tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12270407151836797572024-03-12T22:58:52.544-07:00Chill Out Spartacus!Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-86313279860532928982014-03-20T04:00:00.000-07:002014-03-20T04:00:13.401-07:00Throwback Thursday: Go Dawgs!Mr. Tough cowers in submission when he meets the giant blue bulldog.<br />
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You can find these giant painted bulldog sculptures dotting the streets of Athens, GA, in honor of the UGA Bulldogs. Additionally, it seems like almost every house has a small bulldog sculpture out front. With all the local hype about bulldogs, we sadly never see any real bulldogs around. Luckily Spartacus has since learned that these stoic oversized bulldog sculptures are not giant rainbow mastiffs, and now he can pass them comfortably.<br />
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He's also quite fond of this other public sculpture.<br />
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Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-89716607813342300372014-03-18T14:30:00.001-07:002014-03-18T14:30:57.706-07:00New Class, New Approach<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Even though Spartacus is dog reactive, we truly hope that we will see other dogs on walks. That's the only way we can work on his reactivity. For some reason, we rarely see any dogs around lately! In keeping with our <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/03/goals-for-spartacus.html" target="_blank">goals</a>, we knew Spartacus needed to be enrolled in another class in order to get guaranteed regular exposure to other pups. We have been curious to try clicker training with a professional and googled around only to realize a Foundation Clicker Class was starting the very next day in our area. So Thursday of last week we headed out to the introductory class, sans Spartacus, and got the low down from an all positive trainer.<div>
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The trainer we are working with has lots of experience and among her specialties, she has worked with many aggressive and fearful dogs. She works with dogs who have killed other dogs and landed people in the hospital - so Spartacus with his showy reactions on leash is nothing to her. The class itself consists of mainly adolescent dogs without any serious behavior issues, and our trainer wanted to do a private evaluation of Spartacus before approving him for this crowded intro course. </div>
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We've recently been managing his behaviors based on what we learned in our <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/03/behavior-solutions-training-class-week-8.html" target="_blank">Behavior Solutions class</a>, and we are forever grateful for that experience. Still, there are so many approaches out there, and we're really curious about a purely positive approach. Our last class was what I'd call a balance of positive reinforcement and some dominance techniques. The main method of learning was through classical counter conditioning and operant conditioning (I think, it's so confusing to me).</div>
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Today I took Spartacus to our new trainer's house so she could observe him meeting her five dogs individually. Armed with hot dogs, I approached test dog number one with Spartacus on his Gentle Leader. He didn't react with barking, lunging, or growling, but his posture was stiff, ears forward, and hackles raised. Rather than cue Spartacus for eye contact, the trainer advised me to just wait for him to offer it. With him on a Gentle Leader, I wasn't too concerned that he would get out of control, so we stayed just a few feet from her Jack Russell. Within a minute or two, Sparty was volunteering eye contact and his posture was showing signs of calmness. Eventually his tail was wagging and he was trying to greet the other dog. We let them get closer. We didn't let the dogs greet on their own, but the trainer picked up her dog and let Sparty sniff her butt so she could watch his response. Spartacus showed positive interest with no sign of aggression. He proceeded to work through the same nervousness around two more dogs - starting off nervous and then settling down beautifully all on his own, wanting to play. Test dog #4 was a little jack rabbit who was bouncing all over the place. Spartacus reacted to this dog dancing in front of his face with a little bark/lunge. The trainer said the behavior itself was warranted, but Spartacus didn't give any warning signs which was problematic. Test dog #5 was a blind geriatric Italian Greyhound with a lame back leg. Most dogs are freaked out by his odd way of walking and acting. The poor old guy was barking in the wrong direction, and Sparty remained calm. Go Sparty! </div>
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He was approved for the group class, and we're also going to do a few private sessions working on <a href="http://empoweredanimals.com/" target="_blank">Behavior Adjustment Training (B.A.T.)</a> or the variation, <a href="http://www.training-your-dog-and-you.com/constructional_aggression_treatment.html" target="_blank">Constructional Aggression Treatment (C.A.T.)</a>. I like that these methods ask the dog to volunteer behavior. The trainer believes a dog that teaches itself a behavior learns better than a dog ordered to respond to cues. These two training methods also reward the dog for a variety of calming signals, not just eye contact with the owner. It'll be really interesting learning to read all the subtleties involved in dog communication. We've been learning these for a long time, but we learn something new every day it seems!</div>
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Have you tried using B.A.T. or C.A.T. on your reactive dog?</div>
Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-41608169458617323102014-03-14T17:26:00.004-07:002014-03-14T17:26:55.664-07:00Chilling Out, Spartacus Style<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We recently started working with a new trainer. She hasn't met Sparty yet, but based on everything we have described she thinks he might have an anxiety disorder. We're not too sure ourselves. Certain situations stress him out, but you oughta see him when we go on vacation to South Florida to visit family. He eats up it just like a regular old human tourist.<br />
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Strolling through historic neighborhoods, smiling about all the pretty colors.</div>
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Taking water breaks and time to sniff the flowers.</div>
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Laying out on the patio.</div>
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Lounging on luxurious beds in the sunroom.</div>
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Enjoying leisurely swims, and daintily fetching pine needles.</div>
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Followed by more laying out.</div>
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We'll keep you updated on his anxiety issues. At least he laps up the good life as much as any normal dog!</div>
Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-23440695006407265972014-03-13T06:58:00.000-07:002014-03-13T06:58:08.514-07:00Tropical Games<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Our <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/03/behavior-solutions-training-class-week-8.html" target="_blank">special training class for reactive dogs</a> just ended less than two weeks ago. Admitting our dog was reactive and focusing on training him was a bit of an emotional journey. We went a good year and a half in denial of Sparty's mounting aggression. Enrolling in a class and starting this blog helped us recognize our issues, define our goals, and document the huge leaps we've made together - but it's been draining too. After the countless hours of training walks and special trips to the dog park just to work on training, everyone was ready for a short vacation. Within days of finishing class, we packed up the pooches and even our kitty and drove down to visit family in South Florida.<br />
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My dad owns and lives on a tropical plant nursery with his who-knows-what-mix Ollie and his Pomeranian mix Sadie.<br />
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Spartacus lived here with us the first year we had him and it's his favorite place in the world thanks to all the running, swimming, and sunbathing he gets to enjoy. Delilah thinks it's pretty cool too.<br />
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We wanted our dogs to relish in plenty of fun and relaxation, but in keeping with our <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/03/goals-for-spartacus.html" target="_blank">goals</a>, there was lots of training to work on too. Enter hide and seek.<br />
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One of our goals is to develop a bombproof recall with our dogs. In an attempt to make recall a fun command, we started playing hide and seek in our house in the last few weeks. Our dogs can't get enough. We put them in a stay, and one of us monitors them while the other goes to hide and call them over. We use "come" but there are plenty of words and noises you can use for recall instead. Once released, Spartacus is very enthusiastic darting from room to room sniffing out the air with intense focus. When one of them finds us, we throw a party with praise and high value treats and of course the other dogs get rewarded too once they arrive. We thought Sparty and Delilah were seasoned enough with the indoor version to take it out into the nursery. We hid behind trees, tractors, trucks, the stuff nurseries are made of.<br />
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Ollie caught on quickly and added even more pep and enthusiasm to the game.<br />
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Spartacus seems to use his nose in this game more than the others, so we think he'd be a good candidate for nose work sports eventually.<br />
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We did have some issues making this a three player game. Ollie is the world's most happy go lucky dog, but she lacks in training and became a bit greedy with the treats we were dishing out, scaring off our dogs from their reward. Overall, though, the game seems to have a really positive effect on our recall with the dogs. They are coming immediately when called about 80% of the time now, compared to about 50% a few weeks ago. Their recall is 100% for at least an hour after a hide and seek session. We try to always use a spirited happy voice to call them, which also has made a big difference. The best part of the game is how fun it is for us humans too. We feel like little kids again, giggling with our hands clasped over our mouths as our dogs run right past our hiding spot.<br />
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What kind of training games do you play with your dogs?<br />
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Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-37570207975100926802014-03-12T08:16:00.000-07:002014-03-12T08:16:47.916-07:00Safety First<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We just returned home from a road trip to South Florida with the whole pack. Spartacus is a veteran of the 10 hour long drive from North Georgia to South Florida in our beat up 99 Jeep Cherokee. This was Delilah's second time making the roundtrip journey. The dogs and even our kitty (with a nice dose of Rescue Remedy) always seem very comfortable in the back of the Jeep with the seats down. This time, we used dog seat belts for extra security. </div>
