Dogtime Pet Services Rescue Diaries: 2012

Merry Christmas

We wish everyone a lovely summer's Christmas and happy holidays.

Jack - 5 December 2012

Jack went to his new home in Epping today!

Jack - 28 November 2012

Wednesday, 28 November 2012

10:00am: Jack came out for a lead walk to the beach. He walks well with the Easy Walk Harness. He barked at a couple of dogs who were off-lead in a playful way.

1:00pm :   Took Jack to the park with his friends. We redirected his focus a few of times away from other people who had ball chuckers. He did steal a ball from another dog twice but gave it up when presented with his own ball. Overall he was well behaved.
4:00pm :   A short brisk walk at the park.
6:00pm :   Jack can now rest in the house and not pace around when out of his crate. He lay down in front of the couch while I watched television.

Jack - 27 November 2012

Tuesday, 27 November 2012

10.00am: First walk in the park.
1.00pm : Jack played ball with some of his friends. It was a hot day and Jack got tired out pretty soon. Still obsessive with the ball when we have it out. Jack does not take his eye away from the ball for more than ten seconds.
4.00pm : Jack did not feel up to a long walk.
8.00pm : Jack's behaviour in the home is improving. He sleeps in his crate quietly unless he is uncomfortable, such as being too hot, or needing to relieve himself.

Jack - 26 November 2012

Monday, 26 November 2012

10:00am:   Our first park walk with our regulars. Jack is friendly and runs around with them. He follows the older dogs and always checks to see what they are doing.
1:00pm :   Jack spent time not chasing a ball today. He enjoyed walking and running with his friends as well as spending time under the shade.
4:00pm :   We took Jack to Roxy's house where they spent time chasing each other in the backyard.

7:00pm :    We are teaching Jack to sit quietly beside us while we do work on the computer. For the most part he is doing quite well. However he does bring his toys around and place them on our laps. He tries to bark through the toys when we push them away.
8:30pm :   Jack took his cows hoof out of his crate and brought it to his quiet spot next to my chair. He is now chewing on it as I continue to work.
10.00pm:    Jack stole a half eaten corn cob from the bin. Josh held is for him and he eats it with his front teeth. He seems to have done this before. Jack likes corn on the cob.

Jack - 25 November 2012

Sunday, 25 November 2012

11.00am: Walked Jack in the park with other dogs.

3.00pm : Took Jack to the beach. We played fetch in the water. Jack enjoyed swimming after the ball. He ignored a boisterous puppy that came up and jumped on him. Jack did not know what to do with himself when we put the ball away. He got anxious and barked and circled us until we told him to sit down.
6.00pm : We went to the park. Jack played fetch for a little while as he was already tired. He then troted along with the rest of the dogs.

Jack - 23 November 2012

Friday, 23 November 2012

10.00am: Park walk with dog pack.
1.00pm : Jack found a stick in the park. He was very pleased with himself. He then played keep-away with a Samoyed for about half an hour.
4.00pm : Last walk of the day. We do not need to play fetch to tire Jack out now. He seem to use up most of his energy by 5pm.

Jack - 22 November 2012

Thursday, 22 November 2012

10:00am: Our first park walk of the day. Jack sticks with the pack when walking in a large open area.
1:00pm : Jack was pretty well-behaved when meeting with potential new owners. He played fetch with them and came when called.
4:00pm : Jack still jumps up at ball chuckers. We need to teach him to have better impulse/self-control.
9:00pm : Jack paced the house and barked when we had company over. After they left Josh took him out for a bicycle ride. Jack ran next to the bicycle on a lead until he was tired.

Jack - 21 November 2012

Wednesday, 21 November 2012

10.00am: Had a lead walk down to the beach. As Jack likes to pull we put on him an Easy Walk Harness. We can control him much better especially near big busy roads like Beach Road where there are lots of big trucks. Jack tried to lunge at a truck. We made him sit down and ignore the cars that were going by.

