Several Behaviors of Sammy the Sheltie

W

WinCamXP

Forums Regular
Good/Not Sure

1. Spins around in circles while barking, I have seen this on YouTube so it must be normal.

2. Barks in a pattern.

3. If she hasn't seen you in a while or just met you, she jumps and puts her front paws on your waist (I LOVE THIS! It's soooo cute!).

4. Sitting on my bed looking out the window, barking whenever anything passes by.

5. Being so cute and adorable!

Bad

1. Leaving 'tootsie rolls' in the guest bedroom occasionally.

2. Pulling on our pants whenever we move to a different room (must be herding instinct).

Getting angry, growling and sometimes biting you when you point at her and say "No, bad dog!" when she did something bad.

More to come soon!

If you think any of these behaviors needs attention, tell me.

I would also appreciate information regarding why she does these.
 
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Cute Post.

I answered within:

WinCamXP said:
Good/Not Sure

1. Spins around in circles while barking, I have seen this on YouTube so it must be normal.I think this is cute, but Ron says, DO NOT ENCOURAGE THIS. He thinks it makes McKinley look silly!

2. Barks in a pattern.McKinley barks just once to be let in and that is it really. Remember that Shelties can bark more and more as they get older. I would think if there are patterns, it comes from herding.

3. If she hasn't seen you in a while or just met you, she jumps and puts her front paws on your waist (I LOVE THIS! It's soooo cute!).If she just does this to you and you don't mind then it is just fine, but I wouldn't want MMM jumping on guests, so I try to be consistent and not allow jumping on me or anyone.

4. Sitting on my bed looking out the window, barking whenever anything passes by.This is just plain fun especially if it is a second story window. MMM would say he was just meeting and greeting neighbors, two legged, four legged or black with with white stripes!:eek2:

5. Being so cute and adorable!They are shelties, this just comes naturally. CUTE CUTE CUTE

Bad

1. Leaving 'tootsie rolls' in the guest bedroom occasionally.If this is a reference to "poop" I would be crating when I couldn't watch 100% of the time.

2. Pulling on our pants whenever we move to a different room (must be herding instinct).This is a herding thing and a nurture thing. You have played and laughed a bit and now she thinks it's fun. MMM only does this to our youngest Rox, because she thinks it cute, but Ron and I don't allow pant leg biting on us.

Getting angry, growling and sometimes biting you when you point at her and say "No, bad dog!" when she did something bad.I would stop this immediately. I am not the dominant/submissive owner, but biting at me when I tell MMM, No is not acceptable

More to come soon!

If you think any of these behaviors needs attention, tell me.

I would also appreciate information regarding why she does these.
Click to expand...

All in all, aren't shelties fun!
 
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barking on passerby would drive me crazy therefore Che does not do it... my training was like that-barking sitting at the windows means my dog is bored, time to have training session, go to pooch park, play a tug game etc...
spins around in circles and barking at same time while endearing will make me crazy because I see enough humans with OCD... therefore you guessed it, Che does not do it...
what I am saying is we deserve our dogs, what seems perfectly normal to me is top craziness for you, so we teach and usually very consistent over things that do matter to us like jumping up is big NO NO for me but endearing for my hubby therefore Che jumps at him and sit/ down for me... the earlier you start forming habits the easier it gets, old habits or self rewarding ones are hard to break...
now Che is counter surfing and I know it would drive many people nuts but I just try to keep my counters clean and empty...
 
Spinning - a display of joyous abandonment. It is just a way for dogs to express their excitement. Common in herding breeds, very common in Shelties - which is why its also known as the Sheltie spin. Rotation rates can vary according to the dog, and the duration and level of excitement (Deska can get up to 3 rotations a second). However, if the dog is just walking round and round then get it checked out.

Pattern barking - well yes, barking is a whole language. The pattern will vary according to what they are trying to say. Of course some are blessed with melodic barking - but unfortunately most dogs are tone deaf.

Paws up - cute in a little dog darn annoying in a retriever. Must be a biggin to reach the waist, Tully can reach my knees. Mine learnt to jump up when they had to compete with bigger dogs at the oval for food.

Barking at the window - yep just a dog thing, esp if there is another dog passing (got to make sure the other dogs know whos the boss). Shelties are very tough when there is a barrier between them and the other dog/person and will often seek out a barrier to be tough from when they are out and about - often that barrier will be between your legs.

Being cute - yes well dogs look like their owners!!!:wink2:

Tootsie rolls - some dogs just seem to have a preference to pooping on certain surfaces. Adolescents sometimes forget they are toilet trained and need reminding. If its only the guest bedroom, dont let her in. She may be marking her smell but I would say she just cant hold on and goes to the place least used. If she cant go outside to poop you need to provide her an alternative.

Pulling on pants - its worse when you have no pants on and they attach to your ankle! Shelties can have an instinctive need to do something with their mouths when they are stirred up. Deska is a die hard pants biter, when he is really really happy and being silly. Pretty hard to cure in an adult. Redirect to a toy or tug. I have taught Deska to pick up a squeaky toy or a stick when he wants to mouth something. Of course if there are none around my ankles (or shoe laces) are fair game.

