JMFS

I'm hoping Gertie's laid back nature will carry us through this. If not, we have the means to manage it - it just won't be as lovely as it would if the girls got along. With 6 sessions coming up with Esther as well, we can enlist their help in making it as smooth as possible. I'm with you, though. I'm a bit trepidatious, but also excited. I'm anxious to see if Esther has the ability to temper herself now. They did say she has stopped gulping her water down, and even went accident free at least once. She said she's grown fond of our little girl. :) She sent a text around 9:30 last night saying Esther was being integrated into their pack. She was playing with their 1-yr old puppy and their 4-yr old unaltered male. These gals definitely live and breathe the dog life! They sent pictures of Esther being out to lunch with them - she got to sit on the patio and they said she was confused when the food came out and she didn't get any, lol. They were talking about wine in the very first video they sent so I'm going to put together a little basket for them. I'm thinking of getting a few 4-packs of those single serve bottles, and arranging them with some cheese and crackers (just hope they're not vegan!). I'm trying to think of something for Leah. She's really big on holidays and brought us things for Christmas and Valentine's. I feel, with Mother's Day being this weekend, I should get a little something for her, too. I don't know if she drinks wine, or what her other likes are so it's tough. I'm not very good at these gifting things, but I'm trying. :) For Adrienne, hmmmm. Chocolates? Wine? Massage gift certificate! ❤

Esther comes home Saturday. We'll meet at a pet store to do some training so we learn how to help her in the world. Then we'll have 6 more sessions with them each Saturday after that. She said she's grown very fond of Esther, and the bottom line is that she's just a nervous and insecure puppy. The report before this one was that she encountered 3 unknown dogs at the pet store. She barked at the first one (so she's not 100%, but better) and ended up coughing up her treat, surprising herself. They said it was hilarious, and I can only imagine, lol. Single instance learning? Bark at a dog, lose your treat! 😆😆😆 It makes me feel better about my training, knowing that Esther truly was a severe case that needed extra care, structure, consistency, and knowledge. They've laid the groundwork, and now it's up to me (us, really, but the husband considers himself more dog than dog trainer, lol) to reinforce it. Gertie now offers a wave before every meal - it's her new got-to, followed closely by bowing, and then spinning. I'm teaching her to pick up her bowl. So far I have her scooting it across the floor with her nose, which is an improvement on her slapping it with her paw and sending it flying up in the air (it's a Cool Whip container so no fear of breakage & easily replaced). I haven't been able to work on the front door for a couple weeks and Leah arrives Wednesday. I still think there will be progress evident because we did work on it pretty hard every day for 2½ weeks before whatever happened to make us stop. I can't recall why we took a break from the training, but we'd better get back to it!

This brought to mind another pup. We haven't heard back from her so I'm hoping that means the solutions contained within this post helped. The empty bowl brought me back to desensitization training with Momo. The trainer had me work with him with an empty bowl first. In this case, if Knoet is not protective of any other bowl you could use a different bowl to start. She basically had me make a positive association for Momo with the bowl so that I could touch it whenever I needed, full or empty. I know that's not super informative. I don't want to take you through the whole exercise we did without knowing whether this is a "this is my bowl, my only bowl, the one bowl, the best bowl," or if it's a "any bowl is mine mine mine" kind of situation. Each would have its own approach. However, I can tell you that it's absolutely possible to get Knoet past this. :)

I didn't see it mentioned. Are you cleaning the accidents with enzymatic cleaner like Nature's Miracle? Breaking down the things they can smell, but we can't, can help with repeated accidents. I believe at 7 months she's nearing bladder maturity. Have you tried training her with bells to alert? If she's in another room when she's needing to potty she may need a way to get your attention. Some dogs are too polite to ask (my Gertrude) and will hold it as long as possible. Other dogs (Esther, incontinent, and Abbi, elderly) are going to do their thing. But if we give them a way to ask they may be more likely to use that. As you said, she's too quiet for you to hear from elsewhere in the house, so giving her a tool to help her alert you may alleviate most of the problem. I tend to tether my dogs to me until they're potty trained, and otherwise trusted in the house. To me, tethering offers more opportunities to train as well. I have a leash that I can put into many configurations so I can tether to furniture as well if I need more mobility. Has she ever soiled her bed? You could train her to go to her bed when she's on the carpeted areas. Most dogs won't toilet on their bed (unless they're Momo - he had an odd hatred of beds, and what most of us would consider comfortable, in general). That way she could at least be with y'all when you're in the carpeted rooms, and she has a better chance of getting your attention if she's one of those polite pups. What else can I throw in here? I generally take the girls out about 20 - 30 minutes after they've had water. Esther especially, given her incontinence. I also go by the logic of, if I need to go, they may need to go, and I'll let them out before or after. The final idea I have on my brain for you is whether she's been to the veterinarian to rule out a medical reason like a UTI.

