Wish me luck

[mamaloya]

It went well, thanks. I spent several days recovering from the chaos. You know, cleaning the camper, washing sheets, etc.

The dogs did great. They knew where the dog park was by the end and would run right to it. The last day we got a neighbor that Gibson did not like, so that was rough. Our little one is still giving me fits though. She will not walk right on the leash. She tugs, pulls and trys to drag me. Gibson just walks along right by my side looking at her like she is crazy. I just don't have the strength to jerk her by the leash hard enough to make her not want to tug. I come back from walks in so much pain. I am going to start leaving her at home and just taking Gretchen.

She also won't stop pottying on our patio. She knows it is wrong too. I will walk out with her and watch her waiting for her to go so I can fuss her. Well, she just stands there watching me. The second the kids distract me or I get distracted, she runs to the side and goes. Then she runs back inside and hides. She just refuses to go in the grass. The only way I can get her to go in the grass is to put her on the leash, take her into the front and plant myself firmly in one spot. Only then and refusing to move for quite a few minutes, will she finally give in and go. And it is only after she realizes she won't be allowed out of the grass until she goes that she will finally go. I then reward her and let her back in. I don't know why she refuses to go in the grass. I am constantly scrubbing the back patio (well, dd11 is because it is her dog).

Any tips on making her go in the grass and not the patio.

[bsavage]

Sandra... I'm not the best to offer advice on the potty training in the correct place topic, I still sometimes have issues with the dogs (but I think recently it has to do with the new baby, who is still being trained, so the other dogs have moments of regression). But, we're getting better.

Regarding the pulling, though, our Chocolate Lab used to yank both of us around so badly, and someone recommended a "Gentle Leader" harness. All of our dogs now have them. It completely stopped the big dog from pulling... it makes it physically impossible for them to pull, yet it doesn't hurt them. It's kind of like a horse harness. (I use the ones that are a harness, not the ones that go over the nose and muzzle). Not cheap, about $30 each, no matter the size, but are worth every penny to me to not be pulled around.

Good luck!

Brenda, of...

[mom2mastiffs]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by bsavage:
and someone recommended a "Gentle Leader" harness.

Sandra,

I would suggest a few things--I have mastiffs and they ALL outweigh me by quite a bit so they HAVE to behave.
I would suggest first of all on a good obedience class--one that uses positive means of training--no clean and jerk technique. clicker training is good--uses operant conditioning techniques. here is a website that has clicker trainers:
http://karenpryoracademy.com/find-a-trainer
The gentle leader is a great idea but it is imperative that it be fit properly because it can cause neck injuries if not used/fit properly!! We have treated a Lab that yanked hard and hurt it's neck
I have used one on my male mastiff who weighs 225 lbs and it worked well!! Now we don't need one because we did ALOT of training--no pulling training.
I will be using one for my 8 month old puppy once she gets a bit older. Right now we are working on not pulling. When she starts to pull, I just stop where we are. When she turns her head to find out where I am, click and treat. It takes quite a while to walk a bit but it works!
In terms of the issues with housebreaking....
You are going to HAVE to put her on leash and take her to the grass EVERY single time--middle of the night, etc. Do NOT give her the option of going on the patio. Right now she is in the habit of going on the patio and she "thinks" that is where she should go. Have you yelled at her or punished her for doing her business on the patio? If so THAT is the reason she is reason she is running and hiding after going there. So YOU need to take her to the grass to go. Once she is used to going there it will be easier to keep her from going on the patio.
Without watching the reactions, etc from her and you, this is my best advice.

I hope this helps.

[pug_lady]

Bandit,our youngest, soon learned the word "quit" as he can get rambuncous and wants to nibble on the other two dogs legs. I just found out another idea for dogs that wants to bark all the time, this was on Oprah from the author of Loved dogs, she took a spray bottle and you give them a quick squirt and it makes them stop and wonder what just happened. It has worked with our dogs....not that they really have stopped altogether! Water doesn't hurt them so no harm really done to them.

[mamaloya]

Thanks guys. I will try these. I think part of the problem is that I am still suffering a lot of pain and fatigue from the Lyme Disease and so I am not consistent. Right now there are days when I am just happy that she hasn't gone inside the house. LOL We are not walking at all.

