Chesapeake Retriever (Chessie) Rescue of Wisconsin (WI)

Agility Training – Day 1

admin — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 01:32:35 +0000

Well today was our first day of Basic Obedience 2/Agility. Shirley and I were not sure how Louie would do or how he would react so we were very cautious. I started with the table. He did super. We were in a large fenced in area with 9 other dogs and about 16 people. Classes are at the Humane Society so there are lots of dogs out barking and things going on. In addition, the shelter is surrounded by prairie grass with LOTS of birds. Needless to say Louie was very excited watching birds and everything going on around him. The table was a good place to start to try and get him to focus. We were not very successful at focusing all evening but he really loved the agility. After we jumped on the table a number of times and sat and then laid down, we moved on to some of the jumps. There were a variety of jumps from a hoop to an octagon and then a straight bar like I used to jump when I rode horses (much smaller though!)! Louie easily jumped over and through each without hesitation. He did duck around them a few times but mostly jumped over and through. After the jumps we tried the lower dog walk. He did pretty well on the dog walk, jumped off the side a few times but then got the hang of it. After he walked confidently across the smaller dog walk, I had someone stop him on the other side and we tried the BIG dog walk and he did great! He did try and jump off the down ramp at the very bottom but again after a few attempts he was ready to trot up, across and down.

We then moved on to the A-frame. The A-frame is small and it took Louie a few attempts to realize he shouldn’t leap up to middle and then run over the top and leap off the other side. You could see his confidence growing with each obstacle. Now it was time to try some of the tougher equipment.

We started with the tunnel. Shirley had it collapsed so it was very short. She took Louie’s leash and I went to the other end to call him. Initially he tried to go around but as soon as I caught his eye through the tunnel, he ran to me. Each time we did it, Shirley made the tunnel longer. Within a few times, Louie was running through the full length without hesitating. We then tried it with me dropping the leash and running to meet Louie at the other end and he almost beat me through the tunnel!

Next obstacle was the chute. Again Shirley had Louie’s leash at the start of the chute and I went to the other end and held the fabric up so he could see me and he ran right through. Each time I dropped the fabric on him sooner and pretty soon he was running through with the fabric dropped immediately. I then I tried it alone with running him up to it, dropping the leash and meeting him at the other end – Well that was the plan! Louie got so excited, our feet got tangled and down I went! Belly flop right in front of the chute. Louie continued on without me and ran through and then did a few wild victory laps around the agility yard! I finally caught him and we tried again. Again he got so excited and ran so fast he beat me to the end and did another round of victory laps! How embarrassing but Louie was having a ball!!! He ignored all of the other people, dogs and just ran full speed having a grand time! Hmmm, we are going to have to work on “Come when called” and waiting at the end of the chute! Even with my real homemade steak treats Louie would not come when called! But he was socially acceptable and did not bother any of the other dogs or people (kind of Yeah Louie???).

Last obstacle to conquer – Teeter-Tooter! Shirley assisted us by letting the teeter-tooter pivot slowly down once we crossed the midpoint. Louie did great and wasn’t bothered at all. We did it with assistance several times and then we tried it alone with me steadying the descent on the other side and Louie did great! We didn’t try it full blown with it banging down as he crossed the midpoint. We have to leave a challenge for next week!

So I am shocked and pleased with his performance. While he was not obedient, he had fun, and he was socially acceptable with a brand new group of dogs and lots of people. While we have a lot of work to do on control, I think this might be a good activity for Louie. Can’t wait to try it again this weekend with Patti at Chessie Weekend!!! And I had a blast! One of my co-workers suggested I wear old jeans when I told her what I was doing. I laughed and said, “Why?” She said in case you get grass stains, you don’t want to ruin your nice jeans! Well good call Brenda! I have not had grass stains on my knees from playing chase outside in YEARS!!! What a fun day!

Basic Obedience Classes

admin — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 04:34:22 +0000

I am not a professional dog trainer. I am not even an amateur dog trainer. I am a foster home for rescued Chessies and I have happened to have my fair share of “problem” dogs. Louie is by far my most challenging behavior problem. So I am way out of my league in experience and knowledge. I am fortunate to have a vast amount of resources through the Chesapeake Retriever network and several local dog trainers.

Through discussions with several trainers, we were able to pinpoint Louie’s possible issues as fear and anxiety instead of aggression and terriotorialism. This is probably due to his lack of socialization with people as a puppy. So we must try to socialize Louie with people and overcome his fear and anxiety.