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This harness is designed to attach to an actual seat belt, but with the seats down, we just strung leashes through and hooked them up to some handles in the car. Restrained by six foot leashes, the dogs still had a lot of mobility to visit us up front, but they stayed put on their Molly Mutt bed for the most part. Despite the occassional tangling of leashes, the harnesses seemed really comfortable. In the event of an accident, we felt better knowing they were strapped in. We're grateful all our pets are good sports when it comes to long hauls cause we love to have them with us. Not to mention, boarding is difficult for them. Luckily it was smooth sailing there and back, and we'll be updating more details about our adventure later this week.</div>
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How do your dogs feel about long car rides? Any road trip cats?</div>
Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-48430941836169375062014-03-06T12:06:00.001-08:002014-03-06T12:07:43.991-08:00Throwback Thursday: Catdog<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Once upon a time, a small dog came bounding from it's yard and ran right up to Spartacus.</div>
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When she got up close, we realized she was not, in fact, a dog.</div>
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But she said hello like a dog.</div>
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Sparty thought she was a dog too.</div>
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Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-83415053876171376052014-03-03T14:32:00.000-08:002014-03-03T16:15:49.137-08:00Behavior Solutions Training Class Week 8<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Yesterday was our last Behavior Solutions class. We took a field trip to the patio of a popular downtown pizza joint. Athens experienced the first spring weather we've had here in the South, and it felt like the whole town was there with their dogs. This was a perfect situation to test all our new skills. We all hung out in the sunny patio with our dogs, walked them around downtown, and enjoyed ourselves without incident. It was the perfect graduation for a reactive dog class imaginable.<br />
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Reflections</h3>
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We can't say enough how healing it was to be in a judgment free classroom surrounded by others dealing with reactive dogs. Possibly the most important thing we gained from the past eight weeks was the ability to be calm in situations where our dogs are stressed. Before taking this class, our heart rates shot up anytime we saw a dog being walked. We'd anticipate the barking, lunging, and growling, and the harsh stares from strangers whose dogs wouldn't hurt a fly. No doubt our anxiety was transferred through the leash to Spartacus. In the classroom, in a way, we looked forward to a few reactions each class - so we could study them and learn from them. Reactions aren't the end of the world, and now that we can keep our cool, we can prevent them more easily and snap Spartacus out of them quicker. Learning to chill out has been empowering for us, and we know it's the first step in helping Spartacus too.<br />
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Of the rave reviews we could provide for our class at <a href="http://www.pawtropolis.com/helping-paws-rescue/behaviorsolutions.php" target="_blank">Pawtropolis</a>, perhaps their greatest asset is their flexible and balanced methodology. They offer one class that uses 100% positive methods to teach basic manners, whereas our class seemed to borrow from the best of different training concepts. When we asked our trainer if she recommended any books, her honest answer was that mixing and matching different training philosophies is what works best in her experience - so no single book could provide all the answers. At the same time, when we expressed interest in clicker training, she entertained the idea of putting together a clicker class for reactive dogs if there's enough interest.<br />
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Overall, over the past eight weeks, we introduced a lot more positive reinforcement into our handling than we had been doing before on our own. Our treat belts reeked of hot dogs week after week.<br />
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Here's an overview of concepts we covered:</div>
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<li>Reading dog body language </li>
<li>Rewarding every millisecond of eye contact with treats and "yay!" or "yes!"</li>
<li>Hand feeding to build the bond and teach the dog to understand all food comes from you. Also reinforces eye contact.</li>
<li>Body blocking to own a space, such as doorways, between dogs, food on the floor, you name it</li>
<li>Nonverbal leave it</li>
<li>Heel using "crazy walk" (constantly changing directions) to teach your dog to follow you</li>
<li>Effective timing for affection/reward and for discipline</li>
<li>Backing your dog up until they make eye contact as a way to break their attention from their trigger</li>
<li>Lots of real life practice set ups</li>
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After eight weeks of specialized training, we feel that we can take on almost any situation on leash as long as we have a few feet of space from other dogs. Spartacus really benefited from being around other dogs who learned to respect each other's boundaries. In class yesterday, he was sunbathing a couple feet next to other reactive dogs. None of them tried to sniff each other, everyone kept to themselves, and it was beautiful. Of course, 99% of the dogs we pass on the street are pulling towards us, often with their owner's consent, so we still have a lot of counter conditioning to work on. Also, we've learned to be vocal and advocate for our reactive dog with the simple words "my dog needs space". At least we know Spartacus can happily co-exist with other "bad dogs" and that he doesn't inherently hate all dogs on leashes. It took eight weeks to learn that, and it's a beautiful thing!</div>
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Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-64009410761163773792014-03-02T09:11:00.000-08:002014-03-02T15:35:13.825-08:00Goals for Spartacus<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitgveC4E5TXYCq085obWrYK1qBqHGQWReyfeDxNrE6cdyu_cAIvlmITcWSjE5jh9LzPs7DAYVHCHnc1VhfWg58O1S93RfyOrSG99GzKCyRPfdZCWhDf39MDlzsmrjN1LN_l2cTtTL95QY/s1600/GOAL_B.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitgveC4E5TXYCq085obWrYK1qBqHGQWReyfeDxNrE6cdyu_cAIvlmITcWSjE5jh9LzPs7DAYVHCHnc1VhfWg58O1S93RfyOrSG99GzKCyRPfdZCWhDf39MDlzsmrjN1LN_l2cTtTL95QY/s1600/GOAL_B.jpg" /></a></div>
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Rehabilitating Spartacus has become something like a part-time job. A job we love! Something really clicked for us a few months ago, and we realized his behavior wasn't going to magically change overnight. Every day that we weren't working on training him with focus and commitment, Spartacus had the opportunity to continue practicing and perfecting his problem behaviors. His reactivity and insecurities were holding us all back from things we want to do together like going camping, having road trip adventures, and showing off our gorgeous dogs around town comfortably and safely. This afternoon we have our last Behavior Solutions training class for reactive dogs. Over the past eight weeks of consistent training, our optimism for Spartacus' future has sky-rocketed. As his owners, we have built up confidence realizing that our handling <i>can</i> make a big difference. We see that with our dedication, we can have a happier, more confident dog living a fulfilling life.</div>
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In order of importance, here are some behavior issues we still need to work on A LOT before we have a chilled out Spartacus. It's a lot of work, but we're committed to helping our dogs live the best lives they can. Delilah's goals are a separate post!</div>
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Leash Reactivity toward Dogs</h3>
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<li>Continue to learn more methods, read more books, and implement clicker training while avoiding punishment. </li>
<li>At least 10 training walks a week in dog prone areas, working on attention, heeling, emergency exits, sit-stays and down-stays in public places.</li>
<li>At least 2 training sessions a week in high dog traffic places like dog park entrance and doggy daycare parking lot. Practice auto-watch using clicker.</li>
<li>Try to set Spartacus up for success 100% of the time, using distance as a tool to avoid going over threshold.</li>
<li>If instructor agrees to it, enroll Spartacus in 4 week CGC Prep course in May for further socialization and practice.</li>
<li>Goals: Pass other dogs on same sidewalk eventually. Pass CGC by end of 2014.<br /></li>
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Recall and Off-Leash Attention</h3>
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<li>Develop an emergency bombproof recall by throwing a party whenever my dog comes to me. Use a new word that has a cheery ring to it like "zazoom!".</li>
<li>Start by practicing in house/private dog parks/yard. Increase distance slowly. Increase distractions over time. Seriously practice at least once a week.</li>
<li>Use hide and seek to make it fun.</li>
<li>Continue to build up our bond and trust with positive reinforcement training and games off leash.</li>
<li>Goal: Have Spartacus come 100% of the time when called in high distraction situations.<br /></li>
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General Anxiety, Separation Anxiety, and Insecurity</h3>
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<li>Start working on <a href="http://www.dogdaysnw.com/doc/OverallRelaxationProtocol.pdf" target="_blank">Dr.Karen Overall's Relaxation Protocol</a> using a mat and down stay position to make the mat a safe, happy place to relax.</li>
<li>Perfect "go to mat" command.</li>
<li>Teach some new tricks for confidence building.</li>
<li>If instructor allows it, try a dog sport eventually.</li>
<li>Goals: Staying calm when one of his parents disappears from site, especially in a public place, such as the supervised separation exercise in the CGC. Not to mention, more tail wagging and a less anxious disposition in all situations.<br /></li>
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Guarding the House, Porch, and Car</h3>
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<li>Continue to do time-outs in the bathroom for barking in the house, every time. This seems to be working really well.</li>
<li>Practice counter-conditioning to dogs while in parked car at least once a week using clicker and auto watch. This can be done outside dog park, doggy daycare, veterinary office, etc.</li>
<li>As weather gets nicer, do leashed training sessions on the porch. Work on Relaxation Protocol, starting at odd hours and slowly working up to when people and dogs are passing. Also use clicker and work on counter conditioning to people and dogs passing. Practice at least twice a week.</li>