She has these: CCPDT-KA, CTDI, IAABC-ADT One of these days I'm going to upload all the videos to my YouTube channel so I can share them here. Esther is still focused on other dogs, but she's no longer whining, pulling, or barking, and she can be called off. She can't break her own focus, yet, but she's getting close. In one video a Yorkie jumped towards her from a cart and she got distracted, but didn't go into her usual reaction mode. The Yorkie is out of the shot, but you can see Esther's "what's going on over there" reaction to it. Given that was in the pet store, we're proud of her keeping herself under that level of control. This girl just may get there after all! It will have only taken 3 trainers, and myself to do it, lol. Leah assures me I'm an excellent trainer and I should have more confidence in myself. Esther is just a tough nut to crack. I'm consistently being told to be more celebratory with the dogs - I guess I have carry over from the alpha style training and am kind of stern / serious with the training instead of fun. I predict Esther will be with them 6 weeks, maybe 7, before coming home. Her 4th week ends today - she went to them 1 week before my cataract surgery (I timed it all together - have to take advantage of these moments). Then they'll do the "owner's manual" training with us with the 6 follow up sessions. I love that they're not training her, then wishing us luck. Your advice about that was paramount to selecting them for Esther's training. ❤

Thank you for your service. ❤ My dad is a veteran of the Marines, turning 82 this year. Did the trainers try to help you work through whatever was "you, not her?" Trainers who are worth their salt aren't likely to dismiss people so quickly, which is why I ask. Not all trainers are created equal, for sure. Without asking you to disclose anything you're not comfortable sharing, are their specifics you could give? E.g., my dad's hands are starting to shake badly, and that can make dogs nervous when he's attempting to give them treats. He has little feeling in his hands, so he sometimes pets too rough for my brother's smaller dogs. What service(s) are you wanting her to help you with? If I've learned anything through my time here, it's that I'm just as much in training as the dogs are! Maybe more so me than them . . ..

We could actually use Gertie. Esther gets riled up even with Gertie at a distance! She's full of twists and turns for sure. I am with you - it's likely a combination. Over time it may come to be that the more dogs they get used to, the more new dogs they can handle. Or not. You just never know, and all we can do is try to prepare for successes. I Love that saying! Thank goodness you and Leah agree. Y'all have very similar approaches and insights. I think the boarding trainer might be that third, lol. She takes on severe cases, though, so requires a different angle. The way I see it, I'm lucky to have three great minds helping with Esther! All those years of combined training and certifications for our little shelter pup. <3 If she only knew how good she has it!

Lol, just like dogs, even the training methods have micro distinctions! I'll update when I've met with them to let you know how it's going. I know she's brilliant, so can do anything as long as the person teaching her knows what they're doing. She was just too complex for me (and the time constraints) so I'm happy that I have the ability to hire someone who has the ability to help her. <3 By the time we're through this she will be the cost of a fully-trained police dog, but it will be worth it because we'll know we are giving her a life where she can cope and live in peace (I hope!) rather than fearing, and reacting to, every little thing.