1.00pm : Took Jack to the park, where he played fetch with his friends. He still needs to see that we have a second ball before he will drop the one he has. Jack now understands the game however he gets impatient and tries to lunge for the ball that we have in the ball chucker. He also will try and jump up at other people at the park if they are carrying a ball chucker. We are trying to reinforce the "sit" before the ball is thrown.
4:00pm : We took Jack and Tashi to the Elsternwick park for his last run. There were many dogs there playing fetch. Jack was only interested in his ball and did not socialise much other than just a quick hello to the dogs that came over.
6:30pm : Jack lay down by the bed for 15 minutes before getting up and pacing the apartment again. We put him in his crate to calm down and have a proper rest.

Jack - 20 November 2012

Tuesday, 20 November 2012

10:00am: Our first park walk with our regulars. Jack knows most of these dogs and is friendly towards them. His recall is getting much better.
1:00pm : For our second session, Jack, Lilly and Fanny competed for the balls in a long game of fetch (pictured). Jack allowed the other dogs to keep the ball if they got to it first, though he is usually the first one to reach it. We are glad to see that he knows how to play politely, especially with little dogs.

4:00pm : We made Jack catch high balls with our third pack of the day. They enjoyed trying to outdo each other, by being faster or jumping higher. We find that this is an easier way to get him tired than running after a ball, as his herding dog genes allows him to run and run all day with little rest. When another dog growled at Jack and was being possessove of the ball, Jack backed off. He was still interested in taking the ball back though he prefered not to get into a confrontation.
7:30pm : Jack is having a rest in his crate after a hot long day out.

Jack - 19 November 2012

Monday, 19 November 2012

9.00am : Jack ran out the front door as soon as it was opened. He did come back inside when told to and waited nicely before we let him out again. He is gradually getting the "wait" command.
10.00am: Went for our first walk of the day to the park. Jack stayed close by most of the time. He went to greet other dogs and tried to get them to come over to our dog pack. He barked his confusion when a poodle cross on a lead did not follow him back to us.
1.00pm : We played fetch with Jack with two balls to start off with. He would catch the ball, bring it back, circle us a few times and wait with the ball still in his mouth. The "drop" command did make him drop the ball for a couple of seconds. Then he immediately picks it up again.

4.00pm :   Saying "ready" seemed to work better than "drop" as a command to drop the ball, as Jack focuses all his energy on the ball chucker and drops the ball. We also added "sit" before getting the ball from the ground and throwing it as a reward. He will politely let other dogs sniff him and chase a ball with him though he does not play with them.
6.30pm :   Jack paces the apartment, taking up his chew toys and spreading them around. We find that he needs a confined area in which he has no where to go before he will calm down and have the rest that he needs. We blocked off a small section between the bed and table next to my computer chair, where he can have his rest.
9.00pm :   Jack and Tashi were sitting side by side at the kitchen entrance watching as Josh cut up a leg of lamb for a roast. He was intently watching the meat being cut and when it got too much, he redirected that intense energy and towards Tashi and nipped her on the flank. We reprimanded him and put him in his crate for a few minutes before letting him out on a lead and making him sit by the kitchen entrance. We fed both dogs pieces of gristle, side by side; Tashi first as Jack is bottom of the pack. We need to work on Jack's impulse control especially when his intense focus gets too much for him and he needs an outlet.

Jack - 18 November 2012

Sunday, 18 November 2012

11.00am: Took Jack to a car boot sale in Sandringham. He was good in the crowds of people although he got excited when he saw some toys. We bought him a football which he chewed and carried through the field. He was very focused on his football and did not seem to notice the rabbits.
1.00pm : Went to the park with a couple of dogs. Jack played fetch with two tennis balls until he was tired. He then took the tennis ball and sat under a shady tree.

