Dear Labrador Forums, Lady's fear of black and white cows came to the surface again today. She was doing fine but one chased her last night in a half hearted way but that was enough to make it impossible to get her into the field this morning even though it was empty of cows. Brown cows are not a problem. Just the black and white ones. Yours sincerely, Frusrated Lingfield
Re: Cows again I'd make a big cut-out of a black and white cow and use it to gradually de-sensitise her (treats at 500 paces from the cow, then 495 paces from the cow). Might work....maybe. I'm sure that this phobia is a very negative and frustrating thing for both you and her.
Re: Cows again Poor Lady nasty cows !! Do you think she would do fun stuff next to the field? Gradually getting her into the field building a positive association with it? Maybe some retrieves in the approach and her favourite treats..... or walk with a dog who'll give her confidence? just thinking out loud really, riley hates slippy floors and we struggle whenever we go somewhere new, eventually he gets over it but it stresses him out quite a bit. good luck!!!
Re: Cows again Do you know the farmer David? Can't remember if you said you did or not. (I'm beginning to get muddled up with everybody now, must be early senility.....) Might be easier having some visits to the farm when the cows are gathered, particularly if the farmer has a friendly dog, than making a lifesize cow cut-out ;D ;D ;D I know thats what my friend does to help desensitise his dogs from sheep "sampling". : Wondering if a trip to our local deer centre might be an option for us........ jac
Re: Cows again The cows are actually bullocks and they are a bit frisky. I know the farmer with the brown cows and she's fine with them but they have never chased her even when they have fairly young calves - although the calves have occasionally tried to chase/play with her. The black and white cow thing is probably related to a nasty horse incident I had a while back when she was still very much a puppy. I think it's just a matter of working around it. I don't want to force her in any way and once she's into the cow field she jinks around them ok. If they are blocking the bridge we just go another way. She's a funny wee soul it has to be said. As timid as anything unless she's hunting and then she just goes, completely focussed on the job in hand that includes ignoring running sheep as she goes through to pick up. Not too worried about all of this - just thought I'd mention it as we had to abandon the walk this morning. Hmmm! Cow sized phot is going to be a challenge on my A4 printer. Just worked out it will need at least 130 sheets of photo paper and a large piece of hardboard 3m x 2m, plus glue. ;D
Re: Cows again I`m convinced that the horse incident is linked to this David , these dogs can be so sensitive and have remarkable memories too , how dare the black and whites be in her field, just not good enough
Re: Cows again I think you are right, Kate. Not much I can do about it I think, and anyway it's a safe default position in that she's unlikely to get into trouble. Small Black Dog says "I don't want to have to watch you getting stomped on again - gives me nightmares!"
Re: Cows again I agree David - you are probably going to have to learn to live with this particular phobia... I suppose though you could try a bit of dummy work in an adjacent field???
Re: Cows again Yes but she's pretty smart. She knows they can't get across the river or through the fence so she will stand right up close if there is even only a bit of stock fence between them and not bat an eyelid. Small Black Dog says "I'm not stupid you know, but they are!"
Re: Cows again [quote author=David link=topic=1719.msg12869#msg12869 date=1371292255] Small Black Dog says "I'm not stupid you know, but they are!" [/quote] Renamed Smart Small Black Dog
Re: Cows again I still would like to see a life size, cut-out cow When my first dog was a little pup he nearly got run over by a sizeable pack of youths on roller-blades who hooned suddenly round a corner on the footpath. Didn't help that I screamed blue murder. For his whole life we had to keep away from people on roller-blades or skateboards - he'd go absolutely bananas at them if they were anywhere near. We even bought a skateboard and got him used to the sound of it rolling past - this helped a bit but it was easier all round just to cross the road if we saw or heard roller people coming.
Re: Cows again i would like to see video of the life-size cut out cow and the desensitization process.... ;D
Re: Cows again [quote author=Oberon link=topic=1719.msg13073#msg13073 date=1371437215] Yes, definitely video. Get a bed sheet and some black paint and Bob's your uncle [/quote] I don't know why but the Benny Hill music started in my mind when I read this post!
Re: Cows again Ok - that confirms what I've suspected for some time. We are all a little but loopy! ;D Just off to find some old sheets and black paint .......
