Bad News/Good News

Look what puppy Yardlea and I found! Self help books! 

I know she’s just going to chew them. 

And everyone says I’m the one with the problem behavior? 

Yesterday, during one of our many training sessions, my foster mom was working on some basic good manners stuff with me. You know the drill: heel, sit, come, sit, down, stand, down, stand, sit, stay, etc. Kind of boring for a clever and busy guy like me who would rather be jumping or learning weave poles or running up and down the A-frame, but I suppose I can see where that’s all necessary. Anyway, we were alone in the training school, I had her and the treats all to myself, and I'll admit I was having fun.

It was getting close to the time when other dogs would start arriving for classes, and my foster mom wanted to see if I had made any progress in how I react to them, so we kept working until the first student arrived.

The bad news is that when a quiet, mature, unsuspecting and good looking Cavalier came in the door, I still reacted badly - very badly. Yikes. Was I a jerk! Boing. Bark. Boing. Bark. Yap! Yap! Yap! That obviously refined gentleman of a dog (his name is Cooper, I was told) must have thought I was a total sheltie maniac. Double yikes!

The good news, however, is that my frantic and frenetic behavior, which we've established I just can't help yet, didn't last quite as long as it has in the past, and in between my outbursts I did tune into my foster mom and do some sits and some really bouncy, animated heeling. I even played with a toy briefly and responded to her call to come! Hallelujah! Also, my foster mom noticed that my initial aggressive-looking behavior quickly changed to excited "I have to meet you and play with you" behavior, even though I continued to jump four feet straight up in the air at the entrance gate. My foster mom, bless her heart, says that that’s progress - a little anyway - so I guess that’s good. One thing I know for sure is that behaving well is a LOT of work. I hope I get it soon!

Meal Times

I love to eat, so you can imagine how much I look forward to meal times!The dogs here eat twice each day, and we get something different at each meal. We always get some variety of kibble, but with that we also get ripe bananas or ground beef or steamed vegetables or yogurt or apples or some other tasty treat. One of the dogs, the red one named Quinn, has stomach problems so she gets a special homemade mixture of boiled turkey and potatoes and no fat cottage cheese. Her food looks okay, but I’m glad I’m healthy and can eat everything that is served!

Before we can eat, some of us have to “kennel up” so we aren’t running around like maniacs while the food is being prepared, which, with 17 dogs, can be quite an assembly line production. I get the middle kennel in the second row. The big, black and tan Cavalier named Nigel used to be in that spot, but now I get it because I am a really good jumper and I can leap into it easily. Since Nigel is an older guy, he got switched to a ground-floor kennel. 

My foster mom is organized so it doesn’t take too long for her to prepare all the food bowls but, no matter how fast she works, the waiting is H-A-R-D for a busy and eager guy like me. And there are rules: I’m not allowed to bark while I’m waiting for my meal. Drat. 

This no bark rule was hard for me to follow at first, especially since some of the other dogs bark and get me started. But my foster mom won’t budge on this requirement, and if I make a peep she reminds me to stop and won’t feed me until I’m quiet. Apparently the old, deaf dogs can’t hear her “ENOUGH” command so they have an excuse for being noisy. But I’m young and smart with excellent ears, and she expects better behavior from me. Besides, she says there are plenty of other times when I get to bark my fool head off so I absolutely must exercise self control at meal times. I might not like it, but I’m trying my best to comply. I’m all for doing what I need to do to get those most excellent meals!

The Tell-All Diary of a Rescued Sheltie/Introduction

Hi! Thanks for taking the time to meet me. My name is Dixon, and I’m a young, small, sable Shetland Sheepdog who is part of the MN Sheltie Rescue program. I have been called a bunch of different names over the past few months, but I really like this one so I hope I get to keep it for a long time. In fact, I like most everything that’s happened to me lately, and here’s why:

I was a stray, running the streets of Rochester, Minnesota, where I was caught and taken to a dog pound or a shelter or some place like that. A volunteer from MN Sheltie Rescue found me there and sprang me, and boy am I ever glad that happened because I have been treated kindly and have received good care ever since. I even was checked out by a veterinarian who said not only am I healthy but I have excellent hips, elbows, and knees to boot! Ka-ching!

In case you haven’t guessed, I am a super smart little dog, and I’m quite athletic if I do say so myself. But, I have atrocious manners when I see dogs I don’t know or have never met, and that bad behavior, combined with my strong herding instincts and antsy tendencies, means that I am a special guy with special needs. Fortunately, the rescue people have been careful not to let me go live with some unsuspecting family as a mere pet, where I could get into trouble and not realize my full potential. I know it’s a lot more work, but I do appreciate that so many people want to give me a chance to put all my smarts and physical abilities to good use. Everyone who has met me thinks I could be a great performance/agility dog. I hope so because all that running and jumping and climbing - with permission and without getting yelled at - looks like F-U-U-U-N!!

For now, my new foster mom decided I should start a blog/diary in case some of the things that I learn can help other owners and dogs with behavior problems. That would be cool. We’ll see. One thing is for sure: I have a lot to say so I hope you’ll check back often!