Boerboel behaviour & training advice

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Boerboel behaviour & training advice Nothing better than a well behaved Boerboel.

15/02/2023

Very heated debates at the moment in the dog training world between the Purely Positive/Force Free and Balanced training camps, then Dr Stephanie Yue Cottee weighed in with this. So very true.

https://fb.watch/iHVxlKc8pZ/

24/01/2023

The advantage of early and regular socialization and obediance training. I was standing talking to a couple in the park the other afternoon and Karma was in a down away from us, their 2 dogs then decided to approach Karma and this was her reaction. Notice Karma's focus.

On many posts where people are haviing behaivoural issues there is always replies stating rules and boundries, but there...
24/01/2023

On many posts where people are haviing behaivoural issues there is always replies stating rules and boundries, but there are very few references to what rules and boundries and what behaivours should be addressed before they become a problem. I would like a thread where people can refer to especially new owners. As it is always easier to prevent behaivours from developing as opposed to trying to change them later on once they are established. Here are a couple of the many I use, firstly no jumping on people this is easily corrected when they are pups. Another one I don't allow is mouthing (nipping, biting) on family members. Let's hear some others that people use.

The pic is Linga Longa Tonner a dog that I have had the pleasure of working with.

23/01/2023

Just a follow up on my last post, where I discussed having control out in public and high distraction enviroments. This is Karma and myself on a structured off leash walk with a friend and his Mali. To train this I use a few steps, first is socialization and Secondly walking to heel. In the same way I like to split behaivour and obediance training into 2 different catagories, I also split up socialization into two. Firstly is the socialization where the dogs are allowed to meet and greet strangers and other dogs almost always off leash, in a park, or on the beach and is always done only with me giving my dogs permission to go meet. This is started as a pup and I am very careful about the dogs my pup is allowed to meet, as one bad experiance with another dog can cause my dog to become nervous of other dogs and become reactive. The second bit of socializing which I use for the structured walk is purely environmental, where the dog is walked in different enviroments and there is no greeting of strangers or other dogs and is always done on a leash in heel position. So the dog learns when the leash is on, you ignore everything else. At the same time the heel is taught with the use of a short leash, where the dog can't get too far ahead or too far behind without receiving a verbal and minor leash correction. Please note all the leash training I do is with a martingale style collar. The short leash teaches, no sniffing, smelling etc when out on a structured walk I then take my dog and do structured walks daily always on leash for months and months until the dog is literally bullet proof on leash, only then do I move into off leash training in high distraction enviroments where the dogs only job it to walk next to me. Once the dog is confident that you are in control of the situation and they don't have to worry about what is going on around them and there are no impulsive behaviors that is when I start to remove the leash. Now I have posted this before and picked up a slight bit of flack for it, just remember unless you have put the time and effort into this type of training you will not understand what is going on between the dogs and handlers.

Quick note on the dogs, when we first started walking together, I think it was after our second walk, I was playing retrieve with Karma and Zeeva (the Mali) joined in, no problem. To cut a long story short Zeeva got possessive over the ball and went for Karma, Karma then retaliated pinning Zeeva on her back, this all happened in the blink of an eye. First thing we did when we got them seperated was do another 20 min walk together, until the dogs were relaxed in each other's company once again. Although they have never gone at each other again over the years, they tend to just totally ignore each other. We often socialize with groups of other dogs these two don't mix at all.

09/01/2023

I see so many posts where people are haviing behaivoural issues with their dogs and then the comments start that you have to be the Alpha, or the you have to be the pack leader, or the boss etc etc. But what does this really mean at the end of the day? Well in my opinion, it means you have to have control of your dog, you have to have control mentally and physically should the need arise. However the more mental control you have the better for you and your dog.
So what is a good gauge to see how much Control you have over the dog? IMO it is when you are out in public with the dog on leash in a high distraction enviroment. Basically your dogs leash manners and how much respect there is between dog and handler. It's all very well having control in the home with no distractions, but out in public with distractions is a whole different ball game. I always watch people out with their dogs on leash and will be able to tell what that dogs behavior is like. IMO the leash walk is one of the most important tools in your tool box for dog training. Your dog learns that you the handler leads the walk and they follow. It is one of the first exercises I teach my clients. I see way too many people where it is the other way around, dog leading and people being dragged along. Not only is leash walking a tool for training but also very important to build a bond with your dog. I never walk my dogs or teach my clients dogs on a harness always on one of the training collars, Martingale or slip leash are my personal favorites.

Had a 5 month old pup in for a 3 week board and train recently, the pup had never been on a leash before and therefore had never been walked out in public. The video was taken about 5 days after I first intruduced the leash and only her second time out in public, joining Karma and myself on a structured walk. She is on a slip leash in this video. Note no pulling, sniffing peeing or pooping until you get a free dog to go and do what dogs do.