This is at graduation from our second Basic Obedience 1 class

Our first step was the Coulee Region Humane Society and Shirley Richards. Shirley has been an excellent resource for me with my other Chessies and so I immediately signed Louie up for Basic Obedience. Shirley is a great trainer and a very compassionate dog person. Shirley worked with Louie and I after class each night discussing his unique issues/behaviors, possible causes and possible cures/techniques. She adjusted the class to help alleviate Louie’s fears while socializing him. For some reason which we have yet to figure out, Louie is very comfortable in the classes at the CRHS. The classes are held in a larger open room with high ceilings. I think Louie is comfortable there because he doesn’t feel trapped like he does in my small, crowded house.

After Louie lunged at a few people, I found a local trainer that has worked specifically with aggressive dogs. Louie and I went to the La Crosse Family Dog Center for a private consultation with their trainer and learned a lot about working with a potentially aggressive dog and how to introduce them to people. The main point was to establish a routine and always go through those steps. Louie must learn to approach people, sit and remain calm. We are to repeat this process, moving closer to the person each time as long as Louie remains calm and sits and then we can retreat. For Louie and many fearful dogs, the reward is retreating from the stranger.

We have been through two Basic Obedience classes at CRHS and are about to start a Basic Obedience/Agility class. I think Louie and I are bored with Basic Obedience so I felt with Louie’s energy, agility might be something he would like. I also hope it will help boost his confidence, help him to have fun in new surroundings and maybe provide him with something he can focus his very short attention span on! I will let you know how this goes, we start on Thursday April 26th.

Learning to Run

admin — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 03:57:49 +0000

One of the significant aspects of Louie’s training is adequate exercise. Louie is about 2 years old and has LOTS of energy. I have been suffering with an arthritic knee so could not run, even though I am an avid runner. In January, I finally was able to start running and Louie became my running partner. Louie was never walked on a leash until he lived with Sue from August- October. So learning to run on a leash was a challenge but really based on his hyperactivity, it is probably easier for him to run on a leash than walk. We started running in the middle of January and he has progressed very quickly.

The following is a log of the progress on some of our runs:

January 14, 2012 – Louie and I ran 2 miles. Once he got his zippies out, he trotted along like a pro! Just an FYI, his heartworms don’t affect his ability to run or play at all!!! We discussed his ability to run and play extensively with both the vet in New London and Coon Valley and both say with him being only Stage 1 and no detection of heart murmurs or issues, he is fine to run and play at will.

February 25, 2012 – Louie was a SUPERB running partner today! He had good running etiquette 90% of the time and only cut me off abruptly twice. Once an obnoxious bird flew across our path so he had to chase the bird and let the bird know that is not good etiquette to fly across our path. The second time, this guy on a bicycle came up along side of us and scared Louie! I do not think Louie had ever seen a bicycle before and he was terrified. He acted like a bucking bronco! Besides those two incidents, Louie seems to LOVE running! I wish we could run more days a week!

March 3, 2012 – Another big adventure this morning – we ran in big downtown La Crosse!!! We ran along the Mississippi River and saw ducks and boats and some really “smart” men who thought it was funny to drive up next to us and howl like dogs!!! Louie was so good, his tail was curled as tight as a corkscrew but he just looked at them and then sat at my feet while I tried to explain to the “gentlemen” that Louie was a stray and very scared. They seemed to catch on and drove away quietly. We then met the WHOLE Running Club – about 30 runners! Again Louie was very good, I had him stop and sit so he could watched them go by at a safe distance. They all ran by us and many said “Hi Pam” And Louie just sat by me and watched, no jumping, yipping or attempt to run away, he just watched on high alert. Once they passed, we continued on our run and all was good.

March 4, 2012 – Can you say “wound tight”? Louie’s tail was “wound tight”! I took Louie on an almost 2 hour walk today and his tail was a corkscrew the entire time!!! I met my friend Deb and her dog, Angus, near the marsh and went for a long walk through the marsh! It was a beautiful day so there was LOTS of stuff to look at!!! People, dogs, critters, water, birds. Louie had a lot to try and keep track of and while he was pretty good, he was extremely aroused the entire time! He finally calmed down once we started on the mile home which is through neighborhoods and an area he is used to. He immediately relaxed and we had a nice walk home. I think the combination of the marsh (which may have reminded him of his surroundings in Louisiana), the number of people, and walking with someone (we normally walk and run alone) may have been too much for him but he did very well considering all of that stimulation.

March 7, 2012 – Ran and encountered several bicycle and Louie seems to be getting used to them. His reactions were much less severe. We did encounter a new wheeled vehicle today that really set Louie off – skateboards! Two boys snuck up from behind and passed us Louie did NOT LIKE THEM at all!!!!!!

