Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Meet Our Assistant Trainers - Lexus



[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="367" caption="Lexus 2009"][/caption]

Lexus did not have a very easy start in life.

While looking to rescue a Rottweiler or Rottweiler cross in 2005 we came across a litter of Rottweiler/Lab pups that had been born on a nearby farm.  We were looking for an adult female Rottweiler or Rottweiler cross who would fit in well with the pets we already had - a Golden Retriever named Molson, a Pomeranian named Gretchen, and our two cats, Jasper and Katrina.

With the exception of Molson, all of our pets were rescues and we had every intention of continuing this trend.  Unfortunately, after more than a month of searching we had been unable to find a suitable candidate.  We were in the process of moving from our security conscious apartment building to a detached home in a less than stellar neighbourhood, and we were ultimately looking for a dog that would serve as both a playmate to Molson as well as a visual deterrent to unsavory characters.

Molson had been taught to "Guard" on command, and would put on quite an impressive display of intimidating vocalizations when asked.  However, we never could get him to stop wagging his tail while "Guarding," which merely added to the fact that even the most vicious Golden Retriever is hard to take seriously.

After finding the newspaper ad I contacted the number provided and was informed that there were three female puppies approximately 7-8 weeks of age.  That afternoon we went to see the puppies with absolutely NO intention of bringing one home (those of you who have tried this already know how this story ends).

Upon arriving at the farm we learned several disturbing facts.  First, the mother dog was an 80lb Rottweiler - who was only 8 or 9 months old.  Still a puppy herself, she had been left intact and allowed to roam during her first heat.  Somehow this family was surprised (and appalled) by the outcome.  They had no intention of breeding her, and had no use for puppies.  As soon as it was discovered that she had become pregnant she was locked in a stall in their empty barn to await the puppies' arrival.

Eight puppies were born, but only three survived.  The trio was then left in the barn with their mother until they were ready to be sold, at which point they were brought into the mud room for viewing.  They received no socialization, no exposure to other dogs, people or even sunshine.  Further questioning exposed their true birth date - a mere 4.5 weeks prior.  The owner of the Rottweiler was charging $50 a puppy - with the funds going to spay their female to prevent future litters.

I sat in the mud room on the floor with the three lucky survivors, every cell in my brain screaming "Bad Idea! Bad Idea!"  As a trainer I was fully aware of the impact such a start in life would have on these dogs, and knew better than to take one of these puppies given that it was quite likely we would forever be dealing with behaviour issues related to their pathetic upbringing to this point and being separated from their mother at such a young age.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="163" caption="She knows the flower bed is not an appropriate place to play - but with a face like that, I'd rather just replace the flowers"]Baby Lexus in the Flower Bed[/caption]

Efforts to relay this information to the owner were futile - he had lined up more than enough "visitors" to place the puppies in unsuspecting homes and just wanted "the problem" gone.

I have no suitable explanation for what happened next, but I snatched up the puppy that seemed most interested in my husband (at the time I would have liked to have taken all three - however the thought of housetraining a puppy while living on the 14th floor and trying to get the apartment packed up was only made worse by imagining the same situation times three) and suddenly found myself seated in the car with two brown eyes staring at me from inside the towel I had pulled from the trunk to wrap our new family member in.

Our entire ride home was one long conversation about what a "Bad Idea!" this was, peppered by rationalizations that at least she was going to a knowledgeable home and perhaps this puppy might actually turn out ok.  None of which made me feel any better about my decision.

Fortunately, Lexus turned out to be the easiest puppy I have ever raised - before or after.  She housebroke within weeks, much faster than she should have given my lack of consistency at the time.  She gained an immediate respect for the cats thanks to... well, the cats (Jasper has always been a better dog trainer than I am) and fell head over heels in love with Molson despite the fact that he wanted nothing to do with her and spent her first week home perched on the couch, beyond the reach of the tiny little puppy.

Training was a breeze, with her being reliable off leash by six months of age.  A "correction" for Lexus can be as simpleas a dirty look or the slightest "Ah-ah!"  Never before (or since) have I met a puppy with such a fabulous combination of intelligence and sensitivity.

However, it wasn't long before her past caught up with her.  When she was six or seven weeks old we went to the local pet store to pick out some supplies for her.  We were crouched down in the leash and collar section, trying different colours on her to see which one brought out her eyes the best, when a German Shepherd (about 15 feet away) innocently poked his head around the corner to take a peek down our aisle.  He was not aggressive and made no sound - he was merely checking things out.

