Many subjects to cover
I started an entry last week and finally posted it today. Now I will catch up on all of the other things that have been happening lately. I posted a photo of Stella and her newest friend; an 8 week old Australian Shepherd puppy named Ani. My friends brought her by last week so we could meet her. She was a bit overwhelmed with all of the changes in her world but eventually played with Stella a little. Stella tends to come on like a freight train with other dogs and little Ani wasn't sure what to think!! I know they are destined to become good friends. She is already bigger than Stella even though she is five weeks younger!
One of the topics being discussed on my Dog Listener forum recently was about the over stimulation of puppies at an early age. One of the Dog Listeners said she was asked to write an essay for a class she is taking on socialization of puppies. Some people believe that a young puppy needs to be flooded with experiences with many other dogs and people in many different situations in order to be well adjusted. Our feeling on this is that too much change in their world causes undue anxiety and puts them into situations they aren't quite ready to handle. Earlier in this blog I covered what happened when I took Stella to work with me when she was only 8 weeks old. It was another new environment with people coming and going constantly, new sounds, smells, etc. She'd just lose it and run crazily around the room biting at things and whining for no apparent reason. In contrast, in the mornings at home she would be in our kitchen in a small contained area and was relaxed, calm and content to be in a familiar place with her toys. She would play by herself or chew on a bone. To this day, even though she is now 14 weeks old, she still likes the kitchen and seems content and secure there. It isn't that we haven't introduced her to new situations like new people, new doggy friends and new places. We just limit it so she doesn't have to deal with too many things all at once.
This leads to another related topic and that is encouraging independence in a puppy. When Kent and I got our first dog we spent every minute wanting to play with him, to the point where he wanted nothing to do with other dogs and wasn't content to amuse himself with a toy. He wanted (and got!) our complete undivided attention any time he wanted it. I remember seeing other people's dogs running around playing by themselves and thinking "wouldn't that be nice". Stella hasn't shown that demanding trait because we have made sure it's always our decision to play with her and we leave her alone often enough that she is happy to amuse herself. When she tries to get our attention and we are busy we ignore her. She eventually gives up and finds something to do on her own. Of course, chewing up plants, furniture and other items sometimes becomes her focus so we keep one eye on her at all times. We still limit her access to parts of the house where we can't watch her. She is learning that we are in control of her world and she is relaxed and easy going as a result.
Last Saturday we had a wonderful visit with Kaylene, Chris and their dog Hillie who is Stella's mom. They were in town and stopped by for a visit. It was a lovely warm evening and Stella finally had a playmate who was more than her match. Hillie and Stella ran and leaped and chased and they had a great time. Tug of war with the frisbee was a fun game, plus Hillie showed Stella how to jump in the air to catch it! We hope they will come for another visit soon. And a wonderful side benefit for Kent and I was that Stella slept until 7:30 the next morning because she was so worn out.
Leash training is going well. I learned I must time the training sessions carefully. The best times are when she has been playing hard and is tired, when she first wakes up from a nap, and when she is hungry. When she is full of energy and in a "Let's play!" mode it is difficult to get her to pay attention to me, which is critical for the training to work. It just sets us up for failure which accomplishes nothing. She receives lots of praise and maybe a treat when she heals correctly. Eventually she will be weaned off the treats. She comes very well now when called and sits and waits before going out a door after me.
One more thing.....just today....her right ear has returned to its upright and perky position!! Dr. Boer didn't think they would, so now, if the other one follows suit she will really look like a true JRT! We'll see.....
One of the topics being discussed on my Dog Listener forum recently was about the over stimulation of puppies at an early age. One of the Dog Listeners said she was asked to write an essay for a class she is taking on socialization of puppies. Some people believe that a young puppy needs to be flooded with experiences with many other dogs and people in many different situations in order to be well adjusted. Our feeling on this is that too much change in their world causes undue anxiety and puts them into situations they aren't quite ready to handle. Earlier in this blog I covered what happened when I took Stella to work with me when she was only 8 weeks old. It was another new environment with people coming and going constantly, new sounds, smells, etc. She'd just lose it and run crazily around the room biting at things and whining for no apparent reason. In contrast, in the mornings at home she would be in our kitchen in a small contained area and was relaxed, calm and content to be in a familiar place with her toys. She would play by herself or chew on a bone. To this day, even though she is now 14 weeks old, she still likes the kitchen and seems content and secure there. It isn't that we haven't introduced her to new situations like new people, new doggy friends and new places. We just limit it so she doesn't have to deal with too many things all at once.
This leads to another related topic and that is encouraging independence in a puppy. When Kent and I got our first dog we spent every minute wanting to play with him, to the point where he wanted nothing to do with other dogs and wasn't content to amuse himself with a toy. He wanted (and got!) our complete undivided attention any time he wanted it. I remember seeing other people's dogs running around playing by themselves and thinking "wouldn't that be nice". Stella hasn't shown that demanding trait because we have made sure it's always our decision to play with her and we leave her alone often enough that she is happy to amuse herself. When she tries to get our attention and we are busy we ignore her. She eventually gives up and finds something to do on her own. Of course, chewing up plants, furniture and other items sometimes becomes her focus so we keep one eye on her at all times. We still limit her access to parts of the house where we can't watch her. She is learning that we are in control of her world and she is relaxed and easy going as a result.
Last Saturday we had a wonderful visit with Kaylene, Chris and their dog Hillie who is Stella's mom. They were in town and stopped by for a visit. It was a lovely warm evening and Stella finally had a playmate who was more than her match. Hillie and Stella ran and leaped and chased and they had a great time. Tug of war with the frisbee was a fun game, plus Hillie showed Stella how to jump in the air to catch it! We hope they will come for another visit soon. And a wonderful side benefit for Kent and I was that Stella slept until 7:30 the next morning because she was so worn out.
Leash training is going well. I learned I must time the training sessions carefully. The best times are when she has been playing hard and is tired, when she first wakes up from a nap, and when she is hungry. When she is full of energy and in a "Let's play!" mode it is difficult to get her to pay attention to me, which is critical for the training to work. It just sets us up for failure which accomplishes nothing. She receives lots of praise and maybe a treat when she heals correctly. Eventually she will be weaned off the treats. She comes very well now when called and sits and waits before going out a door after me.
One more thing.....just today....her right ear has returned to its upright and perky position!! Dr. Boer didn't think they would, so now, if the other one follows suit she will really look like a true JRT! We'll see.....
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