koalathebear

Poor Ollie, a bird pooped on his head

I posted a clip before from the documentary "One Nation Under Dog" that showed a dog trainer/rescuer working with a dog that looked very unpromising in a pound environment - clearly a fear biter. Just curious about your views on it. It was one of the very few uplifting moments in an otherwise depressing, although excellent documentary, but now I am curious as to whether you think that the dog in question should have been rehomed (i.e its issues were too significant) or whether you think that the his assessment was right i.e. the dog could be rehomed but was not presenting well in a pound environment. I loved that he was able to bring the dog out of its shell but I know that I would certainly have been thrown off by the dog's body language etc.

I can only speak from personal experience. For instance, both my dogs have already passed silver obedience and are in Gold but there's no worries about hanging around in Gold class forever. Similarly, last term I took Hoover back to do silver again just for fun and socialisation (because there is no gold class on Thursday nights) and there was absolutely no problem with that. There are more instructors for obedience - but I also feel like with obedience, people just accept more that you can be doing it just for fun/enrichment. By picking agility which is so much more effort, I think people just think you should be Doing More or Aiming Higher. It's a consideration that crosses my mind but it's not the main reason I don't want to trial. The bolting and zoomies is actually hilarious at trials. For me, agility practice is sooooo much fun - one hour of running around the field with your dog(s). By contrast, a trial is several minutes of running around with your dog and a lot of waiting/organisation/stress and hanging around with the other triallers (sometimes a whole day) - none of which would be fun for me. I know it's very rewarding and fun for some, and that is great for those who enjoy it - but it really isn't what floats my boat or that of my dogs.

Absolutely. The waiting list is long and some people have been waiting for ages. In the beginners group, some of the people elected to start trialling after only one term and are super keen so of course it's 'fair' that they should get priority. One of my dogs has been doing it 1 year and the other 6 months. aussielover- it's about the equipment as much as the handling :D O to have the space to set up my own private agility course :) I think agility requires so much more additional effort and is more time/equipment intensive that there's more of an expectation that you will take it 'seriously'. With obedience, I think there are far less of an expectation for people to go to trialling etc.

Absolutely. For fostering we are sticking with the breed that we know - or at least feel most comfortable with. Also, even though I feel like I have quite a bit of experience working with dogs now, I am absolutely not equipped to deal with an aggressive dog so we will not foster any dog that has not been confirmed as being friendly with other dogs. greytmate - I know what you mean about the different categories of 'issues'. I guess my ongoing anxiety as such, is because I can see that with my foster, he might have been rescued at just the right time before his potential issues actually became issues. For instance, if he didn't have my dogs telling him to get back in line and not get in their face - he might do that with another dog when he's older with terrible consequences. If he'd been fostered in a home without other dogs or without dogs who were willing to tell him off, this particular trait might not have been identified. Random question completely unrelated to my own dog (who isn't mouthy in the slightest) - what about a poorly socialised dog that is mouthy and nips people/doesn't like to be touched and resorts to biting. If the foster carer can train this out of the dog and not put it in situations where it doesn't feel pressured to bite - is the dog rehomeable or is the predisposition always there to bite when things don't go its way?

I've been with the club since 2010 and know/know of pretty much all of the people in the trialling class. Many are lovely human beings. I've also attended quite a few agility trials as a spectator and stewarded at trials so know enough to know what I do not enjoy and what my dogs aren't likely to enjoy. We love running around the field for an hour without pressure and at present, the intermediate classes are perfect for that. It's a shame that there aren't any private classes. It's sad but I might end up dropping agility and doing something else with them - perhaps DWD where there isn't the same intensity/expectation about competition. aussielover - you are right, there is a very long waiting list for agility so I can see why people like me are seen as a bit of a waste of time if we don't intend to trial.

