Positively | Victoria Stilwell | Forum

I'm glad you found the book interesting... Just remember it doesn't have to be hours each day for training your Muttley! Ten or fifteen minutes of working on something..anything! That may be fun for you both to get started is all that is needed. Once I saw Cracker start to "get it" it beca...

Hi Ozzy. Can you give more details about the body language he exhibits? Just barking? How is his body "slanted"..toward the other dog? Away? Is he showing full teeth or partial? Can you see the whites of his eyes or is he slightly squinting? When he first sees the other dog what does he do...

Muttley. It is a really good idea to try to find a clicker trainer in your area to learn under, just be sure it is a clicker trainer and not a "balanced" one who uses all four quads of OC. If you cannot find a true clicker trainer, I personally found "THe Idiot's Guide to Positive Dog...

Cracker started out on Royal Canin (from the Toronto Humane Society) but then I started using Purina Dog Chow because of cost. Yep, I know..silly, cheap, uninformed me... She now eats Wellness dry. AFter I did the math it's actually less expensive than the "filler filled" foods because she...

Did this behaviour start after the spay or has it been ongoing since you got her? For the time being I would restrict access to the breakfast room. If that's the only place she has accidents she should not have the opportunity to practice the behaviour. Have you used a good enzyme based cleaner on t...

I have found the hardest part of dog ownership (and cat ownership) to be the worry that comes up when the pet is "not well" or showing discomfort. Are they ill? Injured? Is it just a stomach upset or a real illness? I worked at a vet for 8 years so I have a good sense of what is urgent and...

I believe some people like to label unwanted behaviours as dominance because it is "simpler' than trying to figure out the motivations and reasons behind it because the dog cannot communicate with us in our own language. Dominance does exist in all societies but a truly "dominant" dog...

What a lovely post Nettle. I agree it is amazing to see dog go "instinctive" like that..I guess then I would say Cracker has a moderate prey drive...and the "freeze" that happens momentarily before the run is a wonder to see. In fact the "sit" that I get before I releas...

Nettle..now I'm curious. What would you define as a high prey drive dog? I agree that what many think is prey drive is actually most likely a play drive. Cracker has some interest in balls but is not a "THROW IT>THROW IT!!" kind of dog. But a small and fast moving creature is a whole nothe...

Thanks fundog! I tried to explain that earlier..but not in such great description as yours!

If you saw clicker trained dogs that were badly behaved that simply means the trainer didn't train the behaviours properly or didn't focus on anything but tricks. That is the fault of the trainer, not the dog nor the tool being used. I think the biggest difficulty in having people use a clicker is a...

I agree, a walk or a fun training session to tell him YOU rock as well can help here.
Don't feel too awful though, dogs NEED to learn to be without their people occasionally..its better for them in the long run.

Ooops! Thanks for the info correction...don't know where my brain was this morning..lol.

I agree with Mattie...that behaviourist is a loser. To rehome to someone with no friends? WTH? Management is important here as you don't want to give the dog the opportunity to practice the behaviour. I know a lot of dogs who used to be very difficult (and dangerous) with visitors and did improve wi...

Some pups require a bit more "privacy" for doing their business..lol. I agree, use a longer lead and just give her as much as she needs to be comfortable and then shorten it up again for the rest of your outside time. I think, being a puppy, we should simply be happy they want to do it out...