Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Any time new episodes of It’s Me or the Dog are airing on Animal Planet in the US, Victoria will answer questions about that episode later that week. Post your questions to Victoria about the most recent episode here anytime.

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Pol
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Joined: Sun Jan 31, 2010 9:04 pm

Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by Pol »

Hi Victoria,

I am new to this forum/chat, so please forgive me if I am posting this twice by accident!

I am very passionate about animals, I grew up with dogs and have done some volunteer work at a kennel, washing/walking dogs.
I am currently doing a Pet-Sitting course and wanted to ask you if you thought 32 was too old to be thinking of training to be a Veterinary Tech/Nurse?

Thanks :)
Thepupstopshere
Posts: 11
Joined: Sun Jan 03, 2010 7:01 pm

Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by Thepupstopshere »

Hi Victoria!

When you walked out of the room and Buddy followed was it his curiosity or his need for attention that made him follow?
Victoria
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Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by Victoria »

thevelvetvampire wrote:Hello Victoria.
Another great episode of the show.Thats the first time ive seen a dog like buddy go off and start barking at the television like that.Im glad my baby doxie doesnt bark while were watching the show.
I love how you used the tunnels but i live in an apartment complex so doing that outside here isnt an option for us.Is there anything we can do indoors with him thats simular to this?
I'd suggest you still use the tunnels, but just set them up in your apartment. I know in my NYC apartment we had a nice, long hallway that would've been perfect.
stephw0722
Posts: 9
Joined: Sun Jan 24, 2010 8:42 pm

Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by stephw0722 »

Hi Victoria,

I'm an Animal Behavior College student. It's great to be able to see our curriculum put to use on your show. Thanks for all your hard work!

My question is regarding Buddy's sweeper chasing behavior. You explained to the family that by encouraging Buddy to chase the sweeper, they were increasing his prey drive and therefore increasing the likelihood that he would chase small furry animals. Does that mean that other chase games such as fetch should be avoided? I have an 8 month old Springer Spaniel who loves his Chase-It pet toy. http://www.chaseitpettoys.com/ I also have two cats, and he tends to chase them. I'm working with him using the 'leave-it' cue, but I'm wondering if I'm inadvertently increasing the likelihood that he will chase my cats by engaging him in that activity? I would hate to have to take it away from him. He really loves it.

Thanks,
Stephanie
Victoria
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Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by Victoria »

EADGBE wrote:Hi Victoria.

Good show last night.

Do dogs ever outgrow their inclination to bark at a TV? Is it something that only young dogs do?
Sure, they can outgrow it. I don't think it's an age-specific behavior - maybe an older dog's owner just got Animal Planet :D and has only recently started seeing other animals on TV. That would do it, right?

Interesting as it is, it's really no different from any other beavior in that if you approach the solution from the right perspective and apply consistency to the training, it can be modified.
Victoria
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Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by Victoria »

Pol wrote:Hi Victoria,

I am new to this forum/chat, so please forgive me if I am posting this twice by accident!

I am very passionate about animals, I grew up with dogs and have done some volunteer work at a kennel, washing/walking dogs.
I am currently doing a Pet-Sitting course and wanted to ask you if you thought 32 was too old to be thinking of training to be a Veterinary Tech/Nurse?

Thanks :)
Hi Pol, and welcome to Positively! Great to have you.

In answer to your question about being too old - absolutely not!! A great many pet services careers are 2nd or 3rd careers for people, and I think that's becaue there are very few other careers that can offer the sense of satisfaction that those of us in this industry take in our jobs. As you know, it is incredibly rewarding working with a rescue dog or helping an animal that had previously been abused or neglected find a way back to being a useful and loving part of the world. I say go for it. There's a great need for qualified Vet techs these days as well.

Good luck!
Victoria
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Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by Victoria »

Thepupstopshere wrote:Hi Victoria!