<li>Goals: No more barking in the car, house, or on the porch.<br /></li>
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Jumping when Excited</h3>
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<li>Perfect the "go to mat" command when visitors are coming.</li>
<li>Consistently work on down-stays when Spartacus meets someone new who gets him all excited and wanting to hug.</li>
<li>Goal: No more jumping, ever!<br /></li>
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Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-77494611400689799642014-02-28T03:30:00.000-08:002014-02-28T05:23:00.768-08:00A Funny Looking Dog<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The other day we were out walking our pups and a young lady parked her car nearby. She got out of the car smiling and exclaimed "that's a funny looking dog!". There was no doubt she was referring to Delilah.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Besides her <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/introducing-delilah.html" target="_blank">deceptively calm demeanor at the pound</a>, Delilah's adorably odd features drew us to her. Her short legs are disproportionate to her toned muscular torso. She rivals Spartacus in length but is 1/3 his width. Her colors and markings are almost identical to Sparty's, but she's flanked with subtle merle spotting. She has a ridiculously long neck, and sports permanently oversized paws.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq_0adSZxXhZnXJYN1Z5EsgQhc4cAc3B2EU1sgTrKTU53dTXkz1fzlwTc3wYwLvZCdQJX7fU_XgsNrE7BbairxNGCS3MkjnZjUeBOEFHASqFpTLSWPjpDuIEzHlNlS_npQgikumbh29BQ/s1600/BLOG11b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq_0adSZxXhZnXJYN1Z5EsgQhc4cAc3B2EU1sgTrKTU53dTXkz1fzlwTc3wYwLvZCdQJX7fU_XgsNrE7BbairxNGCS3MkjnZjUeBOEFHASqFpTLSWPjpDuIEzHlNlS_npQgikumbh29BQ/s1600/BLOG11b.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Delilah's giant ears take on a range of expressions that change her whole face instantly. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Each ear is an individual, making decisions independent of the other.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Her lips are pursed and her amber eyes are determined. When she makes eye contact for treats we can practically hear her counting the seconds in her head. Her eye contact is intense!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Full grown at 35 lbs, we think Delilah is probably a Basenji mix. Maybe some Corgi or Daschund to account for her dwarfed legs. Maybe some Australian Cattle Dog, Jack Russell or Feist type dog. Her temperament matches the description of Basenjis to a T: <span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">alert, energetic, curious and reserved with strangers...h</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">as a strong prey drive...<a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/when-good-dogs-go-bad.html" target="_blank">should not be let off the leash, </a></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 20.280000686645508px;"><a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/when-good-dogs-go-bad.html" target="_blank">for they are swift, agile chasers who are impossible to catch</a>...</span></span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">will develop selective hearing if there's something more exciting to pay attention to (are there any dogs that don't fit that description?)...</span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZV6ShayicgGQVMsmJnRySGKyB0bthIzzekTIc6gIoCAJ9U6F5oYAIA9kICBwm5zPcvPUSzjz6bRHfzotgdplHhMqSWu4DgscL28mYVXTxmuHKrM-YKyze4uoFpSTSS9j0BXG11zkEOEg/s1600/BLOG11c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZV6ShayicgGQVMsmJnRySGKyB0bthIzzekTIc6gIoCAJ9U6F5oYAIA9kICBwm5zPcvPUSzjz6bRHfzotgdplHhMqSWu4DgscL28mYVXTxmuHKrM-YKyze4uoFpSTSS9j0BXG11zkEOEg/s1600/BLOG11c.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Delilah compared to a purebred Basenji. See the resemblance?</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Whatever this funny looking dog is, we couldn't be happier with our silly Delilah! Spartacus is our rugged handsome boy and Delilah is our delightfully bizarre little girl.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;">What breeds do you see? </span></span>Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-15107919783129411862014-02-27T05:57:00.000-08:002014-02-27T06:14:08.875-08:00Throwback Thursday: Strawberry Fields Forever<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Spartacus discovers a Christmas tree farm</div>
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Nestled in the mountains</div>
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And tries wild strawberries for the first time.</div>
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And he is happy.</div>
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Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-11648795529338199002014-02-25T10:02:00.002-08:002014-02-25T11:45:51.094-08:00Loving a Distemper Dog<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">Spartacus has gotten himself into some very unpleasant situations. <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/drjeckyll-and-mrspartacus.html" target="_blank">He's our reactive dog</a>, and he can be an embarrassment, a hassle, a liability, a real pain in the ass. People think we named him Spartacus because we wanted an aggressive warrior dog. Little do they realize, Spartacus earned his gladiator title with honor, fighting for his life. And if you know his story, we think it's impossible to blame the poor little guy for being a bit troubled. </span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">He knew far too much suffering as a baby puppy. When a good samaritan picked him up off the side of the road in Miami, he was in rough shape.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">Now Spartacus is all grown up, his fur is silky, his eyes are serene, and he's handsome as ever. But there are things about Sparty that make him very unique. Like his head twitch. At first glance you might not catch it, especially if he's doing zoomies past you. But once he settles down, it's impossible to miss. </span></span><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/Cdu5TCcKoMI?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">He has had this head twitch since before <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/introducing-spartacus.html" target="_blank">we adopted him when he was seven months old</a>, almost three years ago. It is the result of permanent damage to his central nervous system from the canine distemper virus. It doesn't seem to get better or worse, it just is. His neurologist said even when he's under anesthesia, his twitch will go on twitching. We have ascertained that Spartacus caught, suffered, survived, and passed the distemper virus long before his rescuer changed his life and took him in. He was not an active carrier of the virus by the time he saw a vet, indicating that the worst of it was behind him.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">According to the Baker Institute for Animal Health, canine distemper is estimated to be fatal in 50% of cases affecting adult dogs, and in 80% of cases affecting puppies. Spartacus, our special fighter, was one of the lucky few to make it out alive after weeks of respiratory, gastrointestinal, and neurological distress. For all we know, he suffered for weeks alone as a stray puppy, dehydrated, vomiting, having bloody diarrhea, coughing, enduring seizures. What's worse is the possibility that someone threw him out on the street when he started showing signs of sickness and left him to fend for himself. We'll never know the details of his past, we just do our best to ensure his future in a safe and loving environment.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; line-height: 18px;">There is no cure for canine distemper, and although Spartacus doesn't carry the virus anymore and can't infect other dogs, we're told the disease can continue to wreak havoc on him for the rest of his life. The course of the disease is unpredictable. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; line-height: 18px;">He may develop a seizure disorder or suffer further neurologic damage from the virus as he ages. We hope that Sparty will be spared any more suffering, but we've been taught how to handle a canine seizure in case that day ever comes. He's had a handful of partial mal seizures that were luckily uneventful - just some funky leg shaking that came and went in under a minute. So far nothing alarming, nothing that necessitates medication.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">In honor of National Pet Dental Health Month, we can't forget about Sparty's "unique" teeth. That's the nicest way of acknowledging the weird brown icicles we call his chompers. The distemper virus </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">destroyed his ability to form tooth enamel at a cellular level. Because he was a little puppy, he never had a chance to develop normal, pretty teeth. This condition is known as enamel hypoplasia. His teeth are still totally functional for now, and we try to get on brushing. Generally we rely on the plaque removal from Sparty chewing on raw meaty bones. Next month he is getting a full dental cleaning done with the veterinarian. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">And the real kicker, Sparty's nightmares. Spartacus has little episodes throughout the night, every night, of trembling and whimpering accompanied by rapid breathing. Sometimes his eyes roll back and his legs jerk around a little. Even our perfectly healthy pup Delilah gets the occasional bad dream and gets shaken up similarly, so we don't think it's a neurological issue with Spartacus. Just the result of a very stressful first few months. The cure is always the same: petting him, whispering "it's OK Spartacus" no matter how late it is. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; line-height: 18px;">If he's having a particularly tormented night, we cuddle him through it and fall asleep to the clicking sensation of his twitching head. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; line-height: 18px;">No matter what any trainer advises, Sparty always has a guaranteed place in our bed. </span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">It's possible distemper contributed to his anxious and reactive nature toward other dogs. Maybe not. <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/behavior-solutions-training-class-week-7.html" target="_blank">He's making so much progress with training</a>, we don't believe his reactivity is medical in nature. </span></span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">All we know is we're so lucky to have such a special dog in our lives, behavior issues included. We're so grateful that Spartacus had the will to fight for his life. We try to reward him everyday for sticking around and just being Spartacus. And when we're feeling down in the dumps, we look to Spartacus for inspiration, because in our eyes he embodies perseverance. And even though his demons come to haunt him at night, we think he's a pretty happy dog. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">When we first brought him to a dog neurologist, she told us love would make a big difference in his outcome. Three years and loads of love later, he's still cruisin on by. Love definitely didn't hurt. And the love he gives in return makes it all worthwhile. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">Do you have a dog who survived distemper or has other health issues that make it unique?</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">We'd love to hear from other folks whose pets are also survivors fighting the good fight! </span>Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-31040972551028156352014-02-24T03:30:00.000-08:002014-02-24T03:30:01.093-08:00Behavior Solutions Training Class Week 7<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Yesterday, <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/behavior-solutions-training-class-week-6.html" target="_blank">our special training class for reactive dogs took another field trip</a>. Sadly, this was our second to last class. Say it ain't so! On the flip side, all graduates are welcome to return to the last three classes of all subsequent Behavior Solutions groups for free! Allowing the graduates to participate gives the currently enrolled dogs fresh stimulus and helps the graduates continue to hone in on everything they've learned.<br />
