Yesterday I brought Toby with us to my Moms house while our house was being shown. Tyson (ACD) is unpredictable with other dogs - knowing this we made sure to do the greeting outside and when everything went well (Toby initiated a game of chase to which Tyson gladly herded him around the yard) we went into the house.
Inside the house, Ty was a little nervous. He was whale eyed, and alert barking every few minutes. If Toby was doing something he was unsure about (like touching his toys or sniffing his bed) he'd bark in a higher pitch and Toby would move along. There were only a few times where Toby barked back, but his posture was quite loose and he seemed to be barking just to bark.
Once in a while Shenzi would alert bark in a really quick high-pitched sound. It almost seemed as though she'd forgotten Toby was there and was spooked when he came around a corner.
After some time, my Mom began to punish Ty for barking or growling. Toby was keeping his distance for the most part and just wandering the house. I told my Mom to just leave him because he was giving Toby warnings and that isn't a *bad* thing. ~ I was ignored. Mom ended up kicking him in the head when he wouldn't stop, and then justified her action by saying that cattle dogs have thick skulls and that cows kick them in the head when they're working in the fields (she doesn't own cows, and her dogs have never been 'working' dogs) so they're fine, they just need it sometimes because it sets them straight (like a reset button).
We left shortly after that.... I'm just shocked that my Mom would even spew that baloney. I can handle the fact that other people choose to train in ways that maybe I don't agree with or just plain wouldn't do. But that really bothered me. Ty wasn't doing anything wrong. He was nervous, he didn't understand why Toby was in the house because he hasn't had much dog-dog socialization or even much basic training for that matter.. and Toby has only been over like 2 other times, so he's a "strange dog" who looks different and makes snorty pig noises and is suddenly inside his house. He was uncomfortable, and he was letting Toby know that he didn't want to play in the house and to just leave him alone - which Toby respected.
At one point Toby got up on the couch and Ty was not very happy about that so he went over to him and barked and growled at him. Toby flopped straight down onto his back and laid there until Ty went quiet, then he got up and got off the couch.
They were simply communicating, and my Mom was punishing Ty for it....
Inside the house, Ty was a little nervous. He was whale eyed, and alert barking every few minutes. If Toby was doing something he was unsure about (like touching his toys or sniffing his bed) he'd bark in a higher pitch and Toby would move along. There were only a few times where Toby barked back, but his posture was quite loose and he seemed to be barking just to bark.
Once in a while Shenzi would alert bark in a really quick high-pitched sound. It almost seemed as though she'd forgotten Toby was there and was spooked when he came around a corner.
After some time, my Mom began to punish Ty for barking or growling. Toby was keeping his distance for the most part and just wandering the house. I told my Mom to just leave him because he was giving Toby warnings and that isn't a *bad* thing. ~ I was ignored. Mom ended up kicking him in the head when he wouldn't stop, and then justified her action by saying that cattle dogs have thick skulls and that cows kick them in the head when they're working in the fields (she doesn't own cows, and her dogs have never been 'working' dogs) so they're fine, they just need it sometimes because it sets them straight (like a reset button).
We left shortly after that.... I'm just shocked that my Mom would even spew that baloney. I can handle the fact that other people choose to train in ways that maybe I don't agree with or just plain wouldn't do. But that really bothered me. Ty wasn't doing anything wrong. He was nervous, he didn't understand why Toby was in the house because he hasn't had much dog-dog socialization or even much basic training for that matter.. and Toby has only been over like 2 other times, so he's a "strange dog" who looks different and makes snorty pig noises and is suddenly inside his house. He was uncomfortable, and he was letting Toby know that he didn't want to play in the house and to just leave him alone - which Toby respected.
At one point Toby got up on the couch and Ty was not very happy about that so he went over to him and barked and growled at him. Toby flopped straight down onto his back and laid there until Ty went quiet, then he got up and got off the couch.
They were simply communicating, and my Mom was punishing Ty for it....
