Willie Escapes!

Willie was on the run this evening after slipping his collar on our nice and peaceful walk with Pam and her dog Jojo. I tried everything from running the other way, to bribing him with treats, but Willie only had one thing on his mind..... running wild, and free. Thankfully this story does have a happy ending I was able to grab onto the other end of the toy he was carrying, and he followed me home. I realized that Willie's recall skills out on walks are lacking, and he has a lot of training in his future. My form of punishment when we got home was telling him he was a bad boy, and ignoring him till he fell asleep. I was so disappointed with myself, but at the same time I have to remind myself that Willie is still young, and that one day he will come to me when called! Until then I have made a mental note to make sure that his collar is tightly secure around his neck before we leave the house, and this is a good reminder for all of you puppy owners to make sure your pups collars are secure as well. I think this adventure has given me a few new gray hairs :)

Bow Wow Beach!

Yesterday We took Willie to Bow Wow Beach, and had a great time! Much to my surprise Willie actually jumped into the lake, and then quickly swam back out, but he really seemed to enjoy the water. And if you haven't read my other posts....Willie hates water! Not only did Willie get to experience swimming, but he also did some great socializing. He made friends with a pup named Lily. Lily was following Willie everywhere he went! Lily's owner was very excited to see Lily making friends with another pup. She told me that Lily usually does not like other dogs, and was happy that her pup had finally made a friend!

Unfortunately we did encounter a few roudy dogs. At one point three dogs had Willie pinned on his back, and seemed to be out for blood. Kevin had to go in and push the other dogs off of Willie while their owners were just standing back yelling at their pups to not do that. One of them kept yelling "get off of that dog" Sadly not one of them came over to remove their dog off of Willie. Fortunately Willie did not get hurt and/or agress back, but it could have become an all out brawl had Willie decided to fight. After Willie escaped he ran off and hid under a park bench, and was whimpering. I really gave the other owners a good scowl before heading over to where Willie was hiding out. Only one of the other owners came over to apologize. I am really hoping this experience does not cause Willie to fear other big dogs in the future. After all of that Willie wanted to run around the whole lake one more time, and then we headed out!

The only downfall....we had one wet and stinky dog!

After Bow Wow Beach we headed over to Kevin's Dads house for a Father's Day cookout. We had a good time! Willie did get over tired, and after a few hours was ready to go home. All in all it was a great day, and we will definitely have to go back to Bow Wow Beach again before the Summer ends!

On another note Willie went to the Groomer's this morning, and did great! The girl said that he was only nervous while getting bathed (again fear of the water), but did great with the clipping of the nails, and also with the trimming of the fur! I was so proud :) After all of the excitement Willie is one pooped out pup, and will probably sleep till tomorrow!

The Top Ten Things Willie Barks At!

The top ten things Willie barks at:

10. Plastic Bags - Willie likes to bark at plastic bags that are blowing around outside. I think that he must think they are Aliens. He first starts to bark at it, and then starts to growl if it comes to close!

9. Signs (Real estate, Little kids stop signs...etc.) - When the real estate sign was first put up across the street Willie apparently noticed it that night, and started to bark at it, so I took him across to smell it. After smelling it, and walking around it he barked at it one more time, and walked away! The sign must have barked back!

8. Big Diesel Trucks - There is this guy on our street that has a big black diesel truck, and when he drives it down the street he feels it necessary to rev his engine, and squeal his tires. So to this day Willie still barks at it when he drives by....JERK!

7. People/Things that go by the house at night - My favorite thing that Willie does is barking at objects that are in the yard at night. The other night Willie started to bark at something that was outside the window so I went and took a look, and what did we have sitting on our front lawn.....a small branch! It must have been very intimidating!

6. The Paper Boy at 4AM - This is not every morning, but some mornings I am awoken by Willie barking at the Paper Boy who is delivering the paper to our Neighbor. I keep trying to tell Willie that the Paper Boy is next door....he doesn't seem to understand!

5. Our Cat Grey when he is throwing up a hair ball - Gross I know, but not something that one would bark at. I think Willie thinks Grey is barking at him when this is going on, but I'm just not sure....and yes he has to bark every time this happens

4. The mean little Chi's that moved in next door - Now that the new dog's next door have tried to attack , Willie now has to bark at them anytime they come outside. I know that he just feels threatened because...well they tried to bite him, but it's quite annoying. We have had other dogs live next door, and Willie never barked at them. And actually there is a little Wiener Dog that lives on the other side of us that is constantly barking at Willie, and he has not once barked back! Hopefully with time Willie will forget about the incident, and stop barking!

