Nekhbet

Does he need a conversation with Aunty Nekhbet? Rogue and Mina might have to come have a little talking to him too. Don't feel like a fool, you're not the one who should be feeling a fool. His kneecaps might have to feel something though if he tries anyting again though :D

I work a full time job and my own business every other spare moment, I'd love to sit about and teach animals novelty tricks for the sake of it but I would rather channel them into working activities for what time I do have. I know birds are threatened by body language, hence the point of the chicken workshops forcing you to use food and markers only. Good for the average person to learn some patience but a dog and a chicken are two very different animals. They way they think, their behavioral reactivity and wiring is totally different - one is predator the other is prey. Conversely if people want a good exercise throw a few small objects on a table and have one person as the 'dog' the other as the trainer. See if the trainer can train the other to do what they ultimately want to achieve.

I've taught a dog to play a piano, a horse to bow and almost roll over plus work on just verbals, and I have ferrets that come when called out of warrens. I know the concepts :) No dog was born to stare at your treat hand, it's part of how they've been trained and raised and I see it in dogs that have had treats overused as the only reinforcer they have come to understand. See that to me is not dog training - you might as well develop a programmed machine to do it for you. You need to interact with your dog, touch it, praise it, pat it, help it not just throw food at it. I'm not happy to be a dispenser and neither are my clients, no dog I train is obsessed with treat hands or has trouble understanding fine motions - and we do fine motions at dog school quite precisely as well. They're all handler orientated, happy dogs that want to work for their owners and learn quickly. Interaction also means your dog is happy to learn to rely on you in times of stress, its what your hands and leash/collar help you with. Yes, too much talking is confusing, whereas well placed words they have been conditioned to understand work amazingly well and they are happy. Remember too talking is an interactive human action, it's expressive and what one says can help to keep the handlers emotions and motivation high too. You can't do that with a clicker. Maybe because I tailor myself at a different market and not just my own couple of dogs.

Google belly bands, it's just a wrap of stretchy fabric around the middle when he's inside. If he pees he pees on himself instead of the wall, usually enough of a deterent to show them it's a bad idea. We have an old pug that was outdoors for years, she too still doesnt want to go outside when it's cold. When we first got her she cocked her leg on everything including laundry drying. We taught her to use a cat litter box so she has an option if she cant make it outside in time.

super glue was actually created as a way to suture skin without stitches. You never put it in wounds you pinch them together tight and make a line of glue over them. We used to patch up dogs with little nicks with it at the vet clinic. It wont eat normal skin but it burns in a wound. As for metho, antibacterial and dries quickly, helps dry skin and can toughen pads on soft dogs when done daily. Both actually have medicinal uses. Stings like heck on raw wounds so be careful.

I use a marker word instead as do the people at my school. For newby handlers its easier to have less things to juggle and I find many are worst on timing when the hand has to do the action then to just say a word. Then they only have to worry about a leash in one hand and a treat/toy in the other. This way too all time is training time :D Thats why I dont use a lot of constant rewarding. The dogs are getting too much for doing too little and they stop thinking because they know they don't have to work hard to get it. There is an exercise in KNPV that is the article guard, it includes the dog first finding the article, then placing its front paws/body on it and guarding it when someone tries to remove it. To get the dog to recognise the item we place a piece of food on top, lead the dog to it, get it to take the treat off the box which it has now acknowledged and then lure it up onto the box with it's front feet only on it. Hand on the collar helping the dog and food in the other. The dog has to stand up straight and bark to get the reward. You probably don't want your dogs to see the object as something to find and guard but the behavior of staying planted on the object no matter what happens is good to watch. Some people also use a shallow upturned pot/box so the dog definitely cannot be half on/off it's either feet on or feet off. This lady has some good videos it's a pity she doesnt have the ones right at the start https://www.youtube.com/user/elissacline/videos

teach her to track then or to do scent detection. If she's that obsessed at least channel it into something productive :) she's halfway there if her nose is that plastered to the ground all the time heeeeeeeeeeeaps of vids on youtube about scent detection, it's the easiest to start. All you need is some clean, upside down flower pots and her favourite toy/treat to teach her to concentrate. Adding a target odour is up to you

put concrete down and put belt rubber over the top. I've seen a few dogs with burnt/shredded pads from hard surfaces like gravel and concrete, and being non absorbent at least you can clean it without the urine seeping into an absorbable substrate over time.

