We don’t know much about Shiloa’s background prior to adopting her, but she definitely came with some baggage. Border Collie’s are known for their propensity to control chaos, however, Shiloa went way too far. Whatever she perceived as chaos – a barking dog, too much noise, or someone stepping on her tail, she would go after the first small furry thing she could find and take her aggression out on them. We didn’t know if we could or should keep her.
Don’t get me wrong, she would never hurt a human, but as Kate and Gill told us, she was the Alpha of the pack and was working her way up to the top of our family “pack” as well. We had to do something! She walked US and would go after squirrels, small dogs, cats, etc. Cute wasn’t cutting it. Shiloa needed some schooling, so we took her to Jabula.
Stage I & II gave her some basic obedience skills. Some private lessons helped us be better owners and kept us at the top of the pack. Shiloa knew where she ranked, but we needed to reinforce her status at the top of the canine pack, and at the bottom of the human pack.
Now we could safely “control” Shiloa, but it still wasn’t fun to take her out in public, and being the beautiful and athletic dog she is, we wanted to be able to take her places with us. So we signed up for Stage III. This is an advanced level class to train dogs to behave off leash. I couldn’t imagine giving up Shiloa’s leash in public. I had nightmares and visions about shredded puppies, lawsuits and being banned from our neighborhood. Well, Shiloa surprised us. This class was EXACTLY what she needed. We used a remote collar to “get her attention” when she became fixated on something. Kate and Gill explained that often times dogs have turned off their other senses such as hearing when they are focused on something they want or feel. The remote collar disrupted that fixation and got her focused on us, her owners.
Now Shiloa walks and hikes off-leash with us. A simple “Leave It” curbs her appetite for squirrels – and the best part . . . she runs along side of us when we go mountain biking! Since biking is one of our favorite past times, Shiloa gets to go with us every weekend – and she gets to stay in shape. No more small dogs for lunch!
We even took Shiloa a step further and sent her to boot camp with our little beagle (who was often the object of Shiloa’s aggression). Kate and Gill really helped Shiloa and Karma’s interaction – and even taught the incorrigible beagle a few things.
|
Shiloa's Intensity Drove Her to Beat Up Small Animals
Thanks, girls for educating US and not giving up on Shiloa! You are terrific trainers, incredible educators of PEOPLE and great friends!
--Bern & Pat
"Hey I'm Happy Too! Jabula Saved My Life!" |
