Well, I had a long thread but I accidentally closed the window, so now the short version.

Here is Carlin, a ~12 month old ACD. I'm picking him up tomorrow. He was being fostered by a lovely family down in TN, and being shipped up to me on a cool bus (http://www.petsllc.net/index.php). He is about 47#, so a nice sized cattle dog. I love how big and boofy his head is, and his ginormous bat ears.



Long story short, Carlin has a history of abuse. He was found when someone threw him out of a moving car and sped off, and then a vet had to clean his teeth (they were black) and remove the SHRAPNEL from his lower jaw. We don't know if he was shot on purpose, or if it was a hunting "accident." He also had evidence of abuse on his front legs, head, and back. However, now he is a lovely dude, and you can touch him anywhere and even cut his nails.



His only real issue is that he is afraid of new men, and doesn't like his crate.

I'm prepared to work on these issues, considering I'm a man and he has to get used to a crate, as I can't have a 1 year old ACD wandering on his own in my apartment when I'm at work. One good thing is that he has been socialized with other dogs:



That said, if he IS afraid of me, should I still tether him to me to build a bond and protect all my possessions? It took about 3 weeks for him to start being all lovey dovey with the husband at the foster home, but that was his first positive male association. Hopefully since it's just me, he can't bond to a woman (other than my girlfriend, but she doesn't live with me), and will learn to trust me faster.


Here is a video of him playing fetch, only a week after surgery (still groggy):

Carlin playing fetch 1 week after surgery

I think he has potential! I like how he sees where the ball is going, and alters his path.

Anyway, I do have a few questions:


I plan on tethering him to me. What do I do if he is terrified of me?

How do I load the duration marker?

When I load the "yes" marker, should I only use chicken and other meat, or can I mix in some kibble (Blue Buffalo, a high quality, low grain brand).


Thanks!

Saying goodbye to his foster mom this morning:

My brother has had a couple ACD's. Really smart dogs. My wife had a lab australian shepherd mix that had been abused by her ex. it took quite some time for him to stop bowing his head when approaching me and he never stopped doing it with any other man but he was never aggressive in any way at all. You could trust hm with any situation. I would say if it only took a few weeks to warm up to the foster hell probably adjust pretty quickly.

Congratulations - that is one good looking cattle dog!

I think you will just need to feel him out before deciding if you need to tether him. In my opinion/experience, not all dogs need to be tethered to you for training. He seems engaged with his handler, and despite his abuse, is willing to work with the human. So my advice would be to not rush things with him but build the relationship. Little or no correction until he trusts you.

As for crate training...a dog that doesn't like a crate can make you crazy with barking and scratching, and once that behavior starts it's difficult to break. I'd probably start out by feeding him in his crate and leaving the door open so he can go in and out. When training I'd throw treats in so he can go in and know that good things happen in the crate. I'd also put the crate next to my bed so he can see me but make him sleep in there. The one thing I would advise against, until he's comfortable with the crate, I would not leave him in there all day. If he freaks out before he is used to it, it will be difficult to break him of the anxiety. And it will be miserable for both you and your neighbors.

Good luck!

After rereading your post...absolutely don't tether him to you if he's afraid of you! If he's afraid of you, I wouldn't even bring him out in public and/or introduce him to the world. Let him get comfortable with you, your home and your movements, so when you do finally take him out, he will know you are the one person he can trust. If he's afraid of you, don't overwhelm him with attention; just be and let him come to you. If you're the only one around, feeding him, being nice to him, he will eventually come around. In my experience when they make the first move, it's more likely to be a positive experience, than when you try to force the situation. That can take longer to get over.

Thanks for the advice.

I am planning on slowly introducing him to the crate in a positive way, and I took the next 4 days off from work, so I'll only be gone at most 4 hours on Monday, and 3 on Tuesday. I have a small, bare, bathroom where he can stay if he really loathes the crate.

I have no plans on corrections any time soon.

Congrats to you-- I'v e had 2 cattle dogs, both really really smart. Your dog looks super
athletic and fit and ready to learn and be fun.
Hope he fits in well. Looking forward to hearing from you!

Congrats and good luck! I love ACDs...maybe someday I will stop getting German Shepherds

tanyas' got some good advice there john . . .

i'd add , spend a lot of time using the crate as part of your time with him . all his meals in there , tossing bits of food , and toys in there , brief periods with the door closed and then open before he even has a chance to protest .

when you are building duration , you don't really load the marker the same way as the * yes * .

his mind now knows that certain words signify a reward , the difference now is that he only hears your particular mark when he continues to do the behaviour being asked . so for the down , as long as he remains down , you say ( ex : good ) pause and then present the reward .

when you want to end the behaviour , you say ( ex : yes ) , pause and then use movement of the reward to let him know he can release from the behaviour .

good luck , i like the look of that dog too . i think the inherent hardiness of that breed may see him get well past his previous unfortunate history . you already know some of his phobias , so be sensitive to others he might have that he hasn't shown yet , like maybe a shotgun blast at short range lol

as to your reward , you'll find out what he thinks is a high value reward , and you'll find out over time what you need to be using to elicit the performance you want . generally kibble isn't considered high value , but it depends how hungry your dog is .

John,

Tanya has given you good advice. He looks like he will be a lot of fun.

I do have a suggestion regarding the crate issue. Does he have a crate mat or pad? Use the mat outside of the crate and have only really positive things happen on it. Keep it near you, reward him when he is on it, find out what he loves, and have it happen on the mat. Once he loves his mat, it can gradually move into his crate, and help him feel more comfortable inside with his favorite mat. Take your time and let him learn that there are great human beings in his world.

"How do I load the duration marker?"


Do you have any of the marker videos? Which?


Beautiful dog, BTW!

What a gorgeous pup. Beautiful markings and that gray coat is stunning.

Congratulations on your new addition!



And back to Connie's question:

Do you have any of the marker videos? Which?