Crafty Cockers.

[Colin]

Ever since I brought her home, Misty has been running rings around poor Jimmy, both literally and metaphorically. It seems the cheeky madam has started on me now....

She's always been one for snuffling about in the park for nasty things to chew on, so I've been working hard on the "leave it" command. Trying to prise open her mouth never worked as she just locked her jaw and feigned innocence.... "there's nothing in my mouth, buster." So I've been using treats to bribe her to give up her ill gotten gains, there's nothing like a bit of food bribery when it comes to a greedy Cocker. At first it worked really well, a command of leave it and a tasty treat was too much for her to resist and she'd instantly drop what she'd found, get her treat then go about her business again.

A couple of weeks of this though and she soon cottoned on to the fact that if she just trotted along with me for a bit, then she could lull me into a false sense of security and nip back to retrieve her bit of rubbish which could result in a second treat depending on how vile it was and how desperate I was for her to give it up. To counter this I had to start carrying these objects  around with me until I came across a bin.

These last few days though she appears to have altered the rules of engagement yet again.... ..she now seems to see me as some kind of doggie treat vending machine. All she has to do is bring me any old bit of tat she can find in the park and I'll dispense a treat in return for it...... she's started bringing me things she had lost interest in ages ago, leaves and little twigs etc. She trots up to me, drops her bit of treasure and then sits expectantly for a treat. The trouble is, if I don't oblige she picks it up again and starts running back and forth with it like an idiot, prancing about playing games with me. I'm trying the fruit machine method, giving treats occassionally so she is always waiting for the jackpot (well that's the theory in the books) but she always seems one step ahead of me. I think that ignoring her is my only option left, if she'll let me that is...... Jimmy's tried and failed using this method when she's teasing him.

I've said it before and I'll say it again...... these Cockers are making fools of the lot of us. More tales of crafty Cockers please , I'm pretty sure I haven't got the only one !                    

[Pammy]

Lol - I can just picture her Colin - she is one crafty female and she's gonna keep you on your toes                    

[Mary]

That's females for you

I have a crafty cocker too (female ).  To assist in her toilet training when she was younger, I would often give her a treat when she returned from doing her business in the garden.  She has NEVER forgotten this and always goes straight to the treat cupboard when she comes in from the garden  I often don't make eye contact with her then  and just carry on doing whatever I am doing, occasionally giving her a treat but not making a habit of it

Now, if she really wants a treat and the whining at the cupboard doesn't work for her, she'll paw the back door making out she wants out.  I have watched her from behind the curtain and she takes a little trot up to the grass, waits momentarily behind a little shrub (she thinks I can't see her and she has her eye on the back door ) and then hastily runs back in and barks at the treat cupboard after not doing a thing

I can send her out again to do her business and she'll go off, head hung low looking back over her shoulder constantly obviously wishing I'd just go away                    

[Luvlylady]

..                    

[*Jay*]

Vegas has just recently become slightly crafty. He's realised that when he picks up a stick, he gets a treat for dropping it. Im now finding though, that once he's had his treat, he'll race back and pick it up again. If I try and call his bluff and ignore him, he'll just lie down right in front of me and start chewing it  . I swear I can hear him saying "hey mum, look what I'm doing, you know what you have to do to make me stop" Now, chewing sticks is a big no-no with me so the little swine has me over a barrel. If I go to get it from him with no treat, he runs away with it in his mouth which for a clutz like him is quite dangerous. he's certainly got it sussed all right! What were the odds of me ending up with an intelligent male                    

[Magic Star]

she now seems to see me as some kind of doggie treat vending machine. All she has to do is bring me any old bit of tat she can find in the park and I'll dispense a treat in return for it.  

Love that  Misty certainly seems to be pressing all the right buttons  Can just imagine her sitting there with anticipation
It seems the lovely Misty has conquered the first rule of being a female, wrapping evreyone around ya little finger  You go girl

Indie is just crafty in every possible way  She is an absolute pain when I am trying to put hr lead on So I have to break biscuits up to make crumbs on the floor, whilst she is busy trying to find them I have been clipping on her lead quickly  Crafty mare has cottoned on to if she hoovers them up mega quick I wont have time to clip her lead on so she gets another biscuit  

Emma and Indie                    

[Silver Surfer (indiesnan)]

it must be a girl thing.     Because nell is exactly the same. when she was a pup, we use to bribe her to get ,her to drop whatever it was that she had pinched.  
 she still does this. stands there with the remote in her mouth, tail wagging waiting for the inevitable chase.      ...So now iv,e resorted to a change of tone in my voice!!    And it seems to be working     .....Sometimes ill give her a treat!!... But not always...She is such a greedy girl!! that i think she would catch on very quick. And we would be back to square one.                    

[fudgesmammy]

At night we send Fudge down from our room to the Kitchen just before we go to sleep. We follow her down to shut the door. She was really really good at this until we moved the sofa last week. Now she belts down the stairs and runs behind the sofa and squeezes into a tiny space between the speaker and the bookshelf so we can't see her. So we walk into the kitchen, assume she went straight outside to do the loo, shut both back door and kitchen door and go to bed. Ten minutes later she's up in the bedroom trying to steal Stuart from me!!! Then we have to lure her into the kitchen with chews or treats!
She's naughty.                    

[T]

Well it's def' not just the sweet little girlies as our Charlie-Spud   is just as bad!!

As a small pup (he's 8 mths now) his best one was being let out for toilet training, squatting on the patio, coming back in all happy with himself to get a treat! Yeahhay I hear you say, but Nooo I shouted when I turned round to see him squatting on the kitchen floor to pee! He'd only conned me outside by pretending to pee!!!  

His latest trick is the "I've got something in my mouth I shouldn't have and you're not having it"! We're on the calm & patient approach now, with small bits of treats ... that way he gets frustrated he can't pick them up so evvvveennntually drops the item! But ya still gotta be quick to grab it! We're trying to get him to believe we don't really care what he's got and we don't want it, else it's too much of a 'game' to him chasing round or he gets quite stubborn and almost agressive locking his jaw & growling - def' not good!

He's fine with his ball or toys during fetch games tho' as we don't have the problem of him dropping it - strange! It's that 'not suppose to have it' thing I guess!  :-