paddles

I would like to teach my dog to "stand", And quite frankly can't remember the best way to go about it. I have been, so far, walking him along a wall, putting a flat hand in front of his face (With a treat in it) saying stand, as he eats the treat, running my other hand along his back, ready (but so far unnecesary) to remind him not to sit. I would like eventually for him to stand on a vocal command alone.

Hints, tips, and straight out telling me how to do it, would be much appreciated.

thank you

Paddles, there is room between where you put your feet to scoot along if needed but you dont have to scoot all the time. I'm sure once you get them going you might be suprised with what they can do. At the moment because they have just started with the gig I'm only going on the flat until they are more experienced I'm lucky where I live we have a trail that goes along the side of the road from one town to the next which is mostly flat with a few small inclines.

Thank you for your replys Kezzzza, they have been very helpfull!!! I have been talking to several people, including windchill, and I think (i have in no way made up my mind in any fashion!lol) that I might do better with a scooter. Whilst it is mostly flat around here, I would hate to pay for a cart (soooo expensive) and then find I should have bought a scooter... next year, I am going to join/go to the siberian husky club info days, and see some vehicles in action, and then make up my mind I think.

Where are you based Kezza? anywhere near Echuca?

HAd the same thing happen to me.

I was doing some exercises in re-inforcing the heel position, so heel one step forwards, one around, one back etc.

The comment - oh well any dog would do that for food!

Um no it wouldn't, and my dog was position perfect, almost levitating backwards to get into the correct position!

Yep a piece of food will get ANY dog to do that...sure!

It is all about their insecurities, keep doing what you are, sounds like you are going great guns - well done.

Oh and it is always good when they nail something when someone is watching - especially a loud obnoxious someone!

It always amazes me, i know the amount of work required to get a dog to be obedient to a command (as I hang my head in shame at the sight of my 2 totaly untrained dogs) in the past I have trained my dogs etc, and as you say, getting the dog to do things like a totaly focused heel is not easy, and of course what people don't realise, is that it's not just teaching the dog the command, it's the constant practice of the command that makes it look so good. There is a lady here who I see on occasion, who has the most beautifully trained dog (tricks and all the works) and I have also seen people accuse her of being cruel to her dog for not rewarding a failed command.

Why can't people see a trained dog, or someone working at training a dog, as the beautiful thing it is????

Hi Paddles I got a 3 wheel gig last week, I have two Siberians and they have no problem pulling it. It's not that heavy, I got it from Windchill it's great runs smoothly. I have also only run one dog with this gig and he had no problem pulling it.

Kezzzza, how did you go scooting the cart? did you need to? did you only run on the flat? i have 2 english springers... so slightly smaller? less pulling ability (Maybe)

Love the photo!!

I've been looking at scooters and carts, and a question that arises, is, is a 3 wheeled cart a better option? however most pics show 3 or more dogs pulling a 3 wheeled cart? is a 3 wheeled cart that much heavier than a scooter?

please post your opinions and experiances... Photos would be good too

I have a kids scooter, the sort tho, with brakes and pump up bike type wheels (i think that they are 16 inch?) but find the handlebars are low for me, but I can use it. I am thinking of buying one from windchill (maybe next year.... late next year....next christmas maybe lol) although, I'm also debating a 3 wheeled thing, but, I'm wondering how many dogs you really need to pull one... I have 2 dogs, and they pull the scooter at a steady jog/trot, which I'm fine with (i'm not looking for speed, just a chance/ability to exercise the dogs more) but it is not so comfortable, usable by all means, but not comfortable. I also find, I'm having to hop off/ or scoot, because I don't feel safely balanced. (lack of practice maybe?) one of the things I'm looking at, is some dog carts? have a shaft, that the dogs are hooked up to, to prevent them tangling, this is to me quite practical. (the number of times that the dogs turn around, or twist around so that the ganglines are under/ or twisted around the other dog, or the neckline etc, and by the time you straighten out the dogs, pick up the scooter, and get them moving again.......

