The Battle I have lost...

There is one battle with my dogs that I have failed to win. That is preventing them thinking that couches are far more comfortable than the floor.

I have spent almost 18 months fighting this battle. I put obstacles on the couches in my lounge with the aim of discouraging Jamie and Jemma from making themselves at home on my furniture, but to no avail.

Now the behaviourists say that to change a dog's behaviour you have to be absolutely consistent and catch them in the act each and every time. I admit this did not always happen. They are very good at taking the gap when your guard is down.
You also have to give them an alternative behaviour like lying on a nice warm blanket in front of the fire or an extra tasty treat for staying on the floor. I tried this but they still preferred the couch.

In fact I tried everything including shouting and shutting them out of the lounge (Shouting is not OK but time-out for very short periods is OK).
But the truth be told it became too exhausting spending every night in constant battle for the kingdom of the couch.

It also showed me how strong the imprinting period is during the first 4 months of a puppy's life.
Jemma was born in a home where all the beagles had a room filled with old couches and comfy chairs on which they slept. So she grew up seeing her elders ensconced in comfort and believes that this is her right in life. Nothing I have done so far has changed her mind and now Jamie thinks if Jemma can do it, so can I.

So 18 months down the line, I have decided if you can't beat them, join them. I have put a protective cover over one of the couches which all three of us share (with me squashed in the middle). The other two couches have their cushions up ended to discourage any deviant behaviour. It does not look pretty and offends my sense of order. But rather that than endless squabbling with my dogs.

I could have opted to permanently shut them out of the lounge altogether. But that defeats the purpose of why I got them in the first place - to enjoy their company.

However I have drawn the line at the bedroom. I know Jemma loves beds, but no one is allowed in there even if it means keeping the door permanently closed day and night. In fact I still have to keep all the doors in my house closed because one little slip and I still find things disappearing and shredded all over the garden.

My Dad sent me an article about keeping fresh air circulating through your home to keep it hygienic and clean as opposed to stale and yuk.

Huh! Wonder if I will ever get to do that?

Insightful comment on "hunting"...

I thought that I would publish this comment on my blog because I think it is very relevant. I would hate there to be any confusion about my intentions when I take my beagles "hunting".

Hi, I'm a bit confused by your blog ... how can you support / participate in anything associated with a hunt if you are an animal lover as you say in your profile? I'm hoping for some form of clarity here, as I too am a passionate animal lover and a hunt goes against all those values.
September 13, 2010 10:27 AM

I quite agree. I would not participate in a hunt where any live (or dead) animals were involved. Though the organisers call it a "hunt", what the dogs do is follow scent trails that are laid out by dragging a bag filled with tinned pilchards across the ground. This leaves a scent that does not disperse quickly and is easy for the beagles to follow. I am comfortable with this as I know that it is unlikely that my beagles will make a career out of hunting live fish. I just have to be careful about avoiding rubbish dumps (beagle heaven).

Beagles have a strong olfactory sense so this "hunt" challenges that talent. It also exercises the dogs in a way impossible to do by only walking them at the end of a lead. If you go back to all my blog posts related to the "hunts" you will see how and why my interest developed.

As a dog lover, one of my greatest concerns is how to give working dog breeds that are city pets, adequate stimulation and exercise. This is a huge problem as so many of them live in the limited confines of city gardens and apartments. They develop problems because they are bored and under stimulated.

Scent trails or "hunting" is one way of enriching my beagles' lives. They are very active dogs with a highly developed sense of smell (they are used in narcotics detection). They need a lot of exercise and mental stimulation.

This is no easy task and is a constant challenge I face as a Johannesburg city dweller trying to keep my pets happy and content. They have loved been out in the African bush running and following scent trails (albeit mackerel fish) and I have loved been out of smog city under a clear African sky. A win win situation!

Last Hunt of the Season coming up...

Jamie in yellow (behind) with a friend

Jemma looking pretty in pink.

There is only one more hunt of the season on Sunday 12 September. After that we will miss all the fun enormously. I am still stressing about what we are going to do until the new season starts again next winter.