March 11, 2012 – First group run! Louie and I ran with two of my friends. This was the first time Louie has run with more than just me and he was pretty good. His main concern was trying to remove his gentle leader!! He kept stopping to try and rub it off. We ran around Pettibone Park along the river with Bald Eagles flying over head and then we ran OVER the big blue bridges!!! Very scary but he did it! These bridges go up and over the Mississippi River and you can see through the railing at the water WAY below! I am not sure who was more nervous Louie or me! I do not like the bridges because of my vertigo so we had to fight for the inside/solid wall lane! I won that spot, I decided Louie’s fear was less so he had to take the scary lane! We ran 5 miles!!! Did I say what a good running partner Louie is becoming? He even went up to one of the guys after the run and sniffed his hand!!!!

March 17, 2012 – Saturday morning run recap
1. Still obsessed with chasing squirrels – I guess that is ok it is a dog thing as long as isn’t rude and yanks my arm out it’s socket
2. Lots of bikes – no problem, yea Louie!
3. I stopped and talked to a few runners and Louie stood quietly and observed.
4. I stopped and talked to a lady in her yard – Louie did a few doggie sommersaults and rolled around her yard, Okay probably not polite, but he impressed her with his sommersaults (no foolin’, he can do a full front sommersault just like a human!)
5. Kids on scooters – Louie stopped and looked but didn’t freak, YEA Louie!!!
6. Sniffed a telephone pole and lifted his leg and peed on it! Louie NEVER lifts his leg and rarely pees while we are out running or walking!!

Noise Sensitivity

admin — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 02:56:51 +0000

Pretty early on, you could see that Louie was very sensitive to noise. He would go berserk at the sound of birds in trees and hedges. I have a row of evergreens in my backyard along the fence and Louie would run full speed along the hedge – either on the sidewalk or between the trunks of the evergreens and the fence. We live in western Wisconsin so most of Louie’s first 6 months have been in the winter and the birds that brave a northern winter take refuge in evergreens. These birds drove Louie nuts!!! They would chirp and tweet and he would lose it! Louie would run full speed barking, whining and yipping at the hedge.

In addition to making noise, Louie would rip, chew and shred every branch he could on my hedge to get to the birds or feel like he was getting to the birds. My hedge needed pruning but Louie has taken it to the extreme! Again I was not sure if this behavior was a result of:

Prey drive from starving for so long that drove him to chase and attack the birds in the hedge,
Noise sensitivity – because he went over-the-top on every noise he heard – squeaky toys, door bells, food choppers, whistles, drills, sirens, etc.
Anxiety – was he just wound so tight that any little thing set him off?

I emailed the lady who found him in Louisiana on her farm and quizzed her about his background at least for the weeks he was running on the farm and what the farm environment was like. Well I found out that crawfish farming is not the quiet, tranquil farming I thought it was! Apparently the birds are a predator of crawfish and so the farms have air cannons that go off about once an hour all of the time! Well that might help explain some of his sensitivity to noise! But if he grew up in this environment would it really have that affect??? Or is it that he is just a nutty dog???

Due to his short attention span outside and the constant noises of living in the city, 1/2 a block from a major street, I always take Louie out in the backyard on a leash. If I do not, he will forget or neglect to take care of business! Louie has to be restrained and told repeatedly to “Go Potty” until he finally focuses on that and goes potty. If you do not continue to remind him and try to focus him, he will not go while he is outside and will come in the house and go. We have learned this the hard way!

Fear? Aggression? or Territorialism?

admin — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 02:33:39 +0000

Louie living in his equipment shed on a crawfish farm in Louisiana (July, 2011). Louie was living on crawfish and roadkill, he weighed 39 pounds and is heartworm positive. This is a link to Louie's background - http://www.crrow.org/rescues-that-stay/louie/

Louie came to live with me on October 30, 2011 and in a few words – he was a case! Louie only had an On/Off switch. Louie was either at full speed, running frantically from door to window to door to me to door to window. Or he was sound asleep on the couch. The couch was the only place he would crash. He was 2 years old and could not be left unattended so when I was not on the main floor of the house or with him in the backyard, he had to be crated. When he was crated he would SING! And I mean sing at multiple octaves, at a volume that would wake not only me but everyone within 5 miles of my house!

So what is the issue?? He was a stray and appears to have been on his own from early in his life. He has only been living inside since August and acts like a wild animal looking for a way out. When he is outside he is pacing the fence lines at full speed watching for game, barking at every noise and just generally on overload the entire time. Is this fear or prey drive?

When someone comes to the house or walks past the fence he jumps, barks at the fence. When someone comes to the house, he runs frantically around the house trying to get away and periodically lunges at guests after they have been here awhile. Is this aggression or territorialism or fear?

Louie showing off his favorite toys and working on his "stay" command. Stay, Leave It and Down are extremely tough for Louie. Louie now weighs about 64 pounds.

