jackpine

I had to think about this for a minute. But no, I've never seen my Bucky sleepy. He is either asleep or wide awake alert, ready for anything and everything. I've never seen an in-between for him. My BC Jack was the same. I don't know if this is a BC kind of trait or not but with people it seems to run the gamut. Me:, I wake up on a dime and am totally alert but for others (people) it varies, from groggy, give me some time to get this together to instant wide awake alert . Good question. Open for some study, I think.

Dixie Girl, I just want to say that I agree with what you say in your post, quoted below, about the difference between dogs and wolves. There are some breeds of dogs that are more wolf like but they also do not make the best pets. And you are right about trust and respect. Heck, I like everything you say in your post. I think you summed up beautifully this long, long, but interesting thread. Thank you. Tara

Right! this is what I've found to be true also. My Bucky can't fully concentrate unless he is first physically tired. So I make sure that this is the first criteria. |A tired dog is a good dog, eh. If you want him to walk nicely on lead, listen to your commands, be open to new things, tire him out first. It works! Basic, simple stuff.

Excellent advice! A keeper.

Mineral oil works just as well as. Actually, probably better. Works perfectly for me. Remember, commercial products use these natural ingredients, like mineral oil and then they add things to this like smell good stuff, and maybe a bit of detergent.....whatever. You don't need to buy commercial products and pay a big price for something that you can buy and use on your own and get the same benefits. It's a commercial world, eh. Get past the hype and use your intelligence. Do the research.

YES! I second this. This is what I have always used on my pet's ears. There are so many over the counter old time solutions to so many cleaning problems - for living creatures and for around the house cleaning. My cleaning closet contains Vinegar, baking soda, lemon juice, mineral oil, salt and Borax. Mineral oil is also great for seasoning your wooden cutting boards. After seasoning them, keep them clean with salt and lemon juice. Sprinkle your board with salt, then rub a lemon over the surface.

My Bucky is almost 5 months and I've found that the most important time for exercise for him is first thing in the morning. He gets a really long free run about and then a fast walk on the leash with lots of stops and sits along the way. This morning exercise seems to set him up right for the whole day. Then he settles down for breakfast and a relatively quiet time till about noon, when he gets frisbee/ball time outside and another long walk. Then lunch. Now that it's warmer, I put him on the deck for much of the afternoon and he seems to like this. Lots to look at out there, birds, rabbits etc. I give him a bone to chew on when he needs to settle down. Before dinner he gets a run about ('bout five min.) and then training (the training is really at any time during the day though, when he is receptive to it,) then a walk. Then he gets dinner and if he won't quiet down when we are eating, he goes in his crate. If he is calm during the evening, he gets to hang out with us in the living room, if not, he goes in his crate. Another walk at about 8 o'clock in the evening and then a quick "round about the property" before we all go to bed, about 10 or 11pm. I used to do short training times during the day but now I just sort of incorporate his training with whatever he is doing, ie: he has to sit before he eats, etc. When I want to teach him something new, I pick a time when he is "physically" tired to introduced new things. But I'm not rigid about the whole thing because I want him to be flexible and adaptable. So when I took him into town with me today for my shopping and such, he didn't get his usual routine. So when I got there, I first took him to the park in town and threw the ball and frisbee till he was tired out before I took him into the pet store and the other shopping places I needed to go visit. I think each dog is different in their energy level and I think Bucky is sort of medium energy level for a BC. What do I do though, when the weather is very bad and I just want to stay in and veg? I find that this is a challenge for me (and for him too, I guess). I think that I've set him up to need a lot of walks and outdoor stimulation. On those days, when we don't get out much, I spend a lot of time training him indoors to tire him out. And I do have a long hallway that I throw his ball down till he is whacked. I'm lucky that he loves to retrieve. I also try to think up things for him to do, like help me with the laundry - pick up the sock and put it in the dryer...things like that.

