Rescue collie/lurcher

[jeannie55]

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I adopted this girl who is now 20mths from a local animal centre where she'd been for 4 months. They told that she had a few chasing issues but didn't have a nasty bone in her body. I have another 5 dogs who are all so sweet all collies and collie x they range from 12mths - 13yrs.

Since having my new girl things are not going well she growls at my husband and my tenage granddaughter which is a real worry

and I've never had a dog who doesn't want to go for a walk and runs all over the house I thought this was a problem with the lead and have been working on this by giving her treats if she comes to me when I have the lead on my hand.

She also barks a lot for no apparent reason she can be asleep one minute and barking like mad the next. She has no manners and will jump up at people but not in a nasty way.I know was left on her own for a long time where she entertained herself by watching the traffic and birds also the people had parrots which she hated.

I'm taking her to training lessons and working on her recall which was none existent that's a lot better she has a long line.she loves people and I don't have any worries when we go out shes happy to greet everyone.

I really do love her and so does my husband and we don't want to give up on her we just need help in knowing which way to go. I've seen a couple of behaviourist but nothing seems to be working.

I'm also doing lots of focus work with her and really want to be able to do agility with her one day as I'm sure that she would love it.

Anyone got any ideas please?

 

[gypsysmum2]

You say you have seen a couple of behaviourists but nothing seems to be working. Could you elaborate please? What did they diagnose was going on with her behaviour? Were any of them qualified and registered with either APBC or COAPE? Anyone can call themselves a behaviourist but only the best have gone through the rigorous selection and training required to qualify with the above organisations.

Your dog could be very sensitive. She could be reacting to the change in her life. If she is friendly with people why is she growling at your husband and granddaughter. Dows she have negative association with them either from her past life or her new one? Is it in certain circumstances such as when she feels trapped? Or when she has possession of something?

It could be that she has multiple issues and these would need to be treated in order of priority. This might mean ignoring one problem while you concentrate on another. Only a full assessment, in the home, by a qualified behaviourist will give you a proper diagnosis on each issue that she has. The behaviourist should then prioritise which area to treat first and give you a programme to work on. It is at this stage that things often fall apart because some people find it hard to change the way they handle their dogs, especially if they have been doing something the same way for many years.

Have any of the behaviourists discussed diet? Did they take a full history right back to puppyhood, or as far as you knew? Did they give you a written report of their findings?

It is great that you are persevering with this dog. We learn something form every dog we own. Some learning curves are steeper than others.

 

[Parly]

I adopted this girl who is now 20mths from a local animal centre where she'd been for 4 months. They told that she had a few chasing issues but didn't have a nasty bone in her body. I have another 5 dogs who are all so sweet all collies and collie x they range from 12mths - 13yrs.

Since having my new girl things are not going well she growls at my husband and my tenage granddaughter which is a real worry

and I've never had a dog who doesn't want to go for a walk and runs all over the house I thought this was a problem with the lead and have been working on this by giving her treats if she comes to me when I have the lead on my hand.

She also barks a lot for no apparent reason she can be asleep one minute and barking like mad the next. She has no manners and will jump up at people but not in a nasty way.I know was left on her own for a long time where she entertained herself by watching the traffic and birds also the people had parrots which she hated.

I'm taking her to training lessons and working on her recall which was none existent that's a lot better she has a long line.she loves people and I don't have any worries when we go out shes happy to greet everyone.

I really do love her and so does my husband and we don't want to give up on her we just need help in knowing which way to go. I've seen a couple of behaviourist but nothing seems to be working.

I'm also doing lots of focus work with her and really want to be able to do agility with her one day as I'm sure that she would love it.

Anyone got any ideas please?

Awww poor girl sounds like she's had a real rough ride and an awful start to life. Not surprised she has issues stacked up.

Do you get any ongoing support or help with training from the rescue centre at all? Some do and some just let you crack on so I'm wondering where you've landed.

Has she always growled at your husband and granddaughter or is it just a recent thing?

My feeling just from your post is that she's been tormented in more than one sense bless her. I wonder if she's actually scared of being outdoors if she's so unwilling to go for walks with you but then she's possibly really curious to go and see the traffic and birds she's always watched from the window too. If she is nervous / fearful of the outside but lived in constantly with a parrot she hated (and I imagine would drive her nuts) the poor dog must feel like she has nowhere to go or how to feel happy and must be mentally going round and back and forth trying to find some comfort.