nothing wrong with luring but you have to hide the treat in your hand properly. I let the dog lick the hand when starting because proximity is very important to keep the dogs attention. Move your hand slowly, keep them licking, no erratic movement or you lose the dog and it cant follow. If you want an easy way, close your hand into a fist but with your thumb on top like this hide the treats in your hand, the dog can lick your fingers to get the taste but cannot pinch the treats. Simply lift your thumb to dispense a treat straight into the dogs mouth and you wont drop it either. The dogs also tend to stop biting/snapping because licking is encouraged. It's also why I put a hand/lead on the dogs collar. When the dog is lured in position keep your hand on the collar in place so there is no pressure. When the dog goes to move out of position or pull towards your hand it will create pressure, dogs want to move away from pressure so put themselves back into position. Just move your hand an inch away from the dogs nose, when the dog freezes in position and stops pulling towards your hand then mark YES - give treat. It's the magical missed step in luring which is why majority of people have so much trouble with weaning their dogs off treats/hand movement. The dog is ONLY rewarded for holding position and not following your hand, and you help them understand that by holding them with leash/hand. Once the dog stops following your hand you then move your hand to your face so the dog learns that the command includes a focal component. Failure usually comes from lack of feedback at critical moments. When we teach a command to a dog like sit, drop etc we leave it open ended. So we usually let the dog decide how long it wants to stay there UNLESS we add a stay command, then we doubly confuse the dog because we allow it to wriggle around on the spot just not make foreward motion. I use a command to break position/change position. If they only ever get up when told you will find they understand that breaking the position is actually a failure and not just something to do because you left the behavior open ended. Either use a release word or make them recall to you. You need to give the dog signals to show it's on the right track. I use 'good dog' while the dog is exhibiting behavior to 1)hold focus and drive level and 2) give the dog a constant feedback its on the right track during learning. So eg I say SIT, dog sits and I walk side to side, while dog is sitting perfectly still and looking at me I keep saying 'good dog', return to dog, release and reward. You wean down how often you say good dog as the dog learns :) Another thing to remember is to train the dog to ignore movement of all kinds before inrtoducing just distance. The dog has to be totally comfortable in it's position and proofed, it's why when you break the pattern of how far/where/how you move they break position. If you cant do star jumps, carrying on and yelling 3 feet away from your dog when its holding position then dont go marching half way across a field. Remember dogs are pattern orientated ;) The biggest problem these days is lack of feedback and dead air. Dogs cannot productively deal with it when learning and particularly drivey or nervous dogs get distracted very quickly if you say absolutely nothing. Then we get shitty with the dog and training goes pffffft downhill. I also use 'uh uh' when the dog makes a mistake. NOT harshly, just a quick 'sorry you stuffed up lets try again'. When the dog realises they messed up and you let them know, my god do they work harder ;) It's because you have not set parameters for her behavior. You reward her for not focussing on you, plus they have also learned to steal when they try hard enough so the herding part of the brain stares hard at the reward. You just need to now put firm parameters on when they get rewarded and the dogs focus will change. If they only get reward for complience + focus where do you think they will stare? It's why I don't teach a 'watch' command, because it makes it an 'extra' behavior instead of a base standard of performance at all times. Food is the bridge to help you and the dog connect, it's something the dog inherently understands as rewarding, it should not be 100% of the whole reward process. You need to be rewarding too and you do that through interaction, praise, contact and good feedback. A good exercise to start is quite light, call the dogs name and hold the treat next to your eye. When the dog looks into your eyes, mark and treat, then repeat. It's quick, easy for the dog to win and they get it quite quickly that you want focus on command. Remember the name is simply an attention command, when you call their name it means pay attention and focus on me :)

http://www.ezydog.com.au/convert-harness/ I only bother with these now as a general purpose harness. Really strong, dont get in the way and have a handle so you can grab an offlead dog. Also has velcro patches so you can put your own patches on the side like in training etc. Popular shaped harness for law enforcement because it doesnt get in the way and they can wear it constantly without rubbing or twisting around the body.

Is that made of clear reinforced garden hose? Cool, holiday project then lol

http://www.ezydog.com.au/convert-harness/ give these a go, nice and soft, don't rub anywhere and easy to put on the dog. They have a big D ring behind the handle so you can clip her in the car with a short leash.

use a combo of luring and have a flat collar on him. Lure him with the food, hold the collar or have a short leash attached just so he cant suddenly plough his head down or run off. You don't pull the dog at all it's just there to prevent him shooting off or making a mistake that makes him ignore you. If you want him to balance on things use a bigger target he can acutally get on, I use a small wooden skid pallet at dog school for the beginners. Lure him on, say 'place' or whatever else you want to use while he's on it and ONLY give the reward when the dog holds the position, not when still following your hand. Then remember to give a command like 'off' etc to let the dog know it can get down. Helps the dog stay there without having to then later introduce the stay command.

All your dog has to be is social and under reasonable control on a flat collar. Delta Society run it in Vic, see if they have an office close by. I did it with my Bordeaux and Rottie, trust me there's no massive expectation on the dog except that it's not a total nutjob.

That's a bit stalkerish. I'd be totally weirded out flowers or no flowers. Hi, I just noticed your dog, followed you home and purchased you flowers because you refused to take my first conversation seriously enough for my liking! There is probably a very real chance the woman knows what the problem is with the dog if its reasonably well maintained and being regularly walked. Maybe the dog doesnt have long to live and shes enjoying what time she has left with it, she just doesnt feel the need to expain it to a person who randomly pulled over.

trained tracking dogs don't mark, this dog has just found sniffing to be very self rewarding and has been allowed to do it.

