Singletons

[DianeP]

Yep, I hear you on the exercise. Sadly, this is a real challenge for us as Mindy is a compulsive car chaser and is terrified of motors, back up beepers and many other noises outside. With my old Sheltie we walked about 3 miles a day. This is just not possible with Mindy right now. Today I took to having her sprint up and down the stairs while chasing treats which put a small dent in her nuttiness.

I’ve successfully parented many dogs (including 3 other shelties) and have titled with them in rally and agility. This kid is a whole other beast!! I say that very lovingly <3

 

[Daisy1015]

When you say singletons do you mean a single dog (which is most of these responses) or a dog who was a singleton birth? There is a difference if said singleton wasn't able to be added to another litter.

PS I have a true singleton...only dog and singleton birth I will check back later

 

[DianeP]

When you say singletons do you mean a single dog (which is most of these responses) or a dog who was a singleton birth? There is a difference if said singleton wasn't able to be added to another litter.

PS I have a true singleton...only dog and singleton birth I will check back later

Yep, she is a true Singleton. There was one other puppy who died. She spent her first 4 months in a home with 6 other dogs and was purposefully matched with younger dogs to play with. But I still wonder about the effect on her.

 

[Cindy]

noise

Yep, I hear you on the exercise. Sadly, this is a real challenge for us as Mindy is a compulsive car chaser and is terrified of motors, back up beepers and many other noises outside. With my old Sheltie we walked about 3 miles a day. This is just not possible with Mindy right now. Today I took to having her sprint up and down the stairs while chasing treats which put a small dent in her nuttiness.

I’ve successfully parented many dogs (including 3 other shelties) and have titled with them in rally and agility. This kid is a whole other beast!! I say that very lovingly <3

noise sensitivity is a real issue. I was lucky Gavin was pretty indiffferent to even fireworks.
have you tried hiking in the quiet outdoors? weating a pack, even a small one, can help focus. Gavin used to wear the ruffwear singletrack for hiking and the ruffwear palisades for longer trips.

 

[Daisy1015]

My singleton is a wonderful boy but he was more work. Things I have noticed about him include many sheltie traits just enhanced? I call him quirky. He had Much older puppies to play with and had to be old enough to not get hurt. He came from a reputable, experienced breeder. He is four now and raised with three kids. I get thanked literally every day for getting him for four years. Their first sheltie passed away at almost 16. i also trained my last sheltie through advanced.

quirky but all in line with what i have read about singletons and not at all the extremes or most singleton tendencies.

*Very sound reactive and i think it comes out of anxiety about some. although he acts like it is a game. He barks and runs around. Also, he is a sheltie

*he also was a car chaser, very reactive.... we worked very hard on this and he can Be walked easily with occasional corrections. Usually it means there are other things amping him up that i may not notice (fireworks, backfiring etc) if he reacts now. I do not attempt to walk him on extremely busy roads.

*threshold if overstimulation was lower than i think it would have been otherwise and was more of a nipper in these circumstances (think herding nip not bite) but with all other scenarios he has an extremely gentle mouth. That is why we got him, his gentle mouth and eagerness to be with kids. The herding nip would have been less had he had peers to wrestle with early in life.

*he had way more puppy/ teen regression and fear stages. It was very hard

however, he isnt dominant, no food/ toy aggression, soft mouth with food, soft tempered, likes kids and gentle dogs (dominant dogs
Or big hyper dogs scare him but won’t be aggressive) not super stubborn, very cuddly, not king of the world. Not dominant. He is like a therapy dog in his ability to sense who needs emotional support or is ill. Breeders who were pastors noticed that at 3 months old and the were helping people. In these ways he is not a classic singleton.

I did have to work very, very hard with him. Sometimes I was overwhelmed and fearful i made a mistake because of the reactivity and an occasional fear based snap in puppyhood . He is grown now and i did not make a mistake. . I “won” and he turned out except for the barking issue. Whew! I triumphed over many sounds, car reactivity, and fear of nail trimming (imprinted). He chilled out with age. Plus as a pup I could not control all the stimulation. I had three kids 4-10 at the time! This was a pro and a con.

If he is too overstimulated or certain times of day, i crate him for a bit. His crate is a safe place although he doesn’t go in independently. For example, doing the clanking silverware or kids spitting after brushing teeth or garbage truck day.

 

[Daisy1015]

And he is absolutely gorgeous to look at.

 

[DianeP]

My singleton is a wonderful boy but he was more work. Things I have noticed about him include many sheltie traits just enhanced? I call him quirky. He had Much older puppies to play with and had to be old enough to not get hurt. He came from a reputable, experienced breeder. He is four now and raised with three kids. I get thanked literally every day for getting him for four years. Their first sheltie passed away at almost 16. i also trained my last sheltie through advanced.

quirky but all in line with what i have read about singletons and not at all the extremes or most singleton tendencies.

*Very sound reactive and i think it comes out of anxiety about some. although he acts like it is a game. He barks and runs around. Also, he is a sheltie

*he also was a car chaser, very reactive.... we worked very hard on this and he can Be walked easily with occasional corrections. Usually it means there are other things amping him up that i may not notice (fireworks, backfiring etc) if he reacts now. I do not attempt to walk him on extremely busy roads.

*threshold if overstimulation was lower than i think it would have been otherwise and was more of a nipper in these circumstances (think herding nip not bite) but with all other scenarios he has an extremely gentle mouth. That is why we got him, his gentle mouth and eagerness to be with kids. The herding nip would have been less had he had peers to wrestle with early in life.

