might not think so after a couple of nights of a puppy trying to take over. So have your parents dog sat for a weekend? How did that go? Are they up for puppy toilet training? What plans would any of you had if you needed to travel away without your dog - boarding kennel ok? Or not? Don't surprise them with it. Do discuss it first. What the others said about paying for it but letting your parents manage the timing and choice.

Me and a friend going for a walk on the local off lead dog park after dog obedience class got told by another walker that it was sad that we couldn't let the dogs off because they were aggressive. WTF. No, this dog is fine, but this one doesn't come back when it's called. So they're both on lead because it doesn't seem fair one can run free when her best friend has to stay on lead. Nothing to do with aggression. Neither of them have ever attacked another dog. Why do people make assumptions like that? And there is a bloke in dog obedience - sometimes I wonder about classes (paddock bashing?) - anyway he says his rottie is friendly but when my dog rolled over by way of non threatening greeting, she bit my dog's paw so hard that she limped for the next 15 minutes. My dog has forgiven the rottie, but I haven't and not the owner either. He's deluded if he thinks his rottie is friendly. And we had a black lab and his dog trying to kill each other - fortunately both on lead so couldn't quite reach - all talk - in the MIDDLE OF CLASS!!! The woman who knows and accepts her dog is aggressive (mostly due to fear), keeps her dog well away from the others during class and the instructors allow for this. It would be better if the other two owners did the same. Some people are just deluded. Even ones who have done years of obedience classes.

I like the nutro natural choice - chicken and oatmeal. And my dog likes it too. I always get the 15kg bag, will have to check around for the discount. I changed to nutro when advance was making tummy upsets in dog. Only tummy upsets we've had since have been when she's eaten something naughty out there on the oval or the beach. I've been thinking about swapping to artemis - more natural ingredients, rates better on dog food project etc but not sure after reading this thread. I do prefer to buy Australian made. Very happy with Nutro.

I've had dogs charge me barking and growling unfriendly, a couple of times when I was on my bike. One of them, I just yelled deep and growly "BAD DOG GO HOME" and it did. The other one, I got off my bike and used it as a shield, and yelled at it "BAD DOG". The owners of that one got a bit upset, so I yelled at them too. You gotta love badly trained heelers. Sheesh. Not sure what I'd do if it was a Rotty or GSD. But the minute you back off, they chase, so if you can advance, being taller, and louder than them - they might back off. And definitely have something ready to stuff in their mouth that isn't you. My plan for if a nasty dog does grab hold, is to push as hard as I can. Every dog (and horse) I've known that ever bit me, has tried to spit me out when I push, serious pain happens when I try to pull away. Your situation seemed too late for doggy calming signals like no eye contact, licking lips and yawning. But I like the idea of aeroguard / body spray to the dogs eyes too. I just never carry any when I'm out walking. Sigh. I sure hope that dog gets caught.

I put a knot in long line so I can stop dog by stepping on it. Though that can be bad for the dog. Kong - put a bit of peanut butter paste in it. Takes ages to lick out... well you get five minutes of peace. I agree about trying to train him to sit or drop instead of jumping. And fritz or metwurst (german preserved sausage) are great dog treats, cut into tiny pieces. Definitely look up "crate games". He has to like and want to be in there. But as far as moving him goes - clip him on the lead first, and then drag him. Maybe use a horse lead with a limited slip collar... I also walk out the back door and shut it with dog on the other side if she is being really obnoxious. And then let her back in when she's quiet. And we do a lot of TOT in order to get dinner. Has really improved her sit -stays.

