The new forums will be named Coin Return (based on the most recent vote)! You can check on the status and timeline of the transition to the new forums here.
The Guiding Principles and New Rules document is now in effect.
Help me level up my dog owner stat (Dog questions)
KidDynamite
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Hey guyz!
I bought, a house. And now I have a dog.
We went looking at the shelter, and finally gave in to bring home a 2/3 yr old Aussie/Mutt mix.
He's been real good so far. Walks on a leash okay, and does his business outside. He's been awesome in the crate all day on the real cold days when I have to leave him inside.
I have three questions for you guys that are successful in owning a dog.
1. He eats poop, I'm trying the hot sauce/ keep his area clean as best I can, but whats up with that? It's kind of gross honestly. Can I even break this habit?
2. Cats. He didn't even react to the cat at the shelter, but man, he wants to chase and or mess with our two cats. How can I help him understand that this is a big no-no.
I created a room where only the cats can go, so they are safe. But I need to eventually have the cats back in our lives. Any good tips for this?
3. Finally, I take him on nice longs walks, and interact with him. But I'm worried he may not get enough stimulation. He totally doesn't care about throwing the tennis ball, won't even try to tug of war. It's not that I have to have a playful dog, but I would like to be able to wear him out a little before bed.
Any suggestions from the folks out there. I appreciate it in advance.
As soon as I get some decent pics, I'll throw them up.
I bought, a house. And now I have a dog.
We went looking at the shelter, and finally gave in to bring home a 2/3 yr old Aussie/Mutt mix.
He's been real good so far. Walks on a leash okay, and does his business outside. He's been awesome in the crate all day on the real cold days when I have to leave him inside.
I have three questions for you guys that are successful in owning a dog.
1. He eats poop, I'm trying the hot sauce/ keep his area clean as best I can, but whats up with that? It's kind of gross honestly. Can I even break this habit?
2. Cats. He didn't even react to the cat at the shelter, but man, he wants to chase and or mess with our two cats. How can I help him understand that this is a big no-no.
I created a room where only the cats can go, so they are safe. But I need to eventually have the cats back in our lives. Any good tips for this?
3. Finally, I take him on nice longs walks, and interact with him. But I'm worried he may not get enough stimulation. He totally doesn't care about throwing the tennis ball, won't even try to tug of war. It's not that I have to have a playful dog, but I would like to be able to wear him out a little before bed.
Any suggestions from the folks out there. I appreciate it in advance.
As soon as I get some decent pics, I'll throw them up.
KidDynamite on
0
Posts
cats. just keep yelling at him when he goes to do it. eventually he will get the hint as aussies are smart. how long have you had him? it could be a novelty for him. just keep the cat safe areas.
. just get him some bones to chew on. have you tried a frisbee? our pup didn't know how to fetch a ball for a while but loved the bee.
you could entice him to fetch using treats but you have to watch out that he only does it for food.
as far as wearing out goes. training is one of the best things to do. especially if the pup is relatively new as it will get him tired as well as build the bond between you. plus your dog won't be a dick.
Do you leave him outside all the time?
This is terrible advice. Don't "yell" at your dog. It does nothing but make them fear you and is a terrible "training tool". This is an excellent opportunity to work on the "leave it" command. There are all sorts of ways to train your dog - I suggest getting him into obedience classes or at the very least doing a lot of reading and putting what you learn into practice. Honestly, though, some dogs just love to eat poop. It may be gross, but so is licking your asshole, sniffing assholes when saying hello, rolling in dead animals, and generally just being a dog. Dogs are gross... but they are awesome.
So, there's a reason they say "fighting like cats and dogs". If you have cats (or any small furry animal that's going to kick off a dog's predatory instincts), you should have taken that into consideration when making the decision to get a dog. Now that being said, in my experience, it takes a lot of work to get a dog who shows interest in eating cats to leave them alone. Even after years and years you will typically never be able to leave them alone together and there is a chance that they are going to "get into it", usually resulting in a dead cat and a horribly scratched up dog. Two times in the past year I've heard of friend's (otherwise lubby dubby and well trained) dogs eating family cats. Again, dogs and cats.
I got my dogs as puppies (good old farm dogs, no mills here thankyouverymuch), so that I could be sure they had no prior history of cat interaction. I'll relay the methods I used, in case you can make any work with your slightly older dog.
- do not discipline or raise your voice to the cats in front of the dog
- get the dog to sit/lay down quietly, and then interact calmly (do not play!) with the cats nearby. if there's another person in your household, get them to help with this (you could perhaps also crate him while you do this). when you're doing this, praise/reward your dog if he is being absolutely calm and still. do this several times a day, you may need to do it with one cat at a time - but make sure your dog sees you do it with both cats. if the dog doesn't sit quietly or starts to lunge, correct him and start over. if he does it again, put the cats back in their room and try again later.
- you didn't say how the cats reacted to the general presence of the dog, but you might want to try the trick of letting the dog sleep with an old tshirt and then putting it in the cat area so they get used to the smell in a calmer environment (this is how people generally introduce new cats to each other). note: I don't know if this works at all in reverse.
