My Dog Is A Nutter.

[dee lee]

Today after we had finished at dog training, where she was the star pupil, I was shocked to hear Honey make one of her deep barks and start to jump about.

This is extremely out of character for miss prissy. She is usually SO dignified and embarasssed by all the other dogs around her. ;)

At first I thought she was barking at one of the many naughty pups around, then realised she was looking at the sky.

Sure enough there was some sky writing.

We have noticed that for some reason skywriting or vapourtrails really put her in drive- more than anything! ;)

It drives her NUTS!!!

My only theory is that maybe her loser past owners have encouraged it thinking it was funny. I have no way of finding this out though, its just a guess.

Any other ideas?

Also, any ideas on how I can stop it? Desensitising with positive rewards for nonreactive behaviour?

Edited February 21, 2010 by ✽deelee

[Kelly_Louise]

I have exactly the same problem with Sasha... I thought we were the only ones!

If she sees a plane... nothing. If she sees a skywriter or one leaving behind the cloud trails... WELL... she goes insane barking and chasing it. When we first got her, if we were at the park and saw one, she would sit down and REFUSE to move in the direction it was coming from and we had to wait until it was behind us before she'd move (she never barks outside our yard). I think she is scared of them. She also has a fascination with clouds.

;)

Her trainer had never seen anything like it... and I haven't been able to stop the behaviour, although she barks much less now because she knows she isn't allowed to (but we've been working on that for about a year ;) ). She is slightly better and doesn't carry on for as long as she used to - mostly due to us stopping her and telling her NO when she was carrying on, but she will still give chase and snort indignantly at them...

Edited February 21, 2010 by Kelly_Louise

[Golden Rules]

Not sure about sky writing but my boy goes mad and chases planes, helicopters, kites, birds - anything that flies low enough for him to see it. We were at the beach one weekend not so long ago and a helicopter flew over really low doing shark patrol, and Dougal went running off barking after it as if he was going to catch it. I think it's funny and don't discourage it ;)

All I can suggest is to try and get Honey's attention and focus back onto you and treat her for doing so, rather than looking to the sky.

[Sheridan]

Oh look, I had Grumpy glare suspiciously at the toilet a little while ago. No reason.

[Erny]

Any other ideas?

Possibly something that is completely new and novel to her. Not every behaviour has to date back to something in a deep dark past.

Is her behaviour towards it such a worry that she needs desensitising to it? How often do you come across sky writing? Maybe she'll just get over it by herself, if you yourself don't make a big deal of it either.

Edited February 21, 2010 by Erny

[Bulldust]

Today after we had finished at dog training, where she was the star pupil, I was shocked to hear Honey make one of her deep barks and start to jump about.

This is extremely out of character for miss prissy. She is usually SO dignified and embarasssed by all the other dogs around her.

At first I thought she was barking at one of the many naughty pups around, then realised she was looking at the sky.

Sure enough there was some sky writing.

We have noticed that for some reason skywriting or vapourtrails really put her in drive- more than anything! ;)

It drives her NUTS!!!

My only theory is that maybe her loser past owners have encouraged it thinking it was funny. I have no way of finding this out though, its just a guess.

Any other ideas?

Also, any ideas on how I can stop it? Desensitising with positive rewards for nonreactive behaviour?

My childhood dog (A Cocker Spaniel) did the same thing from day one (no skywriting here just the trail the jets leave) she would bark and bark until it had disappeared.

Even into old age (and stone deaf) she would still know when there was a jet about and bark.

Stranger, her name was Honey too!!!

[jr_inoz]

deelee - do you think the sky-writing was there while you were in class - or did it only appear afterwards?

What I'm getting at is - would she act like that in the middle of a class (or a trial)?

If it was there during class and she didn't notice because she was busy concentrating on her training - then that is a positive. If not - I have no ideas

[dee lee]

At least Honey isn't the only one!

KL, hopefully we can get Honey to chill a little about it too.

What a bizarre co-incidence Bulldust! Same name and all!

GoldenRules, I can imagine Dougal acts much like Honey would with a seagull ! She had a ball when we went away to the beach!! I did have to get tough with her though, after she nearly ran the length of a 3km beach chasing one!!

If we didnt live in the innercity I probably wouldnt be as worried.

Erny, it is a problem because the 2 times she has been offlead and seen skywriting she has bolted to it and is in full prey drive. Both times we have been lucky enough to have been in a safe spot.

In mentioning her "dark past", I dont think she has been abused to do it, but perhaps encouraged. I simply cannot fathom why she would behave this way otherwise.

Her past is rather "dark", I know she was beaten, but you wouldnt know that to meet her now. When we first got her we ignored all the flinching etc and kept upbeat and happy with her and she now is a very stable and relaxed dog. In retrospect I am unsure if the flinching was due to her being hit and perhaps more just from being in a new environment.

