...and here it is - and what a busy one it is going to be !!! Taking the doggies for a run out tomorrow - only to the localish crappy dog park but they will see some of their fluffy friends there so that will be nice.
Should get time to take them for a couple of decent walks this weekend - although probably will need to get the raincoat out - typical - sunshine while I am at work - and rain when I have time off :(
We did the feeding slightly differently tonight - I put the kibble in the bowls and then gave them to OH in the kitchen - he put the wet food in and gave them back to me and I fed Earl.
Earl waited while I put the kibble in and then - after I had given the bowl to OH he almost threw himself on the floor at my feet when I sat down on the chair - very submissive - tail curled between his legs "scratch my tummy" plea in his eyes. When I got up and went to get the bowl he kind of looked at me and made one attempt to follow me - got an "away" and lay down on the carpet to wait. You could almost hear his brain ticking over the 'well - this is different - what the hell do I do here?' but he followed the same behaviour pattern we have been enforcing and waited till invited so ......................seemed OK.
And just as an aside -you can tell you are a dog person when ...........the hoodie you put on to wear to work has a pocket full of plastic doggy poo bags *L* The kids thought that was funny :)
Look at me - how can you resist this cuteness?
Earl and Rosie doing what they do best
Friday, July 29, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
........is it Friday yet??????
Hey all - almost the end of the first week of term - and I will finally get out for a walk with the doggies tonight - thanks to OH (gotta love him - he is currently cooking tea and will take the kids to karate so I can walk the dogs)
The big hound is doing well - he is learning that an excited jump around and sniff people will get him a swift push away and a NO - so he is (eventually - he is still a bit slow - that hasn't changed) sitting for a pat.
OH fed him last night by himself and Earl seems to have the idea that when food is being prepared for him he needs to sit his fat bum on the rug (or lie there with his legs in the air) and wait till he is asked to come and eat - which still takes a few minutes of him lying on the rug before that happens.
Am taking the dogs to catch up with a friend and her fluffies on Saturday so it will be good for them to have a run and stretch their legs - or in Earl's case - a stroll and a sniff with perhaps a gallumph around trying to catch the quicker dogs (no hope there mate - give it up)
Have sent Mark an email to work out a follow up time - would like him to come and see the feeding routine and see if there is anything we need to tweak :) Now that school is back in our time is limited though - so either 5.45 am (Yeah right - like anyone without a hungry bloodhound is up at THAT time of the day!) or between 4.30 - 5.30 or after 7.30 to fit around the million and one bl**dy sports the kids do :)
So - may be a bit of a wait but we will keep doing what we are doing :)
Might give the smelly thing a bath on the weekend if we have time :) that should make for an interesting blog entry - watch out for that one :)
The big hound is doing well - he is learning that an excited jump around and sniff people will get him a swift push away and a NO - so he is (eventually - he is still a bit slow - that hasn't changed) sitting for a pat.
OH fed him last night by himself and Earl seems to have the idea that when food is being prepared for him he needs to sit his fat bum on the rug (or lie there with his legs in the air) and wait till he is asked to come and eat - which still takes a few minutes of him lying on the rug before that happens.
Am taking the dogs to catch up with a friend and her fluffies on Saturday so it will be good for them to have a run and stretch their legs - or in Earl's case - a stroll and a sniff with perhaps a gallumph around trying to catch the quicker dogs (no hope there mate - give it up)
Have sent Mark an email to work out a follow up time - would like him to come and see the feeding routine and see if there is anything we need to tweak :) Now that school is back in our time is limited though - so either 5.45 am (Yeah right - like anyone without a hungry bloodhound is up at THAT time of the day!) or between 4.30 - 5.30 or after 7.30 to fit around the million and one bl**dy sports the kids do :)
So - may be a bit of a wait but we will keep doing what we are doing :)
Might give the smelly thing a bath on the weekend if we have time :) that should make for an interesting blog entry - watch out for that one :)
Monday, July 25, 2011
5.15 am - really?
OK - I know it was left over spaghetti for breakfast this morning which is one of your all-time foavourite meals but - really Earl - 5.15 am.
I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that I hate mornings - and I will never be the 'bound out of bed - bring on the day and all it's challenges' kind of person. I am more of the the "OK - it's morning and I am going to have to get up anyway so - here we go" - especially after any night when I got to bed after 9.30 pm.
The dog - however - given that he doesn't have to go to work and can sleep for 23 hours out of the 24 - seems to quite enjoy an early morning - the bite of the cool, fresh morning air, the dew on the artificial lawn, the rays of sunlight peeking over the horizon - the rattle of the food dish, the tatntalising smell of doggie meatloaf in the air, the vindictive satisfaction of hearing me groan as I roll slowly out of bed.
Backfired slightly over the last 2 mornings though - after breakfast - rather than trotting back to your nice warm crate - you go outside to the nice cold backyard - it's a work day - no going back to bed for either of us :(
So - how is Earl going with his issues? Feeding seems to be settling into a routine and he seems to grasp the idea that he is not going to be aloowed to hang about the kitchen gate - and that he eats when we ask him too - not when he decides he wants to. He still needs reminding about pushiness - especially when he hasn't seen us for a couple of hours or we smell good because we have been around other dogs :)
He still spends a lot of time in front of the heater or on his back in front of someone to have his tummy scratched - his fur is growing back from his operation so it is obviously itchy.
They should be able to spend some time inside today as OH is on nightshift so will be home all day - so snoozing on the chair is probably somewhere on Earls agenda - lucky sod - wish it was on mine.
Cheers all
I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that I hate mornings - and I will never be the 'bound out of bed - bring on the day and all it's challenges' kind of person. I am more of the the "OK - it's morning and I am going to have to get up anyway so - here we go" - especially after any night when I got to bed after 9.30 pm.
The dog - however - given that he doesn't have to go to work and can sleep for 23 hours out of the 24 - seems to quite enjoy an early morning - the bite of the cool, fresh morning air, the dew on the artificial lawn, the rays of sunlight peeking over the horizon - the rattle of the food dish, the tatntalising smell of doggie meatloaf in the air, the vindictive satisfaction of hearing me groan as I roll slowly out of bed.
Backfired slightly over the last 2 mornings though - after breakfast - rather than trotting back to your nice warm crate - you go outside to the nice cold backyard - it's a work day - no going back to bed for either of us :(
So - how is Earl going with his issues? Feeding seems to be settling into a routine and he seems to grasp the idea that he is not going to be aloowed to hang about the kitchen gate - and that he eats when we ask him too - not when he decides he wants to. He still needs reminding about pushiness - especially when he hasn't seen us for a couple of hours or we smell good because we have been around other dogs :)
He still spends a lot of time in front of the heater or on his back in front of someone to have his tummy scratched - his fur is growing back from his operation so it is obviously itchy.
They should be able to spend some time inside today as OH is on nightshift so will be home all day - so snoozing on the chair is probably somewhere on Earls agenda - lucky sod - wish it was on mine.
Cheers all
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Farewell holidays :( You will be sadly missed
So - holidays are almost over - and today was the last day for this week that I could go back to bed after the 5.30 feeding of the beast : ) and I made sure I did.
Earl was pretty enthusiastic when I let him in this morning - but after a couple of "NO"'s and a couple of 'bites' he realised that this wasn't a good idea and toned it down slightly.
He has spent most of the day basking in front of the heater as I have been busy getting ready for tomorrow - neither of the dogs is going to be particularly impressed when they are put outside at 7am and left there till 4.30pm - hope the rain stays off - they get really grumpy when it's wet too.