With the rise of Pitbull attacks in the SA media recently and the increase call to ban the breed, I thought I would give...
20/12/2022

With the rise of Pitbull attacks in the SA media recently and the increase call to ban the breed, I thought I would give my 2c worth, as it will have an affect the Boerboel aswell.
Firstly from the general public perspective I can see why the call for the ban is gaining momentum, now although I do not agree with it, I do understand why it is happening. From the public perspective, why would I want to put myself or my family in harms way by living next door to an owner of a dog that could be life threatening to me and my family, or have my child attacked in the street because a dog got out of a property? We have to keep in mind that yes all dogs can bite, but the potential for serious or life threatening injury increases exponentialy with the power breeds. As a dog enthusiast I can see that the biggest problems here are irresponsible dog owners and bad breeding practices and that the solution to this problem is education. That however makes very little to no difference to the average person. The approach of education also takes time to implement, far easier and quicker just to ban a breed. They are also starting to talk about all the power breeds at this point, of which the Boerboel is one of them. I read an article the other day that states SA has the highest incidents of dog attacks per capita in the world, true or not I don't know, but worrisome non the less.
One of the biggest problems here in SA is security and everybody wants a watch dog or gaurd dog to help secure their property and family, for which the Pitbull and Boerboel are very popular. However the majority of these owners have little to no idea what this entails. Firstly they get a pup from a back yard breeder because 'price is king' and have no idea about the temperament of the pup they are purchasing. They get the pup and then this poor dog ends up being locked in a small yard, caged or Chained, never seeing the outside world, no socialization and no training, ie no physical or mental stimulation. This is a hugh problem. There is also a perception out there amongst some owners that an aggressive dog is a good watch dog/gaurd dog. Nothing could be further from the truth, then these owners purposefully go out to make their dogs aggressive. With an aggressive dog you now put your family, kids, friends and neighbors at risk. Apparently 70% of dog bites are from the family pet or a known dog, how is this able to happen? Your dog should always be fine with family living in the household. A good gaurd dog will take its lead from you, if you welcome people into your home your dog should be fine with that, yes even a Boerboel.
Another big problem are the illegal dog fighting rings. Where dogs with a genetic predisposition for aggression, not only towards dogs but towards humans aswell, are being bred and this genetic aggression is filtering into the rest of the Pitbull population through irresponsible breeding.
There are so many aspects to this and one of them is the question of control. I honestly believe as an owner if you have a dog, especially one of the power breeds, that you can't control mentally and physically should the need arise, you have the wrong breed or dog for you. The power breeds have to be trained and socialized appropriately, otherwise it is a ticking time bomb waiting to go off. How often don't you hear the excuse 'It happened out of the blue' or 'there was no warning', wrong there are always warnings but you the owner missed them.
Now when you add all of this together and you have an aggressive dog for what ever reason, that you can't control, you now have a dangerous animal and real potential for serious injury to somebody, be it you, your family, friends or neighbors.
Unless I am missing something, I actually don't see a short term solution or quick fix for this problem. If you ban the breed you drive it underground, and you will have no control at all. Secondly who is going to police the ban?
Start by enforcing existing legislation and making people aware of the challanges of owning such a dog, as the press and media are doing at this present point in time.

Pic, Linga Longa Tuffie, one of the most impressive Boerboels I have ever had the pleasure of meeting in person