Jeezus. Sorry but I don't see the value in one single consult. If they took the dog on for a week and did intesive therapy I might think it's a good deal.

If you also look at how culturally eunichs are treated their happiness and longevity may be attributed to better living and dietary conditions. Many of them were created with a purpose in mind and instead of living lowly, laborious lives they usually went into relative luxury in palaces, high houses etc.

let's put it logically... people are being fearmongered into removing normal organs from their animals. Normal. Required for maturity, growth and maintenance. Why should you worry your dog has it's testicles any more then your dog has 4 legs, a tail and two eyes? Frankly if vet's are so worried about unwanted puppies they should be more willing to do partial speys and vasectomies that include more then just a quick snippy of the tubes but removal of a length of it to prevent potential rejoining that seems to be the excuse not to do it. Your problem is most vets just repeat what little they're told, and keep parrot fashioning at you until you comply. That's when you find a more logical vet that is willing to see both sides of the coin.

holy moley how can anyone justify that much for behavioral consults? Does that mean only 2% of dogs deserve to be cured because their owners can actually afford that price? Wow.

I would be asking more why is the skin splitting again and again? My rottie ripped off the tip of his tail but it healed to a hard calous that never split again because I didnt over wrap it or let him lick it. One trick with the hair roller is to super glue it onto the end of the tail. Get one just small enough to slip oveer, half trim the hair on the lower part of the tail and drip the glue in through the roller NEVER onto the wound. It will fall off when the hair sheds but you wont need miles of tape to keep it on there. I would be tempted to spray metho on the wound when it heals up to encourage the skin to dry up properly, not the most attractive thing but it should keep him from smashing it again. To be honest he just sounds like an over excited young dog that was never taught to calm down. Dog's don't really care about pain the way we do - if he's being rewarded from the behavior and is over excited he's not going to care at all about cutting his tail open again and again. It's like dogs who shred themselves chasing prey animals or escaping, if the perceived reward is acheivable they will do rediculous things to get it. Frankly unless he's already getting severe infections I would not go as far as cutting off the tail. If he was my dog I'd spray metho on it all the time to remind him it hurts a lot and to watch his tail.

Michael Ellis and Ivan Balabanov are vids worth looking up if you want tight performance and quick results. Remember you need to reward with the end picture in mind, if you start close to the end parameters you want you will get there faster. Remember rewards increase a behavior being expressed - keep rewarding for what you don't want and it will not go away. If you always reward for focus you won't end up one of those people frantically repeating 'WATCH... WATCH... WATCH..." to just get a basic glance. If you only reward when the dog is staring at your face what behavior do you think will keep happening? A dog that stares at you constantly as part of it's training regime no matter what you do.

Has GAWS gotten rid of all their smallies or something? I saw a heap of hutches up for sale

It's because most people do not know what it is themselves. Many trainers think it's a walking exercise as well. There are different types of heels, not all heels are competition heels. Patrol dogs for example need to remain at your side but not having constant eye to eye focus with the handler is acceptable as long as the dog is still paying attention .

The problem is not the food it's your parameters you reward. You only reward for focus on your face, NOT on your hand. You also only reward when the dog holds position and does not move no matter what your hand is doing. So eg, for sit the dog has to sit, look you in the face YES reward. It can help to start by putting your hand next to your eyes so the gap for the dog to look at is not too big and move from there. It's a training issue that is very common. As for the drop, I have a couple of ways. One is to crouch down and lure into a drop holding the collar. Move hand away if dog goes to follow apply a tiny bit of pressure on the collar. When the dog relaxes out of the pressure on the collar in the right position bring the hand back to reward. You move from there. I have also learned to drop some food between the front legs in tiny crumbs and stand up, then repeat the 'drop' command. This is from a person who has taught hand signal free drops, you can dance a jig around the dogs they wont move. For heeling, people think it's a walking exercise - it means stick to my left leg no matter what the handler is doing. The problem arise because we expect the dog to do a formal exercise, concentrate and learn it in motion which is too easy to stuff up. You start with one step. Left leg start one step, full focus. I do a bit of Michael Ellis find the leg exercise with teh dogs too, you leave your left next to the dog while it's in a sit and move your right leg back/foreward/side then return and reward the dog for focus the whole time. Too many people rush the heel which is why the dog doesnt do it. You also need to give constant feedback that the dog is doing correctly. Ivan Balanbanov uses GOOD DOG as a 'you're on the right track' marker then YES/click when the dog completes it properly then reward. This way the dog knows it's doing the right then and will keep performing NOT looking for a reward. Feedback is very important, just keep saying good dog when the dog is doing correctly to extend the length of the position/behavior then mark and reward. Very clear and concise, the dog will improve very quickly as well. Remember what the dog does is a direct reflection on what you have rewarded/allowed. A ball or toy will not fix the problems, it will reward the same problems in a different manner.