[Beaumont67]

What a day, Amy and Dad got ready to go for a truck ride, before noon.
To do some drywall mudding, on a relocated kitchen wall - making the living room bigger (on our retirement home, in the country).

a) She is hanging around my 4x4 pickup, knowing a short drive out of the city limits, was coming...and Amy does NOT like to be left behind.
Just as I am planning our day, a squirrel run across the front long...and AMY heads off in chase.
Seeing this, I call her off in a split second...and she comes back to me.
- I explain, the squirrel is one of her babies from the animal kindom...we don't chase friends
- her ears went down and she listened to me
FYI - I have successfully hand feed a few wild squirrels and 1 chipmunk...peanuts during the summer months & Amy has been gentle around the wildlife.
So she had an uncontrolled brain-fart today...lol...and her canine drive kicked in / seeing a critter, she hasn't seen for a long while.

b) Now just before supper time, I let Amy out for a pee-pee.
This time TOTALLY different, ALL hackles up...BIG-TIME.
She ran in ninja mode, squeezing between my SUV parked close to a chain link fence, tried to get under the vehicle, next...run around the house, etc.
Seeing this new AMY has my interest up, and it turns out to be a "cat" on our property.
To escape Amy, the cat went up our maple tree (on the front lawn) about 15 ft.

She got the cats scent and was smelling the base of the 65 years old tree.
- I was so proud of her, maybe we missed our "tracking" calling...He-He.
I tried my darndess to get Amy to look up in the rain (for a few minutes), to see the cat and further praise my old girl.
It would of been the icing on the cake / if only Amy realized fully, her accomplishment.
- as the cat was still on our property, but safely up in the air / overhead of her watchful dober eyes
Had see looked up and seen her kitty prize, Dad could of played up more love & praise with our 11 y/o good girl, even more.

P.S. - so how does one teach a dog to look up, into a tree, when their eyes are focused on the ground level...searching ??
- I couldn't figure this out, to help Amy get more excited

 

[DogsR4Life]

Couldnt help you with the praise and look up, in Toronto you can get fined for allowing your dog to chase wildlife and other pets.

Glad to hear she has great recall! Wouldnt want her running after something and into a road

 

[Darkevs]

She is a good old girl!

I swear some of these senior dogs could give many of the young ones a run for their money!

Stormy has a crush on Amy!

Hugz to your Amy Girl!

 

[Herb2relax]

Mean daddy...squirrels are fair game in the backyard and might even turn out to be a midday snack. LOL I have taught Kyrah to follow my hands or touch which you could hold your hand up above her to look/touch. Plus she knows look...meaning look for something or find it...meaning find something especially if you are already looking. Then there is the low vocal...geeet iiittt...or we also say "where is it" in a certain tone that gets the dogs going searching for something...anything...was that a lizard?

 

[melbrod]

It has always been interesting to me how so few dogs seem to think of looking UP for their prey. I wonder if those hunting dogs used to tree animals are naturals at looking up, or if they have to be trained to.

 

[Darkevs]

sight hound

scent hound.



some do both.

 

[thea2003]

It has always been interesting to me how so few dogs seem to think of looking UP for their prey. I wonder if those hunting dogs used to tree animals are naturals at looking up, or if they have to be trained to.

Seems natural- Jed, in his younger years used to try to climb trees to get the '*****.

 

[Herb2relax]

It has always been interesting to me how so few dogs seem to think of looking UP for their prey. I wonder if those hunting dogs used to tree animals are naturals at looking up, or if they have to be trained to.

Hmmm...this is new to me. All mine look up even have their front paws going up the tree used to jump and try to climb. Thankfully they have learned they arent going to catch them and walk away from the squirrel looking down just out of reach teasing them. If I was a good aim I'd pop a cap in his a** for bullying my dogs! LOL

Now looking up at airplanes, helicopters or even hawks might be different. Kyrah looks up at all of them. The ladies at agility have mentioned how she does that. They all say their dogs dont do that and my terriers dont either. I guess I never thought about it b/c it seems Kyrah has always done this.

