framing fowl -daily living

ohiofarmgirl

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wow!! Framing!! GREAT job on the finance stuff - dont you just feel relieved?!??! whew!!! one thing money cant buy is the sense of relief from debt
;-)

(yes i know money pays for debt...this is my ironic day. hee hee)

anyway - super good news. and i'm so glad that you are reading the Monks book! dont you love the pic of the dogs all in a row and the brother in his robes walking over them?!?!? i do that to my guys.

Okay, so here's a question, if they need jobs, what does a pit mix and an Australian Shepherd mix do on 1/4 acre?
all kinds of things! remember they dont asign a value to a job like we do (altho Ti thinks popping the hens back over the fence is stupid...). all dogs want is to work as part of a team and to be recognized.

the shep mix you have really needs to have her mind active. so walk walk walk, throw the ball, teach them to 'walk the property line', chase the ball, find the ball, hide treats and "where is the ______", 'lets go _______ (get the mail, find the paper, find daddy, find the kids, find the toy no not that toy the other one'. it doesnt even have to be a real job - they just want to participate in what you are doing and have something to do too.

one of the suggestions someone had was "lets make dinner" - have the Aus/Shep find her 'place' (you can put a bed or a towel or whatever) in the kitchen and have her sit there and watch you make dinner. stupid job? nope, remember in their working lives they watch sheep for hours. she should be able to sit still the whole time. just from time to time include her by telling her she is a good dog, ask her to come to you, sit at your feet, ok back to place... just keep her active and engaged. heck you could even teach her the appliances - hey good girl! where is the stove? (point to where she should go and have her sniff it) good dog! where is the fridge? (same thing) good dog. now back to Place!

one gal i know has hunting dogs so when she gets home she hides treats in the yard and has her dogs find them. easy AND it keeps them busy.

sometimes when i throw the ball (badly) i just tell the dogs to find it and then walk away. eventually they find it and show up...this is my lazy dog day job
;-)

i think i mentioned this somewhere before, but a vet i know suggested that i move from verbal commands to hand signals. the point was that they are learning something new. i cant whistle so this works really well (have you seen the real shepherd with their whistle commands!?! wow!)... now we are working on Ti following my eyes and taking his queues from that! its totally cool. never underestimate how much you are 'talking' to your dog with your body language.

and yes! you have to train yourself.. hee hee hee sometimes you arent your dogs best friend! there was some things that we had to do differently but once you get it and it clicks - its really great.

congrats again on your financial success!!

;-)
 

big brown horse

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Are you guys talking about the Monks that raise and train German Shephards? I think I read about them a long time ago. Sounds like I need to reread it.

Good advice OFG, I love all those ideas and I think I need to do some of those things with my wild St. Bernard pup. She is a great LGD, but she works for no one. (The only good thing she does is her LGD work, other than that she is not such a great dog...wont come when called, tries to run away, beats up other dogs etc. But not even a crow is allowed into her yard and the ducks can eat right out of her bowl, she waits. Hey!!!! Lets start a dog training thread!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

FF, I am so happy you are paying down the debt! I love to hear stories about how folks pinch, save and sell to pay down their debts. It is such an old fashioned idea to pay off your debts and not incure anymore isn't it? GOOD FOR YOU!!!!! :thumbsup
 

ohiofarmgirl

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yes yes yes! i LOVE those guys!

sounds like your StB has ants in her pants! we say around here - a tired dog is a good dog!
:)

i would LOVE to have a 'real' LGD.. probably an anatolian.. oohhhh.. yes. my hubby wants an Akita - he had one before and frankly we need a varmint killer. my two arent hunters and poor Shady is so old she cant, but she was a real hunter in her day
:)

a dog thread would be good - i think a couple folks have had problems wiht their dogs lately. my two are in time out right now. its VERY sad if you are a dog in time out (looks over at two hang dog faces). they stampeded thru the hens and one of my old gals took a tumble. she's ok but the running thru the hens, even once, gets you in Big Trouble. (looks over, even sadder looking dogs).

and i love success stories too! i'm about sick of hearing folks complain about their debt - usually in their leased car on the way to dinner with their kids having $500 each.. sigh...

we need that CAN-DO spirit!!! Framing can be our poster child!! whoot!

