RachelleBuck

It is interesting how when I say that she is a BCxKoolie people just say she should be out working in a farm and not on a house block. Maybe if I said this was my poodle I may have got that answers I was after. It is fine for you all to say that she is a working dog but the facts be known would never be a good one. For one she wool classes and it bloody rough with her sheep for the first 15 mintues or so. No farmer would stand for that. She is still the same Libby when she gets home as the one I left with and nothing changes. I was simply asking has anyone used a DAP and if they found them to work or not and would it have any effect on my other dogs. My behaviourist that has seen this dog recommened it and I was just wanting to talk to people who had used them before as to what they are like. I know about drive training but it seems to me people are saying drive training but not what drive your dog should be in be it pack, prey or defence. I am just after help not for everyone to say how horrible I am for keeping her in the suburbs. She doesn't sit in a back yard 22 hours a day by herself. Not only is she taken out the yard about 4 of those hours but is inside whenever someone is home or with someone outside. She has a kong daily and also has another bc x koolie and a koolie to play with. not to mention the some 20 or so differant toys they have and the swimming pool and the sand pit that i put treats in for her to find. I give her bones to chew on during the day also. I have seen a behaviourist that has known the dog for the past 2 years and I would recommend to anyone. I want to make sure I fully understand a DAP before I use one in my home as I don't take medicating my dog lightly. As R&A mention she also has dog to dog fear agression made 10 times worse by her being so highly strung. NOW has anyone used a DAP and found they worked or anything like this that may work!!!!!

Libby sees me as the pack leader and will listen to my every word. You can see she is just trying to please so much but is having trouble focusing for more than 2 seconds. With Libby I am very calm and relaxed with her as my emotions shoot striaght down her lead and she reacts to them everytime. I have learnt not to train her when I am upset or not to get upset when she can not do something for more than a couple of seconds. I make everything short and sharp with her as anything more is too much. K9 force what training would you recommend I try in drive? I do not have access to sheep all the time as I live in Melbourne. Is there something else I can try to make her brain work?

If you could suggest somewhere in Melbourne that herds at least everyweek I would take her. As it is I travel to Elmore every other Saturday to take her herding (I leave home at 5.30am every second Saturday). When there is no situmlation, ie in the back yard, she is a differant dog. She is in no way stressed or anything like that. All our dogs herd in this manner, all 5 of them, and all the others are able to cope. The best way to describe her is like an ADHD kid or a red cordial kid. Libby is on the same diet as all our other dogs with Bonnie and chicken necks/eggs etc. Tonymc what drive to you suggest to train her in. I currently train her in pack drive so that I have control over her when another dog comes to close to her. I won't what to train her in prey as she needs to be in pack so that I can control her. Has anyone used a DAP that could give me some info on them Please?????? I have been recommended this by her qaulified behaviouist but am just worried what effect it may have on my other dogs. Thanks

As R&A said she does herding every second weekend and she is great at it. She still goes in full steam but. Once she calms a little she is great with her sheep. She is ran every morning with 30 mintues of full on ball work followed by a swim. Then in the evening she is ran again or taken for a walk. She was trained in the VCA method and that was a flop, she jumps around too much for walking in straight lines. She has now been trained in the NDTF method for the last 2 years. I have seen a behaviourist that pointed out points that would make training her easier ie: reward not correction all the time and this has worked but sometimes it is hard to get the good behaviour to reward. I own Libby's mother and my dad owns her father. We also have two of the other pups from her litter that are nothing like Libby they are quite and calm and sometimes a bit shy. Libby is a differant dog to her family Libby's parents are from working blood lines. Her fathers family is sheep and her mothers sheep/cattle. Her mother is such a quite dog people do not believe me when I say that is her parents as they are just calm solid dogs. Thanks for your help everyone ETA: I have tried to make her have a calm spot, I will put her on her mat and rub her tummy to try and calm her down but she just moves all the time, i am always saying she has ants in her pants. Libby wont even eat a pigs eat sitting still and forgets about food if something else gets her attention. Her fav game is chasing, she will not sit and chew on a toy or lay down for anything.

Not sure if this helps any as I am not 100% sure as to were you are. But if you are after VCA type training have a look here: http://www.vca.org.au/Content.asp?ID=141&SubID=154 As it may give you somewhere else you can train Hope that is of some help good luck finding somewhere to train!!

