Max#1

Hi everyone, I have two questions about my five month old bc cross. First of all - I've noticed when we're out and about socializing he has an uncanny ability to 'annoy' terrier breed type dogs. Typically these dogs are smaller than him. What he does, which he doesn't seem to do to other dogs, usually bigger dogs I guess, is whack them in the face with his paw. What I'm curious about, is this an 'invitation to play' that goes wrong, or is it a dominance thing? Its just that it usually has the effect of the terrier having a go at him. I usually immediately restrain him and remove him from the situation. Is there anything I should be doing about this behaviour? Second question - my puppy is extraordinarily ball focused. As in once the word is said, or he sees one moving, there's not much you can do to distract him from it. We play ball at home, at least once a day. And what I've found for my sanity is we play for awhile, but then I 'finish' the game by saying 'finished' and put the ball out of site (otherwise the game NEVER ends!). This is fine for at home, and he generally accepts it and doesn't proceed to eat the walls or anything. But the other day we were in an off-leash park, and there were some kids playing ball. He could see the ball flying in the air, and just ran back and forth and back and forth and back and forth, the whole time in that focused mode that he goes into. You can imagine, eyes glazed over, crouched down..... Usually he has very good recall (for a five month puppy) and will come if I call him back from other people/dogs. But he didn't even know I existed after he saw this ball. What on earth can I do to get him to hear me when there's also a ball around? Is it a matter of training at home/at the park by throwing a ball and calling him back off it with a reward? Is there a better way? Or do I just avoid those situations? Thanks for any suggestions! Novice ball-crazy dog owner here!

That second photo is really fantastic! Well done for capturing the moment! Its so nice to watch dogs running around, playing, doing their own thing - there's buckets of laughs in it

Glittery poos definitely sound like something to look forward to!

Hey KTB - you can see Max doing 'the seal' in the photo I just put up. I think it makes him look worried though!

When we're cooking we like to stand at that bench, and his favourite spot to wait is tucked into the corner. Wait, that is, for 'just in case' anything happens to drop for him! I'm not sure what was so tasty on the cabinet - my OH is a bit of a 'messy' cook, so who knows! Not so much now, but when he was a young puppy, me cooking dinner was a time when he'd sit in his bed and snooze/just watch. It was our special 'calm time'. Sometimes when he wouldn't settle I'd go so far as to pretend to be cooking so he'd relax - silly I know! I would always tell him 'yesss' just for sitting there, and reward him by giving him the carrot peelings or the top bit. He still loves carrot! A really bad photo - as in hard to see - but here's one of him eating his carrot and watching tv........ what a nong!

Okay - you've all convinced me. Trying to introduce different words is just confusing me more than anything else anyway. I end up saying nothing, and we're becoming too reliant on hand signals. Meanwhile, I've been home sick yesterday and today. Not much has been happening. At all. In fact, someone's been getting away with all kinds of things because I'm just too weary to stop him! How do people do it when they have children I wonder? KTB: Very cute - Elbie has the most adorable face! James: great video! All of you are so creative! But for the record. Here's a photo of the ear (and he has a bit of a scratch on his nose from rough-housing with the other dogs at the park). Not the best shot I'm afraid - but I'll include an older funnier one for good measure (spot the tongue!).

Posting at the same time KTB. Ooops! I'm so slow. I'm sure Elbie will get used to the variation in his routine after a day or two. Don't stress too much! (But I know the feeling). Found the 'dead' too - ie James's dead. It looks like its in slow motion! Very theatrical!