Hoping to get them out for a walk at some stage but trying to fit it in will be a bit challenging - kids might have to come with me I think - go after school and before footy training :) - can't go in the morning because I have to get to work early to set up - but this will set the routine for us for the term - and we need to make sure we stick to what we have been doing and don't slack off at all - that's not fair on Earl.
Well - short one tonight - off to bed - to be bright eyed and bushy tailed for tomorrow
'night all
Earl was pretty enthusiastic when I let him in this morning - but after a couple of "NO"'s and a couple of 'bites' he realised that this wasn't a good idea and toned it down slightly.
He has spent most of the day basking in front of the heater as I have been busy getting ready for tomorrow - neither of the dogs is going to be particularly impressed when they are put outside at 7am and left there till 4.30pm - hope the rain stays off - they get really grumpy when it's wet too.
Hoping to get them out for a walk at some stage but trying to fit it in will be a bit challenging - kids might have to come with me I think - go after school and before footy training :) - can't go in the morning because I have to get to work early to set up - but this will set the routine for us for the term - and we need to make sure we stick to what we have been doing and don't slack off at all - that's not fair on Earl.
Well - short one tonight - off to bed - to be bright eyed and bushy tailed for tomorrow
'night all
Saturday, July 23, 2011
It's just a lazy Saturday night
Hey all - the end of another week - the last one of my holidays (BOO, Hiss) - and as the title of this post suggests it has been a lazy day - I went in to set up my classroom, took 10 year old daughter - OH and 12 year old son went to help with the Pedal Prix vehicles.
Big drooly dog had his breakfast at 5.30 - again - went pretty routinely - he seems to be getting the hang of it - and he trotted back to bed quite happily afterwards (well - it was bl**dy early - don't blame him - I trotted back to bed quite happily too) and he was snoozing quite happily at 7.30 when I got up - AW - how cute. So cute I promptly put both dogs out the back into the cold (No - puppy dog eyes do not achieve anything - you are dogs - you have fur - you have a lovely kennel to stay warm in - suck it up!!)
The dogs have spent the rest of the day in various ststes of repose in the lounge room - in front of the heater - on the chair - in Earl's case - lying hopefully on his back at our feet - lying hopefully on his back next to us - lying hopefully on his back between the couch and the chair so we have to step over him to get anywhere - you get the idea :)
10 year old went to a party at 4 - someone else had a bunch of 10 year olds partying at their place - been there - done that :)
I fed Earl as OH was soaking in the bath - I walked away form the food to grab the remote and he too a few steps towards it - stopped when I said "NO"and waited - lying down - till I gave him permission to eat. I am determined not to get blase and continue to enforce the waiting to eat, the not getting pushy and the waiting to go through doors - it has only been just over a week and this is a long term journey.
So - I am going to go and watch "Turner and Hooch" - yeah I know - a large dribbly dog movie - but at least this large dribbly dog is someone elses large dribbly dog and THEY have to clean up after him :)
Night all :)
Big drooly dog had his breakfast at 5.30 - again - went pretty routinely - he seems to be getting the hang of it - and he trotted back to bed quite happily afterwards (well - it was bl**dy early - don't blame him - I trotted back to bed quite happily too) and he was snoozing quite happily at 7.30 when I got up - AW - how cute. So cute I promptly put both dogs out the back into the cold (No - puppy dog eyes do not achieve anything - you are dogs - you have fur - you have a lovely kennel to stay warm in - suck it up!!)
The dogs have spent the rest of the day in various ststes of repose in the lounge room - in front of the heater - on the chair - in Earl's case - lying hopefully on his back at our feet - lying hopefully on his back next to us - lying hopefully on his back between the couch and the chair so we have to step over him to get anywhere - you get the idea :)
10 year old went to a party at 4 - someone else had a bunch of 10 year olds partying at their place - been there - done that :)
I fed Earl as OH was soaking in the bath - I walked away form the food to grab the remote and he too a few steps towards it - stopped when I said "NO"and waited - lying down - till I gave him permission to eat. I am determined not to get blase and continue to enforce the waiting to eat, the not getting pushy and the waiting to go through doors - it has only been just over a week and this is a long term journey.
So - I am going to go and watch "Turner and Hooch" - yeah I know - a large dribbly dog movie - but at least this large dribbly dog is someone elses large dribbly dog and THEY have to clean up after him :)
Night all :)
Friday, July 22, 2011
TGIF - and BTW Earl - that scabby receipt you just ran away with - it's MINE!!
I just got growled at by a Bloodhound - and guess what I did? Tightened my hold on his collar and pulled the bl**dy receipt out of his mouth. Next time I will tighten my hold on his collar till he spits it out (the receipt that is, not the collar - I won't pull it that tight)
Why is this such a step? Because you can't set up a situation like this - it is something you deal with it when it happens - and I am proud of myself that I didn't let myself be put off by his growl but I did exactly what Mark had told us - take the collar and say "NO" - take the thing he is chewing - I don't think he meant stick your hand down his throat and get the thing but it was only in his mouth - not quite down his throat yet - it gets a lot slimier when you have to do that.
I took him and the kelpie outside and did some 'sit' and 'wait' training with some treats shortly afterwards - they did well - this is good for the kelpie too - she now waits for her food and for treats too.
The feeding is going OK (I am reluctant to say well - in case I jinx myself ) and OH is definitely more confident when feeding him - I think he can see progress too.
And Earl must be feeling more relaxed - he barked at the kelpie tonight when she had a toy he wanted - he hasn't done that for a while. She gave it up pretty quick and I think the walk we went on after tea has tired the poor thing out as he only had a quick chew on the toy before settling into his favourite spot in front of the heater - he's going to have withdrawal symptoms in summer - we have ducted air conditioning - he's going to find it quite a challenge to get his face in front of one of the ceiling ducts *L*
2 days left of holidays and then he can drag his large furry butt out for a walk at 5 am (0 degrees this morning at that time - BBBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!) and we can get our term time routine in action.
Why is this such a step? Because you can't set up a situation like this - it is something you deal with it when it happens - and I am proud of myself that I didn't let myself be put off by his growl but I did exactly what Mark had told us - take the collar and say "NO" - take the thing he is chewing - I don't think he meant stick your hand down his throat and get the thing but it was only in his mouth - not quite down his throat yet - it gets a lot slimier when you have to do that.
I took him and the kelpie outside and did some 'sit' and 'wait' training with some treats shortly afterwards - they did well - this is good for the kelpie too - she now waits for her food and for treats too.
The feeding is going OK (I am reluctant to say well - in case I jinx myself ) and OH is definitely more confident when feeding him - I think he can see progress too.
And Earl must be feeling more relaxed - he barked at the kelpie tonight when she had a toy he wanted - he hasn't done that for a while. She gave it up pretty quick and I think the walk we went on after tea has tired the poor thing out as he only had a quick chew on the toy before settling into his favourite spot in front of the heater - he's going to have withdrawal symptoms in summer - we have ducted air conditioning - he's going to find it quite a challenge to get his face in front of one of the ceiling ducts *L*
2 days left of holidays and then he can drag his large furry butt out for a walk at 5 am (0 degrees this morning at that time - BBBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!) and we can get our term time routine in action.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Week 1 done :)
It has been a week since Mark came out to consult with us about Earl - and it has been a week of ups and downs - and 'lightbulb' moments when things have just clicked - and times when I have lain awake in bed unable to stop my brain form ticking over.
