Will do
I will do some research on the herding! not toomany sheep round here, but not too far from farms etc. Maybe the guy at Delamere will know of something, so I will ask his advice on Sunday.

Thanks again
Elaine xx

I had exactly this with Zak (GSD) he was a nightmare for lunging at anybody passing. We had to corss over everytime we saw people and if we couldn't well it was a struggle. Went to 2 behaviourists which to be fair helped a bit but were essentially a waste of money (for us) they told us why he was doing it but gave no real advice on how to stop him doing it.

Anyway he got very sick one day and HAD to go the vets. I warned thew vet about how aggressive he was. He said no problem we can sort it....

this is what we did......

he said that he was picking up on my fear, as I knew he was going to react so I tightened on the lead. An instant signal to him that I was worried about the approaching person. What we did was put him in a sit, took his fave squekky and treats out and distracted him, if someone passed and he didn't react he was treated and praised. If reacted he short leave it and no treat. He was on a halti so I had full control and was never really close enough to make contact. I crossed over he road if I needed to just if there was not enough space to give us the distance we needed.

Poppy just needs to learn that people approaching is a good rewarding thing not something she has to fear and protect herself from. It took time with Zak don't get nme wrong but we started this when he was 4 years....poppy is still young. Her fear may stem from her poor start in life but it can be changed....I am sure if it was not for my vet Zak would have been PTS years ago as he was unable to be walked by me as I couldn't hold him, he would have bitten sooner or later and done damage. Now I take him and he rarely pulls and ignores anybody passing. I know he will never great anybody lol but ignoring is just fine for me .

At first however the squeeky was far more effective as it broke the concentration on the person coming where as a treat didn't......

Hope you feeling better today, it is sortable, she will be fine with work and loads of treats lol

Mel x

Thank you so much Mel, Yes I do feel a bit better this morning. I lay awake all night, you know what it's like in the middle of the night things so much worse.
I have just been over to Jolleys and bought a Halti and the extra bit that goes on her collar.
I am just getting up the nerve now to take her out. I have put the Halti on her with a treat in my hand, like it says on the box. She don't like it much, but she will just have to get used to it if she wants a walk, he he.
Will let you know how it goes.
Elaine xx

Elaine, I'm really sorry to come back to your original post, but I am concerned for you and for Poppy. She has 'nipped' on 2 seperate occassions now...complete strangers. It could have been a child on a bike.
I don't want to be alarmist but I do think you need to seek advice from someone who can actually see her and assess her...if you go to the classes, it is really important that you phone the trainer and tell them how she has been behaving first. They may want you to go early so they can assess if the class will be okay for her.

I agree with Kirsty, Barbera Sykes would be a good person to email.

I do hope the halti has improved things for you,but I do think this is a serious problem that you have with her....next time it could be a child with unforgiving parents that don't differentiate between a bite and a nip.

There are some issues that need to have someone assess them first hand and a dog 'nipping' random strangers is one of them in my opinion. Sorry.

As I've said, if there's anything I can do...including being someone who can walk past her for you etc, please just let me know. x

ps.....I agree with some others, please don't use a rattle bottle as this is likely to heighten the problem. At the moment it sounds like a herding issue...but if you start shaking things at her, it could soon develop into a fear and noise sentisitvity thing...on top of the herding issues.

The trainer at Delamere asks that you go 15 minutes early anyway if it is the first class Ailsa. Also he does a lot of socialisation work where some dogs do not actually take part in the formal aspect of the class but walk around the area(large field) learning to concentrate on their owner etc. I have seen him help to train a very lead agressive GSD who did not take part in the class who then went on to be a full classmate of Fudge .I have every faith that he will talk to Elaine first regarding Poppy and if neccessary will do individual work alongside the class.

Thanks Rachel,
Yea I have met the trainer before when we took Ben. I also understand that he does one to one in your own home. So I will see what he says on Sunday. I don't want to start panicking and paying out hundreds of pounds at this early stage.
The trainer at Delamere owns BC's so he should know what he's talking about.
I will let you know how we get on.
Elaine xx

I know what your saying and I agree totally. I know that we were lucky those two times and that's why I have posted here. I dont want it to be a child or anyone for that matter.
I will get in touch with the trainer you said. But I will wait until we see what the outcome of Sunday is like.
There will be lots of dogs, adults and children there. I will speak to the trainer before bringing Poppy into the area so he knows the situation.
Elaine x

That all sounds perfect to me elaine, you'll be going somewhere where there's lots of other dogs, lots of people, and best of all, someone in control, i.e. the trainer, who knows just how to deal with a situation like this! They will probably take Poppy over for a little while, especially if you explain the problems you're having, and see how she reacts with them with the other peops etc. I watched an aggressive (well, maybe not so much aggressive as very hyped up!) barking young gsd at training last week, and it was jumping up at the owner all the time, straining on the leash to get at the other dogs, constantly barking, but do you know what, as soon as the trainer got hold of her and made her walk nicely on the lead, the change that came over her was quite amazing - she was focused!! Now I'm not saying it's YOU who's the problem, perish the thought, but do a lot of watching and learning just like I have been at my recent classes. Plus, the more you go to something like this, even if you just sit alongside and watch like I do, the more it will aclimatise (sp?) Poppy to all sorts of different goings on, different people/dogs, and it can only be a good thing. I'm absolutely sure she will be on her very best behaviour too, she might not even do what you're expecting, in which case, keep on going, just like I am, and things will just get better and better!
All the best for Sunday then, and I'm sure it will go beyond your expectations you just wait and see!

Brilliant. Don't get in touch with the behaviourist if you don't want to Elaine, it was just an option.
We've been pondering the Delamere classes ourselves....

Thanks, again, Helena
Yes looking forward to it now. I wanted to go this week, but we had no sitter for Carl, my disabled son, and I did not just want Chris to go on his own, not that I dont trust him, I just wanted to be there as I am the one who spends most of the time with the two of them. I dont drive so I needed chris to take me and my other son was working. Soooo will have to wait till this Sunday now.
Elaine xx