Oh dear! Where's the photo of the destruction?! Ha! Well two weeks of puppy training down. I've realised I'm going to have to retrain..... eg 'off' becomes 'leave it', 'spin' becomes 'turn' (and add a 'twist' going back the other way..... I've made the poor guy a bit dizzy working on these ones! And I dare not think of having to start again with 'heel'!)... A bit dispiriting... Seeing as how these commands are hand signals as well I think it might not be too hard to just introduce a different word? Any thoughts? And to up the challenge a bit I've tried to refine his sits/drops - ie getting him to hold sit/drop til I 'release' (my so far inconsistent word is 'finished') but it just confused the guy! I think I'm doing something wrong there. Any tips? Good news! Max's recalls are unbelievable! We go every afternoon to the park where there are half a dozen other dogs we regularly meet. When he runs off too far, or tries to follow one of the other dogs home and I call him - its the best feeling when he comes running! And with a smile on his face! And to the man standing next to me (ha!). (In embarrassing news, he's started trying to hump the other dogs.....! Looks like its time for the balls to go!). Other good news - I've worked out what to 'do' at puppy school. Play play play!!!! Quietly! Rev him up a bit with a rope toy or something, then he does so much better, as opposed to when he's frustrated from having to sit still for so long. This also makes me more interesting than the puppies sitting next to us. KTB: ear flopped! It lasted five days in the upright position! And its a crooked flop - ha! - both pointing in different directions! More blood on his rope toy tonight - another tooth! Hopefully they're done soon! Then maybe the ears can sort themselves out? Niques - my OH is in the first dog boat as well. We thought very seriously before we got a dog. I'll never forget him saying to me 'I don't know what are the consequences '. So far, no regrets. And a hell of a lot of laughs! Interestingly, he's the 'natural' alpha in the house. Don't know what it is about him - but, for example, when he gets home from work, Max will put his ears back and roll straight on his back at his feet as he comes in the door. Poor guy is always asking 'what's wrong with your ears, put your ears up!'. KTB - how's it going with your husband away?

So the obedience trial seems to be predominantly heeling with some sits and drops? The first video that came up (when I did the you tube search) was of a dog called 'Leo' - after walking around so beautifully for 3 min, when it was over he jumped up on the examiner! Oooops! How long do you have to walk for? And do you need to have your palm on your hip like that? (Makes for an awkward jog!). And is it choreographed? Or do you just need to include certain turns and speeds? Does not look easy! (As for stopping for a crap halfway through - mortifying!). I then went back to wuffle's you tube to compare how Ava is heeling - not too bad!!! She is so calm in her training videos! Her 'spins' are so casual! And her ball-chasing so nonchalant! All I have to do is say the word 'ball' and Max goes into 'work mode' and I can't get any more sense out of him! I have not tried to train Max to walk to heel at all. I can wave my hand in front of his face (kind of swinging around to my left), tell him to heel, then he's do a couple of goat hops and come sit beside me! I think Elbie has a video - Max has a very similar style! I think I might wait to get taught how before I give it a shot and just try to get him to walk on a loose lead a bit better. Trouble is he'll walk beautifully EXCEPT if a) he knows we're going to the park to play with the other dogs (I'm pretty sure that's indicated by a left turn out of our driveway) - in which case he'll literally run at the end of the leash the WHOLE way there, b) if its raining and he knows he's close to home or c) he needs to do a crap (in which case he walks like he's gone mad)!

Don't get me wrong! I am just getting fed up with picking treat crumbs out of my pockets! And being limited with treats by what I'm prepared to put IN my pockets!

I was in a similar situation - had dogs when young, but this is MY first dog. It felt like a huge responsibility at first - which was a bit scary. But I think we've all relaxed now. A lot has changed since I had dogs as a child (or at least, that I can tell, and I blame the internet and an overload of information/opinions!) - though with your reading I'm sure you're ready for it! The biggest surprise would have to be the way my priorities have changed, and how happy I've been for that to happen! I knew beforehand that having a puppy would take up a lot of time and energy - time which I did have to give - but I am so pleasantly surprised by how enjoyable that can be!!! And now I'm talking on a forum about it..... and considering getting a bumbag.....!

I laughed out loud at the thought of a happy wee at a dog obedience trial. I can imagine some stern faced officials tsk tsking, while they put their scoring sheets back in their bumbags. Okay question - who owns a bumbag???? It seems to me the sign of the officious dog owner! Wuffles your video makes me want to get another dog! Its so nice to see them run around together. I was told about a 9 year old BC needing a new home - if it was me he'd already be here - but my OH..... (there was some tsk tsking there!). But I'm sure Satchmo must have had a huge influence on Ava's behaviour - at the start of the video you see him putting his paw on her - 'settle down young one'! And Ava has some serious fully body wagging going on when you came home! Interesting about her weight too - though you could probably take off a kg or two for hair! Meanwhile Satchmo looks like a huge dog! Tigers12 - is it the first time you will have a dog? Good luck with the preparations! So what's involved in a dog obedience trial? Considering we're going to be in puppies with Max til Christmas, we're not even going to start real obedience til he's eight months, so an obedience trial is a distant prospect. I'm thinking of getting into flyball though.....