He's only a puppy, attention span of a gnat. So you need to be persistent. Don't think "it's not working", just think you haven't been quite consistent and persistent enough. The more insistent, persistent, consistent and pestilent you are, the harder you work his brain and the more tired (we hope) he will become. Though there is such a thing as "over tired" for dogs. Especially active dogs. They keep being active but they get "brain fade" and stop actually doing anything you ask them to. So you may need to break your sessions up into shorter ones if he goes slighty nuttier than usual. He's also about to go or just started to go into the "adolescent" stage - where he tries out the boundaries of your relationship. Loads of these types of dogs end up being rehomed or at the pound at this age. He starts deciding for himself what is and isn't ok. Is up to you to set limits and ignore his complaints. Do take him to obedience or tracking training or whatever suits his breed you can get into. He's too young for formal agility but there are loads of body awareness type training you can do as preparation. Do a google for Susan Garrett and Puppy training? for some ideas. Don't worry about the hypo, find a dog club that is puppy friendly and understanding. I think that just going and being there even if your dog isn't doing anything that he's told is the starting point and if you avoid it, there will never be any improvement. So as sportswear brand says, "just do it". I think if I had whining dog in crate - I'd cover the crate. You may need to put a lid on the crate of plywood that overhangs the crate by enough distance he can't reach with his teeth or paws, and then put a large cover over the top so he can't see out. I'd only allow him to see out when he stops whining. Pay attention to the first millisecond break in whinging and reward and then gradually up the time requirement. Do not allow any jumping or nipping. He's going to be a very big dog. I think if he continued to nip when you turned your back - then quietly put him in the crate and close out the view. Don't tell him off or yell at him. Let him out when he's calm and quiet. Have you tried clicker training with him? Have you got a word for "oops" not getting a reward for that effort word? That's the one I would use before I stuffed him in the crate for biting. And I would just say it "oops" not yell it or growl it. But it helps if he knows it means "no treat for that". Clicker training may also help mark the quiet times in the crate that you want to reward. You can always drop a treat through the cage. Again - he has very short attention span and probably even shorter memory for what has been asked of him. So you will need heaps of repetition and rewards. If he's in the crate, do a couple of minutes "quiet" training, where you wait for quiet, click for quiet and treat, and repeat every few seconds. If you need respite, see if you can find a doggy day care with a big big exercise area - where he could run with other dogs for a day or a few hours. I don't know if such things exist where you are. If you start doing obedience dog club you may find a play date friend for your dog, and they could wear each other out occaisionally.

My Evil Hound (EH) ate another peg this morning, and I'd just fixed her up after the last one (and trip to vet on monday). I was that mad at her, I made a mix of salty water - maybe two teaspoons of salt and 3/4 cup warm water. And I tipped some of that (maybe 1/4) down her throat - it went everywhere but she got enough to start vomitting. And then I found the bits of peg she'd bitten off but not actually swallowed at all. But she did last time. And it was spikey and uncomfortable and went all the way through and there was the foulest explosion in my office as a result. So anyway, she vomited - at both ends - hmm normal turds - just not when she'd planned to pass them, so that was good - sort of. And she vomited some more, and she coughed a lot. And vomitted some more. And eventually I got some fresh water and sort of washed her mouth with that without tipping it down her throat. A couple of times. And eventually 30 mins or so later she stopped vomitting - phew. So I think I over did it. And she coughed a lot but that stopped when I gave her some lemon and ginger tea with some honey in it - maybe two tablespoons. Phew phew. Next time I think I will pour the salty water in slower eg a teaspoon at a time and wait to see. She's got a fairly sensitive stomach anyway - she will up chuck with one washing soda crystal (thanks to the vet) or the morphine with antidote (expensive). We've made quite a few trips to the vet to deal with this kind of problem. Never had the problem of her overeating kibble though. Then again she doesn't generally get the opportunity. I'm thinking if I can make her feel ill at the sight of a peg - that would be a good thing.

I'm now at a stage where distractions are good but mostly my EH ignores them because she's offering up "obedience tricks" in exchange for food, cos I never feed her. At agility training the main hazard is possum poo. But almost every week we get the general public walking their dogs off leash in an on lead area of the park - through our dog training classes. Now that is rude. And recently we had a practice agilty games trial and the judge's judge's wife decided to play ball with her dog over there. Which - along with the live possums, did a fair job of getting my dog all excited. But again - this kind of thing happens in real trials so it's good to practice with distractions. I've also watched my dog do a good sit stay when another dog in the line came and sat on top of her. And I've watched my dog break when she saw a friend dog playing off lead on the oval - way way over there... And brags - on Tuesday she did two perfect stays while the other two dogs in the line broke over and over again... And one of those was her best doggy friend. You gotta love TOT training. It works. When she was doing her stay, she was smiling and wagging her tail the whole time. Now if only I could beat the possum poo distraction.

jazawayaya If you go the K9 pro anti bark collar - don't tell anyone - because it will get you banned from SA dog clubs among other things. Can you have one dog inside and one dog outside while you're at work? What happens on the weekend - have you shut banjo outside and seen how he behaves? I'm currently teaching my dog that it's not ok to bark at the cats that climb the neighbour's trees and look over our fence at her. But it mostly involves distracting her and giving her something else to do or rewarding her when she looks at the cats but doesn't bark. I know you have a new dog club now - have you discussed the problem with the instructors there - they might have some ideas. But for now, I think you might have to crate Banjo inside while you're at work. And on the weekend you can spend more time teaching him what it's ok to bark at and what it isn't.