Bad dog reaction - could be a few things. She is getting excited and thats an excitement nip, she is unsure and is playing this out, she is trying to stop you being upset with her so is being playful. You need to be really clear when you are telling her off. Only say 'NO', dont add any words afterwards. I would recommend using 'uh-uh' in most circumstances - it is a much clearer sound for a dog to understand (no sounds like other words) and save NO for really bad.

Except for the poops I would worry about the others - Shelties are a little crazy and fun loving - thats what I love most about them!
 
Admittedly I was sort of hoping Zoey would be a spinner, she spins once and a while, but not like what you'd see on youtube at all. Some people think it's not a desirable behavior, I guess it depends if it's constantly or not.

Ankle biting - Zoey was doing it a lot. A LOT. Anytime we'd go through the hallways, she'd stick to our legs like velcro. Not fun. She destroyed one of my boyfriend's jeans because of that. Now she only does it when her excitement level is at 150%, which doesn't happen much inside the house, mostly outside. She seems to have grown out of it.

Jumping when greeting people - Zoey still does it, and we dislike it. If you can discourage your dog from doing it, you'll be thankful for it later on. Zoey is big enough now to tackle young kids down when she does it. Fortunately we don't let her get close to kids but you need to encourage your dog to sit down before being pet. Our puppy just gets so excited with people that it's overwhelming sometimes. When she's on leash, she just shuffles and runs in the air trying to reach the person to jump and reach their hands.

Barking at things outside - Zoey will go in the living room and if she sees particular things, she'll let out a special bark. We call it the "beh" bark - a very short, low-pitched bark. We think it's cute and let her do it, we appreciate her warning us of something coming by. Zoey also think she's a badass and will try to bark at dogs because they're behind fences or she thinks that on leash she's invincible. When she goes to the dog park, she's the quietest and most submitted dog ever.

ps: this youtube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0y7KHu41U5c never fails to make me laugh when I want to see shelties spin and bark.
 
I don't mind Sca jumping up but stop him for a single reason, kids. They adore him and love to pet him but some are intimidated. The fact he will stay at their level and not try to jump up makes them like him a lot more. Since I have none I like to have kids pet him at Petsmart, etc so he can be friendly and at ease around them.

Oh and Sammy obviously has control of your heart :biggrin2:
 
I ADORE that out of control video.. I have seen it so many times, I still laugh.. Sheltie owners really MUST have a great sense of humour... our dogs are so weird, and we LOVE it
hahaah
I agree with what has been said before about the behaviours.... especially with Sheltie Che, it all depends what would drive you crazy, lol
 
Geez I'd go crazy if my dog barked every time I stretched or put on her leash. Bailey is barker when she wants to play or if the neighbor is in the yard. Otherwise she is not that bad. She will bark when I clean, but if I say "enough" she stops.
 
Jan did a great job of explaining things but I'd like to add a few things.

WinCamXP said:
Good/Not Sure

1. Spins around in circles while barking, I have seen this on YouTube so it must be normal. Its common for shelties to spin, I have a spinner myself, but its not something I would encourage. It can become an obsessive problem. I've discouraged Ginny's spinning, which hasn't stopped it completely, just kept it under control.

2. Barks in a pattern. Nothing to add here, except that that must be interesting to hear!

3. If she hasn't seen you in a while or just met you, she jumps and puts her front paws on your waist (I LOVE THIS! It's soooo cute!). I know what you mean about cuteness, but as Jan mentioned, you may not want her greeting guests the same way. Instead I get down to Sadie's level when she's greeting me, so she doesn't feel she has to jump up. The result is that she still jumps up and plays, but jumps less in greeting. You could also try putting the behavior on command.

4. Sitting on my bed looking out the window, barking whenever anything passes by. Also something I would not encourage because the barking will likely escalate over times, given that shelties are barkers by nature. It may not seem so funny later on and your neighbors might not find it so funny either. This is a herding behavior.

5. Being so cute and adorable! That's just a given with all shelties and something to be encouraged! :wink2:

Bad

1. Leaving 'tootsie rolls' in the guest bedroom occasionally. See Jan's advice. Nothing serious, just a part of potty training.

2. Pulling on our pants whenever we move to a different room (must be herding instinct). We also discourage pants/leg biting. Not funny to others and can be misconstrued as aggression. Definitely a herding behavior.

3. Getting angry, growling and sometimes biting you when you point at her and say "No, bad dog!" when she did something bad. This could be a couple things so its hard to say how to treat it without more info. Ginny and Sadie are both very sassy, especially Ginny. Some times when I'm correcting her for nothing she'll bark or take a swip at my hand with her mouth, some times with a growl. She is in no way being aggressive, its more her way of talking back. This is something that Sadie eventually grew out of. Even though I think its funny, I usually correct it since I don't believe that she should be putting her mouth on me. She could also be intimidated when you scold her. My Ginny is EXTREMELY sensitive and I have to correct her VERY gently. If you think she's being nasty, I'd give a sharp 'NO,' as I now see that Caro suggested.
More to come soon! For the most part these are normal/common behaviors in a sheltie. I personally choose to discourage a lot of them mainly to keep them at a manageable level, not to try and stop them completely.

If you think any of these behaviors needs attention, tell me.

I would also appreciate information regarding why she does these.
Click to expand...
 
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