I am about to lose it with my dogs! Advice please? (poop, train)
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I have two dogs. One is 3 years, one is 12. 6 months ago we made a major move from the south to the north. They haven't adjusted well.
At our last home I had them crated over night and would let them in the fenced back yard to play most of the day (depending on the weather) and let them in the late afternoon/early evening to hang out with family. Sometimes they got to sleep in bedrooms but not every night. All was right in the world. They would occasionally get into things, but not too often.
Here, its been a nightmare! I got their crates set up right away. Our old dog would cry all night long. She is across the house and would keep me up. I tried a better bed in there, bones, covering her, leaving the tv on . Nope. All night every night. After a month or so we started letting both the dogs sleep in our room.
It took a while to get the fence in and them trained on it was I was taking them out often to potty. It wasn't enough! They started going in my new house. All the time! I tried crating them between potty breaks and play time. They still kept going in the house! I had to spend 17k to replace all the flooring because of it.
Well now the fence is in and they got trained on it. They won't go into the yard. They are like super afraid of being shocked. So they sit on the patio and pee and poop on there. Or anywhere else they feel like.
And getting into things. The 3 year old dog can open doors with her paws. So we shut doors but she keeps opening them. They get into bathroom trash all the time. Gross! The 12 year old dog can get stuff off the counter. We started keeping our trash can on the counter and she knocks it off with ease. They are constantly spreading trash all over the house. In a blink of an eye! At least before they would wait until you left the room. And seemed to know they were t supposed to do those things.
We sent the younger one to doggy boot camp and it helped some. It cost a ton. They use a very low shock (very low). But since she is so freaked out by the fence, I haven't been using the low shock. I need her to get out and play to burn some of her energy off, so she has to get used to the yard. Ugh.
I am so annoyed. I just don't know what to do with them!?
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
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As I see it the dogs have limited human contact, no regular exercise, and are subject to shocks? Good grief.
Well-behaved dogs require a lot of time and commitment. You need to participate in training sessions with a professional. You need a comprehensive training program. I would start with the basics: sit, stay, leave it, down. I would do short training sessions throughout the day. You might try click training.
I would also baby proof the house to keep them safe.
Finally, I would incorporate regular and consistent exercise. I have found that a tired dog is a well-behaved dog. This needs to be active exercise. Don't just lock them outside. Play fetch. Walk them. I have even set up little agility courses in my yard. Take them for car rides (I use dog seatbelts) and to the park. Enjoy them.
As I see it the dogs have limited human contact, no regular exercise, and are subject to shocks? Good grief.
Well-behaved dogs require a lot of time and commitment. You need to participate in training sessions with a professional. You need a comprehensive training program. I would start with the basics: sit, stay, leave it, down. I would do short training sessions throughout the day. You might try click training.
I would also baby proof the house to keep them safe.
Finally, I would incorporate regular and consistent exercise. I have found that a tired dog is a well-behaved dog. This needs to be active exercise. Don't just lock them outside. Play fetch. Walk them. I have even set up little agility courses in my yard. Take them for car rides (I use dog seatbelts) and to the park. Enjoy them.
Sigh, I knew I would get judgments. Limited human contact. Nope. At our old house they loved being outside. But they were in several hours after I got home with the kids hanging out with us. In the warm months, I brought them in for the afternoon. Here they hate it outside and the weather isn't as good. So they are with me much of the day. Did you miss the part where they sleep in our bed!?
I used the low shock (it doesn't hurt) for this dog because the ways I have trained in the past didn't work for her. The shock is annoying and she responded well to it. When using it I do little training sessions through the day. I can also have her off leash. I can't have the old dog off leash. In her old age she has started running and gets lost easily.
The fence shock is not low or annoying. I'm sure it hurts because they jump when they feel it. I didn't have an option to use a traditional fence. It was part of our new home wish list, but we couldn't find a place, at all, that met our needs that allowed fences. So invisible it is. And it sucks.
I know they need exercise. I think that is what is missing here. But they used to run and play all day long. I can't walk them because of a foot injury. I can't use the dog park because the younger is dog reactive. I really need them to get out in the yard (which by the way is huge) and play and frolic like they used to.
