Yeah, it seemed as if he was being mouthy. Because he didn't bite down hard, just kind of put her fingers in his mouth. But ever since I got Ninja, he has never been mouthy with me or John. So its kind of weird that he would be mouthy with a stranger. I don't think he was aroused by my neighbor, but im not sure what that looks like. But he did go up to her right away when she put her hand down instead of slowly coming up. So possibly?
When we leave the 2 pups together, they are fine, no whining, barking. They usually get fixed on a toy or bone and then sleep for most the time. But John has mentioned that when I leave to go run errands and then come home, once the garage opens he gets excited. And if I don't come in within a couple of minutes, he'll start whining waiting for me to come in.
Brad - Thanks for the link, I went to it, but im not sure where im supposed to look for contact info on behaviorist in my area. Do i need to apply for a membership to get that information?
Ask them how to get a behaviorist's contact info in your area.
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Also, I watched your latest video and I think he behaved the way any one of our dogs would behave if we take one of their pack mates away... kinda like... "But... What about me?". I don't think he acted overly upset... maybe a bit confused as to why John was just standing there pointing some odd device at him, meanwhile his buddy is gone.
It is a good idea tho to separate them from time to time so that don't get bad separation anxiety when you separate them. We have to do this too, it's tough with 6 tho.
Brad - Thanks for the info, I will probably contact them first thing monday morning. Yeah his reaction to Portia leaving didn't look too bad to me either. I bet if we were out longer, he would eventually forget about it and do his own thing. I never really thought about dogs getting seperation anxiety from eachother, but that makes total sense. I think a couple days out of the week we will walk them separately.
Chad - I don't understand your question. By the way...I think you need to update your score...its been the same for a while...that can't be right!
Yes, it is the same thing - we call it striping as well, but our last trainer called it "hackles up" and looked at us like we were crazy when we said "striping".
OOOh, I've never heard it called "striping" before. I think its very cat-like. I notice when Ninja gets up he stretches like a cat too. Usually dogs bow down and stick their butts in the air, but Ninja raises his back and moves all 4 feet pretty close together and looks like he's on his tippy toes.
By the way there hasn't been an update to the Niko vs Chad in a while comes I have been hanging low. I am putting together my "Home Alone" trick the shiba plot. You will all of a sudden see my score multiply when I release my fury of outsmarting the shiba on her.
So I contacted another behaviorist. This one, my vet actually emailed me and said one of his clients had a very good experience with. So I went ahead and called them. I was talking to a girl who was explaining everything to me. But I wasn't impressed. She said its 120.00 for a phone consult. And 75.00 per visit to their facility. I asked if someone could come out to my home for a in-home session. She asked where I lived, I said Tustin. She says "Im sorry, we are located in California" I then said, "Uhm...right...Tustin, CA...in Orange County" She says "oh, how far away is that from La Mirada?" I say "Its about 30 minutes" She says "Well no one would be able to actually go to your home, but you are welcome to come to our facility, but I highly suggest doing the phone consult first" I don't know...I didn't get a good vibe. Its kind of like...how do you not know about a city thats less than 20 miles away. She could not be from around here, but then again Tustin isn't a small city. Anyways, I got a little bit irritated with her. She kept pushing me to "sign up" over the phone. this is the website: http://www.animalbehavior.net/ .
But....there has been some progress with Ninja and Randolph. I guess when we're not home, Randolph eats hard boiled eggs in the morning and he's been feeding the cooked egg yolks to the pups. He said Ninja LOVES it and he'll follow him around the house waiting for more. He did it last night...it was actually pretty cute. Randolph can actually tell Ninja to sit and he'll sit and then he'll reward him with the egg yolk and then follow him around the house for 10 minutes. So im guessing this means that Ninja is food motivated? Before he wasn't at all...but it seems like he is getting more and more motivated by treats and food.
I'm sorry you're not having any luck finding a behaviorist. I know how you feel. It's difficult to find one here too.
However, it's great to hear that Randolph and Ninja are getting on well! Though I HAVE to ask....do the egg yolks affect Ninja's poop? I would think it would have some negative effect. Hehe.
