DogPaddle

She is so cute. :angel: We used to have a Lab/BC Mindy - Sophie looks so much like here although Mindy must have taken a bit more after the BC as she was leaner than Sophie appears to be in your pics.

Here is the link to their Book of BC [url]http://www.bcrescue.org/book/index.html[/url] And here is the link to their Aggression Issues section [url]http://www.bcrescue.org/book/aggression.html[/url]

It's good to hear you won't have to resort to a correction collar and have time to do the training. Good luck.

I have a BC and his socialization was going fine until around 9 months or so when he would bark, raise hackles a bit and pull on lead when other dogs were around. With the dogs in area he was familiar with he was fine - my error - not socializing him with a lot of different dogs. We went to obedience class and advised them that although Kavik had never bit or attacked another dog he certainly behaved in an aggressive/dominant way. They said no problem - all dogs are leashed all the time and we will see if we can work through it. The first 2-3 classes were an embarrassing nightmare - he was so disruptive the trainer could barely be heard in the first class. We got a space a bit apart from the other dogs and were allowed to bring a pb stuffed kong and such to keep him distracted. We also quietly ran over his commands to keep him focused while the trainer was explaining things. After the third class he had no problems but one - there was one other adult unnuetered male in the class and Kavik hated him - I think in part because he had the [i]nerve[/i] to be much taller than Kavik. Obedience also built Kavik's confidence and kept him focused on me or his task. Worked great and allowed us to more easily socialize him. Useful commands - "down" and "watchme". I have heard as well the BCs require careful socialization or they can develop aggression issues - I think it has a lot to do with them being somewhat high strung little beings. Some of them have aggression issues even if socialized. See [url]http://www.bcrescue.org/[/url] for more info, they're not a bad source of info. Lots of excercise, a good diet and snuggles help a whole lot too, don't underestimate them. Got any pics. :D

Air horn? Might scare the Duke though. Speak with the owners? Might not be able to locate them are they may just not care though. Report free roaming dogs to SPCA??

Some lethargy may occur but with vomitting and the runs you need to, at the very least, call your vet.

Good suggestions Aurora. Slow, gentle and pleasent desensitization would be good - start with the children far enough away that they don't bother Roxy. A halti or GL is a great tool for focusing Roxy and controlling her head. A good command to use would be the "watch me" command. Keeps the dog focused on you. Training classes are also a good suggestion - keeps the dog working, which helps most dogs temperment, develops confidence, which helps most dogs temperment AND allows you to work with your dog in a controlled environment with other dogs and adults. Work fanatically on obedience, let Roxy know that you expect her undivided attention and obedience and their are rewards for this. Make it fun for both of you. You can socialize an older dog, it takes more work and is slower but it can be done, she may not ever love children but she can probably be socialized to the point where she will behave moderately well. If you are concerned about safety: Ensure your fence, leash etc are all in good working order and secure. Insist you are the only one to take Roxy out of the house (or someone who your trust a while lot and is appraised of the situation.)

[b]Training, as K suggested, is definately the way to go[/b], [color=red]but if you are concerned about being evicted in the near future[/color], the collars may work. There are three kinds - electric, high pitch sound and citronella. First off the electric one would likely be way too much for a little dog. I think of the other two the high pitch sound [i]might [/i] work better but you know your dog best. Most of the collars work by vibration (this stops one dog from setting off another dogs collar, however if the dog runs down stairs jarringly the collar may go off.) They are to be used periodically, as in, not worn all day but it sounds like you just need yours when your out so that should work ok. Howling does cause vibration but not as much as barking so you may need to get a sensitive unit. All the pet supply stores I have dealt with have a good return policy and the only restriction you may have with this product is that you may not be able to return it after a certain time period. Good luck.

:loveu: Now we can start a Kato fan club!

Thanks everyone. I'm much happier to have you guys agree with me on the appropriate weight for a dog than my neighbour. Besides in a month or so maybe I won't have to see her anymore - might get that new job and move :wink:

I love the storeis. I have read them - actually I read most everything on Border Collie Rescue before I got Kavik - wanted to be sure I was sure - I wish I could have adopted one of theirs but they are too far away. Great resource though.

[quote]My first thoughts were to just [color=red]introduce children to the dog from a distance[/color], while the dog is on a lead. They little by little have the child interact with the dog. [/quote] When Kavik was very high strung around other dogs and barking and fussing this is sort of what our trainer suggested. Start at a distance your dog is comfortable with and slowly lessen the distance, in the beginning this should eliminate the need for a muzzle which makes some dogs nervouse - it may eventually become necasary of course. Poor girl . . . some children are so :evil: Hope she feels more confident soon.

Will miss ya Courtnek, see when you get back, have fun.