Yes I want to see photos of James too! And what's this about a 'play dead'? Max must already be the same size as Elbie, very interesting. He certainly has a lab appetite, so no worries there! As for DD - there is a portmanteau name - Borador....... pff. What would the selling point be though? A really hyper puppy that will chew through your walls that will grow up to be a high-energy dog, with a tendency for sheep herding, that will eat you out of house and home! Ha! Great! (And I didn't even mention shedding!) I mean you could hope that the lab mix will take the 'edge' off the border collie energy - but the reality is lab's have a crazy reputation as puppy's and border collie's as two-year-olds! I'm sure Elbie will be okay without your husband. I'm sure he'll follow you around everywhere! And you'll have the reunion to look forward to! You'll have to be ready with the camera because I imagine there'll be some full-body wagging going on then!

ps - have day off work today - lovely! And lovely to spend the day with the little sleepy puppy!

Yep - day three, still up! Though at the moment they're slightly horizontal! A guy at the park last night actually asked me if he was a kelpie - it must be the ear. The gumminess only lasted a day - poor guy couldn't really get a good chew going on anything! Its amazing how quick the new ones grow though - and they're huge! I like that one of Elbie's ears points a bit more forward than the other - a lot of expression potential! Max tends to fling both of his back, which gives him a real worried look. And Elbie has cute button feet! I hate the way that people look at Max's feet and gasp and say 'oooh he's going to be big'. Well he's not a toy poodle! Grrr! Can I ask about Elbie's weight? I've been told that at 4 months they're half their adult weight. This would put Max in at about 20 -25 kg (hardly a big dog!). At nearly five months he's around 12 kg - and the size of a large cat - just getting to the point where he's a bit heavy to pick up, which will be sad! I've made the most of carrying him around while I could! (Our first walks before his final vaccination involved me carrying him down the street - ha!).

Nicques - how frustrating! Max went through 'a phase' when he was teething - it was like his personality changed completely, you couldn't take your eyes off him for 1 second or he'd be doing something naughty - and every time you went near him he'd get so excitable and nippy, and then there was the diarrhea..... This lasted three days - then miraculously he was back to his old self (except with a new 'gummy' look!). As we approach the 5 month mark I'm keeping me fingers crossed for not too much rebellion! All our furniture already have the 'touch' of Max.... Bad manners.... hmmm.. Max has taken to waking me up with a swipe of paw to face. We go to the kitchen and he'll sit so proudly at the fridge, waiting for me to play ball (I keep on top of the fridge so I can 'finish' the game. Otherwise it never ends......). He also loves my OH slippers, and I was wondering if this 'ankle biting' behaviour has something to do with herding instinct? With the reward for him being when we stop? Usually, giving him a 'rffff' (my OH does it very effectively, I however sound ridiculous and the noise I make just spurs Max on to become even more excitable!). The first time he did the 'rffff', Max got such a fright he 'sprung' over the couch - it was pretty funny - and he didn't try to mouth our hands again for about three days!

That wave is really adorable! How did you teach it? Our puppy pre-school lady told us to teach it by first starting with touch, then pulling away after awhile so he ends up waving his hand in the air. But he doesn't like this (when he misses the 'touch') and just starts barking. Any suggestions? And you asked for it! Thanks for letting me post photos too by the way - its addictive! It really is a shame that the dogs can't meet as well! Though I do make a point of showing Max the videos (can dogs see TV/computer screens? Its the saga of the ear..... we've got one up! Its been up for two days now.... And to prove it stays up in motion - here we are doing some training. He's taken to doing really proud sits, which I'm really impressed with! What he's been offering lately, is these proud sits while we're out walking. If I stop walking (like getting something out of my pocket, talking to someone), he'll sit really proudly... um not quite sure how I 'taught' that one....! He's preempting me a bit I know - but its bloody hard to coordinate taking a video, and organizing a dog.... I'm very impressed by this fact when I see everyone else's videos! And that's the 'back chatting' - I think it came up in another post by aussielover, I think. Okay dog going mad on my sock gotta go!