I have been gratified by the support I have received from people and have realised jusy how much there is aboout dogs - including my own - that I don't know.
I wrote yesterday about what I thought was the reason Earl had jumped at me yesterday - and what I planned to do - well I did.
Breakfast was the same as usual - I am the only one up at that time (Oh the ungodliness of 5.30 am) and so I make sure he keeps his distance both when I am making the food and when I have placed the bowl down. At dinner time tonight I sat in my chair in the lounge and didn't move from it while OH put the kibble in the bowls and took them to the kitchen to put the wet food in it - Earl sat in front of me and I quietly patted him - saying "Good Boy" - he lay down without being told and I continued to pat him - very low key. We had a leash on him just in case he went to the kitchen gate so I could call him back and reinforce it if needed - OH made the food and walked through to the laundry and put it down - no real interest from Earl - I stood up and walked to the gate and in front of Earl betwen him and the laundry - he wasn't too interested. He did move towards the food but stopped as soon as OH told him to and lay down - as he looked away and submitted we gave him a couple more minutes and then invited him to eat.
I love the fact that I am on holidays and can take them for long walks - we took them for about 50 minutes today - lots of opportunities for Earl to sniff around and also some times when he needed to walk closer to me along the streets. That was before his tea so I am sure that helped to dissipate some of his energy.
I am coming to the reluctant conclusion that I must make the ultimate sacrifice of 1 hour of sleep in the morning to ensure the dogs (and myself) get a decent walk each day - then if I have time in the afternoon I can do some training sessions with them or take them to 12 year olds football training for socialisation and some laps of the oval. If I keep telling myself that 5 am is really no different to 6 am maybe I will eventually believe it :) (Can see some early nights happening too)
Glad we weren't walking them half an hour later as the kids saw a dog run past the house - and called out to me as I have returned a couple of the local dogs to their homes when they have wandered - I went out and saw a large brindle staffy with a thick leather collar on the front lawn - as I came out it took off but turned at the end of the street to bark at me - not in a particularly friendly way either. I hope its owners found it quickly as I would not have liked to have it wandering the streets - it wasn't one I felt comfortable with approaching at all - unlike the 2 GSD's from round the corner or the little Jack Russel from next door.
So - 1 week down - thaks for hanging in there with me - let's see what the next week brings us (besides early mornings and a return to work *sigh*)
I have been gratified by the support I have received from people and have realised jusy how much there is aboout dogs - including my own - that I don't know.
I wrote yesterday about what I thought was the reason Earl had jumped at me yesterday - and what I planned to do - well I did.
Breakfast was the same as usual - I am the only one up at that time (Oh the ungodliness of 5.30 am) and so I make sure he keeps his distance both when I am making the food and when I have placed the bowl down. At dinner time tonight I sat in my chair in the lounge and didn't move from it while OH put the kibble in the bowls and took them to the kitchen to put the wet food in it - Earl sat in front of me and I quietly patted him - saying "Good Boy" - he lay down without being told and I continued to pat him - very low key. We had a leash on him just in case he went to the kitchen gate so I could call him back and reinforce it if needed - OH made the food and walked through to the laundry and put it down - no real interest from Earl - I stood up and walked to the gate and in front of Earl betwen him and the laundry - he wasn't too interested. He did move towards the food but stopped as soon as OH told him to and lay down - as he looked away and submitted we gave him a couple more minutes and then invited him to eat.
I love the fact that I am on holidays and can take them for long walks - we took them for about 50 minutes today - lots of opportunities for Earl to sniff around and also some times when he needed to walk closer to me along the streets. That was before his tea so I am sure that helped to dissipate some of his energy.
I am coming to the reluctant conclusion that I must make the ultimate sacrifice of 1 hour of sleep in the morning to ensure the dogs (and myself) get a decent walk each day - then if I have time in the afternoon I can do some training sessions with them or take them to 12 year olds football training for socialisation and some laps of the oval. If I keep telling myself that 5 am is really no different to 6 am maybe I will eventually believe it :) (Can see some early nights happening too)
Glad we weren't walking them half an hour later as the kids saw a dog run past the house - and called out to me as I have returned a couple of the local dogs to their homes when they have wandered - I went out and saw a large brindle staffy with a thick leather collar on the front lawn - as I came out it took off but turned at the end of the street to bark at me - not in a particularly friendly way either. I hope its owners found it quickly as I would not have liked to have it wandering the streets - it wasn't one I felt comfortable with approaching at all - unlike the 2 GSD's from round the corner or the little Jack Russel from next door.
So - 1 week down - thaks for hanging in there with me - let's see what the next week brings us (besides early mornings and a return to work *sigh*)
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Hump day - no not literally *LOL*
Well - another day on our journey - and another day of Earl learning what is OK and what is not OK - and us practicing what we need to do and learning along with him.
He is still getting his morning feed just from me and is better at not approaching till he is invited. Tonight we had OH do the feeding and me in the lounge with him. He did approach OH when he was putting the kibble in the bowls but backed off quickly - he then submitted and lay on his back - I think what we need to do when he does that is just give him a simple "Good Boy" and then walk away from him - he needs to be staying away from the kitchen gate and moved away from it if he does go all intense but not as full on - having to be on his back while the food is being prepared - he jumped up at me tonight - no real intention except a feeling that he was uncomfortable with what I was doing and wanted me to back off (which I didn't - I grabbed his collar and told him NO) - he quickly went back down onto his back and I gave him praise but not as much physical praise as before and he seemed more comfortable with that.
When OH put the food down Earl lay down and I walked around the lounge a bit - he didn't get up and waited till he was invited to eat. I have been waiting till he is lying with his legs to the side and looks away before I call him - Mark talked about the energy level we needed to achieve before we let him eat.
I am glad I asked OH to do the feeding tonight - I think we both need to be involved in it so Earl sees us as both claiming it - and it meant that when he jumped at me I handled it confidently - which made me feel better.
In other Earl news he plays a mean game of soccer with a Kong - those big paws are good at batting that thing around - but don't let him step on your toes - because they HURT! (Note to self - make sure you are wearing sandshoes next time you take him on in soccer!) He spent the afternoon snoozing on the lounge chair and will probably spend his evening snoozing in front of the heater - hard life as a dog hey!
I need to keep reminding myself that this is ongoing and that progress will take time - and those magic words
Calm, Confident, Assertive :)
ETA - just had a game of 'fetch' with him - put the toy between my feet and waited till he looked away before throwing it for him - he is so funny to watch when he runs and pounces on the toy :) All wrinkles and loose skin flapping.
He and the kelpie are currently having a game of bitey - face, initiated by the kelpie pouncing at Earl - I so love watching them play - he does all of the head over the shoulder stuff and pushes her around with his nose but then she will bite his front legs and he will fall over trying to get them out of her way. He is now alternating chasing her around the lounge room and falling over trying to run away from her. The noises he makes are not growls - they are like a cross between a whine and a groan - weird bl**dy dog. And - as usual - they got slightly carried away and I had to go and break them up - and that is when he needs to settle down and stop with the mouthy play - which he did. I know - I am the fun police - bummer :).