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Our group consists of three dog-reactive dogs and one people-reactive dog. The people-reactive Havanese is worst on his own territory, so this week we went to his house. Human students took turns ringing the doorbell and entering the house of the Havanese while the rest of us worked on pass-bys and other dog triggered stuff. Thus far most of the classes have focused on the needs of the dog-reactive dogs, so we were all more than willing to let our trainer spend the whole class with the Havanese and its owners. Until today, we had no idea what this guy's deal was. He was so quiet and perfect in class. Finally his true colors came out - you could hear him barking inside from down the street!<br />
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So as our trainer and the Havanese did their thing, we practiced pass bys with safe distances between us, and all went well. Then we tried talking to other owners with our dogs sitting just a few feet from each other. Spartacus had to face two dogs from a past class, dogs he did not know. They couldn't have been further than five feet away. One of the dogs was very friendly and wanted to meet Spartacus, so she was making some eye contact. On our first attempt to mingle with the other handler, Sparty barked and growled when he saw the friendly dog. We did a quick about face and I stood facing Spartacus, his gaze locked into mine. I turned to his side in a heel and let him face the other dogs. When he took his eyes off me, he barked and growled again. Another quick about face and back we were. This time, he was fine. He kept making eye contact with me and blocked out the other dogs sitting five feet in front of him. He accepted that I was going to talk to their owner and he was going to behave. Cheers, Spartacus! Those were his only two reactions all of class.<br />
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We were there for almost two hours total, and 99% of that time, Spartacus was completely fixated on us, the bearers of hot dog. We have been working for seven weeks on being more interesting than other dogs. Every millisecond of eye contact has been rewarded. In class that reward is tiny pieces of hotdog, and on our daily walks we use a combination of kibble, hotdog, and diced up <a href="http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/product-category.aspx?ProductCategoryID=21&category=Premium+Food+Roll+Formulas+" target="_blank">Natural Balance rolls</a>. Ladies and gentleman, we are thrilled to report that always stinking of meat has paid off. As we type, we are simply in disbelief. Spartacus successfully passed other dogs ON THE SAME SIDEWALK! He couldn't have cared less when we passed the Frenchie from our class. Six weeks ago he lunged and growled and barked and did his whole freak out dance at this very dog multiple times yards away. Today, as we passed said Frenchie, the sidewalk may as well have been empty for all he cared. Then came the Doberman, a perfectly behaved dog with her CGC who is not in our class. <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/introducing-delilah.html" target="_blank">Like Delilah</a>, she's a reactive dog's sibling, and was there for moral support. When we passed the Doberman, which we did three times, Spartacus barely noticed. Granted, we each walked our dogs to our left and there were two people between them as they passed, but that is not a barrier Spartacus recognized in the past. Being on the same sidewalk as a passing dog seemed truly impossible to us just weeks ago. We walked by the Dobie and Spartacus looked to me for hotdog. Then he realized another dog had just cruised by within feet of him. He started to look back. His ears darted. Right at that early sign of targeting, a small snap of his slip collar got him right back to focusing on his handler. No reaction whatsoever.<br />
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Eventually, the group sat on the ground in a kumbaya type circle with our dogs relaxing together just feet apart. We asked our trainer if there's any chance we can get to a point where our reactive dogs will actually greet other dogs, do the whole butt sniffing thing, and be normal (on leash). She made a wise point. Our goals are probably different than our dog's goals. We may want Spartacus to be social and normal, but that's <i>our </i>goal.<i> </i>Meeting other dogs on leash is not what Spartacus wants to do. It stresses him out for whatever reasons. Instead, he has been learning to do something else when dogs are near - ignore the dog, look at his owners, and get treats. We have provided a way for him to feel safe around leashed dogs by teaching him that he can ignore them, that he doesn't have to protect us from them. For now, we are going to respect our dog's boundaries and not force him to adapt to our vision of what a dog should be like. Reactive dogs have special needs and if you can manage their reactions and still go out in public with them, you've done them and yourself a great service. With lots of practice counter-conditioning, reactive dogs can function in society and lead fun awesome dog lives.<br />
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There are still many months and probably years of diligent practice necessary for Spartacus to consistently maintain his cool around other leashed canines. If we ever feel that he has become so desensitized to leashed dogs that he can maybe try approaching them for a normal dog greeting, we will bring that up to an experienced trainer. But if that never happens, we'll still be super proud of our boy and love him all the same. Spartacus doesn't have to be a normal dog to be a good dog. Our greatest fear when we started this class was that his leash-reactivity would prevent him from accompanying us on all the walks we want to take with him and all the trips and adventures we see in our future. The transformation in just two months has been profound. Our confidence, along with Sparty's, has reached new heights. Working with a leash reactive dog is incredibly fulfilling. Every small victory brings a newfound sense of hope. So what if Sparty can't do proper meet and greets on leash? If we have to swerve a few feet out of the way when dogs approach, that's a pretty good bargain for having our best friend by our side.<br />
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Oh and the territorial Havanese made a ton of progress today, so we're proud of him too!Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-72860159532803616302014-02-21T11:45:00.001-08:002014-02-21T16:32:28.131-08:00When Good Dogs Go Bad<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If things were black and white, <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/drjeckyll-and-mrspartacus.html" target="_blank">Spartacus would be labeled our bad dog</a> and <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/introducing-delilah.html" target="_blank">Delilah would earn the title for easy, good dog</a>. Spartacus growls and lunges at passing dogs and scares the pants off their owners, while Delilah can be within inches of strange dogs on leash without paying them any mind. Spartacus is enrolled in Behavior Solutions ("bad dog" class), while Delilah is signed up for a Canine Good Citizen prep course. Indeed, Delilah is not leash reactive. She doesn't go berzerk on leash. We can take her places without worries. But let us be clear, grey areas abound.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Like the grey skies we faced this morning. We awoke to pouring rain and huge puddles barricading our driveway. Hooray! We thought. We might get a park all to ourselves!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rain jacket on, I leashed up the dogs and drove off to one of our favorite places in Athens, Oconee Forest Park. Oconee Forest Park is a 60 acre natural area of winding trails and an off leash dog area, all within a well preserved 100 year old forest. The off leash area isn't really a dog park so much as a place to hike with your dog off leash. Spartacus has generally done pretty well here and keeps on moving after meeting other dogs, no wild play involved. When we pulled up to the parking lot, there was only one other car. As we headed out onto the trails, there were no signs of anyone else, human or canine. Having the park to ourselves was a welcome respite.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Delilah has only been with us since August of 2013 and she's estimated to be about 16 months old. She completed a Basic Obedience class but has yet to really master any commands. Of these basics, recall is the most difficult for her. She's an easily distracted dog whose greatest passion is galloping top speed deep into the forest, presumably chasing squirrels. While Spartacus never trots more than a few feet ahead of us on off leash hikes, Delilah takes off through the forest and disappears. She always comes back, but it's incredibly frustrating. Even when we get a perfect recall going in the house and in practice runs, it just doesn't work when we need it in real life situations.</span></div>
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Today, a solid recall would have done us good. The off leash area at the park is not fully fenced, and the existing fence and gate are insufficient for the likes of smaller dogs. So when a leashed dog was passing the fence, it was our "good" dog that slipped under the gate and charged it. The owners called out that their dog was socially iffy. Before I had time to think, I heard barking and growling from both Delilah and her new frenemy. I was still inside the fence, untangling leashes, worrying my "bad" dog would react.<br />
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"Delilah, come!"<br />
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A glimmer of hope - she started to trot back.<br />
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Then took off again. The leashed dog was with two owners, and one of them body blocked Delilah. She gave up and returned to the gate.<br />
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Spartacus, our bad boy, showed no signs of excitement. I put him in a sit stay unleashed, walked out the gate, and leashed up Delilah. Though no one was harmed, I felt terrible for causing any set backs for the other dog. As owners of a reactive dog, we advocate for dogs to be leashed if they don't have solid recall, and here our own Delilah broke the rules.<br />
