Guest Anonymous Posted September 30, 2004 Share Posted September 30, 2004 Hi, I need some help. I have a 2 year old collie that i've had since she was 3 mos. old, she's been the princess. I recently rescued a neglected 9 year old male Golden Retriever. He is great with people, a sweetheart. He is obviously traumatized and very stressed out, doesn't know why he's at my house. He and Lucy (the collie) have met and hung out for a day or two but now that he's at my house he's turned on her twice when I wasn't in view. I'm not sure if he bit her, I think he did but not enough to break skin and then he mounted her and pinned her the other time. She is now scared of him and upset as well because this is her home. So, any suggestions on how to make this work? If need be I can give him back to the previous owner who will try to find another home for him, they just paid no attention to him and he started chewing on the exterior of the house and the steps because he was tied up out there 24/7 with not much interaction from them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imported_Kat Posted September 30, 2004 Share Posted September 30, 2004 You need to give them some time to get used to each other for starters and it is definitely a bad idea at this stage to leave both dogs unattended. I feel sorry for this Goldie after spending so many years in a home that was familiar. If you really want to give him a chance then persevere but if not, don't traumatise the dog further and give him back to the people to find another home. It isn't fair on the big lad being shunted from home to home. Is Lucy spayed or the Golden neutered? If not you might want to look into getting at least the dog neutered. If you want him then Lucy has to learn to share. Collies are very self-absorbed dogs and dont like to share a familiar space. Its up to you to get through to Lucy that she has to share her home now and its also a matter of telling the Golden boy that at the same time he has to respect Lucy's personal space, which she needs to have. Try paying equal attention to them both doing little things like sits and alternate who gets the treats so that there is no bias towards one dog. Good luck and I hope that for the sake of the Goldie, that it all works out. :wink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtnek Posted October 1, 2004 Share Posted October 1, 2004 until they get used to each other, seperate them with a baby gate. let them commune thru the gate, where neither one will feel powerful, or threatened. I have introduced all of my pets thru baby gates (except Ford, the kitten. She walked in and just took her place - lol) :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackieMaya Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 Good idea about the baby gates, Courtnek! Kim, I really hope it eventually works out for the two dogs. Hopefully once they realize that it's really nice to have a brother or sister, they'll settle in and become friends. I adopted Maya six months after I adopted Jackie, and I was very lucky. They fell asleep on the same sofa their first night together and they've been best friends ever since. Good luck and keep us posted on how it's going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Thanks to all for the advice! Kat, I'd like to persevere so I'm going to give it some more time. Your comment about Collies being self-absorbed is priceless!!!! It's the perfect description of Lucy! They have been together in the house and I have a neighbor go over every few hours and check on them at this point and she takes them outside to play. Jackson (the Goldie) has played chase a few times with Lucy and when we had some neighbor dogs over they all played fine and Lucy herds Jackson and he seems fine with that. It's mostly in my presence when they are vying for attention from me. I do pet them at the same time or pet one for awhile and then go to the other. We'll see how it goes. One other question for anyone: Has anyone heard of "Amichien Bonding" and Jan Fennel, "The Dog Listener"? The premise of the book and practice is establishing yourself as the leader of the pack through 4 steps and thus ending unwanted behavior. Thanks again everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imported_Kat Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 I'm really delighted to hear that you are going to go the extra distance and try with Jackson :D As for Jan Fennel don't go near any book of hers. She is a total fraud and wrote the book after spending several months with one very well known dog trainer. She can't train her own dogs let alone anyone elses. I attended one of her seminars once and when presented with a problem GSD she totally balked and refused to even handle the dog. I read a priceless review of her book a few weeks ago and I'm going to go find it now for you. :wink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imported_Kat Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 [url]http://www.kateconnick.com/library/fennelllistener.html[/url] read and enjoy :wink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtnek Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 While I agree with some of the "pack rules" methods of training (and not for all dogs, either. Some never need it. Others require a stronger owner/hand in the situation) this is not something new. It's a training method that has been around for decades. Pack training is very similar to NILIF, in a lot of ways. You, the owner (or Alpha, however you want to look at it) assures the dog obeys before "earning" anything, the same way a pack lead rewards for obedience and excellence from the other pack members. It does not require punishment, and unless challenged, the pack lead rarely ever punishes anybody. He has underlings to keep the pack members in line, if necessary. Its usually only in the lower ranks that squabbling goes on, and its also more show than anything else. Also, in a pack the wolves reach a level of adult maturity. It is believed that our dogs never make it past the wolves version of adolescence. They remain "children" their whole lives. So pack training, and NILIF, works very well for them. Most of us are Alpha's without realizing it. We expect the dogs to act in a certain manner, and if we teach them what they need to know, and reward them for it, they will do it. Of course, dogs are individuals as well. Depending on breed, there may be some things they dont learn as quickly, or as voluntarily, as others. You have to take the whole dog into consideration, like what it was initially bred for for example. We cant remove their breeding characteristics, but with patience we can usually work around them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Hi Kat, Um yeah, I guess I won't try that method. It looks like we may all be getting some obedience training in the future. In fact, count on it! :-? Thanks again! Kim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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