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I discovered something very interesting about koda this past week.
Because she is crated 24/7 and leashed for potty breaks.. there's a clear definition of who is in charge between the two of us. I decide when that door opens. I decide when she eats. I decide when she goes out to potty.. she makes no decisions.
With koda.. i am alpha.. and it wasn't intentional.
I have done no obedience work with her.. forcing a dog with bad knees to sit wasn't an option for me. I don't know if sititng is uncomfortable for her.. so i never forced it on her. I just decided to let her do what she wanted (before surgery) and we'd deal with her manners after her surgeries.
That being said.. now that she's feeling better every day, she became a puller on that leash.. very bad for a girl who's not supposed to strain.. so, i started correcting her in the living room on our way out for potty. It took about 3 feet and 2 corrections to have her slow down.. walk beside, and look up at me for direction. She doesn't pull.. she doesn't bound down the stairs like she used to.. and she's MUCH more manageable.
I whole-heartedly attribute this to the crating and leashing.
Tuck still needs a prong collar to walk and really only listens to me when it's in his favour. He knows all the right commands.. applying them when told is a different thing.. but he was never given a set of rules to follow in the house. Always had couch/bed privs and never needed permission.
I'm okay with that..he's 7 years old and a good boy..so i'm not too concerned about this now.. but having koda become an obedient dog early on will fare me well in the future.
I'm fairly optimistic that if i keep up house rules with her, we'll have a much easier time of things than i did with tuck when he was her age.
Now, she may make me eat my words.. but for now, i'm really pleased with her improvement so far.. we'll see how things go tomorrow at the vet's office =)
Because she is crated 24/7 and leashed for potty breaks.. there's a clear definition of who is in charge between the two of us. I decide when that door opens. I decide when she eats. I decide when she goes out to potty.. she makes no decisions.
With koda.. i am alpha.. and it wasn't intentional.
I have done no obedience work with her.. forcing a dog with bad knees to sit wasn't an option for me. I don't know if sititng is uncomfortable for her.. so i never forced it on her. I just decided to let her do what she wanted (before surgery) and we'd deal with her manners after her surgeries.
That being said.. now that she's feeling better every day, she became a puller on that leash.. very bad for a girl who's not supposed to strain.. so, i started correcting her in the living room on our way out for potty. It took about 3 feet and 2 corrections to have her slow down.. walk beside, and look up at me for direction. She doesn't pull.. she doesn't bound down the stairs like she used to.. and she's MUCH more manageable.
I whole-heartedly attribute this to the crating and leashing.
Tuck still needs a prong collar to walk and really only listens to me when it's in his favour. He knows all the right commands.. applying them when told is a different thing.. but he was never given a set of rules to follow in the house. Always had couch/bed privs and never needed permission.
I'm okay with that..he's 7 years old and a good boy..so i'm not too concerned about this now.. but having koda become an obedient dog early on will fare me well in the future.
I'm fairly optimistic that if i keep up house rules with her, we'll have a much easier time of things than i did with tuck when he was her age.
Now, she may make me eat my words.. but for now, i'm really pleased with her improvement so far.. we'll see how things go tomorrow at the vet's office =)
