I think Woobie is a Sheltie....

[Guest WoobiesMom]

First, I want to say that Ball Park Franks are magic. This is the only treat that Woobie will eat and work for outside of the house. And I've tried actual steak! So, despite his dietary restrictions, I decided to use these only when training. Since Friday when I decided to use them, he's learned 5 sign language commands and added a new "finish" to his repetoire. The trainer said it would take a while and it was a difficult maneuver for dogs to learn, but with BPF magic, Woobie is now performing it consistently with only a hand signal. He's also comes pretty reliably to only his name at the dog park with tail a'waggin! (Have to remember to keep at least a few nuggets on me at the DP, so I don't ruin that response by not having treats.)

 

But all this success has come at a price. He has suddenly developed that very Sheltie response of yipping at each performance of the command. Kinda like those Shelties you see at agility competitions who yip their way through the whole run. I've been trying to tone down this response by waiting to treat him until he's done the move w/o a yip, but it's also kinda cute, so I'm sure he's seeing my smile as some kind of reinforcement.

 

All this time, I thought he was a BC mix. I guess now I have to resign my membership and go in search of a Sheltie Message Board that's as much fun as this one! Goodbye dear friends, it's been fun.....

 

 

(Off to kidnap a 5 year old and cover him in BPFs!!!)

[bcnewe2]

Hey WM

Have you tried making hot dog chips? You cut them as small as you want them put in the microwave and sort of dehydrate them. Besides what your microwave smells like for a few days, it's great! you don't have greasy hot dogs in your pocket and they last a long time!

 

I don't admit this to many but I have 2 dogs that will bark like the dickens when home and getting ready to do certain fun things. It's embarassing but they are so happy that I hate to correct them. They don't do it when out of the house so what the heck. Bark on guys!

 

So glad to hear Woobies moving up!

 

Kristen

[BustopherJones]

Goodbye dear friends, it's been fun.....

Why?!? I don't think that anyone on this board would have a problem with a non-BC owner, especially one who owns a breed so closely related to our beloved Border Collies. Please stay; your posts only add to the enjoyment and enlightenment provided by this board.

[Carson Crazies]

My DH's agility dog (Bree) is a yipper. Drives me bananas. Well, she's not just a yipper but a yarker too. Ear splitting in fact. When she's running she's yipping and yarking as she blasts around. Mouthy little beast... but she's danged fast, willing, and an absolute HOOT to run (hold on to your hat, and make sure you wear your best running shoes) even though she screams the whole time.

 

I've yet to figure out a way to get her to shut it. *sigh* So, we just ignore it, and have come to the conclusion that it more or less comes with the territory. If I'm trying to teach her a new trick and she yarks in my face, however, she gets put away and brought back out later - or ignored until she shuts it.

 

Hotdogs rock. Good that you found a good motivator!

 

I don't have sound here at work to check, but I *think* she's yarking in this one. This is from one of their beginners classes last year:

 

Bree & DH

 

PS - if she's not yarking let me know & I'll take the vid down. I have no speakers at work.

[PSmitty]

I'm afraid Alex is sheltie, too. Not really, but he can be a yipper, too. He makes the most horrible, screeching when he's waiting to get out the door, after being crated for a long time. We need earplugs, though it is kinda funny, too!

 

So far, he's quiet in agility, but in flyball, he will sometimes let out one quick bark as he takes off.

[Guest pax]

I'm afraid Alex is sheltie, too. Not really, but he can be a yipper, too. He makes the most horrible, screeching when he's waiting to get out the door, after being crated for a long time. We need earplugs, though it is kinda funny, too!

 

So far, he's quiet in agility, but in flyball, he will sometimes let out one quick bark as he takes off.

 

 

I talk about my corgi herd all the time and no one's bitten my head off yet. I even put up *gasp* pictures.

 

What's yer hurry?

[setsail]

my god, do I know your pain. Jackson is a MAJOR barker and does that weird open mouthed high pitched bark/yodel/whine thing. HE used to do it everytime we left the house, but I've been able to work on that. I have not however figured out what to do doing play. I just limit and correct when he barks at me, but ignore the barking at toys, frisbees etc. He even sounds like a sheltie. I would figure he would be a little deeper pitched, but no.... Oh well. I love him. And I can make him howl on command which is always a crowd pleaser. Just say "Sing" and he throws his head back and coyote howls and yodels. I often wonder if he associated with any. they was a huge population in the area he was found. we often joke that his long nose isn't collie, it is from coyote blood lol.