So what sort of information that I am looking for, is who has what, who does what etc..... I mean, since i'm not interesting in serious racing or anything, and my dogs don't feel the need to run flat out... (Unless they see another dog or a bird.... or anything else that looks interesting lol) so the normal set up does not necessarily apply. I also spend a fair amount of time going around suburban streets, so stopping/starting is a regular thing.

also, how long do you run your dogs? on the assumption that they are reasonably fit? is 20-30 min sufficient? too much? etc.

thank you

I found the best strategy with Daisy (who used to be quite the jumper) was to teach her an alternative way to get attention instead (seeing as jumping up is an attention seeking behaviour). Dogs jump up because they learn it's a successful way to get what they want. Instead, I taught Daisy that jumping up wouldn't work but the instant she sat down, she would get lots of attention and pats. I now have a dog who will run up to me to say hello but will slam her butt down on the ground as soon as she reaches me

I was going to say similar (it works) we now just say sit, when they get excited and jumpy, making certain to make a fuss of them when they sit. ignor bad behaviour, although, if the bad behaviour continues, we put them (or the offending party, because this works with the kids too) outside, till they calm down. the moment they calm down, they come back in. (No fuss is made on coming bacck in) so they have learnt, bad behaviour gets them nowhere, good behaviour gets kisses andd cuddles (of course, the kids don't want kisses and cuddles these days, but they still get them lol)

I'd be really interested in this too. I was just thinking that a scooter would be easier to fit in the car than a bike, and didn't realise there was a special "dog scooter" out there! I have a min pin who needs to go fast to burn off some energy before doing any satisfactory "walking". I figure a scooter might be good for this.

(Sorry for getting your hopes up regarding a useful reply to your post, paddles - just wondering the same thing as you )

I want to see a min pin pull someone dog scooters from what I can tell are just more adult sized than most scooters......I've used one of those razor scooters (they collapse really easily) but they are only good if you are going on concrete paths. although, I see some of the scooters seem to have folding frames.

You can buy bikes that fold up..

I would like some information, I have 2 dogs, and have just ordered harness from windchill, I have a scooter (One of the kids..lol) but my queries are, does anybody have the proper dog scooter? could you please tell me the size of the deck (the bit you stand on) and how high off the ground it is, I find it painful after a while, as I can only fit one foot on the deck of my scooter, and was contemplating attempting to make the deck longer and wider (well getting someone to do it) and also, how is the gangline attached to the scooter? do I need to have a ring? or something similar welded to the scooter? what about swivels? etc?

any further information that anyone can think of, would be appreciated... this is ment to be fun, and more exercise for the dogs, but I am cautious, I don't want to risk hurting my dogs

Thank you for your help, this is what I wanted to know. I'm assuming that the pin brush, is the wire brush on the back of the other brush... if that makes sense, looks like a mass of pins.

I've just given my dogs a good brushover, and it occured to me, that I don't really know what I am doing.

I have all sorts of brushes, but I don't know exactly how I am supposed to use them, for instance, I brushed sophie down with the slicker brush, then thought to use the mars comb (Can you use the mars comb too much?) I just used it on the weekend, and removed heaps of hair. should I have used the mars first? do I need to use the slicker at all? do these get into the deep coat? (They are English springer Spaniels) I am wary of knots.

The dogs really hate being combed with the rakes etc, I presume it pulls. I don't like useing them on them. but I will if I should. They complain enough about the slicker brush.

the other things I have are rakes, combs and of course the standard double sided brush.

What is the most effective way to brush these dogs? with what?

They are just pets.

are these furminators better than, same as a mars comb? I've seen them, but since they are very expensive, I'm hesitent, I'm wondering if they would be good for ears etc. my dog yelps something shocking when I try to comb out his ears..

Ok, thank you all for your advice....

I'm looking at them now trying to decide what to do, maybe clip out thier bellys? leave the rest, I don't know...

