The Chillout Zone (Off-Topic Thread)

Training class went brilliant tonight! Our walking on leash has come on a ton since last week, when she was still inclined to be lunging and bouncing a lot with all the excitement of the other doggies. She walked really calmly on a loose lead tonight. I was so pleased with her, and so was our trainer: that was the most excited I've seen her get about an improvement in one of her pupils I've given up trying to do any actual walking her on the lead, just doing the practising, and keeping it rewarding for her, and it is really paying off.

Her other work is coming on very well too, but she was always good at the other things. Just for the lead thing she's been the class clown all along, the most impetuous and bouncy dog in the class. Well to be fair, there is only one other pup as young as she is, and Molly is one of those tiny model dogs, a cav/maltese cross, who is adorable, but quite a quiet little thing, apparently does not even chew things at home at all! The upside from our point of view is that Nyssa is much easier to get engaged with a toy with me than Molly is for her owner. I'm very pleased with Nyssa tonight anyway

SingItOut wrote: »

Definitely! I don't know about the clever thing yet, she's had a lot of ditzy moments But she definitely has a strong personality

Aw, all the best with her. She does sound like a lot of fun, at the least And I think ditzy moments just go with being young really

Oh, and tell me about strong personalities! We have certainly got one around here too. I think if you work with them, and get them so engaged they think you are the most exciting thing there is, those do turn out the most rewarding dogs to own, though. I hope both of ours do anyway :cool:

I got a lovely new tug for Lucy since she doesn't really want treats at class. Quick 5 min session yesterday and with 20-30 seconds of tug between exercises... and the tug ripped!! Does that make it not fit for purpose?! I could understand if I'd let her run off and play with it but it was in my hand the whole time!

In other news... I moved Bailey's crate a couple of weeks ago. He was unsettled with it under the window with fireworks etc going off so I moved it around from the end of the bed(where Lucy would sleep against it some times) to the side of the bed. Since I moved it he's jumping up on the bed beside Lucy at night for his treat and stays there for a few hours - I find this funny because he hasn't got on the bed at night since Lucy started sleeping on it. Now he's right beside me at night in the crate so I'm guessing he likes being near Lucy more than he makes out lol!!! Lucy is delighted with the new sleeping arrangements and will squeeze in as close as she can without crowding him and making him get up!

LexieOnRale wrote: »

My dogs make me the happiest person I can be. My puppy comes to the toilet with me, lays in front of me with his head by my foot. It's getting to be a crime to go without him. He will stand and scratch the door if I lock him out.

Don't take this the wrong way but speaking from experience you should be teaching the pup to be ok on his own and not so dependant on you. I made that mistake with Bailey (although not to the extreme of taking him to the loo ) and we're not able to leave him home for more than an hour now - which took me MONTHS of work!

Argh. Baby due at the start of December so along with all the other advice people are offering up I'm getting loads of warnings about my boys. I left a house recently practically in tears over it. Apparently I'm fooling myself. So I wanted opinions.

we have put a baby gate between kitchen and sitting room and have been teaching the dogs that their behaviour in the sitting room must be different to that in the kitchen. They must be calm and relaxed or they are gently removed from the room. This for the most part is working, although they occasionally forget themselves and try to initiate wrestling with my husband who also needs to learn the new rules

Both boys have learned that when I open a door they cannot go through until I say "ok".
We are working hard on Mr Harleys selective hearing when it comes to getting off the couch.
Couch is now by invitation only.
I've been pulling back on the undivided attention they usually get so when I'm distracted by baby it won't feel like a huge change.
We have an exercise plan in place for them which involves them getting one on one time with each of us. As well as a jog with their dad every evening.
Their lead walking is vastly improved thanks to the wonderful Emmaline who is often recommended in the forum.

I have no big introduction planned. Baby will do very little at the start so they will have time to get used to the noises and smells. i have bikkies stashed in the house and I'm randomly rewarding calm behaviour. I will continue to do this when baby is born but it won't be so random (calm when baby cries, calm when I'm holding baby etc).
I have a rocking chair which will go into the corner next to the crib. We have both been practising being invisible while on the chair. We act as if we cannot see, hear or interact with the dogs while sitting in this particular chair in the hopes they will come to utterly ignore it and us when we are in it.
Of course they will never be in a room unsupervised with baby in same room. As such their "go to the kitchen" command is now very well reinforced.

I can't think of what else I need to do to stop people acting like I'm a fool who intends to hve the baby sleeping in a dog basket. Any suggestions of further steps would be appreciated.

DBB wrote: »

Would you not be inclined to tell them it's none of their business?!

As much as I'd like to I don't want to cause family issues.

Pumpkinseeds wrote: »

Saying nothing in order to keep the peace is a mistake as eventually you just snap. Trust me, I bottled up all the crap with my mother in law for years until she pushed it too far and I had enough. I haven't spoken to the woman for 5 years.

+1 or it'll just give them more leeway to think they can say what they want? We have the same problem with one visitor who's basically a loose cannon - the dogs pick up on his negative energy and then the tension from us waiting for him to go mad and they end up going bananas. They're either crated, taken out or left on their leads when he arrives and most definitely never left alone with this person.

Just this week - "I can't do this when I have a dog GROWLING at me" - Lucy was woo-wooing which he knows well is not growling and is something she's always done which we love! :rolleyes::mad: FO then out of THEIR house is what I'd love to say lol :pac:

LexieOnRale wrote: »

My OHs brother has this pain in the hole of a girlfriend, she started that craic too "oh I'm frightened", I saw her throw a kick at one of ours when she got out of the car. I've told her straight up, they live here you don't. The OHs mother did intervene, but if it comes down to the dogs being put outside or her ****ing off with herself, she'll be going every time.

Hehe good one!! You're braver than me!

Now I've no proof.. but one evening I was taking baby Bailey to the vet for his KC shot and when the vet went near him he cowered That tool had been in the house that day and my mum went out to the garden for a second - she heard a bang and when she came in Bailey was over the other side of the room lying down. She asked what happened and he mumbled something about him falling. That's one of only 2 things I can think of that would be possible 'trauma' to his legs - he started having problems a week or so after that (The surgeon said it could have been genetic or trauma but no way of telling)

I live at home so I don't really have a say in who comes and goes and unless I win the lotto that's not going to change any time soon.

Bailey wouldn't get back in the hydro pool this evening. We've had no problems for over 2 years since he's been muzzled and lifted in but this week and last week he started growling and tensed up. Don't know if it's him not wanting to be handled after his op/when he was kept in for tests etc but a bit of a disaster. Thought we'd crossed this bridge but we're back to square one! :(

muddypaws wrote: »

Is there not a ramp down into the pool?

The ramp doesn't go all the way down and the pool is above ground if that makes sense. He can't get out himself which is why I think he doesn't use the ramp. We normally put a treat in the muzzle and he's lifted in and the muzzle comes off but the last 2 weeks he's growled and barked and doesn't want to go back in after his first swim - he normally does 3 with a break between each one. I don't know if he's still worried about being handled from being in the vets or are the treats maybe a bit too hard for him - but he has no problem eating them lol! :rolleyes: He doesn't NEED to go to hydro anymore but it's helped so much I've kept taking him. This one is 15 mins away from my house - if we stopped going there we'd have to go to the one in Sallins so a bit of a trek compared to what we're used to now.