[guidedogchat] Re: Bad habits
- From: Vincent Thacker <vince@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: guidedogchat@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sat, 4 Jan 2014 22:37:50 +0100 (CET)
Nadine, well, your last point is a very good one, but I have to tell you that
training your fiancé might b something of a challenge!
Mind you, friends who own pet dogs can also be a disruptive influence,
especially if they think they know about dogs but don't have a clue about
working with a guide dog. I've been told I'm a control freak, that my dog is
too skinny, and that the Halti head-collar I once used was a torture device,
all of which is rubbish.
Vince.
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Message Received: Jan 04 2014, 01:55 PM
From: "Nadine Lattimore"
To: "guidedogchat@xxxxxxxxxxxxx"
Cc:
Subject: [guidedogchat] Re: Bad habits
Hi Vince,
I am open to say that I became a lot more relaxed as Q and I have advanced in
our partnership in some areas. Well I would call it lazy from time to time if
there is a problem, but mostly it is fine due to our strong partnership.
Issues such as spending, free runs, feeds, treats, recall etc. obviously
depends on the dog, some need the strict routine their whole life, whereas some
like myself can drift from this.
Qs worst habit is probably barking, started out my partner wanted him to bark
on command. But he soon realised that he can do it anytime (not while working)
but off harness, whilst playing or talking to us. Cant really blame him, must
train fiancee but lol
Nadine Lattimore
On 4 Jan 2014, at 02:45, Vincent Thacker wrote:
Nadine,
I can't exactly call them resolutions, but I want to work on a couple of things
with my dog that spoil an otherwise happy partnership. One is scavenging, and
the other is improving his recall, which has improved then got worse again.
With the scavenging, I suppose I'll have to go through the food refusal stuff
we did in initial training. As I haven't got spare food to throw around very
often because I eat it too fast for it to go off! I'll have to use bits of his
kibble. If I can get him to walk past some outside, he can have a treat. Hmm,
food-related problem, rewarding him with food, wonder if there's a better idea?
And his recall was getting really good at one stage, then one day he ran off
and although there were people about, nobody could tell me where he'd gone. He
did wonder back towards home eventually, but this was really worrying, and I'd
called the police and the dog wardens. I'm glad to say he was brought home
within a few minutes, but it worried me so much he hasn't had a free run
properly since. I take him around the field on a flexi-lead, and he's got the
idea now that he can run about quite a bit even with the restrictions of the
lead, but it's not as good as a real free run. I don't have a pair of eyes
available to me at the moment, and no longer employ a Personal Assistant as I
did before, so I'll have to do loads of obedience stuff while he's on the
flexi-lead in the hope that I'll be able to let him go eventually. The other
answer is to find a safer place to let him go, but the only one I know of is
miles away. No doubt we'll have a lot of fun with whistles and treats and all
that.
Apart from that, he's such a good worker, I just want to keep the good bits. We
went to town yesterday and went all around Sainsbury's with Zym waiting
patiently whenever I stopped to faff about. He was really excellent, even among
the mad crowds rushing about to the sales or whatever they were doing. It was a
long walk in and out, well, long enough at about 3 miles each way, and he's got
a very good idea even knowing which paths to take through the park to go in the
right direction. When he's good he's very, very good.
Vince.
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Message Received: Jan 04 2014, 02:00 AM
From: "Melanie Akpotu"
To: guidedogchat@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Cc:
Subject: [guidedogchat] Re: Bad habits
Sounds nice!
Mel.
-----Original Message-----
From: Nadine Lattimore
Sent: Thursday, January 02, 2014 10:29 PM
To: guidedogchat@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [guidedogchat] Bad habits
Hi to all a happy new year if you recognise the calendar change at this
time.
Well it being the first few days of the new year now, I wonder has
anyone made any resolutions to include furry friend- such as more
walks, more grooms, fewer treats etc?
Had a wonderful Christmas and New Year in Lanzarote with Quartz, he
met all his friends, remembered his routes and had a lovely lazy time
with plenty of love and treats.
Nadine Lattimore
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