Nico - Rhodesian Ridgeback, Dog (3 Years)

We're taking Nico to his training session tomorrow, and he'll be mixing with bigger dogs eg Shepherds and I think a Newfoundland!! He did well with three shepherds, even when one started barking and growling at him, so it'll be interesting to see how he does with new dogs.

Haha, yes, Nico has come a LONG way but there's still plenty for him to learn ie that 'leave it' actually means leave it, and not pick it up and run around with it! There's two problems we have with him at the moment - jealousy and him not realising his own strength. This morning Dad was hugging me and Nico did not like it at all because he was getting ignored. Our previous Ridgeback, Pepsi, was completely the same but instead of being grumpy and barking and growling to get attention when this happened, she'd simply push your arm up and put her head under it as if to say 'here I am!' and it was fine. This is bearing in mind that I was about four when we first got her and she was the same size and strength roughly as Nico, but she was completely soppy and there was no chance of her accidently hurting me. Nico on the other hand gets a little snarly but we think this was because he can't tell the difference yet between good attention and bad attention (eg when he's getting told off)...we'll work on it, to make sure it doesn't get out of hand. It's sometimes easy to forget that we've only had him 3 months - he's fitted in so well that it feels like we've had him forever.

Nico's presents aren't wrapped yet, and nobody's really mentioned how we'll organise xmas morning, but I imagine Dad will insist he's in while we unwrap pressies, because, well...Nico's got him wrapped round his little claw!!

Mum's dream for Nico is that he'll be so calm and behaved that we'll be able to take him to public places, such as the Kent County Show and he'll be able to walk to heel on a slack lead, and be completely comfortable with strangers walking around him. I think it's achievable, so that'll be our goal for 2012. All the best to everyone that's followed Nico's story, and I hope 2012 is a happy one for you all and your dogs. xxx

A very Happy Christmas to you and your lovely family, you so deserve it.Keep up the reports in 2012,always pleased when I check in and see something from you.

Thank you & the same to you...I'm sure that the Kent show is achievable with your hard work & can't wait for the pictures...Happy Christmas !!!

So, we went to doggy training on xmas eve, and it wasn't Nico's finest hour. It was a bigger group than usual with dogs Nico wasn't used too, and the cars were parked a bit closer than usual. When we opened the boot, Nico immediately tried to lunge for the dog in the next car, and was growling and lunging at everything when Dad took him up to the pole where they practice walking to heel. He snapped and growled at Dad and Kevin, showing his teeth and everything, which was very, very odd because he adores both of them. In short, he was in a bad mood and wasn't going to do anything easily, except play up. When the class broke up for agility, Dad and I took Nico to the top of the field to work a bit more on sits, stays and recalls and he chilled out massively. By the time the group came back together, Nico was a lot better. He was able to lay down for the lay-and-stays about three metres from the dog he had first lunged at without even looking his way - he was completely focused on Dad and didn't budge until he was asked too. Dad kept him on the 5m training line and didn't drop it because of Nico's mood, but Kevin thought he could have, if he'd wanted too.

The group off lead play session went okayish - another dog was trying to bully Nico, but he just pulled a Zeb and said 'bugger off!' in doggy language and didn't act aggressively when the other dog ignored him. He got on relatively well with a cross breed, but his recall was terrible. Normally he's pretty good, but this time it took dad several goes before Nico would listen, which is something we'll work on to get back up to scratch. The last recall though was brilliant - he was called once and he went straight to Dad, and ignored the other dogs sniffing around him. There was some success though - he no longer barks when he's left in the boot when we go for the debrief with Kevin, and he travels much better too. Dad's going to try and get him some foam or an old duvet to go in the back so that it's comfier for him.

Christmas Day itself was a massive success in terms of Nico behaving. The tree remained untouched and he adored his squeaky santa (which lost it's squeak after about fifteen minutes when Nico punctured it) and he LOVES his giant turkey teddy. He uses it as a pillow, beats it up then licks it tenderly, haha. Yesterday I was reading on the sofa, and he was barking at me to play. Barking/growling for play gets him no where with me, so all I said was 'go get your turkey' and carried on reading, and about ten minutes later he comes over, drops the turkey by my feet, tail wagging, happy face on and I melted, declaring him a genius dog!!

