Erny

You never said you had a CLOICKER!!! Erny abides because Nekhbet clicks her (no less) 'frog' clicker ....... . RSPCA goes away because Erny has water ......................... and is "clicked" PS Wonder if we have matching frog clickers. Mine's metal. ETA: Huski ..... bought mine at some seminar years ago. Can't remember which one.

Erny rolls herself to the ground on her side. Brrrbrrr .... brrrbrrrr ..... "Hello? RSPCA? ....... " Erny does a Muttley snigger as they come (with their TV crew at their heels) to take Nekhbet away ......

I agree with what Sas has written. Especially but not only the part I've highlighted. Apart from anything else, ok ..... you yelled at him. It's done. Maybe it wasn't exactly the right thing to do (or perhaps it was) but you might as well let it sit for what it was and see if it has the desired effect for the next time you go out. Perhaps Kenny will now think twice about a repeat of his socks and undies rampage. Stop bashing yourself up about it. You don't think most if not all of us have not in some way 'lost it' and done a little barney before we've realised we need to suck it back in? LOL .... we're human, even though we try our best to be dogs . Kenny will bounce back. But you need to go back to normal first. As Sas said, be a leader to Kenny ..... he's looking for that, not cuddling. Go get him and take yourselves out for a walk. And you lead that walk as it's yours. Bet you anything things'll be back to normal by the time you return. Oops! Just realised the time. Don't go out for a walk if it is not safe for you to do so .

Hi Suz. I can imagine how worried you are about it. But I think the best thing you can do is wait until the Vet has run the tests on it, before you start hypothesising about what it could be and the worst case scenarios. Not long after I adopted her, my avatar girl Kal (over the bridge now, but long after this incident, bless her cotton socks) had a lump on or very close to her mammory gland. The Vet was very suspicious of it and even when they surgically removed it and sent it off to pathology for testing, they said it looked nasty and to expect the worst. It turned out to be benign, which (pleasantly) surprised all of us. So hang in there. It's horrible waiting but I think you can only deal with the known once you know it.

......... I use that too. Funny, I never taught it, but it worked first time off the bat.

But that would be double commanding and wouldn't you lose points or get a NQ for that? So it would really need to be OiSTFU!

Hehehehehe ..... don'tchajuzluvpups, as busy as they are and have you running around after them, if not for training sake, then picking-up-after-them-sake and making-sure-they're-not-getting-into-trouble sake. But gosh ..... it is so easy to while away the hours just watching them and their antics. And I'm sure you're finding watching the two of them together is very entertaining. Congratulations, CWW. A bundle of fun she certainly looks .

I tend to agree, BB. But do you not think that you are saying similar to what is occurring for the "go to mat" exercise? Remember - I said similar, but not same. I used my boy's (very good) recall to bring him away from what he was barking at and it was just a natural next step for me to add "enough" "good boy" and then we'd head inside where he'd get a food treat reward. (Or, depending on what I was doing and where we were, how keen his recall was (it's always keen, but some are frightening knee cap breakers!!) we'd go into a game of tug. Similarities are that in the "go to mat" exercise, the dog is distracted from the door by the fact that his conditioned response demands him to do something (active). That has a bearing on him not thinking so much about barking and more about "doing". Whether a person would add quiet as a word association to the end of the mat exercise is something else, but I can see the similarities in what you are suggesting with the "go to mat" exercise. Oh, and JulesP, Nekhbet, Jeff and HR .................................

Yes - even purchasing a pure breed through a registered breeder can be disappointing when you're unlucky. But would you not be even more wary about buying either a purebred or a non-purebred dog through an unregistered breeder?

Belgian Blue - he is a stunning little boy!!! Can't say I've had much to do with English Pointers. Without me looking it up, what would be the main differences in appearance (adult) and temperament of the English compared to the GSP ?

Book in for the intro session with Four Paws. There's no obligation if you do - you can decide from there. You've asked for recommendations and I think I've made mine more than clear . The rest is up to you, i_heart. ETA: I don't think I understand your line of thinking in the part I've highlighted above. The classes will turn out to be helpful and the classes will help you with adding to socialisation and showing you how to do it. You also do things during the week and at other times too, but the classes will at least show you how to do it and you'll have access to people who have experience and knowledge of pups/dogs and canine behaviour behind them. And what if you don't book the classes ...................... Take the next step, i_heart and go. You could have gone to them this morning and if you had, you'd have seen/heard the info you need from their info session, so you'd be one step further ahead already. ETA: If you're unable to learn (with the help of the instructors) how to handle your pup "out in the open" (they'll be on leads) ..... how are you going to manage out and about at other times?

Hi i_heart. I gave you the link to Four Paws' website (which in turn will give you contact numbers and other info) in my earlier post on page 1 (post # 9). If you click on the link I've put there it will take you to their website. Four Paws have more than just puppy classes, they have the levels above that and above that and above that, so you can continue your pup's training for as long and as far as you like. I've never heard of "Best Friends" puppy classes, so I wouldn't know what the qualifications/experience of the person running it was. But I do know that of Four Paws, which is why I can confidently recommend them. And I'm cautious about giving out recommendations if I'm not certain of them.

I teach "enough" and "leave", so it is still being taught and perhaps more than you might assume. It's just that for the "hard-wired" barking at the door dogs, sometimes teaching "quiet" isn't enough or successful.