05/12/2022

I can't stress the importance of rules, boundries and early socialization enough. It is vitally important in the raising of a well behaved, mentally stable dog. Often I am criticized by other dog owners for having my dogs out in public even when on leash, because they are Boerboels. There is a group of owners at the present time at our local park that want to sign a petition to ban my Boerboels from the park because they are aggressive dogs. Really, I have been taking my dogs down to that park for the last 20 odd years and never had a serious incident, yes there has been the odd scuffle, dogs will be dogs, but never a bite from my dogs even when the smaller dogs have acted aggressively towards them. Unfortunatly in SA Boerboels don't have the best reputation and that is mainly due to poor ownership, that however is a subject for another discussion. So a couple of weeks ago I saw this lady arrive at the park in a car, she opened the doors and a pack of 9 dogs exited the vehicle, most were small breeds all off leash, I was at one end of the park and she was on the other, keeping in mind this is not a very big park, it's actually rather small. Now my dogs know they don't approach other dogs without permission and her dogs did not come over either which impressed me. I have since seen her a couple of times and had the same behaivours, no problem. So yesterday I am standing talking to a couple that I know and they have 3 small breed dogs and the lady arrives with her pack opens the car door and bam the park is flooded with small yapping dogs. The couple I am talking to were intrigued and wandered down with their 3 small dogs and all got on fine, no signs of aggression, just lots of sniffing and smelling , all good indicators. So I wondered down and asked the lady if she minded if I brought my 2 down explaining that they are Boerboels, but are well socialized, at that point I found out that she runs an animal rescue. Her response, 'no problem bring them down' , which again impressed me. Keeping in mind this is going to be a total of 14 dogs the majority of which are small breeds and my dogs are going to be meeting 9 of them for the first time. Anyways went up fetched my dogs and introduced them to the pack, lots of yapping from the small dogs, lots of sniffing and smelling, a couple of growls which were corrected immediately and bang the video shows the result 5 minutes in. Personally i don't see any reason why Boerboels can't be properly socialized, they are farm dogs after all and work in packs on the farms. Here's my golden rule, I never let my dogs meet for the first time when on leash, especially when the dogs are straining and pulling at the leash. Hence when we are doing a structured walk whether on or off leash there is no meet and greet of other dogs. There is however a time and place to socialize and for me that's the park or down on the beach. The one thing I have learned over the years, is nervous owners create nervous dogs and those I avoid like the plague. So bottom line is rules, boundries to be applied with consistancy and early socialization is extremely important in the raising of any pup not just the Boerboel. However when you socialize a young pup be careful of the dogs you choose to socialize with, as one negative experiance can cause a pup to become fearful if strange dogs and lead to reactivity.

26/08/2022

Alpha, Dominance, Punishment and Corrections.
So let's talk about 'Dominance' and 'Alpha', when these terms are mentioned there will be a tonn of replies stating that they have been debunked. IMO they are just names or terms used as a description. .
Dominance, when people say it has been debunked, what has been debunked, the behaivour or the name? Call it what you like or are we actually saying that an over confidant, pushy dog that has no boundries and often leads to aggression, does not exist or has it been debunked?
Alpha, again just a name describing someone who has control of a dog or dogs. Or, are we saying that a dog does not need someone who it trusts and is control? Again what has been debunked here? So am I the Alpha to my dogs? Who knows, call it what you like. Do I have control of my dogs and do they trust me? Yes. I do agree however that some of the practices associated with these terms can be questionable, more on that later.
Just like I seperate behaivour and obediance training, I also seperate punishment and corrections.
If a dog practices a behaivour I don't like and I only catch them after the fact and then try correct it, that is a punishment. Normally a smack or something similar, some will use a rolled up news paper. Dogs will begin to fear you when using punishment.
A correction on the other hand is when I know my dog is about to do something that I don't want them to do, example, react to another dog and i deliver a sharp 'NO' with a consequence like a correction, example, an appropriete leash correction this interrupts that train of thought in the dog and stops the behaivour, then that is a correction and not punishment. This is something that the dog understands. Now do I punish my dogs? No. Do I correct my dogs? Yes, as often as is required to ensure well behaved dogs. .
The video is of my dogs on a public beach after an off leash beach walk in a down position, waiting to be called up into the parking lot. When on the beach I cannot see what is up in the parking area like off leash out of control dogs or drunken idiots. So I leave my dogs on the beach and make sure the parking is conflict free before I call them up.

23/08/2022

I have thought about making this post for a little while now, don't know how it will be received. I am not saying my way is the only way, its just the way I do it.
To start I seperate behaivour and obediance. You can have a well trained dog that is not well behaved and a well behaved dog that is not well trained. These are 2 seperate issues, although there is alot of ovetlap. Obediance training is all about sits, downs and stays. When doing obediance training it has a start time and a finish time, during which the dog is given or taught commands and is able to earn treats as a reward system.
Behaivour is how the dog lives with you and your rules and boundries. This is 24/7 for very few to no treats. Some of the rules in my house, no dogs on furniture, no jumping on people, no mouthing family and guests, no chewing anything inside the house, no play indoors, etc etc etc.
I raise my dogs using a balanced approach in a nutshell they are taught the meaning of yes and no. There are consequences to both, if you get a yes you get a reward if you get a no you get a correction. With this pretty early on I can then communicate with my dogs what I like and what I don't like. I don't crate train my dogs I have never owned a crate and never will. My dogs have never chewed anything in my house even when I am out. Having said this I can really see the benefits of crating a pup to keep them out of trouble.
I have seen so many posts of people saying ignore the behaivour or its a phase, they will grow out of it, dogs don't grow out of behaivours they grow into them. Raise and train your dogs to avoid future behaivours as apposed to try and train the behaivour out of an adult dog once that behaivour is now established.

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