Meekies Dogs

17/04/2023

INCOMING!! Only two more mornings with little Dottie before she goes home!

08/03/2023

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06/03/2023

We saw lots of animals yesterday during our two park runs! The donkey, alpacas and sheep at 50 acres in the morning……then horses and ducks at Karkarook later in the day! It was pretty hot so the paddling pool came out for some fun ball and ring play too! 😍

21/11/2022

50 acres was pretty challenging for me this morning…but that’s Ok! 😃 It was VERY WINDY, so everyone had to work a bit harder to stay focused on my vocal commands. I’m working with Hugo the Vizsla today, who can be dog aggressive (remember aggression is just FEAR) so he’s been in a halti to ensure there are no accidents and he’s been on a very short leash. It’s about teaching him that he’s safe around dogs and building his confidence without taking risks. Hugo found Ivy’s presence in the pack challenging today and they had an odd dynamic (I wasn’t sure whether it was a positive obsession or a negative one but either way it was NOT calm and it WAS obsessive.) I tried to nap with them this morning…but failed to fall asleep 😂 We’ve had a lap of the park at lunch and played some controlled-release ball throws (they have to hold a sit and wait their turn) and Theo has helped with some “no jumping” training! (He’s sick from school today)! And the heavens keep opening up intermittently on us between playtime! I’m very proud of Olaf who was exhibiting night-aggression (human directed) before coming on Friday and we haven’t had any aggressive energy or body language in 24 hours now (this is now Day 4 for him). 😃 I have a last-minute booking who arrives at 3pm today instead of 7am tomorrow (Renaissance) so have to split the pack for our afternoon playtime. Never a dull day! No two days are the same…I love my work 😃

15/11/2022

So at Karkarook Park this afternoon, Sunny the cheeky monkey escaped the leash and ran off! “Haha! Chase me!” she said. But like a pro…that’s NOT a game I play. I pretended I hadn’t noticed (concealing the mild panic within) and said in a super high energy tone “Come on everyone…this way!” and I walked in the OPPOSITE direction from Sunny, giving the pack lots of praise and high energy. I led them off the side of the path I asked them all to “sit”. And guess who appeared behind me and also did a sit? 😂😍

If you’re on your own and your dog runs off…do NOT chase. I recommend sitting down calmly and pretending you haven’t noticed. Detach. Avoid eye contact. Look at your fingernails. Fiddle with something like a stick. Keep your energy calm and wait for THEM to also join your calm. Assuming your dog knows good things come from you…they will always come back for more!

13/11/2022

What does EFFECTIVE CONTROL actually mean?! And why is it important in our parks?
In a nutshell “effective control” means YOUR dog maintains PROXIMITY to YOU and is able to LISTEN and RESPOND to your instructions with distractions around. It means you have to pay attention to where their attention is, what their body language is saying and you should talk to and connect with your dog…redirecting them if they disconnect from you. We should all be teaching our dogs to choose US over other dogs. Why? Because otherwise we are actually teaching our dogs to defend and protect us from OTHER dogs….if something is off. We just don’t realise that’s what we are telling them their job is. If a dog races off at top speed towards other dogs, it is NOT calm and connected, nor actually “friendly”. Friendly is loose and slow and floppy and looking at the receiving dog for acceptance / invitation. Aggressive is fast and rigid - and yes the tail can be wagging fast. Anxious is closer to the aggressive in terms of speed but often a submissive ending (ie a back roll or bowing and face licking.)
Acknowledging that many dogs are fearful, we need to understand that if your “it’s-ok-they’re-friendly” dog runs at top speed at THEM, they can snap, or just go on the defensive with their body language. It can be a real setback and trust destroyer for their owner to have a dog hurtle into their space without warning. Your “it’s-ok-they’re-friendly” dog shouldn’t take someone else’s choice to AVOID interaction away. This is important in our parks so that everyone can have a good time and to ensure that negative interactions are kept to an absolute minimum. Teach your dog that THEIR job is to STAY with YOU and YOU will protect THEM 😍 PS Balls are also great for giving dogs a job that keeps their focus on us!

29/10/2022

Wow…I never saw this side to Cesar Milan before and I’m absolutely horrified! Aggression in dogs is generally based on fear…so being aggressive towards the dog and forcing them into fearful situations (rather than trust building and empathising and communicating with the dog and making experiences positive) is completely backwards. Just wow!

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26/10/2022

When you like someone just a little bit more than THEY like YOU 😂😂

24/10/2022

Today I worked on what I call the “HIT List” which is the “Hierarchy of Important Things” in a dogs world. The top four are Other Dogs, Balls, Food and Strangers. Will your dog follow your command with other dogs in the vicinity, food on the floor, balls rolling around or strangers nearby? You just have to set a situation up (ensuring your dog is safe) and practice! 😍 Today was ball practice - excuse the awful videography 🙈 And after the big “Free!” we PLAYED!! 😍

22/10/2022

I’m over capacity today due to helping out a sick client….but whilst they are sleeping I wanted to reinforce that the most important thing you can teach your dog is that they are SAFE around other dogs. Dog parks do NOT teach dogs this. They erode your relationship. A dog needs to know they are safe from being sniffed, dominated, pawed at or jumped on by an unknown dog. Your dog needs to know you have their back if another dog has poor manners. If a meeting occurs, it should be respectful…each dog needs to be slow, calm and connected….not acting and reacting without thinking or listening. Sniff butts and noses only and mirror a retreat if the dog backs off scared. No hackles up, growling, lips curled, rolling on backs… go easy on the face licking. Can you read dog body language to know when a dog is being rude?

22/10/2022

Yes yes yes! Your dog should not be bounding to the door, jumping on the sofa and doing zoomies from room to room when you’re vacuuming. Teach your dog calm. Staying in your bed is an important job! Slow, calm, connect 🙌😍