Roxie is here!

I haven't had chance to post as its been so hectic but I wanted to share with you the experience of a dog we had staying with us recently.

Roxie the Weimaraner arrived whilst her owners went to Berlin for a welcome break. A little overexcited and  covering up some anxiety she is a bit nuts when she first sees you and has a bad habit of jumping up to greet you. She is very tense and does not settle which is not unusual in the first day or so of a dog boarding with us. As the days rolled on, she did not relax which is highly unusual. She would pace about and only start to settle right at the end of the night.

Food was guarded and a menacing growl given if you approached within the smell of her food. A treat she had been given was ignored, but when my lad went to stroke her she growled and moaned at him and I had to remove it.

Lovely on the walk, a little tense with some dogs with her hackles up she was not a problem and I enjoyed being out with her. A habit of rolling in strong smells was not unusual but not welcome and she needed watching for signs of bathing in Sutton parks finest!

So here's the thing, it turns out the owners teenage son loves to wind the dog up and she is acknowledged in the house whilst she is in an excited state. The learning from this is, don't wind your dog up, lie on the floor, fight or generally tease them if you want a calm and balanced animal! You must show your leadership and that includes acting like a leader and not a child! Your dog cannot understand the difference between a bit of fun and a serious confrontation. If your dog is tense or excited, ignore it! Let it deal with it and realise that that state of mind is unacceptable to you and that you will only acknowledge a calm and controlled state of mind!

We only had 6 days with Roxie and she was slowly calming down but really needed another week to fully give into relaxation!

The food issue I deal with by holding the bowl with her food in! Remember its your food that you are sharing, dont put it on the floor and then wander why your dog is warning you to go away! Offer her a few kibbles in your hand and then gentley stroke her head very briefly at first so as not to wind her up to much! If she grumbles I lift the bowl UPWARDS not sideways and stop the feeding. By going up you take the aggression out of the situation and prevent a bite!

Keep offering kibble and stroking, building up more and more as the dog desensitizes. You will know when you are winning but be patient don't rush! I then put the bowl down but stand almost on it whilst the dog eats, so that it knows you are not afraid and wont back off!

Work on this and you will find that your dog will go back to being accepting of your role at meal times, but you must back this up with firm and consistent leadership at all other times!

Any questions, comments or suggestions please feel free to leave them here. If you want information help or advice about home boarding your dog with us in the Streetly area of Sutton Coldfield, then you can go to my website www.lookafteryourdog.co.uk or to buy dog leads, dog food, or any other dog related products you can go to my other site www.dog-shop.co.uk where you can buy everything for your dog in one place and see articles relating to dog training, dog care and dog health! Steve