He is still getting his morning feed just from me and is better at not approaching till he is invited. Tonight we had OH do the feeding and me in the lounge with him. He did approach OH when he was putting the kibble in the bowls but backed off quickly - he then submitted and lay on his back - I think what we need to do when he does that is just give him a simple "Good Boy" and then walk away from him - he needs to be staying away from the kitchen gate and moved away from it if he does go all intense but not as full on - having to be on his back while the food is being prepared - he jumped up at me tonight - no real intention except a feeling that he was uncomfortable with what I was doing and wanted me to back off (which I didn't - I grabbed his collar and told him NO) - he quickly went back down onto his back and I gave him praise but not as much physical praise as before and he seemed more comfortable with that.
When OH put the food down Earl lay down and I walked around the lounge a bit - he didn't get up and waited till he was invited to eat. I have been waiting till he is lying with his legs to the side and looks away before I call him - Mark talked about the energy level we needed to achieve before we let him eat.
I am glad I asked OH to do the feeding tonight - I think we both need to be involved in it so Earl sees us as both claiming it - and it meant that when he jumped at me I handled it confidently - which made me feel better.
In other Earl news he plays a mean game of soccer with a Kong - those big paws are good at batting that thing around - but don't let him step on your toes - because they HURT! (Note to self - make sure you are wearing sandshoes next time you take him on in soccer!) He spent the afternoon snoozing on the lounge chair and will probably spend his evening snoozing in front of the heater - hard life as a dog hey!
I need to keep reminding myself that this is ongoing and that progress will take time - and those magic words
Calm, Confident, Assertive :)
ETA - just had a game of 'fetch' with him - put the toy between my feet and waited till he looked away before throwing it for him - he is so funny to watch when he runs and pounces on the toy :) All wrinkles and loose skin flapping.
He and the kelpie are currently having a game of bitey - face, initiated by the kelpie pouncing at Earl - I so love watching them play - he does all of the head over the shoulder stuff and pushes her around with his nose but then she will bite his front legs and he will fall over trying to get them out of her way. He is now alternating chasing her around the lounge room and falling over trying to run away from her. The noises he makes are not growls - they are like a cross between a whine and a groan - weird bl**dy dog. And - as usual - they got slightly carried away and I had to go and break them up - and that is when he needs to settle down and stop with the mouthy play - which he did. I know - I am the fun police - bummer :).
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Another day - and a studly new collar
Good morning - and a reluctant Bloodhound rolled himself out of bed this morning at 7.43 - OK he had already had his breakfast at 5.30 and gone back to bed so I didn't really feel bad about making HIM get out of his nice warm bed - maybe I should have made him feed me too - although i think his toast making skills may be limited.
Spoke to my sister today - she has been reading my Facebook updates and thought I was kidding to start with - I convinced her that Earl was not a slavering vicious beast that was going to eat our children - but just had a few issues that we needed to work through and we had asked an expert in the field to help us out with him.
So - a studly new collar for Earl - a nice leather K9 Pro collar - figured if he was going to wear a collar all of the time he needed a quality leather one - looks very cool on him.
Still a work in progress - as he will be for a while - he had a jump at OH tonight at feeding time - mind you OH was leaning over him patting him and looking him in the eyes - maybe Earl saw that as a challenge? A grab of the collar and a "NO" and Earl was back on the floor - he still needed an 'away' when I was standing over his food but OH moved to stand between Earl and the food and then moved back and Earl didn't react - he lay and waited till he was called - even when I picked up the food bowl and put it back down.
He wasn't too keen to go outside after his tea but I insisted and he did - we never have either of the dogs inside while we are cooking or eating meals. The kelpie is generally the one who has an issue with this - she will scratch at the door - he just mooches around outside until we let them back in.
Off to see Harry Potter tonight at the drive in - looking forward to a night of pure entertainment without analysing every move the dog makes.
Cheers all
Spoke to my sister today - she has been reading my Facebook updates and thought I was kidding to start with - I convinced her that Earl was not a slavering vicious beast that was going to eat our children - but just had a few issues that we needed to work through and we had asked an expert in the field to help us out with him.
So - a studly new collar for Earl - a nice leather K9 Pro collar - figured if he was going to wear a collar all of the time he needed a quality leather one - looks very cool on him.
Still a work in progress - as he will be for a while - he had a jump at OH tonight at feeding time - mind you OH was leaning over him patting him and looking him in the eyes - maybe Earl saw that as a challenge? A grab of the collar and a "NO" and Earl was back on the floor - he still needed an 'away' when I was standing over his food but OH moved to stand between Earl and the food and then moved back and Earl didn't react - he lay and waited till he was called - even when I picked up the food bowl and put it back down.
He wasn't too keen to go outside after his tea but I insisted and he did - we never have either of the dogs inside while we are cooking or eating meals. The kelpie is generally the one who has an issue with this - she will scratch at the door - he just mooches around outside until we let them back in.
Off to see Harry Potter tonight at the drive in - looking forward to a night of pure entertainment without analysing every move the dog makes.
Cheers all
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Hello Monday - welcome to the new week :)
Interesting this morning - OH was at work so it was only me feeding Earl - at the usual 5.30am feed (YAWN) no problems at all - he didn't come near the kitchen gate - he made one attempt to come over to me and backed off when I told him - he sat and then lay down and waited to be asked to come and eat.
Tonight will make sure that both of us are involved in feeding him so that we can then deal with any issues he might have with someone else being there when he is fed.
Have been thinking about the follow ups Mark has offered us - think I would like him to check out what we are doing at feeding time and with not letting Earl in our space - make sure that we are doing it correctly and effectively - and I would also like him to help us with someone new coming in to the house - how to introduce Earl to them calmly without him barging in - and how to manage this - pretty sure I understand the principles of the thing - it's the same as we do with the kids - we claim the space - but with a stranger Earl might act differently and I would like Marks input.
Anyway - off to spend the day shopping with my daughter while my son gets some footy tips from the legendary Jarman brothers - will update later today after the next feeding time (Sounds like we live in a zoo - OK - feels like we live in a zoo sometimes *LOL*)
8:57 pm (approximately)
Got an email from Mark today - I sent him a copy of the notes I made after our consult and just wanted him to check they were Ok and I had them right - I feel better now that he said they are fine - one thing he did say was that only to use the 'bite' on the neck if needed - if Earl was being really overbearing.
I did some quick training sessions with the 2 dogs this afternoon - i bought a round mat and my goal is to have them sit on the mat when they are told 'mat' - so did some treating for being on the mat - leading them away and then having them come back to the mat and treating them - it was nice to be able to be enthusiastic and positive for Earl and have a bit of fun. WIll try a few small training sessions with this focus and see how I go - the mat is now liberally decorated with bloodhound drool from Earl scoffing up bits of fritz from it - nice and slimy.
Anyway - feeding tonight- I prepared the food and OH waited in the lounge with Earl - who sat down on the rug immediately - and then lay down at OH's feet - lots of praise for him. I came through with the bowl and he didn't even move - he walked one step towards me and quickly responded to an 'away' - lying down and putting his head on the carpet next to OH. We made him wait a couple of minutes and then invited him to eat - he didn't rush over and I left my hand on the bowl for a couple of seconds as he started to eat.
He had his follow up visit to the vet to have his stitches removed - finally. I tell you - a dog that drops and rolls submissively is the perfect dog for having stitches on his stomach removed - he barely flinched as the vet removed them - lots of praise from me for being so submissive and calm.
I am even rolling him onto his other side if he is lying in front of me and tries to roll onto my feet - I roll him over so his legs are facing away from me and THEN he gets patted and praised.
So - again - small steps - positive steps and inspiration and determination to continue this journey we have begun.
