Oscars new adventures March 2020

PANDEMIC Corona virus

We are moving into an awful time of a highly infectious virus which is spreading across the globe.
There is talk of being made to stay at home for 12 weeks to avoid catching and spreading the disease and therefore overwhelming the NHS who may not be able to cope. Vulnerable people should stay home now.

Well of course none of this affects Oscar, today is like any other to him, a hearty breakfast and a good walk, beach or country or both. Some fun in the house and another short walk later on.

Oscar is growing so much, people say he is not a cocker spaniel he is a sprocker who will be quite big, and Sprockers are able to keep going all day.

With his strength and his energy, I am finding Oscars lead training very difficult, and there are times he is so strong he almost pulls me off my feet. I am beginning to think I am not helping him any. I have watched videos, read books and followed the guidance of some very experienced dog trainers.

I tend to pop Oscar in the car and then drive to a park or beach and let him run free, this of course is not helping him learn to walk on the lead. He is a good dog off the lead, very sociable with other dogs and comes back on command or the whistle. But this is not helping him with lead training.

Therefore I have made the decision that I do not have the skills or the energy to be able to fulfill all his needs. He needs to be active, have lots of attention and have lots of things to do. I don't think we can give him enough of all this.

We considered how to rehome him, it would only be to a perfect family or to do a job in drugs or search and rescue. We planned on taking time to find the right place, and in the meantime continue with his training with Lian from Blyth who is very good.

First we responed to and advert from the Police Dog Section, they where looking for new dog recruits. A very nice police officer came along and took Oscar off to do some tests.  We were sure he would be perfect for them. Sadly he didn't pass the test and he came back to us. But we were happy to have him back. I had mixed feelings, I was happy to get him back but it wasn't helping the problems.

The virus has now caused the country to lock down.  All non essential businesses have closed, only the NHS emergency services and food shops are continuing to operate. The dog trainers are not working.  We have continued doing what we can, but now we are being told the pandemic the corona virus is spreading quickly and we are being told to stay home, only have one walk an day.

Oscar doesn't understand this, he needs his exercise.

We received a call from another Police dog handler, who met Oscar on his training day, she knows a family who are looking for a dog to join them.  The family is made up of two adults and two teenage children,  the Police of course check them to make sure they are suitable to take on a bouncy pup like Oscar. 

The Police officer took Oscar off to meet the family, they only live a couple of miles away.  We paced the floor worrying about what we were doing.

When he came back, we were told the family have fallen in love with him, they even love his name. We made the final decision then and there, no turning back, Oscar is going to be much better off.  The family are fit, they go running, camping, they will take him on holidays with them. They have a big garden and just a short walk to the beach and the woods. The two children are old enough to manage him and join in his training, he will become a perfect family pet. He will have four people to love him, and grow with him.

The decision was made after a lot of soul searching, dealing with the stress of giving him up to someone else and the horrible feeling of  failing him and being responsible for his future.

He went off  with the Police Officer with all his belongings the next day in a police dog van, the closest he will get to being in the Police. My goodness he had some gear as well, bedding, toys, books food treats. I dont think he had ever read any of the books.

The house was suddenly empty, my little brown slinky pup has gone to his new home.  Our routine is completely different and its hard not to think I must get Oscar or have you fed Oscar. It had all become a routine.

We have had news of him since he left and he is settling in nicely with the family. They are finding out his funny ways, and probably now remembering to put shoes socks etc away, as he steals them, to get you to chase him. We also have had some photos, of him playing with the family. They have a cat as well, I haven't heard how he is getting on with the cat.

Hopefully one day we will bump into him on the beach or in the woods, but I know we have done the right thing. We miss him every day, its taking a while to get used to an empty house again.

Good luck Oscar, your picture is on the wall, we won't ever forget you, and we like that you are living close by, and we will hear how you get on.

31st December 2019 HAPPY NEW YEAR

DECEMBER 31ST 2019

Moving into 2020 tonight, heavens it seems like only months since the millennium.

We have tried to keep Oscar calm around loud noises, so we hope the fireworks tonight will not upset him.  We live near farmland where we can hear shooting in the fields and that isn't causing him any problems.  There are normally lots of fireworks as we also live near the beach and local towns put on some very loud and long firework displays.  Fingers crossed he will be ok.

We changed our minds about getting him castrated. We decided to leave it until he is a bit older.  it was advice from many people who said there was no need, or to leave it until he is a bit older.

Training wise he is doing well, his recall off the lead on the beach is excellent. He plays nicely with other dogs and comes back when I call him. He never roams too far from me.  He loves the beach, especially the sand dunes, he races up and down them and runs about like crazy on the beach and in the sea.

Our main problem is with his lead work, I thought we had got it sorted but it seems he has gone backwords with his lead training and he is pulling and lurching too much. We have tried several halters and  leads now.  The latest one was a Canni Collar, but it kept slipping off and he was obviously uncomfortable. Using a halter seems to make him pull more. The one we are using now is a half choke on a flat lead. But we will see what happens on Friday.

We are lucky to have Abbie from Wag and Walkies who has been walking Oscar a lot since I damaged my knee.  She has also tried several ways to train him to walk nicely on the lead and so far she is making some progress.

