Carolk9s

[quote]I guess he's had a bad day since he didn't get any wet food, and strange people were poking at his butt.[/quote] yea well guess i'd feel the same.... :D

I'm with the group that wonders about 'the rest of the story'. There are MANY ways to socialize pups other than setting up shop in FRONT of a major petstore. If she was there on a frequent basis with many different dogs, I can certainly understand how an impression of advertising could be arrived at. Good golly my aunt used to take sheltie pups INSIDE malls many many years ago and walk them around. Now of course that cannot be done, malls are not as willing to let people wander about with their dogs. I am NOT going to boycott Petsmart or anywhere else based on this. I am sure if she wanted to bring 1 or 2 pups, walk them on leads on the sidewalk, she could do that. To set up a grooming table in front of Petsmart? Well it was nice of the former manager to allow this but it really seems like a stretch to me. JMHO.

Hoping pups problem is minor and diagnosed quickly and accurately! Waiting to hear news that he's better!

Both are too cute!

Hey Marble, 'they' can say what 'they' want. Part of why I decided on getting Jesse BSD was because I wanted a big black hairy dog. 8) When I saw Brittany at the adoption stand for the first time, I think my heart skipped a beat as she was so unusual looking to me. Candy, wasn't her looks, she was just sneaky and wormed her way in. Of course their looks were not the final word but they were a starting point!

While I agree that putting a hand over a defensive/aggressive dogs head might be threatening to the dog, I do not suggest reaching down to rub the chest either, think of where your face is likely to be at that time. I think with a defensive/aggressive dog it's best to take it very slow and even let the dog initiate contact. Maybe once the dog has started thinking you are not so bad, a shoulder scratch or even a butt scratch to break the ice. Depends a lot on the dog and of course a lot on the person. Someone who is nervous about touching a defensive/aggressive dog needs to just not do it! Someone who is calm and fairly proficient at reading dog body language and signals would have a much better chance of touching the dog in a non threatening manner, not getting bit and helping the dog relax.

I got fed up right quickly and bailed. No time!

Gee this made me have to THINK! HARD! 8) Candy's quirk that comes to mind is how she will rub against me or the furniture like a cat. She makes a sort of woo woo sound as she is doing it. She really gets into it too, she'll be rubbing her face and the side of her body against the couch humping her back up just a bit, mouth open and just having herself a great time. Brittany, being part herding dog, has a quirk related to her heritage. When at the dog park, if she sees another dog at a distance, she will start trotting hard and fast towards it. As she moves, she starts to sink downwards until she's almost crouching then drop to the ground and stare at the dog. If no other dog races past her to greet the newcomer, she will creep forward a bit at a time and even put her head down with her chin on the ground. She actually reminds me of a big cat stalking prey. This usually makes the other dog just a wee bit nervous. Brittany will eventually break from her crawling and run up to the newcomer to say hi there how are ya. Jesse's quirk (well one of them) is that he is dedicated to washing my feet whenever he gets the chance. He is very possessive and determined about it and will wrap a paw around my ankle to hold my foot in place. If I have socks on, he will start to nibble on them. I don't mind the foot washing at all, it actually is so soothing that I dang near go into a trance. EXCEPT of course when he's nibbling between my toes, that tickles!

[quote name='deepseasnake']So Ive been meaning to ask you guys (being Hobbit and all you other ACD type owners) have herding type dogs been successfull in other lines of work? or are they just so good at what they do they dont need anything else to do?[/quote] Well I will answer this on rather general terms as I'm not familiar with ACD's, Kelpie's and such. I believe that mostly herding dogs just need a job, does not have to be herding other critters. Examples would include the German Shepherd, and Belgians of all flavors. With the correct temperament, these breeds can certainly do quite well in police work, search and rescue, detection dogs, etc. It's the drive they inherit that will take part in determining if they will work all day no matter what the job.

Is it random digging or digging at the fence with the express purpose of bustin out? How old is he? My youngest still digs now and then, very nice when mowing the lawn and not seeing the crater but stepping in it! If fenceline digging, how bit an area? Perhaps cheapo chicken wire attached to bottom of fence and buried a few inches in the dirt will help. I've read (many moons ago) of people who 'give' their dog a digging spot, put fill dirt or sand there. I have NOT tried that but would love to know if that works. Trouble is catching them in the act.

