In Which Everyone Does Something New, and Lots Is Learned

As a dogsitter, I only ever board dogs from one household at a time with me at home. More often than not, that means only one dog at home. It's easy and comfortable for me and my family.

But it doesn't make for much dogsitting, and it means I may not be available for my clients. So occasionally, if someone wants just daycare or overnight, I'll consider taking multiple dogs -- if they're a suitable match.

Yesterday, I did a trial for one such situation.

Ava and Darcy

I trust these two with almost anything, you know that. Meeting strangers, being in public, meeting dogs. But as I learned yesterday, relationship dynamics are always more complicated when there's two of them interacting with a third party together.

Darcy and Sherlock

My current boarder is 3yo cavoodle Sherlock. Tallest cavoodle I've ever seen, and quiet and gentle.

Rawr!

Well, I followed all my usual protocol -- leashed introductions outside my property, but then inside (into the yard) for off-leash as soon as possible. I needn't have worried about Sherlock, who has lived here for the past week, being territorial -- it was Darcy (and Ava?) who barked at him and he backed away, unsure.

Fortunately, things settled once we were inside. Over the day I discovered that Darcy can be pushy with other dogs, that Ava can be the fun police and that Sherlock and Ava can't share tennis balls.

Can you spot the fun police?

But I also discovered that the dogs can be mature enough to settle when separated. So with a little management -- like a lot of things in life! -- they can coexist together.

And I appreciate the joyful moments, like this one:

I loved seeing all the playful body language from Darcy and Sherlock -- and think I've worked out what Ava's behaviour is too. Any guesses?

On Choice, Ethics and Darcy

I recently attended the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) Australia annual conference. One of the messages threaded through many of the speakers' talks, I feel, was about accepting our learners (dogs and other animals) for who they are. Knowing the innate tendencies of species and breeds is part of it. But giving animals choices is another.

I'm lucky to come into animal training at a time where the 'progressive' notions of positive reinforcement and such are becoming mainstream. But I think the idea of 'free choice' -- what I think of as 'autonomy' -- is still pretty novel. I've always believed that training is for a better lifestyle -- as in, if my dog is well-trained she can come to more places with me and have a better quality of life. But people like behaviourist Dr Susan Friedman take it one step further when she says that training isn't manipulation; instead, giving more skills gives more choice. She asks us to explore how we can ask questions in our training -- how can we ask a bird if he really wants to step on our hand to be picked up? Does a dog really want to put her paw out to have her nails clipped? If we teach her to put her paw forward, she can choose at the time whether or not to do so.

It's a couple of weeks later, and I've just started Mechtild Käufer's Canine Play Behaviour: The Science of Dogs at Play. In the introduction she mentions that dog owners often say 'My dog loves me the way I am'. And I, Melon, agree, they do! But Käufer then flips the question -- do we love our dogs just the way they are? Or do we try to "train and mould our dogs into an ideal" (Kaufer p2)? I'd say yes. Many of us trainers judge owners who do no training and just complain about their dogs' behaviour, saying they don't understand how dogs work. Which is probably true. (For more info, read Jean Donaldson's The Culture Clash -- it's amazing.) But we know how dogs work -- and we just train them into what we want. Isn't that kinda unethical?

Which brings me to mister Darcy. I've written before about my struggles walking him because he pulls, chases moving objects and stops to dig holes. (Or rather, he wrote about the troubles walking with us! Telling, isn't it?). I also wrote about the progress we've made through reward-based training -- which has made life a bit easier. But it's still a struggle walking him, and the fact that he probably sees me (holding the lead) as an obstacle to what he wants (to run at the birds/insects/shrubs/leaves/people) probably means that, well, I am an obstacle to what he wants. And that's not very nice, isn't?

So what am I going to do about it? I don't have a concrete plan. But at the conference animal trainer Peta Clarke discussed using reinforcers other than food -- like chasing birds for her bulldog. He knows that the freedom to go chase them comes from her, so he'll wait for her cue to go do so. She gives him the cue to go chase them as much as she can because he enjoys it! She has control but he also feels he has control.

