Shazmnldb

Thanks everyone. Some excellent advice here (as always). I notice that most of you don't have any issues with a stern reprimand and your dog giving up whatever it is guarding. Lilli is a stubborn little bugger. I need to be more stubborn myself. Just last night I had a breakthrough. I am sleeping on the sofa at the moment because I have a coughing bug that is keeping my husband awake. Anyway I went to go to sleep on the sofa and little miss decided that was her spot. I told her down, she looked at me then the little ratbag just laid down as if to say screw you! I stood my ground thought and eventually she got the message and moved. She's a little bugger (aussie slang for ratbag). I will need to be a little more forceful with the guarding. Thanks again.

Hi all I am hoping you can help me with my Lilli's (2yo female) resource guarding. A short time ago I was outside and her leash had fallen off the table on to the ground (probably thanks to our chickens), anyhow I went over to pick it up and she went straight into her guarding mode. She will do this when my "outside - walking the dog jacket" is hanging over a chair as I generally have treats in one of the pockets. Anyhow, I could see that she had tensed up ready to guard her leash so I distracted her brought her inside and gave her a treat. Whilst she was eating her treat I went outside quickly and removed her leash from the ground. She then ran straight outside and when she saw that it wasn't there, she didn't seem too fussed about it. What I want to know is did I do the right thing or did I reinforce her guarding by secretly taking her leash away? Your thoughts would be appreciated. I should add that when she is guarding my "outside-dog walking jacket" I remove it in front of her and hang it up on the door and she seems fine. Sharon

Hi all Our 2yo female BC is showing extremely submissive behaviour towards a beautiful 2yo male Samoyed. He is absolutely huge and the most adorable dog. The are both de-sexed and she practically breaks down the door to get out to see him but when she does, she crouches right down on the ground, tail between her legs, kissing each other on the nose, sniffing as dogs do in unsavoury places. I have never seen her act like this before with any dog. He happily barks but she doesn't bark back. From a behavioural point of view, should I worry that I am confusing affectionate submissiveness with fear. She pretty much waits at the window around he same time every day waiting for him. He practically drags his owner over the road to our place to see her. It is a beautiful sight seeing them both together but I am not sure if I should be worried that I am letting her into a situation that stresses her? I am just as overprotective of her as I am with my son. I feel silly as kind this question but just had to. Sharon.

Thanks everyone, Gentle Lake, I appreciate your honesty and straight forward comment and I have thought of that but just cannot bring myself to do it. My son absolutely adores her and he understands that certain things can't be done around her. As a family what we have decided that When Lukas wants to kick a soccer ball he uses Lilli as his opponent. She is better at soccer than he his but it helps his skills. Also if he doesn't want to play with Lilli it is a good excuse to take her out for a walk, same when he wants a play with his guns with dad or a friend Lilli and I go out for a walk. There are ways around everything. I love my girl so much and these solutions seem to be working.

Hi all. I am back again with a question. Is it normal for Border Collies to be highly reactive to EVERYTHING! Lilli absolutely hates it when my son plays around the house with his toy guns and particularly the one with the laser pointer on it. She goes completely nuts and when our friends dog is here she goes him quite aggressively. Also, when Lukas is out playing with any kind of ball she barks a really high pitched bark almost constantly. I tell her off for barking so she goes and finds something to put in her mouth and still attempts to bark but not to the point where she gets in trouble. Just now, my son is watching a sci fi movie on tv and she went nuts during the imperial star wars march. Stood at the TV barking her head off. When this happens I try to calm her down by giving her a whole body hug until she comes under that overexcited threshold. I am not sure if this is the right thing to do. It is at the point where I don't allow Lukas to play with his guns inside or anywhere around Lilli and we have to put her inside with the dog door closed when he wants to have a kick of his soccer ball or a hit of tennis, basketball whatever it is he want to play. What is the best way to handle desensitizing here reactivity. Sharon

Hi all Our 2yo female Lilli has started showing possessiveness and aggression towards our friends kelpie/staffie cross Fender who she has known since since we brought her home at 12 weeks. They have always interacted really well with each other but lately perhaps the last few months she has started to get aggressive towards him when we are giving her pats or attention and he wants to join in or around dinner time. It is almost at the point where she can't be around him in close proximity or she will start. Fender won't back down and it breaks out in a full blown dog fight. Our friend grabs Lilli and hugs her to calm her down which I think is completely wrong and I have told him to stop doing that. Lilli is always the instigator so what is the best way to handle this? In my opinion she should be put outside by the collar and told off. Can anyone please advise the best way to handle her when she gets like this to make her understand that the aggressiveness etc is just not acceptable. Thanks in advance

Hi all In reply to Pam's question, doesn't smoke but she is a diabetic and refuses to see the doctor about anything, opting for more natural cures. That is another thing Lilli could be picking up on, she is very overweight and not in good health