By the way, good for you for getting a shelter dog. I would have gladly done so when I got my dogs, however I have had very bad experiences with shelter dogs and cats. I know that it isn't always the case, but given my past experiences I wanted to be as sure as I could be that my cats would be safe - so that's why I went the puppy route.
I try really hard not to yell at him. (I'm not gonna say it never happens, but I am definately taking the positve reinforcement route.) We are working on leave it. The problem for me, is that there is nothing except poop that he is interested in for me to work on it.
I've been reading, and saving some cash for obedience (I had alot of unexpected things pop up this month, so cash is tight ATM. but we will get him there.)
He's got sit down, stay is coming along. Here works wonderfully, and leash training is about 80%. He still pulls some but he learns quick. One thing I notice, is that he is eerily smart. I think he knows that if I don't have a treat it is not worth it.
Re: The cats, we did consider it, and short of bringing them with us, I don't know that we could've known. In my defense one of my cats is kind of a dick and does antogonize the dog quite a bit. I'm not sure if he wants to eat the cats, but he sure does want to play with them. They are never left alone in the house without him being crated.
He lurves the pig ear things, but will work through one in about two days. I might try the frisbee for sure. Seems like he's got to like something.
He stays inside most of the time.
What do you guys think? Better to let him out during the day? Or crate him up for the hours I am at work. I got a dog house for outside that he seems to like.
Honestly, in hind-sight I probably acted a little soon. But the poor guy had been there for two years, and no one wanted him (Prolly cause he's not "awww cute" doggy)
When they tried to take him back he really didn't want to go. After being so good on our little walk, and testing him in a room full of cats I had to do it.
I may regret it later, but I can tell he's loving home life. He was so freaked out about being in a quite inside environment it was hilarious.
The only problems I've had are the cats (which I think eventually may lead at least co-existence. And his breath was curl-your-hair bad. I've been giving him a couple of greenies, and brushing his teeth slowly, so the breath is much much better.
My mutt used to occasionally eat our cats' poop when they hadn't properly buried it in the litter box and it was stinking up the house. They have an instinct to keep their living area clean and lacking opposable digits he opted to try to eat it to clean it up.
This also happened occasionally when he would have an accident in the house, we would find out because of his bad breath. If he has been left in the yard and has been pooping and eating his own poop. He might be trying to tidy the place up and going through an collecting it yourself could help avoid this.
Hey, it's a good sign that you feel bad about it, yanno?
Yeah man, some dogs are deadly smart. So about the pulling - I have a Weimaraner. Big ol' 80lbs. 3 year old male. He's my pal. He used to pull like an ox on a flat collar. I trained him with a prong collar - not a choke chain - and he now walks on a loose lead. The prong collar looks like a medieval torture device, but it is an excellent training tool when used correctly. I suggest take a look at one and consult a professional in using it. One thing to keep in mind is that you don't want to become dependent on it, you simply want to use it during training to teach your dog a specific behavior (not pulling).
Two words: bully sticks. They are 100% pure protein and very healthy for dogs to consume (given you buy a good product - support your local pet store!). The real ones are bull penis. Some stores market them as tendons so people don't think about the fact that they are buying and then feeding their dog hot smelly bull cock. My dog, he loves the cock.
I'd leave him outside on nice days as long as you have a sufficiently high/sturdy fence with gates that you can secure using a chain. Make sure he has plenty of fresh water available. Really, it all boils down to his safety. Will he be safe staying outside? Are there things in the backyard that will hurt him if he gets into them (chemicals, poisonous plants, etc.)? Is he a digger? Will he be able to easily dig under the fence and get out? If the answer to any of these questions is "yes" than he's probably safer in the crate, unfortunately. It's great that your pup has taken to the crate, though, and doesn't seem to suffer any separation anxiety. That's a huge benefit when/if you travel with your dog and must spend some time in the crate, in a hotel room, for example.
really yelling bad dog or no! at your pup when they are caught or about to do something bad is not terrible advice. just make sure to follow it up with praise when they stop
our pup has part cattle dog and is one of the most stubborn dogs ever. somethings need to be nipped in the butt. raising your voice tells the dog you are serious and play time is over. i am not suggesting you scream willy nilly.
cat poop is like candy to most dogs.
We haven't even let him in that room w/ cats. Since "cat treats" are to be avoided.
I don't think it is cleaning up evidence thing, since he usually isn't out of my sight in the house. (Still getting a feel for him around things)
Mainly if I try to let him off leash, or when I'm walking him, if it's poop (dog or cat, he don't care) he wants it. Could be his, could be some other dogs from two months ago. Could be a wolverine for all I know.
I should also clarify, that I don't really yell at him. I do get discouraged, and I'm sure he can hear it in my voice.
How should I voice (or show) my displeasure with an activity? for instance if I catch him looking/thinking about going in the cat room.
I've hard to tap them on the bottom of the snout, and swatting him doesn't seem like it would do much (I've never hit my dog) Since when we play, I play drums on his belly.
Careful, adamantium is just like chocolate to dogs.
We've trained our dogs that when we say "hey!" in a serious tone (not a loud volume) they had better listen cause we're upset. Our dog walkers use "bup bup bup" universally as a disapproval marker for almost all of the dogs they walk.