 

[melbrod]

This conversation somehow reminds me of the time I visited someone, looked out at the 10 foot tall shed in their backyard and saw their beagle comfortably sacked out on the PEAK of the ROOF!

"Oh yes", the person said when I pointed the dog out to her, "He climbs up the tree by the side of the shed to get up on the roof. I guess he likes the view."

Visions of Snoopy crossed my mind--I guess Schultz's idea of a beagle on the roof of his doghouse wasn't so strange after all.

 

[Beaumont67]

Mean daddy...squirrels are fair game in the backyard and might even turn out to be a midday snack. LOL I have taught Kyrah to follow my hands or touch which you could hold your hand up above her to look/touch. Plus she knows look...meaning look for something or find it...meaning find something especially if you are already looking. Then there is the low vocal...geeet iiittt...or we also say "where is it" in a certain tone that gets the dogs going searching for something...anything...was that a lizard?

I taught Amy the words "GET IT" when she was little, and it really winds her up good...LOL
Made the mistake a few years ago, thought I saw a black cat in the back yard at night, SICKED Amy on it...turned out to be a sunk.
- after much tub bathing, I slept with Amy on the couch, which we covered
- poor girl, wasn't going in the master bed that night, and she can't sleep alone
- she felt so ashamed of the stink and as it was Dads fault, we crashed out on the couch together

I did take Amys head and pointed her nose into the direction of the tree limbs, but she was still hiped up.
- to pay much attention, to where I was giding her
It was neat watching her track the scent though, and she ended up at the base of the maple tree.
First time I ever say her do this, but most cats don't climb the tree...they just run down the subdivision.

Amy is really tame to our neighbors cat, that is rarely outside.
And she does keep our yard free of stray cats.
I feed birds, chipmunks and squirels and they get pretty close to Amy, as I have conditioned her to just watch them.
Once she was sleeping on the driveway, and my chippy ran past her to get to the feeder...chipmunk was only 2 feet from Amy, and she could care less.
Two years ago, a stray cat killed one of my chipmunks, and I was so bumbed / bc I tamed it enough to eat peanuts out of my hand.
So Amy is my cat eliminator...she loves this job, keeps them off our property, most times.

 

[Herb2relax]

This conversation somehow reminds me of the time I visited someone, looked out at the 10 foot tall shed in their backyard and saw their beagle comfortably sacked out on the PEAK of the ROOF!

"Oh yes", the person said when I pointed the dog out to her, "He climbs up the tree by the side of the shed to get up on the roof. I guess he likes the view."

Visions of Snoopy crossed my mind--I guess Schultz's idea of a beagle on the roof of his doghouse wasn't so strange after all.

LOL your right...an aquaintance of mine's pit mix used to jump on a few things get on the roof and wait for his return. The neighbor called animal control! Saying they put their dogs up there all day! :lol2:

 

[Herb2relax]

I taught Amy the words "GET IT" when she was little, and it really winds her up good...LOL
Made the mistake a few years ago, thought I saw a black cat in the back yard at night, SICKED Amy on it...turned out to be a sunk.
- after much tub bathing, I slept with Amy on the couch, which we covered
- poor girl, wasn't going in the master bed that night, and she can't sleep alone
- she felt so ashamed of the stink and as it was Dads fault, we crashed out on the couch together

I did take Amys head and pointed her nose into the direction of the tree limbs, but she was still hiped up.
- to pay much attention, to where I was giding her
It was neat watching her track the scent though, and she ended up at the base of the maple tree.
First time I ever say her do this, but most cats don't climb the tree...they just run down the subdivision.

Amy is really tame to our neighbors cat, that is rarely outside.
And she does keep our yard free of stray cats.
I feed birds, chipmunks and squirels and they get pretty close to Amy, as I have conditioned her to just watch them.
Once she was sleeping on the driveway, and my chippy ran past her to get to the feeder...chipmunk was only 2 feet from Amy, and she could care less.
Two years ago, a stray cat killed one of my chipmunks, and I was so bumbed / bc I tamed it enough to eat peanuts out of my hand.
So Amy is my cat eliminator...she loves this job, keeps them off our property, most times.

