Mon 21st June: What not to do

We're hoping Johnnie won't be coming back

Quite a few people asked about terrier-type Johnnie, so I'm happy to report that he left today for a trial to see how he gets on with the other dogs in the home.  I hope it works out as it looks like the perfect environment for a lively and energetic young dog.

 While shibas Zippy and Stella are heading off to Acorn on Tuesday, another surrender request came in for a shiba inu puppy boy, just seven months old and already having been sent away for "training".  I use "training" in inverted commas because it's not what we would teach at our Positive Partners courses, or what we ask adopters to do, and certainly no puppy (or adult) benefits in any way by being sent off to live in a kennel and to be bullied and broken into submission.  There's a saying you get what you pay for, and in these cases what you get for your money is a dog that doesn't trust people, and is afraid of what's going to happen to them at any moment.  The irony is, of course, that after coming back from his month of "training", the owners of this puppy now want to surrender him because it didn't work.  The issue is food guarding, so common with this breed, and there's a reason for it to develop (inadequate food) and a relatively easy solution even if it's not an immediate cure.  Of course no dog or puppy with food guarding behaviour can be in a home with children. 

Puppies don't understand the concept of bad behaviour, so punishment for anything we see as being undesirable is pointless, and worse than that it's damaging.  The bond between a dog and the human family is based on trust, and how can a puppy trust someone who is going to hit them, jerk on their collar or yell at them for something they simply don't understand.  Puppies don't do things out of spite or malice, as that concept is totally alien to them.  They do things we don't care for because they don't know any better, so as their human guardians it's our job to communicate to them what it is we want.  The way to do that is to reward for good or desirable behaviour, either with a treat or simply praise, and to ignore the rest, or distract with something better.  

Damson came to us with the same food guarding

How many times have I written about shiba inus and their characteristic behaviour, their obstinacy mixed with high intelligence.  They can be fantastic little dogs if they have the right training and environment, and if their humans work with them together to achieve a great relationship.  Let's hope it's not too late for this young boy.  He's not with us yet so I will hold back on sharing photos or a name, but I just wanted to say something about the concept of sending your self-created problems to someone else to fix. 

The new puppies that arrived on Sunday are now the "E" litter, and they will be ready for adoption in a couple of weeks assuming they're fit and healthy.