A new Member of the Family

[Oma]

Dedication from both Eva and her Hoooman is paying off good work both Pup and Hoooman

[Daisy]

Thank you Gem and Oma - I think her Hoomans have had more wobbles than she has!

[grannyjules]

Oh I just loved reading about you and Eva at training classes.
The classes sound fun. I dread ours with Fred, as they have a "Puppy Playtime" we're they all run around free range. We do keep a close eye on them and sort any bullying out but they can sound really scary at times. But they only get this "Funtime" if they've earnt it.
I much prefer a more structured class. May be the next class will be more orderly.

[Daisy]

grannyjules - thank you. I have to say our trainer's classes aren't like any other I've ever been to. She's so kind and understanding to the dogs and never pushes them beyond what it comfortable for them. She notices if they're struggling before the owners do. In her beginners' class the fun time is only one dog at a time - the others go out to the cars and come in one by one. But even the funtime is learning - follow me and sit, hand touches, 'on your mat', and follow your mum/dad nobody else. The trainer tries to tempt them away with a bag of delicious smelling sausages, without ever actually offering them directly, but it reinforces 'follow me'.

I think puppies need a bit of time to just play and be puppies as long as they are confident enough to do it. It certainly helps to teach them bite-inhibit! But I think after that stage they need a calm environment to learn what they need to know, with a bit of fun thrown in. My DS2 was adamant that he wouldn't teach Cooper to give a paw or shake paws because he didn't want Coops to be pawing at the girls for attention. The trainer he went to was really snooty about it though. But the following week another owner said her dog was now driving them mad demanding attention by pawing at them all the time!

I would definitely say, it you're not happy with the way the next class is run look for another trainer.

I am certain we would never have got to the stage we have with Eva if we hadn't found Pam. A dog trainer friend recommended her because she herself knew Eva was beyond her skills, and I think that was brilliant that she recognised Eva's problems and knew she didn't have the level of expertise to help. We've been very lucky.

[Daisy]

grannyjules - I was just wondering how Fred is getting on with his training?

Our class started back last night with a newly promoted dog from the beginners' class. Eva was all agog! A new dog! In her class! She gets very worked up and excited around other dogs and a new one in the room is major for her. After half an hour or so she calmed down a little but we went back several stages in her training to give her chance to get used to the new girl. Hopefully next week we can start making progress again.

[Nana]

Haha. Sorry Daisy but that made me laugh. I could just picture the scene.🤣

[Gemini]

I'm sure Eva will soon be back on track after her break Daisy

[Daisy]

Nana - you would have laughed if you'd see her face! She frowns really intently and if there was a speech bubble above her head it would say "New dog alert! Let me go and play, NOW". It was incredible that eventually I walked her, off lead, past the new dog.

Thanks, Gem - it will be interesting to see what happens next week. There's one lady who has two Dobermans. Sometimes she brings one, sometimes the other. No other dog, or human in the class seems to notice, but Eva does. When a lady who usually brings her GSD brought her Leo puppy instead Eva literally did a double take - casual look at the hooman, shocked look at the puppy and puzzled look back at the hooman. I wish I could video her reactions!

[Gemini]

That's so funny Daisy

[Plantaholic]

Eva is a very intelligent dog, I love your description of her reaction to a new dog Daisy.

[Daisy]

Plant - we think she's intelligent in some ways! We would love her to get a sense of proportion about other dogs then we could work towards letting her off lead on walks.

Tonight she's invented a new game - nudging the living room door backwards and forwards. Her squeaky ball had gone behind my chair and she nudged the door to get between the chair and the door. She seemed surprised when it moved though and nudged it back again. Then she decided it was more fun to push the door backwards and forwards than retrieve the squeaky ball. Sometimes we think she's stuck in a protracted puppyhood!

[Nana]

She sounds a wonderful big lump of a dog. Such character.

[Daisy]

Nana - a big lump of dog is a perfect description! A couple of hours ago someone who doesn't know us came to the door. He rang the bell, and Eva, barking her head off launched herself at the door. The poor man was half way down the drive, ready to run, before OH even got to open the door!!!

[Clover]

She certainly does sound a real character Daisy. The dog next door is soft as they come when you know her but if a stranger comes down even our drive she sounds so fierce and unfriendly with her deep,throaty bark.

[Daisy]

Clover - that's a dog's job, isn't it! Funnily enough Eva has a very unpleasant bark - it's high pitched and explosive in volume. Fortunately she doesn't bark very often. She barks when we come into the house, but that's much gentler, and she 'talks' - a sort of low almost growly noise in her throat, usually with a soft toy in her mouth, when she's greeting us.