I might be scared to try and sic her on anything ever again if I hit on a skunk! EWE! I bet that was STINKY!

 

[KahluaGrl]

Harley isn't a big runner, he's pretty lazy most of the time he kind of reminds me of Eeyore. But if a squirrel comes in sight its game on. He practically tries to run up the trees after them and then stands there and tries to keep jumping up the tree.

Kahlua chases after anything that moves, but she is like the energizer bunny and NEVER stops... ever... so it doesn't surprise me.

 

[Beaumont67]

I might be scared to try and sic her on anything ever again if I hit on a skunk! EWE! I bet that was STINKY!

I slept beside her, nose to nose...and I slept in my cloths, didn't get much sleep...that night.
- doze off for an hour and wake up, to the skunk smell again
Tried to get her to sleep on the living room floor...Amy wasn't having any of that, and the whining started - so up on the couch will Dad.

She is a good old girl!

I swear some of these senior dogs could give many of the young ones a run for their money!

Stormy has a crush on Amy!

Hugz to your Amy Girl!

She was pretty intense, I still get a thrill...seeing it in her / she forgot how old she was, ran more like a spring chicken / the hunt was on.
Amy needs a boy friend to, to play with...BC just a long drive though...He.He...give Stormy a kissy from Amy.

 

[Toby'shuman]

Hang on, it is okay to chase cats, but not squirrels, erm, how the heck is she supposed to know the difference. Okay they don't smell the same, but when all the dog has to go on is sight ie, something running across her field of vision, it is gonna get chased.

By the way, if Squirrels and cats and a few chipmunks are all you have to worry about then you have it easy, try Wild Boar wandering around your land and then see who chases what.

 

[Tperkins]

Rocko follows squirrel's in the trees. I have a ton of big oak trees in my yard and the wildlife knows the dogs can be in the yard. They stay up in the trees to move across that patch of land. He even teaches the Foster dogs to do it cause they seem to do the same thing in no time. He is the first dog I have seen who when prowling his area(the back yard) he not only looks around but also up in the air. I have been on the roof and he saw my backside and alerted.

 

[lestat1978]

Sorry, but I'm not at all impressed with you "sicking" your dog intentionally on another animal.

 

[TheStig]

Sorry, but I'm not at all impressed with you "sicking" your dog intentionally on another animal.

Relax bobo, you realize you are in the presence of greatness?

I'm almost positive the term 'sick' was used to merely get a point across of the dog simply chasing the cat away, not to actually catch it and chow down.

I 'sicked' my dogs on a fox in our yard one time, the little one damn near almost caught it...haven't seen the fox since.

I don't want pesky critters or animals digging around my yard. If I could teach my dobe to dig dug his way underground, I'd 'sick' him after the stupid moles tearing up my yard...

 

[lestat1978]

Sorry Stig, calling me bobo isn't going to make your argument any better. Nor will it convince me of your greatness.

He talks about really winding her up and getting her more excited. If he simply wanted the other animal shooed from his property amping the dog up was uneccessary.

And if it is truly a stray cat who is a problem, trap the animal and SOLVE the problem, don't turn it into some sport for one's own amusement.

 

[TheStig]

Sorry Stig, calling me bobo isn't going to make your argument any better. Nor will it convince me of your greatness.

He talks about really winding her up and getting her more excited. If he simply wanted the other animal shooed from his property amping the dog up was uneccessary.

And if it is truly a stray cat who is a problem, trap the animal and SOLVE the problem, don't turn it into some sport for one's own amusement.

Not my greatness, beaumonts greatness. I am not great, I am but a squirrel...living in beaumonts world, trying to get a nut.

Getting the dog amped up is not unnecessary when you are encouraging a behavior. He doesn't want cats in his yard so he praises his girl when she chases them away.

And so what if it amuses him. His girl is in her last years and if this makes her happy and him happy, there is no harm.

I suppose we should just trap burglars too, to SOLVE that problem, instead of being proactive and thwarting a possible break in by sounding the guard (Amy).

That lady who threw the cat in the garbage can and trapped it...she got in all kinds of trouble, so it might just be better to chase away instead.