Hi Everyone, I am after a bit of info here. I have an almost 3 year old BCxKoolie that is very highly strung. I was after some information as to what people would recommened to calm her down a bit. She is a great dog but just can not sit still for 2 seconds to concertrate on anything. A bit of background: Libby has been going to obedience since she was 16 weeks. I have had her since she was a puppy She has had a number of sessions with a behaviourist (which were great help) I have tried using differant foods to see if that worked I have had her on bach flower remedies (a heap of differant conbinations) I have tried rescue remedy I have tried vitamin b It is most likely genetics that makes her this way. (as per her bahaviourist) I have found the session with the behaviourist have helped a great deal but she is just so hypo all the time (I always say she goes off like a frog in a sock!!! ) Her behaviourist said maybe a DAP would help her, only I am worried about my other 2 dogs as if they were made any calmer they wouldn't move at all. Could anyone please give me something else they think may help clam her down a bit. I know she is a really smart dog but she does poorly in obedience as she can not sit still for more than 2 seconds. Thanks everyone for your help!!!!

feralpup that sounds great. My dogs are fit too but I wont to make sure that their obedience side of riding is just right (running right beside the bike) I had a look on the dogs victoria sight to make sure i am doing it all right, I really have to Concentrate on not correcting my dogs if they are not perfect!! (I have been warned to do all the obedience before and after the ET on lead as it is a lot eaiser!!!) LOL

feralpup i am looking at doing that one to, it is a really nice run!!!!! nice paths etc. Have you started training yet? And will you be riding or walking, I will be riding, if I tried to run that far I would die!!!!

I don't let my dogs go near sticks. They can course a deal deal of damage if gets lodged in his mouth, he may slip and it get lodged in the roof of his mouth or anything. He would be teething I would guess and maybe a stick like toy might help with the pain he is feeling Good luck finding something else for him to chew on!!!!

If you dad wants to use the traditional whistle try the ones from the Kelpie club. Also tell him to keep practicing using them as they take time to master as to where your tounge needs to be each. I know someone that it took them well over 6 months to get all their sounds out nice and clear. Whistles make a great training tool though so best of luck getting one that suits and he can use best!!!

I agree with Cosmolo in that we have to work with what we have. I don't make excuses from my dog and I never will but I don't like being called a do-gooder because I believe my dog has been abused. People make all excuses for their dogs misbehaving and not at least that the dog has been abused. Maybe if this thread was about all the excuses people make for their dogs and not just labelling people that say their dogs have been abused as do - gooders this thread may have gone another way. I also have a dog that has extreme dog fear agression, I don't make excuses I work to fix our problems. She has never been abused and I will never claim she has been. I take the looks I get from people at dog school when she has one of her out busts but I will not be labelled a do-gooder for saying my other dog has been abused. This thread is not educational but a mud slinging match.

I am also the proud owner of a rescue dog. I am not a dog expert and properly will never be. But I don't need to be a "do-gooder" to safely say my boy was abused, neglected and beaten and come to live with me as a very sad dog. This dog is not only hand shy but when you raise you voice at him, as I did the other day when he has a small fight with another dog, he drops to the ground and screams a scream that no dog owner should ever hear, a scream of pure fear and pain. I bet he doesn't do it just for attention. Or is it the large cuts and scares up and down with legs that look a lot like cigarette burns. Or is it the fact that when I walk away from him and he is without anyother dog he whimpers and cries for fear I wont come back or maybe it is the fact he was surrended to the pound, so still has his original name, but it took me two weeks to teach him his name. Or the fact that at 2 years of age he couldn't walk on a lead. I am HAPPY to say my dog was abused, neglected and beaten. Call me what you like be it a do-gooder or dog owner make excuses but I don't really care. You are not the one with him, you don't know and never will. I know one thing for sure, he is better off with me than he was!!!!!! How dare you pass judgement on me and my boy!!!! the world needs more people like dogmad that are out there help not sitting at their computers trying to tell everyone what to think

I know the pet stock in Hoppers Crossing has them in a large range of sizes. My brother brought one there for him lab/kelpie and they had ones ever bigger than she needed. And the price wasn't too bad either.

