tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post8509529489737775205..comments2024-02-28T23:27:13.346-08:00Comments on BAD RAP Blog: What if you die?Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17654993049959218916noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-31940045697338115332013-01-27T07:40:38.186-08:002013-01-27T07:40:38.186-08:00Hi Cyndra - You're doing such good work with y...Hi Cyndra - You're doing such good work with your dog already. We don't think dogs have to enjoy close contact with all other dogs at all -- Being well behaved (calmly ignoring) is a more realistic goal. That said, the more well behaved dogs your dog is exposed to, the more tolerant she'll become. You can accomplish much of this by fostering for a savvy rescue group and giving her lots of opportunities to practice her dog skills (supervised by you of course) in a way that is good for her and maybe even fun. My own pit bull female used to be qute the snarky bitch as a youngster, but has shown us that lots of positive exposure to dogs will soften even the roughest edges. Fifteen years later, I've actually forgotten how rotten she used to be with dogs and how much work we had to do to navigate and direct her interactions. Make each interaction count and work hard to keep each one as positive as possible and remember to tell her how proud you are of her when she does well.<br />Donnahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05881171300084907158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-2243268366855949112013-01-23T11:11:31.477-08:002013-01-23T11:11:31.477-08:00Donna, So appreciate your work and help with these...Donna, So appreciate your work and help with these special friends. I have a dog who has some dog selective aggression and am wondering if the best course if to continue as many slow intros as possible or if dogs respond well to camp situations with a pack and improve or even get over it. (Obviously with excellent trainers and professional help.) My girl loves other dogs but has some fear issues and will do the occasional turn and nip action (does not break skin) but is scary for me. She works well on leash but for her sake, I would love her to feel comfortable around all dogs. Possible??Cyndrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15095602630575426749noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-44293057155619152082011-07-27T18:56:05.635-07:002011-07-27T18:56:05.635-07:00Anon 12:58, your comment hit ME hard. What a speci...Anon 12:58, your comment hit ME hard. What a special grandfather and special dog. "Don't deny her heritage" Words to live by.<br /><br />I hope you and your family are doing okay, and that Boo Boo is giving you some extra love right now. <br /><br />Peace to you both.Donnahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05881171300084907158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-6356138133047283422011-07-23T00:58:50.854-07:002011-07-23T00:58:50.854-07:00This post hit me hard. My grandfather passed away ...This post hit me hard. My grandfather passed away several hours ago in his sleep. His one and only wish was that the pit bull who sat by his side these last eight years would live her life out happily in a home. She will.<br /><br />I remember the day we brought Boo to my grandpas house. The 8 week old pup had been abandoned, tied to the steps of my after school job. I wanted the dog so bad I ran away for three days so she could be with me. The second I brought her home my parents loaded the both of us into the car and down to grandpas. I didn't know it at the time but I was saving both of their lives.<br /><br />Grandpa asked me what kind of dog she was and I told him she was an all amercian dog and he laughed. He said pit bulls were just like any dog and I shouldn't hide her heritage. <br /><br />Boo Boo helped my grandfather live longer then the cancer should have let him live for. She was and will be forever faithful to him and is taking his death worse then we ever will. She laid with him until he passed and didn't leave his body until we pulled her away.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-6707575124504745412011-07-20T11:54:38.680-07:002011-07-20T11:54:38.680-07:00Thank you Rose. It's been a hot topic around h...Thank you Rose. It's been a hot topic around here, as you can tell. ;-)<br /><br />To the people who are struggling with dog aggression issues with their pets: I don't believe it's necessary or practical to make your dog like other dogs. Sorry if that was implied in my blog post. I think the point is to make your dog as adoptable as possible on the off chance that something happens to you. As Leslie/Ukiah pointed out,even the dogs that lose their families to foreclosure, etc, are SOL if their owners haven't instilled some manners in them.