Since I realised a lot of Darcy's pulling on the lead is actually towards moving objects (he'll dart forward and then I see a small moth nearby), I've been thinking about putting it on cue, as she did. I don't want Darcy to see me as the obstacle to his fun, nor do I want to deprive him of what he obviously finds very rewarding! But I have some logistics to work out -- I mean, I can't just cue him to chase birds on a leash walk down the street. He'll just get frustrated as he hits the end of the lead, not to mention a sore neck when he goes boing!

I'll keep you posted -- all comments, ideas and suggestions welcome.

Throwback Thursday: Itty Bitty Darcy

What do I do with it?

(It's a tug toy for mice, silly pup.) 

D'artagnan aka Darcy at 9 weeks old.

A Shout-Out: To The Best Clients Ever

You all know how much I love my cavvies, Ava and Darcy. But it's time I told you why.

I had a difficult week last week. My anxiety triggered a depressive episode so I was missing in action for a few days. Then a client's dog dropped off for boarding turned out to be dangerous, so that had to be (carefully) managed.

Today, I pulled up outside Ava and Darcy's house. I heard barking and shook my head, thinking they had heard me. But it wasn't them, just a neighbour's dog. Sorry, Darcy.

Why do they always suspect me?

I went in, and their wagging and jumping began, but I wasn't jumped on. Ava waited quietly and Darcy wriggled and leaned on the fence, but he did very well for a 9-month old.

The pups toileted where they should and amused themselves while I cleaned, ate and took a breather. I was super impressed that they waited for an invitation before availing of my very-accessible lap when I sat in the lawn chair. That is an impressive feat for my sweet-as-pie lapdog friends!

All dogs are bred for a purpose. Ours is to sit in laps.

To further sweeten the deal, it was a good day for Ava's famous #FOMO (fear of missing out). A handful of kibble in her slow-feeder bowl kept her occupied while I took her brother out for a walk. And 'disaster Darcy' truly is a disaster no more as he walked along, politely greeted a lady who wanted to pat him and waited patiently when I 'parked' his lead under my shoe to chat to a neighbour.

It was the best tonic after a difficult week.

Yes, I'm proud of 'my' pups. But the real credit goes to the humans. Christina and Tim have done a marvellous job at raising these two dogs. They are happy, healthy, friendly and fun to be around. This is thanks to the time they've have put into them. Both working full-time with long hours, you wouldn't think they'd be able to put that work into their dogs.

But Ava and Darcy wouldn't be so good just from my training. Tim's driving the dogs to puppy school and the park, Chris getting up early to take the pups out, diligently bathing, brushing and grooming the dogs so they're used to it. Playing training games and buying endless toys. Their super-sensible attitude, trust in my dog training skills, and willingness to try my suggestions (even the weird ones!) are all what made Ava and Darcy who they are.

Don't listen to her, Darcy. We're naturally this cute.

I have the best job because of your two munchkins, guys. They do you great credit.

Wordless Wednesday: Upstairs, Downstairs

A Happy Update: In Which Melon and Darcy Work Together

So you guys know that 8-month-old Darcy has a problem with walking on the lead*. Meaning, all he wants to do is rush over to anything and everything, be it animal (human, canine or avian), plant, rock or... plain air, as far as I can tell!

Your point?

And all I, Melon, want to do, is walk down the street without the pup running onto the road, leaping after birds or scrambling into the bush... is that too much to ask?

Hey, what's over there?

I was really beginning to think it was. So much that I suggested his humans buy some equipment to reduce his pulling (like a head halter -- not that I've ever seen a cavalier in one!).

But I also didn't want to let this defeat me. Call myself a dog trainer, and can't even teach a ~5kg puppy to walk on a lead? (Size doesn't directly affect trainability, but it does affect ability to hold onto a pulling dog!) So for the past fortnight or so I've tried to take Darcy for at least a ten to fifteen minute walk every time I visited. Why such a short walk? Because my patience for stopping and starting wears off after about ten minutes!

Seriously. Why are we stopping again?