Question. What type of flooring are you practicing on? Our Dachshunds struggled with it because we have hardwood floors and they kept sliding. Adrienne mentioned capturing and I Love that method. To me, the drawback is it only works for behaviors they offer. The bonus is that they offer So many behaviors. :D It's how I taught Gertrude how to bow. Every morning she would stretch I would say, "bow." I don't keep treats in the bedroom so I couldn't capture it with a snack, but I started setting her up to learn the word. When I Did have treats and she would bow I would say, "bow," and give her a treat. She now offers bows all the time. So cute! One other thing I can think of is maybe the treat isn't worthy enough. Initially you might consider using a higher value something (hot dog, boiled chicken, freeze dried food - something good and smelly) to get her attention. I'll be curious to know how it goes after implementing the suggestions.

Good girl, "Cora!" So it's really not all that much different than what we're already doing. We're just teaching her to seek her comfort instead of removing the trigger, or allowing her to react to it negatively (in our minds, anyway). Which makes sense, because we can't influence the world around us like we want to, but we can teach our dogs coping mechanisms. I can't make the neighbor's barking puppies go inside when we're outside, but I can teach Esther that moving further away from them is rewarding, rather than running up to the fence to go nuts - which yields no reward. It makes me think of the emergency U-turn. Unless I'm misunderstanding, that is. To me it seems the timing is the trickiest part. And for that I'm glad I have a plethora of help. :)

She's staying a bit longer. They're starting BAT training with her from Grisha Stewart and said she's responding well. She wants to meet with us in public once Esther's gotten the hang of it so she can show us how to use the protocol. I'll be reading up about BAT later. I like the aggression information. It's true - she's not proactively aggressive, but she will react severely when faced with certain situations. It brings to mind the time I was wearing headphones so I could concentrate. A co-worker was trying to get my attention. Rather than moving into my field of view, he lifted one of the ear pieces from my head. I Snapped at him, "NO!" I never did live that down, lol. It stemmed from years of being teased from my brother. He would lift my ear piece and snap it back to my head. When this poor fellow touched them, he felt all that wrath. It's okay, though - he kind of deserved it. He was somewhat of a pain who tried to get me riled up (he also had a sister whom he tortured). He was slightly more cautious after that, which reinforced my behavior. :p All I had to do after that was raise my eyebrow at him.

ROFLMAO! So flipping accurate! I can remember my amma's (grandma) dog, Schmitty, under the Thanksgiving table giving my best friend what for. We got in trouble for giggling at the table (we were 13 . . . c'mooooon). He would Not relent. She would scoot him away and he'd come back with fervor. Thank goodness my friend thought it was funny because I certainly would not have. But because She thought it was funny, I was able to laugh, too. I knew Zero about dog training back then. Poor Schmitty. He was a sweet and cute dog, but I had little to do with him after that. I didn't want him getting any ideas! For some reason I summoned a picture in my mind of body pillows being dragged around on ropes, or danced around, to entice Shiloh into the behavior with recalls to reward him for stopping. I'm having a day, I think. Friday Work Avoidance Syndrome. I'm interested to read what Adrienne has to say. Aw, Shiloh, I cherish your antics. Please tell your human companion we need more stories about your foibles, adventures, and successes❣️

Oh, yes, do encourage them! It's an entirely new world out there for me. I was brave and did each eye within a week of the other. I did feel the first surgery a little. No pain, but there was discomfort as I felt everything sliding around - ewwww! I was a bit intrigued, a bit bemused, and a bit freaked, lol. They gave me extra Versed (like Valium or Xanax), where I was hoping they would just numb my eyes more - I don't like taking those drugs unless I Really need them (flying - definitely for flying, lol). It all worked out, though, and I didn't feel a thing on the second eye. Yesterday I was reading road signs off to my husband, something I haven't been able to do in a year or more. We're talking like those Huge numbers on gas station prices that I couldn't read. Gertie is coming right along with the mat. Leah arrives the first week of May for a session so we'll see how well Gerts does. Gertie was struggling with the doorbell so I separated it from the training altogether and did a ring, treat, ring, treat, ring, wait, treat, with lots of praise in between. It retained quite well for today's training and she had the added distraction of kids riding by on their bicycles. All bicycles must be chased, except when we're on leash, then they're tolerable. She also now offers waving in addition to turning around, bowing, and rolling over, when she's unsure of what the heck I want. 😆

