Simply Grand

What do we have in Canberra? I've always referred to them as Crows but interesting fact if they're actually Ravens. Do both do the "raww raaww raaaoowww" call?

Poor little kitty but look at the positive that came out of his story, hopefully many other animals can be saved.

"Quinny come!"/"Saxsaxsax"/"Rileyrileyriley" are their normal 'at the park' recalls and I have my arms out wide too, it means come straight to me and be close enough that I can easily get hold of your collar. It has turned into come to me and sit in front as close as you can (because usually all three will come when I call any of them so they have to find a spot next to the others). "Come on" means follow in the direction I'm going because we're moving somewhere, usually I want them away from something that's going on nearby or am heading to the gate coz it's time to go. "This way" means keep an eye on me and head in my general direction but keep sniffing/playing etc if you want. I didn't really teach the last two, they've just evolved as part of our general communication.

It's hard to know without having seen it whether the dog was giving off warning signals but I would expect a fairly stable pet dog to do a fair bit of avoiding and warning before it went for someone's face. Possible the dog has been punished for giving warnings (growling, lip lifting etc) in the past so doesn't anymore and goes straight to snapping when it's not happy? Or possibly you and the owner did both miss the warnings. Either way, the owner not only allowed you to pat the dog but encouraged you to, I really think he's responsible and he's lucky his dog didn't do more damage. I agree with maybe talking to the council if they're interested so it's on their radar, and maybe if you see the guy again keeping your distance from the dog, being friendly but commenting that it does worry you that he's unpredictable and will go for people.

This. While yes, in the bigger picture knowing factual information about why people give up their dogs is valuable if it can be used to change things earlier on, before dogs end up needing rehoming, for the individual dog in a shelter or rescue needing a home it doesn't really matter how or why they came to be there or why they have the issues they have, what matters is doing everything possible to make and keep them suitable for rehoming and to find them a suitable home.

One of the things that concerns me about widespread negativity and condemnation towards people who surrender or dump an animal at a shelter is that desperate people, who are unable to support the animal due to their mental, physical, emotional or financial limitations may feel too much guilt or that it's too difficult, panic, shut down etc and resort to worse outcomes for the animal (IMO) like abandoning, stopping contact, not feeding/watering/grooming etc. At least if an animal is at a shelter, however long it may be there, it has SOME chance of an outside opinion, maybe some treatment, maybe a new home. Any shelter, no matter how good or bad, is not a good environment for a dog, and I hate the thought of people taking putting a dog in one lightly, but I also think that even if it ends in PTS there are worse things. It's those worse things that I wish all dogs could avoid.

Oh jelly, I'm so sorry you've had to make this decision but I think you are so brave to have done so, knowing it's the way to give Roo peace. You've done so amazingly well with trying everything there is to try, and because she found you Roo has had so many happy, loving moments and good experiences that she otherwise would have missed out on. It will be so hard but remember it is the only kind thing left to do, and she will know that she is with you, her favourite person in the world, as she goes to sleep.

Yes positive training (as in marking and rewarding desirable behaviour and ignoring undesirable behaviour) can and does work very well!! Yes you absolutely can get as high an obedience level as possible utilising it, provided you understand what motivates your dog the most and use that as the ultimate reward, and are consistent. Effective use of punishment is much more difficult to get right, the timing has to be absolute split second and te aversive has to be very precisely managed to be effective without being damaging to the dog. Maybe check out some of the dogs doing higher levels of obedience and other dog sports at training at your club and/or trials and talk to people about how they've trained their dogs.

Hahaha! That's so funny :laugh: So has Georgia protected you from many earthquakes?? And do you have an overweight cat? :D

Perse you neeeed one! Too adorable, and if you've pined after one for this long it must be meant to be :D

Ooo teacup drop dog (aka Sugar Glider ??), sooo cute! Those Bear cousins are pretty affordable too. ETA - Adorable, not affordable, what is my auto correct saying!?!

Oops dbl post

RazorBlade, I see great value in areas where dogs are legally allowed off leash and use off leash areas regularly, for my dogs to have a proper free run and play with each other and other suitable dogs, where dogs and owners ate all happy with it. I also practice my effective voice control, obedience training etc including walking at heel in these areas. That's completely different in my view to taking my dogs for a walk. When I walk my dogs on the streets, in public areas and anywhere else they are required to be on lead I expect them to stay close to me, walk in the direction I want them to, and only interact with other people or animals if I tell them they can. There is nothing about having them on a lead that means we can't do that so why on earth would I just not keep them on lead where they are supposed to be? I really don't buy your argument that you can flaunt the law and respect for others to demonstrate (and I'm not sure to whom) your great bond with your dog.

Good point Diva. Actually, several good points. Mm, I got the impression the suspected poo eating happens when the pup is home by himself. Clarabelle, to be honest I would probably slow down a bit in changing things for him, poor doggy is in a new situation and has come from a bit of an unknown background. I know you are doing everything you can to help him be a happy, healthy dog but change is stressful for any dog, especially a not super confident one, so it will help him to take things slowly. You've introduced a new exercise and toilet break routine and changed his feeding already, I personally would leave things as they are now for at least a week or two, give him lots of positive interactions with you and let him settle in and start to trust you. Once he has settled in and realised this is his home, you are his people and he is safe and cared for then you can move forward with getting his diet more ideal (another wek or so of eating a bit too much won't hurt him) and with training him more of what you specifically want him to do and not do. Don't get discouraged, the early days are often the hardest but you can get there! ETA I do agree with praising and even treating for toileting outside, even if that's a new thing it's a positive interaction with you!