Oh - and off the doggy track- my feet hurt from shopping and my 10 year old daughter is now the proud owner of 3 Zhu Zhu puppies (much less challenging than real dogs I tell you THAT much), a Bark Park playset for said puppies, a veterinarian centre (Well - they will be healthy puppies anyway), 20 new Littlest Pet Shop animals (told you I lived in a zoo) and 2 pairs of skinny jeans (NOT jeggings - even at 10 she has the good taste NOT to like them) but I am going to watch my crappy TV shows (Americas next top model and Project Runway Australia - I know - I have no taste in TV shows but what can I say ............................) while the hound bakes his head and the kelpie leaps up and runs out of the room at every little sound.
Early night tonight - sleep well all................
Tonight will make sure that both of us are involved in feeding him so that we can then deal with any issues he might have with someone else being there when he is fed.
Have been thinking about the follow ups Mark has offered us - think I would like him to check out what we are doing at feeding time and with not letting Earl in our space - make sure that we are doing it correctly and effectively - and I would also like him to help us with someone new coming in to the house - how to introduce Earl to them calmly without him barging in - and how to manage this - pretty sure I understand the principles of the thing - it's the same as we do with the kids - we claim the space - but with a stranger Earl might act differently and I would like Marks input.
Anyway - off to spend the day shopping with my daughter while my son gets some footy tips from the legendary Jarman brothers - will update later today after the next feeding time (Sounds like we live in a zoo - OK - feels like we live in a zoo sometimes *LOL*)
8:57 pm (approximately)
Got an email from Mark today - I sent him a copy of the notes I made after our consult and just wanted him to check they were Ok and I had them right - I feel better now that he said they are fine - one thing he did say was that only to use the 'bite' on the neck if needed - if Earl was being really overbearing.
I did some quick training sessions with the 2 dogs this afternoon - i bought a round mat and my goal is to have them sit on the mat when they are told 'mat' - so did some treating for being on the mat - leading them away and then having them come back to the mat and treating them - it was nice to be able to be enthusiastic and positive for Earl and have a bit of fun. WIll try a few small training sessions with this focus and see how I go - the mat is now liberally decorated with bloodhound drool from Earl scoffing up bits of fritz from it - nice and slimy.
Anyway - feeding tonight- I prepared the food and OH waited in the lounge with Earl - who sat down on the rug immediately - and then lay down at OH's feet - lots of praise for him. I came through with the bowl and he didn't even move - he walked one step towards me and quickly responded to an 'away' - lying down and putting his head on the carpet next to OH. We made him wait a couple of minutes and then invited him to eat - he didn't rush over and I left my hand on the bowl for a couple of seconds as he started to eat.
He had his follow up visit to the vet to have his stitches removed - finally. I tell you - a dog that drops and rolls submissively is the perfect dog for having stitches on his stomach removed - he barely flinched as the vet removed them - lots of praise from me for being so submissive and calm.
I am even rolling him onto his other side if he is lying in front of me and tries to roll onto my feet - I roll him over so his legs are facing away from me and THEN he gets patted and praised.
So - again - small steps - positive steps and inspiration and determination to continue this journey we have begun.
Oh - and off the doggy track- my feet hurt from shopping and my 10 year old daughter is now the proud owner of 3 Zhu Zhu puppies (much less challenging than real dogs I tell you THAT much), a Bark Park playset for said puppies, a veterinarian centre (Well - they will be healthy puppies anyway), 20 new Littlest Pet Shop animals (told you I lived in a zoo) and 2 pairs of skinny jeans (NOT jeggings - even at 10 she has the good taste NOT to like them) but I am going to watch my crappy TV shows (Americas next top model and Project Runway Australia - I know - I have no taste in TV shows but what can I say ............................) while the hound bakes his head and the kelpie leaps up and runs out of the room at every little sound.
Early night tonight - sleep well all................
Day 4 - think I'll try it on again and see if they back off
As the title says Earl tried it on again tonight at feeding time - OH was in the lounge to back me up as I got the bowls and put the food in - we didn't have the leash on Earl but he is still wearing his collar (have ordered him a leather K-9 Pro collar for comfort and strength) - as I was putting the kibble in the bowls he came towards me - I walked towards him and OH took his collar - saying "NO" - he jumped at OH but OH kept hold of his collar - repeated "NO" and Earl lay down - OH immediately praised him but Earl went to walk towards me again - and again jumped at OH when he took his collar. No way was OH not going to be assertive so - another collar grab - another "NO" and Earl obviously went "Sh!t - it's not going to work" and lay down submissively. I walked into the laundry with his bowl and put it down - he stepped towards me and was immediately walked back by me with an "away" - hell - he couldn't have gone any awayer than he did - he sat right away by the chair and didn't make another attempt.
He lay down and I called him over to his food - for the first time he was a bit reluctant to come over - good sign I think - he is accepting that we own it and he doesn't automatically get to eat it when he wants.
Talking to OH afterwards he observed that because he knew the possibility was there that Earl would try and make him back off he was prepared for it and confident in what to do - and I can understand exactly where he is coming from. Having seen Earl try and make Mark back off we know what to expect but we also know what to do and what Earl is likely to do -which in his case is submit - and to praise that straightaway.
He picked up some gross piece of paper from the gutter while I was walking them and my immediate response was to grab his collar - say "NO" and take the paper (Yuck) -so the response from me wasn't hesitant - and needs to stay that way.
We are not letting him hang around the kitchen gate - he gets an 'away' each time and moves away - his tail drops slightly as he does.
So - little steps - day by day - but each time - each incident - each "NO" - each "away" - each time he sits in front of us quietly for a pat - each one is a building block in the strong relationship we are building...................
..............so hang in there.
He lay down and I called him over to his food - for the first time he was a bit reluctant to come over - good sign I think - he is accepting that we own it and he doesn't automatically get to eat it when he wants.
Talking to OH afterwards he observed that because he knew the possibility was there that Earl would try and make him back off he was prepared for it and confident in what to do - and I can understand exactly where he is coming from. Having seen Earl try and make Mark back off we know what to expect but we also know what to do and what Earl is likely to do -which in his case is submit - and to praise that straightaway.
He picked up some gross piece of paper from the gutter while I was walking them and my immediate response was to grab his collar - say "NO" and take the paper (Yuck) -so the response from me wasn't hesitant - and needs to stay that way.
We are not letting him hang around the kitchen gate - he gets an 'away' each time and moves away - his tail drops slightly as he does.
So - little steps - day by day - but each time - each incident - each "NO" - each "away" - each time he sits in front of us quietly for a pat - each one is a building block in the strong relationship we are building...................
..............so hang in there.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Day 3 - maybe he isn't as thick as we think
Hey all - another day - another few steps forward.
After getting up again at an inhuman time so that OH and I could both be involved in feeding Earl (5.30 am and I do NOT agree with each other) - I did the actual food preparation and feeding and OH did the monitoring of his behaviour and supporting if needed. He (Earl - not OH) lay down on his back on the rug while I prepared the food "good boy Earl" and it only took one time telling him "away' and walking him back from his food bowl after I claimed it for him to have that little light bulb go on - "Oh yeah - I need to lie down over here and wait till I am told to eat" - and that is exactly what he did.
We got him to wait a couple of minutes and then gave him the OK - and he ate. (and then me and the dogs went back to bed while poor OH went to work)
Given this we decided that today I would feed him without OH there - which is also a positive for my confidence that I felt that this was something I could do.