I haven't read through them, but here they are, a mountain of mounting issues. 😆😆😆 https://braintraining4dogs.com/forum/topic/874-mounting-other-dogs/?do=findComment&comment=4364 https://braintraining4dogs.com/forum/topic/267-feeling-like-a-failure/#comment-1406 https://braintraining4dogs.com/forum/topic/685-labradors-humping-other-dogs/?do=findComment&comment=2989 https://braintraining4dogs.com/forum/topic/791-one-member-of-the-couple/?do=findComment&comment=3853

Oh, Shiloh! I just love hearing about his life. Let me dig up the humping threads. There are plenty, haha. I do know that dogs will hump for play. Usually it happens when their relationship is balanced and they'll trade humps. Why they like this, I haven't a clue, but it's certainly normal behavior and there Are ways to prevent it. I'm thinking proactive rather than reactive is going to be the key, but one moment, please, as I go forum delving. :D

What activities are happening when he's biting? A Beagle should be pretty easy to avoid when talking about hands, given their height. It sounds like y'all might be sitting or in another position that makes hands easily accessible. If that's the case you could remove yourself, and thus your hands, from biting range and he'll eventually figure out, "hey, when I put my teeth on them, they go away - that's no fun!" He Might switch to a different behavior, though, so it's important to know what is going on when he's biting the hands. Or, you could put him on the ground when he starts to bite (assuming you're in a position where that would resolve the issue). Is he doing this when he's tired? After playing and you're ready to stop? Or are you sitting there, minding your own business, when he starts to chomp? Is he neutered? Ummm, what else can I ask to help Adrienne troubleshoot? Does he go for feet, too? Or is his preference for hands? I know one thing that's been recommended if he's breaking the skin is to wear gloves until he learns bite inhibition. That helps with your own tolerance, and prevents scratches and wounds. Here's the threshold article to help you determine whether he's over threshold: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/ And the puppy tantrum: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/impulse-control-frustration-tolerance/ A search of the forums for all the tantrum threads (there are plenty, lol!) https://braintraining4dogs.com/forum/search/?q=tantrum&quick=1 And bite inhibition: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/bite-inhibition-games/ https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/train-dog-take-treats-gently/ https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/exercises-to-teach-puppies-to-tolerate-touch/ Touching hands with a purpose: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/preschool/targeting/ Because he's a Beagle and has that magnificent nose, here's a calmer game that will tire out his brain: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/elementary/the-treasure-hunt/

Cataracts are gone and Oh Boy is the world bright! I feel like a vampire, retreating to darkened rooms, lol. The vision difference is incredible! I have a whiteboard 7 feet away that I used to have to use my phone camera to see so I could type information from it into my spreadsheet instead of having to go over there, hope I remember, then go back to the computer. I can see it Almost perfectly clearly now. It will take about a month to completely heal, but Wow - I can't get over how bad it had gotten! Esther is being kept for a 4th week, haha. I knew 3 weeks was a lofty goal! They Did get her on the treadmill, but she still requires a toy stuffed with peanut butter to do it. Still, that's a major achievement for her. Their assessment is that she's highly insecure, rather than being aggressive. She's been to her first social outing and did well. She met the miniature horse they have in the house and was barky at first, but soon learned it lived there. I need to ask how she's doing with the chickens . . .. There's a neighborhood cat who likes Esther, but she seems to have an issue with it. Odd since she is okay with Monkey. I wouldn't trust her alone with him like I do Gertie, but with a person there she behaves. Poor Monkey - he just wants to love and be loved, but all these dogs like to chase him. He grooms and rubs against Gertie, and she lays there and enjoys it, but if he starts to run or makes a jerky movement, even Gerts' prey drive kicks in. Gertie has learned how to wave, and is getting better at sitting on the mat while I fiddle with the door. Getting her to the mat is another thing. I'm going to have to go back a couple steps because I have to tell her mat now, where she was doing it on her own. I must have progressed too fast. Hope all is well here! Happy Easter. :)

Are you afraid he'll choke himself by getting caught on the doggie door? I'm not sure what you mean by "difference between the front and back." If we can get a few more specifics it will be easier to troubleshoot. :)