Hi Everyone, I was wondering if anyone could pritty pritty please make me a sig. I am just learning about all this stuff and have no idea what to do. Please help me. These are the pic's I would like to use. All my pics are stored on Photobucket. Any help would be great. Thanks

Don't worry kowai, my oldest Koolie is like that too, not real friendly on lead but love people and just wants to be everyone's friends. She is great with dogs she has know for a while too. I like to think she is just shy meeting new doggies and doesnt like them in her face. She is just telling them she needs personal space. Ask Ruby&Axel about my girl Kelli and her boy Beau. They love each other to death but not great with other dogs so we guess they must understand each other!!!!

thanks everyone, will ring the vet about the booster thanks

Congrats on your great start. I am about to start trialling my Koolie in the new year. If you go to http://www.australian-koolies.info/documents.html you will be able to soon get the form to join the sporting reg for the CCCQ or you can contact the CCCQ and get the form from them. All the info you need will be on that site. Good Luck, Koolie's are a breeze to train and great at most dog sports too!!!!!!

I have just check with the dog club and it is just a current vaccination card, it is up to you what vaccinations you give your dog. So if I can not just get the KC strains from the vet I will just leave it till his vaccinations are due in 10 months time. Thanks for your help!!!!!

I don't kennel my dogs, their nanny look after them if ever I need a doggy sitter. I will check out the dog club and what they require him to have. Thanks for your help

Ok I will ask my vet about getting the KC only, I was worried I would be over vaccinating the poor guy but as we go out into public areas (beach, park, dog school etc) a lot I was worried he could pick something up. I know that they can still get KC with C5 (My other girl got it as the dog my mum adopted from the lost dogs home had it when they brought her home) it is not the really bad strains and I don't want my new guy getting sick and was unsure what to do. thanks for your help

Hi everyone, I have just adopted a 2 year old dog from the RSPCA. He has been vaccinated with C3. I always give my other 2 dogs C5 as it does some of the Kennel Cough's. Therefore I was wondering should I get my new dog re vaccinated with the C5 vaccination. He was vaccinated about 2 months ago by the RSPCA with the C3 thanks all for your help!!!!!

Thanks Indi-dog. I will go to the workshop on Wednesday night. I have already attend a workshop by Bernard Arends and started on herding and I am now really looking into getting into VCA herding. I was wanting to get the idea of how the VCA works in regards to their herding trials. In Bernards workshop they are mainly trialing in 3 sheep etc. Thanks all for your help!!!

Hi Everyone, I have just discovered that my two Border Collie girls love herding. (Well running around after sheep, not really what I would call herding) They seem to be really interested and to me and a couple of people that have seen them, they seem to have a bit of hidden talent. So I was just wondering if anyone does VCA herding. I am interested in getting involved but do not have sheep to train on. I was wondering if anyone west of Melbourne (I am in Werribee) does herding though the VCA, where they train, how they got involved and any other information that may help. I understand that herding costs a bit of money but am willing to pay what ever it costs to see my girls happy. thanks all for your help!!!

Thanks Erny, I will be looking into the one on one training some more so that not only myself (That trains her each week) but my OH that does not train her has an idea of what we need to do to help our little girl. I know that I am making a lot of mistakes with not only my handling of her in day to day life but for not speaking up soon. Thanks for your help and wish us luck!!!!!! ETA: I have another dog at ADT who is no problems (Libby's mother), who is a dream to work and be around. I think that is why I am at such a loss with Libby. I have never had to deal with this before. Thanks everyone!!!!

Hi Erny, Biggest problem is I am her breeder. Yes I stuffed up with the mating of her parents, her father has far too strong of a herding instinct. So everyone shoot me down in flames!!!!! So needless to say I have desexed both her parents so this never happens again. So therefore I have had Libby from the moment she was born. She was sosalised with other dogs (including the 7 in our family) all her life. I think that they whole pack mentality comes in with them though. Her mother was a very protective mother of her pups. Not such a great think I have discovered. Anyway I have taken your great advise and spoken to ADT ( well they rang me about this post) and I have discovered all the additional services they offer that I never knew of. They proberly told us about them a million time and I was not listening, imagin having a wired bomb on the end of the lead all the time, you don't always listern when you should be. So anyway have aired my problems with them and they have pointed me in the right direction, thanks Erny. I was proberly really unfair for me to post the first post I did without fully explaining that with our other dogs (yes we keep ADT in business with 6 dogs from our family attending there) have made real break thoughs at ADT. But like any over protective mother I was getting really frustrated and just lashed out at ADT when it was not their fault. I should of spoken up sooner and not got my nickers in a knot. I was just expecting them to come to me with speaking up. So we will head forward from here and believe me I do recommend ADT to anyone that is looking for a dog training centre to take their loved ones. Lucky I don't have any 2 legged kids, their poor teachers would want to shoot me down in flames!!! Thanks everyone for your posts and good luck words!!!!