The Huntaway or New Zealand Sheep Dog as it’s known.
They are required to have great intelligence, agility and stamina for days on end, driving sheep through rough countryside, over large distances.
Sounds exhausting, doesn’t it?? Not that lack of exercise or stimulation was the cause for Ashli to get in contact with me, regarding her 2 year old Huntaway dog Bear.
Apparently Bear was taking his guarding duties a bit too seriously. Not only was he terrorising the postman on a daily basis. He became very assertive when behind any kind of barrier…..door, window, gate, stair gate etc.
And this came to a ‘ bit of a head’ when Ashli found she couldn’t even put fuel in her own car, when Bear was in the back , without him barking and slamming himself against the window of the vehicle. I might add, that I actually saw this behaviour with my own eyes and for a moment thought the glass might dislodge from the car window frame !!
So, Ashli and I met up and started some training practices with Bear. No wonder they say that Huntaways have great intelligence. Bear was very receptive to what we had to teach him and seemed to enjoy the experience.
Ashli recently emailed me with an update ,and it would seem that things have dramatically changed….this is what she had to say….
I’m over the moon with the help you gave us with Bear. Before we came to you, he would get overly aggressive at windows and especially at the front door.
It was very difficult to try and get him to listen or to stop. Now with what you’ve taught us, the postman is able to come in the front door and play with Bear, without him barking,lunging and snarling . He is a completely different dog…..in the best way possible. It seems all we needed was someone to try different options with us until something worked…. and it has!! Thank you so much.