Lexus took one look at him (or rather his head, which is all that stuck out past the end of the aisle) and SCREAMED.  She bolted to the end of her leash and even released her anal glands out of sheer terror.  Staff and customers came tearing down our aisle expecting to find a little dog being mauled to death by some horrible Cujo-esque creature - and instead found Lexus - reeking of anal glands and shaking violently.  It took several minutes to calm her (and the onlookers) down to an acceptable level, but from that moment on she never looked at dogs the same way again.

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="207" caption="Lexus observing the world around her"][/caption]

People who know Lexus now are aware that she is sometimes a little uneasy around large, pushy dogs but would never believe that once upon a time the mere sight of another dog caused her to totally lose her mind.  She was never one to go looking for a fight - it's quite common for fearful dogs to posture aggressively as a preemptive strike and to maintain their bubble of security - but she was prone to snapping at dogs who got too close too quickly.  Despite the fact that she never actually made contact with any of them, we opted for safety and had her fitted with a cage muzzle before beginning to go to work teaching her that dogs were not to be feared.

Oddly enough she overcame her fear of little dogs quickly.  I say "oddly" because at the time she lived with aPomeranian who never missed a chance to try and make her life miserable - including repeatedly beating her up (or at least giving it a good try).  It was not unusual for Lexus to attempt to initiate play only to find herself running through the house with a growling Pomeranian attached to the side of her neck or face.  I should explain that Gretchen never actually hurt Lexus, and Lexus truly seemed to enjoy the attention.  So much so that to this day her favourite dogs to work with are snarky little dogs who think they are big and scary.  Nothing makes her happier than a little dog who wants to chase and bite her.  Go figure.

She is still occasionally wary around large dogs, but now responds by returning to either me or my husband to allow us to enforce her bubble of safety.  In fact, I frequently observe her judgment of other dogs to let me know who I need to be particularly cautious around.

Over time we realized that our visual deterrent was never going to materialize as it became obvious she was never going to hit 50lbs.  Judging by her behaviour, body type and mannerisms, combined with the area in which she was born, we believe her to be a Rottweiler/Australian Cattle Dog cross - all 42lbs of her.  The combination of breeds is an interesting one, and while mixed breed dogs are always a crapshoot as far as what traits they will inherit from their parents everyone who meets Lexus comments on her unique personality.

From her Rottweiler mother she has inherited her "talking" ability, close observation skills, patience and stoicism.  From her (presumed) ACD father she inherited her sleek body type, efficient movement, energy level and intelligence.  When Molson passed away in 2008 I knew that cattle dog crosses would always be our breed of choice, and this is how we came to acquire to two more in the following years.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="272" caption="Lexus enjoys her part time job, as her goofy grin illustrates"][/caption]

Some of Lexus' more interesting habits include trying to nurse kittens (repeatedly), adoring tiny dogs while avoiding puppies of all breeds (ew, puppies! is her general reaction, as if you have asked her to play with slugs), and a sense of cleanliness that she passed on to her younger sister Fable (but seems to have skipped her youngest sister, Juno).  She loves to be bathed and avoids dirt and mud at all costs.

Her main job as Assistant Trainer #1 is to work with aggressive dogs smaller than she is.  Her utter ignorance that perhaps these dogs are serious in their threat display coupled with her incessant desire to play puts even the most determined little dogs at ease as they quickly realize that not only is this dog NOT going to mirror their aggression (which of course only escalates the situation) but she is going to respond to their aggressive approach with play advances.

Lex's secondary job consists of dealing with dogs who are aggressive on leash.  Her failure to react to even the most out of control threat display soon puts other dogs at ease.  This is born from her utter and complete trust in her handlers, namely myself and my husband.

Could we do what we do without our Assistant Trainers?  Absolutely - and there are some cases where their presence is not required.  However, by including the dogs in our efforts we have found that we achieve results quicker - thanks in part to their ability to speak dog much more fluently than we can, and partially due to the fact that they allow us to show owners of "problem" dogs just how easily their dogs can be influenced by external stimuli.  Since we are generally called in as a last resort, this is a very important step in each dog's rehabilitation - showing the owner that rehabilitation is possible right off the bat ensures that they are far more motivated to stick with the program we prescribe.

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