May Be In The Wrong Section (again)

[Dodge]

Wow,I d like to give you both a "Standing Ovation" ))clapping like mad here((
Well done Oka,impressive stuff within just a few days,you must ve worked really hard with her,fab!!
Ina,I can just imagine the chin's hitting the floor when you had that young lab under your spell and well done Smokey for showing off how well trained you are for your mummy (lurve that nickname!!)

 

[mewzard]

Wow, Ina thats really great!!
Dodge...i think the success was because it was new and exciting.
She has been a total little rat-bag last 3 days and i ended up crying yesterday. She got annoyed with me asking for a sit (to get some focus) because she was trying to drag me along the road after a dog (that was several hundred meters away on the other side of the road.), so yes, frustrated, so she decided to jump up at me, managing to knock me and i fell over, luckily i didn't fall into the busy road we were walking along.
So recall is improving, she has been racing in from the garden, even if she's been playing with my partner, BUT her other behaviour is on shaky ground becuase I'm not doing or giving her what she wants/expects.
We walked past the place she did puppy classes at, we haven't been near there in 8months....she went crazy trying to drag me to the door....She can't possibly remember the place ...can she? We came towards it from a different direction as well.

 

[Lexy88]

Oh how frustrating. Blade has days where he will walk nicely, and other days where he is just dragging me about. I am so sorry to hear you had such a bad day with Oka! Do you walk her in a halti? [head collar]. Or I saw in one of my dog mags yesterday, a anti-pull harness which puts pressure behind their armpits when they pull, so the reaction from them is to go backwards to stop the pressure - rather than just going forwards. Maybe a couple of things you could look into for the pulling? I am certainly considering the harness.
Youre not alone. Blade will drag me after other dogs and cats.
But it is good news to hear her recall is getting better Focus on the positives.

 

[Dodge]

awwwww a great big cyber hug coming your way,so sorry to hear you got upset with your babe,not nice when this happens,been there with our recall,xx. Thank god you did not fall into the road! I m not sure if they remember places from that long back,but if she had a fun time at that place,maybe she does,just like they remember bad things/situations,hmmmm,defo sounds like she knew where she was
I ve got the same question as Lexy about the headcollar,Dodge is sooo calm as soon as it goes on(although he only ever needs it on one part of our walk,because of VERY aggressive dogs and he feeds of their vibes) I cant comment on the anti pull harness,it really did nothing to any kind of control or pulling with my boy,sorry
But a big thumbs up for your recall,so very well done

(I m in the process of moving house,so may not be online for a while,am looking forward to read your updates,the very best of luck for your training)

 

[mewzard]

She has an Easy walk harness that the lead attaches to from the front....She doesn't really pull in general but I find it easier to control her with a harness on if a dog comes too close...we have a BlackDog harness on its way (which also attaches to the front, but should have a better fit for her). TBH I don't want to use a head collar and really she does walk nicely 80% of the time...this is more frustration i think because we've changed the 'rules' and she isn't happy that she has to work harder.
She has been pretty good today. I have even managed to make dog cookies!! OMG I've never seen her work so hard for a treat ever! I was putting washing into the dryer and she decided to help; she put a sock in of her own accord and i grab a bit of cookie just to say thankyou (closest treat to hand)....her eyes nearly popped out of thier sockets, so she grabbed one of the kids trousers and put them in, looked (she'd missed a leg), threw the leg in, and then begged with her eyes, i gave her another tiny bit ....in the end she'd emptied my basket.
Hope the move goes well dadge

 

[running_dog]

Mewzard - Sorry you had a foul day. We all have them and I'm sure she'll get better - look how well her recall is coming on, I'm really impressed. Zac jumps up at me in frustration sometimes but of course he's littler so it doesn't have such dire consequences. He did get his own back on me today though, I gave him a big hug and fuss for a great recall and then realised he'd rolled in goose poo... just as well I'd already praised him or else it'd have been a little strained.

It's possible Oka CAN remember 8 months ago. Zac chased a hare once last year, I still have to leash him 2 fields away as he goes on high alert, I blame his long memory on the saluki in him but that can't be Oka's excuse . The other explanation for Oka is that there is still a puppy class meeting at the hall and she could smell that lots of dogs had been there, maybe that would trigger her memory too?