3. Blow up lawn ornaments - The blow-up Santa, and Easter Bunny are Willie's Arch Nemesis, and to make matters worse one evening as we were walking by an elaborate blow-up ornament display a big wind came along and blew Santa and his Train across the persons yard towards us as we were walking. Willie started to growl, and was in attack mode. There were no amount of treats to calm him from this incident!

2. Vacuum Cleaner (And any parts/attachments) - Willie really has gotten better with this one, but he still will let out a small whimper whenever I bring the Vacuum Cleaner out. The hysterical part is he will bark at the attachments even when they are not attached to the Vacuum. I just don't know!

1. Motorcycles - This is the tough one. Willie literally freaks out when a motorcycle goes by on our walks, and even when Kevin starts up our's in the driveway. I have tried everything from letting him sniff at it while it is off, and treating him when he touches it with his nose, but as soon as it is turned on he starts barking, growling, and grabbing onto his leash. I know that this means he is deathly afraid of it, so we turn off the motor, and try the process again. I really feel bad about this one, because I know that it is loud and scary to him.

This list is pretty long, but the barking definitely does not occur on a daily basis....well except for when the little buggers are let out next door. I just think that Willie barks at the funniest things, and it makes me laugh!

The New Pup's Next Door

A couple days ago an older lady moved into the house next door. I had heard that she had a couple of Chihuahua's, and I was pretty excited to see if our dogs would get along! So, yesterday morning while Willie and I were enjoying some peace and quiet on the back patio I finally got to meet the pup's.

I was taking a sip of my coffee and I had heard her back door open, and looked up to see if she was bringing the pup's out, and to my dismay she was not bringing them out, but only letting them out the back door unleashed to wreak havoc on my lovely Sunday morning. They darted out their back door barking up a storm, and had their sights set on Willie who had been lounging underneath the large tree in our back yard. Both of the little Chi's made a B-Line straight for Willie barking and growling the whole way over. I had gotten up and out of my seat and made my way to Willie. I was trying to get in between the three of them, but to no avail one of the fat little Chi's had slipped between my legs, and was in attack mode. Fortunately Willie ran off in the other direction, and I was able to get the mean little Chi's attentions, and had them follow me back to their yard.

The older lady was sweet enough, and apologized for her pup's behaviour. I immediately felt bad because she was wheelchair bound, and obviously not able to take the dog's out on a leash herself, but she still should have a tie-out for them, or some kind of fenced outdoor area. (Which she thankfully did set up a fenced outdoor area for them!)

I have decided I am going to offer to walk her pup's a few times a week! Hopefully by the end of the summer Willie will have some new buddies to play with, and the pup's next door will be better behaved! :)

Fun and Games!!

Fun and Games

1. "Go Find Furby"

On Sunday we got Willie a new toy, and he carries this toy around like it's his baby. He sleeps with it, carries it around the house, and even brings it on our walks. This morning when I asked him if he wanted to go for a walk he immediately jumped off the couch ran into the kitchen and came back out with this toy in his mouth. So for kicks I've named his new toy Furby, and have started up a new game with him called "Go Find Furby!" Pretty simple....I let Willie smell his Furby, go hide Furby in an obvious location while Willie is not looking, and then I yell out "Willie...Go find Furby!" And Willie does just that! Eventually I will really start to hide Furby...Ie: under a blanket, in his toy box etc... Willie is such an intelligent dog, and I really believe that most dogs are intelligent, but just need a little push. I've found that this game also wears him out after about four or five times of running around tyring to find Furby!

2. "Hide and Seek"

Yes you can play hide and seek with your pup! Willie and I play a couple times a week. The game not only mentally stimulates him, but it is also a great form of excercise. The first step is to put your pup in the sit position, and tell him to stay (Of course he will have to have been taught sit and stay before this game can be played!)..Once you've told him to stay go and find a place to hide...I find behind the bathroom door, or next to the bed are good spots! Once you are in place yell (your dogs name) and then "Come Find Me!" Willie immediately runs around the house looking for me, and he usually passes up my hiding space once or twice! Once your pooch finds you immediately praise him, and you can even give him a treat if you want! This game is perfect for getting the kids involved with helping train your pup!

3. Touch Game

This game is quite simple, and I've used it to help with our nipping problem. The goal of the game is to get your pup to lightly touch your hand with his nose without opening his mouth! To start have a treat at the ready...take your open hand and hold it close to your pooch and wait for him/her to go in for a smell, and as soon as they are touching your hand with their nose say "Touch" and then immediately treat! Repeat the action until your pup seems to be catching on. At this point you should be able to move your open hands into different locations, say "Touch" and your pup should immediately touch his nose to your open hand! This games has helped immensely with Willies bad nipping habits. If you have children this can be extremely useful for really nippy puppies! In our experience the "No Bite"/Ignoring did not work, but it may with a different pup! This game is not very physical but it is a great way to work your pooches brain, and get him/her to relax!