Wag and Walkies    https://www.facebook.com/wagandwalkieswithabbie/   

Let your pup join us at Wag and Walkies! 

Casual one off walks when required or regular walks available

This week we are taking him to Ruffside Gundogs Training in Consett. He has been highly recommended as the person to go to,  who trains cockers to walk gently on the lead.  I think this is probably the only thing we are struggling with. He is very strong and pulls like a train on the lead, he tries to chase seagulls and crows and we come back quite tired and aching.

Ruffside Gundogs
https://www.facebook.com/Ruffside-Gundogs-736046869844816/
Based in Consett he seems to have a very good reputation.  I  will write about the session next time.

16th December 2019 7 months old

 I am told that sitting on the back of chairs is normal for cockers.

 Tired after a long walk, but keeping an eye out just in case.

We think that he has reached his full size now, we hope so as we didn't expect him to reach this size. 

28th November 2019

We have had our second training class this week and its going well.  The coaches are very knowledgeable and understanding.

We are using Dog Trust Training School.

https://www.dogstrust.org.uk/help-advice/dog-school/newcastle/

We have learnt so much about how to teach Oscar its been invaluable and we hope to continue onto the next course if we pass this one.

Oscar is still biting jumping up and generally being a normal hyper Cocker Spaniel. There is another Cocker Spaniel on the course, same age and also a working cocker.  They have the same issues as we do, so its good to know we are not alone.

We invested in a no pull collar this week in the hope that we can get him to walk without tugging.

Its early days but we are starting to see a little improvement.

He still loves his hour on the field playing fetch with the ball.  He is very good at this.

 Collywell Bay

Watching the seagulls 

Its not often he is lying like this.

19 November 2019 Oscar is 6 months old.

I can't pretend that our lives haven't changed since Oscar came to live with us.
We didn't do our homework before hand and we ended up using our hearts and not our heads to choose a dog.

It was only later that we bought a handbook on the Cocker Spaniel that we found out Oscar is actually a Working Cocker.  Bred to work as a gun dog or farm dog. He is always on the go, and is so quiet you don't know he is about until he pinches something, running away and hoping you will play games with him.

Its easy enough to manage when its just once or twice, but when your ironing and suddenly the shirt that took ages to iron has disappeared and you need to start again.

Having said that, despite his energetic personality, he is a real star. He is learning the boundary's of what he can and cant do. He knows how to fetch a ball and drop it at your feet. He knows he does not get fed from our table and he knows when its bed time.

He is ready for bed around 10pm and will sleep quite happily until about 7am in his crate. The crate is comfy with cushion mattress,  and covered with a blanket to make him feel safe and cosy.  The crate is big enough for him to stretch out, stand up and move about.

One thing I regret is not putting his crate in the kitchen, instead he sleeps in our bedroom. I think it would have been easier to manage his separation anxiety which is a real problem.  I can't go into the shower without him howling at the door.

This is an oven mit, he puts his nose into it and then  pushes it round the kitchen, strange. 

 We bought a shaped bowl to keep his ears dry.





He has managed to get the hang of fetching the ball. As long as nothing distracts him he is very good.

Tonight is his first attendance at Dogs Trust training.

IT disaster

I am back on line after a 3 week disconnection. Hurrah, I have a mobile phone but its too small to mess about with.

So, I am busy typing away, went to look at the calendar which is in the same room. Next thing I hear is a clink and my freshly made coffee was seeping nicely into my drowning lap top.

I tried drying it out, spoke to my IT daughter who laughed and said sounds like a new one mam.

Anyway £180 later I have it back minus a lot of material, photos writing etc. Luckily most was backed up.

He is forgiven, I have nearly got into pushing the chair in when I leave the table, even for a second.

He attends regular puppy training, he is learning quite well. I am told he is actually a working cocker, needs lots of exercise, but very good at learning new things. 

1st October nearly 5 months old already

We have found Oscar to be a very busy little pup, always on the go and ready for anything.
He is very slick as well so we need to keep doors, drawers etc closed and our decorative items are getting higher and higher.

But he is great fun as well.  He loves to go on long walks, and we have found a park where we can book a field all to himself, its very secure and he can run all his energy off.  Its what he needs, but until he can come back safely and obey instructions he must stay on the lead most of the time.

We live on the coast and at least 2 dogs have fallen from the cliff top and died from their injuries.

Despite his energy and his odd moments of madness, his training is coming along quite well. He is walking very well on the lead, Although he does have times when he lunges at things, which can almost pull your arm out of the socket.

We have invested in a halti which means we have control from his chest as well as the harness round his shoulders. I am finding it very good, it seems a much softer way to get him to walk on the lead.
https://haltiwalkhappy.com/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIiKqHufn65AIVibTtCh2Vjw-pEAAYASAAEgLMA_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

We chose this one, which pulls from the front.

https://haltiwalkhappy.com/halti-no-pull-harness



There are a range of harnesses, we went into https://www.petsathome.com/?msclkid=b3781e16efe6159539fb4385d87181a8&gclid=COTJydn5-uQCFQmDhQodAV8E-A&gclsrc=ds
where you can take your dog in and there will be someone to help you try them.

Just chilling out at home, 

 
 long lie in the sun

By the river at Warkworth