Salukifan

He happily used a dog door until he couldn't jump off the bed to get there. Then he woke me and I took him out.

If it makes any difference, I had one dog who never, in his entire life, made it through the night without toileting. He simply couldn't do it.

Highly recommend calendula cream to help heal the wounds once they seal over. Very sorry to read of the attack. It is terrifying.

I'd probably call this "selective instinct". A sighthound is unlikely to show much interest in a moving object that it can't course and kill. They seem to discriminate between animate and inanimate very well. In the same way, I understand venonmous snakes tend not to waste venom on animals too big to eat. I hope people reading this thread are taking away the concept that there is a lot more to purebred dogs than different sizes and shapes. I see a lot of comments on FB from people who seem to think all that selective breeding has done is produce varying "looks" to dogs. It is so much more. To see frustrated sighhound (or terrier) owners who tend to think "why can't my dog be more like a BC or a Labrador" really peeves me. Do your homework folks and buy from people who ensure that you have.

It sounds to me like what you've got is a dog that has had his inhibition about toileting where he sleeps (and about avoiding the product) extinguished. What is his background - where did he come from? Does he have access outside at night? If he doesn't, I'd be providing it pronto.

When you look at those "least intelligent dog breeds" lists (how silly) you'll find sighthounds well represented. At the bottom usually is the Afghan. The phrase "cat like" is often used to describe them. They've never managed to IQ test a cat that I know of. Cats couldn't care less about performing silly human devised tests. Like cats, such dogs genuinely aren't that interested in learning new commands from you or in displaying them on cue. They just don't care. So you have to toss out all the ideas that dog trainers (who often have crafted their skills on highly trainable breeds will bring to the party. The principles of operant conditioning still apply of course. What changes is what such dogs consider to be rewarding and aversive. And often it isn't what traditional training methods would tend to suggest. And to a good sighthound, nothing you've got and nothing you've trained beats coursing. And good sighthound owners know it and manage accordingly.

God love them - they have this capacity to surprise and delight us. :) I think dogs can be extremely sensitive to disability and to youth. One of mine just loves kids. Follows them around like a lamb.

You were talking about teaching a dog that everything good comes from the handler. I am talking about breeds where training that is, in my opinion, going to be extremely difficult, if not impossible. SSM compares Salukis to "23 kg cats". She's bang on the money and that's what we are talking about. Cats don't care what you want. They particularly don't care what you want if they have something else they want. A lot of sighthounds are the same. "Come Howie"... say I Howie: "sure, I'll put that in my diary for Friday".

Agree but some definitely are more trainable than others. However within breeds it also varies. You know that better than me as you see way more dogs. But if someone came to me looking for a good competition obedience prospect, I would not be recommending sighthounds even though some have the highest titles. Based on typical breed behaviour, I'd consider it a likely disappointment waiting to happen. But if lure coursing was the aim - whole different story. Horses for courses.

But aren't you are starting with a breed that has been selectively bred to look to and work with people, not by itself for the most part out of sight of humans? They may not be biddable but few would argue that they are not highly trainable.

Try training a sighthound. Really. They aren't strong willed or even blowing you off, they just don't see the point about what you, with your clicker and tug toy want them to do. Tug toys don't run. Go all "enthusiastic voice"? They look at you like you're demented unless they feel like it. They'd rather sun bake. Want to jerk them around and play hard ball? They shut down As a trainer observed when I was agility training Howie - "he hoisted the 'bored' flag, there goes any further training for him".

A dog that can reach 50kph within a couple of strides also brings challenges. I don't question that it does, but being able to have control of a high drive dog doesn't mean the dog lacks drive. I've seen pet owners with moderately driven dogs who can't control them around prey, lack of control doesn't equal more drive. I am only talking about prey drive. And about breeds that are not generally regarded as particularly "trainable" (read, responsive to rewards or punishment from handlers) So does human focus/biddability lower prey drive?. When you think about it, sighthounds are the oldest breeds We were coursing dogs long before we modified prey drive to herd. So if we've never bred for that human focus/biddability in a sighthound, the question has to be why? Does the fact that they are coursing so damn hard mean that they really can't hear us? Do they need to be able to focus on their 'job" and do it without human interference ( I think that's a yes). Did the more biddable dogs course less hard? It would be interesting to know. Certainly a degree of independence and self confidence is required to course without encouragement or assistance from a hander. I do know that a breed typical Greyhound, Saluki or Whippet is never going to turn itself inside out for a handler the way a Mal will. But Mals don't course like Sighthounds do either. They were bred to perform different functions.

A dog that can reach 50kph within a couple of strides also brings challenges.

I recall when Suzanne Clothier came to Australia some years ago, she mentioned studies that indicated that a dog chasing in full prey drive would be unable to hear a recall. Apparently when in full chase mode, parts of the brain become less active as sight and movement dominate brain function. So the question then becomes, if the dog is responding to a recall, IS it in full prey drive? I can recall my Whippets off stationary Kangaroos and when the lure has stopped but when moving? I doubt it. I think I could drop dead at the start of a lure course and Dodger would still run and then come back and see what the problem was.

...and I still don't know why electrical horse fences are allowed (correct me if I'm wrong and they are illegal too)...so you can 'torture' horses with electrical shocks (and every other creature that touches it), but no dogs...go figure.... If you'd ever seen what a horse can do in wire fence, you'd know the answer.

And one that is oft overlooked and needs constant reinforcement for anyone involved in rehoming sighthounds.

I based my comments on an examimation of their website. And I stand by them.

They have a higher threshold before they trigger into drive. For some dogs, the sight of prey is enough. For others, movement or sound will trigger drive. My guess is your dog probably shows signs of predatory behaviour (staring, stalking) around a non-reactive behaviour but the predatory response is triggered by movement and sound. With sighthounds, it is often movement. My Whippet boys are at a higher level of arousal around cats but if they cat runs, its on. For Howie, the sight of a chicken is enough... he is a homicidal maniac around poultry.

I honestly doubt the attack on the small dog had anything to do with prey drive. The attacker would have known it was a dog.

And you will get what you pay for. Very poorly designed. How a dog is supposed to walk with that strap restricting its shoulders beats me. Get a Puppia one if you have a small dog.

Bones are not fibre and do NOT assist in dealing with anal glands.

The "what if the pup doesn't turn out" discussion is something I'd recommend you have with breeder before purchasing your next pup. Advising on the way forward would be helped by knowing what the disqualifying faults were that you encountered.

Most of them have such similar ingredients i dont understand how they could be detrimental when switching between kind of related, recently i found out that at one of the large dog agility comps people often take their own water as the dogs often get sick from it. My dogs didnt bat an eyelid for the week they were drinking it. And i put this down to variety in their diets. I never even thought that tap water could affect my dogs :laugh: terrible owner i am! I put it down to deluded owners. My dogs drink from puddles and dams. A change of water doesn't phase them in the slightest. I don't put that down to variety in their diet. I think travel and arousal at trials is a far more likely cause for upset stomachs.

So very sorry. Take comfort that you have sent her on her way when it was the right time. I swear I saw my boy Ted out of the corner of my eye for a few weeks after he passed. I hope you do too.

Do dogs do things they know you don't want them doing? Absolutely!!! Their opportunity is our view of naughtiness - one and the same thing to me.