Anyway, my point is, Honey is ordinarily a very relaxed dog and the only time I have ever seen her behave with such over the top excitement has been with skywriting. (Well aside from during thunder- but we are having some success with that) Its bizarre.

Jr_inoz, the skywriting appeared after the class. I could get her to refocus a little on me as she was onlead, but she was wrenching my arm off as soon as I stopped working with her and she was mightily distracted.

Edited February 22, 2010 by ✽deelee

[Kelly_Louise]

Erny, I have to admit, it can be a problem if you live in an area where planes are prone to flying over... as many of them leave the vapour trail - and the associated barking can cause a problem for some neighbours possibly (that's my main concern). Not only that, but Deelee also makes a good point is that they can get so worked up that they can hurt themselves or put themselves in danger.

Hopefully she will desensitise herself after seeing them repeatedly, or get bored of the novelty. The hard part is you can't predict when you will or won't see them...

Distraction is good - I guess it depends on different dogs and what they will respond to. Sasha responds more to a sharp NO! (and then distraction) than to plain distraction - but that's how she is. Some methods don't apply to Sasha

[dee lee]

Erny, I have to admit, it can be a problem if you live in an area where planes are prone to flying over... as many of them leave the vapour trail - and the associated barking can cause a problem for some neighbours possibly (that's my main concern). Not only that, but Deelee also makes a good point is that they can get so worked up that they can hurt themselves or put themselves in danger.

Hopefully she will desensitise herself after seeing them repeatedly, or get bored of the novelty. The hard part is you can't predict when you will or won't see them...

Distraction is good - I guess it depends on different dogs and what they will respond to. Sasha responds more to a sharp NO! (and then distraction) than to plain distraction - but that's how she is. Some methods don't apply to Sasha

Honey responds better with an initial NO too. I figure I am letting know which particular behaviour is not wanted. I have managed to reduce her bird chasing this way.

Hopefully it will work with the skywriting too, but as you say it is hard to predict when they will happen.

Fortunately the barking is not an issue for me as Honey is always in the house when we arent home.

[mita]

deelee, what a great story. I think your dog's a genius, not a nutter. 'Reading' skywriting!

Our puss, Hopeless Kate, used to react to planes. The big jets fly low here as they come in to or out of Brisbane airport.

She'd flatten herself on the ground as if the plane was about to fall on top of her.

It'd make visitors a bit nervous. They'd say, 'Does that cat know something we don't?'

But she had many odd ways. Which explains her name, Hopeless Kate.

[dee lee]

deelee, what a great story. I think your dog's a genius, not a nutter. 'Reading' skywriting!

Our puss, Hopeless Kate, used to react to planes. The big jets fly low here as they come in to or out of Brisbane airport.

She'd flatten herself on the ground as if the plane was about to fall on top of her.

It'd make visitors a bit nervous. They'd say, 'Does that cat know something we don't?'

But she had many odd ways. Which explains her name, Hopeless Kate.

Oh Mita, that made me laugh! Poor Hopeless Kate. ;)

The skywriting yesterday said "marry me!" Maybe Honey thought the proposal was for her and got excited?!

[gila]

I thought my dog was the only nutbag who did this! He goes absolutely nuts when he sees a skywriting plane/cloud trail. He doesn't care about any other kind of aircraft though, even noisy low-flying ones.

I haven't been able to get him to stop barking and chasing them. He just gets SO focused on them. Nothing can break his concentration. Luckily it only seems to happen when he's in the backyard, not when we're out (although he's always on lead anyway), so I just bring him into the house until the cloud has completely faded.

Will be interested to hear any suggestions on how to solve this!

[mita]

I thought my dog was the only nutbag who did this! He goes absolutely nuts when he sees a skywriting plane/cloud trail. He doesn't care about any other kind of aircraft though, even noisy low-flying ones.

That's really interesting that it's something some dogs do.

All I can think of, is that the skywriting looks like trails of smoke. Aren't dogs supposed to react to smoke.....because of where there's smoke, there's fire? Which is why dogs are so good at waking owners when a house is on fire. But I'd always thought it was the smell of smoke.

Could just the sight of what looks like spreading smoke be enough to set some dogs off?

But how to stop those dogs seeing the skywriting, I don't know. Maybe, thingies like horse blinkers, but to prevent upward- looking. ;)

[jr_inoz]

The skywriting yesterday said "marry me!" Maybe Honey thought the proposal was for her and got excited?!

[mutt lover]

A little dog I had years ago used to go crazy at the goodyear light ship (blimp thing) that used to come from the old waverley footy ground over our house in Mt Waverley after the footy, she would be in the lounge room and don't know how she could hear it but would go crazy to get outside and would dance around and bark at it this big yellow balloon in the sky, was so funny, was walking her one day when some hot air balloon's were in the sky.