Dog Question & Answer - Obedience Training & Spaying a Female While in Heat

Question 1: Mixed Obedience Behavior after Training

I have got my two-year-old male mixed breed dog enrolled in training for obedience. At home, he performs all the exercises such as heeling, sitting, staying and lying down on command perfectly and I could not complain about his behavior at all. However, when I take him for training class every week he behaves as though he has never learned any thing.

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The trainer was not very much bothered about this attitude of my dog and tells me that the dog will come over it quickly. Somehow or other I am not very convinced about this and I would like to know the reasons for my dog's strange behavior.

Answer 1:

There is nothing abnormal in your dog's behavior for you to worry about this. At home there is no distraction and your dog performs the obedience exercises diligently. However, class room has a lot of distractions which make him a clown at school. The reason is that your dog has been practicing in an environment without distraction whereas the class has distractions such as dogs, other people, other sounds etc.

The very fact that your trainer is not worried much about this behavior, it means that you are doing everything possible to make necessary corrections for lack of attention etc. However it is essential that the dog gets its training in places in an environment where distractions exist. You could take your dog out of the backyard and train in locations where distractions are present.

You must realize that the dog has to be obedient in time of emergency. A dog which gets distracted during emergency situation and fails to be obedient during these periods of distraction can not be called as an obedient trained dog. Train your dog in an environment where distraction is prevalent which will make him get used to this environment thereby making him realize his responsibility during emergency.

Question 2: Spaying a Dog While In Heat

My memory has never been good; every time I forget to get my female dog spayed on time. It is worse now because the dog is in heat. I am keen to get operated during this week; however I am not sure about the repercussions in getting this dog spayed during her heat sessions. Can you advise?

Answer 2:

During the period when your dog is in heat her uterus and blood vessels are enlarged and spaying the dog in this period is risky. Hence it is advisable to spay your dog when she finishes this season wherein no risks are present. Although it is not advisable to spay in this period it is not an impossible task and operation can be performed by any skillful veterinary surgeon.

This aspect was discussed by us with a number of veterinarians; they all opine that it is preferable to wait until the heat cycle is complete before the operation and they are prepared to convince the dog owner on this postponement. They also said that if there is an absolute need for doing the surgery they would perform it after briefing the dog owner about the risks involved in operating at this time.

Dog Question & Answer - Obedience Training & Spaying a Female While in Heat

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