I would definitely just go right back to the start and stick to setting her in / making friends and building her trust for now. Honestly that's the only thing I would put any time or energy into doing but all my spare time and energy would be doing it.

So what if she's a bit daft, giddy and bad mannered / likes to jump up? She's allowed to be bearing in mind her history God love her. I'd make that lower down the list because ultimately it's not difficult to tackle those things later.

She's had such a turbulent and pitiful life so far I'd want to iron out a nice clean sheet so she can find her place, her own pace and learn to trust you first and foremost. From there you can work on building confidence and tackle other issues / crack on with agility but that's further down the line.

Not easy when you have five other dogs to be fair but that's something for you to figure out! (Five dogs oh my Lord?!) (w00t)

There are some brilliant centres / websites that offer advice and info about things like the Trust Technique and one of my favourite place in the world "Border Collie Rescue" uses it with dogs they get in that are incredibly complex and pretty much all others had written off. End links to a video of one dog the RSPCA seized as part of a cruelty case and another that ran away and lived wild for months over the Shetlands during one of the worst winters on record and was essentially feral by the time BCR got her.

Last but not least – please ditch any behaviourist, trainer or other similar professional for now. They are no use to you or this dog at all for now anyway and would almost certainly only do her more harm than good at this stage.

Would love to see a picture of her and hear how you get on :flowers:


http://www.bordercollierescue.org/home.html
http://www.kentgreyhoundrescue.com/lurchers-as-pets
http://trust-technique.com

"Shetland Tess" https://youtu.be/7bs7fZfjM0s

"Natalia cruelty case" https://youtu.be/7bs7fZfjM0s

 

[gypsysmum2]

Sorry Parly, but that is a bit of a sweeping statement ( to ditch all the professional help).

A behaviourist from one of the organisations mentioned above (COAPE or APBC) would be a massive help by assessing the dog in its environment and giving advice based on the circumstances of the new owner. They would take into account all the family circumstances, the history of the dog and characters of all the other dogs in the household.

 

[Parly]

Sorry Parly, but that is a bit of a sweeping statement ( to ditch all the professional help).

A behaviourist from one of the organisations mentioned above (COAPE or APBC) would be a massive help by assessing the dog in its environment and giving advice based on the circumstances of the new owner. They would take into account all the family circumstances, the history of the dog and characters of all the other dogs in the household.

No no - either you misunderstood my point or I didn't explain clearly enough so to clarify what I meant about avoiding the professionals I mean the "professional trainers / experts and behaviourists" whose aims, claims and intention will lean more toward trying to fix the dog by whatever training technique or method they prefer.

Observational assessments and advice about the best way forward - I'm absolutely for which is why I asked about about any ongoing support from the rescue centre or people / places to call on for more guidance, advice and information.

My worry is over the many "trainers" that are so keen to show off their skills and put their theory into practice they don't always realise the damage they're doing to a dog that could least do with more damage added on for good measure.

If this were me / my dog and my home I would definitely make the rescue centre and whatever support network they have first port of call. They're the best people to call on for assessments and get advice in general.

Then I would take a big long long shitty stick out on walks and use it to beat off any of the idiots and self-proclaimed expert trainers I've met over the years.

Some were seriously high but that's a different topic!

 

[gypsysmum2]

Depends on the rescue centre I think

My latest rescue dog came from a "sanctuary" where the staff still believed in the "dominance" theory. I was not allowed to view all the dogs. They took my details and produced one of two dogs that they thought would suit me.

The dog I chose was on cage rest, due to injuries sustained in the previous home they had sent him to. After it was all agreed that I would adopt him, I asked if I might take him home and cage rest him there (I have previous veterinary nursing experience and was, at the time, employed by their vet as a part time receptionist). The answer was "no". So he stayed in his cage and was subjected to their dominance theories for another week. I visited every day and was allowed to walk him around a grim path hemmed in by two fences.

I am still dealing with the fall out from his handling by the sanctuary and, possibly, his accident and handling by his previous owners.

I would certainly not seek advice from them about his behaviour.

Yes, I know that many rescue centres are much, much better than this but it is still a risk that they give out blanket advice rather than tailored advice about the individual circumstances of the dog and the home he now lives in.