Yes! That's Precisely how I train it. <3 I start with whistle / treat / whistle / treat, rinse and repeat. I don't worry about over treating this object because I Want them to drop Everything else if they hear this. Then I start with them in a stay and I take a few steps away. When I blow the whistle they come, treat. Then we up the ante by me going around the corner. Next step is a different room. So on and so forth. I didn't train Monkey at all. He figured out whistle = food by watching the dogs. He prefers Pachelbel's Canon in D, but he'll respond to the whistle, lol. The silent whistle is especially helpful for me with the insomnia because I'm often out with the girls at 3 or 4 in the morning and who wants to hear their neighbor hollering at that hour? :D The reviews for the ACME whistle I bought were complaining about how it doesn't work. More accurately, it doesn't work to stop the neighbor's dogs from barking. 🤣

Sometimes I can whistle well, and other times my whistler is broken, lol. I love love love my silent whistle! I bought the ACME silent whistle - the Petsmart one was far from silent. Out of all the dogs, the cat responds the best to it, haha! Momo would turn on a dime when I used the silent whistle, Gertie is a bit better, and when Esther gets back we'll be working on that with her, too. It's a great tool because, unless they have very specific receptors, your neighbors won't be bothered by it.

Awww, my heart breaks for y'all! This one is, and this is impressive, a new one I've seen here. I look forward to hearing suggestions. Just know that you're in good hands with Adrienne! dddd Something that may help Adrienne help you is to describe the car ride from Texas to Washington. How did she behave, what did y'all do on the stops along the way, were there any potty accidents, what is her age, is she spayed, etc . . .. Do you know what her life situation was like prior to adopting her? Have they given any insight about traveling, etc . . .. How does she react to females vs males? Did you have any dogs previous that may have left a scent behind - anything you can think of. When she meets strangers, is it when you're out and about, or is it in your house? Anything you can think of to help troubleshoot. <3

I forgot! I met your German twin sister! When this gal called my name at the eye doctor's office I started looking for you. Her tone, cadence, accent, pitch, all of it was just like yours! I had to ask her where she was from and then told her she has a twin in AZ, lol. Same hair length, though hers is blonde, and y'all even have some of the same movements (from the limited I've seen in your videos). I'm not sure about height, but it was so surreal.

I received the first video. They tackled her claws, which I have been unable to get to due to the cataracts (surgery in April!). She was definitely stiff and uncomfortable, but she was tolerating everything. She was possibly shut down to the experience as she was staring straight ahead, but not putting up a fight is a good thing. They did have her muzzled so my limited training there turned out helpful. They did say the size 3 is too small so I'm going to find a way to get them the size 4 that Lean and I thought was too big. I think she's an in betweeny. She was picked up with the trainer's dog, Gator, in the front seat. He completely ignored Esther and she didn't really notice him right away because she was being put into a crate in the back of an SUV. When she did notice Gator, and started barking, Stephanie observed the body language and Gator continued to ignore Esther. The observation was that the body was squared, but loose and her leg positioning was also giving more friendly signals than aggressive. When Esther couldn't get Gator's attention she turned back to us and immediately received praise from Stephanie. Esther tried for Gator's attention again, was denied, and praised once more. After that her attempts to engage Gator were less fervent. Oh, when Stephanie came into the house and Esther started barking at the yard guys Stephanie went straight into training mode and called Esther back and directed me, "no engagement." I was like, "huh?" Lol. She was firm, but neutral, and when Esther came to us there was plenty of praise. Maybe Esther's not as bad off as we thought, and perhaps our vantage point is skewed by being hit with it Every day and not having time to address it properly, in addition to being in new territory with her brand of issues. Time will tell. The way she was pulling me, and carrying on, over the puppy at the vet's office says we're not imagining her issues, but it could be my reaction that makes it worse. Try as I might to stay neutral in those situations I'm sure she can sense that I'm frustrated. Like children, they also behave differently when different people are in charge. Like you say, until dogs can talk, we can only guess. She's going to have 4 - 5 training sessions per day and will sleep in a crate in their house. That works well since that's where she sleeps in our house, too. She made an interesting point about the flirt pole, given Esther's breed mix and her prey drive. That dog is Hyper focused on the flirt pole. So much so that if I take her outside with it she won't even pee - and that's the Very first thing she normally does, usually barely making it to the grass if I'm not proactive about taking her before the need is too great. Putting 2 and 2 together now, I'm going back to that first day when Esther met the flirt pole and then attacked Abbi. Yes, Abbi started it, but Esther's prey drive was also heightened. Something to ponder, anyway. She'll be meeting chickens and miniature horses (they service train) as well as many other dogs. I'll update when I hear from them again. She said she'd be sending pictures and videos. If I don't hear anything tonight I'll be sure to ask for an update. Meanwhile, the energy in our house has definitely lightened. Gertie got 100% of Leah's attention today and we got in some Great training. She helped me troubleshoot some things I've been having issues with and she challenged me to move Gertie's training along a little faster. Instead of 1 baby step, take 2, maybe even 3, for example. She said I have a good sense of when to break it down further and I just need to trust my training a bit more. That's more accolades for you because you've taught me so very much over the years. Whether by responding to my own posts, or me reading your advice and guidance for others. 😊 Go us!