There are various reasons for Coprophagia, especially in those cases where dogs are eating their own. If you visit my website, scroll over the "Home" tab, click on "Hot Tips & Info" tab that appears in the drop-down box and then click on the picture link that appears it will take you to my blogspot where I've written up a small piece on Coprophagia (amongst other things) that you might be interested in. You can access my website by clicking my signature link. If you have trouble finding the article (it is there) let me know - I'm still trying to sort out how best to set out the different information topics and am still building it.

Hi BB. I know you directed your question to Aidan - I hope you don't mind my input (based on my experience of it). For some dogs who are 'hard-wired' (just turning a phrase, so I add a "so to speak" disclaimer to that expression) about barking, I find neither the "quiet" command nor the "go to mat on cue of door knocking" works that well or reliably for many. BUT, I do find the difference between the two, BB, is that the "quiet" command is the more difficult for the dog to embrace self-control over, because it does not demand an alternative conditioned behaviour to exhibit instead of barking, so it is (I find) the more difficult for the dog to learn. I've worked with a few people on the "go to the mat on door knock" routine and it has worked to some extent, although I find it is the PEOPLE who are problematic in fully teaching the dog this conditioned response. They're often great when they are practising it (and yes, many dogs catch on pretty quickly), but when it comes to the real deal (in which you have different people scents at the door; different body language from the dog-owner as they acknowledge the door knock; and other small - but noticeable to the dog - nuances, including owners who can't get past having to answer the door and not have people outside waiting for them) the owners become inconsistent with the training and often give up. (Just my experience.) I find it easier to teach the dog to go to its crate (crate training comes first, of course) and for the owners to close the crate door whilst they then answer their own door. I am generalising of course, but this has proven to be a faster way of the dog learning; it removes much of the opportunity for inconsistencies (eg. dog breaking from the mat when the door opens) in the owner's training and teaches the dog it isn't their place to be greeting visitors at the door. If doing this is not enough to stop the dog from barking, often using a blanket over the crate helps for the early stages of training. This eventually can lead to the dog not needing the crate, but weaning off to a mat as in the go-to-mat 'trick'. Mind you, I have other methods of training dogs to stop going crazy at the door as well that I often find are easier for the owner and by comparison to the aforementioned, quite effective. They are many and varied and what one I might suggest (and sometimes I might suggest a couple of ways, to suit different circumstances) depends on the dog and owner combo in question. Sometimes I use the "go to the mat" one (or as one of a couple) for people who have dogs that need more mental stimulation - in that way it serves two purposes. 1. The owner is happier for the preferred response (and is usually delighted at the 'cuteness' factor of it). 2. The dog is happier because the owner is spending time and also providing them with something to think about whilst they are training them. ETA: Although I think this chatting about methods to stop a dog barking at the door knock is taking the thread way off track. Sorry to the OP.

I might know what you meant, but I'd probably grab the flat collar For me a training collar is a flat collar, because that is what I train with - No need for anything else Yes - perhaps I asked the wrong person? I would gather that a trainer who works with a variety of training tools and dogs would understand.

I don't think they're that large and speaking with Trish I know that she's very conscientious about rostering extra instructors on so that larger classes can be split. I think she has about a 10 dog limit in her puppy classes. Trish would welcome you. They are very professional and they have their "Introductory sessions" where they'll give you the information you need and you can see the classes running before you join.

Unless the Vet couldn't tell the difference (and I doubt that was the case) I wouldn't worry about this. Sometimes calling a dog "he" or "she" can be a habit from what we're used to calling our own dogs. We know the dog is a "he" or a "she" but because we're thinking of (more important?) things at the time, it habitually comes out as what we're used to. Glad all is ok.

IMO - When the "deprivation" enhances good/wanted behaviour without causing harm to the dog.

I don't administer heartworm prevention drugs, but I live in Victoria where the climate is cooler. But I wouldn't be doing the heartworm injection no matter where I lived. That aside ..... I think there's two different injections you can get. One is for a 12 month cover and the other is for a 6 month cover. So it depends on which one your Vet gave. I don't know that much about the injections but the chewables which are "prescribed" as monthly's, actually give 45 days cover. So perhaps the same for the injection? (ie perhaps there is a bit of 'grace' time before the preventative effects of the injection disappears). When I did my research on it, when my boy was a pup, I opted for the daily heartworm tabs as being the 'safest' or 'kindest' to the dog's body, if you will, if I was to give them to him at all. This is more difficult for people to remember - but the choice needs to be yours. From the things I have read, the monthly's are better than the injections, so if the option was to either continue with the monthly's OR switch back to injectables, I'd stick with the monthly chewables. I'm not a Vet and I only know what I have read and heard comment on. There'll be others here who know it and say it better than I, so hang in there as there's likely to be far more (better) responses than I have given you, tomorrow. If it helps much, I can only say that whilst I don't like drugs of any kind (if they can necessarily be avoided) being administered to dogs, I don't think giving the chewable early by a couple of weeks is going to cause any major problems.

Gosh ..... That's very very surprising, FC. You're the first person I have known of over a period of years who has not had anything but for Four Paws K9 Training.

Thanks SnT

Thanks Atua. I forgot about Comfortis. Is that available through pet stores, or is it Vet prescription only? The person who needs it for her dog is in Qld also.

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