<br /><br />A dog selective dog can still be very adoptable if he's got good leash manners around other dogs. (We see this all the time at Berkeley Animal Care Services, where some very dog selective dogs get adopted again and again thanks to the dedicated training efforts of the volunteers.) In theory, a dog selective or even dog aggressive dog can participate very nicely in the real world because he's been given such good distraction skills that any dog can walk by him and he's not going to react. He may *want* to react, but he's learned not to. That doesn't mean he's ready for the dog park (!!) but he's able to go home with a family who commits to an on-leash lifestyle. <br /><br />If you think your dog can never acquire that level of management around other dogs, and that he's going to fail in any other home, then of course your options for him are naturally limited. There were some people on our facebook page who confessed to arranging for the euthanasia of their (dog aggressive) dogs should they ever pass on before the dog. We completely understand and respect that level of planning, as excruciating as it is. The fact that they've looked into the future and made this arrangement shows a level of responsibility and love that flattens me. Those are some committed people who care deeply about quality of life issues for their dogs. Dog love'em.Donnahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05881171300084907158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-15395290233602978102011-07-19T20:42:29.522-07:002011-07-19T20:42:29.522-07:00This is profound and possibly, IMHO, one of your v...This is profound and possibly, IMHO, one of your very best posts.<br /><br />Thank you for the gentle yet direct reminder that our responsibilty to our pets can extend beyond our life.NorCalRose & Riddickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13074388217962333795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-9227865621302614762011-07-19T20:16:46.601-07:002011-07-19T20:16:46.601-07:00Wonderful post Donna - we're getting in more d...Wonderful post Donna - we're getting in more dogs all the time whose owners have passed on. And yes, its only the socialized dogs (and pit bulls) who have any chance of being available for rescue or the adoption floor. Hah! My kids worry that I'm going to die before my dogs - that means they get the property (teehee) and the pack!! They really have a vested interest in my old age health! Thanks again!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-47195508404818188572011-07-19T15:39:37.593-07:002011-07-19T15:39:37.593-07:00@Donna
I would come out for one of your camps in a...@Donna<br />I would come out for one of your camps in a heartbeat. I love the bay area and two of my best friends (from High School!) are there. I just need to care for the diabetic cat who just turned 14 and the wild and crazy Savannah who just turned one.Diannehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02304293013670093540noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-82375709923009799222011-07-19T11:38:16.521-07:002011-07-19T11:38:16.521-07:00One of my pits is dog aggressive and our trainer, ...One of my pits is dog aggressive and our trainer, who also worked with Mel, the Vick dog, taught me more about how to handle her than focused on making her non-dog aggressive which is a difficult thing to do. Also some people in my condo complex do not like pits so I am extra careful about keeping her out of any situations that might end badly. <br /><br />Due to the training I understand her triggers, can read her body language, have taught her the command "leave it" which comes in great handy for so many things, walk her at later times at night or early in the morning by taking her to my car and driving her to areas where there are few dogs. Unfortunately sometimes its more about learning the best way to handle them than changing some behaviors that probably cannot change. Sadly I worry about her if we pass on first. My family loves my dogs and has agreed to take my other pit because he's such a wonderful boy but they all have other dogs and she cannot live with them.SThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06687163300911239064noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-73441708301072102412011-07-19T11:12:25.434-07:002011-07-19T11:12:25.434-07:00I too am the owner of two pit bulls that I rescued...I too am the owner of two pit bulls that I rescued as adults, one actually saved hours before being put down.... I have the same problem both are dog aggrssive one more than the other, and one also very leash reactive. it took me 3 months of every day walks together to get them to live together and it has taken a few brawls before they were able to live in peace together. because fo their aggression I have been afraid to introduce them to other dogs, not to mention the older one squeals like a wild pig and frightens people from wanting thier dog near her.. I am sure my fear has some impact but knowing my own two had fights in the begining I don't want them to hurt other dogs. I have been more inclined to walk them where there are no other dogs, pit