He said he's been feeding it to them for about 2 weeks, but I found out yesterday. I haven't seen any changes so far. He doesn't do it everyday, probably like 2-3 times a week.
Well I contacted another Behaviorist. He seemed very informative and I agree'd with his way of training. He was very thorough in explaining his training and I really felt comfortable talking to him. However, he does a life guarantee training. Basically the first training lesson is $595.00, and any other training after that is free for the life of the dog. It could be phone consults,in home training, or public training, its free. Even if for some reason we had to re-home the dog, the life guarantee would move with the dog and the new family and he would go to the new family and fill them in on that dog's training. I checked his website and he seems great, he has A LOT of testimonials from clients posted up on his section of the website.
So what do you guys think of this? Im hesitant because i have to pay 595 up front, but don't really know if he will be able to help...but then again I guess that is the reason for the life guarantee...so he has to stick to it. I don't know...I feel confident in him and he really made me comfortable and he seemed very knowledgable. But talk is talk. What do you guys think?
I understand your hesitation to spend so much money up front; however the most important thing is that you are comfortable. If you felt good about your phone conversation, then I would make sure to do your due diligence and ask for references (other than those on his website). If you really want to be thorough, ask for specific references for dogs that have had similar issues as Ninja. If you're still happy after that, and you can afford it, then I would go for it. At the very least, it will give you piece of mind.
Is there a refund policy if you're not happy with his services? Will he do the actual training, or does he have a junior trainer work with you? Has he worked with Shiba's before. Would he be willing to meet Ninja before you decide to go with his services? How did he handle aggression in the past?
Sorry for the twenty questions. This is really a more personal decision. It's perfect that you agree with his training style and I really love that it's a lifetime training guarantee.
This thread and last night's dinner inspired me to resume our search for behaviorists. I'm so pleased to find that Victoria Stillwell of 'It's me or the Dog' does work in NY and NJ!!! Apparently, she started working in NJ in 2002, but it must've been under dog training, not behaviorist. I'm so excited!! I LOVE that show. I'm emailing her today to see when we can meet with her!!!
Oh wow Barbara! What did Lucy do to your pups to make you want to see Victoria? It would be awesome if you can get her, but I think your guys are too well behaved for her show.
Honestly, that seem really expensive to me... but given your situation, and how hard it has been for you to find a behaviorist, if it was me I would probably spend the $. Especially since you seemed to like his methods.
I don't mind spending money for this because I really think it needs to be addressed. It does seem like a lot, I mean people were telling me its 100-200 just for a PHONE consult! I thought that was way expensive. But then, I feel a bit more confident spending more money up front and having free (well technically not free) training and consults for the rest of Ninja's life.
When I mentioned that Ninja was a Shiba Inu, he laughed and said "Shiba's are a wonderful dogs..but man, do they have a mind of their own! haha. Well, I actually have 3 Shiba Inu's who are clients of mine, I actually just worked with a 4 month old puppy on Monday who absolutely hated his collar. He would do the "Shiba Scream" anytime someone got close to him with it. It took about 1 1/2 hours of conditioning and me training the owners the proper way to approach their dog and he finally relaxed and wasn't screaming anymore"
He doesn't use choke collars, shock collars, or pinch collars. He doesn't use physical corrections, the only time he will touch, is the butt to make them sit. He said he uses vocal training and hand signals. (Which i liked, because I don't think Ninja would react to physical corrections positively). He has been in the dog industry since 1969, showing, breeding, training. He said that in our first session, we will have about a 30-45 minute talk about Ninja and they we'll have a 1 hour training session in home and then go out in the public somewhere, where there are people and maybe other dogs to do more training. He said he usually does a follow up session 2 weeks later to see the progress, but sometimes when he's working with cases that are pretty bad, he'll follow up within a few days or the next week. And he works weekends!
Im not sure about the refunds...Ill have to ask about that. I'll be sure to give him a call back and ask all your questions barbara! Thanks
But if all seems well, I think i found a behaviorist!
The fact that he has worked with Shiba before is very cool. Sounds like he will be a big help.