We had a little issue with food, with him sitting by the kitchen door at about 3pm (his breakfast is at 8am) and barking, growling and generally throwing a tantrum, but we (Mum and I) don't give him his food until 5pm on the dot. I think this behaviour has arisen from training - they finish at about half 3 and so Dad normally caves and gives him his food when Nico's whining for it when we get home because 'he's had a lot of exercise, he must be starving!'. So Nico equates whining with getting his way. Another theory is that he's not getting enough. I normally give him 200g of meat and 100g of biscuits at 8am and 5pm but we've going to switch this to 100g of meat and 200g of biscuits to fill him up a bit more. He doesn't look skinny so we don't think we're underfeeding him, he's just a typical greedy Ridgeback!

We've got training again tomorrow with another group of dog's Nico's not used to, but hopefully the other owners won't be clueless and stand right next to our car boot when we're tying to get Nico in/out and then look confused when we ask them to move.

that's really interesting about Nico & a new group...Jess & I changed our group after almost a year & it completely threw her too...sulky .badly behaved little girl..no respect for anyone least of all me, however now (approx 3 weeks) she is back to normal alternating between groups & just being her usual self, in fact we all went on a Christmas Walk to THE Forest OF Dean yesterday 37 humans & 40ish dogs all of lead & had a wonderful day.

Glad you had a lovely Christmas & keep up your great work with Nico & a happy New Years training!!

Dogs, especially one's like Nico, get to a sort of stalemate if they train with the same dogs for a long period. They progress so far, then stop. Mixing with other dogs is good for Nico, even if it's not great for our stress levels!

Nico has been VERY bad today. He took mum's mobile from the table, ran off with it and managed to break two of the keys and broke the screen so that it's unusable. Luckily it wasn't a mega expensive phone, but I was fuming . I managed to take the phone off him, and then ignored him completely - no eye contact, no verbal/physical touch, nothing. He tried to get my attention a couple of times but I wasn't having any of it. When I came back from work, he gave me the puppy eyes, and put his head on my lap and I eventually stroked him and gave him a cuddle, but we'll all definately be keeping mobiles/iPods out of reach now. I don't know if it's humans projecting human emotions onto animals, but he definately seemed guilty and sorry for himself after he broke the phone - ears and tail down, puppy eyes to try and get attention and when that didn't work, he curled himself up very small with his back to us.

Oh well, time to move on

It was my birthday today, and after Nico had finished his breakfast, he decided what I wanted most was a massive lick across the face, so yep, that's what I got! We don't allow Nico to lick people's faces, because, well, we know where that tongue goes(!), but he was in such a happy mood this morning that I forgave him.

He's been pretty good today. Not keen on going outside due to the horrible weather. I think it's a Ridgeback thing that they going out in rain. Our previous Ridgeback loathed it and would act like we were subjecting her to immense cruelty if we made her go out in the rain, and Nico's pretty much the same. They both don't mind it when they're actually out in it and are running in a field, but otherwise, they'd much rather curl up at your feet.

Nico also gave one of my presents the seal of approval - a pair of shoes, which he promptly sat on, licked and then tossed in the air. He doesn't chew, and aside from my shoes now sporting a gentle spattering of dog hair, they're completely fine.

I got a brush for Nico today, a hand mitt by Mikki. He despised the other brush we had, but this one he can tolerate. He did try to kill the glove (he's such a fierce dog!) and he did mouth my hand while it was on, but in the end he just gave up in a way that said 'alright then love, make me look beautiful!'. His coat's not quite at the 'you-need-sunglasses-to-look-at-it-stage', but it's noticably softer and I've got a lot of dead/loose hair out so he looks smarter. We'll be giving him another bath when the weather's not so stupid, so hopefully his coat will gleam!

Hi Jackie,

Loving the updates and the progress that Nico's making. You can definitely see the improvements week by week, and long may it continue. Hope the training went okay.

Baz would hate the rain too (I think he was Ridgeback cross) and I would end up with a big umbrella and him on the lead just to make him wee sometimes!

Know what you mean about licking! Tucker is another typical staffie that thinks you permanently need your face washing. Yuk!!

What a lucky boy he is.

Thanks for the updates - they are great to read and see how he is doing - it is amazing how quickly their shine comes back once they are out of the kennel environment - mine look like they have that "shine" hairspray on after a few weeks ... hey, now there's an idea

Next Sunday (29th), we'll have had Nico exactly four months and the progress he's made has been unbelievable. He's still a delinquent, but he's so intelligent, I personally think he could rival the poodle as the most intelligent breed!