There is a final competition run at the very end on the season for only the most experienced and fastest beagles called "The Top Ten". They follow a 5 to 7 kilometre long trail non stop. Last year only five beagles finished. This is quite an achievement as the normal trail is about 1 kilometre long but the tough terrain adds to the difficulty. We normally do five of these trails back to back but with a break in between each one for water and rest.

Jemma works much harder than Jamie because she completes the trail and then returns to where the owners are waiting at the start. Jamie (oh sly one!) has learnt to stay at the finish of the trail and wait for all the owners to trickle in. Very clever! So he does not work nearly as hard as Jemma.

In October there will be a Beagle Ball attended by owners who (for a change) get all dressed up and have a swell time. People often don't recognise each other when they are decked out in all their finery. We are used to dressing in very unglamourous, thick protective clothing to keep us warm against the early morning cold and looking bleary eyed and blue in the face because of the 5.00am wake up call.

Trophies and prizes get awarded to the top ten beagles who have won the most points for coming in consistently in top places during the season. I also think it is a reward for all those dedicated owners who have given up so many Sunday morning "lie-ins" so that their beagles could have some fun.

Next year I will be entering Jamie and Jemma as a team because I think they will have a good shot at doing well in the team category. But in the meantime I am going to have to work on my fitness training programme with them during summer. My sporty sister has advised me to get them to build endurance by following me at a trot on a bike in the park. On the in between days she suggest we do sprints around the complex. But first I will have to work on my own fitness to follow this strenuous programme!

It's OK to be sad...

The community of owners who take their dogs to the Beagle Hunt is very loose, laid back and there is no pressure to do anything but enjoy watching your dogs run. Most of us don't remember every one's names but we do know the names of the beagles (prominently displayed on their bibs).

The Hunt has a blog which keeps everyone in touch with the latest news, how the last hunt went, photos of our dogs competing and the occasional call for a home for a rescue beagle.
But last week one the most well known beagles on the Hunt, Basil, died in a freak accident.
He was a real character, larger than life both figuratively and literally.

There was a burglary at Basil's home. During the ensuing chaos when the security service arrived on the scene, the gate was left open. Basil ran into the road and was run over.

The outpouring of support by the owners was quite amazing! I had tears running down my cheeks as I read the comments. Why did I react that way?
Perhaps it was because I remembered what it was like to lose my own dogs, perhaps it was repressed grief at the memory.

I think we so seldom acknowledge that losing a pet is something important in our lives, something people genuinely grieve about. It is so often brushed aside because of course there are much bigger and harder issues to deal with in life than the loss of a pet.

But here people were acknowledging a pet owner's loss and grief. Everyone wrote a kind testimonial about Basil and each comment was signed with the owner's name and that of their beagle.
It's nice to belong to a community of people that understands that it's OK to be sad when you lose a pet.

Going back to Puppy School without Jamie or Jemma

When I started writing this blog about me and my dogs, I didn't realise that it would take me into a whole new world. Taking Jamie and Jemma to Puppy School opened a door for me that has taken me off into a whole new direction.
I decided I wanted to learn more.

So last year I spent nine months studying canine behaviour through the Centre of Applied Pet Ethology in the UK. I learnt that the more you know, the more you realise how little you know. I learnt that the world of dog behaviour is surprisingly complex. There are many different schools of thought amongst the academics. And when it comes to the business side of things, it is highly policised and competitive just like most other industries.

But perhaps the most important lesson I learnt is that there are two ends to a leash. There's a dog on one end and a human on the other end. Most of the time canine behaviour is the result of how the human behaves and how much the human really understands their dog.

Everything in life always comes back to Homo sapiens, even canine behaviour!

This year I have embarked on my studies to become a dog trainer starting out as a Puppy Instructor trainee. I wrote my exam last weekend and will embark on several months of practical training during which we are constantly evaluated before we are given the green light as a trainer.

It is interesting to observe that the puppies are always so innocent and delightful. The challenge is usually how to help the humans. Luckily it was not so long ago that I was one of those clumsy, fallible and ignorant owners, so I can empathise with most of them. Though there are a few who, shall we say, present an interesting challenge! But that is a story for another time.