 

[Dodge]

you ll have her do the dishes in no timehow awesome is that,such quick learning,crikey!!! Oh thank you,the kitchen has been moved and me and the boys are waiting for chinese . . .hubby s in the pub while waiting for it,I hate moving,uuurgh!
I ve got the booklet for our Gentle Leader in the new place(typicall,first time I want it in god knows how many months) the different pressure given is helping the dog to calm,now dont quote me on this,I can put the excact words on once I found the booklet . . . the bit around the muzzle recreates what adult dogs do to pups,which is calming pups down,and the bit that goes behind the ears recreates the mum picking up the pup to move them,which makes their body go "limp"(no literallyjust to be calm) thats obviously put in really loose words,but is just to explain that there is nothing at all wrong with a headcollar,you may want to try it,Dodge fought it for ten minutes flat and just had to have a little encouragement with treats after that,the next day I was dreading to try it again,but he did not fight it AT ALL and walked like an angle,the only reason why I wanted one was so I wouldnt be pulled over in the winter on icy pavements(nobody bothers to clear pavements here)
Well anyway,just thought that may help,I didnt like the thought of a headcollar untill I read up about the factsoh oh,btw,I ve always got him hooked to both harness and headcollar,so no injury could ever happen,in case he would lunge or jump

 

[Lexy88]

Oh wow! I wish Blade would help with the washing - instead he is naughty about taking the kids socks... when theyre on their feet! The kids think its hilarious, Blade knows its a joke but will eat them if someone [me] doesnt take them off him asap.
Dodge, was there something about the pressure on the dogs head releasing endorphins? being related to their mums etc? I think that was a reasoning where people use specific head collars on horses and twitches also.
Anyway I am only here briefly this afternoon... dogs to run and groom and feed!

 

[mewzard]

Thanks xx
We've had a much better day today. Started to try teaching her "go outs", targeting a blanket in the garden as the inital step - and she did quite well, she even got to a point where she trotted over to it ... instead of meandering.
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My mum came round and we took the kids and Oka to the "little forest" and she walked really nicely on the way and on the way back...had to lure her to my side a few times, but she was excellent considering my mum was there and the kids kept wandering off ahead. Got some brilliant recalls in the forest, couldn't get her off the squirrels this time, but the few times i did call her she did the 'turn-on-a-dime' thing. The one time i could have done with an excellent recall was when 2 kids (aged about 12/13) came along the path and she ran up to them but she just sat at thier feet (i did shout to the boys that she was friendly), so it wasn't horrible.
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This evening i "furminated" her as her under coat is coming out in chunks and she went through the pot of kibble in about 20 minutes.... she has refused every piece throughout the day . However she has very very responsive to everyone in the house - including my mum - so the 'learn to earn' is working and is making her more responsive out of the house.
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She already knew how to put things in the washing maching and the dryer. Normally she does the easy items, then gets frustrated with the harder items despite bigger reawrds for doing them. She often trys to 'trick' me, by putting a sock in, then another, then taking the first one out and then putting it back in....hoping she'll get more treats and not have to tackle the harder items. She has smarts this dog
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So day 6 has been really good

 

[Lexy88]

Haha Oka sounds adorable [re tricking you with the washing].
Blade is moulting his undercoat too - seriously, it looks like Ive murdered a sheep on the lawn.
I am so pleased to hear about your recalls out and about I was thinking today about you and Oka and how you were getting along.

 

[mewzard]

Blade is moulting his undercoat too - seriously, it looks like Ive murdered a sheep on the lawn.

Day 9.
I walked her this morning and she was brilliant. I think the BlackDog harness fits so much better and that has really helped. She was much more attentive. Sits nearly instantly when i stop moving , she was SO focused on me she totally didn't see the dog that walked 100yards from us!!!!
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She had a sock in the garden (think she nabbed it out of the clean basket), my partner said to her "Oka, go wash" and pointed to the back door, and she trotted in and put it in the machine! Couldn't believe it! Later she brought me a fork that the kids had dropped. She is also alot quicker to listen to basic commands.
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Kids go back to school tomorrow so i'll be back down the park to practice real recall, see if all this will flow over into that situation.<---wishing

 

[mewzard]

Day 10 (am i boring you all yet ?)
It had rained over night, My daughter woke up at 3am, 3:30, 4, 5 and then properly at 6...I'm tired!! We were late getting upand Oka didn't get a proper walk - i was going to chicken out of the park. However i took her...
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She walked really nicely both there and back, We crossed over a road as a dog was coming our way and she kept her attention totally on me. On the way back i walked past the school nursery section where all the kids were out playing, and again she walked 'close' perfectly.
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At the park i let her gets a bunch of her sniffing out of the way, then did a bit of recall. It didn't go so great at first, but then she realised i had chicken, i didn't have to 'reel her in' much. Her attention waned a bit so i got out a tug toy and we had fun charging around the field with it...managed a few retrieves - which is huge for her as we've only just got this consistant in the garden. A guy came on the field with 2 little dogs and it took a couple of minutes to get her attention back....we played tug and short retrieves and it worked nicely. The guy left and i got out her squeaky ball and kicked that around a few times...she even brought that back.
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I decided to leave then as we were doing so well!!