New Sport: Aqu-A-Gility! 8)

Thinking of you and Bobbi, hope she's feeling her normal self soon.

Maybe I'm a step behind, but just to clarify, do you want detailed history on your particular pups heritage or the dachshund in general?

Dresden is SUCH a pretty girl, she still reminds me of Brittany. I bet she would love agility! Thanks for sharing these photos, very nice. Oh yes, love the 'ears' photo

This was posted to the BELG-L list some time ago by Deb Norman. I had taught both Jesse and Brittany the weaves using the channel method. I decided to try something different with Candy. Candy literally 'got' the idea in 1 day using the method below. Now I will add that Candy REALLY likes learning new things and REALLY likes the click/treat idea! Of course there was proofing and fine tuning to come but I am very happy using this method, out of my 3 dogs, Candy is the fastest and most reliable in the poles whether on or off side. "I use a clicker, but you could certainly use a marker word like Yes! to let her know what is right. Start with just 3 poles. use a treat, and "lure" her in the right entrance and back toward you through the 2nd space, in other words, out/in. Click, treat. Repeat 5 times. Then stand right there and tease her with the treat but don't lure. She will take a moment probably but will soon go through the first space. Click, and she will certainly come to get her treat by returning through the second space. Repeat this a bunch of times until she is cheerfully doing the 3 poles very nicely. Tips: 1) After the first couple of non-lured attempts start delaying the click until she starts coming back through the second space. In other words, raise your standards, asking her to do a little more to get the reward. The click should be at the exact second that she turns through the second space. 2) Don't' use a command at this point. We want her to associate the command of "weave" with competent execution of the poles, not learning. When she is good at 3, add 2 more poles. She'll do the first two, then look at you. Just wait, maybe tease her with the food, step forward so you are opposite the third space, then wait. Don't say anything, let her think. She will do the third space, and probably the next one too, to get back to you. Click her as she goes through the third space, then delay the click as you did above. When she is doing 5 add another, and she'll be doing 6. Now you are ready to start step 2. This first step can take as little as 2 training sessions. It goes amazingly quickly if your dog is easy to motivate with food. Step 2 consists of teaching her to go through the poles to reach a goal at the end. Now that she has the idea of weaving in mind and body we teach her the better execution, the drive through the poles with energy and desire, that makes a good weaving dog. We do backchaining, starting with the last two poles, to be done in the "out" or away-from-you pattern. Put a treat on a lid about 2 feet beyond the last pole. Let her see it, but not get it. Use an 18" lead. You will use this to prevent her from going the wrong way. You will NOT use it to drag her through or show her the right way, only to keep her from going directly to the treat. Stand by the 5th and 6th poles. Get her excited about the treat. "Ready, ready, you want that? GET IT!" If she goes through the space click as she goes and let her get the treat herself. If she tries to bypass the poles altogether and just head for the treat, simply restrain her with the lead until she takes the correct path. Do this a bunch of times until she is diving through the space and getting the treat. Then step back two spaces and stand by the 3rd and 4th poles. Repeat as above, but of course now she is doing more work. Use the lead to keep her from taking the wrong path, but as she is going correctly just flip the lead over the poles so you don't hold her back. Now step back to the starting place; a good spot is actually about 4-6 feet in front of the poles so they are in a straight line before you. You have laid your target. Get her revved up: ready, Ready, READY, GET IT! Help her with the lead if need be, but don't guide her, just continue using the lead to stop her going the wrong way. Once she is doing 6 really well, add whatever command you want to associate with the poles. Does she like tennis balls? If so, use a ball toss as another form of reward at the end. Sometimes lay it for her to get, other times toss it as a reward after she has done the whole set. Once she is doing 6 well she can increase the number very quickly, but don't add numbers until you are really pleased with the way she is doing the current number. Give it a shot, I'll bet you like this method." Deb

