Jade - 19th December 2013

Yesterday Jade met with our regulars again. It was nice to see that some remembered her. We kept her on a lead for most of the walk but let her off for a little run with the pack when she was more focused.
Later we took her and Tashi to the beach. Jade loved the water and jumped around in it. She tried to eat the floating seaweed as well. Jade was looking for dogs to play with. She was boisterous with the dogs. She displayed a little nervousness when she was the one chased.
She needs to learn to be gentle when playing. Her size and strength may not be something she is particularly aware off. She also needs to learn how to read other dogs for when the game is over - body language, growl, retreat,  etc. She listens to some but not to others. We are currently reinforcing the other dog's wishes with a stern disapproval.
At home she sits in her crate and comes up to us for attention. We also took her in our car for a night drive. She sat nicely in the back on the dog bed.
She seems nervous about people suddenly approaching when she wasn't aware of then before. She growls softly or barks. Would be a good trait for a guard dog.

Today we went to the park with our pack. There wasn't many other dogs at the park. It was a little bit hot. Jade had a second wind once we soaked her in water. She galloped around feeling much better.

Jade - 17th December 2013

Jade was dropped off at the park today for us to re-assess and re-socialise. The two homes she had since we last saw her just did not match her.
She seemed weary of other dogs at the park. Though she almost immediately ignored Tashi (after a little sniff), which showed that she remembers her and is comfortable around her.
She does not respond to names, Jade or Soda, unless she feels like it. She responds slightly better to "Jade", or maybe we just called her at a better time then. Her focus is lacking and all over the place. She did return to us, ran close to us, when we let her off the lead to gage her recall skills.

24th November 2013

Just got back from dropping Ollie at his new home. He has a lovely doggie friend named Boss too!

Ollie - 30 July 2013

Ollie is becoming more normal as the days pass, which is a huge relief for us all. He no longer cringes away when you pat his head, he can sit and wait nicely, and he is getting very good at coming when he is called. He still likes to run towards every dog he sees, but he will now return to me when I get too far away from him. He knows he's supposed to stay with his pack and he likes following me. He will take treats politely and share food with his friends.

He also seems to have overcome his car sickness, which I am very happy about because I no longer have to clean up dog sick from the floor of the van every day. He continues to be very social and gentle with other dogs, and makes friends easily.

On Sunday we took him to a friend's house who lives out near Warragul. There was a big barbeque with lots of people. He quickly became best mates with my friend's 12 week old puppy and they spent a long time rolling around and playfighting in the long grass together. The puppy was too rough and hung off his neck with its teeth, but he tolerated it very well. Later on he let people pat him and took scraps of food from them. He hung around the people who were standing on the deck chatting, and sat at their feet. I was very impressed with him and pleased to see that he didn't need a safe place to hide.

Ollie - 18 July 2013

Today we taught Ollie to sit. It was difficult.

We usually feed him his meals by hand and use globs of stinky food to get him used to being touched and patted. It took a long time to teach him "SIT" because at first he was too nervous to focus on the food and kept running away when the command was given.
You could say it in any tone of voice, he just did not understand the concept of a command. He also hated it when we tried to gently push his bottom down and would jump away scared and run back to his crate.

This stumped us for a while. How could we make him focus on the food hand without fear? We solved the problem by smearing smelly wet dog food all over my left hand and using that hand to try to push his bottom down (we had to wash him afterwards). My right hand would hold food in front of his face. We repeated this several times. With each repetition his panic and attempt to hide would become more half hearted as his hunger got the better of him.

Soon he learned that the left hand was not scary and was actually lickable and delicious. When I washed the smelly goop off my left hand, he began ignoring it and started focusing on my right hand. I used my left hand to tap his bottom, giving the "SIT" command and rewarding him with food when he sat. He only needed a slight touch from my left hand to remember what he was supposed to do. From that point it took about 5 minutes before he could sit on command, always with a reward. We told him he was clever, and he was very pleased with himself.

He is a surprisingly smart dog, he learns quickly but is very difficult to motivate because of his fear of new and unknown situations. Every day he gets a little bit braver and easier to handle. We are learning a lot from him, he forces us to think outside the box with every interaction.