Body posture is also a huge method of communication with animals. They don't have verbal languages so they say a lot more with how they hold themselves and move about. If I widen my eyes and tighten my mouth while sitting/standing up very straight my dogs start paying attention because they know I'm serious. This is also why we have hand signals that go along with every command we give them. Even if they can't hear me because they're too far away and it's windy or loud they know that when I point at my feet I want their butts planted there ASAP.
Another way to show displeasure that is especially useful for nipping puppies is to very exaggeratedly remove attention. If we were playing tug of war with our pups and they touched our skin with their teeth for any reason we would stand up, turn our backs to them, and cross our arms. If your dog is doing something it knows is wrong despite your corrections, then they may be doing it for attention, even if it is negative.
And you're already doing the best thing you can for your dog, which is actually giving a damn and trying to find out what you can do to make it a happy and healthy member of your family.
My advice is to give the dog a break. This dog has been living in a shelter for two years. It is going to take time to get used to living in house with people and cats. Go slowly. It can take up to 6 months for a dog's personality to return to normal after being in a shelter. Generalized poop eating and not playing are likely signs of residual stress. For now I would keep him on leash and keep offering to play. How long have you had him?
Right now you want to set the dog up to succeed as much as possible. If the dog is doing something you don't want you should roll up a newspaper and hit yourself on the forehead because you failed, not him. This dog doesn't yet know anything about what you want, he should only have the opportunity to do things you do want.
If the dog is *thinking* about doing something - simply redirect him to doing something else.
If you have had the dog less than two weeks I wouldn't even bother with trying to introduce the dog and the cats yet. Put a blanket into each of their rooms and switch them every day. This way the dog and the cats will get used to each other's smells and they aren't going to be "new" when you do start introducing them. When you do start introducing them, find a time of day when the dog is relaxed and/or sleepy and try to set up a situation so that your dog sees a relatively calm cat from a distance. Then reward both the dog and the cat for being calm and slowly move them closer together. Then reward them each for being calm while the other moves (higher level distraction). Do this separately for each cat and then repeat with all three animals.
Teaching a "leave it" cue will be very helpful for both the poop eating and the cat interest as you progress.
Cat poop tends to be very rich in protein and fat because of how their digestive systems work. It is possible to train dogs not to eat cat poop but it is very difficult and lots of people decide to just manage that situation for life.
It isn't a substitute for a good class with a trainer that reads dogs well, but this is a free website with a very nice training program: http://www.dragonflyllama.com/%20DOGS/%20Dog1/levels.html
Then once I trusted her a little more I left the leash on her but it was loose. That way if she charged I could quickly get to the leash to pull her back if needed. I continued with the spray bottle and treats. After it was like this for a couple of weeks with no charging or over interested I took the leash off and let her loose in the house while we were home. If we were gone I'd put her outside or lock the cats up. After about 6 months like this I finally decided to trust her while I was gone and I never had a problem with her. Now I leave her at home with the cats for hours and know she wont hurt them. She even shares her bed with them.
As for the "playing" she has no interest in any toys. She might play fetch (usually two throws of a mouse cat toy and only inside) and then she is done. She loves walks, hiking, or training but thats about it. She doesn't need much to wear her out, I think she is a lazy dog.
This whole post = win and I thank you.
I'm reading through the website now.
Especially the advice about giving him a break, I've been taking to heart. I know it's gotta be all new to him. And he probably has not had to do anything but lay around for a while now. It's been almost a month since we brought him home.
One thing that I've been trying to work on is commands outside. I don't blame him, as there are alot of things to looks at and pay attention to. I'm working on sit, and learning to come when called by name.
The wife and I sat down and talked about the commands we will use. So we are both using the same ones.
One last questions if I may, how would I go about training that some things (Brown leather beat up couch) are cool to be on, and others (new nicer couch) are not.
Is it just easier in the long run (for him to understand I mean) to not be on anything at all?
My dog knows that he is allowed on all the furniture at my house and only the downstairs furniture at my parents house. It will take a little bit longer than all or none but it isn't that hard. I just invited my dog up onto the furniture he is allowed on and asked him to leave the furniture he isn't any time I saw him get up there (and he wasn't allowed upstairs without me until I trusted him so I could always ask him to leave as he got up and before he sat down). Dogs are very good at discrimination, that is useful in situations like this but difficult when trying to generalize a behavior.
It is a good idea to build up distractions slowly. So once he is good at doing something in the kitchen, make sure he can do it every room of the house, then see if he can do it while your wife is doing something interesting in the same room, then see if he can do it standing at the front door, then on a porch or deck or in a garage at a boring time of day, then out in the real world at a boring time of day (11pmish works well for me), then at more interesting times of day.
He may also need better rewards outside. And outside rewards might be different than inside rewards, think about what he enjoys - running around next to you, a chance to sniff uninterrupted for a while, all of those sorts of things can be rewards for doing things you want. If he doesn't seem excited about those sorts of things get some higher value food treats, think tiny pieces of real roast beef or chicken. It is harder for him to concentrate and do these behaviors outside so he should get a better reward.