I groom on a table, when seriously working at it, but tend to sit on the lounge room floor with them of an evening to check ears, feet etc, and have a comb and brush with me, but that is not serious grooming, more just checking and cuddling (We all need a cuddle every now and then)

Sophie has had matts under her armpits before, and it is very hot and humid up here (Echuca) they also have a water tub which they lay/wade in, as well as regular trips to the river and I worry that she gets matts which in turn never dry out leading to sores, she even gets matts on the tops of her ears, she seems to get a lot of fluff? on her.... oh well, here comes the mars again... Ignore the yelps from Fred

I have a mars comb, and regularly use it, I think you are right, another go over withthe mars comb will do the job, the hair on the ears will grow out soon enough,

One thing that I did notice with the ears, is that there were crusty? bits at the bottom of the ears, no sores on the ears, but something that would have happened eventually, what gets me, is I comb out the ears regularly (Looking for grass seeds) yet when I clipped them, I found a couple of matts, and as I said these crusty bits (Thier ears get wet when they drink) It's one thing to give a clip every now and then, but I like the long hair/ spaniel look (After all, I chose English springers for a reason, well it was temperment mainly, but you know what I mean)

should I just sissor the ears with the thinning scissors regularly? and trim the length? (There was 2 1/2 inch length hair on the top of the ear) and obviously I was not keeping them combed out enough. and it's really hard to use the mars comb on the ears! not to mention, that they don't like it when you pull hair on their ears.

I just scissor the feet

both are desexed, Fred was done at 3mths, and Sophie 8mths (we got her at 8mths) I'm trying to think if that photo was taken before or after they were clipped, I think before... Ever noticed how hard it is to get a good photo of 2 brown and white dogs, and be able to tell that there are 2 dogs there? LOL

There coats are .... Hmmm, ok, because I don't groom excessively, I can't say how brilliant they could look, I wash every couple of mths, dependent on stink (They are inside dogs) brush once a week, unless I find something that needs tending (I check for grass seeds daily) and obviously if I come across a matt, or knot,I comb it out. but they are primarily kids dogs....

I think I'll go ahead and clip them tomorrow...

Oh, they are approx 20mths

this is sophie, the day after we got her...

Hi, I have two lovely English Springers, Fred and Sophie, Recently I decided that I would buy a pair of clippers and learn to groom them myself. Groomers of the world, your jobs are safe!!!! so at the end of the day, thier ears have been clipped over (I found a grass seed, and decided that I would rather remove the hair entirely to ensure that there are no more, although, I did start out just clipping the underside of the ear, to allow air movement to try to prevent ear infection, I ended up with bald (So to speak) ears, now they sort of look funny with the ears so short, and the body hair so long, once before I clipped them over entirely, with a no 5? blade, but I am wary because I have heard that some breeds don't do well with clipping (I used to own a sheltie, which came from sheltie rescue, and his coat was awefull, and a groomer once told me it was because he'd been clipped, and you shouldn't clip a double coated dog....)

So is there a reason not to clip them over entirely, for both grooming and heat purposes. (In summer they just live inside with the airconditioning, If I can't stand it, then they don't have to) so I can't totaly say that the heat of summer is a plausable reason.

Whilst they do get brushed (I'm not a total slacker) I can't say that I am fanatical about it...

I use coin operated wash at the local pet store, you can dial in Shampoo, flea wash etc, or use your own. Cost is $1- a minute, I don't use the drier, because they are $1- per min, and blow cold air, and seem really ineffective. I jsut rock on up, and have only once had someone else ccome in wanting to use the wash while I am there.

I towel dry them a bit, throw them in the car (Well not literaly of course! LOL bit big for that) take them home and let them run it off.

Mind you, my dogs are jsut pets.

I would like to add something here, I was having trouble with my springer, and my youngest child (Not really mouthing as such, but dangerous behaviour) Thomas (8) would roll on the ground and allow our then 6mth old pup to get over him, I explained to Thomas why this was not a good idea, (Which he ignored being an 8yr old boy) and was at my wits end, when I spoke to the vet about my problem and she came up with a simple solution, I was disiplining the wrong party! sending tom to his room fixed the problem within a week. (Worked for ignoring mouthing problems too, not that we really had any as such)

within the week kids could yelp and ignore like a pro, instead of screaming and carrying on exciting the dog.

I have experiance with ear infections! First I would like to ask, is this the first time your dog has had one? if so, it could just be a one off! When my English springer boy got his infection, the vet had all sorts of doom and gloom messages about allergies etc! However once the infection was cleared up, it hasn't come back! Nearly 6mths since he had it! My bitch currently has one, and my theory is, If you keep the ears clean (As in clip excess hair away) not twirl or any of the other things that some groomers will do, then the air can get into the ear, and you don't get the infections!