We've missed two weeks of training due to Dad working and his being the only car with a big enough boot to fit Nico in, but we're going tomorrow. Not sure how he'll get on as we're going back to our original group who we haven't seen for a few weeks, but hopefully he'll continue to shine. He's coming along marvellously with his heel work, and sits/stays/downs etc. Yesterday evening, I took Nico for his walk with Dad, and I had the lead (yay!!). He walked to heel brilliantly, with only a couple of reminders when he began to wander, and it's so enjoyable to walk him. I could feel him reacting to a stranger getting out of his car, but I was able to distract him with my voice and food, and he soon caught on that there was no threat to us. He doesn't seem to like any noise/person that he can't see (it was dark out), especially if he can't see their eyes, but I was so pleased that he didn't kick off like he would have done when we first got him.

Even when the weather is miserable or ridiculously cold, it's not a chore to walk him, it's a real pleasure, especially when he's off lead and running around, sniffing everything and looking like the happiest dog in the world. It's also brilliant that i'm able to walk him, even if I do need Mum or Dad there 'just in case' - it's so lovely to be able to walk with a dog of Nico's size and power and he stays by my side, just trotting along and not having my shoulder dislocated with lunging. Now the only issue with walking him is who gets the honour of holding the lead! On his afternoon walk over the fields, he managed to find the muddiest, dirtiest ditch to walk into and came out smothered in mud, all happy about it. We gave him a bath before he came in, and he really does not like water unless he's drinking it. He tried to back away and to break free, but as soon as Dad put his arms around him and Mum spoke to him calmly, he seemed to calm down but he was clearly uncomfortable, so we'll be making a habit of giving him regular baths to get him used to it.

One slightly irritating thing about him is that he appears to have no concept of hot drinks - he's nudged my arm when I was about to take a mouthful tea and I ended up with it over my hand and legs, and then shoving his turkey onto my lap and again knocking over my tea - but it's hard to be cross when he pulls his disgusted Ridgeback face, ie wrinked face and nose, then swoops in for a cuddle! Bless him!

Hope everyone else is getting as much pleasure from their dogs as we are from Nico xxxx

Lovely to hear that you are enjoying Nico so much & well done on being first to the lead...I would love to see the scramble at walk time with Nico sitting patiently waiting for you all to sort yourselves out lol..We have some fantastic adopters who are writing reports about their dogs all seeming positive in most cases & hopefully we are all helping if their is a slight niggle or query...It makes such a difference to all staff, volunteers & fosterer's if we know that those we have loved & helped look after really do go on to such wonderful homes...have a good training session tomorrow, if Nico is like Jess he may well grumble because he thinks they are new dogs I'm sure they do it because they think we expect it !!...don't you just love them & bi-carb paste is good for tea & coffee burns lol

I was just thinking today, I haven't seen an update from Jackie in a while, and there it is!!

Well done on your perseverance with Nico. It sounds like he's becoming quite the family member now - and so popular that you're fighting over him!

As Sarah says, it's so great to get the regular updates, particularly on the bigger characters that you are secretly keeping your fingers and toes crossed that they are going to settle and not be bounced back. We just need more patient adopters that can see through the difficult times to the bigger picture. The best thing of all is the satisfaction you get when you turn the dog around and give it the second chance that it so desperately needs.

Keep up the good work and

Thanks for the kind words about Nico. He does have a 'big personality', but underneath he's just an oversized pup that constantly wants your attention, even if he doesn't actually want you to touch him. An admiring gaze is just as good!
So, we had training yesterday with some terriers (Norfolk and three JRTs) and a timid shepherd named Star. Like Nico, she didn't have the best start to life. Her story is that she was bred when she was only really a pup herself, about a year old, and was beaten so that when she was finally taken in by her new owners, she was a terrified, skinny mess. You couldn't touch her head or her back without her freaking out and she was fearful of men which resulted in barking/growling, but she's come on leaps and bounds considering that they have only had her a month longer than we've had Nico. Anyway, as the only other dogs in the class were terriers, Kevin put them in the 'naughty boy pen' which is a large enclosed pen so that they could mingle together with Billy, a young fear-aggressive JRT.
Star and Nico went out in the big field, and it went brilliantly! Star's quite nervous so she just sticks to her mum, and Nico tried to get her to play, but when she didn't want to he was like 'you're loss babe.' and ran off sniffing everything in sight. BUT the good news is that normally Star does a typical GS thing of running and barking towards a dog, nip it and then retreat back to her mum so that she can handle it, but Star didn't do any of this. Kevin says that she needs dogs that stick up for themselves but aren't bullies ie Nico!!!
Normally Zeb's the enforcer, but Nico instead had the honour and Star seemed comfortable with him. There was one incident where Star growled at him, but Nico was having none of it and as soon as that incident was over, he'd forgotten about it and was trying to steal Star's treats out of her mum's bag!!!
He also loves the agility tunnel and at first he freaked out on the a-frame but now he loves them. He also was reluctant to jump through the window, but was bribed through and it appears he loves jumping as well - he thinks he's a showjumper! Our boy will do anything for a sausage!
The bad news is that he did go for the Norfolk terrier when it was near our car (its car was next to ours) and as he lunged for it, Dad whacked his arm on the car. No serious injury, but the good news that came out of it was that Kevin has said it's fine to really tell Nico off when he does something like that, as long as we're not too harsh. We do tell Nico off, but it appears we need to be more vocal. It's hard when we see how Nico completely freaks out at certain things and gets so scared he doesn't know who to go to, but I guess that if we're black and white with him in our instructions, then he'll hopefully see that we're his protectors, we tell him what's safe and what isn't, and he doesn't have to keep us safe.
Anyway, happy training/fostering/adopting/walking with your dogs and stay tuned for the next update! xx

