Well done Flo IMO.. 'Good Citizen' has more value than the Conformation classes. And anyway.... we each get to take the best dogs home with us at the end of the day
Excellent news doggy I wont let my Beagle see these, until this week I was proud of her for passing the "basic level 1 puppy course" so you guys must be made up to get those
I initially read that as "confrontation classes" and thought "At last, something Iggy would excel at!" because tbh, he's more of a "people dog" than a "dog dog", so while he is soppy with humans, he's not great with other canines. He had a few bad experiences with other dogs when he was a puppy and he's always been wary of them and a bit barky and snappy when they get a little too boisterous, but since he crossed the 3 year milestone, he's gone from cowering behind my legs when other dogs hassle him to (in his mind, it seems) defending me and running them off. There's one particular local dog he doesn't get on with, a huge fluffy grey male German Shepherd called Mac that looks like a wolf, which is very hyper. Iggy finds Mac a bit much, which has resulted in him giving him a few warning nips and I'm not exactly over the Moon at the prospect of Iggy starting a fight with a dog 3 times his size, so if I see Mac on the field, we go somewhere else. It doesn't help that Iggy is intact, so he probably gives off scents and pheromones that other male dogs find threatening. Having said that, he doesn't mind female dogs and he even played nicely with a male cockerpoo today and he usually hates CPs, so perhaps there's hope. Note to self: find a class where he can meet and learn on get on with others of his own kind.....
Latest member of the family, a new Burmese kitten called Willow. Our other Burmese (Honey) is very pissed off however, really not happy but slowly starting to come round.
He'll be reading you. So if you're cautious when another dog is getting close, then Iggy will pick up on that and respond accordingly. It's a tough circle to break I know. I have the same issue (but X4). Beth is our 'Alpha' and she's the one most likely to challenge other dogs. If they're polite then there's no issue. Otherwise ......... The thing is to always be 'The Boss' and keep them in their place............ like we do
It's the opposite actually. I'm relaxed and friendly with other dogs and I encourage Iggy to engage with them. In some ways he's getting a bit better as he stands his ground now, whereas before he would hide behind me or run off which would almost always trigger a chase response in the other dog, but in other ways the improved confidence is manifesting as aggression towards them. Thankfully all his warning barks and snaps have made the other dogs back off so far, but one day he might meet the wrong one and it leads to a fight. On a separate note, in the past few months, again, since his 3rd birthday, he's developed a couple of extra vocalisations. One is a sort of "huffing" noise that he makes over and over when he greets a family member returning home, which is combined with forcefully nuzzling and leaning on them. The other one is when we are going out for a walk and I get him worked up by saying things like "Let's go for an adventure!" in an excited tone of voice, which he responds to by sneezing repeatedly. I've read that African Hunting Dogs "vote" to go out on hunting trips by sneezing - a dog will "suggest" a hunt by sneezing, then other dogs will join in (or not), with their own sneezes and the lower the status of the dog which proposes the hunt, the more "sneeze votes" they need in order for it to happen. I wonder if it a variant of that behaviour?
Loads of different dog vocalisations. Sneezing is usually a sign of excitement, or their way of saying "I'm having a good time". That 'Huffing' noise is a pleasure sound too. Our Meg makes a noise like a 'Wookiee' when she's relaxing
It's absolutely fascinating. Iggy also sometimes does something similar to the "Wookie" noise - it's like a cross between a growl and a long howl that lasts a few seconds, which he makes when he is excited, but only ever in the mornings while waiting for his breakfast. Here's an article about the African Hunting Dog's democratic sneezing: https://www.science.org/content/article/wild-dogs-vote-initiate-hunt-sneezing
Our fourteen & a half year old Corgi/Jack cross Rescue Dawg sending out some Zzzzs Let sleeping dogs … by Richard Billing, on Flickr
Number one dog has started showing signs of arthritis in his front left leg. Hes even started dawdling on the lead Ive been offered monthly jabs at £90 a pop or getting him on Yu Move. HAs anyone had experience of either/both and if so which tends to work most effectively?
No direct experience of either, but have heard good things about 'Yu Move'. Personally, I'd give it a go first. Ours have Omega 3 oil added to their food each day (from 8 weeks old) and that seems to help with joint health/longevity. Of course, if it does come to stumping up £90 each month to keep him comfortable, then that's what it'll be
Our Springer is going to be 15 in May,she has a £65 jab once a month ,has arthritis i her back legsand needs help getting in the car.Still expects 2 walks a day afternoons on Dartmoor,slower now but at 82 so am I.
A very active six. Popped to the vets earlier to get some metacam while we’re waiting on the nutrient supplements. Seems to help a lot but at £52.50 for a few shots it’s bloody pricey!! They were all jabbed last week too so I can get them into kennels when I have to travel with work next month. £576.00 Been a brutal week
6? That’s no age at all. I hope it works out. My Iggy isn’t too well at the moment. Last week, he couldn’t keep up with my son when he went for a run, and he just wasn’t into it, which is highly unusual as my son is his favourite human and he absolutely loves doing stuff with him. He was fine yesterday and played football in the park with me and my two sons for hours but today he’s been kind of lethargic. Then he threw up at about 7pm and though he went out for a walk with my son, he didn’t seem to enjoy it (which I thought might have been due to it pissing down and him being a bit of a wuss) but when he came home he turned his nose up at his mince and steamed haddock mix and even the steak me and my boy had for dinner and offered to share with him. The last couple of hours since then he’s been curled up on my lap and hardly moving. He’ll be sleeping in bed with me tonight and it’ll be off to the vets in the morning if he’s no better.
