Teaching Manners, Behaviors, and Relationships
Thanks for helping us to shape Kramer into the great dog that he is. I still can’t believe he waited 3 years for someone to love him.
The class was great and we continue to use everything we learned.
He has really relaxed here and is a huge goofball.
Maude keeps him in line!
Thanks for helping us to shape Kramer into the great dog that he is.
I still can’t believe he waited 3 years for someone to love him.
Maureen, John, Maude & Kramer – Stormville, NY
…this has all been a great gift and I thank you as always.
Kindness and attention really work better even if taking longer, and are infinitely better for the human as well.
The Dalai Lama says that kindness is at the heart of Buddhism. Positive training is such a clear showing of kindness as opposed to unkindness… it’s strange to see people arguing against it.
A long time ago I heard Michael Tilson Thomas say that what’s required in making good music are time and attention and love. I think of that with dog training; also the training is animal-assisted therapy for the trainer.
If you could see how gently Johnny tells me that he needs to go out, or greets my mother, you might not recognize that little dog who was shredding our sleeves on the lawn at South Putnam Animal Hospital.
Anyway, this has all been a great gift and I thank you as always.
Susan and Johnny B. Good – Hartsdale, NY
Butch, a blind dog sheltered at ARF in Beacon, NY, needs your help to find his forever home!
Okay so he can’t wear his antlers straight and we couldn’t find a real wrapped up holiday box for him to sit in and he won’t be Santa’s next reindeer, but Butch could be one of the best dogs you’ll ever love.
Butch is almost 2 years old now and the biggest, goofiest guy you will ever want to meet.
He gets along with every other dog he has ever met – even the dogs least likely to like other dogs will get along with Butch. He walks well on leash, plays nicely in the back yard at ARF (with other dogs or alone) and he is currently learning silly tricks like “sit in a box for fun.” So you can see here he is all ready to be someone’s holiday dog in his holiday box wearing his holiday antlers.
Butch enjoys nose games – looking for food, toys, or other scents in boxes. And more than anything else he loves being petted and snuggling up with any person who shows him affection.
For all his wonderful qualities, Butch – like Rudolph – keeps getting overlooked. Butch has Progressive Retinal Atrophy, a degenerative eye disease that will eventually take his sight completely. He currently seems to see some shadows in the daylight but has already lost most of his eyesight completely.
Just like Santa thought Rudolph with his red nose could not fly a sleigh too many people think a blind dog just can’t have a happy life. The American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists says: “The exceptional senses of smell and hearing in animals also help pets adapt to vision loss.” Organizations like www.blinddogrescue.com and www.blinddogs.net have a host of great tips for living with a dog who is visually impaired and lists of other support organizations online to help folks help each other while living and loving an animal with special needs. Suggestions like:
Vicky has been doing this with Butch at the shelter – that’s how she got him in the “gift” box and got him to wear the antlers – okay so he can’t see they are not on straight – but you got to give him his props.
Another few tips from www.blinddogs.net are:
There are loads more suggestions on this and other web sites devoted to dogs with visual impairments – most are pretty simple like the mulch and some are pretty darn fun like the Doggles.
Butch has managed to map the back yard at ARF so he can go out and romp around with other dogs as if he had no issues. He will map your back yard too once he gets used to it. He walks happily and very well on a leash and loves to go for walks. Butch will probably never be safe off leash hiking – but he could go hiking on leash and have a blast.
There really is very little he won’t be able to do with you. While he won’t be able to look into your eyes with devotion you will still know he loves you when he leans up against you and rustles you with his thick soft fur.
I know what it is like to live with a dog who does not see well. Boo has struggled with his vision issues all his life and they have only gotten worse as he has grown older. His is a different disorder and has resulted in what seems to be very severe far-sightedness. He sees the outline of his brother well enough to happily chase him but does not see the door frame well enough to avoid bumping into it unless we guide him outside. It is a small price to pay for his companionship. The new stairs in the front have given him some pause lately but he simply reaches out with his front paw to find the height of the new step and then goes slowly to the next one. We are always right there near him to help if necessary – but the more he can do on his own the safer he will be and the more confident he will be. Boo has always gone and will continue to go on his visits to see the retired nuns and the kids at the library – I am just careful to guide him through the new environments. No one notices he can’t see well until I point it out to them.
Butch can live a fun, happy, fulfilled life with a human companion who is willing to do just a little more than the usual for him. Given all that Boo has given us and everyone he visits, I suspect anyone who gives a little extra to Butch will get back ten-fold and then some. Butch is currently living at ARF-Beacon, www.arfbeacon.org and is available for adoption.
Three Dogs Training will offer a special discount for either a private lesson or a training course for Butch and his new humans.
Hunter, an at-risk dog sheltered at ARF in Beacon, NY, is making tremendous progress thanks to his volunteers!
All of us who have known Hunter since he came to ARF in November 2008 knew very well that he is a loving, devoted and sensitive guy but his shyness has grown since he came to the shelter and has kept him from setting foot outside his run – even into the backyard for fun. With this level of shyness he was in no position to flirt with a prospective new forever human… Hunter had been at ARF for over a year and a half and was getting more and more fearful of the world outside his run. We had to change things for him or he would have spent the rest of his life in that run.