 

[Ina]

Tash, that's great. It's hard to keep your cool when you are overtired. Dogs however seem to sense this.
Whenever I am dreading to go for a walk because I would much rather have a snooze on the sofa after a restless night, Smokey seems to know and appreciate my efforts. He usually has the best recall and goes into turbo-charged-sniffing mode. A walk that normally takes half an hour is done in half the time. When we get home he is allowed on my bed if I have time for an afternoon nap. He snuggles up and rests his head on my shoulder and I think "You understand me more than anyone else in this world"
KIDS on the other hand sense this too, but they tend to run around screaming even louder than usual. They push you to the limit until eventually they end up in time-out and Mum takes Panadol

 

[running_dog]

Day 10 (am i boring you all yet ?)...

...I decided to leave then as we were doing so well!!

Nowhere near bored yet! I find stopping when things are going well the hardest! Zac is normally at his most obdurate when I'm tired so I'm glad Oka and Smokey have a better attitude .
It's great to hear about people having good training days. We had a rotten walk but not because the training went badly, it was spoilt when Zac stuck his nose into a wasps nest... his recall didn't work because he was trying to run away from a wasp that was hanging onto him and stinging repeatedly . I more or less covered him in vinegar when we got home and he seems okay.

Sorry Saffy, can't help. I'm sure that someone more knowledgeable and with a better behaved computer than mine will explain to you if you give them time.

 

[Saffy]

ok thank you

 

[Lexy88]

Tash - it sounds like you and Oka are doing so well at the moment! Good job! I sometimes chicken out of walking Blade after restless nights with kids or long days in class as well. Its actually better that way because he is the opposite of Ina's Smokey - if Im tired - he plays up! And makes me more grumpy. He is quite happy to sit about home with his squeaky toys every once in a while. Thank the Lords lol. And I agree with running_dog, I find it hard to stop when things are going well!

 

[mewzard]

Oka usually plays up if i'm tired, or sick, or grumpy....so do the kids
I find it hard to stop when things go well too...but i'm having to teach myself to stop as i got tired of hearing myself say "it was going great till...."
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Day 12
Got some excellent whistle recalls in the forest this morning. I had left the whistle at my mums for 2 weeks, and she still remembered what i meant, next is to do it with dogs around then around dogs off-lead...then it will be all set.

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Tuesday I had my nephew (I childmind him every couple of weeks) and she was really good all day, listened to mereally well. Except one incident with a football, where she put her mouth on me, i told her "no!" and she tried again, so i put the ball away and we all went inside. Funny watching her standing in the middle of the garden looking at me put it away in the toy chest and walk inside, then sit and play cars with my nephew, all the time with a look on her face saying "she won't, nahhh, she can't be... oh oh nooo! maybe she'll get ...something.... else...ohhhww! no fair!" Needless to say she got in her bed and sulked at me for a while.
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[Lexy88]

Awesome video! *like!* I wish Blade was that enthusiastic Im keen to try introducing Blade to a whistle recall after watching Oka. Good job! I love how she is such a hoon

Lol Blade gets put outside when he bodyslams the cat. He's always like whaaaaat, Muuuuuuum, Leo was asking for it, I swear.

 

[mewzard]

The whistle is really good, she paid attention from the first time i blew it. Just make the whistle blowing=your dogs heroin and you're away!!! I wouldn't bother with a dog whistle...mines an Acme Thunderer, which is basically a referee whistle. Though if you go to sports games then a dog whistle would be better - no confusion!
She goes totally mental in the forest, 1 hour in there = 3 hours of sleeping after.

 

[running_dog]

The whistle is really good, she paid attention from the first time i blew it.

Interesting! Maybe the whistle I got for Zac was too quiet. He never paid all that much attention and when I lost it I didn't really miss it. It was an Acme but one of the dog whistles, maybe I should try again and this time use a thunderer!

Lexy - how nice to have a dog that can get along with a cat. I'm going to have to work even harder with Zac as last night he finally tangled with a cat, something I hoped would never happen, he learns too fast. He came off worst this time but next time... well, there just isn't going to be a next time.