Hi I agree with Gideons Girl, our BC absolutely hates huskies of any kind and any other dog that gets in her face. ie. overly confident, dominant type dogs. Also, very fury ones like the Samoydes. We have a Samoyed that lives not too far from us and everytime she sees it she loses her mind. Her best doggie friends in the whole world are other BC's that we have met at obedience and luckily enough, out on the street. Also, other herding breeds like the Kelpie and Aussie Cattle dog. We have a football oval not far from home that has turned into a private little doggy park and whenever she is there and other dogs arrive, she tends to play with the kelpie and aussie cattle dog. Interesting isn't it that they can sense their own kind. Perhaps the huskies and samoydes look too much like a wolf for our little girl. Good luck with whatever you choose but if it was me, I would have 10 BC's if I had the space and brain power to keep up with them.

Hi Sue and Gentle Lake, yes my MIL has very white hair. Not outrageous at all. Very interesting theory. Next time we will start with the treats and see how we go, good idea Gentle Lake. Perhaps it is something more.

Hi all My 2yo Lilli barks incessantly at my mother In law. Normally she just loves everybody, and I mean everybody but each time we visit she goes crazy at her to the point where she has to stay outside. My mother in law is such a gentle, loving person but Lilli goes crazy. Her bark is constant and tail wagging. Any ideas on why she would do this. It is the same reaction she has towards other dogs when she is on leash. I tried smoothing it over today by letting Lilli smell her then bang, off she goes again.

Hi all My 2yo Lilli barks incessantly at my mother In law. Normally she just loves everybody, and I mean everybody but each time we visit she goes crazy at her to the point where she has to stay outside. My mother in law is such a gentle, loving person but Lilli goes crazy. Her bark is constant and tail wagging. Any ideas on why she would do this. It is the same reaction she has towards other dogs when she is on leash. I tried smoothing it over today by letting Lilli smell her then bang, off she goes again.

Reading these posts have made me so happy, I can finally tell my husband to get off my back about bathing Lilli. I have told him time and time again she doesn't need a bath once a month, it is not good for her coat but he doesn't believe me. It is amazing that after 3 months or so of not having a bath she doesn't smell at all and it is amazing what a weekly brush can do. Her coat is so glossy and in my opinion she always smells beautiful. Besides she absolutely hates the bath but loves being hosed lightly when I water the garden. She loses her mind jumping around in the water. Shazmn

Hi all Thanks for your replies. I bought the ebook last night so I am looking forward to sitting down and learning how to be a good parent. I can't wait to start reading it after my son goes to bed. Thanks again everyone

My Lilli refuses to play fetch unless she has at least two or three things in her mouth, even if it is a busted up flat football, half a squeaky sheep toy etc. Also when she plays fetch, before she give the ball back she must run a circle. She will come up to me look at me, run her circle then give the ball back. It cracks me up.

Hi all, It has been a while since I have been here as I have not had any issues with my 2yo female. Lately however, whenever we go on our walks and comes across another dog she completely loses her mind - barking uncontrollably, wagging her tail etc. I don't know if she's is being aggressive to the other dog but she just flips herself up in the air and I totally struggle trying to keep a hold of her. We have many dogs in our neighbourhood and often during the day she will see them through our gates and again barks like a total maniac. I am at a complete loss as to what to do as she is well socialised, a very good family friend comes over most weekends with his staffy/kelpie cross and they just adore eachother, also other friends dogs she is good with too (mostly) but when it comes to other dogs she doesn't know she loses her head. We also go to a football oval on a regular basis and let her and our friend's dog run and run and run and there are other dogs that come to the oval too that she runs around frolicking and just completely having a ball so I don't understand why she is acting like this on our walks. Can anyone please suggest a way that I can help her overcome this issue as daily walking is now becoming a nightmare where it used to be my favourite part of the day. Sharon.

Our princess in 18 months old and we love her more and more every day. The little antics they get up to just like your dog's little prank are hilarious. It is like having a human toddler around the place. They are just so smart it amazes me every day. Not as funny as your prank but Lilli has this little game she plays when she wants attention, she will get any ball she can find (and she has plenty) and purposely push it under the sofa so we have to stop what we are doing, fish is out for her and then throw it. She will get more and more balls until we have spent at least half an hour digging them out from under the sofa. Then she's bored and off doing something else. Love them to bits

Thanks Gentle Lake it is so sad when you see them like this

Hi all Recently our 15 month old female has been scared to go out walking and has suddenly turned nasty to other dogs Twice recently a pit bull that lives close by has escaped and sneaked up to Lilli from behind he wasn't aggressive just very quiet which freaked her out now she won't even walk within cooee of the house and a few weeks before that she was actually attacked by a damn Maltese terrier that was off its lead. Makes me so mad when people let their dogs walk off lead around suburban streets when they don't have the appropriate level of control over their dogs. Last weekend at obedience training where she normally seeks out her friends and they all have a little romp around before class, she would cower and try to lunge at the other dogs to the point where we had to stand away from the class. i have changed our walking route but I am worried that her brilliant socialisation ability has gone out the window. She seems very hyper vigilant wen we go for our walks to the point where when we come to a corner she can't see around, she cowers slightly as if there is me scary monster lurking around the corner. How can I help her get back to her beautiful, friendly, everybody's friend self?

