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Yes I understand. She seems about as content as possible laying next to me during these things and doesn’t want to run off somewhere else. She does like the bedroom so we will go there and lay on the bed and watch tv when there is a storm.

Rey, my 2 year old BC is scared of storms and fireworks. I had a Gordon Setter previously that was just the same. We use Composure Pro by VetriScience that’s sold by our vet. It seems to take the edge off and then Rey will lay next to me making sure she is touching me. That’s about the best we have been able to do. Those two things and she will stay put and chill out and not shake very much.

Hello . . Rey is now 18 months old. She was a pill from about 8-12 months. I was going through beginning and intermediate obedience classes starting when she was 6 months. In class, on a lead she was great. Off lead in the house OK and in the backyard a maniac and I didn’t exist when outside. Long story short, i just kept plugging away. I was particularly worried about recall as it really was bad off a lead, long or short, but I kept working. Then something happened at about 12-13 months. She grew a brain! Not that it wasn’t there, but something clicked and she was all of a sudden recalling outside really well. She turned into a dog that I thought I would have after obedience but it was a major change almost over night. Since then she’s been the most wonderful dog. I hope you keep at it, keep patient and hopefully he’ll click.

My Rey (female) is 18 months of and is 35 pounds.

Yea we practice heel everyday, both inside and out. I take her to Lowe's and she does well inside the store also. She doesn't like the large carts but she's getting more used to them.

I have been doing that actually. She does it will and know sit & stay very well. Thanks!

Rey is a year old and doing really great. One thing I am trying to decide on how to handle is her reaction to cars. We live on a busy road, and there is a parallel street that very no-busy so we cross over and walk on that a lot on the evenings. The only traffic is the few house on that road and they generally drive very slow. When a car comes, Rey gets pretty excited and has to face the car until it passes. If I make her heal while this is happening, she'll constantly spin around to see the car. I can stop and ask her to sit in a heel position and she does well but is focused on the car and will crouch. Months ago sh sprang for the car but I told her no really loud and took my end of the leash the other way and she hit the end of the leash pretty hard and doesn't move towards the cars any longer. But she's very focused on them. In obedience class I asked about her behavior of needing to see everything around her while we are working, helming or whatever. They told me that's their nature and you have to deal with it. Rey is my first BC so I am learning a lot with her. So I see two options handling the cars. Is it best to: 1) Stop and have her sit and watch the cars go by? or 2) Keep moving, doing my best to keep her with me, heeling, and see if she'll start ignoring the cars?? I doubt that she'll ever ignore them.

I would really recommend obedience classes. They teach the person more than the dog usually. I took Rey, my 1 year old BC through beginning and intermediate classes. That made me spend time and she's wonderful now. She still pulls some, but I go the other way when she does, or use stop, leash hand on my hip so I don't give some unintended signal and wait for her to relax pressure on the leash and go again when that happens. Is she immediately pulls again, we stop again. There have been time where is tool 5 minutes to go 20 feet. But the result is last night I just held the end of the leach and we went for about a mile walk and she never pulled. Are you using a training collar of some sort??

She is displaying her smarts! Today I was throwing the frisbee for her to chase. A tired BC isn't a bad thing! I thought we had enough so when she was about half way back to me with the frisbee, I said "Let's go to the house" and she turned towards the desk steps and headed to the door, laying her frisbee next to the trash can that I keep them (about 8 frisbees) in outside. This last couple weeks she's just clicked! She's an amazing dog! I can't imagine how she'll be in another year (just a year old now).

I want to start agility training but at the place I go to, they said that recall needs to be really solid. So I have been trying to get the recall better. Now I need to keep polishing it and try it somewhere else. Maybe a trip to the fenced in dog park in the morning when there is no one there.