But it turns out that patience in the form of a little each day has made a difference -- I think. I don't want to speak too soon, but I feel Darcy is finally showing some improvement in the skill of what we trainers call 'loose lead walking'. As in, he can sometimes walk down the road like a 'normal' dog...

Here's a tiny snippet of our walk today.

In the middle you see a glimpse of what our 'walks' have looked like for the past 6 months, but you can see that he can also walk much, much better too!

Walking near people, dogs or his sister are still out of the question, but hey, I'm just thrilled to see progress!

I'm proud of myself as well as this kid and can't wait to see where else we can go -- figuratively and literally!

---
* lead = Australian for leash, guys. Or "the string", as Darcy called it.

Sunday Funday!

Time for the annual cavalier bunny dance. Who wants to join? #dogsofinstagram #cavs #snoopydance

A post shared by Melon (@melondious) on May 27, 2017 at 4:41pm PDT

Guest Post: The Trouble With Walking Humans

Hi guys. Darcy here!

It's nice to be back on the blog.

But the thing is -- I have this problem.

See, my sister said that training humans can be hard. But then, she said that I could do a good job if I was con...sistent? Basically, I have to be responsible and keep doing the same thing over and over until they work out what they're meant to do. That doesn't sound too hard.

But no one told me how hard it is to walk a human!

First, you have to have them on a string, because otherwise they don't follow you.

If it weren't for the string, who knows where the human would end up!

But then once you're outside, they don't seem to know what to do. You know how it is, right? There are people to get pats from, birdies to chase, all kinds of tasty things to grab and sooo many smells to sniff!

Must. Catch. Birdies.

Hmm.

Mmmm.

But the human just can't keep up. Like, whenever I leap for a birdie, she always stops before I can catch it! (I guess humans tire easily.) Sometimes she even turns around to go in the other direction... even though I'm all ready to meet the people coming towards us! Sigh.

And that's not all. Whenever there's the good smells, the ones that need a whole minute to appreciate (you know the ones), she can't seem to wait, and tries to hurry me along! Can you believe it? I guess patience is hard for humans.

My sister did tell me humans can be kind of slow, but I dunno how she managed to train them because we pups never go walking together anymore. I dunno why. Maybe because the humans are too clumsy to keep the strings from tangling up when I jump on Ava? They seem to get all flustered every time I tackle her!

Don't get me wrong, humans are fun and I know I have a big responsibility to teach them right. But man, it's hard work!

Help a pup out -- do you have any tips on walking humans?

Woof,
Darcy xx

A Year Later: In Which Melon Is Getting Crazier and Crazier

A year ago I posted about sitting by the side of the road in the name of puppy socialisation. Who cares what people think? 🐶 Today, Darcy and I took a break on the footpath as he was a little overexcited. So I sat on the ground with the puppy. And since I was there, I might as well take a photo for Instagram, right? See the black? That's my pant leg. Leaning back, looking at my screen and making kissy noises, I forgot I was lying by the side of the road... until a lady pulled over to ask if I was all right. 😳 🐾 What's the most embarrassing thing you've done in the name of dog training? #trainersgonnatrain #butsometimeswescarepeople #oops #dogtraining #6monthsold

A post shared by Melon (@melondious) on May 16, 2017 at 6:01am PDT

Wednesday Walks

Hello Darcy.

Ready for a walk?

What are you looking at, Ava?

Nothing.

Mini-Holiday: In Which Ava and Darcy Are As Sweet As Ever

A holiday is always nice, isn't it? Ava and Darcy spent the weekend with me while their humans did human things.

They were dropped off in the morning, and as I was putting things away I turned around to find this...

How sweet are these two?

Who, us?

Whatcha doin'?

Seeing how close these two are seems extra sweet to me after my most recent boarders, two dogs who were from the same household but didn't like each other very much.

We pooped, can we come in now?

And yes, I let them in -- they were both very good dogs all weekend. Gotta love 'em.

An Exposition: In Which Melon Waxes Lyrical on Multi-Dog Management

Hello blogfriends.

Scruffy and Charlie, my most recent boarders, have gone home. I'm pretty sure they enjoyed their holiday and I refined my skills at multi-dog management.