[bcnewe2]

Aren't you joking WM? I'm sure you are. Where would you post all your cute Woobie strories? The sheltie boards would say take you big dog out a here! He's a BC with voice tude!

Nah....she's joking guys!

 

Kristen

[PSmitty]

I think she's kidding...

[Guest WoobiesMom]

I was joking. But it is awful cute to see him getting more vocal, I just don't want it to become an annoying habit. He's vocal enough around the house, darn scaredy cat dog barks at every noise outside, cars passing by, neighbors on THEIR DECK next door, squirrels on the fence, etc. So new things to bark at is really NOT what I want. What's funny is that I've taught him "Speak" but he barely barks for that, really quiet little bark. Go figure!

 

P.S. Hope that *when* (thinking positively) I get Miss Sierra, you don't mind the occassional deaf Aussie story because search though I may, I haven't really found an Aussie message board. If you can point me in the direction of one, I'd love it.

[setsail]

My friend just got an aussie puppy and she posts on a aussie forum. I'll ask her for the link.

[Guest WoobiesMom]

I don't have sound here at work to check, but I *think* she's yarking in this one. This is from one of their beginners classes last year:

 

Bree & DH

 

PS - if she's not yarking let me know & I'll take the vid down. I have no speakers at work.

 

Just one bark, but fun to watch! Also gives me hope that Sierra would be a good candidate for agility because I didn't hear DH give one audible command during the whole run.

[bexie]

Don't worry, you can always expand to a pack of three and go adopt a nice needy BC...

[WyoBC]

But you have to stay here and post all those pictures of Woobie and your new pupper

[Guest TheRuffMuttGang]

I have a BC/Sheltie...and let me tell you..."yipping" doesn't cover it.

[Carson Crazies]

Just one bark, but fun to watch! Also gives me hope that Sierra would be a good candidate for agility because I didn't hear DH give one audible command during the whole run.

 

Oh dang! I'm sorry. Gratuitous video I guess then. It must be on one of the ones I never put on photobucket. Any day she only barks once is a rare day. At that point (I think it was the second beginners session or something like that) she didn't HAVE any commands really, and he's pretty good at not OVER commanding. She's sort of one of those point and shoot kind of dogs (I rode a horse like that once... point her in the general vicinity of something you want jumped and just hold on tight) anyway, which makes running her both fun AND interesting.

[PSmitty]

Just one bark, but fun to watch! Also gives me hope that Sierra would be a good candidate for agility because I didn't hear DH give one audible command during the whole run.

 

I know a deaf JRT who trains in agility at my club. It certainly can be done!

[urge to herd]

Shoshone looks all bc, and she has quite the range of vocalizations. She sings, yodels, howls, big barks, tiny barks, hummphs, and mutters. I deeply regret ever having taught her to speak - she has taken that particular ball and is still running with it. Oddly enough, the other two do 99% of the alarm barking.

 

Shonie feels it necessary to comment on how quickly I'm scooping up the ball with the chuckit, how unclear and inconsistent my cues and reinforcements are during training, her dislike of an interruption in an activity with Her Highness, etc. She also has decided that the water bowl in the kitchen is poisoned, and thus demand barks several times a day to go out on the deck, where we keep the Sacred Deck Water. When I tell her to hush, I get a muttered 'Hmmph.'

 

Shelties ain't the only mouthy dogs!

 

Ruth n the BC3

[urge to herd]

Forgot to mention that she talks in her sleep and wakes me up.

 

Ruth

[KellyR]

Kaleb was an incessant talker, all manner of vocalizations. Sephie was the 'in the sleep mutterer'.

 

HrrGrr, on the other hand has only barked once in 3 weeks, and that was one time at the cat before escaping thru the fence. I wish he's vocalize at least some.

[Brandon M]

(Off to kidnap a 5 year old and cover him in BPFs!!!)

 

What? lol All your talk of BPFs has made me hungry... I dont have any hotdogs, I wish I did now