How often do you practice / reinforce recalls? The first two points sound like he's maturing! Gertie use to get up from her bed as soon as I walked in the room, but now she's like, "oh, it's . . . you. Zzzzzz." The third point, though, I know is problematic. I've had to work with Gertie recently to reinforce her recall because she was doing the same as what you described.

You might try looking for "extinction burst." Puppies are highly prone to these just before crashing. It can be a delicate balance between getting enough play and calling it quits before the tantrum occurs. Great that you introduced her to the neighbor! Letting him know that you're aware of her outbursts and are working on it can go a long ways towards keeping things civil. I've always talked to my neighbors and asked them to let me know if the noise got to be too much - I had no idea if Momo was quiet or not during the day. They all reported he was quiet as could be unless someone, or something, else made a loud noise. He'd bark for a minute, then stop. You could even try some humor and buy him ear plugs (I recommend Mack's silicone ear plugs, lol). Are you crate training her? Or do you have an area you can gate so she can be easily separated from the cats? Having a constant stimuli within reach can perpetuate these outbursts. I think of kids at the table with their phones and how it's often difficult for them to ignore the phones. If the phones are not allowed at the table it's easier for them to resist. Hang in there! I'm one who loves dogs but can't stand their shed hair, drool, whining (the Worst - drives me nuts), and barking, lol. Like . . . everything dog. My husband comments Often, "how are you a dog person?!" There's a jazz up, settle down game in the training that might be good for helping her find her "off" button. Definitely brain games for her because she's so smart. I have "Quiet Moments" spray from NaturVet as well as Lavender Zum Mist (it's lavender oil, water, and a carrier). I alternate them with the girls. When I know there's going to be a time that they're going to get wired I spray one or the other and keep things calm for about 5 - 10 minutes, then go on with the thing that's going to stir them up. Routine is my best tool. If I follow a routine throughout the day then everyone is on board and can settle, for the most part. Esther is a tough nut to crack, and I don't have time like I did with Momo and Gertrude so she hasn't gotten a fair shake. If I ever want to rock her world all I have to do is deviate from the routine. From my observations, dogs appreciate predictability. Poor Gertie has been Really confused the last 2 weeks because Esther chewed up the floor in her own kennel so we've been using Gertie's kennel for Esther. Every morning Gertie tried to go into her own kennel, but there was an Esther there. Gertie is normally Valium in doggy form, but that one small change had her turning in circles, jumping on her bed, jumping off her bed, turning in circles, bowing . . . and so on while I got her food ready. Now that her kennel is fixed, order has been restored and mornings are calmer. Having said all that, routine does take a bit of time to build and learn so be forgiving of her, and yourself (!) as you're forming it. I've had to really tap into my patience with Esther and I haven't always been able to keep it. Sometimes I still put her in her kennel when I need a break. She's grown to accept it, though it did take some time. That's the most recent post for extinction bursts aka tantrums. I did a search for "extinction" and found a wealth of information. Here's the search to help because I know you have your hands full! :) https://braintraining4dogs.com/forum/search/?q=extinction&quick=1