Well maybe....

Thanks for all this, I think the "tell" is an excellent method of working things out, I love it! As you say it's very much down to trust (and special training) and the dogs understanding that you or Pat can help them.

Cheers!

Wys
x

Have to point out the downside to this....Bruce ''tells'' alot.....he has worked out that when one of the other dogs takes anything off him, he runs up and ''tells''.....ok funny at the moment but i am trying to figure out how to stop this as he drives me mad with it. I am sure I will though in time.

But 10 out of 10 to him for smartness Proves though that he knows ''tell'' to a tee

I have a sneak too !! Tai can be very sly. I hate anthropomorphising dogs, but he can be a bit of a goody-goody, get other dogs into trouble, and then sit back and watch the fun ! I would not have believed this had it not happened now far too many times to be coincidence.

His latest "sneak" was to wind up next door's dogs when we went out at dusk last night for a last walk. Next door were having a barbie in their garden, and their dogs - a GSP and a young lab - were sitting in the garden next to our neighbours. Our neighbours have a flower bed which runs the whole length of their garden, and they had just planted it out and obviously didn't want their dogs rushing across to say hello to Tai. Their dogs were told to stay, but Tai rushed across in that bounding motion that they do when they want to play, and lured them across. They of course trampled all over the new flower bed, and got a severe telling off from their master ! Tai was bouncing up and down with glee at the trouble he had got them into. He does this with next door's GSD as well, rushes up to his fence and cocks his leg to wind him up and get him into trouble. He's a git like this, but I swear that dog has a sense of humour and knows exactly what he's doing !

He will tell tales as well when another dog, say in the pub, is being naughty and the owners are telling him off, Tai will come rushing across to "tell" on this poor unfortunate dog. I think he thinks we should tell the other dog off too !

a definite 10 out of 10! It's times like this it would be so good if we could talk to dogs and explain things He's obviously generalised the training and fair play to him !!

Wys
x

Pidge you are a very naughty monkey, was just about to "yippeee" about you being preggers and then see it as a joke.......................you is a very bad girl

Anyway, I've only had one "food aggressive" dog. That was Phoebe (Krystal's baby that is four months old now). As soon as she came out of the whelping pen and started eating with the other dogs, she started to growl whilst she ate. I ignored it at first, thinking it was a puppy thing, that she'd stop but it progressed, so that she was growling so much whilst eating, she was actually coughing and choking a bit, as well as she started to "snap" (I don't mean she was snapping to bite, just snapping the air whilst growling/eating. Tested her whether she was like it with me or the kids taking the food bowl away, she was fine. It was obviously her warning the other dogs not to take her share. I just took her away every time she started to growl and made her eat last. Whether this is the right or wrong way in some's eyes, I don't know. It worked for her. Took a few days for the idea to sink in that growling and warning the other dogs, just made her have to eat last, she stopped it.

I've always tested mine when puppies, to make sure that if myself/the kids took anything away, they wouldn't have a problem with it. I really don't think you can chance a food aggressive dog around children.

Anyway, sounds like you are doing great with Woody. He learns very quickly, doesn't he

ETA - just thought, mine do have a scrap over toast occasionally. They usually get a little toast in the morning (a tiny piece each from my son's brekkie). Sometimes they hide it for later and then I'll hear a load of growling and stuff, where one is protecting their piece of toast. Quickly broken up by an "Oi"!

Great post, CC !