When you walked out of the room and Buddy followed was it his curiosity or his need for attention that made him follow?
Both. Being a JRT with some issues,he had both of these qualities in spades.
nix
Posts: 2
Joined: Sun Jan 31, 2010 8:39 pm

Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by nix »

Hi,

I just found this site and think it is a great idea!

Unfortunately, I missed the episode last night. I need HELP myself though. I have a JRT/Shepherd mix that is almost 7 months old. My husband and I decided to adopt a puppy from the Human Society for our 1 year anniversary. We saw her and fell in love immediately. She is the cutest dog I have ever seen. She loves people and dogs. We thought she had a great spirit and was very happy. She potty trained instantly and really seemed to be trained already, even though we adopted her when she was 2 months old. But over the past month we have been encountering a lot of problems. She bits us and actually she just bit me tonight very badly on the arm. I don't know what to do anymore. At first it started out as nips and we disciplined her right away thinking it would stop, but it is getting worse. I was thinking that she didn't receive enough exercise because we live in WI and it is barely above zero right now. Also my husband recently found a job after being unemployed for over 6 months, where he was able to spend a lot of time with Bella. So I thought that maybe she was trying to deal with all of the changes in our family. I decided to put her in Doggy Daycare 1-2 days a week to get her active. I thought it was going great and her behavior was getting better with the Daycare and us keeping up with the training at home, but every time I think she is doing well, she does something that isn't acceptable. I love her. She is an excitable, beautiful, happy dog but I'm worried that if we don't find out why she is biting/nipping, she may do it to someone else and really hurt someone.

Thanks,
Nix
maximoo
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Location: South Florida

Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by maximoo »

I've noticed that my boy Max barks to tell me things for ex: that he threw up or that he doesn't like fireworks. However last 4th of july we went out but I stayed on the porch (unbeknowst to him) & fireworks were going off, he didn't make a sound. So if nobody is there to listen to him "talk" he doesn't. When Buddy stopped barking when family walked away it reminded me of that. He was probably telling family there's dog in the house/I'm trying to chase a dog away but when they left & weren't listening he had nobody to tell. In the wild dogs have nobody to tell things to It's so interesting that they really try to communicate with us. :D
Victoria
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Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by Victoria »

stephw0722 wrote:Hi Victoria,

I'm an Animal Behavior College student. It's great to be able to see our curriculum put to use on your show. Thanks for all your hard work!

My question is regarding Buddy's sweeper chasing behavior. You explained to the family that by encouraging Buddy to chase the sweeper, they were increasing his prey drive and therefore increasing the likelihood that he would chase small furry animals. Does that mean that other chase games such as fetch should be avoided? I have an 8 month old Springer Spaniel who loves his Chase-It pet toy. I also have two cats, and he tends to chase them. I'm working with him using the 'leave-it' cue, but I'm wondering if I'm inadvertently increasing the likelihood that he will chase my cats by engaging him in that activity? I would hate to have to take it away from him. He really loves it.

Thanks,
Stephanie
In some ways, it can be counter-productive and confusing for the dog to be told to chase some things and not other. The Quinn family had no other pets (besides Addie), and wasn't going to get a new gerbil (R.I.P.), so that wasn't a problem for them. If they were going to get other pets, I would not have let him play fetch or play with the sweeper.

So in your case, I'd say it's best for now to avoid the fetch games.

How are you liking ABC?
stephw0722
Posts: 9
Joined: Sun Jan 24, 2010 8:42 pm

Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by stephw0722 »

I love ABC! The home study portion was very informative, but the best aspect of the program is the externship with a local trainer. I'm paired with a wonderful trainer in my area and I've learned a lot from her so far. I just finished the observation stage and starting Wednesday I will be bringing my dog to class to participate!

Stephanie
kimb123
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Joined: Sun Jan 03, 2010 9:38 pm

Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by kimb123 »

Hi, Victoria! Great episode! Keep up the great work!

