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provotrout
JH
Posts:30
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| 02/05/2012 7:00 PM |
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Rudi is looking a lot better now after a few weeks on Purina PPPerformance (pic from today's play time below). He's adjusting well to his new family and has stopped fighting with Layla. A few times she has either taken his rawhide, walked on his bed or tried to interrupt his eating. While he doesn't ignore Layla's "encroachment" he is much more relaxed around her. Last night he barked at her after she took his rawhide. He looked back to me in protest and I corrected him and took the treat. A month ago he probably would have just gone after Layla rather than bark and look to me for direction. It felt like a big step for him to trust me and not resort to an attack.
He digs a lot in wooded parts of the yard and tends to be vocal when he's anxious (long car rides, neighbor's labradoodle, dogs that are very interactive-read annoying). Basically, he's very good in his element which is anytime he's exercising. To improve on his anxiety I'm working on keeping his routine consistent and for the time being taking fewer long car rides. This means less hiking and more time on local trails, longer walks during the week, less time roaming the yard.
With me he's made so much progress. He instinctively walks behind me going through doorways, up and down stairs. When I come home I basically ignore him until he calms down. Funny thing - I read an old thread here where a user talks about waiting for the dog to turn, yawn and lick lips. Rudi did that today about 2 mins after I came home. That was my cue to give him the sit command and give him some attention.
This afternoon he objected to me reading the paper so he put his feet on my lap. The next step was to put his paws on the paper to physically prevent me from reading the paper. Now that's not behavior that is welcome but being the first time it forced me to laugh before telling him to get down. He has personality and will take over if not kept in check  .
Btw - Chuck-it is going to save me from a 2nd shoulder surgery!
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Rose
MH
Posts:362
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| 02/05/2012 8:41 PM |
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Great to hear that he's doing better!
We chose to rescue a GSP too. It definitely takes time. For us, it seemed like it took about a year for our GSP to feel like it was his home and for him to bond.
...When I come home I basically ignore him until he calms down. I use this technique as well, it works great, I read about it in the book the Dog Listener by Jan Fennell, I believe it makes them realize that they need to be calm before getting rewarded. I wait until they lie down on their sides. |
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kpwlee
Raleigh, NC
MH
Posts:992
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| 02/07/2012 7:36 AM |
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great news all the way around and he looks fabulous!
Keep up the good work!
Bugsy will actually sit on the newspaper while you are reading it (by sitting on your lap) or attempt to take it from you - it is a nuisance but a harmless one IMHO and it always makes me chuckle
PS just from a personal standpoint (versus a training one) I wouldn't allow Layla to repeatedly interrupt his eating or take HIS rawhide and then he gets punished because you took it away, I'd be inclined to give it back to him and separate her. BTW dogs can and do take from each other without incident. The other day Bugsy had one of his friends here and she took his antler - which he allows - but then a few minutes later he took it back. No aggression at all just interplay and communication between them. I do usually make sure they each have something but inevitably they want the same one LOL During any time together they will swap things and take things from each other multiple times. She gets a little snarky (nothing serious just an attempt to tell him to back off) but he doesn't care and generally he will come in from a different angle and take it anyway. I love to watch the interaction and I recognize I am fortunate in that he has no aggression issues |
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It's Bugsy's world...
http://dailyzoomie.blogspot.com/ |
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pixie bee
MH
Posts:4448
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| 02/07/2012 8:43 AM |
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Very nice.
Such a quick transition.
I thought it would take longer.
He seems to have filled out - I think now he's overweight 
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"Time with my dogs clears my mind, renews my faith, and lets me see the world as it is. My only regret loving dogs as I do, is the misery of their early departure." Robert G. Wehle
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provotrout
JH
Posts:30
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| 02/21/2012 9:32 PM |
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So I broke down and got an e-collar for Rudi. Around the house he's been pretty good. Resource guarding is still there on some things (rawhides, his bed) but he hasn't gone after Layla in about a month. Whenever she violates his comfort zone either she backs away or I give him a verbal correction and he goes back to relaxing on his bed or chewing on his bone. I got a life size duck toy that mimicks a mallard call (it's been said I like it more than Rudi : )) and Rudi loves to retrieve it ad play around.
Regarding the e-collar Rudi has been very protective of the back yard, barking reliably at the neighbor with a Labradoodle. There are about 8 dogs within 3 houses, behind, up and down the street. The family next door with the Labradoodle is closest to his play area and he seems to think it's his territory. Last weekend he worked himself into a frenzy and broke through a plastic mesh fence that covers the gaps in the neighbors white horse fence. He rushed over to the Labradoodle and after they had a growling match he settled into a pattern of running in circles barking a fairly high pitched bark. Nearly every time he sees the dog he doesn't respond to commands and barks, jumping around frantically. Afterpending time with him out there on several occasions it became clear that he was too excited to listen. When I'd approach him he'd growl and jump back to barking.
So to give the neighbors some piece of mind and to make sure he understands what recall commands mean I decided it would be best to get an e-collar. He knows the commands and is reliable Most of the time. When he gets excited and "on a mission" nothing gets through to him. I'm concerned that his selective hearing could not only result in something bad happening with the Labradoodle (not to mention unfairly annoying neighbors) but when hiking in bear season he could put himself and others in a dangerous position while hiking.
