Exploring the garden.
June 13, 2005
Homecoming
I flew down to Melbourne yesterday to pick up Dusty. Had a couple of hours to talk puppies and breeding, agility and training, people and pets, with Deb and Murray to watch the girls play and to meet their mum and aunt. Rosie treated me like a lost lost friend, and I loved both the puppies at first sight. Then back to the airport. I was really impressed by the way Dusty responded to the new sights and sounds - alert and curious but not at all timid or wary.
In the plane I looked through the wonderful package of photos, information and personal comment that Deb had given me. We got back to Newcastle just on sunset. She had dug a little nest in her blanket and licked most of the cream cheese out of her kong so I decided that she wasn't too stressed by the trip. She had hung on for the couple of hours she had been in the crate, so first step was a walk on the grass.
She rode home beautifully. I couldn't bring myself to put her back in the crate, so she travelled the short distance on her blanket on the passenger seat, tethered to the seatbelt anchor. She stood and looked out the window, then curled up for a nap.
Thommo gave her a cursory sniff, but was more interested in getting me to play ball with him, so we had a game while Dusty explored. For dinner they both had kongs stuffed with Billinghurst patties - shut in their Cabana crates, while I made some phonecalls and checked email. Dusty let me know when she was ready to come out - but quietened and sat when I stood beside the crate. I think she'll learn quickly that the door doesn't open unless she is sitting quietly at the back of the crate. Outside for a pee on the designated mulched area.
She made a move towards Thommo's kong (empty) and he barked at her. She backed up a couple of steps then bounced forward barking at him. He gave another bark, and she answered with a play bow and a chorus of barking. She thought it was a great game, but I wasn't sure if the neighbours would, so I sent Thommo upstairs to bed.
She seems to be a problem solver. She couldn't climb up onto the sofa with me, but got herself onto the neighbouring chair and jumped across, very pleased with herself. Having done that she wanted to be on the floor, and slept with her back against the sofa.
I also slept through the Midsomer Murders. Then out to the mulch again, and upstairs to bed. Thommo gave a bit of a wuffle when I let her on the bed, and jumped up himself but settled. She was tooo wiggly and I was too tired to read, so into her wire crate with the blanket and her cow. She gnawed on my fingers for a while, then slept soundly until just after 1:00am when we went out to the mulch again. Back to the crate without stirring until Thommo got us all up.
In the plane I looked through the wonderful package of photos, information and personal comment that Deb had given me. We got back to Newcastle just on sunset. She had dug a little nest in her blanket and licked most of the cream cheese out of her kong so I decided that she wasn't too stressed by the trip. She had hung on for the couple of hours she had been in the crate, so first step was a walk on the grass.
She rode home beautifully. I couldn't bring myself to put her back in the crate, so she travelled the short distance on her blanket on the passenger seat, tethered to the seatbelt anchor. She stood and looked out the window, then curled up for a nap.
Thommo gave her a cursory sniff, but was more interested in getting me to play ball with him, so we had a game while Dusty explored. For dinner they both had kongs stuffed with Billinghurst patties - shut in their Cabana crates, while I made some phonecalls and checked email. Dusty let me know when she was ready to come out - but quietened and sat when I stood beside the crate. I think she'll learn quickly that the door doesn't open unless she is sitting quietly at the back of the crate. Outside for a pee on the designated mulched area.
She made a move towards Thommo's kong (empty) and he barked at her. She backed up a couple of steps then bounced forward barking at him. He gave another bark, and she answered with a play bow and a chorus of barking. She thought it was a great game, but I wasn't sure if the neighbours would, so I sent Thommo upstairs to bed.
She seems to be a problem solver. She couldn't climb up onto the sofa with me, but got herself onto the neighbouring chair and jumped across, very pleased with herself. Having done that she wanted to be on the floor, and slept with her back against the sofa.
I also slept through the Midsomer Murders. Then out to the mulch again, and upstairs to bed. Thommo gave a bit of a wuffle when I let her on the bed, and jumped up himself but settled. She was tooo wiggly and I was too tired to read, so into her wire crate with the blanket and her cow. She gnawed on my fingers for a while, then slept soundly until just after 1:00am when we went out to the mulch again. Back to the crate without stirring until Thommo got us all up.
June 09, 2005
June 08, 2005
Flying with Puppy
Making plans to bring red girl home this weekend, I've decided to fly down to Melbourne and collect her. I toyed with driving, so I could visit people I haven't seen in a while and have a mini-holiday but it started to get too complicated.