:)
 

big brown horse

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we need that CAN-DO spirit!!! Framing can be our poster child!! whoot!


Right!! :thumbsup

My bad dog is NON stop all day running the fence line looking for someone to beat up if they get too close to her flock. I had a guest over the other day who said, "I didn't know big dogs could move like that." I never see her slow down...she has shephard and pier in her I think. Moves like a shephard and has those gnarley dew claws like the great pier. Just marked like a Saint. (She steals apples right off the high branches of the trees too. Naughty dog, but darn I LOVE HER!! If anyone else owned her she would end up back at the pound.)

OHG you have to start the "bad dog" thread, you have the book and the experience. :D
 

Beekissed

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a dog thread would be good - i think a couple folks have had problems wiht their dogs lately. my two are in time out right now. its VERY sad if you are a dog in time out (looks over at two hang dog faces). they stampeded thru the hens and one of my old gals took a tumble. she's ok but the running thru the hens, even once, gets you in Big Trouble. (looks over, even sadder looking dogs).
This is hilarious! :lol:

This is the exact reaction to dog time outs at my home.....sad, moochy looks! How do they make their faces get anymore hang dog than they usually are, I don't know, but they manage to look so...so....wounded. :rolleyes: :lol:
 

lorihadams

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I wish I could get a picture of my chocolate lab's face when you tell her she is a bad girl. She halfway closes her eyes and I swear she pulls her mouth back as far as she can until she has this awful smirk on her face. She looks awful.

I do the "where did ball go" trick with my labs too, she does circles in the yard until she finds it. She brings balls to anyone that will stand still, UPS man, people coming to look at the car for sale, the meter reader, etc. You get the point :lol:
 

hwillm1977

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My dogs like to pull me on a bicycle... I have a pit bull and a pit bull/lab mix. I taught them voice commands for left, right, whoa, easy, watch bike, and let's go... they will run anywhere from 5-10 miles a day during the summer, less now that there's snow on the ground because of their short hair they get cold. (I wear skis in the winter).

They LOVE it, and they can wear themselves out in no time without me wearing myself out. They also wear their harnesses and take the garbage out for me (I attach them to a kids wagon and they run the bags to the end of the driveway in the summertime.

We do clicker training too, and I try to teach them a new trick every week. But mental exercises are lots of fun for them too (like watching you cook supper).
 

Beekissed

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I would love to bring you my young dog for some training.....he has so much energy that needs to be tapped that I would love to strap him to a bike or skis and let him pull someone or something....he just quivers with excess energy! :barnie

Especially during apple time. I think all those apples he eats ferments into apple jack in his stomach and the sugar causes the effects of taking speed....the poor animal cannot sit down! :p
 

framing fowl

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These are such great ideas for my dogs!!! Love them! I need to keep reading in my book, I've worked 50 extra hours in the last two weeks in addition to my regular job so I need to get back on the stick with that! You guys are all such an encouragement, I love it here!

As far as the can-do spirit, I take no credit for that. My DH taught me everything I know. When I wanted to hang around with him he made if very clear that "Can't" was the worst 4 letter word in the world and would not be tolerated... EVER.

He was in an accident when he was 11 and broke his back as well experiencing a significant open head injury. He never let that stop him from enjoying a single moment in life. He lives absolutely without fear of anything and is helping me let go of my fears. He uses a wheelchair but can walk if he has crutches or something to lean on. He drives, dives, hikes, welds, and plays sports... just a normal guy.

When we moved from Spokane, WA to here 4 years ago, he had a 500 lb metal lathe that needed to be moved from the shop into the trailer. I was having a hard time visualizing exactly how this would happen without having to spend a fortune paying someone to help us... 4 lengths of waterpipe as rollers and a come along do wonders! Brain over brawn has gotten him a lot done!

So now rather than saying the word can't, I say things like, "Can you help me figure out how to..." Or "Do you know someone that can teach me..." "I'm still brainstorming on how to accomplish..."
 
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