We had a lazy day around the house today - I cleaned out the spare room - and kept Earl from coming in by just walking him back and saying 'away" - he spent most of the day asleep in various places - hallway, rug, lounge chair, sandpit, corner of the garden - you name it - he has probably slept there - and is currently in front of the heater (again)
I just moved him back from the heater by taking his collar and moving him then having him drop where I wanted him to - no resistance and now I can't smell his fur burning anymore :) (Thank goodness - do you know how bad that smells - YUCK)
He did steal a packet of hair clips from the coffee table but - as Mark said - I took his collar - said 'NO' and took the packet out of his mouth.
So - feeding time came around - bonus for the doggies today - a mixture of raw meat and table scraps to go with their kibble - YUM (OK - they like it) so I asked the kids to play in the other room - put the kelpie outside - took a deep breath, saying to myself "Calm, confident, assertive" (I have this written and stuck next to my chair in the lounge) - got the bowls - put kibble in them and walked through the lounge - past Earl - to put the wet food in.
He sat down on the rug and as I started mixing the food he lay down - no attempt to come over to the gate (YAY!) and I walked him back saying 'away' as I went to put the bowl down. He stepped forward once but I walked him back again and then stood by the bowl till he lay down on the rug - gving him a couple of minutes there before giving him the OK.
Then I fed the kelpie - I have started claiming her food too before I let her eat - just to reinforce that I own the food and the bowl.
So - feeling pretty good but still taking each day and each situation as it comes - it's hard getting used to Earl not leaning or laying his head on your lap for a pat but now we know what he saw that as we see that it is much better that he comes and sits in front of us for a pat or waits until we call him and even then doesn't push all over us - if he tries he gets a push away and a "NO" and then he generally walks away and lies down elsewhere (In front of the heater *L*)
A journey indeed and one which will be ongoing from what I can see - but one which doesn't scare me as much as it did 2 days ago.
Oh - just a note about something he has started doing - he always sat and 'waited' for a treat and then was told 'OK' and given it - he has now started sitting and then shuffling his bum back one step when he is told 'wait' and then being given the OK and the treat as usual. I think it's a side affect of our 'ownership' of everything and a submission - but will show Mark on his next visit and see what he thinks :)
So - cheers all and thanks for reading - and journeying - with us - what will tomorrow bring - who knows?
After getting up again at an inhuman time so that OH and I could both be involved in feeding Earl (5.30 am and I do NOT agree with each other) - I did the actual food preparation and feeding and OH did the monitoring of his behaviour and supporting if needed. He (Earl - not OH) lay down on his back on the rug while I prepared the food "good boy Earl" and it only took one time telling him "away' and walking him back from his food bowl after I claimed it for him to have that little light bulb go on - "Oh yeah - I need to lie down over here and wait till I am told to eat" - and that is exactly what he did.
We got him to wait a couple of minutes and then gave him the OK - and he ate. (and then me and the dogs went back to bed while poor OH went to work)
Given this we decided that today I would feed him without OH there - which is also a positive for my confidence that I felt that this was something I could do.
We had a lazy day around the house today - I cleaned out the spare room - and kept Earl from coming in by just walking him back and saying 'away" - he spent most of the day asleep in various places - hallway, rug, lounge chair, sandpit, corner of the garden - you name it - he has probably slept there - and is currently in front of the heater (again)
I just moved him back from the heater by taking his collar and moving him then having him drop where I wanted him to - no resistance and now I can't smell his fur burning anymore :) (Thank goodness - do you know how bad that smells - YUCK)
He did steal a packet of hair clips from the coffee table but - as Mark said - I took his collar - said 'NO' and took the packet out of his mouth.
So - feeding time came around - bonus for the doggies today - a mixture of raw meat and table scraps to go with their kibble - YUM (OK - they like it) so I asked the kids to play in the other room - put the kelpie outside - took a deep breath, saying to myself "Calm, confident, assertive" (I have this written and stuck next to my chair in the lounge) - got the bowls - put kibble in them and walked through the lounge - past Earl - to put the wet food in.
He sat down on the rug and as I started mixing the food he lay down - no attempt to come over to the gate (YAY!) and I walked him back saying 'away' as I went to put the bowl down. He stepped forward once but I walked him back again and then stood by the bowl till he lay down on the rug - gving him a couple of minutes there before giving him the OK.
Then I fed the kelpie - I have started claiming her food too before I let her eat - just to reinforce that I own the food and the bowl.
So - feeling pretty good but still taking each day and each situation as it comes - it's hard getting used to Earl not leaning or laying his head on your lap for a pat but now we know what he saw that as we see that it is much better that he comes and sits in front of us for a pat or waits until we call him and even then doesn't push all over us - if he tries he gets a push away and a "NO" and then he generally walks away and lies down elsewhere (In front of the heater *L*)
A journey indeed and one which will be ongoing from what I can see - but one which doesn't scare me as much as it did 2 days ago.
Oh - just a note about something he has started doing - he always sat and 'waited' for a treat and then was told 'OK' and given it - he has now started sitting and then shuffling his bum back one step when he is told 'wait' and then being given the OK and the treat as usual. I think it's a side affect of our 'ownership' of everything and a submission - but will show Mark on his next visit and see what he thinks :)
So - cheers all and thanks for reading - and journeying - with us - what will tomorrow bring - who knows?
Thursday, July 14, 2011
It's 5.30 am - I am on holiday - why am I up? (or - the things we do for our dogs)
Ok - as the title says it is 5.30 am and I am here at my computer and OH has just gone to bed- why? Because we have just fed Earl using the technique - it went well - he submitted pretty quickly - or maybe he was just tired too and wanted to lie down.
Will add more later when it is a more human time - right now OH, me and the dog are going back to bed - 'night (or should that be morning)
9.30 am - now that is a better time to be awake :)
Dog is again comatose in front of the heater (maybe all that baking his head is contributing to his 'not the sharpest tool in the shed' tendencies?)
He has had a big play with Rosie (the kelpie - more about her in future posts) - looking at it with a different perspective I can see how he pushes her around the way he tries to do us and how she reacts to it (bites his legs till he falls over) - spent a lovely half an hour watching them wrestle and play 'bitey - face' - which is always fun. It's like watching an elephant wrestling a gazelle - will post a picture of them to show what I mean.
He has been pretty mellow this morning - made both dogs wait at the door till I invited them in - and when he picked up a piece of paper her shouldn't have I didn't hesitate but grabbed his collar - shook it - saying "NO" and took the piece of paper from him (YAY me!!)
So a positive start - and because I am on holidays I have time to write on here but expect the updates to become less frequent after next week when I go back to work - but I will try and add regularly.
Off to face the day - and hopefully get me some Foo Fighters tickets :)
6 pm and all is peaceful - Earl is ensconced in his all time favourite spot in front of the heater and the day has gone pretty smoothly.
Earl had a follow up vist at the vets today and I wouldn't let him go and push up to the vet nurses for attention (much to his - and their - disgust). He rolled over on his back for the vet to check his stitches and all is going well medically - stitches come out Monday.
Behaviourally he has done some pushing onto us - more to OH than to me and a bit to 10 year old daughter - which I then stepped in and pulled him away by the collar - saying "NO" - took a couple of tellings but he stopped.
They have both been waiting at the door till they are invited in and I also made him wait to go into the vets - to come out of the vets - to go out the roller door for a walk and to come back in the roller door after his walk - he has quickly (surprisingly - no j/k) picked up that if he is walked towards and told 'away' he needs to move away from the person and submit.
