Cardinal Dobermans

12/26/2023

Happy 8th birthday to this handsome dude!

12/24/2023

📸 Look at this post on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/share/p/yBKgF2TD3ArV2ec7/?mibextid=WC7FNe

Until a year ago, I was a trainer with a very force free approach. I didn’t believe there was a place for aversives in dog training. I didn’t have a dog that required them. Lucky me!

Until I got this chap. My very much adored kelpie, Evo. Bred to move HUGE flocks and herds of livestock out in rural Australia. A hard-headed dog, with a mega independent streak.

I worked hard with him. I’m a trainer. I laid my foundations, as I have done successfully with my other 4 dogs before him. They worked, to a point. And then, they didn’t.

I was fully prepared to give him a breed-appropriate outlet. Alongside the other work I give my dogs, I have my own sheep, meaning I can work my own dogs regularly on stock. However, my small flock of flighty sheep was far too jumpy for him to work, and he was becoming dangerous out and about in any sort of proximity to sheep.

So, you may say, just keep him on a lead! Problem solved. Well, not really.

Management can and does fail. I have heard it from countless clients. I have had it fail myself.

I also live, with sheep on my property, and surrounding it on 3 sides. Everywhere we turn, there are sheep. There’s no avoiding them.

Keep him on a lead in the garden? We have a large garden and keeping him on the lead would be unfair. He’s an incredibly active, working bred dog, who would end up spending his entire life on a lead.

We also encountered prey drive issues out and about, particularly around deer. His recall was fantastic, but once we moved, our walks were either full of deer, or sheep and he could rip a long line out of your hands to chase something particularly tempting.

So, I decided to bite the bullet and e-collar train. Controversial, particularly online.

But, the absolute best thing I ever did.

The alternative solutions I had suggested were:

Keep him on the lead - I buy good quality leads, but they have failed on me before
Move house - we’ve moved to a dream house, not an option
Avoid places with sheep etc - hard when they’re in the garden
Long line - he could still pull a long line out of reach
Train him - he was trained to a very high level and we had reached the limits via force free methods.

Management fails.

I went through the process of conditioning him properly to the e-collar. I spent ages ensuring I got it right, he understood what was expected and that he knew how to switch it off. I invested in a pricey bit of kit, and I went about it by the book.

It’s transformed his life.

He can romp around the garden, he can walk through my sheep without batting an eyelid, he can walk off lead on the hills and he can enjoy walking in the forest even when deer run out in front of us.

For him, that wasn’t ever going to be an option without it.

Nothing was more reinforcing than chasing.

And it was going to get him killed. He’d have been shot, or hit by a car, or lost. All because I wouldn’t open my mind to using different tools.

Am I suggesting every dog requires one? Absolutely not. But there are MANY cases where they save lives. It’s both saved and enriched his.

He’s happy, he lives his best life. He hikes everywhere with us, he’s well mannered and fully reliable off the lead. He knows the rules, and that’s the key.

He’s not suppressed. He can still go off and be a dog. He tears around the garden with our other dogs, he sniffs and does dog things. But he’s safe when doing it all.

I see a lot of judgement towards these tools from people owning dogs who would never require these tools. That’s great. And that’s also not a problem. But it is completely unfair to demonise the use of a tool which you haven’t taken the time to fully understand. I was 100%, without a doubt, against them before I took the time to understand how they worked and how they were used.

It’s imperative that they’re used with a trainer well versed in using them. It’s also crucial that the equipment used is good quality and not something cheap from Amazon or eBay. It’s an investment, but one that is so necessary for a lot more dogs than you might realise.

Take the time to understand others’ points of view. There is truly not a one-size-fits-all approach in dog training and my change of opinion has opened up a whole new world for all of my dogs ❤

Photo by Saffy Leyfield Photography

12/02/2023

Can anyone identify what kind of parrot this is on my shoulder?

12/02/2023

The dogs (especially Kya) love their new bed from Tyson Hicks

11/26/2023

Someone has to help me make puppy blankets 🙄

11/26/2023

📸 Look at this post on Facebook https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/researchers-appear-to-identify-source-in-mysterious-respiratory-illness-that-has-sickened-dogs-in-several-states/3284934/?fbclid=IwAR2N65DVUUdFdUobnnzJFmPN9c3o_RN6_8VU7EpoOvLMSH1JHU-srNryU3Y_aem_AXbGE9ewNlo1fTQerHAQoYwX3_AyWSstQeahNwcnzppMUprdDrdXrgb52TIzOOQ6UHM

As a mysterious and potentially fatal illness has sickened hundreds of dogs across the country and left veterinarians scrambling to monitor pets, researchers may have found a culprit behind the disease.

11/26/2023

11/26/2023

11/25/2023

When moms stuck at home bored lol

11/13/2023

My baby puppy is starting to look all grown up

11/11/2023

Chandler (Ben x Kya) had a perfect echo today. The cardiologist said it’s one of the best doberman hearts she’s ever seen!!!

11/06/2023

I wish she was less weird 😂

10/30/2023

"The results suggested that … g***d retention during the first 24 months of life—are strongly associated with lifelong avoidance of bilateral CCL rupture…Risk for CCL rupture was not influenced when g***d removal took place after the 24-month developmental period."

CCL injuries are one of the most common causes of pain and arthritis in dogs. Today at 12pm ET we're discussing how to prevent injury and available CCL treatment options.

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10/28/2023

Jo Brady captured a nice movement picture of my puppy, Taylor, in cheyenne. (Mav x Kya)

10/28/2023

My beautiful clown Taylor (Mav x Kya)

This picture strongly relays what it is to be a breeder/owner-handler.

10/25/2023

The key to owning Dobermans is obedience and discipline (turn up volume 😂)

10/22/2023

Kya’s last trial. She gave me her all and I couldn’t be prouder.

10/05/2023

https://youtu.be/_h0FUOEwVco?si=5HQzbcHJvfCMw90-

Use sulfa-based drugs with caution in Dobermans!--------------------------------------------------------------------------------For your Doberman's better he...

10/03/2023

09/27/2023

Taylor aka Cardinal's Illicit Affair (Mav x Kya) went Best of Opposite on Sat. and Best of Breed on Sunday at the Arapahoe Kennel Club show. Very proud of this lovely clown.

09/24/2023

I’m so happy Taylor has her own bouncy house 🙄. Doberteens are so much fun 😂

09/22/2023

Introducing the limited edition, only out for a limited time HEADLESS DOBERMAN!

Yes that yellow sheet was on top of the couch prior to his nap.

09/15/2023

A very excellent echo for Lori!

09/06/2023

Kya lurves getting her ears scratched

09/05/2023

Happy 1st birthday to my funny, energetic and crazy Taylor (Mav x Kya) And her littermate Kimber.

Taylor you never cease to make me laugh and frustrate me with your endless antics. I can’t wait to see what the future holds for you!