That is hilarious! Before we realised the 'climbing potential' of our little guy, we would leave him in a small adjustable 'inside' fence. Not sure how to explain it better - its about 1m high and contains about 2x2m in area - enough space to put newspaper down and some toys and water - and the shape is adjustable. I'd gone out for an hour .....when I came home, I opened the door to find him sitting in a basket of washing that was sitting on the dining table. How he got out of the fence (I'm assuming climbed over...... good grief!), then climbed onto the dining table, then into the basket, is beyond me! But that moment of seeing him there (snug as a bug no less) was so priceless! This was really in the first week or so that we had him - needless to say that 'fence' (maybe I should say 'playpen'?) was a complete waste of money! The other night I was preparing dinner..... our toilet roll holder has a distinctive squeak...... needless to say........

Ooooh you have to be careful of the things they're doing when they're quiet! Ours seems to have a thing at the moment for taking books out of the bookshelf...... It can be very sweet when they're playing by themselves though - like in the video!

And I think I'm going to have a lot of fun making more videos! Its really addictive isn't it?! Anyway - after all the video's and photos I've been watching of Elbie, its only fair to share some back! And I've just been shown Wuffle's you tube channel - its great watching both your dogs! A real pleasure!

Okay here it is. Again not quite the honk - but I'm very proud to present the result of our 'training' efforts over the past 9 days. This one has taken awhile - particularly to differentiate from down and rollover. Don't you love the legs sticking out - while the head stays up? The little guy doesn't want to miss a thing! I hope you don't mind me adding it on here KTB! I'm busting to share!

Thanks KTB - that is reassuring. And Wizzle its nice to know other people have similar experiences. The 'running to any other name' - and the breaking the stay because of the lady next door - made me laugh. Max is the kind of dog, if the lady next to us is asking her dog to sit - he'll sit for her and wag his tail, though a metre behind her dog - then get frustrated he isn't getting rewarded! At puppy pre-school it used to have me in hysterics. The lady even had her back to us and he was dropping for her (and throwing in a few rollovers for good measure - a terror for preempting!). Mind you she had some very tasty frankfurters! My OH called puppy pre-school 'clown school' - because often Max would come home more badly behaved then he was going in! If there was a barker or a biter there - then look out! This time he spent most of the class watching the group behind us doing stays (I think!) very quietly and soberly - so he might have gotten a better impression......! As well as your experiences, you guys have given me some good tips to what to expect - for example, long stays (30 seconds is a long time, I just checked), obedience despite distractions etc. I think we've still got a lot of work to do!

That is kind of what I'm interested to find out about - thanks Gayle. If I can admit, I felt a bit disappointed after our first class because I was worried that the whole series of classes might end up not being challenging enough. I'm sure my puppy has a lot of potential - what I have to remember is that its me that's holding him back - I've never seriously trained (such a smart!) dog before. And its these classes where I will probably be learning the most (and my OH!). The manners is also important, and is something I'm clueless about. A lot has changed since we owned dogs as children I think.

Just found this - and had to go through from the first page to the last! Wow he's growing up to be so handsome! And I actually find the 'wedgehead' (I can relate, with issues relating to lablips!) quite regal-looking. I will also be regularly checking to see how the ear-saga ends - we have one of our own. Our concerns relate to different rates of ear growth... we've had 'a single' bat ear (like a sail flailing in the wind), but also a flat lab ear (luckily not at the same time), but it may just be a perception thing (this is also an issue with head:body:legs growth proportions - so its hard to tell!). And the 'play dead' trick. We've been working on that the past week. I like the dramatic inflections Elbie adds. Mine will 'backchat', if things are not quite clear or if we're taking too long - as this is a new trick, the backchatting is frequent, so a 'backchatting', dying, puppy, is quite remarkable. I *will* get it on camera! In the meantime - back to those ears!

Ah thanks Esky! It all makes sense now! As an afterthought - we have experienced 'the other side' of our dog's personality! This happened when he was teething. For a run of two days, then more recently three days - he was completely uncooperative and completely naughty!!!! Luckily, I referred to this forum, and soon realised what was going on (the blood smear on his favourite chew toy was another clue!).