So for those of you looking for some new games to play with your dog these games are perfect!

Or perhaps I'm the only one that plays games with her pooch!!

Oh Willie!

It's amazing to me the emotions that animals pick up on. Even the kitties sense when there is sadness or stress in the room. They usually show their love by rubbing up against my leg, or by putting a paw on my knee and looking up at me to make sure I'm okay. Willie on the other hand (being so young) shows his love by ransacking the house! This past week has been rather stressful, and I believe Willie is picking up on it. I have been trying my best to leave the stress at the door, but sometimes it seems to sneak in without my permission wreaking havoc in it's path. Yesterday before I knew it Willie had pulled all of the pillows off of the couch and was swinging them around like they were his stuffed monkey. He then proceeded to drag both of the blankets off of the couch, and in a moments notice our living room looked like a windstorm had blown through. I tried everything from basic commands to cheese to get him to focus, and at last it was the jingling of the keys that did the trick...although they also seemed to scare him. My next task was getting all of the pillows and blankets back onto the couch without Willie joining in the fun, so instead of sparking a new game of pulling on the blankets I stuck him out back on his tie out for 2 minutes so that I could make the living room look like a living room.

So today before entering the house I need to remember to take a deep breath and put a smile on, and hope that Willie can sense that I am at ease!

So just remember the next time your little Fido is rampaging through the house like a bull who is focused on that red towel; there may be a little stress or tension in the house that is making the pups upset! So take a deep breath and count to 10, and try to alleviate there stress by alleviating yours!

Keeping Positive!

Willie has now been with us for a little over a year. There were many tears, and lots of laughs. The tears were due to the frustration of Willie's incessant crazy behavior. There were days when he just would not stop nipping. Whenever he wasn't getting his way he would literally throw a temper tantrum. I found ignoring him was the trick, and then quickly praising him when he would gain control. Willie was a tough case, but I never once wanted to re-home him. I knew that I just had to go the extra mile with him, and that eventually his antics would fade away.

I did attempt to bring in a trainer, I talked to a few, and went with this guy out of Strongsville. Once he arrived for our first training session I quickly realized that the methods he used were not the methods I would ever use or even recommend. He firmly believed that you must make your dog submit to you. He even wanted us to use a choke collar with the prongs on it during training sessions. As soon as he brought that collar out I immediately made him put it away. From that moment on I knew this hour was going to be a long one, and I couldn't wait for him to leave. Willie of course was over excited, and was bouncing around all over the place, and the trainer immediately grabbed onto his leash and jerked it; which made Willie stop bouncing around, but also made him fear this man that had come into our house. I do not believe harming a puppy will make him respect you more. In fact I firmly believe it will only make your dog distrust, and fear you. I definitely did not want Willie thinking that he could not trust me. I let the trainer finish up the hour with Willie, and was happy to see him go.

After that day I did a lot of research on positive puppy training and the great affects it had on a dogs behavior. I began working with these training techniques and after months of daily training Willie went from a crazy dog to a more relaxed pup! Certainly there are still times where Willie will regress into his old ways by nipping when he is excited, nervous, or stressed. He will still grab at the leash trying to get me to join in the fun and games while on a walk. In those times I just have to remind myself that I need to stay calm, ignore him, and then quickly praise or treat him when he settles. Finally in the last Month or so I saw a wonderful side in Willie that reinforced my belief that he is going to be a great dog. On our walk we came across three little girls ages 3-5 playing in their driveway, and Willie approached them and immediately laid down, rolled onto his back, and was begging them to come over and rub his belly. I tensed up slightly, but immediately relaxed when I looked down at him with all three little ones petting, prodding, and poking him, and he seemed to have a smile on his face. Before we continued on I gave the girls each a treat to give to Willie, so that he will always associate them as something positive!

At a year and three months Willie has come a long way, but I know that training is for life, and must always be conducted in a positive manor.

Keeping a Schedule!

I think the most important thing I learned over the last year is that dogs like structure. Little Fido wants a schedule of things that he/she is going to do everyday! I learned this by having a set schedule for about the first 5 months, and then my work schedule changed, and so did Kevin's, So even though I didn't have to get up at 6 am anymore Willie still expected me to get up, and when I wasn't getting up he demanded that I get out of bed. He would do things like pull on the covers, paw at my head, lick my face etc.