I saw what I thought was something he shouldn't have in his mouth and - without hesitation - again - grabbed his collar and opened his mouth to check - you don't know just how slimy the inside of a dogs mouth is until you have had your hand in it - EEEEWWWWWWWWWW -AND - there was nothing there so - with a pat and a "Good Boy" I sent him on his way - and rushed into the bathroom to wash the coating of slime form my hand.
Feeding tonight went better - he backed away from OH when OH claimed the food and we waited till he submitted and was not focussed on the food before giving him the OK. After he finished I put a few pieces of kibble in his bowl and fed it to him - from the bowl - by hand - a piece at a time - no problems.
Next challenge will be feeding him with one person - for times when OH is on shift work - by then he should have the idea enough that he won't need someone with the leash but will back away and submit when the food is claimed - so I think I will reduce my involvement gradually and take a turn claiming the food bowl so he gets the idea that both of us own it - no matter who it is he has to submit. There was no resistance to OH tonight which was a forward step from last night.
He is sitting quietly next to us for a pat at times and we have been rewarding him for submission by giving him affection - I can see where we are heading and the effort will definitely be worth it.
Little snot got his own back on me this afternoon though - took the 2 of them out for a walk to get out of the house and clear the cobwebs from our brains (OK - from my brain :)) - went well until - coming towards us I see a man in fluoro green with 2 large black dogs - no way to really avoid them so I had my 2 sit away from the footpath to have them calm as the man approached. As he came up I told my 2 to "Walk on" and we walked on ....until Earl decided that these 2 smelt great and he would like to say hello - he went left as the kelpie went in fornt of me - result - me on the gorund panicking because I have let go of the kelpie's leash. Meanwhile guy with 2 black dogs is yelling "Are you OK" - Earl has come over to where I am now sitting on the ground and I swear he is laughing at me !!!!!!!!!!! I pick myslef up - dust myself off - no blood - yell back to the guy that I am fine and continue our walk with a wry smile on my face and a sting in my knee :)
5 minutes down the street though I had a lovely experience - a lady with a crying toddler saw us and said "look at the doggies" so I sat my 2 (Beautiful job too - well done dogs) and introduced them - telling them their names - the little girl stopped crying and gave us a wave as we walked on.
So - all turned out OK and I am looking forward to a quiet night in my pyjamas watching Animal Planet because I think that watching the Crows play would be more a case of animal cruelty.
Oh.....and for those who are interested - we got our tickets to the Foo Fighters!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Will add more later when it is a more human time - right now OH, me and the dog are going back to bed - 'night (or should that be morning)
9.30 am - now that is a better time to be awake :)
Dog is again comatose in front of the heater (maybe all that baking his head is contributing to his 'not the sharpest tool in the shed' tendencies?)
He has had a big play with Rosie (the kelpie - more about her in future posts) - looking at it with a different perspective I can see how he pushes her around the way he tries to do us and how she reacts to it (bites his legs till he falls over) - spent a lovely half an hour watching them wrestle and play 'bitey - face' - which is always fun. It's like watching an elephant wrestling a gazelle - will post a picture of them to show what I mean.
He has been pretty mellow this morning - made both dogs wait at the door till I invited them in - and when he picked up a piece of paper her shouldn't have I didn't hesitate but grabbed his collar - shook it - saying "NO" and took the piece of paper from him (YAY me!!)
So a positive start - and because I am on holidays I have time to write on here but expect the updates to become less frequent after next week when I go back to work - but I will try and add regularly.
Off to face the day - and hopefully get me some Foo Fighters tickets :)
6 pm and all is peaceful - Earl is ensconced in his all time favourite spot in front of the heater and the day has gone pretty smoothly.
Earl had a follow up vist at the vets today and I wouldn't let him go and push up to the vet nurses for attention (much to his - and their - disgust). He rolled over on his back for the vet to check his stitches and all is going well medically - stitches come out Monday.
Behaviourally he has done some pushing onto us - more to OH than to me and a bit to 10 year old daughter - which I then stepped in and pulled him away by the collar - saying "NO" - took a couple of tellings but he stopped.
They have both been waiting at the door till they are invited in and I also made him wait to go into the vets - to come out of the vets - to go out the roller door for a walk and to come back in the roller door after his walk - he has quickly (surprisingly - no j/k) picked up that if he is walked towards and told 'away' he needs to move away from the person and submit.
I saw what I thought was something he shouldn't have in his mouth and - without hesitation - again - grabbed his collar and opened his mouth to check - you don't know just how slimy the inside of a dogs mouth is until you have had your hand in it - EEEEWWWWWWWWWW -AND - there was nothing there so - with a pat and a "Good Boy" I sent him on his way - and rushed into the bathroom to wash the coating of slime form my hand.
Feeding tonight went better - he backed away from OH when OH claimed the food and we waited till he submitted and was not focussed on the food before giving him the OK. After he finished I put a few pieces of kibble in his bowl and fed it to him - from the bowl - by hand - a piece at a time - no problems.
Next challenge will be feeding him with one person - for times when OH is on shift work - by then he should have the idea enough that he won't need someone with the leash but will back away and submit when the food is claimed - so I think I will reduce my involvement gradually and take a turn claiming the food bowl so he gets the idea that both of us own it - no matter who it is he has to submit. There was no resistance to OH tonight which was a forward step from last night.
He is sitting quietly next to us for a pat at times and we have been rewarding him for submission by giving him affection - I can see where we are heading and the effort will definitely be worth it.
Little snot got his own back on me this afternoon though - took the 2 of them out for a walk to get out of the house and clear the cobwebs from our brains (OK - from my brain :)) - went well until - coming towards us I see a man in fluoro green with 2 large black dogs - no way to really avoid them so I had my 2 sit away from the footpath to have them calm as the man approached. As he came up I told my 2 to "Walk on" and we walked on ....until Earl decided that these 2 smelt great and he would like to say hello - he went left as the kelpie went in fornt of me - result - me on the gorund panicking because I have let go of the kelpie's leash. Meanwhile guy with 2 black dogs is yelling "Are you OK" - Earl has come over to where I am now sitting on the ground and I swear he is laughing at me !!!!!!!!!!! I pick myslef up - dust myself off - no blood - yell back to the guy that I am fine and continue our walk with a wry smile on my face and a sting in my knee :)
5 minutes down the street though I had a lovely experience - a lady with a crying toddler saw us and said "look at the doggies" so I sat my 2 (Beautiful job too - well done dogs) and introduced them - telling them their names - the little girl stopped crying and gave us a wave as we walked on.
So - all turned out OK and I am looking forward to a quiet night in my pyjamas watching Animal Planet because I think that watching the Crows play would be more a case of animal cruelty.
Oh.....and for those who are interested - we got our tickets to the Foo Fighters!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A bit of background
Hi - Meet my Bloodhound - name of Earl.
He is a 21 month old, 54 kilo boofer who gets attention everywhere he goes. The dream dog of my husband, the product of a number of phone calls and the willingness of a wonderful breeder to entrust us with one of her precious puppies. Earl came to us at 12 weeks old, on a plane from NSW - 2 hours late due to missing his connecting flight. He was a bundle of wrinkly skin and drool and was the same size as our 18 month old kelpie - by the time we got him home he had stopped sulking and decided that maybe this would all be OK after all. The kids loved him and he grew like a weed, eating 3 meals a day and still wondering if perhaps there might just be a liitle more to come.