Rey, my female BC just turned a year old last week. Has anyone else had an experience where they all of a sudden just clicked and something they would do, they all of a sudden just did? Like the light bulb went off or something? Rey's recall has been a struggle. I took her through beginning and intermediate obedience classes. They went well and she did very well on the lead. She also got to where she would do very well on a long line. But off line or lead she was horrible. One day while on in the yard on a long line, I got an idea. work her on the line, play fetch etc all on the line. Starting at 25 ft, cut 18 inches off a week and eventually it would be down to nothing and she might keep working well. I did this for about 4 weeks. Taking her out every day. Playing frisbee, having her bring it back, which also got better in that time. Sometimes just out on the line running through obedience. Sit, stay, down, shake, come etc. Then last week something just clicked and she got it! I just now took her out in the yard with no line, leash or even a collar (fenced yard) and ran through all her obedience and she was great! The problem began months ago when we would let her out to potty then she wouldn't come in order to get her back inside. Then she would play stay away until I could trick her somehow and catch her. Now every time I was successful, she would learn that trick and I would have to think of a new one. Hence the long line all the time. Well she got it all of a sudden and is doing fantastic! Anyone else struggle with something with their BC then all of a sudden they just got it??

Thanks for the help all. I am sure we just need more time and training.

It never fails. It seems I post a question and somehow my dog figures it out and makes me wonder why I asked LOL . . . BC's are smart but she's telepathic I think LOL Again this evening went out . . Took frisbee this time to play. In between throws, I call her and have her sit or down next to me. Also pet her, grasp her collar etc. Then throw frisbee for another run. At the end, I say "Let's go" and head towards the door and she's right with me all the way in without me touching the line. I think we'll keep at this for a few weeks then see if it makes sense to try without the line.

This evening I had her outside with the long line on. I called her, had to slightly nudge with the line and she came. Pet, good girl, free go play some more. Rinse & repeat about 10 times but no nudge needed on the line after first 2 or 3 times. So finally time to go in and she's already hanging near me. I say "Let's go" which I have used since she was a puppy for walks, meaning ok we're moving this way. She followed me up the steps of the deck and to the door without me touching the line! So I think we'll get there, but it's just gonna take some more time. Thanks for the advice!

My 11 mo old female is a great dog. But her recall is spot at best and pretty much stinks when outside. We have been through beginning and intermediate obedience classes. She did well there. On a leash she does things really well. Recall (come), sit, down stay etc all working really good on the leash. Off the leash in the house as long as I have treats she also does really well. I have got in the habit of taking her outside in the backyard (fenced in) and playing fetch with a ball or frisbee. She loves being out there and doesn't want to stop. So calling her doesn't work like it does when she's on the leash. I did start letting her trail a long line to I can get a hold of it and when I do, she will come very well. So she knows when there is a leash or a line involved. No line and I sometime have to outsmart her to get a hold of her and get her inside. I know this gets harder as each time I do that, she learns how she got caught and adapts. So I now make sure I put the line on her. If I pick up the end of the line and walk towards the house, she comes along without me saying anything or applying any sort of cue to the line. It's trailing behind her but I have the end in my hand. That's all the cue she needs to know were heading inside the house. I did buy Leslie Nelson's Reliable recall book and am going to start that this week. Hopefully that will help. It sounds like she suggests choosing with a new recall word but she does say to continue using the same signal I have been using all along. I have noticed that while I have been using the long line outside, her inside recall is improving. Part of me is thinking it's just a really young dog yet and things will improve. Another part of me knows she's incredibly smart and knows what come means and should do it. This is where I think I have done something wrong. Any advice is appreciated.

I posted above #2. As far as lunging towards other people, we have been taking her out more. Lowe's, lots of walks and I am finding that she's getting better at ignoring other people and heeling better. I think it's just getting her more repetitions so to speak.

Mine does this also and is almost 11 months. We walk on a local walking/biking trail. When we walk by someone she thinks they are her long lost friend and wants to jump up on them so they can pet her. That's highly my fault for letting her jump up on me when I get home everyday to say hello. I am now working on making her keep her feet on the ground when I get home. I'll turn my back and ignore her and she sits, then I face her and happily greet her. On my walks with my previous dogs on the trail, I found that if I continued walking with the dog in a heel position, then just keep going, then they eventually start ignoring bikers and other walkers. Now this BC named Rey which is my first is a different dog. I am working on this and am having some success. I tried stopping and having her sit to she could see the bike coming, but I wonder if that doesn't unintentionally make her focus on it more. When they get close (biker or walker) she crouches like she's going to go herd them or something. I feel like I am having better results by continuing on, walking at a brisk pace and a shortened leash for this, and ignoring them acting like they are not there. It'll be interesting to see what others say about this and BC's.