Now, we have another issue that has come up. This time with Gibson. He has a lot of alpha in him and is scared of people. Not a good combo. He nipped 2 kids when he thought they were going to hurt him. I immediately scolded him and put him outside. No broken skin though. It was just kind of a warning. He also has growled at my ds7 a few times. I will them make him submit to him. I will have ds7 give a command and make sure Gibson obeys and then have ds7 make him lay down and roll over. He is now over that. He obeys him pretty well.

dd4 has a bad habit of trying to cuddle with Gibson when he is sleeping. Gibson has growled and snapped at her a few times. I scold him and cuddle her in front of him and he gets that "I'm sorry momma" look. I then take her into another room and scold her for doing it. I have told her many times that he does not like to cuddle when he is sleeping. She can only cuddle with him when he is awake. And he loves cuddling with her when he is awake. Last night, he went a step further and nipped her in the face. He broke the skin just a little bit on her eyelid. No bleeding, just a nick. dh jumped up and started hollering at him so loudly Gibson peed where he sat. He also showed his teeth to dh but immediately backed off and rolled over in submission. We put him outside for a while. He knew he did wrong and you could see it in his eyes. He loves dd4 and they are best buds. If he runs past her and knocks her down he will stop and check on her. Is there anything we can do about this. I am hoping dd4 has learned and will leave him along when he is sleeping. Is this a habit that can be stopped or is it a subconcious thing in him? I know I wonder if he is going to bite me when I step over him in the middle of the night to get to the bathroom, but he has always just layed there as I step over. If I bump him on accident, he just kind of lifts his head and then lays it back down. Does this mean that it is something that he has control over and he is just not liking what she is doing?

I know I have rambled on, but I really appreciate you guys' advice on the dogs. dh is also really close to getting rid of Gibson because of his nipping. He is not aggressive, just scared. He is also getting better as he gets older.

Any ideas?

[TXiceman]

If he has not been neutered, I'd suggest that. Other than that, he needs to know he is not the alpha male in the house. You will need to be very firm with him, but not mean. Watch how dogs interact and how they establish the pecking order.

Ken

[mamaloya]

Yes, he has been neutered. He obeys me, but sometimes gives me that look or little bark that says "I'm obeying, but I don't like it very much." Also, if I am sitting down when I give a command he just looks at me as if to you "you aren't the boss of me", but as soon as I stand up, he does it. ?????? I feel like I have another kid.

He is smart. I have trained him to wait for his treat. When I get a treat out, he will sit and wait for me to say "yes". Even if the treat is right at his nose, he just waits for the command. He will also sit and wait while I leave the room and wait for me to say come before he joins me and gets his treat. It only took a few minutes for him to learn these things. The little one, however, is taking longer. She will generally follow Gibson's lead and watch him for what to do and how to react. If only Gibson would patio break her. LOL

I will continue to work with him. If he breaks skin again though, dh says he has to go.

Funny story though, he "sleeps around". By this I mean that during the night, he takes turns sleeping in the various kids beds. He will even get into my ds7's loft bed (it is a low one). We never know which bed he will be in the next morning.

Also, one night, there was someone outside and he woke us up and showed us. We called the MPs and after they left, we went to bed. He slept at the top of the stairs that night watching downstairs as if to say "they won't get past me". He is really an amazing dog. If dd4 goes outside w/o anyone with her, he comes and gets me. He knows the sound of the UPS guy coming up the walk and barks before he even knocks.

Can you tell I really love him? He just needs some tweaking. But, so does my husband and I've kept him around.

[TXiceman]

If he is timid, he will use the nip and bark as a bluff to try and get you to back off.

We had one schnauzer that was very timid and he put up a big bluff to defend himself. The two we have now, are laid back, but the female is the more timid of the two and she will resort to a growl if she is startled.

You will need to keep an eye on him around the little one.

Ken

[RustyJC]

I certainly make no claims to be a "Dog Whisperer", but we rescued a female Sheltie back in the 1980s that had been severely abused as a pup. She was always shy around strangers, and we had to watch her closely around young children.

The most natural thing in the world for a child is to rush up to a dog and pet or hug it. A shy dog like Buffy (described above) would back away to avoid the child until she found herself in a corner with the child still coming toward her. In that situation, a dog can feel threatened, and the defense mechanisms will kick in. In Gibson's case, the same thing can happen if he's startled when he's asleep - he may think that he's being attacked. You might consider closing dd4's door or otherwise separating her from Gibson at night if the nocturnal cuddling is going to be a continuing problem.

JM2CW....

Rusty

[mom2mastiffs]

Sandra,

Without seeing the interaction between dog and various people in your household it is very difficult to give advice. My recommendation would be to hire a good trainer/behaviorist to come to your home. they will want to observe the interaction between dog and children, you, hubby.
Gibson needs to learn there are other options other than biting to indicate displeasure. We try to teach our dogs that if they don't like the game or situation--LEAVE the room/area. course I watch like a hawk if someone runs to the dogs or tries to hug them.
Get a good trainer to help you resolve this!