Cosmolo

Is it possible that there is an entire bitch in the yard next door? Or an entire bitch in the neighbourhood that is on heat? Desexing would help if this is the cause. Are the dogs spending less time with you of late? Is the only issue the digging or are there other problem behaviours? ETA It is highly unlikely that he is 'jealous' of the impending baby. If there are changes to his life/ environment at the moment- he is simply responding to these. Shame you're not in Melbourne as a When Freddy Meets fido session would probably really assist you. : )

How much exercise, training and stimulation does the dog get? How long are his walks? Do you take him to obedience training? What kind of toys does he have?

Underwater treadmill shouldn't be as taxing as swimming and they can make it very slow and steady to start with. Are they doing both hips at once or does he have to have 2 separate surgeries? Is it a 2-3 month recovery for that surgery? I know denervation is 3-5 days and they can do both hips at once. Honestly- i would only get a specialist, some of them do these surgeries daily and i think it can make a difference. Having said that- i don't know the vets you're talking about- they might be great! Dex has good days and bad- cartophen injections have helped alot- he was going downhill fast until we gave him weekly catrophen and it seems to have helped. Thanks for asking.

The FHO is where they cut the ball joint off isn't it? How much does Max weigh? That was never given to us an option because Dexter is too heavy for it to be successful. Personally i would do the denervation- when i saw Wing Tip he said the dogs they had done it on 5-6 years ago showed no signs of pain and were progressing very well. What is his muscle tone like? Underwater treadmill helped Dex o build some initial muscle- maybe worth a try for Max? I actually haven't heard of the vets you mention- are they specialists? Do you know how often they do the surgery? I am so sorry this is happening to you and Max- totally know how you feel, it absolutely sucks. If you need any moral support, feel free to email me. Hugs from me and dexter

Ditto- if the dog is excitable when doing it and still has submissive/ excited urination, a correction would be very unlikely to be appropriate. Teaching the dog to calm and settle would be the first port of call.

I have just started doing some free shaping with Cosmo and i really like it. I find it really interesting that some behaviours that she has done many times on cue, she found difficult to free shape to start with- eg sitting on the dining chair. I do think you need to be clear, have a no reward mark and use some other training tecnhiques at other times as well but thats just my opinion. I wouldn't free shape everything i teach a dog because there are other techniques i really like too.

Whereabouts are you located? I believe Ausdog is a franchise? So alot may depend on the trainer you actually get.

Assuming that the this is the only issue and the dog is not toileting inappropriately at other times and does not have incontinence etc- the dog would get a clear, well timed correction from me at the time of doing it plus increasing the dogs training at other times and making sure the dog is being responsive to other commands etc.

No Midol- thats not what i said. But 9 times out of 10 a puppy having a tantrum is not being dominant. And a puppy that guides perfectly is not necesarily submissive.

Sorry to hear Mandela is unwell Erny- hope he is on the improve very soon

Of course Rebanne- we build up to guiding, moving at whatever speed the dog can cope with and minimising any stress whenever possible. I never want to produce a fear response in a puppy- but i do believe showing owners how to work through tantrums is important. There are distinct differences and this is where its important that a trainer can read the dog in front of them, explain things clearly to an owner and knows exactly what they're doing and what results it will produce. Its not as simple as "all pups should deal with being guided no matter what" or "no pup should ever be guided no matter what". I don't hold pups down to 'submit'. Dominance and submission is not what i am dealing with when guiding pups and inexperienced dogs.

I don't believe being gentle and guiding are mutually exclusive. And unfortunately PPS- not everyone has pups that have been lovingly raised and handled- i get 15-16 week old pups who have never so much as been taught to be held in a stand or picked up. Again- there is a HUGE difference between a 'tantrum' and a fear response and a good trainer should understand this! Some pups/ dogs should not be guided straight away- but some should.

I actually agree with both sides if thats possible? I don't think any dogs should be handled roughly by a trainer, thrown or roughly put into a drop/ lying down position. But it upsets me to hear things like this being called guiding and anyone who physically guides a dog being labelled as a bully. There is a difference between a tantrum and fear response as well and this is a very important distinction.