We have always had multiple dogs in the past. When we got Rey, or 10 month old BC, she was the second dog along with our older German Shepard mix. She passed soon after getting Rey so she's been the only dog in the house along with a cat. She gets along with the cat but sometimes initiates play a little roughly with the cat but he runs off and goes to a room that Rey is gated off from, so the cat has his safe room that he can use at will without Rey going in. I just finished intermediate obedience with Rey and am signing up for and advanced class which will start in a few weeks. So we're working on training fairly regularly. My wife would like another dog and wants a Cocker Spaniel. We have had three of them in the past so we're familiar with them. I think the best way to do this is to get a CS puppy and let it grow up with Rey. Of course we would have to make sure they both have individual crates etc. But since Rey is my first BC, and we have found that BC's are not really dogs but something very smart in a fur coat, what do I need to know before we do this???

I thought I would drop an update. She's doing great Just turned 9 months old. Her and I went through beginning obedience and started intermediate obedience this weekend. I plan on taking her through advanced, them get into agility. My wife wants to go through the therapy dog class with her also. Saturday is class day and she is completely wore out after class! So she's doing great and we love her! On the light/reflection chasing. It's really not a problem any longer. If she focuses on a light, or a reflection, I am able to tell her "NO" and she leaves it alone and gets back to me or what we were doing. I do stay aware of it and make sure she doesn't get that chance.

Just to follow up on the reflection thing . . . This morning I had my cell phone in my hand and turned on the bedside light. That in the past has been the cue that the reflections will begin. She runs on the bed to the headboard/wall and gets ready to chase them. I am watching her do this so I put the phone behind my back to make sure it wouldn't reflect on the wall, then said "Rey NO!" She looked at me then laid down on the bed with her facing me and watching me. I am starting obedience work/class with her and part of the class is working on her focusing on me (click/reward etc). While she was looking at me, I used the phone to put a reflection on the wall and it got her attention, and I once more told her no. She stayed laying down watching me and never went for the reflection. I then turned off the bedside light and put the phone down and stopped there since it turned out to be a successful impromptu training session. So I think this might be easier to solve that I originally thought.

We keep our eye on her. I have a toy that I can embed a treat in. Similar concept to a Kong. If she gets restless or needs attention diverted that works really well. Or throwing toys!