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We've been so preoccupied with working on Spartacus' leash reactivity, we managed to look past some of the weaknesses in our communication with Delilah. Delilah isn't leash reactive, but she certainly requires more training before we can responsibly take her on off leash adventures.</div>
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Do you have a solid recall with your dog/s?<br />
Does your easy dog occasionally give you grief?</div>
Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-61738069106209862842014-02-20T05:40:00.000-08:002014-02-20T09:38:00.203-08:00Throwback Thursday: Puppy as Dog Walker<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/is-this-normal.html" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;" target="_blank">Ollie is Sparty's cousin.</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"> They first met when she was four months old.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">She made sure to show him who's boss right away.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And they walked happily ever after.</span></div>
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Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-20366743129628709992014-02-19T08:57:00.001-08:002014-02-19T12:45:48.798-08:00Walk On<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Walking Spartacus brings us joy like nothing else. Sure, <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/whats-up-with-spartacus.html" target="_blank">Spartacus is super leash reactive to other dogs</a>. It's true we have to work extra hard around passing dogs to disrupt and counter-condition his aggressive response. Despite constant training as we saunter about, our walks with Spartacus are incredibly pleasant for the most part.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before we had dogs, we lived in New York City without cars and grew to love just walking for walking's sake. Hours and hours upon miles and miles of wandering on foot, exploring new areas, revisiting old ones - that's a day well spent. When we moved to a less urban area, we were so excited to adopt a dog to share our walks with.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With lots of training, Sparty now heels wonderfully most of the time. We move in sync and practice check-ins, and Spartacus sits when we come to a halt. We pay attention equally to each other and to our surroundings. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Together, our leisurely strolls through Athens take us through historic neighborhoods with incredible houses, past green fire hydrants and quirky gardens.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We also pass lots of cute fenced dogs, like this sweet Shiba Inu.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Using plenty of treats to counter condition, we've gotten to a point where Spartacus can sit and lay patiently next to a fenced in barking dog. He's totally cool with us saying Hi to all the gorgeous fenced dogs in Athens, and he remains perfectly polite when we catch up with neighbors who see us petting their dogs. Not bad for a reactive pup!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Spartacus loves going on walks just as much as we do. Never mind breakfast, his day hasn't started until he's leashed up for his morning stroll. The idea of having any less than two walks a day seems crazy to us. We live to walk! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sparty is really beginning to grasp the behaviors we expect of him, and he tries so hard to be a good boy. Still, there's some things he just can't control. Like drooling all over himself anticipating a treat.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We're lucky we live in such a charming little city that's very safe and enjoyable for walking. Even on a gloomy, overcast day like today, the brightly colored bungalows with their year round Christmas lights and eclectic decorations keep our walks cheerful. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Are you as addicted to walking? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Does owning a reactive dog prevent you from taking long walks?</span>Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-83398204016871141592014-02-18T03:00:00.000-08:002014-02-18T05:36:33.248-08:00Is this normal?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We've mentioned that Spartacus has a very <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/private-dog-park-awesome.html" target="_blank">hands on, rough housing style</a> when it comes to playing with other dogs. He was labeled a "doggy nerd" when he used to go to doggy daycare; the staff said he didn't pick up on social cues and tried to play with dogs that weren't interested. In short, he could get annoying. After hearing this, it doesn't surprise us that m</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">any dogs and especially their owners don't appreciate some of the moves in his bag of tricks. Particularly when he mounts. Not humps, <i>mounts</i>. Grabs a dog's torso with his paws and just squeezes. What's even weirder? Front mounting. See below:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvh7u65YaKodIRQ8S_GphvH8U_nEfotngFc-3QtoSvhrI0KclfjrbcJfX8dBCKnUDVpcIf-FK6Mv0h5G24uzx9e-7DxvA1N6KjEVMK6lYK-9gQHEmtmZ5kcehS2QOAsoFU4EDJDgNNdGA/s1600/IMG_2419.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvh7u65YaKodIRQ8S_GphvH8U_nEfotngFc-3QtoSvhrI0KclfjrbcJfX8dBCKnUDVpcIf-FK6Mv0h5G24uzx9e-7DxvA1N6KjEVMK6lYK-9gQHEmtmZ5kcehS2QOAsoFU4EDJDgNNdGA/s1600/IMG_2419.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To our knowledge, he started this behavior in May 2013 when he spent a month with us back at the family plant nursery in Florida. My dad had recently adopted a new dog, Ollie. Ollie had no problem with the mounting, she thought it was great fun. Sparty learned that when he front mounted Ollie, she did his favorite thing in the world: jump up and wrestle in the air!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;">Sparty and Ollie went on to enjoy a platonic love affair that summer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This was pre-</span><a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/introducing-delilah.html" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Delilah</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. Back then, Spartacus didn't socialize much with other dogs on a regular basis. He was too stressed at doggy daycare, barking whenever the staff left the room. So we stopped taking him on their advice. He was also showing signs of being leash reactive on our walks, and we weren't too comfortable putting him in situations with strange dogs off leash. But the family plant nursery is ten acres of non-fenced-in tropical goodness, complete with a swimming pool, two ponds, and a canal. Sparty respects the boundaries of the property, but no fence means plenty of neighborhood dogs wander over daily. To our delight, Sparty excelled during this month stay in Florida. He bonded closely with Ollie, and had lots of good experiences with strange dogs too.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Unfortunately, he left with his new habit: mounting. We've seen him front mount dogs at the park, and the dogs will literally just freeze in bewilderment. Nor can we recall ever seeing another dog mount quite like Sparty. We're lead to believe front-mounting (or mounting without humping) is not universal for dogs. We make sure to correct Sparty when he does this to strange dogs who clearly feel uncomfortable. Not surprisingly, Boxers don't seem to mind and often return with some punches, just what he was looking for! It's just a weird situation for the most part and Sparty has no idea how annoying he is to other dogs!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We know our guy has some screws loose, and we're really committed to teaching him to chill out. But he manages to be such a lover too...</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYA9dWo7w1x8WLgOC4sqybIVC9y6LNFGKehljw65ETb6s6jB5BBn6Bt0EecVRuAEGDXSP8ujhWh71OvMSxFZO4lSHpd36y925hHdTPGgkuS-RAqpO0y6APAx1KLx565oBEUUuyJi_YfAk/s1600/IMG_2171.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYA9dWo7w1x8WLgOC4sqybIVC9y6LNFGKehljw65ETb6s6jB5BBn6Bt0EecVRuAEGDXSP8ujhWh71OvMSxFZO4lSHpd36y925hHdTPGgkuS-RAqpO0y6APAx1KLx565oBEUUuyJi_YfAk/s1600/IMG_2171.JPG" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is this mounting behavior normal/have you observed your own dog or other dogs engaging in this type of play?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How would your dog react if Sparty came up and front mounted them? </span></div>
Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-64588896915799754812014-02-17T09:06:00.000-08:002014-02-17T09:33:00.845-08:00Behavior Solutions Training Class, Week 6<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXdIqle9k0RnFc_aLHahK1qElT8im8LOa4adbuYjCKVUdsxHyVOyTElWxt-ZzqkSL_zRAStx_-QLBwat854kuR3fT14TtKUlo95qxRQRNGbwSMSm1B6Xg8ZTqm5L8ziLk-PfLO4E1m-sE/s1600/BLOG7c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXdIqle9k0RnFc_aLHahK1qElT8im8LOa4adbuYjCKVUdsxHyVOyTElWxt-ZzqkSL_zRAStx_-QLBwat854kuR3fT14TtKUlo95qxRQRNGbwSMSm1B6Xg8ZTqm5L8ziLk-PfLO4E1m-sE/s1600/BLOG7c.jpg" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our regular Monday night <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/whats-up-with-spartacus.html" target="_blank">Behavior Solutions training class</a> was rescheduled to yesterday afternoon. Instead of meeting in a classroom setting, our reactive dogs took a field trip to the real world! We met in the condo community of one of the owners, hoping there would be lots of dogs out and about. Why did we remove the dogs from their safe zone at the training center? They're ready to be challenged by real life scenarios. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt52Fe0JM5ubIyTQSXZd2NUCoN4TKjGAXpcZ2mgXni4x05UkyfXqPEiwZ-LT_ZEojp7LHrqbCa0Dd0z6e27gBcpWi9PBWi97GV4N1jZaI74AdZIa6E9E0rlHlA3zXjZYGmnwhPnPtCUrI/s1600/BLOG7a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCAnRKEJD08iEcsxmVsa-_UBAo4pMzdLygr2n_MKQldJj_Zd8RDd141Bd1R7UkJ8wlWKryb6Yxz6PD1CbXeYOwC6Enf4hsB0kV2PDsvYxSo2hQgHLeT18d39DJbONkDBrAyF0zf-LI7_I/s1600/BLOG7b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCAnRKEJD08iEcsxmVsa-_UBAo4pMzdLygr2n_MKQldJj_Zd8RDd141Bd1R7UkJ8wlWKryb6Yxz6PD1CbXeYOwC6Enf4hsB0kV2PDsvYxSo2hQgHLeT18d39DJbONkDBrAyF0zf-LI7_I/s1600/BLOG7b.jpg" height="579" width="640" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We had been practicing passing other dogs in our classroom since day one, but trying it in the great outdoors of a condo community changed things up. In class, we sit with our dogs and give them a constant stream of high value treats for paying attention to us. The atmosphere remains calm for the most part. Out and about, especially in a new place, our dogs are easily distracted by the new smells, sights, and sounds, and their attention is harder to come by.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Still, we all managed to do our walk-bys with no discernible incidents. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After five weeks of respecting each other's boundaries in class, all the classmates seem very comfortable with each other and don't really trigger each other's reactivity at this point.