- Pregnancy
- Baby & Toddler
- Parents
- Getting Pregnant
- Baby Names
- Product Reviews
-
Registry
- Community
-
More
Want a personalized experience?
Download the free app
June 2014 Moms
Amberpoem
member
*VENT* I Hate My Dog
Amberpoem
member
Let me explain, I have a severe dislike for my adolescent dog. Last May we fostered this adorable Labrador/Pit Bull mix 3 month old puppy. She was sweet, even tempered, and loved nothing more than to lie in your lap. We agreed to keep her...and then we realized she was sick from the pound from which she was rescued. When she got better is when the nightmare began. My even-tempered puppy turned into the Tasmanian devil.
1. She loves to eat crap. Cat crap, my other sweet dog’s crap, and her own crap.
2. She has successfully shredded my leather couch.
3. She dive-bombs you like a stealth fighter jet when you least expect it- knocks you over or pounces on you. (Pregnant, I was knocked down the hill in my back yard twice)
4. She pees on you when you sleep/nap.
5. We crate her, and she somehow removed the tray and shredded it along with the walls near the crate.
6. She has eaten the remotes, books, boxes, rocks, glass bottles, house plants...and again MY LEATHER COUCH!
7. She climbs over the fence in the back yard so we have to tie her out to go to the bathroom...see #3
8. She digs holes under the fence to my neighbor’s yards and their dogs
9. I bought a shock collar to curb her jumping, biting, and chasing my cats- it works...sometimes.
10. She bolts out the door- At 1 AM last night I was chasing my dog through neighbor’s yards until 2:30 AM and was in turn nearly attacked by a possum. Did I mention a neighbor thought I was a burglar and came out with his gun?!
I am at my wit’s end. I walk her, exercise her, take her to the dog park 4 days a week and “tire her out.” No avail. I am pregnant and cannot imagine bringing a newborn into my once-peaceful home. I couldn't lay the baby on the bed, without #3 happening, let alone have any diapers (#1) or toys about.
I have trained search and rescue dogs, love dogs, but have never seen this type of behavior in my life. We even had two trainers evaluate her...they wouldn't take the job saying she was too “high-strung” for their training. UGH! Not sure what to do....I know I sound like an evil self-absorbed person who is venting, but I am a SAHW and spend 4+ hours a day with training/exercising my dog...what about when the baby comes? Not sure what to do! (Thanks for letting me vent)
This discussion has been closed.
Re: *VENT* I Hate My Dog
Did you take her through a standard "puppy kindergarten" class? That would help, too.
You say you "tire her out," but if she's bolting out your door and digging under the fence, she's not tired. Dogs are pretty clear in the messages they send.
I refuse to believe that there are no trainers where you are who will work with her. That's ridiculous. A high energy lab/pit mix with totally standard behavior problems? It's not like she attacked a kid or something. I'm sure you can find someone who will help you harness her energy before the baby comes.
"And all the house elves came to help, and THAT was the day Voldemort was defeated!"
Zoe Johannah, born 6/3/2014
"And all the house elves came to help, and THAT was the day Voldemort was defeated!"
Zoe Johannah, born 6/3/2014
Everything you have said is is normal for a dog that needs more excersize.
Dogs can also get desperation anxiety so if she is doing this when you are not home it could be part that.
She also needs training. I can't believe the trainers you went to cant help you. That is odd. I know a few trainers and all the ones I know who take her on.
Yes there are medications out there you can use. Benedryl I can see not working with her. But with medications you also need training. She needs basic obedience as well as talking to a behaviorist.
Eating cat poop and dog poop unfortunately is common. I have my cat boxes downstairs where the dogs can't get to them. You can talk to you vet about eating her own poop just to make sure nothing is wrong but some dogs do do it.
What did she have when she was so sick? Parvo? Kennel cough?
Yes you have to see someone now before baby is here. You can't trust her with the baby even whe she is trained. I personally would never trust any dog. I have a golden and he will never be alone w the baby.
Let me know what state you are in. Maybe I can see if one of my trainer friends knows someone in that state.
This sounds like anxiety not just boredom. There are relaxation protocols that help your dog to learn to be calm ( the more a behavior is practice the easier it becomes for the brain to do it, make sense?)
It's kind of like learning to meditate for a person and find a calmness in light of distraction are you on the FB group? I use mobile and don't get PM on here. I can send you the protocol. It's time consuming and required practice but worth it. I have a pup thy sounds a lot like yours. I took him to trainers to get additional assistance they had 20+ years experience and were award winners an they just congratulated me on keeping my little hellion.
However through relaxation protocols and counter conditioning and desensitization he's so much better
Thunder shirts and rescue remedy help with the teaching process to calm anxious energy.
Hyperactivity in dogs is a sign of anxiety too not just a breed/age thing. Literally my do would not lay down or stop moving unless he was in a black out crate etc.
As for shock collar it can be remarkably dangerous especially with a dog of this sort.
There is a group called the pet professional guild look at their website. They will have a force free trainer in your area. Not only do we use science based methods force free is a great way to go especially when you have children in the mix and they can physically force an animal.
Good luck
My pitbull gets ran in the morning, played with in the afternoon then put on a treadmill at night for an hour with short walks in between. He'll also occasionally go swimming with us. Even though he's about 5 he's still high energy and likes to be given tasks to do and worked out. We buy him a lot of kongs and stuff them with treats to mentally stimulate him.
We've tried thunder shirts and rescue remedy on him and they both worked pretty well, I would recommend them.
As far as foods go, I wouldn't recommend blue buffalo for pitbulls. Or terriers In general, I feed my boys orijen and sometimes Acana. A little pricy but it slimmed them both down and my boston stopped eating his poop after a month of eating it.
Also, you can look into train and baked facilities who will train your dog for a month out of the house, like a boot camp.
Follow us at Caring Bridge
Nothing replaces a great trainer and I know I'm going to ruffle some feathers but if you get a trainer that discusses your dog is"dominate" run the other way. Dominance theory has been disproven for years but with the popularity of a certain TV show its experiences a resurgence. Also some vets stand by it because their old school training tought them it and then haven't updated their training/education
Yay for responsible pet ownership!
Edit: also, maybe what she meant was that she just did one if those online things without going through the certification courses and is not a "trainer". I suppose that would make more sense. Anyone who "trains" dogs would be at least remotely familiar with the behavior she's describing. Aaaaaand...I basically just reposted lol.
Edit: important to note that even volunteer S&R dogs have to go through some pretty intense certifications to actually participate I rescues.
And I definitely empathize with OP, I went through something similar with my lab/rot mix as ended up having to put him in full day training along with home training for months. But he evened out and given time and consistancy ended up doing beautifully it's not an easy situation to deal with and I understand the extreme frustration. But she's going to have to deal with whatever the issues are that are holding the dog back from being able to get into some kind of formal training and the sooner the better. Maybe it's cost, maybe it's time, maybe not all the adult members in the household are willing to participate? Whatever the cause formal training is going to need to be a part of the equation in getting things under control, especially if the owner has no experience with high energy puppies and has the deadline of June to get things to a manageable point.
I think the doggie daycare suggestion is a great one. Also, I'm sure some of the dog experts on here will know way better than me, but I read that pineapple is good for dogs, and for some reason can stop them from eating poo. My dog loves it! Just a thought.