# Dottie and Deer



## jeffreyzone (Feb 8, 2006)

With a very special thanks to *LaurJen*, I finally have posted the video that I made this morning of Dottie in the woods with some deer. Barrington was too far outside the frame to be included in this clip, but I'll try to include him next time!

Enjoy!


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## Brittany (Jul 24, 2006)

That's so cool! I wish my dogs were so well-trained....I wish I knew how to train them that well!  I have a pup that consistently chases our cat.....Any tips? 
I envy you your yard....so beautiful. I live in the country but town is moving closer all the time. :bawling:


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## Booker (Nov 14, 2006)

Thanks for the video, I'm surprised they didn't go bounding after the deer!


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## Carsonsdaddy (Nov 1, 2006)

Wow!! That was cool how she didn't chase after the deer. Dottie is beautiful! Her tail is amazing!!


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## LaurJen (Aug 10, 2006)

Yippeee, a video! Dottie is so pretty! Was she a tiny bit afraid of the deer, or did you tell her to leave them alone?

Now we want more videos from you, yeah!


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## Baileysmom (Aug 5, 2006)

What a great video! Dottie is beautiful. We have deer by us too, but the only thing that keeps Bailey (and my last golden) from chasing them is the IF. Bailey discovered that he can see them out of the upstairs window now and runs to check (about every 30 minutes) to see if they are out there.


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## Brandy's Mom (Oct 5, 2005)

Wow, I'm so impressed with Dottie seeing the deer then completely ignoring it. How in the world did you do that?


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## vicki L (Jan 18, 2007)

Can you teach Max to act like Dottie???
Her tail just seems to dance - it's so silky!

just saw your location is Atlanta - where? 
We're in Woodstock


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## Maggies mom (Jan 6, 2006)

What a good girl Dottie was for ignoring the deer..... Mine would have been long gone.....:doh: Dottie is beautiful...............


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## goldencrazy (Dec 15, 2005)

We had about the most perfect dog in our first golden, Copen. One day, while out in the woods, we came across a big buck and Copen was off after him in a flash! I could not believe my eyes seeing Dottie pretty much ignoring the deer. You're a very lucky owner! Thanks for posting the video.


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## Buffy & Abby's Mom (Nov 27, 2005)

I know my two would have been gone in a flash. We have deer by us too and I know the experience of encountering them with mine on leashes. Wild & Crazy to the max!!


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## jeffreyzone (Feb 8, 2006)

Thanks for your kind comments, everyone. I really appreciate all the nice things you said about my Dottie. I'll answer the questions asked:

To Vicki L: We're in Norcross/Peachtree Corners. So, we're practically neighbors! 

LaurJen, you asked, if Dottie was afraid of the deer, or if I told her to leave them alone. Well, this has been going on for the past couple of years, and Dottie wants the deer to come to her. She wants to hang out with them, and she'd love to touch noses and say Hi. I don't have to tell her anything now, because she projects unthreatening body language and hopes that they'll come to her.

The deer cooperate a lot by tolerating our presence. We live close to an area in which the deer are protected, and herds of 30 or more deer have been seen in there. They are happy to be near people and dogs as long as the people and dogs are behaving themselves.

Last year, Dottie approached a large buck who was in the rear-guard position for a small group that consisted of two does and two fawns. The buck was facing Dottie, who was about 75 feet away from him. As she slowly closed that gap, Barrington got behind me, and the buck stamped the ground and snorted. Dottie was slowly, slowly creeping toward the deer, her head down and her tail wagging. Thirty feet separated the two of them when Dottie finally got the message to back off. I was about to call her off when she figured it out. She slowly turned and came to me, looking up to say "Let's get the h#ll out of here!" We did, and that buck followed us to the edge of the woods. Wish I'd had the video cam that day, because I won't let her get into that situation again with a protective buck, and I *shouldn't* have allowed that situation to go as far as it did.

How did we reach this point? I guess the shortest answer is, we trained with distractions, starting with basic obedience classes and moving on to CGC and agility work. The first agility class really gave us that quantum leap forward that we never dreamed of having; suddenly, both dogs were seriously watching us. We began to gradually give them opportunities to behave well offleash, and because we don't have a fence, each time we let them offleash in the yard was a big deal----as well as a building block.

During this time, we were also raising the bar on Dottie and Barrington every time we brought in a foster dog, finally to the point where I stated that I wanted Dottie and Barrington to help me "walk" the foster; that is, they'd be offleash while I'd be handling the leashed foster. 

It all adds up. But as I mentioned in another thread, Dottie and Barrington are our children, and we've invested a lot of time with them. And time has been on our side, because both dogs have mellowed as they've gotten older. 

But Barrington would love to chase the deer at every opportunity, and he'll gladly chase them if I turn him loose! I reward his good behavior with a deal: When deer are in our yard, they are fair game, and I want him to chase them. And he does, stopping at the edge of the woods to say, "I showed 'em that time!" He and Dottie have helped each other learn self-control, I believe.

Next time, I'll try to get both dogs in the frame with the deer. Thanks to LaurJen, now I know how to properly format the video files for posting.


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## vicki L (Jan 18, 2007)

To Vicki L: We're in Norcross/Peachtree Corners. So, we're practically neighbors! 


Yes we are very close - we are Towne Lake area - not far from you @ all.:wavey: Haven't seen too many from this area, that why I wanted to say 
Hello!


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## Brandy's Mom (Oct 5, 2005)

Jeff, that's an amazing story about the training. We're moving to an area where there will be plenty of deer on our property. It's Brandy who would give chase, but she's also our agility dog. I guess I'll have to build on that training. Thanks so much for the tips!!!


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## jeffreyzone (Feb 8, 2006)

vicki L said:


> To Vicki L: We're in Norcross/Peachtree Corners. So, we're practically neighbors!
> 
> 
> Yes we are very close - we are Towne Lake area - not far from you @ all.:wavey: Haven't seen too many from this area, that why I wanted to say
> Hello!


Yep, I haven't spent a lot of time in the Towne Lake area, but a couple years ago, I was working with the staff at Trickum Ridge Animal Hospital; they were helping with a foster dog. So, I was driving back and forth from Norcross to Woodstock!

Even though this forum shrinks the vast physical distances between many members, it's still nice to know that there are some nearby neighbors on here!


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## jeffreyzone (Feb 8, 2006)

Brandy's Mom said:


> Jeff, that's an amazing story about the training. We're moving to an area where there will be plenty of deer on our property. It's Brandy who would give chase, but she's also our agility dog. I guess I'll have to build on that training. Thanks so much for the tips!!!


You'll do great with Brandy. Those deer will give you all kinds of opportunities to work with her, and she'll respond to you.


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