I'm writing this again because I haven't yet learned how to quote stuff and reply. I'm computer illiterate still. But I want you to read this so I am posting it again. Hey Bindi's mom: Just use your gut and your intuition. I suppose that what I do could be called an 'alpha roll' when I get down on my hands and knees when my pup has lost all control of his emotions and I lie him down and rub his tummy and stroke his head till he calms down. It's true that the dominant wolf doesn't do it this way. Wolves use growls and body language to get another wolf to submit. But we aren't wolves so we use what we have. The fact is that dogs, like wolves, do understand body language and call it what you want, an alpha roll or whatever, dogs understand this posture. It certainly works for me with my pup. And it calms him and best of all, he likes it and seems to understand what it means. Don't get caught up in the for or against debate. Just trust yourself, love your dog and try to do what comes naturally. You will know what to do intuitively. my 2 cents....again. Tara

good advise.

You, and Bindi, with your attitude and approach will do just fine. Hang in. best to you both. What a wonderful future you will have together.

I think that you will have to discover that one thing that your pup wants more than anything else. Once you find it, use it for all it's worth . just my 2 cents.

This is a very unusual request. Most BC's will never leave you alone. I would love for mine to be this independent. Try using treats. A treat that he really loves and wants. Let him sniff it and then put it behind you and ask him to find it. Hide iit, etc.

My point: The alpha roll is not necessary with a puppy. How could it be? I'm really tired of the heated debate about Cesar Millan here, which is mostly against. When I first joined this discussion I mentioned that I use some of his methods and I was immediately "corrected" The detractors pick a couple of things he says, out of context, and jump on them. He talks, in his book, Cesar's Way. about the psychology of dogs, understanding them. He doesn't deal with the basics of training, how to teach sit, down, stay, etc. He works from the top down, instead of from the bottom up. He talks about us, our attitude, our approach. Our 'communication' with our dogs. And from my experience, it's our attitude that dictates events. I know this in my daily life with my pup. He, my pup knows exactly how I feel, what my level of confidence is, etc and reacts accordingly. Cesar talks about an 'energy' that comes from us and that dogs recognize and will respond to. I know this to be true. From my intuition and from my scientific study of animal behaviour. We are animals to.....remember. I like the guy. I like his approach. I like his attitude. I like his understanding. So what if he has become a celebrity. Does this automatically make him another 'Hollywood nut'. Take each case on it's own merit. He, Cesar, didn't look for Hollywood, they came to him. Not his fault, eh. If you knew something, and you were really good at doing it, and Hollywood approached you and said we will publicize you, give you a tv show, what would you do? If you wanted to get your message across and they agreed to pay you big bucks, would you not say: well sure, ok. My point is, that this guy knows what he is talking about and he didn't intend to make a huge living at doing this, but this is what came to him. Doesn't take away from the point that he knows what he is talking about and btw proves it consistantly. I've read numerous books about dogs. How to train, etc. When I read Cesar Milan's book, I felt that here was someone who I could relate to. I understand what he is saying. What he says makes sense to me, intuitively. My trainer whom I respect totally, would agree. He likes Cesar Milan. My trainer is not only the best dog trainer ever, he is also a wolf biologist (in the field) who also, if this is be possible, understands wolves. He also has border collies and his BC's win all of the obedience trials, no question. If Fred has one of his dogs in the event, everyone says: well maybe I can try for second.

Hi guys, Not wanting to get into a debate about CM for or against, I just want to point out that Cesar, in reference to the 'alpha roll', writes in his book: "Although I personally practice it in my work rehabilitating severely unbalanced and aggressive dogs, I caution anyone who isn't a professional -- or at least extremely experienced in dog behavior and aggression -- never, ever to forcibly put a dog on its side. With a dominant or aggressive dog, someone who is inexperienced could easily be bitten, mauled, or attacked. This is serious stuff, life-threatening stuff. If your dog is exhibiting the kind of behavior problems that require this kind of correction, then you should be consulting a professional, anyway. You should not be on your own in attempting to restore discipline to a dog that's this far gone in terms of dominance or aggression." -Cesar's Way, pg. 223 In other words, this so called 'alpha roll' is only used in extreme cases of behavioural aggression and of course never with a puppy.

