Comments on: I failed my dog

By: Glen Coco

Glen Coco — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 08:00:03 +0000

God shut up, the dog got what it deserved, u weren’t being a bad guardian. The dog now knows not to mess with horses.

By: Maggie

Maggie — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 14:43:43 +0000

Thank you so much for your kind words! You are absolutely right; if I had called him, he probably would not have come! How can I compete with a horse?! I’m so happy and relieved he’s doing ok. His eye is healing, his limp is already gone.

Also, very interesting about not bringing the dog’s attention to the handler. Not something I’ve thought about before, but it does make perfect sense… I think your insights have inspired me to work harder on getting a recall from a whistle!

By: BowDog

BowDog — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 14:39:48 +0000

How would it have been differently if you weren’t there to witness what happened? You can’t feel bad about what happened, if anything, he’ll never do it again and will be more cautious in new situations in the future, looking to you for guidance. Do you really think he would have come back if you had called him or would he have been having too much fun? How do you think farm dogs learn to stay a healthy distance away from livestock?

We take our city dogs herding and the #1 thing the instructor told us is to never bring the dog’s attention to us as a handler (the reason why herders use their voice, whistles, canes to control the movement of their dog). The moment the dog stops watching the livestock, the handler has failed the dog and puts it in danger of getting trampled, kicked, or making a fatal turn (off a cliff, etc).

I hope your guilt is short lived and that you’re able to reassure yourself that your pooch probably won’t try again Glad it wasn’t a serious injury.

By: Maggie

Maggie — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 03:27:38 +0000

Thanks, Jen! That was so nice of you… I just felt so horrible that we didn’t get there fast enough, but thankfully all is well! His eye should be cleared up in a couple days, and his leg is just bruised. No more farms for these city dogs, though!

By: Jen

Jen — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 18:16:30 +0000

I hate that you feel that you failed Lucas. In every way possible, I think that you and John are the best dog guardians around. The fact that he is so loving and playful around other dogs, other animals, and humans shows that you in no way have failed your dogs. Please give Lucas a big hug from me and Don and a big ol’ smooch from Cady.

By: John

John — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 19:27:49 +0000

Luckily, our lesson only involved a puffy eye and slight limp, and not a trip to the emergency room…