One thing I found w/ our behaviorist is that most of the time she would just confirm what Jen and I had already thought, then would help us refine the way we handled what ever the issue was. This proved to be a very reassuring thing and made any amount of money we spent worth every penny.
Wow gone for a couple days and everything new lol. Glad you found someone you like Romi. That last person, I think I'll always be fishy with someone who's going to charge me to just look at the place. I want to know what I'm investing my money into before investing.
So, i talked the the behaviorsit today and I asked the behaviorist if there was a refund policy if things don't work out, he said "We don't have a refund policy. All I can tell you is that I have had great success with all of the clients I have worked with and no-one has ever asked for a refund or said that the training wasn't worth the investment."
I also asked if he could explain all the details of the "Lifetime Guarantee" he said "The guarantee simply states that I will continue to work with you and the dog for as long as it takes to get the results that you want. If you move, the guarantee stays with the dog and the trainer in the area that you move to will continue to work with you at no additional cost. Also, if you had to rehouse the dog for any reason the guarantee stays with the dog and the new owners would continue with me, or another Bark Buster, if the dog moved into someone else's territory. If something were to happen to me we have other trainers in Orange County that would take over my accounts and again at no additional cost to you. However, I have no intention of retiring or leaving the business any time soon. I love what I do. I treat revisits with the same interest as a new lesson. My goal is to have you be completely happy with your dog and the training. I never get repeat clients, because once I train you and your dog you know the system and don't need me if you get a new dog in the future. I do however get a lot of my business from client referrals."
So we went ahead and made the decision to go ahead and work with this behaviorist. I am confident that he will be able to help us with Ninja (and hope he does). Im just getting a really good vibe from him, it seems that he has a strong passion for the well-being of animals and really wants to do everything he can to help one. Our first session is on April 12th. Im really excited to learn new things and learn how to help Ninja with his issues. Wish us luck!
I've used Bark Busters before, was not impressed. Maybe it was just the guy who was the bark buster in my area, the guy you have been talking to is much more experienced. However throwing around bags full of metal chains to get my dog to stop doing things wasn't what I would call a good idea. Possibly your experience will be better than mine.
Comments
Yeah, it seemed as if he was being mouthy. Because he didn't bite down hard, just kind of put her fingers in his mouth. But ever since I got Ninja, he has never been mouthy with me or John. So its kind of weird that he would be mouthy with a stranger. I don't think he was aroused by my neighbor, but im not sure what that looks like. But he did go up to her right away when she put her hand down instead of slowly coming up. So possibly?
When we leave the 2 pups together, they are fine, no whining, barking. They usually get fixed on a toy or bone and then sleep for most the time. But John has mentioned that when I leave to go run errands and then come home, once the garage opens he gets excited. And if I don't come in within a couple of minutes, he'll start whining waiting for me to come in.
Brad - Thanks for the link, I went to it, but im not sure where im supposed to look for contact info on behaviorist in my area. Do i need to apply for a membership to get that information?
By aroused I don't necessarily mean sexually, I just mean stimulated, or excited.
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As for the link I provided, I would email or call the number on this page:
http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSCentralOffice/
Ask them how to get a behaviorist's contact info in your area.
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Also, I watched your latest video and I think he behaved the way any one of our dogs would behave if we take one of their pack mates away... kinda like... "But... What about me?". I don't think he acted overly upset... maybe a bit confused as to why John was just standing there pointing some odd device at him, meanwhile his buddy is gone.
It is a good idea tho to separate them from time to time so that don't get bad separation anxiety when you separate them. We have to do this too, it's tough with 6 tho.
Brad - Thanks for the info, I will probably contact them first thing monday morning. Yeah his reaction to Portia leaving didn't look too bad to me either. I bet if we were out longer, he would eventually forget about it and do his own thing. I never really thought about dogs getting seperation anxiety from eachother, but that makes total sense. I think a couple days out of the week we will walk them separately.
Chad - I don't understand your question. By the way...I think you need to update your score...its been the same for a while...that can't be right!
Chad means the mohawk going down their back or when their fur puffs up at the neck....is that hackles (what we call striping)?