Ollie - 16 July 2013

Ollie is making very good progress. Today he didn't run so far away and he returned to the pack more regularly. He's beginning to learn how to come when he's called, and when he returns he lies down and willingly accepts a pat on the head, occasionally even rolling over for a belly rub. He seems to like being told he's a good boy, and he even briefly let a few strangers pat him. He prefers being patted on the back rather than on the head. He is very happy being amongst his friends and is always very friendly and tolerant to other dogs.

He still doesn't like being touched spontaneously, but if you tell him you want to pat him he will usually allow it. He's very well housetrained and will whine and scratch at the front door when he needs to go to the toilet. If we can eliminate his fearful behaviour and find a solid way of motivating him in order to train him, he will make a very good pet.

Ollie - 11th July 2013

Ollie is not cowering every time we try to pat him. He doesn't seem to enjoy it but he doesn't run away. He doesn't mind it too much when we pat both him and Tashi at the same time. We have been hand feeding him every night as well.
Yesterday we took Ollie for what might be his first time to the beach.
In the park  and beach he follows for a little while but will run off to any other dog he sees. Sometimes he just chooses a direction to go. He doesn't take notice of where the rest of the pack is. He will quite happily wander off by himself. Eventually he does wander close enough to our pack for us to take him home. At the moment he is not motivated by food, pats or toys. We still need to figure this one out.
Ollie seems to have stiff back legs which causes him some discomfort. He likes to run around with other dogs so it might just be a sprain.

Ollie - 9th July 2013

Ollie is making lots of progress. Last night he sat in the middle of the room at Nanny's house. This was the first time he met the family. He lay down and almost had a snooze after making sure, by looking at Tashi, that everything was alright. 

Today Ollie was good in the park with the other dogs. He is getting more responsive to our voices and presence. He will now look at us when he comes whereas yesterday he just looked at the other dogs. He also comes back when we call him after he meets other dogs.  Not instantly but it is progress.
He doesn't immediately cringe when strangers try to pat him. Though he won't go too near them if there is no dogs nearby.

Judging by the progress he is making, we think Ollie will be ready for adoption in no time.

Ollie - 8th July 2013

Last night we collected our new foster dog, Ollie, who is a human shy 11 months old Staffy.
He gets along fine with Tashi and came on a couple of walks with us today. He loves other dogs and goes up to meet them confidently. He gets a little car sick and just sits on the floor of the car.

Lemmy - 5th June 2013

Today we took Lemmy to his new home!

Lemmy - 19th May 2013

Lemmy is an enthusiatic dog. He enjoys being chased by other dogs in the park. He plays nicely and is easy to exercise. When he gets tired, he happily walks beside or behind you. He is very soft mouthed when taking treats from your hand and is motivated by food.

This week we visited our neighbour and Lemmy met her cat for the first time. Cyrus ran away and Lemmy followed him inside. He tried to make friends with Cyrus but was too annoying for him. Lemmy got sidetracked and ate the cat food instead!

Lemmy - 11th May 2013

We've tested Lemmy in a variety of challenging situations and he has performed excellently. He's friendly and sociable in large groups of people, and plays nicely with other dogs without getting overexcited. He's well behaved around kids and small dogs and he enjoys meeting strangers. He still jumps up on people a bit but he's learning not to. I think Lemmy will make a fantastic family dog as he approaches every new experience calmly with a wag in his tail.

Lemmy - 6 May 2013

Lemmy came with us to some training sessions during the weekend and helped out with a little dog's lead aggression. He was enthusiastic and friendly and provided a good example. During his off leash walks he likes to run up confidently to other dogs and pretend to be an alpha, however this is all for show and he will run away if he gets scared. He's very friendly to humans and enjoys getting pats and attention from strangers. His recall is fair and he can sit on command. At home Tashi is very bossy and steals his food, he puts up with it very nicely.

Lemmy - 2 May 2013

Today we picked up our new foster dog, Lemmy. Lemmy is a staffy cross, possibly with a cattle dog like a kelpie or heeler, from the country. He smelled bad so we took him for a hydrobath and he tolerated it very nicely. Although he was eager to get out.
We walked him on a lead around the park before taking him home. He walks on a lead well for a dog with not much lead experience. He pulls a little towards people and other dogs but it is to greet them, and possibly jump on a few people in hopes of pats.He seems a little unsure of the city and all its hustle and bustle.
He is fine with having us around him at his dinner time. He allowed us to touch his face while he ate and also to take food off him.
He always has a wag in his tail and loves to be patted.