Could I order a teacup version please, I don't have room for a big one but he is cool looking and I think will be the next big thing. Thank you :D

Oh I sympathise! My almost 2 year old Aussie Shepherd is naturally a jumper and she loooves people so jumping all over people is her favourite thing! It's still very much a work in progress but she's starting to get better. I'd suggest clicker training. If you don't already use a clicker there is plenty of info on DOL and the web about how to use it, but basically you teach your dog that when they hear the click they will get a treat. You then use the click to mark a specific behaviour that you want the dog to repeat. You can do this from a distance (as long as you have a loud enough clicker) and can mark a precise moment so the dog learns exactly what it is that you're rewarding with the treat. If you're like me with my girl you can probably see when Riley is getting ready to jump on someone so you'd want to click the split second where he is close enough to the person to really want to jump on them BUT before he has actually launched. For it to be effective you'll need to make sure he has a really strong association between the clicker and the reward so practice lots in easier situations first, then start with "less exciting" people rather than Riley's friends or exciting new people at the park, and start from a really close distance so you can get the reward to him quickly. You'll also need to use really high value treats while he's learning so he values them more than jumping plus lots of happy praise when he comes to you to get the treat. Once he's responding to the click you can add a cue word like 'down' or 'off' just a split second again before you're about to click and once he knows that you can tell him as he gets to a person that that's what you want him to do. My girl is at the stage now where she purposely runs up to someone, deliberately doesn't jump on them then runs back to me for the treat :laugh: That wasn't really what I was trying to teach but it's better than the jumping! More work to do still obviously, hehe.

LBD totally agree, management + training

It's hard to know what he's doing without seeing it but "digging" at beds, blankets etc is a pretty normal thing that dogs do and often it's a happy play thing. Could be him coming out of his shell. If he doesn't do it for too long (maybe a minute or two?) then settles down for a rest I'd probably let him do it :)

Dogs are situational learners but they can also generalise. My own dogs aren't resource guarders so I haven't dealt with it as an owner. In a shelter environment though I am currently seeing a number of dogs, particularly young dogs, who have shown resource guarding behaviours but are quite quickly able to respond well to various different people who they don't know well coming close, bringing good things etc while they are eating, and also responding to leave it and swap type training. It absolutely does not make these dogs bomb proof, it does not mean that high value things will get the same response, it does not mean they will show the same response around other dogs, multiple people etc etc etc but it can significantly reduce their negative reaction to humans approaching them while eating. Yes, of course crating is safer, but in many (not all) dogs resource guarding is a behaviour that can be improved and that would be my choice. For Cassie (OP), you recognize you have an issue and there are various options for managing it so you have to choose what will work best for you, your pup and your family, best of luck :)

I agree that you can't condition against every situation the may ever be in and guarantee it won't ever bite but you can work against the dog's reaction that any human near food means the food will be lost so must be guarded. I wouldn't ever suggest that a dog that has shown signs of resource guarding should be pushed with food being taken away regularly, all and sundry around the food etc, and the training that people coming near while food is there = good thing may well need to be reinforced forever, but I would personally rather do what I could to reduce the risk than rely on keeping the dog away from people any time food is around ever.

The trouble with accepting the resource guarding and always leaving the dog alone while eating is that what happens if if one day, in one of those combinations of unlikely events, someone else reaches for the dog's food and gets bitten? It's a risk and something as an individual owner you have to decide if you're willing to take it. Personally I absolutely second BC Crazy's advice, that's what I would do. And if you aren't totally confident with it and/or if you have the time and money, I'd still probably go for at least once consult with a reputable trainer anyway, people here can recommend someone :)

Makes me laugh reading about the pups not jumping into the car, Quinn, my Aussie Shepherd, who is now almost 2, fully grown and regularly demonstrates her ability to jump to adult human face height, still stands at the car seat with her front paws up on the seat and waits for me to lift her butt in like I had to when she was a puppy and couldn't reach :laugh:

Oh cute :) Give him time with the carrot ( and other fruit and veg) and stick to your guns. If he's REALLY hungry he'll eat it, if not, that's fine, he can wait for his next scheduled feed. My 3 all quite like carrots and apples and will happily snack on them if there's nothing else on offer but if they had a choice of them or something more meat-based they'd go for the meaty one every time!

I'm going to say this in the nicest way possible - there are quite a few explanations for scars and a missing tail tip and abuse or dog attacks are only some of them. Sounds to me like you're on the path of attempting to justify Rocky's fence aggression. It won't help you or him at all. Ditto. You're talking about resource aggression and in many dogs it comes hard wired. I've actually heard a US dog rescue guru say she saw less food aggression in starved dogs than in fat ones. You're inventing a history of abuse here and it again won't help your dog. Sounds to me like you've got a pretty shabbily put together colourbond fence (not uncommon) that will not withstand any kind of force. You need to keep your dog off the fence. I expect you might now know why he spent time on a chain. Invest in a good fenced run. They are portable and IMO the only guaranteed method of keeping your dog safe in your yard when you aren't around. If he gets out and scares the wrong dog owner, you'll see him declared dangerous and that's an outcome you need to avoid at all costs. The worst case scenario is that he attacks a dog or a person and that will bring the police to your door. You need to stop feeling sorry for this dog and DEAL with his potentially dangerous behaviour. Inventing a sad past won't help you or him if it leads to council and/or police involvement.. If your dog came through the fence at me when I was walking my dogs, I'd be calling the rangers pronto. The fact that he isn't registered will see you cop fines for a start. You might also wish to consider that you've bitten off more than you can chew with this dog. It doesn't sound like the place you got him from had your best interests in mind. Is he desexed? Definitely all of the above.

Oh my goodness, Banjo! Sooooo gorgeous :D I can see the Maltese cuteness in my poodle x malt when I see pics of a PB Malt, I've seen much more of PB Poodles up til now. Banjo looks like he has a cheeky side as well :laugh: