[Mercury's Mom]

Mercury is the most laid back dog Ive ever met and has very little drive, but he learns very quickly and seems to want to do what he is supposed to, just because he is supposed to. He sits because he is supposed to but isn't interested in any kind of treat Ive come across and doesn't seem to care much about toys either. Nothing bothers him (except gets nervous around santa we've just found out) but that goes both ways. He just doesn't seem to care about much of anything. He is attached to my kids and I but as long as he knows where we are is content to sleep far away from where we are in the room. I have never come across a spoo like him, they are usually stuck to their people like glue aren't they?

I would love to do an activity with him, partially held make our bond stronger. I can't do conformation with him because he doesn't fit the standard. He is being trained as a therapy dog but I want to do an aditional activity with him so HE will get to have fun. What would fit his temperment? We are starting obedience classes with the AKC kennel club in Jan and want to know what direction to head from there. I had planned on showing him in obedience but just don't know if he would get any enjoyment out of that.

 

[plumcrazy]

How about rally obedience? Lucy and I are going to be attending classes beginning in January. I watched some rally trials at the dog show here in town last summer and it looked really fun. It's not as rigidly structured as obedience and it's definitely an activity that you can do together... Just a thought!

 

[Mercury's Mom]

I don't know much about that or if it's even available here but I'd sure like to find out. Can you tell me more about it?

 

[Mercury's Mom]

Oh...Is that the one where you have to read signs in an obsticle course and have your dog preform different thinks? I saw that on tv and it did look fun.

 

[plumcrazy]

Oh...Is that the one where you have to read signs in an obsticle course and have your dog preform different thinks? I saw that on tv and it did look fun.

Yep, sort of like that! When I watched the trials here, it looked like both the dogs and owners were having so much fun! The obedience trials were interesting, too, but that's much more like "work" where the rally O is more relaxed and fun... It's a place for us to start at least, maybe someday we'll tackle the obedience, too... I've read on here that you can make your own rally O course (get little orange cones and print your own signs from the computer) and you can play with this on your own... Good luck!

 

[wishpoo]

If he was trained as a therapy than his behavior is absolutely perfect for a therapy dog . He was trained NOT to be into the face or too close to people in the house so a person who needs help would not accidentally stumble over him or be pushed by accident. Therapy dog needs to be calm and come only when called . That does not mean that he is "not bonding" - he is just respecting your space and is patient to no end sitting without a praise - he is really very nice and calm dog and trained to behave a certain way.

If you want him to become more outgoing than you have to engage him in more one on one playtime and body contact and call him often to be by your side and do things with you and kids. Make all of those activities fun for him - you will discover soon what games he loves . Now , you have to be patient since he was chosen for the therapy for a reason - they looked into his temperament and decided that he has a potential for that and so he is born with very calm traits but he should not be "unresponsive" . I wonder why he was dropped from a program:rolffleyes: ?!

In any case - you will have to do some "trail and error" activities until you find what will make him "tick" . He might become more ready for a play-time and together time, but since he is already 5 months old and is born with such temperament he might never be an "energetic" and/or "clingy" but it has it's advantages ; )) !

Wishing you both the best of luck with everything : )) !