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Luckily, there were three extra dogs in the group today, Delilah included. Some random dogs being walked in the neighborhood also provided new stimulus.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We kept about 5-10 feet distance today in our pass-bys, and did whatever was necessary to redirect our dog's focus if they started targeting. Targeting refers to a dog starting to lock their focus on their trigger, in this case other dogs. You can tell Spartacus is targeting when he raises his ears forward, creating creases in his forehead. Also, if his mouth was open, he will close it. Sometimes his hackles will raise as well. I found that I sometimes need to step in front of him to regain his attention. Then I will walk backwards a few steps, while Sparty's eyes stay fixated on me. We can then resume a normal heel position and carry on with the "watch me" game.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The condo community had its own little dog park. It was empty, but the fenced in structure allowed us to work on issues around fences. Spartacus has really improved his behavior around fenced dogs in the last month. He's never been reactive to fenced dogs, but he used to pull us and become anxious when fenced dogs were barking and running the fence. We responded with lots of counter-conditioning in our neighborhood practicing sit stays and down stays with lots of treats next to fenced in dogs. Now, he is overall quite calm when he's on the outside of the fence. I can put him in a sit-stay half a foot from a fenced dog, and pet the dog on the other side while Sparty patiently waits.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Put him inside a fence, and it's a different story. At least in our own fenced yard, he can be very territorial. When we let him off leash by himself in the fenced dog park during class, he was more curious about the smells inside than the dogs passing the fence. However, once we added Delilah inside with him, their excitement grew and they started fence fighting the outside dogs. We quickly resolved this with simple body blocking. We've been working with body blocking in class to basically teach the concept "leave it". We literally just stand in front of our dogs in a strong stance and block them from whatever caught their interest. Our dogs respected our corrections and did not resist our body blocking by jumping up at us.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After our turn off leash in the park, we leashed up and exited, and two other siblings from the class went inside. One side of the little dog park is practically up against a wall of bushes, with only about a foot and a half of walkway space between the fence and the hedges. Several of the dogs in class reacted to the fenced in dogs when we squeezed through this narrow walk-way, including Spartacus. The great thing about being in a training class is we get to recreate scenarios that trigger our dogs until we get it right. Our second time around, I used body blocking to keep Spartacus' attention on me instead of the beagle behind the fence, just half a foot away. He didn't react and was thoroughly spoiled with hot dogs.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The last portion of class was spent hanging out on a patch of grass while we asked our trainer questions. Two of the dogs who came from the same house were playing, and Sparty tried to be "referee". Sometimes when he sees two dogs playing, he barks like he's got to keep them in check. It's not an aggressive bark, but it's annoying and not what we asked of him. On the other hand, Delilah seems able to just zone out her surroundings and think about squirrels. She was a foot away from the playing dogs and couldn't care less. Sparty wasn't totally calm, but he wasn't aggressive either. Though he was barking a bit, it made me happy to see that he was laying on the ground with relaxed hips within feet of other dogs without responding aggressively. Still, he's got a little ways to go before he can mind his own business like his sister. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When we spoke with our trainer after class, she seemed really pleased with our progress. She did suggest we keep the Gentle Leader head halter in our pocket, in case we want to try do-overs in public places on our own. We used the G.L. for a long time when we first started training Sparty to heel and anytime we were heading somewhere potentially crowded. For the purposes of his current training, the G.L. allows us to redirect Sparty's head, whereas our current training collar, a parachute cord slip, doesn't affect what direction he is looking in. Overall, I prefer that the slip collar forces us to try harder to get Spartacus' attention, but the Gentle Leader is always a great tool to have as back-up. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our last two classes will also be field trips. We love this class so much, and are so grateful we have such a creative trainer who really shapes each class based on the needs of the individual dogs. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Have any of you taken training classes to work on behavior issues like reactivity?</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGMZHv7YA52TnUghOtpCO77lC9Cb8gxbtdERrNrIW7n1ve0OF_04Lk-VLNBz97aZ9sNhs-uBFWaW2TFUxyBjXaJhC1XGYLLehHKshr5i6TcTpUiYVQICbwGS9lk_JXArmoF_odFFRddFg/s1600/BLOG6g.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGMZHv7YA52TnUghOtpCO77lC9Cb8gxbtdERrNrIW7n1ve0OF_04Lk-VLNBz97aZ9sNhs-uBFWaW2TFUxyBjXaJhC1XGYLLehHKshr5i6TcTpUiYVQICbwGS9lk_JXArmoF_odFFRddFg/s1600/BLOG6g.jpg" height="400" width="333" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As we mentioned in <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/snow-day-bliss.html" target="_blank">our last post</a>, we are lucky to have a special resource for dogs in Athens, GA. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The beautiful Sandy Creek Park offers three private fully fenced in 2-3 acre dog parks you can reserve by the hour, for only $1 per dog per hour. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We aren't sworn off regular dog parks, but when we go, we have to be extra vigilant and it's not exactly relaxing for us owners. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Spartacus is of course our</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/whats-up-with-spartacus.html" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">high maintenance mutt</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, and we started this blog to track our progress teaching him to just chill out. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From the sound of it though, dog parks can be stressful for plenty of perfectly balanced dogs and their owners too. A lot can go wrong when you enclose a bunch of strange dogs together, especially when the people overseeing them have different opinions about what is acceptable behavior. Yet we all want our dogs to get the experience of running around free, and that's where Sandy Creek Park comes in.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You simply call ahead and reserve a time, stop by the main park entrance to pay and pick up your key, and pull up to your own private dog park. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Each park is fully fenced and provides dog waste bags, a garbage can, and a bowl of fresh water. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For safety, it's required your dogs are leashed until you close your gate behind you. Close the gate, and it's a total free for all! </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZr2zK4bLVZ4ZBSWdqTupO0FGpi06q05n8C9TE4MOOQZk8-IpBQVb1tS6Oa1ujYbOy_Le66v0tKyelFB9DaLE4MwpKh9F3cXFGLlQoeziZNVSPkPe4hqocGFOYhAcHCfrGLWkjzTZUEso/s1600/BLOG6a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZr2zK4bLVZ4ZBSWdqTupO0FGpi06q05n8C9TE4MOOQZk8-IpBQVb1tS6Oa1ujYbOy_Le66v0tKyelFB9DaLE4MwpKh9F3cXFGLlQoeziZNVSPkPe4hqocGFOYhAcHCfrGLWkjzTZUEso/s1600/BLOG6a.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Earlier today we took Sparty on a training walk around the neighborhood to continue working on the "watch me" command around passing dogs. He was good two out of four times, and when he reacted, we got him to subside quickly. He's been working really hard lately, and we wanted to make sure he got some plain old fun in today too. At noon we headed to Sandy Creek. We rented Dog Park #3, our personal favorite. Two large grassy fields are divided by a strip of forest with a trail running through it. The 3 acre park extends far beyond what our camera lens can capture. Not bad for two dollars!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The passion these two have for tennis balls is unequivocal. W</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ith the aid of </span><a href="http://www.caninehardware.com/#/product/launchers" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">our Chuck-It ball launcher</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, we cover a lot of ground. Delilah has quite the stride for a low-rider. She is faster than Spartacus.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicAGHnrUCosZaqiIoYQBFJcTZvYFF7PCfeHmFBRn22o5xGLZ9yIxO1-n1qvpfGhYmblGeoOLUnE-swWDWsq-A2AJfNBaGQO6AjgFFkQlN2ASCHTLrnwn4i-1U6WcVlqKOk9lIemwUSkq8/s1600/BLOG6d.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicAGHnrUCosZaqiIoYQBFJcTZvYFF7PCfeHmFBRn22o5xGLZ9yIxO1-n1qvpfGhYmblGeoOLUnE-swWDWsq-A2AJfNBaGQO6AjgFFkQlN2ASCHTLrnwn4i-1U6WcVlqKOk9lIemwUSkq8/s1600/BLOG6d.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But Sparty still wins most of the time using brute force to knock Delilah over. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We prefer Delilah to win because she actually returns the ball, whereas Sparty turns it into a game of keep-away.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVWSG3KySlkGc-afYtmYsF54GC4ovjuQ0hfDN5WXtB2wDl8MPJC8g2JDedxwSvbH-h81BHp3gVJErLRe66YRXE58WW2Ujm6Tpyid8ugNBTdfn9HfuuvwC8SiPQY-IVgopsSmAK2rGC6so/s1600/BLOG6h.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVWSG3KySlkGc-afYtmYsF54GC4ovjuQ0hfDN5WXtB2wDl8MPJC8g2JDedxwSvbH-h81BHp3gVJErLRe66YRXE58WW2Ujm6Tpyid8ugNBTdfn9HfuuvwC8SiPQY-IVgopsSmAK2rGC6so/s1600/BLOG6h.jpg" height="640" width="452" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We've mentioned that Spartacus has a crazy "in your face" playing style that can scare other dogs and dog owners. Luckily, our Delilah embraces it full force. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwhyphenhyphenJzMbfpjRiERIPq_oBEP-ENLRs4RIqIbfo0hbzhZDAMHb2xO2Qc-mkKDkmJf_OyLi684nM80Y3mEVo7nlOUbZwyQnrZ9Mz3xz8lzXKeTGggflpsMIUEOQ0MLbA_Ha9HX96zVJlEAmQ/s1600/BLOG6c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwhyphenhyphenJzMbfpjRiERIPq_oBEP-ENLRs4RIqIbfo0hbzhZDAMHb2xO2Qc-mkKDkmJf_OyLi684nM80Y3mEVo7nlOUbZwyQnrZ9Mz3xz8lzXKeTGggflpsMIUEOQ0MLbA_Ha9HX96zVJlEAmQ/s1600/BLOG6c.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And if you're paying attention, you'll see that Spartacus willingly rolls over to a submissive position, laying on his back with his belly fully exposed. That's how we know their play is fun and fair, and we don't have to referee.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In an hour, there's plenty of time for both play and relaxation. Sometimes we rent the park for longer. We've even brought our art supplies and done plein-air painting sessions for up to three hours here. The private parks are also great for birthday parties.