Jade - 8th April 2013

Today we took Jade (now Soda) to her new home and family!

Jade - 2nd April 2013

 

Jade is now up for adoption.  


 

 Jade is an affectionate puppy. 

She is eager to please and very gentle , especially when taking food from your hand. 

She knows how to sit, can usually come when called, and responds well to food motivation. 

She is a very enthusiastic puppy and needs a good deal of exercise and training to make her the best dog she can be.

Jade - Week 1 (26th Feb - 4th Mar)

 Jade has had a good week. Her recall is getting more reliable by the day, she sits most of the time when not distracted, and is almost fully house-trained.

Jade - 26th February 2013

Picked Jade, a possible Mastiff cross, up from Balwyn in the afternoon and took her for a walk in an enclosed park.

We let Jade off-leash and are in the process of teaching her recall at the Dendy Park. She adored everyone she saw and got lots of pats and rubs from the people at the park. She was polite to other dogs, even when she was a little unsure at times. She ran around a little bit with other dogs that were chasing a ball.

Jade was tired at the end of the two hours amd is sleeping soundly under my computer chair.

Max - 5 February 2013

Today we took Max to his new home!   :)

Max - 29 January 2013

Max had a lovely long weekend, spending time at the beach and park. He is getting better at following the pack and not wondering off by himself too much. When he does wonder off, he now looks around to find us. He is also getting 'sit' very well!


He is very good with other dogs. He may be a little bit too 'sniffy' but he is never bad with another dog. We have had a couple of dogs try and mount him and he moved away from them instead of engaging. Today a little terrier came up and was nipping at his legs. Max tried to sniff it and walked off when he couldn't. All his friends came up to see and stop the terrier from being nippy towards Max.

Max was not too polite at the weekend barbeques. He loved the one with the teenagers; he went and stood in the middle of a group of girls who patted and cooed at him. However he was over exuberant at the family gathering. He was bumping into people and jumping up at nanny! He wouldn't be left outside and kept banging on the glass door. We had to crate him up so that he would calm down. We will have to keep up his training so that he will be a well behaved dog in the future.

Max - 23 January 2013

Had a fun day at the beach. Max played nicely with the bigger dogs at the beach. He instantly connected with a German Shepard and they jumped around  in the water together and bumped each other. Max got out of his depth and was a little worried but he managed to swim back to shore. We think it might be his first swim ever! He tried to chase a young Staghound cross but was a little slow. We can see that he is getting fitter everyday and is less tired at the end of play sessions.

 As much as he likes the water and sprinklers, Max is not as enthusiastic as some of our other dogs when being hosed off!

Max - 19 January 2013

First time taking Max to the beach after his stiches have healed. He spent a lot of time scooping up sea water in his mouth! He sits for treats as well, after a bit of reminding. He follows nicely and comes when called.

We get Max to sit before putting his dinner down. He is getting it very nicely. Next step is "wait" before eating when the bowl is on the ground.
Our dog sits to eat, but being a Tenterfield she is close enough to the ground. Max tried to sit and eat but it got too uncomfortable so he lay down instead!

Max - 16 January 2013

Max is learning to walk on a lead. He is much better at it at the end of the day or at night, after a whole days excerise. Lead walking first thing in the morning is not Max's favourite activity. He would rather walk where he wants. We have a couple of older dogs to teach him to walk on a lead. Max has not learnt to stay on one side of the handler. He also bumps into the other dogs as he walks. We have to teach him how to walk in a straight line.

Max - 15 January 2013

We are teaching Max not to throw himself at the door, be it front door or van door, as soon as it is open. He uses his weight to try and push his way past. We are teaching him to sit in front of the door. He does not stay sitting for long. 'Wait' is another command we are trying to teach Max. He waits for a little while, a few seconds, but tries to lunge out as soon as he is done waiting. He does not wait for the release. He tends to get better at waiting the later in the day (the more tired he is).

We are trying to get Max's stamina and muscle tone up. He does tend to only potter around the park and is panting more by the end of the first walk, eventhough he does less exercise than the rest of the dogs. Today we had Max running with the pack, if only for a little while.