I picked up a 400yard sportdog collar and went about some training with him over the weekend. The collar goes from barely perceptible (1) to jolting (6-8). The most I've shocked him with is 6, which I tried on myself.. not fun! Anyhow, within two 'barking control' situations with the neighboring dog Rudi got to the point where the sound alone snapped him out of his frenzy and prompted him to immediately come and quiet down. Part of me regrets having to use the collar, but given the fact that he responds quite well to the sound and level 1 shocks, I think it's the best possible option for teaching him what's acceptable and what's not. The territorial/protective drive in him is quite strong and the new regimen hasn't impacted his enjoyment of the local creek/park, where we spend a few hours a day on weekends. He looks great now with a more filled out back and despite being able to run for hours he turns into a total sleepyhead when the sun sets.
He's back on ~4 cups a day of B.Buffalo fish & oatmeal, with plenty of rawhides and treats that go along with basic obedience drills in the evenings. I'm planning to use the ecollar for 2 main purposes: 1) control barking at neighbors and keep him from breaking through the fence to confront the neighbor's Lab and 2) reinforcing recall when off leash in areas where he could get lost or endanger his/my safety.
Hopefully this comes off as a responsible response on my end. I don't think his reaction to the neighbor's dog is as aggression as it is insecurity and confusion. So far the results have been good, with him being fun-loving around the house and very playful when exercising outside. He has taken to cuddling and resting on my lap when he gets nervous or tired, and he loves to arch his neck and beg for neck rubs : ). He's a lovable pup, I'm hoping to take him back out in the mountains soon. He's been on a regular routine of walking a few miles/day, playing catch in the yard and going creek exploring on the weekends and he's being more at ease around the house.
An interesting thing is that he loves women. A couple minutes with a female visitor and he's content to arch his neck or beg for attention. Around men he's really only comfortable with me and my brother, who he gets to see a lot. |
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provotrout
JH
Posts:30
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| 02/21/2012 9:48 PM |
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One thing to add.. Rudi's pretty good with other dogs when out and about. His temper seems to be pretty balanced, with playful reactions to young dogs or those interested in playing. He keeps some distance from more angry dogs and goes about his business smelling around/playing fetch. Small dogs confuse him it seems so he usually investigates and trots off. He's playing more with Layla and generally just goes about his business when off leash at the local park (2 soccer fields, power lines with high grass & a meandering creek). There are foxes, squirrels & all kinds of rodents so he's usually more interested in the mission at hand than socializing. Point being I'm pretty happy with his overall disposition to strange people & dogs. He is excitable though so keeping that under control is the main point of focus at the moment.
Puppy face:
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Splat
Illinois (Northern)
MH
Posts:3130
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| 02/22/2012 5:31 AM |
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Sounds like you used the e-collar pretty good...you said he know the recall command but at times he would be too excited to listen and those were times he knew you couldn't reinforce your command so now with the ecollar you can reinforce it...it is good that there wasn't anything more between him and the labradoodle...
I use the ecollar as a reassurance when we are out and about off leash and no fence, I hardly have to use it now but I like having it...I also use it in the yard for my one dog who just loves to run and bark for no reason other than being happy....when I let him out at 6am for a potty I put it on him cuz I don't want his barking waking up neighbors...he knows now when it is on not to bark... |
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provotrout
JH
Posts:30
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| 03/17/2012 8:33 PM |
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admitted brag: I think Rudiger is now my best friend. He talks a lot with a wide variety of physical and audible gestures, climbing on my lap when I first come home, he's lonely or nervous is common (he still always follows on stairs and doorways, creek crossings). When he doesn't want to walk he just stops outside the front door. When he wants to wake up-usually about 7am-he lays next to me and rubs his nose against my chin. When we hike he runs ahead 50yds, turns around and comes back (almost always going around my left side to right). He runs the same patterns in the yard, always walks on my right (and goes behind when he gets on the left side).
He loves my mom, today we were driving back from hiking. He was sleeping on his bed in the back when I called her on speaker. After she said a couple sentences Rudi started to whimper, head alert. Pretty sure he missed his grandma! Too cute, she helps with him during the day a lot with walks and throwing the chuk-it, no surprise he has a strong bond with her.
He doesn't have much interest in other dogs or other people in general, he likes to explore on his own. An exception is women or kids, which he likes to meet and give a tail wag before going off on his next adventure. He's been pointing more lately and I've lost him temporarily to flushing deer.
His weight seems a little low still with ribs showing when he inhales or lays down, but he is pretty muscular.. his hind legs and shoulder striations are all visible.. Not sure if he's too thin or just really lean and strong. His performance on trail is amazing, 10-11mile hike today with around 900m of vert up, then down. He ran almost the whole time, almost no fatigue just hopping over trees and flushing everything he could find.
And btw - I hug him probably half a dozen times a day and he has started giving me kisses on the arm-sometimes on the cheek when he's particularly happy. Consistency and devotion to paying attention to his needs seem to be really impacting the way he interacts with me. Within reason I make sure to keep a good schedule and respond to his vocal requests.
Despite being told he's "around 2-3" his really lean build and personality have me wondering if he's even younger. His teeth are very clean despite a less than ideal background, so he's either <2 or had good dental work?
Very stream of conscious update-I'm exhausted -but wanted to relay what he's been up to. With his amazing stamina and continued progress in accepting my family I'm not only confident we can make it work but I'm starting to think he's really enjoying his new home, which is the most important thing of all tbh.
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