Submitted by addictedtolabs on Sat, 2008-02-16 22:06.
Well guys, I have joined the "little guys" club. I just knew watching all your training videos and reading the comments might come in handy some day. .
If I can find a spot to post a picture, i will let you guys guess what Kenny is.
Kenny is very cute. I have only met one Brussels Griffon before. He was super friendly and immediately sat in my lap! He is also pretty darn fast on an agility course.
You will have fun training a "little guy". My biggest hurdle with getting a small dog was seeing her! She doesn't show up in my peripheral vision.
Submitted by addictedtolabs on Thu, 2008-02-21 12:44.
Thanks Val.
Oh great, my big labs are not always visible in my peripheral vision. LOL. For his own safety, Kenny is going to be trained to work at distance and in front of me. He is very seldom on my lap and I wont be carrying him around. Will have to wait and see if we have any natural  speed and drive to build on. . I am not seeing the "high energy" the prior owner complained about, but of course, he is over weight and is getting a lot more exercise and attention then he had in her home.
We are working on crate training using Crate Games and it is going very well.
I hope you and Beth will share the experiences you had with the early training.
Submitted by agilityaddict on Thu, 2008-02-21 22:19.
He's adorable Jean! Sure you don't want to make him a lap dog?
 I don't know if I could run a small dog. I'm always getting after my students with small dogs to stand up straight and then when I get out there with a small dog, I do the same thing!
Wendy... I am sure that we will see a picture of kenny either carried by jean or in her lap!! After all, he has been bred for centuries to excell as a toy dog and I am sure that they are masters of manipulation!!!
As far as small dog people leaning over ..... the behavior is leaning over is reinforcing because it gets the smaller dog out further away from us (making them easier to see)..... standing up actually encourages them to come in more (ie you are 'smaller from their perspective) which makes them harder to see ... you said it yourself... when you get out there you do the same thing!!!
I think you will have a lot of fun with a brussels! I would certainly not consider them the 'dark' side ... perhaps they might be on the 'far' side at least from the lab perspective!. It IS hard sometimes to 'see' little dogs, particulalry if they are in the brown range ... they do tend to disappear in the dirt ... however you may be one of the lucky ones that have a small dog that barks around the course...vbg!!!   Barking does provide a good clue to dogs location!!! (as long as your hearing is up to the task!!)
Gone to the dark side
Well guys, I have joined the "little guys" club. I just knew watching all your training videos and reading the comments might come in handy some day. .
If I can find a spot to post a picture, i will let you guys guess what Kenny is.
Cheers,
Jean
Re: Gone to the dark side
Hi Jean,
Kenny is very cute. I have only met one Brussels Griffon before. He was super friendly and immediately sat in my lap! He is also pretty darn fast on an agility course.
You will have fun training a "little guy". My biggest hurdle with getting a small dog was seeing her! She doesn't show up in my peripheral vision.
Have fun!
ValÂ
Re: Gone to the dark side
Thanks Val.
Oh great, my big labs are not always visible in my peripheral vision. LOL. For his own safety, Kenny is going to be trained to work at distance and in front of me. He is very seldom on my lap and I wont be carrying him around. Will have to wait and see if we have any natural  speed and drive to build on. . I am not seeing the "high energy" the prior owner complained about, but of course, he is over weight and is getting a lot more exercise and attention then he had in her home.
We are working on crate training using Crate Games and it is going very well.
I hope you and Beth will share the experiences you had with the early training.
Cheers,
Jean
Re: Gone to the dark side
He's adorable Jean! Sure you don't want to make him a lap dog?
 I don't know if I could run a small dog. I'm always getting after my students with small dogs to stand up straight and then when I get out there with a small dog, I do the same thing!
Have fun with him! Dani's getting big!
Wendy
Re: Gone to the dark side
Wendy... I am sure that we will see a picture of kenny either carried by jean or in her lap!! After all, he has been bred for centuries to excell as a toy dog and I am sure that they are masters of manipulation!!!
As far as small dog people leaning over ..... the behavior is leaning over is reinforcing because it gets the smaller dog out further away from us (making them easier to see)..... standing up actually encourages them to come in more (ie you are 'smaller from their perspective) which makes them harder to see ... you said it yourself... when you get out there you do the same thing!!!
elizabethÂ
Re: Gone to the dark side
I think you will have a lot of fun with a brussels! I would certainly not consider them the 'dark' side ... perhaps they might be on the 'far' side at least from the lab perspective!. It IS hard sometimes to 'see' little dogs, particulalry if they are in the brown range ... they do tend to disappear in the dirt ... however you may be one of the lucky ones that have a small dog that barks around the course...vbg!!!   Barking does provide a good clue to dogs location!!! (as long as your hearing is up to the task!!)
enjoy!!! elizabethÂ