3.00pm : Jack was polite to other dogs at the park though he seems less interested in playing with them and would rather spend his time fetching a ball or walking with the pack.
5.00pm : We taught Jack to "drop" even when he can't see the reward, of a second ball. He understands the meaning of "drop" though he seems hesistant to give up the tennis ball in his mouth. We managed to play fetch with just one ball for a while. This will need further daily reinforcement to get him to "drop" reliably.
8.00pm : Jack would not sit still when a friend of our came to visit. He brought chewed up toys and balls to us. We took the toys and distractions away to get him to calm down. We made him sit in front of us but he was still playing up. Eventually we told him to go into his crate and gave him a bull chew. He fell asleep after chewing and eating it.

Jack - 17 November 2012

Saturday, 17 November 2012

11.00am: Walked Jack in the park with other dogs.
2.00pm : Beach run with dogs. Jack chased tennis balls into the sea. We tried teaching "drop" which was harder because Jack is not food motivated. We decided to give Jack an instant ball reward for "drop". When he dropped the tennis ball in his mouth, we would throw a basketball we found. It took a while but he learned "drop". Jack barked at a car that was leaving in the parking lot. He stopped when told to.

5.30pm :    Jack was barking and digging at the backyard gate while we were in the front yard. There were two other dogs with him. He seems to have some separation anxiety.
6.00pm :    We played fetch in the park with Jack with two tennis balls. It took a while to learn "drop" in a new environment. Just because he knew it at the beach does not mean he knows it at the park. We managed to tire Jack out.
10.00pm:    We gave Jack a huge bone for getting into his crate, with the door kept open. He did not cry or bark when we shut him in for the night. He was asleep the next time we looked in.

Jack - 16 November 2012

Friday, 16 November 2012

9.00am : Jack escaped us and ran onto the road to chase some cars. We will try to teach him to ignore cars.
11.00am: Park walk with dog pack. Jack enjoyed walking with the pack and kept an eye on all the dogs in our pack. He remembered the command "come" and could quite reliably return.
2.00pm : Took Jack to the park with another dog pack. He is getting better at the command "come". Jack waits, Lilly drops the tennis ball before he takes it and runs away with it. It makes him feel important to carry it around.

2.45pm : Jimmy, our previous foster dog, came for a visit and some training. Jack ran with Jimmy but did not want to play boisterous puppy games with the 11 month old. Jack did not react to the two 5 year old boys running around our pack. He did however steal their football and ran away with it.
4.00pm : We went to the beach with another dog pack. Jack played fetch with sticks and palm bark in the sea. He did not understand the concept of "drop". We will have to teach him how to drop.
6.00pm : Evening walk in the park with Jack and Tashi.
10.00pm: Jack likes his crate now. We gave him a pig ear and a cow hoof. He chewed on them for a while then fell asleep.

Jack - 15 November 2012

On the 15th of November, we went to meet our new foster dog, Jack, a 2 year old Staffy x Heeler cross (may not even have Staffy). He was very inquisitive and full of beans.

Thursday, 15 November 2012

1.00pm :    Picked Jack up from the kennel.
2.00pm :    Took Jack to the park with a dog pack. Walked him on a lead.
2.30pm :    Walked Jack off-lead. He already knew his name which made learning to come when called a bit easier. Jack took cues from the other dogs in the pack and soon got the message that a whistle or "come" meant he was to return to us. He responds well to short firm commands.

4.00pm :    Took Jack to the beach with other dog pack. He enjoyed having a paddle and a swim.
5.30pm :    Jack played with toys in backyard. He did not take too kindly when a toy was taken off him and growled at nearest dog (Tashi). We spent the next 10 minutes playing and stopping play with toys. *Have to learn "drop" and "leave" and to not jump up on people.
6.30pm :    Evening walk in the park with Jack and Tashi to further tire him out as he is a heeler and needs a lot of exercise.
10.00pm: Jack cried in crate for a while. We sat outside his crate until he calmed down.