Dog winning BGT

[CalamityKate]

Just musing, really.

Given that there was reportedly a huge rise in demand for Dalmatian pups when the "101 Dalmatians" films came out, what do we think will be the result of Pudsey's win, if any?

Is it good for crossbreeds, because it shows people that it isn't only purebreds that can be trained to do all sorts of things?

Or will it lead to a rise in unscrupulous crossbreeding ("these puppies are the same breed as the BGT winner!!")

Apparently Pudsey has already sired a litter (to a BC mum). I bet his owner will be offered ££££s by people queueing up to let Pudsey at their bitch.

Or is BGT small fry compared to a Disney movie?

Who really has the talent? In my opinion it is Ashleigh. I quarantee that if Simon Cowell did own Pudsey he would not be that talented. Ashleigh uses positive training methods and watches to see what her dogs instinctively do. She then builds on this to create the moves. However what is so great is that she has such a large repertoire of moves. Many HTM dogs will just repeat the same moves in different sequences to different music but Pudsey did new moves in each of the acts. Ashleigh is also extremely creative in her training most owners are inhibited by their lack of imagination as to what tricks to train and how to link them together.

I am not belittling Ashleigh at all but most trainers with a clicker and patience can get some of the tricks Pudsey did as individual tricks but not many of us could put them together in such a creative manner.

Try the roll over
Jump over your legs
Walk backwards etc Give it a try and you could win half a million!
Not sure I could do the piggy back

I didn't know what this was about till I googled it. I had earlier seen a video of a man dancing with his dog, and tbh, found it a bit unnatural, to say the least.

Not sure I get the attraction of dancing dogs or bears or any animal really...

For me it's seeing the bond between the dog and owner. I do some basic training (i.e. Gwen Bailey Perfect Puppy level) and she really comes alive when I get the treats out. It must be very special to take it to such a high level

Totally agree with Snoopy that it's Ashleigh with the talent. Most people with a working understanding of how a clicker works, and a reasonably bright/food motivated dog could get a few tricks but still not achieve what she does.

I also agree that a lot of doggy dancing performers only have a certain set of moves. It seems sometimes that the human half of the partnership changes costume/routine while the dog does the same set of behaviours in slightly different combinations.

As for unnatural - well, we ask dogs to do a lot of unnatural things, don't we? Trained properly/positively, dogs who do obedience/agility/doggy dancing/whatever LOVE what they do. And if it sparks interest in any sort of doggy sports/activities then that's a brilliant thing.

It is the most natural thing in a dogs world to work for humans - that is what they love and want to do more than anything.

Pudsey looks like a well looked after and happy dog to me. Ashleigh must put in some serious hours with him.

Apart from anything else, she must spend hours grooming him. He looks beautiful.

It is the most natural thing in a dogs world to work for humans - that is what they love and want to do more than anything

Working for humans is different from entertaining them. Not that keen on circus animals or dancing bears or dancing dogs. Or for that matter, little girls performing at pageants is a bit icky too, imo.

It is for our entertainment, and to think it is somehow fulfilling for the animal is a bit disingenuous. Treating a dog to perform tricks is cute, but hardly anything to aspire to, for either the human or the dog...

do you feel the same about dog agility, flatbread? Pudsey's "dancing" is exactly the same as that, & he clearly loves what he does.

IMO you can't compare it to dancing bears or little girls in pageants

well, the walking on back legs part isn't like agility, but he's obviously happy doing that too.

Not to a dog it isn't Flatbread You are sooooooo wrong about it being nothing to aspire to. What is a sheepdog doing when rounding up sheep but learning a trick to flank to the left or right or to push forward? What is walking to heel than a trick to teach your dog to walk in the correct position.

Teaching dogs is a valuable bonding experience. Teaching Tricks is not only a great way to bond with your dog, but it increases your dog?s confidence, strength, fitness, balance, flexibility, and bodily awareness. It stimulates a dog keeps them fit happy and contented.

I have never really been one for talent shows but my mum and I both squealed with excitement when Ashleigh and Pudsey won!

There is so much positivity around the two of them. Without wanting to sound too cheesey, Ashleigh appears to be a great example for young people - not only in her dedication, hard work and creativity but also in her general manner. Pudsey is clearly happy and enjoys the mental and physical stimulation of his training and I was pleased that the BGT judges used the act as an opportunity to speak out against animal cruelty and to encourage treating animals with respect.

As for the walking on his back legs, our first family dog used to do this whenever she got excited. Given that she was a rescue dog who seemed to be a mix of about 50 different breeds it's possible she shared some lineage with Pudsey

Ponders, I don't watch dog agility so can't say.

Snoopy, I guess we can agree to disagree on this

Don't think that a dancing dog is like a sheep dog. A sheepdog is bred to perform a necessary function to help a framer. Many of the older working sheepdogs I know suffer tremendously from arthritis and amputation of limbs, because the work is very hard and taxing on their body. Nothing glamorous or joyous about it. Just a necessary task to be performed with the dog loyally helping out its master because it respects the owner, with or without treats.

I have nothing against treats or teaching a dog cute tricks, but there is a fine line between teaching a dog to dance for fun and bonding and it becoming a performing animal.

Anyone seen the movie, 'Best in Show'? Classic!