hello from Wales

hello, I have two rehomed staffies and we live in mid Wales. Ellie I have had over 2 years, and Fudge is a big boy 26kgs I have recently taken on since last november. Both are roughly 5 years old.

Fudge boy has some issues and unfortunately has got into a couple of fights since I got him. He was attacked the first time, which has altered his state of mind and he is now very nervous outdoors. THe second incident, he was quiet badly beaten, punched and kicked severely by the owner of the other dog.

He's about to spend a half day with a behaviorist for assessment, but anyway, the pair of them get on fine together; here's a few pics:

Hi &

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Welcome to the forum from me and the Monster

Two lovelies you have there. Poor Fudge though, some people are horrible

What a pair of cuteys! Hiya from me and Moo

Hi and welcome to the forum from Rocky and me.

Hi and welcome from me and daisy I hope it goes well with the behaviourist, keep us posted

Two gorgeous dogs you have there. Hi and welcome from me and Vinnie

Aww your fur babies are gorjus, hi & welcome from us.

Welcome both beautiful, the last picture is so sweet. Sorry to hear Fudge has had a rough time though

What a gorgeous pair! Welcome to the forum from the kids and I!

Aw love the last pic !
Welcome to the forum , hope it goes well with the behavourist

hi from me and the boys

Hello and welcome from me and the kids

Hi from me and the girls

Welcome to the forum

They're gorgeous dogs!

Welcome oh i do love the name Ellie

hia from me and sasha
both beautiful dogs

welcome to the forum

Hi and welcome from me and the furballs, hope you enjoy the forums and all the great people on here
great pics btw

Hi and welcome from Me n Steffi

Hi & welcome.

Ellie & Fudge look beautiful, what a shame Fudge has had some bad experiences. Hope you get him sorted quickly.

Whereabouts in mid wales are you?

Hi and welcome from us and Suki

Hi there
I am also a fellow Welsh dweller
So sorry to hear Fudge has had a bad time and I hope the behaviourist has nothing but positive things for you.

Hi and welcome to the forum from me and the zoo xx

thank you for the kind greetings. I'll be arranging the assessment appointment this morning, and really need to get on with it now. Things took a bit of a nose dive last night as my girlfriend has decided to stop seeing me, the dog being one of a list of problems at the moment. Her son is in the photo I put up, he's Aspergers syndrome and a lot of work and stress.

Fudge is fine with people but the lads autism means that he sometimes has bad outbursts.. with the news report last week about the child death, things do tend to make your mind uneasy

I'm hoping I can be strong for the dogs, and that something positive can be done with Fudge, but maybe it's too late to save my relationship, her mind made up and we had to go

Oh, dear, I'm sorry things aren't going well for you. Asberger's is a difficult condition to cope with so I can understand your partner's stress. I can also, unfortunately, understand her fears - especially with the way the press have demonised the breed.

I hope you can work things out with Fudge, though - he looks a stunner!

Hi & welcome to the forum

Hi & Welcome to the forum ><
Great pics

welcome

thank you for the replies again.

I'm glad to report some better news, although also some set back, but for the good news, the afternoon with the dog expert went very well. He said both the dog and myself responded excelently and the future looked very bright for us! After only 3 days of carrying out the techniques I was shown, the dog has displayed a remarkable change in his behaviour, although there is still much work and time needed... not an overnight job, but the signs are amazing. It's given me new found confidence to tackle the problems rather than avoid them now I know what to do.

Also my girlfriend has reconciled and we are back together! She's fully supporting us again, a big help in working through the issues.

On a slightly negative, a letter has been received from a pet insurance company relating to his altercation last year, demanding a massive amount of money to cover their losses. I know the incident was in no way as severe as this financial demand would appear, and it looks like I will have a fight on my hands of a different sort. Insurance companies and vets will jump at the chance of making money from these situations, sadly.

Good news and bad news, then?

Glad your gf & you are back together - that'll be a great help.

Bad that the insurance company is pursuing a claim - are you insured?

What did the trainer do with you, what has he sugested you do?

An ex police dog handler with many years experience. His techniques were what some might perceive these days as quite severe, maybe a bit like cesar Milan, but in tough cases like mine it really is the only way to get through to the dog that you mean business. The main thing has been correct collar and correction when walking. Harnesses are a complete waste of time, you can't control the dog. I have a special very thin training collar that sits very high right up under his ears at the top of the neck. The other thing that has got through to the dog that I mean it is the vinager spray, it really does stop him doing unwanted behaviour. In time, he should become calm and balanced again but the signs after only a few days are excellent.

Glad things are getting better, but I disagree with it being the only way. It might work for you and give you the results you want, but there are members here who've got dogs that have had huge problems and overcome them with nothing but positive training methods. So it's definitely not the only way, although it might be the only way you feel you've gotten results from. Glad to hear you and your girlfriend are back together too, that must be a big relief

So are you saying these are negative training methods?

When I say positive training methods, I mean by rewarding good behaviour and etc., as opposed to needing to use harsh/physical ways of dealing with things. You won't find many people on here who will agree that using methods like that are the only way, but I must stress that I'm not an expert and there are others on here with far more experience than me. I just know that some members on here have turned their dogs' behaviour around without having to use methods like that

Go look for yourself: Derek Williams Cheshire canine centre, also well respected member of the guild of dog trainers. Professional 3rd party witness in dangerous dog act cases. What he doesn't know about how to train dogs is not worth knowing. He also taught me 'positive' training enforcement but he stressed there is a time and place for it. He made his assessment of me and my dog and trained both of us based upon this. My dog is responding to "harsh physical ways" (your words) and seems to be happier and more balanced as a result, already. If you think his methods are cruel, you can email him and tell him yourself or anyone else reading this but I know what his response would be as I've already had the discussion about it with him. He uses a balance of control plus positive encouragement to refocus the dog away from its distractions. In my dogs case, his will was far to strong to be overcome with something like clicker training alone. I questioned the physical aspect of it myself but all I can say is that it damn well works and actually if done correctly as shown, is far less harmful than other things like spike and choke collars. My photos might be all fluffy and lovely but please make no mistake, I have been in a deadly serious position with an out of control dog I rehomed 6 months ago and I'm lucky not to have been to court and also faced a destruction order. It would only have been a matter of time that he may have turned on my other dog, the signs were starting to happen. Since I started the rehab training, there has been a massive change in him and how he is in the home too. As for the harsh physical stuff, he has suffered no harm whatsoever. Maybe a bit of firm handling does not sit well with some people, I for one can say although I had my doubts, I sure am truly grateful for what has been done to help me and my dogs.

Hello and welcome aboard