My Jack was one of those 'overly friendly' dogs, in the extreme. And your description of your pup sounds exactly like it was for Jack. It was a real pain trying to walk him down a street where there there were lots of people and other dogs. He LOVED everyone and WANTED all of them. Have faith , when he was about two, Jack suddenly became 'normal' friendly. This happened about the same time as a lot of other adult and mature behaviours kicked in, like lifting his leg to pee and a warning bark when a stranger approached the house.

I guess I've been pretty lucky with all three of my dogs. Bucky hasn't has an accident for two months and he is almost 4 1/2 months now. It was very hard at the beginning to understand when he was trying to tell me he had to go. But now I can distinguish between his whine to go out to pee and his urgent bark that a poo is imminent. With both, he looks at me very seriously, and his "got to go bark" is unlike his normal little barks. I say, "what, do you have to go 'hurry ups?" and he looks very serious and his eyes turn toward to door. It was probably easy to house train all three of them because with all three, I was able to keep a constant eye on them at the beginning and able to rush them out quite often at first. It was incredibly easy with my first dog (a female). She was only 7 weeks when I brought her home and she had never been in a house before that. After two weeks, of training, (catching her when she would start to pee inside and rushing her outside) she simply would go to the door and whine. I think that it was so easy with all three because when I got each one of them, I didn't have much else going on in my life, and I was at home all the time so was able to focus entirely on getting them house trained at the beginning.

I'm feeding him Natural Balance Ultra Premium. I tried a couple of other brands and mixes (all good quality). He liked all of them at first, even the NB I'm feeding now, but then he got board with it as he did with all of the others. Didn't have this problem with my other dogs. They just ate whatever I gave them, plain dry kibble with maybe a bit of warm water mixed in, but more often, just plain dry kibble. But always with a bowl of fresh water available.

Sounds good. And, you're right. I bet he won't be such a picky eater when he is really, really hungry.

P.S.: I plan to travel with him quite a bit. Road trips, canoe, hiking, etc and I can't be adding fresh ingredients to his kibble all the time when I feed him on these trips. Suggestions?

He is full of energy, and has been wormed. This morning, the time when he seems to be not interested in eating at all, I added an egg to his kibble and mixed it all in. After a couple of minutes of sniffing and then trying a bite, he thought this was a wonderful idea and ate it all up. I'm a bit concerned though that, knowing this little guy, he won't eat anything from now on without an addition of egg, or some other delicacy.

Wow! I feel so much better now. Thanks everyone for your answers. Lots of good advice. I guess we just human moms naturally worry if our kids don't eat much. Makes me laugh when I remember my mother's frustration with my eating habits. My mom would exclaim to her friends, "She must live on air". Tara

Four month old Bucky does not like his food. He will eat a bit in the am and maybe a bit later in the day, but so little that I am starting to wonder if he is getting enough. I know intuitively that he will eat when he is hungry, bit I still worry because he seems to be eating nothing. Also, he will only eat under certain circumstances. If we are not looking at him, if we are out of the room entirely. lots of different circumstances. We go with this, but still, he eats so little. He is healthy, and has a good weight for his age. One day he will eat more, next day he will eat almost nothing. Granted, if I add gravy or something yummy to the mix, he will eat but I don't want to get into this MacDonalds kind of getting him to eat more than he needs, so won't do th8is. I feed him Natural Balance Ultra Premium Dog food for puppies and adult dogs. He probably eats about one cup and, if I'm lucky, a cup and a half, a day of this stuff. And another question. How often do you feed a pup. I feed three times a day, but Bucky is only interested, if at all in i maybe two times a day. And when do you try for just leaving the dry food out all day. This is what I did with my last BC (just left kibble available all day long from when he was a pup) this worked well for him. What do you guys do? What do you suggest? Is he ok eating this little?

Your very welcome, glad I could help. And I was in exactly the same position you are. I didn't want to spend the money for a doggie dooly. So I did a lot of searching for alternatives and through word of mouth and good Canadian environmental site, I found this method. We should have it made in a week or so and the whole idea appeals to me. Simply the cost of a plastic garbage can and a bit of septic starter. And some shoveling to fit it down and into the ground = instant neat and affordable doggy septic.