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May. 30th, 2026 10:10 amRobs pops long lines without noticing -- he breaks the metal clips when he's running -- so I've pivoted to just letting him go with his shorter leash dropped. I can make myself sufficiently interesting for him to stay in the upper field with me; of course chasing him just would turn into a keep-away game but it gives a chance to reward coming to me on his own, and if I turn and start walking slowly away he generally comes close. It also lets him make choices around impulse control and jumping etc, which seems to be a slow road but maybe going in the right direction.
One issue is I'm in a high-control situation with him a lot of the time; on the leash or in the run he's monitored and even though I'm doing walks where he's choosing where to go, I'm still choosing the speed and what to do about some of the more interesting objects (cats, ducks, the things he eats which include year-old rotten seed potatoes, year-old dried tomatoes, his own poop if it's over a couple days old, books, candles, the handle of his brush). We don't have a partnership yet where he trusts me to make decisions for him, and I can tell he hasn't had to make too many decisions of his own in the past. I guess that's the living in an apartment thing. I really need to prioritize a larger space that doesn't just teach him to break fences so he can hang out and just be himself in an outdoor space.
He also seems to be novelty-seeking for his chewing. Thea and Solly were easy enough to direct; I could observe the kind of things they liked to chew, like wood or soft things, and supply them with those. Robs has a range of toys but he only seems to like them for two days or so each, and then he'll switch to other things, and those other things are often bad for him and me-- like candles, the handle of his brush which is a hard plastic coating on metal that comes off in pieces, or my books. I think the novelty chewing is in some ways an anxiety or attention-seeking behaviour, just getting a feel for it.
I wish it was as easy as giving him more attention but we haven't agreed on how he wants attention yet, or what kind he wants. The rough physical play he'd get from another dog is clearly something he wants and I won't provide. Sometimes when he's really growly, mouthy, and bouncy what he wants is a long hug and sometimes it's not. Sometimes at other times what he wants is a hug and sometimes it's not. My observation and ability to draw patterns out of his behaviour is nowhere near as good as I'd like it to be, and my brain gets tired easily. I think more ambient time together would help a great deal but I am at my absolute limit right now with time out of bed.
We always want to do better than we actually manage, I guess. When Solly is given the ok on her leg I'll have her help in entertaining him plus more time and energy to spend on him.
Interestingly he's very very well behaved around Thea. He follows her mostly quietly, does play bows a bit annoyingly but doesn't inundate her too much, and just likes being near her. What I should be doing is stealing her body language and using it, I guess. She won't let him into the radius around her food bowl, but will come on walks with us when it's not too warm. She wouldn't love being locked into a field with him but it might not be a bad choice. It would need to be closely monitored at first.
Interestingly Thea has been correcting the dogs when they try to cross the fence at the gate without me. She did it with Avallu, she does it with Solly, and she does it with Robs. What a good girl.
One issue is I'm in a high-control situation with him a lot of the time; on the leash or in the run he's monitored and even though I'm doing walks where he's choosing where to go, I'm still choosing the speed and what to do about some of the more interesting objects (cats, ducks, the things he eats which include year-old rotten seed potatoes, year-old dried tomatoes, his own poop if it's over a couple days old, books, candles, the handle of his brush). We don't have a partnership yet where he trusts me to make decisions for him, and I can tell he hasn't had to make too many decisions of his own in the past. I guess that's the living in an apartment thing. I really need to prioritize a larger space that doesn't just teach him to break fences so he can hang out and just be himself in an outdoor space.
He also seems to be novelty-seeking for his chewing. Thea and Solly were easy enough to direct; I could observe the kind of things they liked to chew, like wood or soft things, and supply them with those. Robs has a range of toys but he only seems to like them for two days or so each, and then he'll switch to other things, and those other things are often bad for him and me-- like candles, the handle of his brush which is a hard plastic coating on metal that comes off in pieces, or my books. I think the novelty chewing is in some ways an anxiety or attention-seeking behaviour, just getting a feel for it.
I wish it was as easy as giving him more attention but we haven't agreed on how he wants attention yet, or what kind he wants. The rough physical play he'd get from another dog is clearly something he wants and I won't provide. Sometimes when he's really growly, mouthy, and bouncy what he wants is a long hug and sometimes it's not. Sometimes at other times what he wants is a hug and sometimes it's not. My observation and ability to draw patterns out of his behaviour is nowhere near as good as I'd like it to be, and my brain gets tired easily. I think more ambient time together would help a great deal but I am at my absolute limit right now with time out of bed.
We always want to do better than we actually manage, I guess. When Solly is given the ok on her leg I'll have her help in entertaining him plus more time and energy to spend on him.
Interestingly he's very very well behaved around Thea. He follows her mostly quietly, does play bows a bit annoyingly but doesn't inundate her too much, and just likes being near her. What I should be doing is stealing her body language and using it, I guess. She won't let him into the radius around her food bowl, but will come on walks with us when it's not too warm. She wouldn't love being locked into a field with him but it might not be a bad choice. It would need to be closely monitored at first.
Interestingly Thea has been correcting the dogs when they try to cross the fence at the gate without me. She did it with Avallu, she does it with Solly, and she does it with Robs. What a good girl.