*he had way more puppy/ teen regression and fear stages. It was very hard

however, he isnt dominant, no food/ toy aggression, soft mouth with food, soft tempered, likes kids and gentle dogs (dominant dogs
Or big hyper dogs scare him but won’t be aggressive) not super stubborn, very cuddly, not king of the world. Not dominant. He is like a therapy dog in his ability to sense who needs emotional support or is ill. Breeders who were pastors noticed that at 3 months old and the were helping people. In these ways he is not a classic singleton.

I did have to work very, very hard with him. Sometimes I was overwhelmed and fearful i made a mistake because of the reactivity and an occasional fear based snap in puppyhood . He is grown now and i did not make a mistake. . I “won” and he turned out except for the barking issue. Whew! I triumphed over many sounds, car reactivity, and fear of nail trimming (imprinted). He chilled out with age. Plus as a pup I could not control all the stimulation. I had three kids 4-10 at the time! This was a pro and a con.

If he is too overstimulated or certain times of day, i crate him for a bit. His crate is a safe place although he doesn’t go in independently. For example, doing the clanking silverware or kids spitting after brushing teeth or garbage truck day.

Thank you so much for sharing all of this! Mindy is kind of like a Sheltie on steroids. We’ve had 3 others of varying dispositions but she is definitely the biggest challenge. She also is the most cuddly. She, too, is very easy going about food and toys. Loves other dogs. Rides great in the car. Her biggest issues are noise reactivity and worrying about lots of things which results in lots of barking. She went through a terrible fear time when she didn’t want to go outside and would shake and tremble. She’s had GI issues for six months and it seems very tied to her anxiety.
All of this said, we’ve come a long way and she’s on some meds which are helping.

Funny what you said about the overstimulation with your kids. We are retired and have a pretty quiet home. There are times a I’ve wondered if that’s part of her issue...pluses and minuses to both scenarios.

thanks again!

 

[Daisy1015]

Yes! Sheltie on steroids is a phrase i use too! We never had fear of outside but there were quirky things he would be skittish of like bathroom noises and squirting bath toy. Third exposure was usually the magic number. He seemed to need more exposures to some things mastered because of the regression stages. Teen months were very hard at times. But we made it! Dog trainers would never guess he was a singleton when i would ask for extra advice in raising one so that was good.

He had a great fear of nail clipping. I think it imprinted before i got him. I finally got meds for when i do it. Best decision ever. It made us both calmer. Within a year he doesn’t need them for nail trims!

the thing about barking, “debarked“ would be just as annoying sounding to me. But I have thought of it, and although I am not against it, I don’t want to do it if I don’t have to. We have trained and trained but I have to pick my battles. So sometimes we just crate him for certain stimuli.

 

[DianeP]

Yes! Sheltie on steroids is a phrase i use too! We never had fear of outside but there were quirky things he would be skittish of like bathroom noises and squirting bath toy. Third exposure was usually the magic number. He seemed to need more exposures to some things mastered because of the regression stages. Teen months were very hard at times. But we made it! Dog trainers would never guess he was a singleton when i would ask for extra advice in raising one so that was good.

He had a great fear of nail clipping. I think it imprinted before i got him. I finally got meds for when i do it. Best decision ever. It made us both calmer. Within a year he doesn’t need them for nail trims!

the thing about barking, “debarked“ would be just as annoying sounding to me. But I have thought of it, and although I am not against it, I don’t want to do it if I don’t have to. We have trained and trained but I have to pick my battles. So sometimes we just crate him for certain stimuli.

I don’t think Mindy has the stereotypical singleton profile exactly, either. She plays really well with other dogs and reads most of their signs well, too. She is not at all bitey with us. I guess maybe it’s reflected in her impulsivity...maybe never having to wait to nurse?? Hard to say. I always wonder if the reason she’s so cuddly with us is because she missed rolling around with a litter of puppies. Of course, maybe that’s why she’s a worrier...no litter mates to get comfort from.

 

[Piper's mom]

Thank you so much for sharing all of this! Mindy is kind of like a Sheltie on steroids. We’ve had 3 others of varying dispositions but she is definitely the biggest challenge. She also is the most cuddly. She, too, is very easy going about food and toys. Loves other dogs. Rides great in the car. Her biggest issues are noise reactivity and worrying about lots of things which results in lots of barking. She went through a terrible fear time when she didn’t want to go outside and would shake and tremble. She’s had GI issues for six months and it seems very tied to her anxiety.
All of this said, we’ve come a long way and she’s on some meds which are helping.

Funny what you said about the overstimulation with your kids. We are retired and have a pretty quiet home. There are times a I’ve wondered if that’s part of her issue...pluses and minuses to both scenarios.

thanks again!

I can certainly understand! While Finnie isn't a singleton he certainly has quite a bit of anxiety and can be very reactive to certain noises. The usual of course...loud bangs, thunder, fireworks, phone ringing and now lately on a walk, if he sees someone or if someone is getting out of a car he barks and growls. He's so different that Piper!
I also have him on meds, called clomicalm and I have noticed small changes (it can take up to a month to start to see changes). He hurt his hock in December and so many little things suddenly became big fears (outside steps, wouldn't walk in snow, wouldn't play with Piper) but now he happily climbs the stairs, is wandering through the yard is is finally coming out of his shell again with Piper!
My intention of putting him on this was so I could work through his issues in the ring while socializing him and of course our current situation has changed all that but if it at least makes him happier I'm all for it!