A call went out to my students and good doggie folk in the area and Linda, Feef, Pat and Vicky stepped up to be Hunter’s Helpers. Each of Hunter’s Helpers worked with their skill-sets to help Hunter increase his confidence, joy, and allow his loving nature to expand to more and more people. Vicky and Pat increased his confidence via clickers and massages. While Linda and Feef increased his social network via their relatives and friends who came along to meet Hunter and show him the world is full of nice people – who, by the way all seem to have cheese and hot dogs on them at all times…
His dedicated regular volunteers continued to help Hunter’s Helpers by doing walk-alongs (especially Pete and Charlotte) so Hunter could become happy and used to new people. Great thanks must also go to the volunteer staff at ARF who by continuing to take care of Hunter’s needs as well as the needs of the rest of the animals at ARF allowed Hunter’s Helpers to focus specifically on the behavioral work. Sometimes it takes a Village to help a dog in need, too.
Although Hunter is not yet completely “cured” he is doing much better and working now on transitioning to Feef’s home as his forever home – yeah!!! Remember the dog who would not leave the safe confines of his run or the back room where his run is located? Barb reported to me the following just the other day:
YESTERDAY WAS GRADUATION DAY FOR HUNTER !!
The last dog to be walked last night was Hunter… He was acting itchy, carrying on…
I had the leash in my hand, then opened his gate… He came flying out…ran out to the kennel, stood there…saw the front door open… ran out !!!! Across the parking lot…. down the driveway…to the back “40”…..Flo was standing in the lot talking on the phone…. her mouth dropped open…. we both went to the back… Hunter was walking back to the shelter, sniffing all the brush…wagging his tail….went right by us and back to the shelter…all the way back and jumped in his room !!!! WOW !! How exciting !!
We went at a pace that worked for Hunter and allowed him to slowly learn new people are good and maybe even as good as his two favorites Pete and Charlotte. We gave Hunter some special attention in the form of calming massages. We taught Hunter via clicker training that he can actually control aspects of his world. By doing all of this Hunter has blossomed and is no longer looking at spending the rest of his life in his run at ARF. While ARF loves all of their dogs as their own and cares for them with special kindness – it is still not a forever-home.
Hunter, his Helpers and all the Volunteers at ARF are a shining example of just how much we can help a dog in need find a life of happiness and joy!
George, a great bull terrier rescued by Big Apple Bull Terrier Rescue, needs your help to find his forever home!
Big Apple Bull Terrier Rescue recently gave me the lovely opportunity to meet George the Bull Terrier in his foster home. I was struck by how affectionate he was, how well he got along with his female k9 housemate (and humans too) and how interested he was in doing anything I asked him to do. George is losing his foster home and it is time this big goof-ball find himself a Forever Family!
George is a funny, silly, lovable, snuggly, quintessential bull terrier boy who would benefit from a fenced yard, lots of long fun walks and a structured life. He would like an active female playmate, too, who will tolerate his knockabout (but not mean) play style – but he would be happy with just his forever humans, too. Everyone who meets George adores him! He is a fast learner, very affectionate and goofy, and loves going places (even to the vet). Like so many bull terriers, George is a lot of dog – but a lot of fun comes with him. George would also make a great “office” dog for the human who can take their dog to work. He could become the “Mayor” of your workplace. Although George is deaf, he doesn’t let it get in his way when it comes to being social – so we shouldn’t either.
George was originally a stray from Long Island. Big Apple Bull Terrier Rescue thinks he is around 4 or 5 years old. Like many deaf dogs, George is like velcro and wants to be with you always. He doesn’t seem to startle too much to his humans in the house, but he does put on a bit of a show when out walking and confronted by something exciting, frustrating or scary. This should be pretty quickly remedied with some good solid relationship building and attention work for FOOD. BTW, George is very food motivated – yeah! He may not hear you, but he smells those treats in your hands… He does not like cats or other small animals and will amuse himself in a yard by guarding against errant chipmunks and assorted varmints.
George does not need a “strong hand” or an “alpha human.” He needs a human who will guide him using positive reinforcement training and give George constant feedback in the beginning (because he’s deaf) to help him focus. He would enjoy going to classes – tricks, agility, nose-work, some-kind of fun that will occupy him both physically and mentally – which Big Apple Bull Terrier Rescue will help pay for with an approved trainer. He has been in foster care for a year…..waayyy too long…. George deserves a real home where he can focus all his love on “his” human(s).
George does very well on his front clip harness (Easy Walk Harness – he does need it upside down like so many big chested dogs). And, because he is deaf, he will need consistent guidance in his new home for a few months until he understands the lay-of-the-land. But once you have built a good relationship and hand signals for George he will be a blast – and snuggly, too!
George has a minor congenital condition called “dry eye” which is treated twice daily with a prescription ointment. Nobody’s perfect!
If you think you’d like to help George please let us or Big Apple Bullies know!
To learn more about living with a deaf dog, visit www.deafdogs.org.
