FUN FACTS ABOUT OUR WESTIES
The Scottish Highland Games are the highlight of fall activities for W.Pa westies at Idlewild Park
Visit the Photo Album for more pictures of The Games. There were demonstrations through out the day of obedience, agility, freestyle and a noontime parade as well as a costume contest for all the scottish dogs. Pay a visit to the dancers, bagpipe players, and watch the traditional scottish games for adults and kids.
1.Training a recall is easy, it just takes a few easy steps. Any dog that comes running when you reach for the can-opener or open the fridge door can be trained to respond to a whistle or the Come command.
A. Begin indoors. Divide your pup’s meal into 4-5 portions. Place a portion in his bowl and give a short “tweet” of the whistle while he is eating. Repeat a few minutes later with the next portion and so on. You are building his association between the noise and yummy food.
B. Repeat at each meal time over several days.
C. Before the pup's usual mealtime have some yummy treats in your pocket. When you have his attention give a “tweet” and then give him a treat.
D. Repeat the “tweet and treat” game while walking around indoors.
E. Soon you’ll be able to “tweet” when your pup is not looking at you and he’ll turn around and come to you anticipating a yummy reward. Always have something delicious on hand to reward the recall behavior.
F. Start the “tweet and treat” game when your pup is in another room. He’ll come running to find you.
G. Once you have a great recall around the house, you can take the game outside to the yard or park. Start out on leash at first.
Tips
- Always walk your pup off-leash before his regular meal and not after a big dinner. This way you’ll have a more of his attention as he’ll be anticipating a yummy reward.
- Always have a treat on hand to reward his response to the Whistle. This way you’ll keep the game fresh and interesting.
2. Name Recognition is one lesson that can be applied to any type of toy. Simply chose a specific name for a given toy and then alwaysrefer to it the same way. A simple, one word name is best (i.e. ball, pig, doll, disc, etc). Over time your westie will associate the toy with the name. This is a great IQ building exercise and once accomplished leads to an endless variety of positive activities that will challenge and occupy your westie. 3. Fetch is one of the single most versatile and beneficial activities a dog owner can teach. For some westies retrieving is an ingrained behavior, for other dogs it will take some time. However, with a little persistence any dog can be taught to retrieve. A simple game of fetch can provide a wealth of training or training maintenance opportunities, as well as providing interactive bonding and exercise.
Assuming you have named your dog toys, you can train or reinforce multiple commands during a single session of fetch, starting with a sit-stay at your side followed by a Fetch - insert toy name, as you throw the toy. Once your dog picks up the toy use the - Come command. After your dog reaches you use a Drop command.Then repeat starting with the sit stay at your side.
The example of fetch above used five commands with one single throw.
Get creative with your games of fetch and you can add many more commands to each throw. 4. Hide and Seek is another great game you can play with multiple toys and works great on cold winter days when other outdoor activities are less attractive. Again, this game works best if you have named your toys each month. Once this is accomplished chose two or three toys for your dog to seek.
Start this teaching game by hiding the toys in plain sight so they're easy to find. Command your westie to sit in front of you, then ask your westie to seek - insert toy's name. You may have to help guide your dog to the toy for a while until she understands the game. Once the toy is found, praise your dog with great excitement. Then repeat the process and ask her to seek the other toys. Take your time and be patient, this game requires weeks of training to perfect. Have fun teaching your dog these new games.
Did You Know?.......
The Westie is a game terrier and has a very strong will. The first show held for the breed was at Crufts in London in 1907. The first AKC registration was in 1908. Originally registered as the Roseneath Terrier, the name was officially changed to West Highland White Terrier on May 31, 1909. The West Highland White Terrier, according to notable authors originated at Poltalloch, Scotland, where they had been bred and maintained for more than 100 years prior to their appearance at dog shows. In 1916 Colonel Malcolm of Poltalloch said that his father and grandfather both kept them. It is probable that the lineage of the Malcolm dogs goes back to the time of King James I, who asked for some ''earth-dogges'' out of Argyleshire. Years ago the breed was known as the Roseneath Terrier, also as the Poltalloch Terrier. The name Roseneath was taken from the Duke of Argyll's place in Dumbartonshire, Scotland. It is probable that the West Highland White Terrier and all the terriers of Scotland came from the same stock; the Scotties, Cairns, Dandie Dinmonts, and West Highland Whites are branches from the same tree and its roots.
So you want to own a West Highland White Terrier? The West Highland is all terrier - a large amount of Scotch spunk, determination, and devotion crammed into a small body. Outdoors they are truly sporty, good hunters, speedy and cunning, with great intelligence. In the house they are all that can be desired of a pet; faithful, understanding, and devoted, yet gay and light-hearted. The Westie requires bushing every few days and professional grooming every few months.