Max is definately looking fitter and slimmer!

Max - 14 January 2013

Max is getting better at sticking with the group. He does socialise with other groups but he mostly returns to ours pack when called. We have kept up training the 'sit' command in different situations. He can 'sit' well for treats in the park.

 Max paces less and less at home everyday. He will lie down and have a rest near to us. He does not like being in a separate room as us.

Max - 13 January 2013

We had a successful weekend with Max. We thought him how to sit, though he only does it with treats. He is still learning the command 'lie down'. We had Roxy, a black labrador, play tug of war with him. At first he was unsure but he gradually got the hang of the game. Max is still very easily distracted so the game never goes on for very long. After a long weekend of training, Max snuggles up on some clothes with Tashi.

Max - 10 January 2013

11.00am:     Took Max out with our second group of the day. He enjoyed playing in the sprinklers. He followed our pack for the most part. His recall is getting a little bit better. Hoping to further improve this as the days go on.

3.00pm:       Max remembers how to jump the one meter high fence at the park. He seems to want to follow the other dogs who are leaving the park. He hangs around outside the fence if they leave by cars. He was quite taken by a very young Kelpie puppy that was on a lead and wanted to follow it around. Max goes up and greets every new dog that enters the park as well. He is not in the slight bit interested in chasing the ball.

6.00pm:     Max cut a bit of his front pad when he broke the water bowl, as he likes to dig the water up after he has finished drinking. He was very good when we put a bandage on it. He sniffed at the bandage but did not chew on it. We kept up Max's training in sitting still in a new house.
8.30pm:     Max is now resting nicely on the floor, after only a short period of pacing!

Max - 9 January 2013

5.00pm:     Brought Max home. Tried to get him to rest after his surgery. Penned him off in a section of the living room and stroke him to sleep. Slept for less than half an hour before wanting to pace.
7:00pm:     Took an hour an a half to teach Max that it was good to sit and lie down on his bed without pacing. Slowly the pacing time decreased and the resting time increased.
9.00pm:      Last walk around the neighbourhood. He is getting better at lead walking. He pulls less, but still walks in a zig zag way.

Max - 8 January 2013

11.00pm:     Let Max off lead with second group in an enclosed park. His interaction with other dogs is getting better. He is not constantly in their faces. Though he was a bit too rowdy for an elderly labrador. He decided to follow a large pointer who jumped over the meter high fence. When we got Max back, he had forgotten how to jump across the fence. He seems to be constantly learning behaviours from other dogs, though remembering is another matter.

2.00pm:     The dogs enjoyed the water overflow in the park, especially Max who rolled in it and drank from it. Max is still finding his feet in the pack dynamics. He seems to try out new packs. If a dog walks past, he will follow them, even if they are going in the opposite direction. We need to train up his recall and following skills, which we will throughly focus on once he settles in.

5.00pm:   Took Max to the vet. He will be coming home tomorrow.

Max - 7 January 2013

9.00am:     Woke up and Max was sleeping on his back in the crate.
Took Max out with our first group of the day. He does not walk well on a lead. He gets very excited and bites the lead. He also walks in a zigzag pattern as he wants to sniff everything and go in every direction.
12.00pm:     Let Max off lead with second group. He is learning about packs but is still unsure which is his. He followed a lady and her staffy cross halfway across the park eventhough we called him. He looked at us but kept going with them until he was bored (they did not pay attention to him) and came back. He did enjoy paddling in the water bowl and getting splashed by the sprinklers.
4.00pm:   Max does not know how to calm down yet. He paces the house and does not stop panting. He sits still for a pat but starts pacing again when the pat stops.
8.00pm:   Walked Max to the supermarket. Left him tied with Tashi. He was good for a few of minutes but started barking when people walked past him. Josh sat with the dogs.

Max - 6 January 2013

4.30pm:       Picked up a new foster dog, Max, a curly coated retriever.
7.30pm:       Max got a shave to get rid of some of his matted fur.
8.30pm:       Took Max to the enclosed park and let him off the lead. His recall is not very good as he gets distracted easily.
10.00pm:      Put Max in his crate for the night. He dug in the cushion and whined. He relaxed when he heard our voices.