Now you ask, what is all this bluster about? That night when I had to go to the ER by ambulance… I had to get someone to stay with Sabre. Sabre had multiple behavioural issues that made him unfit for service work… I could have kept him and trained him in personal protection, but I just felt we were an unsuited match all round. He went off to Dublin Gardaí to train in detection.
Now, lest you think that I exchanged one dog for another…Let me explain. Here’s a post that explains it a bit better. this post was written on the 7th of this month and sent to a few email lists to which I belong.
Hey all:
Now It’s been a while since I posted that I had to place Sabre, the
dog I was training as another assistance dog for myself… It’s also
been a little while, since the night before I placed him, I got one of
my bitches from a breeding two years ago back…
I got Annah back due to personal circumstances. People had done a lot
of work with her, loved her a lot, but husband’s ill with cancer,
they’re adopting twins…Yeah…Yeah…Yeah… So, I took the dog
back. I got her back the night before I placed Sabre, like I said.
Well, I decided to see just how “trained” she was. Not only is she
trained, but she’s very trained. Not only will she work, but she
might just work out as an assistance dog. So, she is officially in
training as of…Last weekend? She’s getting used to going into all
different types of places, and aside from a tiny bit of anxiety at
first, she’s doing really, really well!
Now, I have more good news… This might even qualify as great news.
Another kennel here in Ireland has heard about Sabre and his being
dropped. This kennel breeds working line dogs. They have a bitch
that they were planning to keep, but have decided to let me purchase
her instead. And for a steal, too!
I pick her up today. She has already been trained and has been
started in SD tasks.
So, I’ll have two dogs in training, hopefully. One of my boys is
disabled and could use a dog, so if both dogs work out, I’ll keep the
one with the high drive and give Anna to my boy, since she is a pretty
low key girl.
A lot of ifs…I know, but still…I’m jazzed.
Now, for the Sabre update…
Sabre is getting worked every day. He is kept busy all day long. His
handler says “I understand why you re-homed this dog. I am having a
devil of a time getting a handle on his barking. Even when he’s
knackered…he still barks his head off!”
I’m glad to know it’s not just me.
Other than that, “he’s a fine dog. He does everything I ask, and I’m
glad that his training was started…He has a fine foundation and
should do well.”
I’m glad he’s doing well… Eating and feeling fine… It’s a big
relief to me.
Well, I’ll close for now. I’ve got to feed dogs and walk the house crew…
Tail swishes and puppy licks to all,
As for Annah, she doesn’t fit any of our handling/training styles, and that’s a shame cause myself, my Da, and both my older boys could qualify as SD users, so we will be keeping her and placing her once she is fully trained as an SD.
Tags: German Shepherd