So with that I firmly believe a schedule will help keep your dog semi-behaved! At least it does for Willie, and I do notice a difference when the schedule changes slightly. For example there is a thunderstorm going on during our normal walking time. Willie still expects to go on a walk, so he starts by grabbing at the leash, then he grabs the leash and brings it to me, then it progresses to him grabbing the leash and running back and forth between me and the door, so on and so forth. After being entertained by this I get up and distract him by grabbing his toy, or maybe by doing a little training session.

Remember not everyone gets an easy puppy, so be prepared to spend at least 3-4 hours per day with your dog! And even if your pup is easy going you should still be spending 3-4 hours per day with them. Personally I am dedicated to Willie, and I don't have children so he gets a little more attention throughout the day, but he is also a very hyper-active little guy that needs a little extra exercise, and even the extra I give him is usually not enough!

So here is a little example of a simple schedule you can keep with your pet, and remember to involve the whole family...especially the little ones. Keeping everyone interacting with your pooch will help him/her trust all of you even more, and will help them feel more comfortable, and at ease!

So in the morning be sure to have at least an hour or more to dedicate to your pup before heading off to work. First thing would be get out there on a walk. Go at least a mile, and this could take 15-30 minutes depending on how quickly your pup walks. Willie is a sniffer, and sometimes it's hard to get him going, but I find the quicker you walk the more attentive your pup will be! Now I try to incorporate little trainings while we are walking. If Willie's attention span is really off that day I may do some look at me training. So when Willie's attention seems to shift to something other than the walk I will stop, say "look", and wait until he turns around and looks at me. Once he does I will either praise or treat him, and then we will be on our way again. Repeat when needed! This will definitely add a little more time to your walk, but it also gets your pups mind working; which can also help wear him out!

When you get back home feed the animals! Whether you have 1 or 5 get everyone fed, and then get ready for your day. By the time you are done getting ready your pup will probably be done eating, and would have had the chance to digest his meal before his one final play or training time before you leave for work or school. If you happen to catch him sleeping let him sleep, and finish up what is needed and leave for the day. I always make sure that Willie has plenty of things to keep him occupied while I am gone. I personally have never used a crate, and never would, but if you do make sure it is big enough for your dog, so that he/she can stand up tall, and also be able to turn all the way around with out any trouble. Before Willie was fully potty trained we used the kitchen as his "home" we would gate it off so that he would not have access to any other part of the house! He had a little dog house in his area to sleep in, plenty of toys to play with, and usually a bone to chew on. (Make sure you are giving your dog toys and chews that are big enough so that they cannot swallow them whole!)

Lunchtime: I personally have worked at companies that are close enough to home, so that I can go home at lunch, and let Willie out, and then I spend a good 10-15 minutes of throwing the ball. If it's nice we will play ball outside. This really seems to wear him out pretty quickly! Before i would head back to work I would introduce a new chewy, or toy so that he had something to keep him busy for another hour or two! (A good thing to do especially on warm days....fill a kong with some peanut butter and stick it in the freezer before you leave in the morning, and then when you come home at lunch the kong should be nice and frozen, and highly entertaining!)

If you can't get home to your pup for long periods of time I highly recommend hiring someone to come over to let him/her our, or having a friend, or family member stop by. I had to use my dad one or two times, because I wasn't going to be able to let Willie out at lunch. Now some may think this is spoiling your dog, but Willie was pretty young, and young pups definitely cannot hold there pee as long as say a 2 year old pup can! Another option is puppy day care. There are plenty of centers around, and they are fairly inexpensive, and this will actually be a good socializing experience for your pooch!

Evening: You've been at work all day, and your poor pup has been cooped up. All you want to do is come in and relax. Think again!!! The minute I get home I give Willie about 3 minutes to settle down, and then I immediately get him ready for our evening walk. The evening walk tends to be longer. We typically go about 1 1/2 to 2 miles, and we are usually gone for about an hour. I use the same techniques as I did for the morning walk. Usually there are twice as many distractions! Kids, other dogs, babies crying, guys mowing the lawn, balls flying through the air etc....In the evening I tend to follow the same route.....I do this because I know that Willie knows the route, and he also knows the people, and dogs on the route, and this makes him happy, and also tends to make him a tired pup by the time we get back! On our route he has made a lot of puppy friends....we have JoJo, Charlie, Bella, Digger, Marley, Maddie, Nacho, Yogi, and Lily. This is a great thing to keep in mind when you are walking! Help your pup make friends, and in turn you may make a friend or two as well!