Hi all, I am just curious to find out what your dog's attention seeking antics are. Our Lilli (15 months) tries to talk (actually whinge) when we are busy doing other things and not in the position to give her the attention she wants. She will not let up until we drop what we're doing and go and play one of her "patented" games. In the past when she has been very pushy and wanting to play, most times I have not given in until she has stopped shoving whatever to it is into my thigh but lately she has stopped doing this and just whinges (talks) continuously. Annoying when you are trying to have a conversation with someone either in person or on the phone. Seriously, she would play 24/7 if she could - there is no "off" button. We had her at the vet's recently for her annual vaccination and we were discussing certain behavioural issues and the vet suggested a pheromone collar which we did buy. She has been wearing it for about a week now and there has been a noticeable difference in her random barking and reactivity but that's about it. Now she is going on with this incessant talking What do I do?

Hi All, First, a little history. Our Lilli (14 months old) has been having some behaviour issues, in particular growling at all of us particularly in the evening for no particular reason. I had her a the vet tonight and she confirmed that she seems to be a highly anxious dog even though she is getting plenty of exercise, we need to try and stimulate her mind a little more, we try but we need to do more - which is fine. We will whatever it takes. Any good suggestions on mind stimulating toys? The vet suggested we try a pheromone collar to help ease the anxiety and I was wondering if any of you have tried these collars and if so, have you noticed a difference in your dog. I just bought one off Ebay and will give it a try but thought I would ask your thoughts. Shazmnldb

Hi all, Our Lilli is now 14 months old and every time I call her to go for a walk she comes but stands three feet away from me and won't let me put the leash on her - she runs off in the opposite direction. I got so mad with her this morning we didn't get to go on our walk. Any tips?? Tried treats but they don't work. Secondly, when I finally manage to get the leash on her she pulls like a freight train. It is at the point where I stop right on the spot and she end up on her back legs with her front legs up in the air. I am sure this is not good for her neck. I have tried the sporn front latching harness which has two connection points that come from behind her front legs to the loops on her collar at the front. This doesn't work either because she pulls like crazy and looks very uncomfortable. I am at a loss as to what to do, I really love our walks together but the bigger she is getting the stronger she is getting and it has almost reverted back to when she was a little puppy when we were leash training. At our weekly obedience her heeling is almost there to the point where we will be promoted to level 3 but at home, totally different story. Any suggestions?? Shazmnldb

Hi LokiBC I am new to the wonderful world of BC's also. Our darling girl Lilli is now 12 months old and when we first brought here home, I spent a lot of time on these forums. The advice you will get from these fantastic, experienced people is very valuable. In my experience, yes they do grow out of it and Lilli has. Lilli was constantly nipping/puppy biting our hands feeds, anything she could get grip on. One thing that did work for us is to yell "OUCH" in a very high pitched voice which would startle her. Always have a chew toy handy like a rope twist and when she pulls away startled, replace your body part with the rope twist. This really does work a treat. Even now when she gets a little excited whilst we're playing, she will still try to mouth me but all I need to do now is say "AH" short and sharp and she stops immediately and then licks my hand as if to say sorry mum forgot I shouldn't do that This type of behaviour is normal for all puppies but BC's being herding dogs have it a little more than others I believe. Good luck with your new puppy - they are such a joy and challenge - but worth every bit of it.

Hi all, My Lilli has just turned one and late last year I posted a concern about Lilli's random growling. I put everyone's advice in place and he has been wonderful. The last couple of nights though and this morning it has re-surfaced again but this time at my nine year old son. He is broken hearted that HIS dog is now doing this to him. He is very good at giving her commands as we all do the same. Basically Lilli will plop herself down on a particular place on the lounge room floor near the couch and if Lukas (son), husband or myself go to move past her, ears go back, stares and growls. We tackled it slightly differently tonight in that we told her 'NO' in the discipline voice then made her go outside and left her out there for a little while on her own. I don't know why she is doing this again. Is isolating her from us and banishing her outside for a little while the wrong thing to do?

Thanks so much, the first thing I am going to do is get a copy of "Control Unleashed" sounds like a great place to start. "Barking, lunging nut job" love it! Just like my Lilli Girl - she is a total, complete and utter nut job but a very lovable one. One new thing that has just arisen is that she has found her voice - OMG and does she love using it, mostly at inappropriate times like the middle of the night and other times at absolutely nothing. BC's don't you just love em

Thanks Camdens Mom for your advice - much appreciated. I didn't know the term "reactivity" but I will certainly look it up in the forums. Tree trunk is a really good idea. Trying that on our next "short" walk.