… where you the reader take over, posting anything about anything (almost!) will not appear this week since there don’t seem to be any submissions. Unless I’m missing something. Which happens!
While there are no photos associated with this, I will at least share an “occurrence” yesterday involving Franklin and some neighboring felines (you can say that “two cats were involved”). Also, advance apologies to Big Tiny; no offense intended.
By way of background, we have been working with Franklin on a number of behaviors, as he can be a challenge to walk, including his interest in going after various wildlife in the neighborhood, including squirrels and rabbits. He ha actually shown some significant progress in that regard, and now a simple command of “leave it” is generally sufficient to quell his prey instinct as far as that is concerned. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of cats, and we do have a problem in our neighborhood of a lot of “outdoor” cats that are allowed to roam freely around the neighborhood (technically not illegal per se, although if a cat comes on your property without your permission, you can capture it (if you can) and bring it to animal control — an unsatisfactory and difficult remedy). In any event, as we were nearly home yesterday from an otherwise very nice neighborhood walk, we encountered not one but two cats on a fence bordering someone’s house. Unfortunately, I caught sight of them too late and was unable to get Franklin under control (the desired outcome) and he broke away from me and the chase was on. One of the two cats scampered away for safety but the other took Franklin on an extended chase around part of the neighborhood before wisely climbing a tree. The final scene (which unfortunately I did not photograph) had Franklin on his hind legs at the base of the tree, with the cat several feet up sneering at him. Franklin was appropriately admonished for his behavior, mainly because of the safety consideration involved, but the actual scene itself was somewhat comical and I am sure would have made Chet proud.
That’s a great story and I can picture it in my mind.
If “leave it” works even some of the time that is great progress considering Franklin’s breed and age.
Ramses once cornered a cat. Both left relatively unscathed but I did remove a claw from Ramses’ forehead.
Both Diana and Freyja are predators and no cat is safe in the yard. I know when they were at my parent’s house they were a tag team going after the rats. Freyja is much faster but Diana is great at tracking and locating. It is Diana that gets fussy in the back yard when the field mice are active.
Diana behaves differently while in the yard than outside. Outside everyone is her friend. Inside every stranger is a potential chain saw serial killer. Freyja takes her cues from Diana.
I’m not sure I could teach “leave it” well enough to get either of those blood thirsty fluffy butts to cease the hunt when on the trail.
Well, WTAFP, I will not take offense at the story of a blood thirsty canine chasing two entirely innocent felines since said felines outsmarted said canine. I will confess Mom and I held our breath until the end of the story since apologies were offered at the beginning.
That said, I love Franklin and cannot picture him being that aggressive. Must be his young age. I know he would love me as a brother if we ever met in person.
Big Tiny. I am sure you are right. Young Franklin is a contradiction of sorts at times. Of all our goldens, he is the most affectionate to those he knows (and that is a big hurdle, given how affectionate Wookie and Teddy both were), but has a much higher degree of stranger danger alert than either Wookie or Teddy did. That may in part be due to the fact that we got him during the height of the pandemic, which greatly complicated socialization with others. He also does have a very high prey instinct, which is due to his unique genetics (perhaps a story for a future Phriday Photos posting).
Have you considered having him do nosework or scentwork? It’s basically a game where they search out smells like clove, anise, etc. and then alert and when they correctly indicate where it is they get a treat. You start with a snuffle mat, which is available everywhere including you can make your own. They you hide treats in boxes and pots and other places. Then you hide the treats and a little q-tip with the scent on it. Then eventually only the scent and after they find it they get a treat. Dogs with a high prey drive are very good at it, plus it relieves that crave to hunt. It gives them a “job” and reducing some of the energy they have.
nacsw dot com has programs as well as the AKC. Both websites have links that explain how it works. It’s a pretty low key, affordable, low impact sport for dogs and their people. Any dog can do it and it doesn’t involve a lot of running like agility does.
6 Comments on “Phriday Photos …”
I didn’t send anything because I feel I am dominating Phriday Photos too much.