Belgians of all flavors have been successful in Schutzhund

It sounds interesting. If you want to do any agility with Winnie it might be well worth it. If I remember correctly, you've said you don't jump Winnie very much or very high, if you can choose the jump height fine. Without knowing more details it's hard to say a definite yes or no. This agility club, is there an instructor? Professionally made safe equipment? Proper surface? On the surface, $10 a month is a very good low price for agility instruction and practice. If just practice amongst friends twice a month for $10 is good. I will say again tho, the equipment MUST be built and maintained to be sturdy and safe. Always test contact equipment for stability before your dog gets on it. Recently in JFF agility, most others had already walked the course prior to running their dogs. I had been delayed so was walking it by myself. They were ready to start, calling for the first dog to be on the line. I said hold on just a minute! The dogwalk was NOT on level ground, it was slightly leaning and unstable. We fixed it THEN let our dogs run. It's a VERY GOOD habit to get into, whether you are just practicing or running your dog in a trial.

Um, details please! And photos, lotsa photos! Where did you get him/her? How old is he/she? How big? Colors? Standard # of legs? Ears? Tail? C'mon now, you know we want to know EVERYTHING about this new dog!

I agree with the above responses, this is such a personal decision, and there is no easy answer. When you look deeply into your beloveds' eyes and their soul speaks to you, you will know it is time. My old sheltie told me when she had had enough of this life. Her physical self had deteriorated long before, finally her soul was just too tired to continue. If your dogs eyes still light up when you enter the room, if she's not in unrelenting pain, if she still finds joy in her day, then you are not wrong in waiting just a bit longer. Again, I feel that she will tell you when she has had enough and is ready to move on.

I think it was evident from your posts how much you cared about and worried over BK. You have his best interests at heart and want him to be safe and secure. There is NOTHING wrong in that.

Shara, My belgian Jesse has hypothyroidism. He was tested and diagnosed about two years ago. It CAN be treated. I chose to have the testing sent to Michigan State University, it is a bit less expensive to have local labs do the testing but I had heard MSU was one of the best and most reliable for this testing so that's where I had his sent. The test is not cheap but not horribly expensive (in my opinion). It was right about $78 U.S. Jesse has to take 4 thyroid pills a day, two in the morning and two in the evening. I did find that buying a large quantity of pills (1000 at a time) is much cheaper. My vet did not think he was a low thyroid dog as he was of proper weight. The ONLY symptom I saw that prompted me to have his tested was that his coat became VERY dry and brittle. As my vet would have expected him to be overweight, I reminded her that he was a very active agility dog. His training and trialing kept his weight down. Two years later, he is still active and does the occaisional agility at lowered jump heights. He is now 11, he will of course be on the thyroid pills for the rest of his life. I agree that it would be a very good idea to have Hazel checked over and get some bloodwork done including the thyroid test. See if you can make a deal with your folks to pay it back to them over time. While I don't think you need to panic 8) , it is something that should be done as soon as you are able. BTW, what do you know of Hazel's sire and dam? Do you know if either of them was aggressive or had an unstable temperament? Does the farm where Hazel came from have both parents or was this a fly by night love tryst? Sometimes you really have to be a detective to find the buried answer. I wish you luck in your quest to find out how to soothe Hazels fears, calm her aggressiveness, and show her that life can by joyful-not scary.

Brittany will come up on the bed for pats and a cuddle then jump down and go to an empty bed to sleep. Jesse will come up, might stay 1/2 the night then get down. Candy likes to snuggle up HARD against me, many times tucking herself into my throat/chest area or right under my chin. I feel guilty when I'm squirming around trying to get comfy. She's gives me such a look... One night I went to sleep with my back against the big pillows as usual. If I don't sleep this way, I wake up VERY sore. Well, I woke up a few hours later, totally turned around, lying on my opposite side, SHE was curled up within my big pillows! The little sneak.

[quote name='gigishiba']Very funny!!! Very rare for a lab to point. Very rare for any dog to point, I mean, BK was just caught pointing! A dog should NOT point, so yes, this is RARE and a GREAT Christmas gift! :roll:[/quote] Mama said pointin is rude.

I've also heard that many feed wings or wing tips and also backs. We're talkin raw right? I don't know about the leg/thighs as the bones are a bit bigger.

So how is Guy doing? We all know you are 'bout worn to a frazzle. Sound like you make a good home hospice caretaker!