Comments for Dog Secrets » David Ryan CCAB – Pet Behaviour Counselling

Comment on Why won’t my dog come back? by Joanna Bird

Joanna Bird — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 10:52:12 +0000

Thank for this! My 10 week old border terrier is a very determind lady and finds chewing stones or grass more interesting than comeing back to me! She hasnt ventured outside the garden yet. Great advice, I can really understand things from her perspective now! Thank you

Comment on How do I stop my dog chasing? by Kevin

Kevin — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 12:24:06 +0000

Very pleased I found your article,I have a 11 month working cocker which loves chasing cattle I can get her to leave the chase using an emergency recall whistle,but never close enough to put her back on lead.I have already started just taking her to beach and have her chase a ball which she loves even to the point of inoring other dogs so feel I am half way there and going to try next step teaching recall using the “toy” command or may call “ball” instead.I have tried various recall methods using treats,which work great in house,garden,on training line ect but as soon as she off lead she is not interested in food just hunting and chasing.So really looking forward to trying this. Thanks for posting it David

Comment on Why won’t my dog come back? by Caroline

Caroline — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 11:17:28 +0000

Very good article, my 10 month German Pointer has been good but she has fallen back in recent weeks; becoming more distracted by scents and chasing birds, finding tasty bits to eat etc, but this has encouraged me to up my game. I like the idea of the long washing line.Thanks

Comment on How do I stop my dog chasing? by Meredith

Meredith — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 00:42:20 +0000

Great article, very well written and interesting. Thanks!

Comment on How do I stop my dog chasing? by Tyke

Tyke — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 14:47:38 +0000

Glad I found this. My 2 year old Border Collie is good apart from he chases everything that moves-birds, cats, sheep- worst of all cars. I don’t let him off the lead near traffic but he lunges all the time I’ve spent a fortune on dog trainers-no use most of then. I’m going to try this as he will chase a ball in our garden Can anyone give me a realistic time scale.When can I expect to see results? . I really don’t mind how long it takes as long as I know from the start

Comment on How do I stop my dog chasing? by Jennifer

Jennifer — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 20:35:42 +0000

Thank you for such a well written article. My 8 month old Border Collie has become impossible to stop chasing after our small flock of sheep and as they’re now in lamb this is worrying. So… sheep are now stabled safely away and tomorrow we start with our training aid, Ellie the Effulump (or ‘toy’ as she’ll be known as from now on!)

Comment on Who is a Positive Dog Trainer? Not Me! by andrea

andrea — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 10:23:42 +0000

OMG !! It all makes sense now. I didnt understand where i was going so wrong with my 6month pup and why she was not listening to me or responding to the different methods of training I was trying. Now I understand and cant wait to start training from the beginning Such good advice. Has anyone red the ‘chasing’ article on here, that really is utter brilliance !!

Comment on Who is a Positive Dog Trainer? Not Me! by Sharon Normandin

Sharon Normandin — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 19:14:22 +0000

Nicely said, thank you!

Comment on Who is a Positive Dog Trainer? Not Me! by Anne Springer

Anne Springer — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 21:04:49 +0000

This is so true, but as with any other aspect of life, humans often fall into slang usage or colloquialisms – and calling oneself a “positive trainer” is a lot better than some other things one could call oneself;-) Nice explanation of the quadrants of operant conditioning that trainers can use instead of relying on physical punishment. Get the dog thinking! *Learning* is better than learned helplessness!

Comment on Who is a Positive Dog Trainer? Not Me! by jayne

jayne — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 20:54:16 +0000

I second Fiona’s comment. I’ve been told by ‘positive’ dog trainers that a couple of my methods are completely wrong, damaging to dogs, etc, etc. One of the dreadful things I did was to gently remove a dog from the room when he displayed aggression towards one of the other dogs. He had started many death or glory battles with his arch foe. When he had been removed from the room he had to wait for a little while, and then he would be invited back in. Eventually, he stopped being aggressive. Occasionally he would forget himself and growl, he would then take himself out of the room and wait to be invited back in again. This didn’t involve any shouting or rough treatment and did nothing to distress the ‘aggressive’ dog. But I’ve been assured on many occasions that it was completely wrong because I was using a punishment. My response is that it worked, painlessly and easily and the result was a happy, contented little dog that got on happily with the other dogs. Incidentally all the dogs were rescued dogs and so had all come with various problems.