So I have new avatar - it's not Kavik. It's currently Daisy, she is from Border Collie Rescue and is available for adoption. Which can be found at: [url]http://www.bcrescue.org/[/url] I will change my avatar occaisionally to display different dogs for adoption. Daisy is a candidate for the Bird Control Program so I will probably post a new dog soon as their are others who don't have this option. Daisy is 4 year old smooth coat female, she has some aggression problems but may do better with an experienced handler who has a job for her to do.

Welcome to Dogo Judy Let's see where to start with the questions . . . temperment. I have been led to believe that although the whole lot of them bond to their famalies they are not the most lovey dogs but that the B. Sheepdog is a bit more affectionate and the B.Malinois a bit less - is this so. I have also heard that working drive is reversed - Malinois more, Sheepdog less.

:o Uh oh, Kavik is already an energizer bunny . . . maybe I should feed him Ol Roy . . . just kidding. Glad to hear your doing so well on raw Kaleb.

Roo - Now that's enthusiasm! :lol: Glad Devin is home safe and sound.

I just started. I purchased two books, one from each end of the spectrum - Volhard (very regimented and lots of supplements) and some other book I never remember the name of (very lax - basically just proportions on table food but uses way to much carb for my liking) I did a lot of research on sample diets on the net. I got help from a freind who already feeds raw. I'm roughly estimating but I think we feed this ratio: raw meat:pured veg:frut:carb:yogurt or cottage cheese 65:15:10:10 max:10 - that's a real rough ratio and I'm just estimating I give raw shank bones to chew on 2-4x a week and count eggs in my raw meat section and feed whole with shells I am looking to add a supplement once I have more info - I want one that has bonemeal in it I think. Good luck.

Today, just now, is the first time Kavik has ever asked for seconds on dinner :o at first I didn't know what he wanted, although he was pretty clear - snuggled up (sucking up), walked over to his dish and looked at the fridge. :klacz:

Sounds like things are going great and especially good on the housetraining front given he just came from the shelter a couple days ago. He sounds so well mannered . . . just wait till he gets well though . . . :D

Thanks. Everything is still go pretty well, Kavik had some psuedo runs once since my last post - might have been the green beens :niewiem: we'll see, I'm sure it will be fine after he adjusts.

[quote]Dogs aren't designed to carry lots of extra kilos, ESPECIALLY working dogs eg BCs, ACDs, Kelpies.[/quote] I definately agree. Kavik is around 28lbs/13kgs - I work that out to 7lbs or just over 3kgs per hip/shoulder - with all the jumping, skulking and running he does I figure that's good. I admit Zaphod could stand to fill out a bit but he's an adolescent dog, he is lanky and with Labs tendency to be tanks I am happier to see him lean rather then hefty. Thanks.

[size=6][b][color=red]So[/color] [color=black]mad[/color], [color=red]must[/color] [color=black]rant[/color] [color=red]. . .[/color][/b][/size] The neighbours had their dogs out in the common area so I took Kavik out to play loose and then when he was done put him in and took Zaphod out on the leash to play. The neighbour kept going on about how thin my boys were and "are his hips supposed to look like that." My boys a very lean true but they are healthy she just doesn't recognize hips because you can't see her dog is covered in a thick padding of fat! He doesn't even have a little tummy tuck or any narrowing of the waist at all, he can only run for 1 min at a time! Then she started in on how can Zaphod get any excercise if I don't let him off the leash - they just don't get it - Zaphod isn't allowed off the leash because he can't be trusted - to heck with excercise it will do him no good if he gets squashed by a truck or gets spooked by a kid or a dog and gets into a fight and gets put down. Besides I walk him 1-2 times a day, he plays in the yard sometimes with me, sometimes with Kavik, he plays in the house, we go to the beach or the park 2-3x a week where we find a nice deserted spot and he plays on a long lead! He is in better shape than her dog - he can nearly keep up to Kavik (and darn strong for a 55lb/25kg boy - nearly pulled my arm out of my socket today - still hurts.) Stupid people with fat dogs who would let an partly trained dog with socialization issues run loose. :evil:

Welcome back! I havn't been . . . yet. We were going to go a couple years ago but the exchange was just tooooo bad! If the exchange trends continue the way they are we may go yet though.

Sounds like you've got a handle on it Rowie - good luck! [quote]Also, why dont you ask her if she is sure it is the pups smelling up the place and not the cats?? No offense to cat lovers but they can really stink up a house... quick![/quote] [i][color=violet]Cats do not smell . . . litter boxes smell . . . hmph[/color].[/i] [size=2](in my best peeved cat lovers tone of voice)[/size] :lol: It could be cats but it probably won't make any differnece because they are keeping the dogs out for relig. reasons in the end. I guess cats are ok for muslims then?