Hi! It's Cinnamon.
When I was browsing old photos and videos on Mum's computer with Mum, we found a video filmed exactly a year ago. I was practising pivoting trick with Cookie then.
Watching the video, I missed Cookie so much! He was always calm like this and enjoyed learning new tricks with me, proving that even middle-aged dogs can start to learn tricks.
Back then, pivoting was one of the few tricks I could do. I have learned so many tricks in the last one year. My pivoting has also improved a lot, so I hope to show you how I do the trick now sometime!
From Cinnamon's Mum:
Today I took Cinnamon and Mint for a walk together in late afternoon, although I usually walk them separately. Now I regret that I did that.
As soon as we went out of the gate, we saw a dog coming in our way. If it had been either Cinnamon or Mint only, I might have been able to control them. But, Cinnamon started barking really aggressively, so I turned around to walk away from the dog. Then the owner of the dog followed us with the dog and even tried to let the dog meet mine. Being unable to control Cinnamon as well as Mint, who was pulling the lead, I got so stressy that I couldn't say anything when the other dog's owner asked my dogs' ages, which means I effectively ignored the person.
After putting Cinnamon and Mint in a down stay for a while to calm them down, we started walking again. Then, only ten seconds or so later, another dog appeared, and again his owner came in our way wanting to say hello to us, when I was trying to ignore them. Again Cinnamon started barking aggressively, and when I was struggling to control my two dogs, a person who was with the person walking the dog came and tried to give me a hand. But, again, I couldn't do anything but saying "I am fine."
Then, again, less than a minute later, another dog came in our way, and Cinnamon behaved in the same way.
It was a very weird afternoon. We usually don't meet so many new dogs walking near our house. That's why I took Cinnamon to many different places by car when I was trying to teach her to stay calm when she met new dogs, in preparation for Canine Good Citizen assessment.
I was reminded that training NEVER ENDS!!
Oh ish! That happens to me sometimes too. I am practicing walkies and then we get in a stressy situation that kind of escalates and the humans are all talking to mom and wanting to meet me and she feels rude walking away, but what else can she do? Don't worry, you will be walking together calmly some day. Hey, I am still practicing calm walkies with stupid peewee in the yard lest we go out together and run into some idiot human.
ReplyDeleteSlobbers,
Mango
I liked your video Cinnamon, that is a very cool trick :)
ReplyDeleteLicks and lots of slobber,
Lexi and Jasper the Danes
From Laura ~ That sounds like a very stressfull situaton, especially since dogs kept appearing before you could calm Cinnamon and Mint down!
Lexi and Jasper are really good by themsleves, but when together they feed of each other sometimes. When I walk the two of them and we come across another dog I normally pull over to the side make them sit and wait - it works quite well, especially if the other dog isn't under control.
If they react to the other dog though it is because they have been trying to challenge me for pack leader that day and it is normally when the other dogs is in front of his owner and pulling (showing that in his pack he is boss) and chanllenging our pack, so Lexi and Jasper think it is there job to react - hehe though really its not and they are testing their boundries!
Maybe you should practice walking each Mint and Cinnamon with another dog and person (individually), that way they get used to walking with another dog and not reacting to dogs you come across in your walk with another dog around? And that way you don't have the stress of controlling two dogs. Or maybe practise walking them together with you holding one of them and ontother person holding the other one.
I'd be more than happy to help, I know exactally what its like having two dog feeding off each other in a situation!
~Laura
so sorry about the idiot people! So clueless at times! I'd be tempted to say that my dog had some horrible skin disease or something that was contagious so the other people would flee in a hurry!
ReplyDeleteyes, training never ends. i can imagine how stressful you were during your walk. good luck with your coming assessment.
ReplyDeleteoh, i miss Cookie too.
Oh Cookie looks so sweet, I wish we could have met him. Yeah, walking can be stressful can't it - I used to have a problem with two very territorial dogs down the end of our street - we couldn't walk past them because they'd go CRAZY when you were about 3 houses away and Pepper would start lunging and barking, the owner would come out and start shouting at their dogs to "shut up" and "be quiet", totally useless and definitely made things worse, so I know how you feel! I'm more than happy to practise polite walking with you - I thought Cinnamon was very good and well mannered when we were walking in Cornwall park.
ReplyDeleteWhat a cute video. Beagles will do anything for food! I loved the look on Cinnamon's face at the end. If she could talk, she would have said "Hey, don't I get some more treats?"
ReplyDeleteAs for the walks, I think it's dog chemistry. For Kess, there are some dogs she would love to meet and sniff, and then there are some she would just go ballistic and and start barking.
Oh, I'm so sorry to hear about that - although I don't have 2 dogs, I have been there too with Honey - I guess she is big enough and heavy enough to count as 2 dogs - ha! ha! It can be very hard when you have 2 because they do hype each other up and it's hard to get them both to focus on you. I agree about spending more time working them individually passing dogs - or even decide to focus on one in particular - because if you can get either Cinnamon or Mint calm, even when they are together, then you will have more control - if you see what I mean? Like instead of your energies being divied 50/50 - if you could have more control and reliability from one of them, then you could focus on calming them first in that situation - and then that might calm the other one down as well.
ReplyDeleteBut I have to say - it is really the fault of the other owners for lettign their dogs drag up to you and not controlling them. I really HATE and get mad at people who think that all dogs should "say hello" to each other all the time in the street - it is so wrong! And then they put you in a difficult situation. I used to be like you and worry about being rude - and that made my dog worse...so now I have learned to be more selfish and I don't care so much about being rude or tryign to explain to people (after all, they're being rude to let their dogs come up!) - I think in that situation, you can even ask them to please control their dogs. You have a perfect right to ask and it might make them ashamed. Otherwise, if you feel too shy to be so blunt, then I think Laura has a very good idea and you should quickly lie and say something about them having infectious skin disease - which will stop any other owners approaching immediately!! :-) why not? Do what's good for YOU and YOUR dogs!
Hsin-Yi
Kisses to Cookie in heaven.
ReplyDeleteSome people just don't think when they're walking their dogs. How about ASKING if they can say hello??
The skin disease works very well. I have used it a lot. Fleas are another good lie to tell. Lenni has issues about big black dogs. It had couple situations when it was puppy and I did not know how to react when strange dog attacts your puppy. After that there is not so much strange dogs that I let near to my dogs. Even the owner says their dogs are nice. Yep nice dogs makes also holes to your dogs when they get close enough. It is big problem that people don't understand that if you are teaching your dog your not having a nice small talks during your walk.
ReplyDeleteFor the problem: in here we have made walks with our dog societys people, whos dogs our dogs don´t know. Idea is that we set up situation as we were on walk, but you know that there is coming dog, where it is coming and when so you can prepear to it. First you have dogs that can walk by with out giving stimulation and with when you can get your dog pass nicely you can make the practise harder by trying to find dog that does stimulate.
Don't know if I could descripe it propely or if it is worth of trying but it is pretty common way in here.