Neck Pain
Why does my neck hurt this morning? Maybe it has something to do with being flipped head over heels by our lovely dog yesterday. You’d think by this point I would be smart enough to not turn my back on him when he is charging with all his energy in a manic spasm of invented urgency.
I was walking through the woods from the house toward the back side of the barn while Cyndie lagged behind on the driveway above with Asher. The first thing I noticed was Mix getting startled by the sound of Asher bolting over crunching leaves on the trail. I glanced behind me to see Asher coming and looked back in the direction of the horses because now they were all getting jumpy.
Wanting to settle the horses with an assurance it was only the dog racing toward us, I barely got a word out when Asher plowed directly into both of my legs, sending my feet in the air and my upper body to the ground with such speed that I’m not entirely sure what hit first.
My right arm underneath me hurt but so did my shoulder. The headache came later. Did I hit my head? I’m not sure. This morning it is my neck and back between my shoulder blades that are registering complaints.
Do these kinds of collisions hurt the dog, I wonder? Did he protect his head and neck when barreling into me and somehow hit me with his shoulder/side? I have no idea. He seems to be no worse after the impact.
In the end, the most important question has to do with prospects for him maturing enough to stop thinking that running into people at full speed is acceptable behavior.
We should probably put in an epic effort toward getting him to obey a “STOP!” command.
STOP trying to roll in manure!
STOP going into the landscape pond!
STOP digging up Cyndie’s garden!
STOP trying to jump into visiting vehicles!
STOP running full speed into John!
We were really looking forward to having a dog that didn’t need to be leashed full-time, but it has presented a number of different issues than we ever had to deal with when we had Delilah.
I’m looking forward to discovering if I’ve learned to not turn my back on him when he is racing anywhere in my general direction.
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Relative Something 
Dodged a collision with Asher today! 🐶 Neck and back pain reminder. Time to reinforce that ‘STOP’ command. 🤕🐾
Dog101.co
October 11, 2023 at 9:54 am
Definitely! I’m also practicing NOT turning my back toward him when he is sprinting in my direction. 🙂
johnwhays
October 11, 2023 at 11:00 am
Just thinking, John, that dogs are like horse who don’t understand negative forms. The stop command works in the same way. All to say if you tell a dog ‘not’ to do something, he thinks you want him to do that very thing. Try it: ‘Don’t sit’ will be understood exactly like ‘sit’. You probably know this but were just expressing your sense of frustration to us humans. Asher clearly loves you to pieces, which isn’t a great consolation at such times, I know…. take as much care as you can… you could have been really hurt (some dogs have an uncontrollable need for connection and even feel more secure when they ARE on a leash: it seems to earth them. My theory is that that such dogs have had very close contact with humans right after birth and become imprinted to them. Indeed, I remember what my father used to say about dogs: four feet on the ground. But every case is a case… I guess you don’t know too much about Asher’s early life.)
Ian Rowcliffe
October 8, 2023 at 6:44 pm
Yes, good points, Ian. We do lament not knowing how early he was separated from his momma. He is coming along with increasing maturity daily and learning what we are consistent enough to teach him well. Any shortcomings in his behavior are more on us than on him. Our training techniques are not top notch but we are getting by. We just need to remember to pay attention when he comes running!
johnwhays
October 9, 2023 at 12:40 pm
Does he know the word “NO” or “Heel”?
Catsandcoffee
October 8, 2023 at 2:06 pm
He has selective hearing when it comes to “NO.” And, “Heel” is still a work in progress.
johnwhays
October 9, 2023 at 12:34 pm