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNsJd6Se4wEPiVAMw4mUL1Zmjt-wdJqg8J65EOcmDpSN_9-rzInvttE8AvrDYNVgzQgWjk0-i0_Tg8vE6uO3PvhUUpUwOOW_b06rRLayL35oTa9WilubCN5m6kDdbJQBJ-rYHZq0lhfS0/s1600/BLOG6e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNsJd6Se4wEPiVAMw4mUL1Zmjt-wdJqg8J65EOcmDpSN_9-rzInvttE8AvrDYNVgzQgWjk0-i0_Tg8vE6uO3PvhUUpUwOOW_b06rRLayL35oTa9WilubCN5m6kDdbJQBJ-rYHZq0lhfS0/s1600/BLOG6e.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We can't imagine life without this amazing resource now that we have it, but we're probably moving far away to the midwest this summer. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So far we haven't been able to track down anything similar.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do you know of any private dog parks or similar set-ups? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Does your dog's play style require extra monitoring?</span>Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-39310631928727753352014-02-14T05:24:00.000-08:002014-02-14T07:46:44.083-08:00Snow Day Bliss<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This was a fun week to be in Athens, GA. The whole city basically shut down in lieu of the traffic issues across the Southeast earlier this year. We've had snow days off from work most of the week, even though the temperature hasn't dipped below 27 degrees during the day. It's just silly, considering one of us is from Wisconsin where the temperatures have been below zero most of 2014. But hey, we're not complaining!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yesterday was beautiful and sunny, families were out sledding down the streets, and we took the dogs on a long walk in their matching Ruffwear Climate Changer fleece jackets. These super warm dog coats aren't the best for snow since they aren't waterproof, but we don't have anything else and our short-coated pups start to shiver once the temps reach the 30s. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We wandered around town and ended up at a local park. Seeing at it wasn't in use, the completely fenced in snowy basketball court became our own private dog park. We probably broke some laws closing the gate and letting madness ensue, but it was pure fun and no harm came of it!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There's nothing quite like watching dogs get to run free. I wholeheartedly believe that leashed walks and runs are very satisfying too, but it's really something to let their wild sides take over. For most of us, off leash freedom means heading to a dog park, but with Spartacus' issues, we are reluctant. His true reactivity is limited to being on leash, but he still has a dominant streak and is what our local doggy daycare calls "a doggy nerd", meaning he doesn't quite read social cues correctly. It's also because the boxer in him loves to throw punches and wrestle. His playing style scares off many dogs and can lead to fights when Sparty just isn't receptive to their grievances. We've had some great times at less busy hours, and Athens has some wonderful dog parks with trails where he really excels. He gets the most overwhelmed in the type of dog park where all the owners sit down and all the dogs are supposed to play in a central area. When we head to public dog parks, we are extra vigilant and often have to correct Sparty for mounting. Dog mounting in parks is a controversial subject. We've found a 3 strikes you're out program normally calms him down. If he's not responsive to corrections, we either leave or leash him up and walk the perimeter while Delilah plays on.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Incredibly, one park in Athens actually offers private dog parks that you can rent by the hour, for just one dollar per dog. These completely fenced in lots range from 2-3 acres of beautiful grassy and wooded sections. Sparty and Delilah have private parties there at least every weekend, but with the roads covered in ice and snow, this basketball court makeshift dog park was the only place accessible by foot. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It didn't take long for their coats to get soaked, not that they noticed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We really lucked out with Delilah as she adapted instantly to Sparty's roughhousing, and he truly is her favorite dog to play with now. She gets along with everyone, but the peak of her happiness is reached going nuts with her big brother. As soon as we close the gate to any park we visit, these two immediately take off tackling each other. We wouldn't condone their disorderly play with stranger dogs, but since these two trust each other completely, there's no harm in letting them play to their heart's content.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">About half an hour of insanity can really knock these two out for the rest of the day. We knew they were ready to head home when Delilah started looking cold, and Sparty's efforts were focused on lapping up melting ice. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The rest of the day was spent like this.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How do you feel about dog parks?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Are your dogs fans of the snow?</span></div>
Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-43699734077193885392014-02-13T10:37:00.000-08:002014-02-13T10:43:44.685-08:00Dr.Jeckyll and Mr.Spartacus<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When Spartacus looks up at us with his soulful eyes full of innocence, it's easy to forget about the side of him that seems vicious and aggressive. Especially considering what an angel he is to his little sister, Delilah. He's never shown an ounce of meanness toward her, even though she pounces on him in his sleep and chews on his ears and jowls when he's trying to relax. He doesn't put up a fight when she steals his bones and toys, and he's happy to be her pillow any time of day.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After going through Basic Training when he was a year and a half old, he also became quite the gentleman toward people. Sparty prefers to properly introduce himself with a handshake. He still has trouble containing his excitement and wants to hug visitors, but overall he knows his manners and understands he has to earn his privileges with good behavior and neat tricks. He won first place in "Down Stay with Distractions" when he graduated his Basics course, after all.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And let's not forget his never-ending concern for his people. Indoors, we sometimes regard Sparty as our therapy dog. His love of cuddling is intense, and he's the kind of dog that will wake up from his slumber and lick tears off your face if you've had a bad day.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This all changes when we leave the comfort of our home. His soft brow with his sweet, sad eyes furrows as Sparty locks in on the target, another dog walking on leash. All hell breaks loose and he goes berzerk - lunging, growling, barking, writhing in the air. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Spartacus is leash reactive and his main trigger is other dogs walking on leashes.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Luckily we've never lost control of the leash, so the worst that's come out of this most of the time is embarrassment, and startling strangers. But a strong 60 pound dog resisting the leash with all his might is not to be taken lightly, and can pose a danger to the handler, other dogs and people, and the reactive dog itself. We've had our share of bruises to prove it. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He didn't start out this way. He was a happy go lucky puppy for the most part, <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/2014/02/introducing-spartacus.html" target="_blank">despite being found homeless with Canine Distemper and mange.</a> We didn't know very much about training and were intent on spoiling this puppy who had suffered so greatly. We barely socialized him due to his weak immune system. By the time he was full grown, he was difficult to control but still perfectly happy, a bit too enthusiastic maybe, to pass dogs on leash. His aggressive reactivity seems to coincide with the time we started training him to heel, ironically. We have some theories about where we went wrong, and we suspect a combination of genetics, upbringing, and day to day management are all equally related to reactivity. Like others, we are guilty of doting on the past and over-analyzing our mistakes. Ultimately, it's more fruitful to focus on what we are doing in the present to manage Sparty's aggressive reaction to other dogs he sees on leash.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Luckily, we have the help of a professional and the support of a community to guide us in learning to manage our Dr.Jeckyll and Mr.Hyde pup. We are taking a special class with a handful of other reactive dogs, and learning how to implement well-timed rewards and corrections to c</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ounter-condition our dogs to their triggers. Like many others, <a href="http://chilloutspartacus.blogspot.com/search/label/Training" target="_blank">the "watch me" command is our starting point.</a> Currently, we use a parachute cord slip collar to give corrections when Spartacus is ignoring us and starting to target another dog. We understand that some people want to use 100% reward based management, but with a strong 60 pound dog, it's impossible to ignore his outbursts - he might literally drag us into moving traffic if given the opportunity. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the last month since we started our class, we have progressed to being able to be on the opposite sidewalk of passing dogs with Sparty choosing to look to us for treats. Closer distances to passing dogs still have mixed results, but by body-blocking and grabbing Sparty's collar, we can get him to calm down quicker when he does react. It makes us sad to see something that is so normal for other dogs, including our Delilah, be so stressful for our special boy. We hope that the new techniques we are implementing will eventually make these experiences more normal and enjoyable for us all.</span><br />