Mild adversives - I don't know what is universal. I can just list things my dog doesn't like. I also don't know the context of the experiment - some of these things would be easier to deliver than others. Surprises - unexpected anything - from even relatively soft noises, claps, a shadow from above (eg might be an aggressive bird or falling bit of tree?), rattles, falling tin cans (she knocked them over), and a nearby jet of water, and maybe an infrared motion detector door bell type thing - though I think she'd get used to that one. Aggressive dog barking noises. Bad tastes or smells - her own dog poo (doesn't work on all dogs), aloe vera, eucalyptus, vicks vapour rub, dencorub, tiger balm, lemon (not the smell, but the taste of the actual lemon). Some of these things are poisonous in large quantities but a taste is usually sufficient to deter. She did aquire the taste for chilli - I admit fairly mild chilli but I expect she could get used to any chilli. Being ignored or left alone. Again not a universal thing. Me saying "Uh Uh" or "Leave it" or "nope" (you're not getting a reward for that idea). But this is more a trained thing. Especially the "leave it". She knows that if she leaves the whatever and comes straight to me - she gets uber treat. She also prefers warm places to very cold ones, unless she's been running a lot. But she will eat iceblocks or frozen dinner any time.

I checked the websites. I went out to the AWL - after calling them about a red heeler 6 months old on their website. It took me a couple of hours to drive out there. And when I got there I found out that dog had already been adopted - in the time it took me to get there - and it was a boy dog not a girl dog like I wanted. So I figure I'll go around and see what they've got and just get used to being there - cos those are stressful places for me. And there were two 10 week old blue heeler x puppies. So I took each one for a bit of one on one time. The first one while being prettier to look at - symetrical markings, no bucket - didn't want anything to do with me. So I went and got the other one, who looked pleased to see everybody and anybody including me. So she played a bit with me and also checked everything out. I had a chat with some of the volunteers about the personalities of both dogs, and they said the one with asymetric markings and the bucket on her head, was much more outgoing and friendly than the other one. Though they did warn me she was a bit loud at dinner time - that hasn't changed. Basically I picked the friendly dog that liked me. And she's been a winner with everybody except my brother who is not so keen on being licked to death. I never have to worry about her picking a fight. And she makes a great rehab dog for fear aggressive dogs because she knows how to make non threatening greetings. She also knows when to leave a dog alone. And she's always known. And I have encouraged her to be friendly. Pick the friendly dog, she deserves a good home. http://www.clickandtreat.com/html/getdog.html

I do not regularliy take my dog to the fully fenced off leash areas because so many people use them because they have no effective control. If only council rangers would show up occasionally and one by one, ask each person in there to call their dog. And yes the SWF that harasses another dog is breaking the law and I think they ought to be reported too. Especially so that there is a record of the SWF behaviour when it finally meets a big dog that defends itself. It would be much harder to blame the big dog if the council has full knowledge of SWF history. Most off leash parks are public land. Arguing a DA dog should be allowed in there when there are other dogs because it "needs to be exercised too", is asking for a dog attack. Unless the owner can be sure that their dog won't hurt any of the other dogs - no matter how silly (or normally) the other dogs behave. It is fairly normal for dogs to check out each other in a park or the beach or whatever. It isn't normal for that to automatically mean the approached dog would attack - depending on how it was approached (my dog crawls and rolls over). A dog that runs full pelt at another dog barking loudly and aggressively probably shouldn't be allowed off lead in a dog park either - no matter what size it is. That's definitely rude - even in dog language.

I get my dog to be closer by calling then running away as fast as I can. So we practice like that for a bit and then work up to the face on recalls in the right spot. No treat if not in right spot. But usually I keep backing up and she has to follow me to get the treat. It speeds up how fast she recalls too. We sometimes have a problem with her offering a heel flip? ie putting her butt next to my left leg to get the treat, which is great for most things except obedience competition style recalls.

I'd be inclined to blame puppy pre-school, especially if any of the puppies came from a shelter where it's hard to eradicate, or a pet shop window - cos it's common in puppy farms. I guess it would depend whether any of the other puppy owners had come straight from shop to pre school or had a break. I had a month break before we started puppy pre-school because I had other committments on the night they were running puppy pre-school at the time.