I'd like to ask you a question about Buddy. After the episode, did Buddy finally managed to watch television with the family?

Thanks. Kimmy
Pol
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Jan 31, 2010 9:04 pm

Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by Pol »

Victoria wrote:Hi Pol, and welcome to Positively! Great to have you.

In answer to your question about being too old - absolutely not!! A great many pet services careers are 2nd or 3rd careers for people, and I think that's becaue there are very few other careers that can offer the sense of satisfaction that those of us in this industry take in our jobs. As you know, it is incredibly rewarding working with a rescue dog or helping an animal that had previously been abused or neglected find a way back to being a useful and loving part of the world. I say go for it. There's a great need for qualified Vet techs these days as well.

Good luck!
Thanks so much for your "Positive!" reply Victoria! :)
Love the show, used to be your 'neighbour'....from Ireland originally, moved to the States 4 yrs ago :)
deerewife
Posts: 19
Joined: Wed May 21, 2008 11:11 am
Location: Wisconsin, US

Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by deerewife »

Hi Victoria,
I love your show and have learned so many good techniques from watching. Not trying to hijack the thread, I just have a question about the puppy potty used in the House of Horrors episode.
I was considering trying one of these for my 4lb toy poodle- he is prone to kidney infections and when he gets ill he has to urinate very frequently. At night, he will get up, but he is quiet and if I don't wake up quick enough he has an accident. My question is if I were to get a potty for my little guy, is there a good way of training my 120lb male German Shepard not to use it? I don't want to start a peeing contest and create a worse problem.

Thank You
Victoria
Site Admin
Posts: 280
Joined: Thu Sep 14, 2006 9:28 am

Re: Episode 205 - Killer Intincts - Jan 30

Post by Victoria »

nix wrote:Hi,

I just found this site and think it is a great idea!

Unfortunately, I missed the episode last night. I need HELP myself though. I have a JRT/Shepherd mix that is almost 7 months old. My husband and I decided to adopt a puppy from the Human Society for our 1 year anniversary. We saw her and fell in love immediately. She is the cutest dog I have ever seen. She loves people and dogs. We thought she had a great spirit and was very happy. She potty trained instantly and really seemed to be trained already, even though we adopted her when she was 2 months old. But over the past month we have been encountering a lot of problems. She bits us and actually she just bit me tonight very badly on the arm. I don't know what to do anymore. At first it started out as nips and we disciplined her right away thinking it would stop, but it is getting worse. I was thinking that she didn't receive enough exercise because we live in WI and it is barely above zero right now. Also my husband recently found a job after being unemployed for over 6 months, where he was able to spend a lot of time with Bella. So I thought that maybe she was trying to deal with all of the changes in our family. I decided to put her in Doggy Daycare 1-2 days a week to get her active. I thought it was going great and her behavior was getting better with the Daycare and us keeping up with the training at home, but every time I think she is doing well, she does something that isn't acceptable. I love her. She is an excitable, beautiful, happy dog but I'm worried that if we don't find out why she is biting/nipping, she may do it to someone else and really hurt someone.

Thanks,
Nix
Have you hired a professional positive reinforcement trainer to work with you yet? Sounds like that needs to be the first step. There are many reasons why your dog's behavior has been changing lately, and only an experienced trainer who sees the behavior and talks to you at length about your history with the dog and the environment around the dog will be able to correctly identify the root cause of the behavior.

7 months is the equivalent of adolescence for humans, and we all know how confusing and nerve-wracking that period can be. So compound whatever other triggers might be exacerbating the situation with general adolescent issues, and it can be quite a cocktail. You're right to be tackling the issue now, and it's good you've incorporated some measures like doggy daycare and are at least aware of the need for more exercise. You mention that you disciplined the dog - what sort of discipline did you use? If it was aversive, it might have made the problem worse. That's where a trainer can help by giving you tools to reverse the behavior - just make sure you get a positive trainer!

Good luck!
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