Dog Travel - Blessing of the Animals

ENTERING OBEDIENCE COMPETITIONS

Dog showing is character building, and is a sport which, just like all sports, demands that competitors behave in a sportsmanlike way. It is certainly not as easy as it may look.

 The purpose of CKC obedience trials may be to demonstrate the usefulness of the purebred dog as a companion of man, but more than this, an obedience trial will give a fair assessment of how trained a dog really is (or is not).
The development of trials such as rally and agility have actually undermined the quality of training in today’s dogs. The standard of testing is easier for rally compared to CD, CDX (Open) and Utility classes. When confronted with the challenges of B competitions people just invented new classes. Fine. So be it. However, regardless of how many hoops and ramps a dog jumps, at the end of the day, a dog is not fully and reliably trained to be trusted in public if it cannot pass a regular National Kennel Club Novice B or A class obedience trial.

CONFORMATION
MR. JONES WINNERS DOG AND BEST OF OPPOSITE 

There you have it. Even in Comformation showing, the dog must be obedience trained to show at his best. Many excellent conformation dogs who are not winning just need foundation obedience to turn things around.

CKC NOVICE OBEDIENCE TITLE FOR PUREBRED DOGS

CONFORMATION FOR PUREBRED BREED STANDARDS

CKC CANINE GOOD NEIGHBOUR CERTIFICATE  for all dogs great starting place

 Only dogs who are entered in the show are allowed at a show venue, so spectators must leave their dogs at home. Observing how the show works, reading up on the rules and  planning to enter a show only after the dog is ready (and not until) will all help ensure a successful test result and a pleasant show experience.

DOG MANNERS TEST FOR ALL DOGS

CANADIAN KENNEL CLUB

CANINE GOOD NEIGHBOUR

EXERCISES

1. Accepting a friendly stranger

2. Politely accepts petting

3. Appearance and grooming

4. Out for a walk

5. Walking through a crowd

6.  Sit / Down on command and stay in place (long Line)

7. Come when called (long line)

8.  Praise/ Interaction

9.  Reaction to passing dog

10. Reaction to distractions

11. Supervised isolation

12. Walking through a door/gate

All exercises are on leash and are non competitive.

Dogs must pass all 12 exercises

There is a downloadable Participant Handbook on the Canadian Kennel Club web site. The handbook provides details and tips for practise.

The test is good for all dogs, even those destined for the formal obedience competitions and beyond for adding to a dog's foundations skills. It is a great starting point for the new handler to become familiar with the experience of showing a dog. It is Obedience on a parlour show level without the formal atmosphere and exercises. Try it out and take your dog on a picnic after. Don't forget, pass or fail it is all a party after the dog show. All of life is a dog show. 

http://www.ckc.ca/en/Archived/By-Event-Type/Canine-Good-Neighbour-CGN/Canine-Good-Neighbour-Program-Participant-Handbook

BARKING DOGS

First of all a dog should not be outside of the abode without a handler present. The dog should be attached to the handler, either audibly, visually, or by a leash. If the dog is barking while it is on a leash, it had better be in guard dog training class or else The Dog Nana is going to kick someones ass. Someone has to kick, and Nana will kick. WHY IS THIS DOG BARKING ALL OVER THE PLACE? PEOPLE HATE THAT. If you are living in the tortured environment of someone elses barking dogs, your angst is justified.

The problem with barking dogs, is a lack of education on the owners part and a lack of training on the dogs part. It is a difficult matter to resolve because, dogs are supposed to bark. HOWEVER, dogs are not supposed to bark of their own accord. There is supposed to be a responsible human in attendance of the dog. The handler is the one who is the decision maker. The dog does not decide to bark. The handler would be the one to tell the dog to do that .