Everyone said that Bloodhounds were unique dogs and we had asked the breeder for a 'smoochy' dog - she definitely gave us that :) - he liked nothing more than to lie at your feet and have his tummy scratched - the kids quickly called it "Earl's ooze move"
We had a bit of drama when he was a year old - we had the garden landscaped and had a truckload of riverstones laid in the garden beds - very pretty - obviously Earl thought so too as within a month he was at the vets - on the Sunday of a long weekend - having a riverstone removed from his intestines.
So began Earl's love affair with riverstones - we laid mulch over them - he dug around the trees to find them - we put bricks down around the trees - he nosed them aside and found more riverstones............and a week ago - he was back at the vets having another riverstone removed from his intestines - same shape - same size as the last one.
He had also begun to show some possesiveness when his food was being prepared and OH and I made the decision to call in the "Superman of dogs" (Thanks cassie for the description of him) - Mark Singer.
So - Mark came and saw us today and spent 2 hours with us - assessing Earl's behaviour and giving us advice about what we needed to do.....
The verdict was - he is being over assertive and pushing into our personal space - effectively 'claiming' us and when Mark pushed him away with a simple 'bite' to his neck with his hand Earl was quite taken aback - and then when OH and I did the same when he tried to push himself onto us I believe that even in his 'not the smartest tool in the shed' brain he was realising things had changed.
We then went through the routine of feeding which Mark had asked to see - as this was where Earl had shown the most aggression - growling and jumping at OH to make him back away. Well - I mixed up his food and put it on the kitchen floor - at Mark's suggestion (we have a gate at the kitchen door so Earl couldn't get in). Earl stood at the gate - Mark stood next to him - Earl was not happy - he growled - Mark took him by the collar and said "NO" very firmly. Well that wasn't the usual response a growl got so Earl tried the next step - twisting to try and get away and growling more loudly - this only led to Mark taking him away from the gate and Earl obviously going "Oh sh!t - this doesn't work on him" and giving in - lying on the floor and submitting to Mark.
Mark then took the food to the laundry and stood over it - claiming it and having Earl keep his distance from it until he submitted (lay down, relaxed and turned away from the food) and then invited him to eat.
By this time we were starting to get an idea of Earl's issues and what we needed to do so we now have the important things to remember stuck on the loungeroom wall and tonight - when we fed Earl we followed Mark's instructions.
OH made his food while I stayed in the lounge with a hold on Earl's leash. When Earl went to the gate with the same focus he had before I called him "Earl - come" and pulled him to me with the leash - patting him when he was sitting near me. This happened a few times and then OH walked to the laundry with the food bowl - put it down and stood next to it - claiming it.
Earl's Bloodhound brain wasn't too happy about this - I mean the scary guy at lunchtime obviously knew what he was doing and wasn't going to take any sh!t from him but - this was his owners - and THAT was his food! He rapidly realised that even though we were NOT the big scary guy from lunchtime he was NOT getting close to that bowl and that food until he submitted where we wanted him to - no matter how many times he tried or how long it took.
After a few minutes of lying down and a pat for being submissive he finally rolled over and gave up the fight (this time) and was invited to eat.
So - 6 am tomorrow we will go through the whole process again - it needs 2 of us to carry it out effectively - and I am sure that this time it will go smoother (Sorry Earl - I didn't think the long leash would wrap around your legs - will use the shorter one tomorrow)
Earl is currently comatose in front of the heater and we are looking to tomorrow to continue the journey we began today with Mark...................................
..............come along for the ride?
He is a 21 month old, 54 kilo boofer who gets attention everywhere he goes. The dream dog of my husband, the product of a number of phone calls and the willingness of a wonderful breeder to entrust us with one of her precious puppies. Earl came to us at 12 weeks old, on a plane from NSW - 2 hours late due to missing his connecting flight. He was a bundle of wrinkly skin and drool and was the same size as our 18 month old kelpie - by the time we got him home he had stopped sulking and decided that maybe this would all be OK after all. The kids loved him and he grew like a weed, eating 3 meals a day and still wondering if perhaps there might just be a liitle more to come.
Everyone said that Bloodhounds were unique dogs and we had asked the breeder for a 'smoochy' dog - she definitely gave us that :) - he liked nothing more than to lie at your feet and have his tummy scratched - the kids quickly called it "Earl's ooze move"
We had a bit of drama when he was a year old - we had the garden landscaped and had a truckload of riverstones laid in the garden beds - very pretty - obviously Earl thought so too as within a month he was at the vets - on the Sunday of a long weekend - having a riverstone removed from his intestines.
So began Earl's love affair with riverstones - we laid mulch over them - he dug around the trees to find them - we put bricks down around the trees - he nosed them aside and found more riverstones............and a week ago - he was back at the vets having another riverstone removed from his intestines - same shape - same size as the last one.
He had also begun to show some possesiveness when his food was being prepared and OH and I made the decision to call in the "Superman of dogs" (Thanks cassie for the description of him) - Mark Singer.
So - Mark came and saw us today and spent 2 hours with us - assessing Earl's behaviour and giving us advice about what we needed to do.....
The verdict was - he is being over assertive and pushing into our personal space - effectively 'claiming' us and when Mark pushed him away with a simple 'bite' to his neck with his hand Earl was quite taken aback - and then when OH and I did the same when he tried to push himself onto us I believe that even in his 'not the smartest tool in the shed' brain he was realising things had changed.
We then went through the routine of feeding which Mark had asked to see - as this was where Earl had shown the most aggression - growling and jumping at OH to make him back away. Well - I mixed up his food and put it on the kitchen floor - at Mark's suggestion (we have a gate at the kitchen door so Earl couldn't get in). Earl stood at the gate - Mark stood next to him - Earl was not happy - he growled - Mark took him by the collar and said "NO" very firmly. Well that wasn't the usual response a growl got so Earl tried the next step - twisting to try and get away and growling more loudly - this only led to Mark taking him away from the gate and Earl obviously going "Oh sh!t - this doesn't work on him" and giving in - lying on the floor and submitting to Mark.
Mark then took the food to the laundry and stood over it - claiming it and having Earl keep his distance from it until he submitted (lay down, relaxed and turned away from the food) and then invited him to eat.
By this time we were starting to get an idea of Earl's issues and what we needed to do so we now have the important things to remember stuck on the loungeroom wall and tonight - when we fed Earl we followed Mark's instructions.
OH made his food while I stayed in the lounge with a hold on Earl's leash. When Earl went to the gate with the same focus he had before I called him "Earl - come" and pulled him to me with the leash - patting him when he was sitting near me. This happened a few times and then OH walked to the laundry with the food bowl - put it down and stood next to it - claiming it.
Earl's Bloodhound brain wasn't too happy about this - I mean the scary guy at lunchtime obviously knew what he was doing and wasn't going to take any sh!t from him but - this was his owners - and THAT was his food! He rapidly realised that even though we were NOT the big scary guy from lunchtime he was NOT getting close to that bowl and that food until he submitted where we wanted him to - no matter how many times he tried or how long it took.
After a few minutes of lying down and a pat for being submissive he finally rolled over and gave up the fight (this time) and was invited to eat.
So - 6 am tomorrow we will go through the whole process again - it needs 2 of us to carry it out effectively - and I am sure that this time it will go smoother (Sorry Earl - I didn't think the long leash would wrap around your legs - will use the shorter one tomorrow)
Earl is currently comatose in front of the heater and we are looking to tomorrow to continue the journey we began today with Mark...................................
..............come along for the ride?
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