In answer to the question of abuse.
We know for sure he was kicked, punched and slapped. We know for sure he was dragged around by his collar and yelled at. We know for sure that the kids in the house used to bang his kennel and poke things at him through it. We know that he was neglected and fed next to nothing. We know this because the previous owners have been charged in the past for animal abuse and it was cited the things they did. Also he displays passive responses to any of the above mentioned things if it occurs.
I have decided we are going to start on the food issue this MONDAY. We started (as soon as we got him) on entering and leaving the door FIRST. He is mostly good at that except when he knows he is going to the offleash park. Then he gets the border collie focus on THE PARK and thats it. his focus is just park,park,park,park,park....you can see it in his eyes. I never tell him where we are going...he just knows. He is a smart cookie...the mood in me probably tells him we are going to the parkk...theres not much i can do to change that!!
Barry works at home and i go out to work. what usually happens is when i come home i take him out for a walk and then we will start the feeding schedule. Just to clarify carrie...when i put our dish of food down next to his bowl and barry and myself eat off of it...where should Oz be while he is watching this? I got the just about feeding him for 10 minutes in another room and thats it, but where should he be when we start this excersice??
He has also developed a seperation anxiety towards me. He gets quite frantic when i step away from him in social gatherings...the vet's yesterday...i was 8 feet away talking to an old client and oz was just screaming at the top of his lungs and lunging toward me. Barry had to basically sit on him to prevent him from going anywhere. Oz could SEE me but he was freaking out. He has done this before. At obedience when we were doing the sit/stay and walk away, Oz would start whining and yelling at me even though I was just accross the room. He would still sit/stay, but let it be known to everyone that it wasn't ok with him. When we gave the "come" command he flew accross the room like he had wings. Is there anything I can do about this or will this start to downplay itself when we start addressing the feeding issue....will his self-confidence in some capacities return?? I hope so. I know it will take time but with consistency I am hoping he will calm down in many area's.
Michelle
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