PBS Nature: Underdogs?

I only caught the last half of it but i thought it was pretty good. The guy with the bloodhound looked like he knew what he was doing but everytime the lady with the bearded collie came on she was always screaming at him. I mean she deffinetly knows how to teach a dog to herd sheep better than i do/ever will, but the more she yelled at him the more he ignored her.

I watched it too.. Holly (Bloodhound) and Herbie (Beardie).  I cried when the man handed his 'ugly redhead' over to the police force, you'd be so proud of her, knowing how far she's come, but after 12 weeks together, it would be hard to let go..

yep i watched it and loved it. Miki, the shepherd, is a lot like Herbie..... "kill the ball! kill the stick! kill the GOAT!"

i just wish i knew someone who could come out and teach me how to teach this dog.. if Herbie and Holly could do it, then so could Miki. 

DumDog

i just wish i knew someone who could come out and teach me how to teach this dog

I used to feel that way about Bugsy.  I know you are super experienced with dogs so you will figure it out.  To me the show really highlighted that 'bad' dogs are often just not getting the stimulation they need.  Just like in teaching humans you need to figure out how to unlock that particular dog.

Bugsy has still never approached a toy other than by pouncing on it and then giving it a good shake

part of the issue with these supposed untrainable dogs is time.. not on the dog's part, but the human's.

it would be a slap in my face if i gave a dog to the pound claiming it was "stupid, useless, must be retarded or something" only to see that same dog in a high budget film as one of the main characters, or out doing S&R, saving someone's life.

So its often times, or so i've noticed, the the ability at the other end of the leash that determines if a dog is suitable for the task it was bred for. i've heard people say a particular dog didnt have the temperament needed to represent its breed, but have seen the same dog switch gears when under a new owner's control.

Case in point..

I'm about 90% sure that Ben, the feline bulldog, would be more bully if he hadnt been kenneled or chained for half is life. and sure, i call him a soft dog, but i already know thats not true. Ben is just not the dominant dog. if he was the only dog he would probably thrive and make someone proud. Right now, though, if Kaydee isnt with him he doesnt know what to do. but that goes back to his beginnings. he's never been allowed to be a dog. he was a prisoner of sorts, watching everyone else. So without Kaydee as his leader(i call her his brain actually) he tends to panic.

funny story....a while back i heard Ben barking his fool head off, but it wasnt his normal tone. he was upset about something. i looked out the window to see him pacing the invisible fence and flinching, looking around nervously, then nose in the air he would bark or growl. i went outside thinking he'd lost his mind.......
...it was a turtle...
Kaydee would have just eaten the turtle and i would have never known it was there. Ben? he didnt know what the heck to do with it. i picked up the turtle to show it to him but he ran away to the other side of the yard.....

in a way he did his job.. he told me something was out of place, but the running away bit.. well thats just Ben lol

When i first got him, nearly two years ago, his previous owner claimed i couldnt keep him indoors because he'd pee on everything. i also was advised i'd have to tie him DOWN to bath him.. and he used to balk while trying to walk him anywhere. and if you changed his living conditions in the slightest he would freeze like a statue. These days he'll drag you to come inside the house, he loves to go for walks, and well.. he doesnt love a bath, but i've never had to "tie him down" for one. but i also never used a pressure hose like they were!

and he's yet to pee in my house! lol 

after saying all that about Ben... Miki is the opposite. she's in hyper drive and prey driven. Ben took time to come around, and so will Miki, but its a little more of a situation with her. instead of running away from strangers, she attacks them(in a friendly way!) and wants to jump on them. in the evening at bed time she spends an hour trying to jump on the bed. running from one side to the other... DH still doesnt think she needs a crate. 

I watched that too. I wanted to cry when the man was kissing Holly goodbye. 

JJ was horrified at the way the woman was yelling at Herbie. Heck I yell at Lillie alot more than I'd like but she seems to listen to me better when I sound like a crazed woman. Then JJ said it must be a woman thing.

 lol got to get his attention some how i guess. not sure how else you'd cure a sheep mauler. but then i dont own or train sheep dogs.....