She has been wearing her new collar for a week now, her blanket has been in the kennel with mum and the siblings, and she has been playing with her toy cow. I'll bring a toy that Thommo has been playing with so that she will come across his scent while she is in a familiar environment.
I have borrowed an airline approved crate for her - we will both have to cope with the embarrassment of a crate with DohDoh printed in large letters on the front. I just hope airline employees don't call her DohDoh and scar her psychologically. I'll have her name and my contact details on it of course, and a water container. She can have a stuffed Kong to distract her, though I'll just fill it with things to lick so there are no choking risks.
It is only an hour and a half in the air, with no stop overs, so I'm hoping for a smooth trip for her. I've made her reservation - Jetstar only carry two pets on any one flight - and I've notified the pet handler at my airport to expect us.
She has been wearing her new collar for a week now, her blanket has been in the kennel with mum and the siblings, and she has been playing with her toy cow. I'll bring a toy that Thommo has been playing with so that she will come across his scent while she is in a familiar environment.
I have borrowed an airline approved crate for her - we will both have to cope with the embarrassment of a crate with DohDoh printed in large letters on the front. I just hope airline employees don't call her DohDoh and scar her psychologically. I'll have her name and my contact details on it of course, and a water container. She can have a stuffed Kong to distract her, though I'll just fill it with things to lick so there are no choking risks.
It is only an hour and a half in the air, with no stop overs, so I'm hoping for a smooth trip for her. I've made her reservation - Jetstar only carry two pets on any one flight - and I've notified the pet handler at my airport to expect us.
June 04, 2005
Click to Calm
In Click to Calm, Emma Parsons gives a number of 'training recipes'. One, for changing stress cues to calm cues, is chin targetting where you get your dog to walk with your hand loosely around his muzzle. This technique is useful where you come face to face with another dog in confined space under stressful conditions, such as the start gate, or the vet's waiting room.
How to make it happen:
How to make it happen:
- Touch the top of your dog's nose.
- Click and feed your dog.
- Repeat several times.
- Cup your hand under your dog's chin.
- Click and feed your dog.
- Repeat several times.
- Now alternate between the two behaviors (Steps 1 & 4)
- Now cup your dog's chin in your hand with your fingers alongside his mouth and your thumb lightly on his muzzle.
- Click and feed for compliance.
- Change the direction of your hand so that your fingers are on the other side of his mouth.
- Click and feed.
- Alternate steps 8 & 10.
- Continue working until your dog is comfortable with your hand encircling his muzzle from either side of his face.
- The recipe continues with instructions for starting to walk with your hand in position, for increasing duration and introducing distractions. The key is to build up slowly and to click and reward at every step.
June 03, 2005
Muscle Strain
Thommo has been lame for a few weeks - he has pulled the muscle at the front of his thigh. He had a week on Metacam but at my regular vet he is absolutely rigid with fear so I wasn't sure that it was possible to diagnose just what the problem was.
So we went back to Barbara, a holistic vet who helped him to 100% recovery from a cruciate tear, and managed to extend Diesel's life. Her book Healthy Dogs is my reference for all dog health questions. He was a bit anxious here, too, so I used the strategies in Click to Calm . It was written for the aggressive dog, but given that aggression can be an outcome of stress, the strategies work well for a dog that stresses in particular situation. Thommo has a highly reactive handler, so teaching him to see my body language in a stressful situation as a cue for him to focus on a job like carrying a toy has been really useful.
He has had chiropractic to correct the alignment of his spine, acupuncture and gentle muscle manipulation and has been given Traumeel in tablet form. I'm icing his thigh after exercise for two minutes, and putting a heat pad on it when he beds down for the night. After two weeks of treatment he is no longer limping, but we'll keep the treatment up for at least another week.
So we went back to Barbara, a holistic vet who helped him to 100% recovery from a cruciate tear, and managed to extend Diesel's life. Her book Healthy Dogs is my reference for all dog health questions. He was a bit anxious here, too, so I used the strategies in Click to Calm . It was written for the aggressive dog, but given that aggression can be an outcome of stress, the strategies work well for a dog that stresses in particular situation. Thommo has a highly reactive handler, so teaching him to see my body language in a stressful situation as a cue for him to focus on a job like carrying a toy has been really useful.
He has had chiropractic to correct the alignment of his spine, acupuncture and gentle muscle manipulation and has been given Traumeel in tablet form. I'm icing his thigh after exercise for two minutes, and putting a heat pad on it when he beds down for the night. After two weeks of treatment he is no longer limping, but we'll keep the treatment up for at least another week.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