I've gone out there lots to try to get them to play in the yard with me (neither like fetch or tug o war) but they just stand next to me and stare at me.
Did you get the invisible fence professionally done, or did you do it yourself?
We have an IF for our two big dogs. The way ours is set up, the "field" comes about 8 feet into the perimeter in the yard, but they do make ones that basically make your property an "island"- meaning everything outside your yard is off limits. If you go through a professional, they also provide training for the dogs (and humans). There's no reason, if your yard is big enough and the fence is set up properly that your dog should be terrified to go out.
We had a professional do it and train them. At first they seemed ok with it but then all of a sudden they wouldn't go out any more. We have two zones. One is the front yard, one is the back. The back yard is awesome. It's nearly 1/2 acre with plenty of room to run. And we have tons of animals for them to try to hunt (they love to do it, they never catch anything). Birds, squirrels, chipmunks, bunnies.
It's a huge difference then what we had before. Before we had a 8 foot wood privacy fence, a small yard and a big pool (they didn't go in the pool). But we had dogs on all sides of us. All the dogs created little holes to sniff eachother. So it was constant excitement for all of them as they got let in and out through the day.
Maybe that's what is partly lacking...they just don't have much fun in the yard. I am thinking they might have been rough housing and fallen into the shock zone so they both don't want to play down there.
Maybe I just need to go hang out outside more. Even if they just look at me. Until it gets normal. Maybe even set up a dog house they can go hang out in. Maybe.
I'm so at a loss. I wouldn't get rid of them. They are rescues and I did tons of rescuing/fostering/etc. But I kind get why some people give up. I am so sick of the mess and the pee and the poop. Especially because we have a much nicer house and I do want to keep it that way.
With winter weather coming...eek! We are going to set up their crates in our room and see if we can get them back on a schedule. But let them sleep close to us instead of across the house.
They are bored and freaked out. Junk the invisible fence and put up a real fence if that's at all possible. Take them for walks. Start an activity with them to replace the stimulation they used to have - I would suggest nosework. It's fun, low cost and something you can do in your home. Teach the younger dog new tricks.
Feed them their meals in kongs (wet the kibble down and mash it up, layer in some treats and seal it with peanut butter before freezing the whole mess). Have some smaller kongs (or similar chewies) on hand for momentary distraction.
Crate them when you're not in the house; shut doors and employ baby gates to keep them from where they're not supposed to be; keep them with you when you're home and they are loose in the house.
Everyone else has already suggested things I would have. I only have 2 things to add.
The older dog crying, might not be because of the move, older dogs can start to things like sun downers that make them confused, she could be starting to experience some lose of senses and is freaked out by it.
As for the other one, I hate to say it, but it sounds like the training camp might have told you they used a low shock...but actually used a much more painful one. I could see where that could definitely make her afraid of the fence(although is probably more afraid of the collar if the training camp used higher shocks).
As for the other one, I hate to say it, but it sounds like the training camp might have told you they used a low shock...but actually used a much more painful one. I could see where that could definitely make her afraid of the fence(although is probably more afraid of the collar if the training camp used higher shocks).
If the dogs are what one would call " soft dogs" it does not take much for them to be afraid and a low shock could do it. Somedogs do not get over things like that. My late Jazz knocked over a baby gate when she was a puppy and the noise it made as it hit the floor frightened her.For the next 14.5 yrs she stayed quite a distance from baby gates which in a way was nice as she could have easily jumped one but that would have meant getting close to it. She also jumped up on the counter when she was a puppy as when I came home the Cat was in the kitchen window with a puppy head poking through the blinds so to keep her off the counters I taped balloons on the edge so next time she jumped up it popped a few balloons which frightened her and she never got on a counter again.
Years ago my sister and her husband had a beautiful fish pond and stream in a corner of their back yard to keep their dogs out they put and invisible fence around it. It took about one shock to keep the Golden away from that side of the yard and she would not even go to the point where the collar gave a warning. The Bernese on the other hand did not care she would cross the fence as the reward of laying in the stream out weighed the discomfort of a shock.
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