After your walk....it's feeding time! (Again get the whole family involved...unless little Fido is food aggressive). Once the animals are eating you can take the time to make dinner, eat, and even relax! Now I do not have any children at home, so I usually do this stuff on my own....sometimes Kevin pitches in, but with him working third shift it's a little hard, but we make do! But if you do have children be sure to get them involved. In the evening after homework and before bed have them play in the yard with your pup, or play a game in the house! The evening is also the perfect time to do a short 5 minute training session. By bedtime your pup should be ready for bed!!!

**Forgot to mention....the Most important thing about keeping your pup on a schedule: The potty schedule will always be the same!

Walking Tactics!

I had given up on the blogging, because I had so many changes in life the blog sort of took a backseat, but fortunately all has settled (somewhat), and I am back to blogging! I am sure all of my 2 followers are absolutely thrilled! Let's jump right back into the saddle.....

The Walk

For the past year Willie and I have walked every day at least twice a day, sometimes three times per day. Rain, snow, wind, cold etc did not stop me from taking my pup out for a stroll. It has helped Willie and I build an excellent bond, and has also kept him fit, and not so crazy when it's time to relax.

Many of my neighbors have confessed that they just do not want to bring their pooches out because they are either, pullers, aggressive towards other dogs, or just crazy all together.

On that note I just want to say to all the doggy moms and dads out there....a dog needs to get out of the house, and needs to be walked on a daily basis. It helps build there confidence, and also helps to socialize them by exposing them to many different situations. Just remember your first time out may not be perfect but there are trainings that can help your dog behave properly when out for a walk, and remember it all starts before you even walk out the door.

I will give you some pointers based on what worked for me and willie. Keep in mind each dog is different, and you may need to switch up the training to suit you and your dogs needs.

Pointer number one:

Before even attempting to leave the house your dog should have learned all of the basic commands including "leave it" I firmly believe the "leave it" command should be added to the basic list of commands that every dog should be taught. This command will come in handy when there is an object on the ground that your pup wants to pick up and eat, but it may be dangerous for him to do so. The catch is you must see the object before your pup focuses in on it, and assuming you've taught him the command at home; you would state "leave it!", and hopefully he/she listens and just walks right on by said object!

Pointer number two:

Now that we've established the importance of basic commands we can move on to getting that pup out and about. First and foremost is to make sure your pup is calm and in a sitting position before stepping out of the house. Remember patience is the key. Once you've gotten the leash on and you are standing by the door "wait" for your pup to sit his bottom down and settle. This could take a minute if he has already learned this, or it could take 10 minutes if he's a newbie. This is where that sit command comes in handy. You can tell your pup to sit (only once), and then wait for him to sit. Once he is sitting take the time to get out the door in a calm manner. This will make your walk much easier. By using the "wait" command get your pup to sit calmly until you are able to open the door without him bolting. At which point you can release him/her from the sit position with an "ok", or whatever word you choose. This again can be modified depending on your dog. And always remember to be positive, and even reward with a treat to reinforce the good behavior.

Pointer number three:

Now that you've made it out of the house the goal is to keep fido from dragging you down the sidewalk. The minute your pup pulls say "Ooops', or "Uh-Oh" and turn around in the other direction walk for five paces, and then turn around the other way, and continue on. Repeat the above steps until your pup is walking like a champ. (If your dog is food motivated the training might go a little quicker with some sort of treat, and or lots of praise, or even a ball to carry with him. Anything that reinforces the good walking!) Keep in mind your first week out may only get you a couple houses down, but don't give up. And remember to make it fun.

The above pointer will take months to master, but do not get discouraged because in no time you will have a pup that is walking tall next to you.

**Keep in mind that every dog is different and may require extra training techniques to deal with leash grabbing, inattention to you, barking at other dogs in the neighborhood, etc....

Willie was relentless with the leash grabbing. He still attempts to snag on to it, but with a quick "enough" he does drop it pretty quickly. I've found that this usually means he is bored, and is looking for some sort of entertainment. I usually bring along a stick, or some other toy that Willie can carry for the rest of our walk. This seems to work. I will say that Willie has not perfected the walk, but he is getting there. I am sure by the time July roles around he will be walking like a pro!

**If your pup is anything like crazy Willie ( I firmly believe he has dog ADD), patience is the key. Terriers love to chase little furry things, they love to run, jump, and such. It might help to play a little in the house or perhaps in the yard before you attempt to walk your little monsters. This way they may be a little tuckered out, and hopefully more attentive while walking. I find with Willie that keeping his attention on me is still very hard. I've been working with the "look" command quite a bit lately, and that has helped a little bit, but I know that with Willie's attention span my daily trainings will probably take a little longer than others, but I am not going to give up!

Remember: Patience, patience, and more patience!