Anxiety Problem

[Mumscats]

I have a 3 year old girl and have been doing obedience with her since she was 4 months old. We have not made a great lot of progress and have been stuck in the same class for nearly 2 years. I had another dog and lost her earlier in the year due to old age. I didnt rush out immediately to purchase a new pup as I thought I would put the time into my girl. She was recently in season and was sent away for a possible mating which didnt happen. She was away for about 10 days and the lady told me that she is a very nervous dog. I have never mistreated her in any way

I have noticed at obedience that she gets fixations on other dogs from time to time and pulls over to them, which is not acceptable. she is a very strong girl. I have corrected her many times but she still persists in these bad habits. She has really gone backwards with the training, heels good but when she is asked to drop it is a battle and if I do get her down she pops back up again. Sit stays are worse, most of the time she follows me. There are dogs in the class who are much younger than her who are very good. I think this behaviour is coming from her anxiety. I put in a lot of time with her at home when I am there.

I was out on the weekend where there was a few dogs and it was interesting to watch how she interacted with the other dogs, she would go to them and then basically come back and stand with me. One lady was nursing a small dog and was sitting next to me and she was looking at that dog and there was a little bit of trouble between them. The adults and some of the smaller dogs went into another area and she was left with the bigger dogs and she didnt like being separated from me at all and stood at the door and yapped. This is from the anxiety. It is unacceptable behaviour as far as I am concerned and I would have expected that a 3 year old woud be more relaxed.

My uqestion is how am I going to deal with this problem. I think she is very jealous of other dogs and does not like them being around me. I would like to get another dog but would like to get her sorted out a bit better but unsure of what to do. Should I get someone to come over with their dog and get her to play with it and see how she goes. I did notice right from the start when we went to obedience that after the class we were in the fenced off area and we were allowed to take our dogs off lead and let them run around together but she was not interested in mixing with the other dogs

I would be most interested to hear if anyone else has had a similar problem and how they addressed it.

[Tassie]

Hi mumscats.

First of all, I am sorry for the loss of your old dog. It's always hard when we lose long-time companions. I do think you have made a wise decision to spend some time working with your youngster before getting another dog. You haven't mentioned what breed she is, and whether she is still entire. (That's relevant because some bitches do struggle with pre- and post-season hormonal disturbances.)

Very hard to tell from an 'over the net' description, but on the surface it would seem to me that the training you have been doing with her has not been as effective as you or she would like, and that there is a fairly high degree of confusion in her mind.

I have corrected her many times but she still persists in these bad habits

To me on the face of it, this sounds as though there is a lack of communication going on. Perhaps it might be more effective to show her what you do want in various situations, rather than correcting ineffectually particularly without showing her alternatives, for which she could be rewarded.

I'd think there are a couple of almost separate issues involved - the formal

obedience training (which when it all boils down is just 'trick' training) - and the interactions with other dogs.

To be honest, if she were my dog, I would be looking for some one on one help with a trainer who would be able to look at the two of you in different situations, and be able to make suggestions based on those observations.

I'm not sure where you are, but if you're in the Melbourne area, I would be making some contact with Cosmolo or Erny - both DOLers, whose opinions from reading them over the years, I respect.

Good on you for asking for help for you and your girl - sometimes we just get iourselves into a rut that we just can't seem to see a way out of without someone else having a physical look at what's going on.

[Mumscats]

Hi Tassie,

Thanks for your lovely reply. My girl is a Lab and she is entire. She is coming into season every 4 - 4 and a half months which is very hard. I forgot to mention this.

I am in the Melbourne area. I was doing a bit of private obedience earlier in the year and she was a lot better at that with only about 3 or 4 dogs to train with but my older girl was still alive then.

[persephone]

Mumscats .. Seems like you and your dog need some professional help , now that things have changed and affected you both .

I suggest contacting members erny, nekhbet or cosmolo ..all professionals in Vic. They can talk with you about what's happening , and help you and your dog do things differently :)

[Mumscats]

Hi there, How can I find where to contact these people.

[persephone]

ERNY

NEKHBET

COSMOLO