When Nico first came here, he hadn't had much training or socialisation. I can't understand how owners can let their dogs down like this and don't even give them a chance.

Nico's enjoys his training and we're currently training him to come round to heel, eg he could be sitting in front of us or beside us, and he has to walk around us to sit by the opposite leg (all for a treat, of course). He's a fast learner and is so intelligent, even when it comes to doggy etiquette, which he was a complete 'tard at when we first had him. He didn't know how to act, and thought barking, lunging and dominating was the correct way but now, after only a few months, Kevin's got him running with two nervous dogs, Fizz and Starr.

Kevin's told us that Nico's not a bully, but he sticks up for himself if another dog pushes his luck, and he is very playful but doesn't pester if the other dog doesn't want to. He's hoping that Nico will bring the other two out of their shell, and it makes me wonder what sort of dog Nico would be like if he had had training and had been socialised as a puppy, but then if he had, I don't think he'd be laying in front of the fire, curled up with his turkey right now. But still, to go from the class delinquent at off-lead play time to a 'teacher' in just a few weeks does make me wonder.

In terms of his training, I think he's doing marvellously. Kevin (trainer) has said that he's typical of the breed - stubborn and not docile, but that Nico's a lovely dog and Kevin doesn't bat compliments around easily. He likes all the dogs, but I think he especially likes Nico, because he's so intelligent but such a goof.

Anyway, it's tea time for Nicopops, so happy training.

Love, Jackie and Nico, who's about to faint from malnutrion and would send a lick, but is too weak to do so... xxxx

Nico, you certainly deserve it!

Well done to you both. As you say, from class delinquent to teacher in such a short space of time. Wonderful! Be nice to see some photos of him and his classmates goofing around!

Soooo Lovely to hear all thats going on with Nico......hes obviously a very much loved big boy.....Funny and brill stuff...Thanks Jackie:D

...to the day that Nico sniffed Kentish air and joined the Cushion household. A lot of things have changed...

1) We're no longer fastidious about clothes - doggy slobber, mud and doggy hair are all acceptable.

2) Conversations will usually focus around Nico/his behaviour/something funny he's done. When people ring us, they usually ask about Nico first and if they don't, we judge them. Negatively.

3) The position directly in front of the fire is Nico's. If Nico is not actually in the living room, you must not sit in front of the fire, because it is his and he will know.

4) "It's not the dog's fault!" is the most frequently used phrase in this house, and it is always true. He is merely reminding you of the rules when he happens to chew/shred/run off with something important, like a letter or receipt.

5) Nico's belly has priority. Dog biscuits, food, schmackos and hot dogs are vital when shopping and the same care is taken when checking food is gluten free, than if we were checking it were nut free for a person suffering from a severe nut allergy.

6) Doors must always be locked, otherwise anyone could steal him. If he's not in the house, then it doesn't matter.

7) Watching Nico going to the toilet has become normal, and getting excited and loudly declaring that Nico is 'weeing like a boy dog!' early in the morning is again, perfectly normal and acceptable.



Ria - I'll try and get some pics of him with his doggy friends. I keep meaning to, but I get so distracted watching him train and feeling so proud, that I forget to actually take the pics on my phone! I'll try and get one with Star - she's a beaut of Germand Shepherd.

Thanks kimmal - we're so used to his size that we don't think he's that big any more. It's only when we see him against other dogs that we notice it!

Oh dear Jackie, how I've laughed! Love the comment about judging people who don't ask after him first You and Nico sound as if you were made for each other. Well done and keep the stories coming.