Cosmolo this is something that's very much on my mind right now. We're fostering a Kelpie cross and he's gorgeous. We've had no problems with him - our two dogs were a bit offended when he arrived but they all get along fine now. He was very easy to house-train. He gets along very well with other dogs. He is very smart and trainable - learned sit, drop, spin, shake hands in only 6 days. Travels beautifully in the car. Was easy to crate train. He is very responsive to correction - just a 'no' or an 'uh uh' and he will desist. You can handle him all over, touch his paws, his hind legs, brush him, pick him up without any problems. He shows no signs of separation anxiety and really just seems like a very well-adjusted dog. We are also working hard at teaching him to chill out when he sees the humans chilling i.e. go to his bed/crate/mat and lie there. The thing is, in him I can see traits that are fairly typical working dog/Kelpie-ish traits and were probably what led to him being dumped in the first place. I can see that he could be an escape artist, even though he has never tried to escape from our yard. He could have destructive tendencies but we watch him closely and discourage him when he looks like he's going to counter surf/gnaw on something he shouldn't. He had really appalling doorway and mealtime manners when we got him and we have been teaching him to wait - but the impatience is still there and if he had an owner who let him get away with it, he'd very quickly regress to being pushy and bratty. I am not sure how he would be in a different household. I know foster carers who have dogs who behave beautifully at their house but then when rehomed, immediately jump the fence even though they've never showed any inclination to do that while in foster care. We are trying to expose our foster to as many different people and situations as possible, to as many different household appliances and noises as possible but I suppose the worry for me is that perhaps there is something unknown trigger that we just don't know about. I used to read posts about rescue dogs gone wrong and wonder how on earth it happened but now I can't help thinking that foster dogs are frequently in care for a relatively short period of time and it can be hard to expose the dog to all stimuli that it is likely to encounter. On top of that, a dog with issues may not manifest such issues with certain people but may with others. No one in their right mind would rehome a blatantly aggressive, fence-jumping dog - it's possible that some things just manifest later depending on the environment and the owner. I find this a bit scary :p ETA: I was very anxious/emphatic about not having our dog listed on petrescue until I had finished all of his basic training - I had put together a list of things here that I don't want our foster dogs leaving without. I've often seen rescue dogs listed on petrescue for adoption within days or even on the day they're liberated from the pound and wonder how one earth you can really assess the dog's true nature in such a short period of time.

Random question - there are plenty of trainers around who give private obedience classes. Does anyone know of a trainer who gives private agility classes in the Canberra area? My two Kelpies love agility to bits and are currently in intermediate - Elbie's actually quite a bit better than Hoover because he's been doing it longer. We have been told that we're going to have to move into the trialling class next term with all of the advanced people/triallers. One, to make room for the next batch of people and two, because they're both getting to a relatively proficiently level. They're actually very good - I'm not a great handler. But we all have fun. I don't want to trial and don't really want to be in the trialling class with all of the serious agility people because the intermediate class offers the degree of fun and complexity that we enjoy. It's looking like we might have to drop out of club classes after the end of this term. The people are friendly enough but I've heard enough of the less than nice comments made about non-triallers like: "So and so has been bringing her dogs to training for almost 2 years and never even bothered to trial" like it's a bad thing or something. Yes I could just develop a thick skin and bring my dogs to that class anyway, but I just don't think we'd have fun anymore. I have some of my own agility equipment - jumps, chute, tunnel, weave poles - but it's the full course that's most fun and there's no way I have the space for see-saw, dog walk, a-frame etc :) So if anyone knows of any private instructors, please let me know because we really don't want to stop. I've never heard of anything - but thought it was worth asking! Thanks in advance!

tdierikx - he does indeed. He's still very young and has very puppy-ish ways :laugh: Thanks Monique - we love him dearly. It's going to be extremely hard to let him go but I am hoping that if we get lots of applications for him, we'll maximise his chances of finding a good home. It will definitely have to be with someone who loves giving cuddles. He mostly sleeps in our bedroom but we have been moving him to different rooms of the house in his crate to sleep just to get him used to sleeping in different places. He's always very quiet and well-behaved.

Yes, sometimes he looks very huskyish to me :) Other times he just looks like a teddy bear

He's being very well-behaved but the cone has to stay on for now because he's a shocking licker!

Thanks. He was desexed today. He is not happy with the bucket Makes it very hard to sleep

Thanks so much for your kind words. I hope we can find him a good home ...

Well, I couldn't defer it any longer. Tonight I prepared Ollie's petrescue profile and also a first draft of his music video. It would kind of suck if my foray into the fostering world ended after my first dog because my first dog was a foster failure :p

That's what I think! He'll only need to be told once that he can go up and I'm sure he'll remember forever :D

We're definitely determined to treat the dogs the same - but things like dogs on beds/sofas can be quite problematic for some people so I still think that I won't be letting them up on furniture. It can totally be the new owner's call about that. As to indoor/outdoor - our dogs are inside (with access to outdoors via a dog door) and we are going to be letting our fosters inside and our personal preference is that dogs are inside - but given that they are working dogs, it is entirely possible that there is a perfectly good home out there where the dog is going to be an outside dog. I guess we'll see on a case by case basis, depending on the people who want a dog.

Thanks all - it's really useful to read all the different feedback. I guess with all things there are many different ways to handle the situation. Because of what keetamouse mentioned, I moved Ollie's crate out of our bedroom to a different room in the house last night just to see how he'd handle it. He was fine, not a peep out of him. I think in future, I will probably let the crated dog sleep in our room the first few nights to settle it and then move it to different rooms of the house after that (in its crate of course). I'll probably keep going with the Royal Canin for all the dogs - they get a wide mix of different treats. I think I will also continue to NOT let fosters on the sofa/bed because even though I could train it not to go up unless invited, there's always a risk it could jump up in the first week and annoy the new owners. If they want the dog on the bed/sofa, it's very easy to teach it to do that :p It is interesting to see the difference responses here and elsewhere because some people are very: "Don't discriminate against the dog - treat it the same as your own" and others are: "Be mindful that not all homes will be like yours, so it cannot have all the same privileges that your own dogs have".