That's just my 2 cents worth.

Oh, I use a specific ear cleaner, epioptic? and just swab the available parts of the ear once a week. (It doesn't cost much, and lasts forever)

I think that the reason that sophie (MY bitch) has an infection, is because I've gotten lazy and not had thier ears clipped out. and it' been humid.

I use my two english springers, it's heaps of fun, (I just do it for fun, and don't yet belong to a club) go for it!

Something I've learnt, if doing it in nieghbourhood streets, be prepared to stop and chat a lot! EVERYONE is interested!

Where are you? I'm in echuca.

my nine mth old English springer bitch, has this odd, skip? that shows up on occasion, when she is running only, walking and trotting show now limp. (Looks to me sort of like a mild case of shifting patella) I had her checked for shifting patella, and she doesn't have it (Well the vet couldn't get it to move) She does not appear in pain, and since I'm not a marathon runner, it really doesn't bother me. however I have noticed that as I walk her and my other dog, that she seams to ?get tired? easily? 30minutes and she's ready to settle down and go home. (A usual walk for us is at least an hr) Again, I can poke and prod, and no sign of pain, and no limp, Other than that odd skip she gets occasionaly, so anyway, what I'm asking is, should I shorten her walks, take her to the vet? (She goes in for desexing tomorrow) or just continue to ignore the skip?

Thank you

You did the right thing, When i was young, and jsut left home, I decided I wanted a pup, The woman I boarded with, said fine, but it must be white and fluffy, She even took me up to croyden market and helped me pick out a "cute" puppy (Maltese, westie cross) Whisky was a great dog, but, I should never have got him! After I left the house where I was boarding (As this young woman will undoubtedlyleave home eventually) I found it nigh on impossible to find places to live that allowed dogs (And sneaking a dog past landlords really did not work) Eventually Whisky had to be rehomed (I did find a good home for him, but to this day regret having to let him go) (And assurances from the new owner that I could visit turned out to be so much hot air) Now I am in a much more settled life (Husband kids etc) and having dogs is good. But I see so many dogs available, free to good home, moveing and can

t take dog. Many young people want a dog...Few landlords allow them. (Tell her to get a budgie)

I have decided to buy new harnesses, Windchill does a deal, complete setup, for $100- (or something like that) I have decided for safety, I need to spend more time just walking behind the dogs, refining commands etc. so have a little more time before I need to buy the harnesses. I need to come up with a command or something meaning, go forward, since they do not necisarrily go forward (Usually, but not always) and a better stop! LOL

I also think I need to find a club near here, so that I can find someone to give me more hands on teaching.

Thank you for all your help

mysticpaw, Where can I buy harnesses etc? My home made stuff fell apart this morning, and also, Keeping in mind what you said about the comfort, I noticed that the seatbelt harnesses kept pulling to the side (Maybe my y thingy wasn't long enough?) I think that I will save up and buy proper equipment (Unless you know somewhere where I could get second hand harnesses?) Thank you

I'm in echuca, Victoria, and have 2 English spinger spaniels, Many months ago, I saw a thing on TV about sled dog races etc, and thought, That looks fun, I got in touch with the victorian Sled dog association, and recieved a few very informative emails about how to train my dog (I only had one then) I had a lot of fun, just getting him to walk in front of me, and to turn, leave stuff etc, Time went on, and it sort of fell by the roadside (He was/is very young, only 9 mths old now) I recently got an 8mth old bitch to keep Fred company, and realised, when we went walking, that they walk very nicely together, side by side, in front of me, I started thinking about sled dog stuff again (I'm not interested in racing, or anything like that) indeed, I don't intend for them to ever really pull me (Well maybe a little bit, on the flats) I want to wait until they are 2yrs old before I by harnesses etc (If I continue that long) I'm just playing around, wanting to spend time with my dogs, that if exercise is a by product is all the better. As far as I,and my dogs are concerned, I want this to be fun.

I made the short leash out of bungy cord, and the y thing out of bungy cord. I'm also using a lead with a bungy thing in it as the tow? lead?