Well, it has been and continues to be a journey with Louie. He is making improvements, we have made some headway but we have a long way to go. Louie and I are approaching 6 months of being together and we have a long way to go. Louie is still technically a foster and maybe always will be, I am not ready to make that decision. In this blog, I will attempt to chronicle our journey to this point (April, 2012) and forward. So the posts will be a combination of what we have learned in the past 6 months and what we encounter as we continue. I hope in the end this will be helpful to a few people, but mostly I hope it will be helpful to Louie and me as we forge ahead on his training.

Settling In (Aug 10th, 2011)

admin — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 20:38:50 +0000

Sue tells us that it’s a good day in Louie Land today! He is now wanting to come back into the house when he should, but he still is getting some of the wild spells when he hears things, but he’s much calmer all around. He loves to be brushed and furminated and stands nicely for that.

Louie on a playdate with a new friend

He is funny-so much like a young pup-grabs everything, chews everything, being the puppy he never got a chance to be. He’s always bouncing from one thing to the next. Louie is also sleeping well at night now. His coat is softening up each day a bit more.

Funny Louie Story

admin — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 00:35:57 +0000

Everyone ate and then I make them rest for an hour-so Louie was in his crate and I was in the recliner- watching Good Morning America-he can see tv from his crate-pretty close to it-they were doing this story on the presidents 50th birthday and how presidents age faster once in office-and they were playing some clips from previous presidents–well, he starting digging and rooting around in the comforter on his crate-getting s bit rowdy-and they started to play a clip of Marilyn Monroe singing Happy Birthday to JFK—rofl–Louie stopped dead in his tracks and turned around and stood in complete silence watching til she was done singing–it was hilarious–so I guess even little boy dogs like her.

Happy Birthday Mr President on YouTube

Louie’s Vet Visit (Mon Aug 1, 2011)

admin — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 14:37:42 +0000

Louisiana Louie had his veterinary visit today with Dr. Jim at Wolf River Veterinary Clinic in New London, WI. Sue reported that Louie had an x-ray which showed a very slight enlargement of his heart on one side. He was not anemic and weighed 52 pounds. He will now begin a course of Doxycycline as well as a low dose prednisone for the short-term, and a heartworm pill each month—hopefully he will be negative in a year and a half.

Louie at his exam at Wolf River Veterinary Clinic

When this cutie is adopted out, his forever family will need to continue with the heartworm regimen. We estimate his age to be about 18 months. Patti mentioned that Louie was on excellent behavior. He took the time to kiss a 7 year-old boy hello, and didn’t seem to mind the kitties running around the clinic. AGAIN, his primary descriptor is “sweet”. Perhaps we end up shortening “Louisiana Louie” to “Sweet Lou”?!

Louie’s First Night with CRROW

admin — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 21:16:34 +0000

Louie was pretty quiet once lights went out on Sunday night. He howled for a bit-but managed to sleep all night. He was one hungry boy again this morning though! He is just like a kid in a candy store-amazed at everything—no manners whatsoever. We will need to work on his manners as he likes to jump on tables, cupboards and people—but so sweet and cute! He is quite small compared to his new foster siblings! But we are happy to report that they are all getting along with no drama. Louie shows no fear or aggression at all—just needs to put on some additional weight, treat his heartworm, and a bit more polishing on the behavior, and we should have a very adoptable sweetheart!

Louie’s Trip — Day Two

admin — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 20:20:33 +0000

Transport Driver Chuck reported that Louie slept like a baby most of the way up the interstate. It’s unanimous that EVERYONE thinks he’s a sweetheart! Little Louie traveled SEVEN states and 25+ hours on the road in only two short days. Louie is one travelin’ man! Our awesome transporters sent along some cute pics of the little guy and his journey.

Louie Checking Out Capaha Park in Cape Girardeau MO with Transport Driver Chuck

Chuck took Louie from Steele, MO to Cape Girardeau, MO, where the heat index was well over 100 degrees.

Louie with Transport Drivers Carl and Donna

Later on that day, transporters Rachel and Jonathan coaxed Louie into the Jeep in Rochelle, IL. He settled into the back and made himself comfortable for the short trip to the gas station. He had a little drink, and when Jonathan ran in to get a soda, Louie sniffed out his treat bag and demanded one from the driver’s seat before he would go back to his spot. We came to an agreement—he got a treat and then returned to his spot!

Louie's done a fantastic job for having NO IDEA where he's going and WHEN and IF he's ever going to stop!

Rachel and Jonathan then met Kathy in Beloit, WI for the second to the last hand-off. Little Louie traveled SEVEN states and 25+ hours on the road in only two short days. Louie is one travelin’ man!

Handoff from Transporters Rachel to Kathy complete and Louie's still smilin' away!

CRROW cannot find the words to express our most sincere gratitude to all who assisted this precious little guy with his cross-country journey to Wisconsin. You all actively saved a life of a special little guy! Please continue to check the site for updates on Louie!

Louie's last exchange from Janet and Jim to Sue. Final leg heading for home!