I re-read my post and wonder if I made it sound worse than it is. I also thought I would give more info about routine and life with Rey to maybe paint a more compete picture and also answer above questions. This is our first BC. My wife and I have had 10 other dogs in the course of our marriage. Two Gordon Setters, two Cocker Spaniels, a German Shepard mix, and several mutts. We have had as many as four at a time and two cats. Rey, our BC, is a different dog. She learns faster, listens better, follows me around the house and loves to sit near me or my wife. She loves to hop up on the lazy boy chairs with either of us. The intensity when I throw a toy or am about to, with her staring at me, is something our other dogs didn't do, at least not to Rey's level. I see that in BCs on YouTube so it seems part of the breed. She has lots of toys, and doesn't chew on other things except the occasional rug but when we tell her no she stops. She doesn't get after any furniture or other things. Since her recall isn't the best, we take her for a lot of small walks on either a longer leash or since I am beginning obedience training now (currently 7 months old) a training collar and short leash. Most evenings I add in a 1.5 - 2 mile walk on the long leash so she can run around me, the long leash is nice since she will travel farther than I. I also throw toys for her in the house a lot. She'll get it and mess around with it but eventually bring it to me so I can throw it again. We are working on the fetching all the way to me. We'll do this a lot of evenings, sometimes off and on over an hour or more. She does sleep in a crate at night and is in there when we are away from the house and not with us. Since I my wife doesn't have an outside job and I work at home some, she's not in the crate during the day much. When she goes in the crate, she lays down and is quiet unless she needs to potty. No separation problems, nothing, she's quiet and lays down until we let her out. I couldn't ask for an easier crate dog. This morning we did several short walks. I also took her outside in the backyard and I threw a tennis ball for her to fetch. She doesn't bring it back all the way which is another project, so I sit down and wait for her. . . She will eventually bring it to close to me and drop it so I can throw it again but that takes a few minutes and we repeat. I just finished a two mile walk with her and it's 71 deg here so she's now crashed on the floor. I am starting beginning obedience class with her. I have taken the class before, and could do it at home, but the interaction with the other dogs and people is a good thing. I am planning on intermediate obedience and likely the advanced obedience class also. I am planning on agility class later. She also is going places with me and my wife. I take her to Lowes when I go there and the Pet stores etc. We are also thinking about getting a dog trailer for her to go biking with us. So she's going to be part of our life and not just a home body pet. At class yesterday, which was the first day the dogs were there she did good. When she meets strange people she wants to run up and greet them. While sitting in class she was intently watching in the other dogs but not barking at them except for at arrival to the place and seeing the other dogs for the first time. The guy next to us didn't keep his dog under control and his dog was in Rey's space a lot so that didn't help. I got irritated and told him to keep his dog under control. I won't sit next to him next week. After a while, she finally just laid down at my feet until we had to do something. We then went to lunch and she stayed in the truck. When we got home she laid down and rested for hours. She was TIRED! I think more mentally then physically. I took a trip during thanksgiving with Rey (5 months old at the time). It started raining and when i turned the wipers on she barked at them. Like I mentioned I put my hand in front of her, told her no and she stopped then it stopped raining. When it started raining again, I turned them on and she barked at them again. I told her no with my hand in front of her and she quit. This time it rained for a long time. After watching them for about 10 minutes, she did ignore them and quit paying attention to them and slept like any other dog in the car. So she will leave the wipers alone when I tell her to. We are 54 years old so our kids are grown. We have had Rey around my daughter's step kids (ages 9,10,15) and Rey is great. She plays, not aggressive, nor herding the kids. She does play with my son's Vizsla, and my daughter's dog. They are all young and play and play. Rey doesn't like other dogs near her food and she'll get a little aggressive over that. So when my son brings his dog over just put the food up out of reach and all is fine. They play and wear themselves out. Also her toys are the same so we gather them when my son's dog visits. She is a little skittish of cars going by when we are walking along the same road the cars are on. We have a short stretch along a road where they are going about 40 MPH. I let her walk on the side of me away from the cars and this morning, she stayed at my side but watched them go by. So she's getting better at that. Early on she tried chasing a couple but she hit the end of the leash and I sternly said no. This happened a couple times and she no longer does that. She has only seen about two bikes. There is paved trail we will be walking on as the weather gets nicer with bikes. The first couple she saw she circled behind them as they past but didn't want to chase them. There really are not any oddities that I can think of. She does get restless at times if I don't get her enough exercise, but then we take her out for a walk or throw toys for her to fetch around the house. Overall she's a wonderful dog. She is loving and plays a lot. I can play with her and if she gets a little over excited or puts her mouth on me, I can stop and she stops and looks at me, and I pet her. She quits when I do. She is very attentive. If I go to the bedroom, most of the time she follows me there. We keep reminding ourselves that she's just a puppy and not a full grown dog! She's so smart and sort mature for her age.

My 7 mo old BC girl is so cool. Maybe I'll expand on that is another post but for now have a question. She started chasing reflections. I mean if there is a reflection from a cell phone screen shining on the wall, she goes nuts trying to get it. She is so intense while trying as she is with other things. She started chasing the windshield wipers in my car and I am able to get he to stop by putting my hand in front of her face and telling her no. Then she lays down in the back seat with her eyes on the windshield. This doesn't seem to work as well on the reflections. Any tips on getting her to stop that or just keep at it like the windshield wipers??

I heard no treats for fetch from Zach George on YouTube. It's funny . . . . Since I posted this question, she is starting to bring toys to me in the house to throw. I throw a toy and she'll keep it away, if I ignore her, sometimes she will drop it next to me. A few times she has shoved it into my hand. A couple times she has dropped it and started barking at me. If its not close enough I tell he to go get it and we start again.

I have a 5 month old female BC. I have been working on fetch. In the backyard she only brings it back half way, then drops it and looks at me. I want to get her to bring it all the way back. I can get her to bring it back inside the house if I have some treats and start in the hallway without distractions. Sometimes I have to go start in the end of the hallway to just get her to pick it up and give it to me. I have read that I shouldn't use treats while trying to teach fetch so I am trying to work without them on fetch but using them on other things like recall, sit etc. Her recall it doing ok with treats. If she thinks I have treats she does well also, and I can reward every other recall and she'll still do it well. Any tips on getting here to bring it back all the way??