The Mail Bag Archives - Karen Shanley

I Thought I Was Ready for an Aussie-Cavalier Puppy but…

I recently got a note from a reader who was very honest in sharing her predicament:

Photo from doggiedesigner.com
Hi Karen,
I recently got a now 4 month old Aussie x cavalier mix, on an impulse buy. I thought I was ready for a dog. I was ready to put in the time and work with a puppy since I had spare time at this point of my ljfe. I signed him up for puppy training courses, puppy play dates, and a hired a dog walker, yet he still has so much energy at 4 months old that often leaves me exhausted.
We’ve come a long way with training inside […]

Is It Fear or Aggression or Both or Neither?

I have an adolescent male Aussie who, when on the leash, gets extremely worked up when he senses (hears, sees) another dog. All his attention goes straight to “I gotta get to that dog! I gotta get to that dog!”.
There are a lot of dogs in the neighborhood and thankfully most of them are leashed when their moms and dads walk them. However, Remy (my aussie) has a meltdown even if the dog is several blocks away.
We’ve tried treats (the good, better, best theory), his favorite toys, asking him to work (sit, down, heel, etc.), going the other direction (avoidance), but nothing seems to calm him down or works to redirect […]