bulls have a bad rep as it is. I read your blog on slow intro's but what if you don't have dogs to reguarly introduce them too how will that work to get them use to be around other dogs and not so aggressive. thanks RobertaRobertanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-65190024561822807952011-07-19T11:02:59.134-07:002011-07-19T11:02:59.134-07:00Well said Leslie. This advice goes for anyone who ...Well said Leslie. This advice goes for anyone who has to walk away from a dog! <br /><br />(OT - but would love some photos of you and your new boy so we can toot the happy horn. Looking forward.)Donnahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05881171300084907158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-80814076096641561592011-07-19T10:57:00.319-07:002011-07-19T10:57:00.319-07:00Beautiful post Donna. I've been thinking abou...Beautiful post Donna. I've been thinking about writing a letter to the editor in my community, but I'm not as good with words as you are. We get so many people wanting to surrender dogs that have never been off their property, and some never have been indoors, yet people are sobbing when they have to surrender them. I wanted to write a letter telling people to train their dogs like they have to rehome them. Whether it be a death, moving, whatever, but I imagine the people that are doing it will continue doing it and the people that are not will continue to bring in these poor terrified dogs that will most likely never leave the shelter.Leslie-Ukiahnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-39389037411235687542011-07-19T10:52:59.661-07:002011-07-19T10:52:59.661-07:00@ Dianne. You just may need to get yourself out he...@ Dianne. You just may need to get yourself out here for one of our camps. :-) <br /><br />A regular shelter would've brought out Jondi's worst in no time. The barn is one example of a way to house dogs and encourage good behavior - a minimum of noise with lots of close proximity 'flooding' in our kennels. She's lavished with positives for any kind of calm, appropriate behavior towards her barn mates. Also, the team's been doing a lot of obedience training to help her learn to follow our lead and our verbal prompts.<br /><br />As far a leash behavior goes - yes we needed a prong collar for Jondi. No corrections - but a whole lotta love and direction and focus and distraction work. It's a work in progress since we broke her challenges into pieces and are just starting to tackle the out-in-the-world work. She's getting there.Donnahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05881171300084907158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-21151945921489322682011-07-19T10:44:31.350-07:002011-07-19T10:44:31.350-07:00I also would love to know the details -- our shelt...I also would love to know the details -- our shelter dogs become dog reactive and people selective the longer they are in the shelter. We're increasing the training staff and have started the Open Paw program. As a trainer (volunteer) -- as Oliver said, MORE please.Diannehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02304293013670093540noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-11847514339355626982011-07-19T10:42:37.705-07:002011-07-19T10:42:37.705-07:00Adrienne. Kudos to you for figuring out how to int...Adrienne. Kudos to you for figuring out how to introduce your girl to other dogs. That ritual may never change - it's a common sense practice that all kinds of dogs of every breed need in order to make new friends, but you may want to video tape it to show your friends how easily it's done. We also have it listed here on our blog in a post called 'Drive in Slow Lane for Dog-Dog Intros.' <br /><br />As far as leash reactivity, it's tough to advise without knowing your dog since there's no such thing as a one size fits all training technique for that behavior. But we would recommend putting some time into finding a trainer who's comfortable with this work. Your local pit bull rescue (try PBRC.net for a list) may have just the person. Getting improvements will help you enjoy your girl that much more, so I hope you can sniff out a good resource. Let us know how it goes, okay?Donnahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05881171300084907158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35009181.post-35087160452621802782011-07-19T10:31:33.410-07:002011-07-19T10:31:33.410-07:00I'm the owner of a pit bull that I adopted whe...I'm the owner of a pit bull that I adopted when she was an adult. She has no dog manners and is leash reactive. She can get along with dogs when we introduce them slowly over a few days (like my mom's dog) but none of our friends have the patience to do that. So her socialization problems just get worse over time.<br /><br />I would really love it if Bad Rap would post information on how to socialize an adult pit bull. I know that her dog aggression is a problem but have no idea how to tackle it.Adriennenoreply@blogger.com