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<a href="http://roxythetravelingdog.com/its-the-first-woofsupport-blog-hop/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">*This post is part of the WOOF (Working Out Our Fears) Support blog hop, where other owners with reactive dogs can join together to share their experiences. Today's theme is "A walk in my shoes/paws". #WOOFsupport</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<br />Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-14054369836591501662014-02-12T14:32:00.003-08:002014-02-12T14:32:35.898-08:00Introducing Delilah<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We weren't actively looking for another dog in August 2013. We had our hands full with Spartacus, and our lease stipulated only one dog allowed. But I work on the computer which gets very boring, so I'm known to meander through the local pound's website occasionally. I'll send links to my partner just to entertain the idea, but we both know it's never serious.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, one fateful August afternoon, I stumbled upon the profile of a pup named Molly.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here is the description the volunteer wrote:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">Molly - An absolute gem of a dog, sweet, calm, and submissive! </span><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">...Even though it’s clear she’s a little bit nervous in her new environment, she still was one of the most polite and well-behaved dogs I have ever met. ...didn’t bark, jump, or become overly excited at any point, and loved to just sit right by my side. She was as calm and as sweet as could be. With her low energy and calm nature, Molly would be a GREAT fit for a family or a person looking for a dog who has grown out of their wild puppy age, but is still young enough to keep pace with you..."</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Suffice to say, we reasoned that Molly would be such an easy dog, she wouldn't add extra work and could even have a calming effect on Spartacus. Sparty is reactive to dogs when he's <i>on leash.</i> Off leash he's made plenty of dog friends, though his play style is kinda nuts and a less dominant disposition makes an ideal playmate. We decided to visit this gem of a dog at the pound, and she was indeed very shy and barely moved. Though she was clearly nervous, there was tenderness and warmth underneath. Sparty likes to love people hard and it's been a challenge to get him to quit giving "hugs", so we welcomed Molly's reserved nature. Plus, her funny proportions and expressive ears were utterly irresistible. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yes, that is my partner kissing her through the fencing at the pound on our way out.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our landlord is a big softie who fosters dogs year round. He couldn't say no to us rescuing this shy beauty from possible death at the pound. We met her on a Sunday and she came home with us the following Thursday with her new name, Delilah.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The dogs were introduced on a walk around the block together. Delilah was guarded as she just came from her spay procedure, while Sparty expressed only healthy curiosity and welcomed her right away. She growled when he got too close to her belly area, and he respected her space with no qualms.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When Delilah finally recovered from a complication in her spay procedure, we let the dogs really get to know each other. They've been inseparable ever since.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And it turned out Delilah is quite the ball of energy once she's come out of her shell. </span></div>
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<span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">She also weighs almost double what the pound listed, at about 35 lbs. The perfect size to go wild with her big brother. </span></span></div>
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Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-58208247320129310682014-02-11T08:20:00.000-08:002014-02-11T09:25:49.608-08:00What's Up with Spartacus?So what is up with Spartacus exactly? What do we mean by leash reactive?<br />
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For the past two years, we've had a very small yard and rely on multiple daily walks around Athens, GA to exercise our pup. A month ago, we dreaded encountering other dogs on these walks. Even dogs across the street. In fact, we hadn't stayed on a sidewalk with an approaching strange dog in over a year. We were constantly on the lookout. Avoiding other dogs was the only solution we knew. Spartacus had consistently blown up ferociously at almost any dog he saw - the best we could do was keep him on a tight head halter and pray it would be over soon. Barking, growling, writhing in the air and lunging in every direction to battle the pull of the leash - that's what we mean by leash reactive.<br />
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Today, we can proudly say we've made some improvement. Last night we attended Week 5 of Behavior Solutions class at <a href="http://www.pawtropolis.com/helping-paws-rescue/behaviorsolutions.php">Pawtropolis</a>, led by the amazing Tamela Boyd. This class is limited to four dogs and is endearingly referred to as "The Bad Dog Class". We love it because it provides a nonjudgmental atmosphere for dogs and owners dealing with behavior that is stigmatized in public. How can you work on leash reactivity if you're relegated to walking your dog in situations where you can't address it's triggers? In Behavior Solutions, we practice passing other classmates at distances we just couldn't ask of a stranger, knowing our dogs might erupt. But through a combination of well-timed discipline and plenty of positive reinforcement, the outbursts are reducing in frequency and severity. We are conditioning our dogs to learn new responses to old stressors.<br />
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The method that we are most focused on is using check-ins to keep Spartacus' attention on us instead of his environment. The idea is simple: every time Spartacus chooses to look us in the eye, he gets a treat. We carry treats and kibble with us on all our walks, and in class he receives a near constant stream of hotdog bits for staying calm and keeping his attention on us. The end goal is to pass another dog and have Sparty just look to us and pay little mind to the other canine. A voluntary check-in from our dog demonstrates his impulse control, but for now it's still okay to use voice commands to redirect Sparty from his battle plans. Though he can't keep his eyes off us most of the walk, we say "Sparty, eyes!" to remind him of the check-in game when dogs are near. And we rejoice when his soulful gaze meets ours.<br />
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Careful timing is key. Just a quarter second delay in redirecting Sparty's attention can lead to hysterics. We've gotten better at abruptly forcing a seize fire when he does declare war, but the triumph is better felt when he decides to look to us instead of react at all. This merits plenty of praise and treats, and it feels like this positive reinforcement is creating a real shift in response. We made it through class yesterday with three minor outbursts in an hour and a half. Most of class, Sparty was within feet of other dogs in various staged interactions: two dogs passing each other, walking around a stationary dog, remaining stationary with other dogs practicing tricks around us, meeting a dog and owner behind a fence to name a few. Three outbursts and at least eighty victories.<br />
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Progress is slow, and we still don't feel comfortable passing a strange dog on our side of the street just yet, but we are building new behaviors and learning so much right now. We know many dogs are never truly "cured" of their reactivity, but they are managed so well that no one would know the difference. Yesterday at Behavior Solutions, recent graduates were invited back to refresh their manners and provide some new stimulus for our group. It was amazing to see how far they had come. One 100 pound black lab mix didn't make a peep and acted as the neutral dog for different exercises. Another graduate was so quick to respond to her owner's corrections, it was clear her reactions do not have an opportunity to escalate and she can be managed in public.<br />
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As for us, we've been able to transition from a Gentle Leader head collar to a parachute cord slip collar, and we can confidently pass dogs <i>across</i> the street graciously. We are so grateful and optimistic that in just a month we've laid the foundation for this new journey with Spartacus. We know it's a long road ahead, but we are excited for the future and all the hard work it will bring.<br />
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Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1227040715183679757.post-76854980257059467882014-02-09T19:54:00.000-08:002014-02-10T07:09:17.245-08:00Introducing Spartacus<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>In February 2011, Spartacus looked like this:</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>And now he looks like this!</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Spartacus was lucky enough to be taken in by a rescue when he was found wandering the streets of Miami. This sweet pup had worms, demodectic mange, and signs that he had narrowly survived the Canine Distemper virus. After several weeks of vetting and a few months healing with a foster family, Spartacus found us in April 2011 and our journey together began.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We adopted Sparty at the ripe age of 7 months old and we bonded immediately. This was our first dog as an adult, and he seemed like the ultimate happy go lucky puppy in our eyes. Between having full reign of the tropical family farm, chewing drift wood at the dog beach, and romping around with his cousin Sadie, Sparty was a happy camper. It appeared at long last that his troubles were far behind him.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">However, after a week with us, his healed skin started to show signs of trouble again, and our trip to the vet left us feeling heart broken. Sparty indeed had recurrent mange, and in addition, our vet confirmed that his head twitch and caramel colored teeth were permanent and could only have been caused by the Distemper virus. Our education began.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Firstly, Spartacus was a survivor, the odds of surviving this virus once it reaches the "neurological state" are slim to none. The diagnosis was confirmed by Sparty's head twitch - it's like someone bobbing their head to a cool jam, all the time, even in his sleep. Secondly, the enamel in his teeth had been affected at a cellular level and he would probably lose his teeth early, no pearly whites on this handsome pup. And the hardest part was that this disease presents itself in mysterious ways, and it can continue to affect a dog throughout its lifespan causing further neurological damage leading to a seizure disorder. There is no known cure.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We were referred to a dog neurologist, and it was her belief that Spartacus could still lead a relatively normal dog life. But she worried his immune system was weak, and advised us to avoid dog parks and areas with strange dogs. Also, she believed Sparty would benefit from a lot of love.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Easy enough. We lived on the family plant nursery with cousin Sadie, so Sparty got to live the life running around, swimming, and chasing his fluffy friend. We gave him all the love we could, and cuddled him through his nightly nightmares when he trembled and yelped. All our effort went into giving this poor guy all the love that he deserved and had missed out on homeless and suffering. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We did not work on training him at all, and when he matured into a 57 pound adult with severe leash reactivity, we were stumped. The focus of this blog will be on dealing with a leash reactive dog with the most soulful eyes that you can't help but love with all your heart, so stay tuned!</span></div>
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<br />Chill Out Spartacushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16663400864380724094noreply@blogger.com3