But I’ll send something for next week. Maybe a few to keep for weeks when no one else sends anything.
It is Chocolate Mousse day and I’ve got some.
It is also Pony Express day. Such an impact it had on history given it was only in service for 18 months.
While there are no photos associated with this, I will at least share an “occurrence” yesterday involving Franklin and some neighboring felines (you can say that “two cats were involved”). Also, advance apologies to Big Tiny; no offense intended.
By way of background, we have been working with Franklin on a number of behaviors, as he can be a challenge to walk, including his interest in going after various wildlife in the neighborhood, including squirrels and rabbits. He ha actually shown some significant progress in that regard, and now a simple command of “leave it” is generally sufficient to quell his prey instinct as far as that is concerned. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of cats, and we do have a problem in our neighborhood of a lot of “outdoor” cats that are allowed to roam freely around the neighborhood (technically not illegal per se, although if a cat comes on your property without your permission, you can capture it (if you can) and bring it to animal control — an unsatisfactory and difficult remedy). In any event, as we were nearly home yesterday from an otherwise very nice neighborhood walk, we encountered not one but two cats on a fence bordering someone’s house. Unfortunately, I caught sight of them too late and was unable to get Franklin under control (the desired outcome) and he broke away from me and the chase was on. One of the two cats scampered away for safety but the other took Franklin on an extended chase around part of the neighborhood before wisely climbing a tree. The final scene (which unfortunately I did not photograph) had Franklin on his hind legs at the base of the tree, with the cat several feet up sneering at him. Franklin was appropriately admonished for his behavior, mainly because of the safety consideration involved, but the actual scene itself was somewhat comical and I am sure would have made Chet proud.
That’s a great story and I can picture it in my mind.
If “leave it” works even some of the time that is great progress considering Franklin’s breed and age.
Ramses once cornered a cat. Both left relatively unscathed but I did remove a claw from Ramses’ forehead.
Both Diana and Freyja are predators and no cat is safe in the yard. I know when they were at my parent’s house they were a tag team going after the rats. Freyja is much faster but Diana is great at tracking and locating. It is Diana that gets fussy in the back yard when the field mice are active.
Diana behaves differently while in the yard than outside. Outside everyone is her friend. Inside every stranger is a potential chain saw serial killer. Freyja takes her cues from Diana.
I’m not sure I could teach “leave it” well enough to get either of those blood thirsty fluffy butts to cease the hunt when on the trail.
Well, WTAFP, I will not take offense at the story of a blood thirsty canine chasing two entirely innocent felines since said felines outsmarted said canine. I will confess Mom and I held our breath until the end of the story since apologies were offered at the beginning.
That said, I love Franklin and cannot picture him being that aggressive. Must be his young age. I know he would love me as a brother if we ever met in person.
Big Tiny. I am sure you are right. Young Franklin is a contradiction of sorts at times. Of all our goldens, he is the most affectionate to those he knows (and that is a big hurdle, given how affectionate Wookie and Teddy both were), but has a much higher degree of stranger danger alert than either Wookie or Teddy did. That may in part be due to the fact that we got him during the height of the pandemic, which greatly complicated socialization with others. He also does have a very high prey instinct, which is due to his unique genetics (perhaps a story for a future Phriday Photos posting).
Have you considered having him do nosework or scentwork? It’s basically a game where they search out smells like clove, anise, etc. and then alert and when they correctly indicate where it is they get a treat. You start with a snuffle mat, which is available everywhere including you can make your own. They you hide treats in boxes and pots and other places. Then you hide the treats and a little q-tip with the scent on it. Then eventually only the scent and after they find it they get a treat. Dogs with a high prey drive are very good at it, plus it relieves that crave to hunt. It gives them a “job” and reducing some of the energy they have.
nacsw dot com has programs as well as the AKC. Both websites have links that explain how it works. It’s a pretty low key, affordable, low impact sport for dogs and their people. Any dog can do it and it doesn’t involve a lot of running like agility does.