Thanks Annie - he's definately the right dog for us. Bit infuriating at times, but he's brilliant and his training is coming along really well :-) He gets it really quickly and we're left looking like idiots - picture him doing a cartwheel across the field and us struggling to zip a coat up properly and you have a pretty good idea of how it is! I think sometimes we overestimate what he's capable of doing, because he can really surprise us with how quickly he picks up other stuff. He has training on Saturday, but only Mum & Dad are going as I have work but i'll find out how he got on & hopefully they'll get some pics

xx

...for last week, and probably not this week either because of the location of the training grounds and the snow has made country lanes a bit dodgy. A shame, because Nico has decided he adores the snow. I was playing with him yesterday in the snow, and I was throwing snowballs for him to catch - he was loving it!

We have also been thinking of getting him a coat for cold/wet weather - any ideas on good brands? We've been looking online but it's hard to judge size. There were a couple for Labs, but Nico's quite leggy and absolutely dwarfs three that we know. He quite likes being wrapped up in a blanket, but we'd need a hard wearing, waterproof and durable one that won't irritate the skin beneath his legs.

Anyway, i've uploaded some pics with him tucked up in the said blanket...I think we - well I - have made him a complete sop! His street cred will be ruined if these pics ever find themselves in the paws of his doggy training mates!! Plus there's some of his plastic ball which he ADORES - it was only a £1 and it's the only toy he's truly taken to (other than his turkey) that isn't a tug toy.

Beautiful Ridgeback wrinkles



Snuggled up



With his favourite toy



Just chillin'

I have exciting news! The trainer we use is running a charity obedience/agility competition on Sunday 1st April and he's asked my Dad to seriously consider entering. The competition would be judged by a Kent Police Dog Training Wing member and all proceeds would go to the oldies club - dogs over 7yrs that need adopting! www.oldies.org.uk for more details

There'll be a mix of dogs, including ages, breeds and how long they've been attending Kevin's training sessions so some will be more advanced than others, but it's for a very good cause! If Dad does enter Nico - I think he will - we'll have a few weeks to get Nico up to scratch & i'll be taking loads of pictures. We don't expect to win, but it's fabulous to be asked to enter (not everyone has been) and we're not the sort of family to take it too seriously ie we won't be sabotaging any of the other owners Besides, if we were to win, it's highly likely that Nico would eat the prize, whether it's edible or not!

I'll keep you updated!

From reprobate to obedience nominee!! Well done Jackie (and Nico, of course!!). Let's hope he's not an April fool and does you proud!

Love the photos - such a handsome boy!!

Yesterday was Nico's training class, and he did very well. After the his necessary 'burn out' walk in the morning to get rid of excess steam, he had a final powerwalk when we were two minutes from the training grounds and then we were ready to train! Dad's his official handler and Mum and I were the fanclub, perched in the boot, silently cheering them on and beaming with pride/laughing when Nico got it right or did something funny...like rolling over when he was asked to 'down'! Couldn't get a pic (was laughing too much) but the class appreciated it.

After the powerwalk, taking by me, hanging out of the back window. I was forced to stay in the car due to childlocks in the back...great idea, but a little soul destroying when you're 19...

No Dad, I want to play with the other dogs!

Down & stay at a distance; Bo the collie in the background

Back to sit at a distance

Nico sitting, waiting for action beside Fizz & Katie (owner)

I did get a pic of their group walk, but even my mum struggled to find Nico, the biggest dog there, so I thought i'd just wait until next time. Group walk went well, but the two terriers thought they'd try and take on Nico and got squirted by Kevin for their efforts. His recall was APPALLING. It used to be great, and it is normally, but he's terrible when he's distracted...yesterday, he went every where except back to dad, including over to the agility. We'll be working on it. We're not sure if it's because he's missed a session due to work, or because he doesn't get to mingle with dogs during the week, but we're reluctant to let him offlead around other dogs incase they're poorly trained/aggressive and cause a ruck, which would back peddle Nico's progress. But, he did run and play with a Lab yesterday during his morning 'burn out' walk, and there weren't any problems, except for ignoring his recall. BUT, in the good news department, Nico and Fizz are the best in the class for down/sit distance control and he doesn't need a lead for it either AND there were no major incidents, except for ignoring recall and drinking out of other dog's bowls...

...after two dinners last night. It was purely accidental, but Nico was very quick to cover up Mum's mistake!! He was very tired last night and we think the extra food might have contributed to his grumpiness because he aggressively growled and snapped at my Dad when we put him into his room for the night, but this morning, all was forgiven and as you can see, he's just chilling by the window between Mum and I