I think people go on the dogs they know. Like I said, my colleague loves the dogs his brother owns. At my obedience club, there's a labradoodle that does obedience, rally-o and dances with dogs, there's someone else with labradoodles who does agility and her dogs also have tracking and obedience titles - if people have met good versions then that's what they go with. It's hard to convince otherwise. I think the best bet is to try to find a dog that's old enough to have its temperament and coat fairly determinable and go with that on an individual dog basis given that 'breed traits' are so variable given the mix.

He is extremely smart and trainable!! I cannot believe how much he has learned in just 10 days either!!! It's like he's desperate to learn - I cannot believe someone just dumped him at the pound when he has so much potential. He's probably not suitable as an agility dog (because he is a porker and will probably always kind of be a bit chunky :laugh:) but he could definitely be a good obedience or rally-o dog if someone was that way inclined. He is also EXTREMELY soft and cuddley :laugh:

Ha! I think I just posted to your post in the FB group :) I can't wait to read all about Wonka - he's so cute-looking. Welcome to fostering. I am loving it so far - even though I was very very nervous about it before starting :laugh: I'm keeping a blog about fostering here. So far so good - although OH will probably have to be the one who hands Ollie over to his forever home when the time comes :p

I know that the rule of thumb is to treat the foster dog the same way that you treat your own dogs. I have some questions though and would love to hear the views of others. The main thing is that while I am perfectly happy to treat our foster dogs the same way our dogs are treated - there is no guarantee that the dog will receive the same treatment in its new home - although of course the intention is to try very hard to find the best possible home. So here are the questions: 1. My foster is currently eating Royal Canin like my own dogs but some people have said that perhaps it's better to feed a cheaper dog food because a lot of adopters may not want to feed a premium kibble. 2. My foster sleeps in our bedroom in a crate right now. Do you let your fosters sleep in the same place as your dogs or do you have them sleep in the kitchen/laundry/other room so that it's easier to make the adjustment to a new home? We are fostering working breeds, so it's possible that some families may want the dog to be an outside dog. 3. Do people let their foster dogs onto their bed/sofas? Our two are allowed but I'm hesitant about doing it with Ollie in case his future family doesn't want dogs on the sofa/bed and it's better to train him NOT to go up there in the first place ... Any views? 4. Is the first foster the hardest one to let go of i.e. does it get easier? I get a bit misty-eyed when I think about handing over Ollie to a new home. He was at the pound and kennels for so long and he clearly LOVES being in a home surrounded by people and other dogs - he acts like THIS is his new home. I know dogs are very adaptable but it does cause me a bit of a pang to think of making him change scenes again. 5. What are your basic criteria that you have for a dog before you rehome it in terms of training? We have a checklist of training requirements and Ollie's doing very well so far but I'm curious about what other people expect before they rehome a dog. Friendliness is a given because we will not foster any dog that is not dog-friendly. Thanks in advance!

Some people are just determined. My colleague is extremely well educated and smart and I have explained everything to him about DDs, paying so much for what is a crossbreed, health testing, puppy farms and all that, but his brother owns two beautifully behaved, perfectly healthy beloved labraoodles (who do agility and obedience and are beloved family pets) so they went and picked up their own yesterday ... Took a day off work and drove all the way to Condobolin to pick him up. I do think it's a good idea to point them towards a rescue dog. Hope you find a suitable one!

Not yet! He needs to be desexed first (booked in for next Friday) and needs some more training and then he'll have a petrescue profile - but he does have blog posts here :) http://koalathebear.dreamwidth.org/

I will! He loves cuddles so much - seriously. My dogs are affectionate but they are aloof by comparison - Ollie's so snuggley and affectionate, it's adorable. He has also learned how to beg today!

Yeah .. I guessed that. On the foster carer facebook for our group, someone asked: "Does anyone ever take their foster dog to a meet and greet and secretly hope that the family doesn't like the dog?" :D I kind of know what they mean. Part of it is a bit of guilt - Ollie came from the pound, has had a pretty bad cough and hasn't been treated very well at all but he's still so happy, trainable and eager to please. He has fit into our home perfectly - loved the toys, our dogs, the food, the atmosphere - I feel a bit guilty moving him elsewhere when he clearly loves it here so much. But I know that dogs are adaptable and if we can place him in the perfect home, then we can help another dog that needs help ... You're right. The Kelpie is definitely very dominant. His behaviour really isn't very spitzy at all because he's got the shameless, desperate to please, eager Kelpieness about him. Just a few times he seems a bit spitzy when you ask him to do something he doesn't want to do and he kind of walks off in a rather dignified fashion :laugh: