We again met with Bulleit & Booth, but this time in a more neutral setting (a relative's home). Doing so helped reduce Bulleit's extreme anxiety so much that I was able to prompt and treat some simple behaviors that he already knows, such as Sit and Down. A promising session.
We met with 2 new dogs last night, Farley & Stella. Farley is a 5-year old Boxer/Shetland
Sheepdog mix who was a little reactive when I arrived but warmed up to me pretty quickly. Stella, on the other hand, needs help. She is a 16-month old Ibizan Hound mix that came from a hoarding situation and has serious fear of adult humans, even with friends and family she has known for a long period of time. Lottie, who was a little apprehensive and wouldn't really interact with me or even eat my treats at last week's consultation, was a completely different dog tonight. And because she was acting her normal self we were able to teach her Leave It and Stay.
In week 1 of Puppy Kindergarten our new students, Sadie, Louie, and Whistler, learned how to sit and how to meet new dogs. Whistler is showing how it's done! TIP #1: A WAGGING TAIL DOESN'T EQUAL A HAPPY DOG A dog that is wagging his tail but barking with a defensive body posture, tense face, and hard staring eyes is overly aroused and frustrated, which means that he should not be approached. - Victoria Stillwell TIP #2: HOW YOUR DOG SEES YOU MATTERS Your dog will watch you to read your body signals and he'll quickly learn what your're feeling even without you speaking. If you want to improve communication with your dog, improve your own body language. For example, crouching down with arms open is a welcome sign while towering over him and staring is a sign of threat. Bulleit, a 2-year old Shepherd mix, has serious anxiety issues including strangers and
being left alone. Not only are these issues affecting his and his owner's quality of life, but also that of his brother Booth, a 2-year old Pit Bull. A challenging case, for sure. Cali is a year-old Australian Shepherd/Staffordshire Bull Terrier mix whose biggest issue is her lack of consistent housetraining. We will be working on that and basic manners in the coming weeks.
Teaching Romeo these different behaviors over the last several weeks have presented
unique challenges because of his deafness, and today was no different. Today we taught Romeo how to walk with a loose leash and he and his owners did really well, as they have with everything he has learned so far. Our first session working with Scout and her leash reactivity was spent teaching her how to
walk calmly on a leash. She did great learning how to heel, and that carried over to general loose leash walking. |
AuthorJeff Dentler, CPDT-KA, IAABC-ADT, FFCP, CTDI Archives
April 2024
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