Scruffy and Charlie: a rare snapshot with both boys

I owe a lot of this to another little guide: P. McConnell and K. London's Feeling Outnumbered: How to Manage and Enjoy Your Multi-Dog Household. I loved its advice on body blocking, and its general approach of 'teaching every dog good manners is the key to peaceful coexistence'. Makes perfect sense to me.

Most of all, though, I think this sudden foray into multi-dog management -- with Scruffy and Charlie at home, and Ava and Darcy at work -- has made me feel like the key here is management. Don't get me wrong -- dogs do need to be trained and you can almost always teach something new to improve situations. That's why I'm a dog trainer.

But I've also realised that management can be enough.

Ava: You call this management?

With multiple dogs, your time is split between them. Add to that normal life commitments -- for example, a homework assignment to finish, another dog job, and trying to fit in driving practice -- sometimes it's just about getting the dogs fed, walked, and getting in a little mental stimulation, whether that be with toys or training.

And I feel like part of understanding management is understanding that you won't be able to treat both dogs the same. Little Darcy, being only a few months old, spends half the day in his pen, while Ava can be trusted free in the house. Scruffy has to eat outside by himself while Charlie is inside with the humans, because Charlie needs to be coaxed to eat and Scruffy will steal his food.

Dog days of summer: I shut Scruffy in so Charlie could enjoy his iceblock

You won't even be able to treat your dogs equally all of the time. Some days only Darcy gets walked, because I can only take one dog with me to the cafe, and some days only Ava gets walked, because I'm out of time. And you know what? I'm realising that's okay.

Don't get me wrong, I wish Ava and Darcy could loose-lead walk nicely right now so that I could just walk them both together, and I really, really wish Scruffy and Charlie's owner could implement some more strategies so Charlie doesn't have to live timidly in the shadow of his brother. But I'm hoping that the more dogs I work with the more skilled I will become, so that I can achieve more in the same finite amount of time. Until then, though, I'm only human, they're only dogs, and we do the best we can.

Puppy Play: In Which We See Just How Much Fun Ava and Darcy Have

During Ava's year with me, I've introduced her to a few dogs. They all interacted with her differently, but I wished I knew a stable, playful dog of similar size and strength for her to really play with.

Enter Darcy.

Yes, 9 week old Darcy.



Like the old saying... it's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the amount of spunk and willingness to sit on another dog's head that counts!

Wordless Wednesday

Training Video: In Which Darcy Learns Important Skills, and Melon Manages Two Pups At Once

Yesterday Ava and Darcy's parents were amazed to see the puppies totally pooped (exhausted!) after I'd been in for only a short time. We joked that I must come in and hit the pups with a brick to make my job easy...

Too hot to walk your dog? ☀️ Not to worry - training time! It's the perfect excuse for you ALL to stay indoors. 🍹Tired brains make tired dogs too! #trainingdone #naptime #summer #dogtrainingtips #trainyourdog #dogtrainerslife

A photo posted by Melon (@melondious) on Jan 17, 2017 at 4:10pm PST

So, Chris and Tim, this is for you. Watch carefully to see if there are any bricks!

Guest Post: New Pup on the Block

Hai!

Hi! I'm Puppy. I mean, Darcy. Darcypup? Something like that. I'm not sure exactly. You can call me Darcy.

I'm a boy and I'm also a Ca- Cav- Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. Yup. I'm 13 weeks old and I've been living here for 4 weeks now.

This is my big sister Ava.

Damn it kid, you gotta relax.  Just play it cool, okay?

She told me to come say hi to Blogville. She knows how to get all the treats and smuggle rocks into the house. She's the coolest.

I love my big sis!

It's pretty nice here so far. I have a sisfur to chase AND humans to cuddle. Did you know that human laps are really comfy?

So far, so good.

The humans have been telling me I've been picking things up real quick. It's true! I can pick up toys and sticks and run real fast.

Wait for me!

Ooh, all that running made me sleepy. Time for a nap in my crate. 

Bye humans! 

Darcy out! xo

Wordless Wednesday: Mini-Me Edition