confidence training day 1

Yesterday, I made sure to stop and give Shiloh some attention several times throughout the day. My toddler was "off" on her nap schedule and went along to the bus stop to greet her brothers. This meant no training time, but we did throw the stick for Shiloh.

This morning, after the boys got on the bus, I did some serpentine heeling work and reinforced that fact that dogs SIT when the heel-ey stops. She picks up quickly. We then worked on sitting and waiting while I walked across the field and then called her to me. She does well on sitting and waiting, but sometimes "come" means come NEAR you, but not quite. LOL

She did seem proud at the praise for a job well done and was rewarded with some fetch time. That dog LIVES for playing fetch.

Re: a new puppy I was thinking that a puppy would build confidence for Shiloh. I mean, what dog can't beat up a puppy? LOL But then, that confidence may be short lived. Puppies grow.

Apparently, my dog lacks confidence!

It is not as big a problem as it was, but Shiloh will still pee at times when she thinks she is in trouble or sometimes when people come over and greet her with GREAT enthusiasm.

Submissive urination.


I am determined to help Shiloh get over this issue. It is rather annoying. LOL From the reading I have done, it looks like confidence is what she lacks. She definitely had early training from Maggie that taught her the only way not to get her butt kicked was to roll over, bare the tummy, and pee as she frantically thought, "don't kill me don't kill me." This fact combined with her seeing me as the new Alpha to pacify with her tinkling puts us where we are today.

So, I am going to step up our training. I already take Shiloh on short walks (to the bus stop) twice a day. We practice heeling at this time. I also usually combine these trips with a bit of fetch. Now I am also going to do a bit more training and use the fetch as a reward for getting it right. This is also supposed to increase her confidence.

The second new tactic will be to take the time to pet her more during the day. Getting down on her level. Maybe even hand feeding her. Again, this is said to increase confidence.

I'll keep you posted on if it works. If it doesn't, maybe I need to get one of these.

JUST kidding!!

Poop free yard

I finished picking up poo in the yard this weekend. There is one corner where Shiloh prefers to do her business. I swear there were not stacks of poo there, more like a carpet of poo. I wanted to get the leaf blower and blow the top layer into the neighbors yard.

Have I mentioned the obnoxious neighbor dogs that yap continually at us whenever we are outside? Or even on "that side" of our house. Even if they are inside their house. That's right, they bark at us INSIDE our house from INSIDE their house. They also run the fence line and tempt Shiloh to do the same. I thought that pushing the poop carpet from our yard to theirs might make them stinky enough to encourage keeping them on a leash instead of letting them run wild. But who am I kidding, they don't think anything of letting them terrorize the neighborhood with their indimidating racket. One neighbor is afraid to even go on a walk when those dogs are outside.

How long does a 3 gallon container of water last?

We have one of those gravity water dispensers for the dog, like this:

I'm not sure how long it is supposed to last for a near 100 pound dog, but I'm SURE it doesn't last as long as it could. Why? Well, most of it ends up all over the floor for several reasons. One is that Shiloh does not believe in swallowing the last drink of water she puts in her mouth. She is SO in love with water that she wants to spread the joy. She gulp gulp gulps and saves that last gulp to let it run out in random patterns on the floor and she also enjoys giving nice juicy kisses to any passersby. Why shouldn't others enjoy the clear fresh water that is in abundance? She's not a selfish dog.

This kind act is very inspiring for my 2.5 year old. She sees the joy created and attempts to empty the water dish onto the floor as well. This, of course, being an impossible task as long as there is water in the 3 gallon jug part of the automatic water dispenser, making the toddler even more determined.

This then creates and endless circle of activity as others step in the puddles, making soggy socks, laundry and general cries of UGH!

I really do love my kids and my dog and my gravity water dispenser, actually :-) Thanks for listening. LOL

Spring Fever

We all have it in this household! Even the dog. Of course, with Shiloh, it is actually more go outside fever. She could care less if it is cold and snowy outside as long as you throw a stick, or snowballs, or a frizbee, or a ball, she is a happy dog.

She is also a stinky dog. When the weather is damp, as it has been, she is the epitomy of a stinky dog. Phew! Do I really want to double the dog stink factor in the house? Not to mention the dog hair which is already in abundance. I keep telling myself that it is part of the season. As the weather warms and sunny days arrive, who needs a winter coat. I just wish Shiloh could take hers off and hang it in the closet like the rest of us.

Jump old dog

I've noticed it is harder and harder for my dog to get into the back of our SUV. I think it is time to get a ramp. Once upon a time I had an Otto step on the back of my vehicle. It was nice and convenient in that it stowed away but was always there when I needed it. However, I don't think Shiloh would use it well. Maybe on the way up, she would step on it, but when unloading, I think she might just jump over it. It worked well for my first dog as she was a bit more careful in getting out and would actually wait for me to have the step in place.

Another option I have found in pet steps for a vehicle is this one.

It will be a bit more work to tote it along, but that is usually only on trips to the vet where she actually gets out of the vehicle and needs to reload. Mostly, Shiloh is just along for the ride.

This brings me to my next thought. Could I get by with a less portable unit only for the garage like one of

these options.

I'm going to keep thinking on this.