Temperament Theory - Upbeat Dogs

UPBEAT STORY: Faith was found with her seven young puppies in a cornfield. The puppies were fat and sassy while Faith had almost killed herself taking care of them. The puppies all found homes through the local humane society and Faith came to rescue because she needed intensive care for a chance to live. She was so bone-rack thin that her skin was severely ulcerated in many places. But through all the moves to get her into rescue, through all the vet visits and treatments, she blessed us all with her warm smile.

One day I was trying to persuade her to chew some doggy biscuits to help strengthen her teeth and gums. I was so excited that she kept coming into the kitchen and asking for more biscuits! But I didn't hear her chewing them, so I quietly followed her into the living room. Faith had pulled a Snoopy toy out of the toy basket and was happily piling all her biscuits up in front of Snoopy. She is an angelic darling.

I placed her with a young couple in New York City. She now has two young children to care for and loves walking the streets of New York to share her love and goodness with as many people and animals as she can find.

Faith

THRILL: Just about everything.

ANXIETY: Unhappiness or illness in others.

UPBEAT
Approaches new situations with optimism, self-confidence, and cheerfulness.

UPBEAT/BOLD
A dog who ponders (feeling) and then goes towards a new situation (action). A good therapy dog.

UPBEAT/SHY
A dog who ponders (feeling) and will quietly leave a new situation (action). A good dog around children, if the dog isn't an extreme Shy.

SHADOW
It is almost impossible to instill deep fears in an Upbeat dog, but some people go to great lengths to force this Type of dog into a Wary-type personality.

SHADOW STORY: Cap was put in an outdoor kennel when he was ten weeks old and he lived there for five years. He was taken to the vet's once a year for grooming and shots. He was fed and water provided on a daily basis. But he was an Upbeat locked into an isolated world. When he was five years old, his family held a picnic in their back yard. One of their guests, a ten-year old boy, asked if he could play with the dog. Cap's family said yes and let Cap out for the boy. Cap bit the boy and the father of Cap's family hit Cap and then demanded that his wife get rid of the dog.

Cap acted just like an autistic child when I got him. He entertained himself by digging holes, putting any object he could find in the hole, and then bouncing around the hole and barking at the object. He could do this for hours. Cap scared me when I got him. His eyes were dead when he looked at people. And he looked at his family just exactly as he looked at me----none of us were part of his world. I put him on large doses of acepromazine and a permanent long-line for my own protection while I worked with him. I took him to the vet because he was so matted I couldn't get a training collar on him. He perked up at the vet's---it was the only people-place he was familiar with.

When I got Cap back from the vet's, I got prepared to put a pinch collar on him for the first time. I had a volunteer here to help me---and to call 911 if Cap turned on me. She wore gauntlets and held onto his long-line while I wore leather gloves to protect my hands when I put the pinch collar on him. I really took extreme precautions because this dog acted so autistic I could not read him at all. One of the most extraordinary things I have ever experienced happened when I put the pinch collar on Cap. His eyes came warmly alive and connected with mine. He worked with me and, for the first time, took food from my hands. He then took food from the volunteer's hands.

The next thing I did was get out a flashing, plastic red ball. I'd remembered that I'd seen him playing with a similar toy when he was a little puppy and I wondered if he would also remember the ball and the happier times it represented. His whole face and body lit up! He was so playful and made so much eye contact that I decided to take him to an event and let him interact with other people. He needed frequent rests in his crate, but he had a wonderful time at the event. This is the difference between an Upbeat living in the shadow world of Wary versus a true Wary --- when the Upbeat is exposed to something that makes them happy, they blossom and make giant leaps of recovery. The true Wary needs small doses of happiness at first and will test and poke at every session to check if it is real.

Cap and I still had months of work ahead of us before he was adoptable, but he turned out just fine. He taught me about the absolute hopelessness and despair of an Upbeat dog forced to live in almost complete isolation.

Cap in Val's back yard ---he's waiting for a red Frisbee to be thrown.

George. Photo by Pat Reynolds.

George's story

TRAINING RECOMMENDATIONS: How to Teach a New Dog Old Tricks by Ian Dunbar or Beginning Family Dog Training by Patricia McConnell. Upbeats do need to learn some wariness as having no fears is a very dangerous quality, so I scruff-shake this Type to teach some caution. I scruff-shake by taking hold of the hair at the sides of the neck and holding the hair and a bit of skin firmly while glaring into the Border Collie's eyes. I wait until the dog slowly moves his/her eyes away from mine and I can feel the muscles relaxing through my hold at the neck. I slowly relax my grip and back away from the dog---unless the dog gets ready to spring back into action, then I go back to the glare and tight hold---then release the dog and tell the dog in a matter-of-fact tone what they should have done in this situation. See also Herding Behaviors.

TRAINING EQUIPMENT: Small or fine pinch collar for safety during really, really fun lessons. A twenty foot lead to practice lots of recalls (the world is such a distracting place for Upbeats), a six foot lead for teaching manners. If the Upbeat has learned a dangerous habit and will not listen to anything else, I would use an e-collar to teach caution for this habit.

CLICKER: Upbeats LOVE clickers! They treat the whole clicker training routine as a big game. The biggest problem with using a clicker on an Upbeat is that they will try to anticipate what you want next and will sometimes make "intuitive" leaps to behaviors that are not at all what the trainer set out to teach.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT: Get happy with these dogs. Enjoy life! Dance together to Cyndi Lauper tunes!!

PROBLEM PREVENTIONS: The biggest problem with an Upbeat dog is the way they will fling themselves into situations, never dreaming there will be any problems. You will have to keep them safe from their own idealistic approach
to life.

AGGRESSION: A true Upbeat might lick a burglar into submission or annoy another dog with exuberant playfulness, but that's about the extent of the aggression in an Upbeat. But they aren't stupid --- they will defend themselves if attacked.

HUG: They adore all aspects of hug therapy and enjoy hug therapy in all stages of their lives.

DRUG: None needed, unless they've been forced to live in the Shadow of Wary for a long time. The medication would depend on what forced the dog to live in the shadow personality.

CAREER CHOICES: Caring and nurturing, this dog can do anything, except long-term depressing things. A good farm dog, children's companion, companion dog, therapy dog, competition dog. (If the effort is taken to teach some caution and the knowledge that this dog will side-track easily if something important comes along, like cheering up a child.)

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BORDER COLLIE BEHAVIORS: A TEMPERAMENT THEORY Upbeat Dogs

by Val Maurer

BORDER COLLIE BEHAVIORS:
A TEMPERAMENT THEORY
Upbeat Dogs