Bump. Places remain in all workshops and seminars. Canberra only has 1 private lesson available while Sydney still has a few. It is likely that we will also be offering limited private lessons on the Friday before the Sydney weekend so please let us know if you wish to book a Friday lesson. Absolutely anything can be covered within these lessons. If anyone has contacts in the maternity field for either Sydney or Canberra these are most welcome so we can forward When Freddy Meets Fido information

I use both guiding accompanied by food rewards and luring in my puppy schools and have never left a puppy screaming on the floor. Do some puppies have tantrums? Yes. But these are the same pups whose owners have never handled them or held them, asked them to stand still etc. Simply holding them in a stand position has them wriggling, trying to mouth and making noise and this is worked through over a puppy school course. I have had 'unmanageable' pups start a 4 week puppy school and leave as some of the easiest to handle pups i have ever seen. Had these pups never been guided/ manually handled, i do believe their owners would have had problems handling them, let alone a vet, groomer etc. Guiding is NOT alpha rolling. Unfortunately some try to disguise alpha rolling as 'guiding' and do hide behind the 'if the vets have to..' etc. But not everyone who guides is this way. For the OP- everyone will have their suggestions as far as training goes. personally, i would always use food rewards for a puppy wihin a class if they like them/ are motivated by food rewards. ADT (as far as i know) has gone back to "the owner is the best thing" type motivation and i don't believe this is effective for many pet owners and dogs. However, given that they do allow food rewards- take some with you and ask for instruction on the best way to use them- when to give them etc. You can do luring and guiding as well- they are not mutually exclusive exercises and you don't have to choose only one way to teach the pup. if you are ever concerned by something an instructor/ trainer does- ask- a good trainer should be able to easily explain what is happening and why they are doing what they are doing. Great trainers clearly explain BEFORE they do such things so that owners know what to expect and the reasons behind it.

Hooray Trisven! So next time i come we can do some obedience with her?!

Kelpie i- do you have dates for this?

So the dog has HD and ED? In all 4 joints? Would the TPO be done one at a time to both hips? How much does the dog weigh? My dog has ED and HD in all joints and the only surgery we think he will have will be hip denervation for the following reasons. Your dog may be totally different- these are just our experiences - Dexter is close to 40kg and the pressure put on his other legs during the recovery time would be too much in our opinion - Dexter is 15 months old, high drive and boisterous and would not cope well with being confined, particularly with 3 other dogs around- even if separated, he would be highly stressed and we think he would really hurt himself, despite being crate trained - The total surgery and recovery time would be 12 months minimum, assuming nothing goes wrong. - After experimenting with various exercise, supplements and treatments, he is at a point where we are managing all 4 legs well enough to keep Dexter healthy and happy and in the last month or two, it has only been the odd day that he has been sore. This has been the most difficult decision and i continue to question it all the time! There have been days while we were trying different things where he looked cripple when he walked and we have wondered howlong we'll have him. We know he's not going to live as long as a 'normal' dog but want to give him as good of a life as possible.

Probably the best bet for regular lessons would be to contact the NDTF (national dog trainers federation) and find out if they have instructors in the area that have done the scent detection elective and/ or course? My OH does private scent detection lessons and workshops but we're in Melbourne. We're in Sydney in June for other workshops etc and am pretty sure we have some private sessions still available if you can't find anything before then!

Are you after private training/ lessons or an actual course/ workshop?

Agree Kelpie i- but some people just can't do that- its either not in their personality or they don't see the person coming up behind them because they are too busy concentrating on what they are doing. Thats why instructors have to have at least 2 pairs of eyes! :rolleyes:

We run our group classes similar to Kelpie i's and require that every dog with aggression issues do a private session first. It means that we know the dog and owner and can instruct them on specifics within a class- without this knowledge, it is very difficult for even the best instructor to advise properly in a group situation. An instructor who has never met the dog before cannot watch the dog every moment and may miss critical behaviour sequences within the class that influence how to handle the dog (and owner ). One or perhaps multiple private sessions prior to a group class are invaluable for dog, owner and trainer.

Whats her history? Just curious

Interesting.. i tend to jackpot multiple treats one after another. Why? I think i maintain more focus and motivation this way- but maybe thats because one of my own dogs in particular sees a handful of food as a 'meal' and is much less excited than treat after treat. When i was training scent detection, i also used the combined jackpot at the end of a working session so it may be habit from there too- i think you have to refocus the dog more when giving a combined jackpot.

Behaviourist- yes definitely. But also consider how you can break it down to as many steps as possible- - the smell- get some of the antiseptic from the vet to use around the house and when you are doing happy things! - the action of the vet- you moving closer to the dog, building up to cornering, small rooms etc. - physical examination- can other people do this at home without issue? - the vet clinic itself- regular trips where nothing happens, ideally progressing to walk in and out of the consult room - the vets clothes and equipment- coat, stethescope etc - the vet/ stranger- consider a few home visits - speak to the vet about tranquil paste to be given before a veterinary appointment, i would prefer this to sedation IF possible and safe