And YES he needs to update his score!
OOOh, I've never heard it called "striping" before. I think its very cat-like. I notice when Ninja gets up he stretches like a cat too. Usually dogs bow down and stick their butts in the air, but Ninja raises his back and moves all 4 feet pretty close together and looks like he's on his tippy toes.
I think we should trademark the name of it and call it a "Niko"
Being she acts all big and like her mother is all talk...
LMAO
I am going to come home with Chad hog tied and Niko standing on top of him!
So I contacted another behaviorist. This one, my vet actually emailed me and said one of his clients had a very good experience with. So I went ahead and called them. I was talking to a girl who was explaining everything to me. But I wasn't impressed. She said its 120.00 for a phone consult. And 75.00 per visit to their facility. I asked if someone could come out to my home for a in-home session. She asked where I lived, I said Tustin. She says "Im sorry, we are located in California" I then said, "Uhm...right...Tustin, CA...in Orange County" She says "oh, how far away is that from La Mirada?" I say "Its about 30 minutes" She says "Well no one would be able to actually go to your home, but you are welcome to come to our facility, but I highly suggest doing the phone consult first" I don't know...I didn't get a good vibe. Its kind of like...how do you not know about a city thats less than 20 miles away. She could not be from around here, but then again Tustin isn't a small city. Anyways, I got a little bit irritated with her. She kept pushing me to "sign up" over the phone. this is the website: http://www.animalbehavior.net/ .
But....there has been some progress with Ninja and Randolph. I guess when we're not home, Randolph eats hard boiled eggs in the morning and he's been feeding the cooked egg yolks to the pups. He said Ninja LOVES it and he'll follow him around the house waiting for more. He did it last night...it was actually pretty cute. Randolph can actually tell Ninja to sit and he'll sit and then he'll reward him with the egg yolk and then follow him around the house for 10 minutes. So im guessing this means that Ninja is food motivated? Before he wasn't at all...but it seems like he is getting more and more motivated by treats and food.
I'm sorry you're not having any luck finding a behaviorist. I know how you feel. It's difficult to find one here too.
However, it's great to hear that Randolph and Ninja are getting on well! Though I HAVE to ask....do the egg yolks affect Ninja's poop? I would think it would have some negative effect. Hehe.
Well I contacted another Behaviorist. He seemed very informative and I agree'd with his way of training. He was very thorough in explaining his training and I really felt comfortable talking to him. However, he does a life guarantee training. Basically the first training lesson is $595.00, and any other training after that is free for the life of the dog. It could be phone consults,in home training, or public training, its free. Even if for some reason we had to re-home the dog, the life guarantee would move with the dog and the new family and he would go to the new family and fill them in on that dog's training. I checked his website and he seems great, he has A LOT of testimonials from clients posted up on his section of the website.
So what do you guys think of this? Im hesitant because i have to pay 595 up front, but don't really know if he will be able to help...but then again I guess that is the reason for the life guarantee...so he has to stick to it. I don't know...I feel confident in him and he really made me comfortable and he seemed very knowledgable. But talk is talk. What do you guys think?
This is his website: http://www.barkbusters.com/page.cfm/ID/50/id_directory/1390/
I understand your hesitation to spend so much money up front; however the most important thing is that you are comfortable. If you felt good about your phone conversation, then I would make sure to do your due diligence and ask for references (other than those on his website). If you really want to be thorough, ask for specific references for dogs that have had similar issues as Ninja. If you're still happy after that, and you can afford it, then I would go for it. At the very least, it will give you piece of mind.
Good luck!
Is there a refund policy if you're not happy with his services? Will he do the actual training, or does he have a junior trainer work with you? Has he worked with Shiba's before. Would he be willing to meet Ninja before you decide to go with his services? How did he handle aggression in the past?
Sorry for the twenty questions. This is really a more personal decision. It's perfect that you agree with his training style and I really love that it's a lifetime training guarantee.
This thread and last night's dinner inspired me to resume our search for behaviorists. I'm so pleased to find that Victoria Stillwell of 'It's me or the Dog' does work in NY and NJ!!! Apparently, she started working in NJ in 2002, but it must've been under dog training, not behaviorist. I'm so excited!! I LOVE that show. I'm emailing her today to see when we can meet with her!!!