A person can jump up and down and scream until their head falls off but that will never stop a dog from barking. It will shut him up momentarily all right but he will start up again and then it always goes the same, "Bark bark bark!  FIDO SHUT UP! ..........bark bark.....bark ....bark ...bark bark bark bark bark..FIDO SHUT UP", on and on until the entire neighborhood hates that dog or dogs and the people yelling at them. It makes the Dog Nana tap dance. Plenty of things will stop barking temporarily, but to stop it from starting takes training. Simply using the foundations basic exercises will stop a dog from barking.  If a dog is merely let out into the yard on his own he will naturally bark. It is what a dog does. Bark. The owner must take control. Obedience training is a magic pill to stop unwanted barking.

The dog must not initiate the barking. With seriously well trained protective breeds, like patrol dogs, doberman, shepherd, boxer, Bouvier and the like, there is always a handler standing present to address any concern the dog has, to quietly acknowledge the dog and say, " Ya, thanks, I see that, it's okay, chill out, quiet now, do your business".

For the house pet, we go outside with them to manage the control. Dogs left out on their own often forget to do the task they were sent to do and then they come back in the house only to accidentally make a mess on the floor, Handlers fault; should have been out to see that the dog did his duty.

Dogs that are crate trained, exercise pen trained, controlled walk trained, who will sit and pay attention and who will accept praise in a decent fashion, do not bark for no apparent reason. Time spent on the fundamentals will stop barking and yard digging issues. Trained dogs will go out while the handler stands at the door, they will go directly to their business center, they will do their duties and come directly back to the door, no fuss or trouble.

In light of the terrible dog attacks in the news, communities are taking dog ownership and responsibility very seriously.
If a neighbour dog is driving you nuts in an unreasonable situation, keep a meticulous journal about the barking and any interactions you have and  then leave it up to the animal bylaw authority in your region to speak to the owners.

TRAINED DOGS BARK WHEN IT IS OKAY WITH THE HANDLER

OBEDIENCE TRAINED DOGS ARE TRUSTWORTHY QUIET CANINES

SUMMER VISITS

Dogs learn how to behave around each other through training

Using the collar and leash is important for control

What fun! Summer is here and it is holiday time. You cannot wait to be off to visit your best friend who has invited you to stay for two weeks at her fantastic lake house. Even your dog is welcome to come along for two weeks at the lake. There is one small problem; the last time you visited, your friend`s dogs seemed to hate your dog. Fights broke out several times over toys, and everyone was growling over everything.

 Maybe you should leave your dog behind, but that thought does not go far; you have no option but to bring him along. What to do? What to do?

Well, here’s the thing. Dogs do not “get” the concept of visiting like humans do. Dogs, do not see visitors as individuals who will eventually leave, they see INTERLOPERS who will eat the packs food and who will eventually have to be fought for position in the pack. That is just how it is; and you can`t change Nature, but, a good dog handler will control the situation i.e. “The pack”.

We know your friend is not a good handler, or else her dogs would not be such little jerks. Unless she took her dogs to school since you last met, it is likely the problems will have amplified since then. Her dogs will see your dog as “the interloper “who was driven away last time he was past here. And your dog will be ready for “those troublesome cousins” at the lake. You must keep your dog on leash at all times, just like back in novice training with the ribbon lead. Keep your dog attached to you and he will not get hurt. In order to have a securable place for your dog to stay when you are not with him, take a crate with you on holiday. Let him loose only when your bedroom door is securely closed. The other dogs will look for a way to drive your dog away so keep on your toes and wait for your opportunity.

Ideally all the dogs should be on leash but that probably won`t happen. Just keep your dog on leash.

If and when the other dogs make a move towards your dog aggressively, use an enormous foot stamp surprise, threaten to give them a sharp poke and tell them to PSHST!OFF! in no uncertain terms.  If and when your dog growls or barks, reprimand him firmly, using the collar and leash. Keep the peace and let all the dogs know that you are intervening over and above all aggression.

Do not bother explaining any of the above to your friend as  she probably will not listen. Just do it, and she will be as surprised as her dogs are.

Happy Summertime,

Love the Dog Nana