Ok so as we know this is a safe space and quite frankly I judge myself far more harshly than anybody else ever could. I use a choke chain and I hate it BUT I have tried: A martingale collar ; absolutely no use A GenCon head collar; just pulled tightly into his muzzle and he pulled against it anyway A Dogmatic head collar, he will pull against this, then frantically paw at it, resulting in scratches to himself and also he knows he can swing his body around which has resulted in cracked ribs on myself. A slip collar - this was like hanging him, for me they are too much like a noose and I’m not happy with that. So I’ve made the choice to try a choke chain and whilst the majority of the time he has it on but emphasis is on his collar, if need be the choke comes into play. This has been the only thing that has worked and he seems to be becoming calmer with dare I say the majority of dogs we are meeting! So whilst it’s not ideal I have made a choice that may be deemed as potentially damaging but I’ve weighed up my options. I thought I’d share this post to show that we are open and that we have decisions to make that are not ideal.

I try to take opportunities to do a little training on walks. So this morning we practiced weaving, (1 more successfully than the other!), walking in the wall to build confidence and hopefully build the awareness to use the see saw. Do you use anything that’s available to you as an extra training session. Oops and the little jumps too so we can promote following instruction, move those muscle a little more rather than just walking and trotting.

I’ve just been made aware that a member is interested in how we have experienced potty training our dogs. So if you have any tips, please share in here. So here are my thoughts. Can I just say this is my own personal experience and @Angela Day will jump on when available and add anything relevant. Obviously I would suggest that having got your puppy, have a vet check to ‘check all is in working order. That includes poops and pees! When I have had puppies, I have taken them out for a toilet break when they wake, before they are put down to bed ( whether in a crate or not) any times in between. Every time they relieve themselves I give praise. Remembering that after play they may need to go out again. Their bladders aren’t that big and they haven’t learnt that the garden is the place so accidents shouldn’t be met with being scolded as this can make them scared and even avoid going when you are there. At night times or if I leave them at home I provide a very big, high sided ( must be suitable for your size of puppy) tray with shredded paper. I don’t mean newspaper it’s like a mix of paper and kitchen towel, very soft and absorbent and for sale by the huge bale. This soaks up everything and enables your pup to still have a specific place if unable to get outside. Please feel free to add your experiences and ideas and hopefully between us this will help.

I don’t know about your dogs but at times, since Leif had injury caused by another dog, he can be reactive. I have supported his behaviour to calm him and realised through our Tuesday chats in the Canine Advocate that is couldn’t be through fear and not aggression. it really made sense when we had the talk about anxious dogs. I felt I had let Leif down. Over the past few months I have seen a real change for the better with Leif at times completely ignoring dogs or just calmly watching. Today, we almost made a clear round! Coming into contact with 4 dogs, 2 of which were kicking off. Leif just wanted to go sniff through the long grass. Next 2 he sat and just watched go by. Next 1 started going at Leif so he responded and lastly, a calm dog walking past, and it was Leif’s turn to kick off! I wonder if that dog hadn’t gone for him would he have remained calm for the entire walk. It makes me think he would. What’s your thoughts? Do any of yours do this?

👀Why is it even when you watch from afar and keep your eye on the spot where your dog pooped so you can pick it up, it literally just vanishes 😧