Oh wow Barbara! What did Lucy do to your pups to make you want to see Victoria?
LOL. Dave. I was thinking Lucy was a bit traumatized - by Mika.
Keigo is still a bit off. LMAO.
I don't mind spending money for this because I really think it needs to be addressed. It does seem like a lot, I mean people were telling me its 100-200 just for a PHONE consult! I thought that was way expensive. But then, I feel a bit more confident spending more money up front and having free (well technically not free) training and consults for the rest of Ninja's life.
When I mentioned that Ninja was a Shiba Inu, he laughed and said "Shiba's are a wonderful dogs..but man, do they have a mind of their own! haha. Well, I actually have 3 Shiba Inu's who are clients of mine, I actually just worked with a 4 month old puppy on Monday who absolutely hated his collar. He would do the "Shiba Scream" anytime someone got close to him with it. It took about 1 1/2 hours of conditioning and me training the owners the proper way to approach their dog and he finally relaxed and wasn't screaming anymore"
He doesn't use choke collars, shock collars, or pinch collars. He doesn't use physical corrections, the only time he will touch, is the butt to make them sit. He said he uses vocal training and hand signals. (Which i liked, because I don't think Ninja would react to physical corrections positively). He has been in the dog industry since 1969, showing, breeding, training. He said that in our first session, we will have about a 30-45 minute talk about Ninja and they we'll have a 1 hour training session in home and then go out in the public somewhere, where there are people and maybe other dogs to do more training. He said he usually does a follow up session 2 weeks later to see the progress, but sometimes when he's working with cases that are pretty bad, he'll follow up within a few days or the next week. And he works weekends!
Im not sure about the refunds...Ill have to ask about that. I'll be sure to give him a call back and ask all your questions barbara! Thanks
But if all seems well, I think i found a behaviorist!
Barbara: other than being completely exhausted, no after effects for Lucy that I can tell.
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I'm so glad you found someone Romi! I hope it works out.
The fact that he has worked with Shiba before is very cool. Sounds like he will be a big help.
One thing I found w/ our behaviorist is that most of the time she would just confirm what Jen and I had already thought, then would help us refine the way we handled what ever the issue was. This proved to be a very reassuring thing and made any amount of money we spent worth every penny.
So, i talked the the behaviorsit today and I asked the behaviorist if there was a refund policy if things don't work out, he said "We don't have a refund policy. All I can tell you is that I have had great success with all of the clients I have worked with and no-one has ever asked for a refund or said that the training wasn't worth the investment."
I also asked if he could explain all the details of the "Lifetime Guarantee" he said "The guarantee simply states that I will continue to work with you and the dog for as long as it takes to get the results that you want. If you move, the guarantee stays with the dog and the trainer in the area that you move to will continue to work with you at no additional cost. Also, if you had to rehouse the dog for any reason the guarantee stays with the dog and the new owners would continue with me, or another Bark Buster, if the dog moved into someone else's territory. If something were to happen to me we have other trainers in Orange County that would take over my accounts and again at no additional cost to you. However, I have no intention of retiring or leaving the business any time soon. I love what I do. I treat revisits with the same interest as a new lesson. My goal is to have you be completely happy with your dog and the training. I never get repeat clients, because once I train you and your dog you know the system and don't need me if you get a new dog in the future. I do however get a lot of my business from client referrals."
So we went ahead and made the decision to go ahead and work with this behaviorist. I am confident that he will be able to help us with Ninja (and hope he does). Im just getting a really good vibe from him, it seems that he has a strong passion for the well-being of animals and really wants to do everything he can to help one. Our first session is on April 12th. Im really excited to learn new things and learn how to help Ninja with his issues. Wish us luck!
I've used Bark Busters before, was not impressed. Maybe it was just the guy who was the bark buster in my area, the guy you have been talking to is much more experienced. However throwing around bags full of metal chains to get my dog to stop doing things wasn't what I would call a good idea. Possibly your experience will be better than mine.