Advice on correcting dog behavior, please

[Deschodt]

Originally Posted by Laneco

Dogs are very much creatures of habit. For 8 years, her habit has been to peer inside the house which made her feel like part of the pack - at least she was in sight of her people. Without that stimulus, she is reverting to a seperation anxiety behavior wherein she chews/climbs/claws whatever she has to do to get back into visual contact with her pack.

When people have the day alone, we work on our cars, maybe clean the house, or curl up with a good book. A dog spends the entire day wondering where YOU are. Anything that distracts them from that anxiety (chewing, digging, barking, etc) are all fair game. I'm not really a fan of leaving a dog alone all day while I'm at work, it' against their nature as they are definately not solitary creatures.

A few days a week in doggy day care might help her. Give her a sense of belonging during the day while you are gone. Back at the house, your dog needs to relearn some behavior. She has been allowed to (and has a NEED) to stare into the house. We've got a dog that has a real issue with that. Though constant correction over a period of several months and about 50 gallons through a spray squirter helped with the worst symptoms, she would still periodically stare in the window and whine/moan. We put window coverings over the windows (french doors) and that stopped that problem. This might be a first step. Give back the patio, but block the visibility into the house. Perhaps when the visual stimulation becomes a no-go for her, she may be more apt to drop that behavior - but be warned, if you don't give her something to do, she'll find another outlet, like digging, barking, etc. Think "re-direct." Don't displace one bad habit with another bad habit.

You've admitted to not being a dog person. No problem, alot of people are not dog people. But the bad news is that I'm not sure your wife is a dog person either. In that case, let the dog go to someone who IS a dog person. You said this dog is great with kids, maybe her best home is a new one with a pack of kids and a swimming pool - good times!! An 8 year old lab that is good with kids can be very easily rehomed.

Not trying to be critical, just something to think about. Sometimes the best choice for the dog at this point in your life/your wife's life is another home.

angela

Now that was a helpful post, thanks !!!

Oh, yes on digging too.. I understand she is bored during the day, but what can I do ??? I fill up the holes, that, I don't mind doing...
I thought initially she could not see the mesh, I don't know how dogs see... and once she popped it, she kinds used it like a doggy door... Hence the lattice. It's not a proper fence but I figured if she saw an obstruction and it resisted casual bumping, we'd be OK. I guessed wrong... I can see how escalation on fencing is not gonna resolve anything... So it looks like I either have to give her up (not gonna lie, it would not bother me or the kids - apparently they aren't interested - but it would bother my wife a lot), or let her into the house (more hair)... I'm also cursed with a good nose and not too fond of dog smell, even when clean, so that would imply a bath every 3-4 days. Dunno... Anyway, good stuff Angela thank you for the perspective.

[Rikao4]

Greg..
just do the right thing for yourself & dog..
you mentioned a possible dog family..
your wife is just waiting for you to be the bad guy..
so be it..
not like anyone going too miss him..

folks should cry when passes..
not do the smurf dance & high fives

Rika

[Don Ro]

Originally Posted by Deschodt

I'm at a loss,

Feeling just a bit unconscious? You have company...WolfeMacleod cleared the way for you:
.
Great. I live with a thief

[DonDavis]

Do you have the wrong type of dog? I know you said you're not a dog person but what if you had a smaller, inside dog that didn't shed? Just think it through, maybe speak to the family. Find a family for your current dog, research smaller dogs for inside ( mini Schnauzer would be worth a look, or a Basenji ).

Wife gets her dog fix, patio gets reclaimed, kids may dig it too, you keep your wits and who knows, maybe you get a kick out of it as well.

[mikester]

Labs are people dogs so, they want to be near their people and when they are not they tend to get in trouble. This is bad for non-dog people who want independence from their canine companion (oxymoron?).

I've had labs all my life and couldn't imagine not having my friend next to me where ever I am in the house. When I leave her outside she digs a hole in the same spot. My solution is to not leave her outside.

Labs are great dogs, very intelligent and easy to train. You may consider consulting a professional to see if you can get some help. It will bring you closer to the dog if it helps and that works for all involved. The other side of that option is that it will help you realize this isn't for you and you can find the dog a new happy home.

You may need a heart to heart with the wife tough, that's always fun...

[Don Ro]

Originally Posted by DonDavis

Do you have the wrong type of dog? I know you said you're not a dog person but what if you had a smaller, inside dog that didn't shed? Just think it through, maybe speak to the family. Find a family for your current dog, research smaller dogs for inside ( mini Schnauzer would be worth a look, or a Basenji ).

Wife gets her dog fix, patio gets reclaimed, kids may dig it too, you keep your wits and who knows, maybe you get a kick out of it as well.

Holy Crap, people. Stop trying to make him into a dog person. As per his own words, his wife & kids are NOT dog people either.
THE END.

[flipper35]

We had a yellow lab that liked to lean on our screen doors so we put a metal screen door guard from the hardware store to stop her from fall through. That might help.

[Don Plumley]

Your family invited this dog into your life. Either share your life fully with her, or find someone that will. I bear no ill will to people that are not dog folks -> they just should not have dogs.

BTW, you mentioned:

I could tie her with some length of chain to a portion of the yard, in the shade,

That shouldn't even cross your mind. How would you like to be chained up all day?

Get a cat. It won't give a **** about you either.

[dhoward]

Sheesh. There's a lot of hostility here....

[944Larry]

Originally Posted by Laneco

Dogs are very much creatures of habit. For 8 years, her habit has been to peer inside the house which made her feel like part of the pack - at least she was in sight of her people. Without that stimulus, she is reverting to a seperation anxiety behavior wherein she chews/climbs/claws whatever she has to do to get back into visual contact with her pack.

When people have the day alone, we work on our cars, maybe clean the house, or curl up with a good book. A dog spends the entire day wondering where YOU are. Anything that distracts them from that anxiety (chewing, digging, barking, etc) are all fair game. I'm not really a fan of leaving a dog alone all day while I'm at work, it' against their nature as they are definately not solitary creatures.

A few days a week in doggy day care might help her. Give her a sense of belonging during the day while you are gone. Back at the house, your dog needs to relearn some behavior. She has been allowed to (and has a NEED) to stare into the house. We've got a dog that has a real issue with that. Though constant correction over a period of several months and about 50 gallons through a spray squirter helped with the worst symptoms, she would still periodically stare in the window and whine/moan. We put window coverings over the windows (french doors) and that stopped that problem. This might be a first step. Give back the patio, but block the visibility into the house. Perhaps when the visual stimulation becomes a no-go for her, she may be more apt to drop that behavior - but be warned, if you don't give her something to do, she'll find another outlet, like digging, barking, etc. Think "re-direct." Don't displace one bad habit with another bad habit.

You've admitted to not being a dog person. No problem, alot of people are not dog people. But the bad news is that I'm not sure your wife is a dog person either. In that case, let the dog go to someone who IS a dog person. You said this dog is great with kids, maybe her best home is a new one with a pack of kids and a swimming pool - good times!! An 8 year old lab that is good with kids can be very easily rehomed.

Not trying to be critical, just something to think about. Sometimes the best choice for the dog at this point in your life/your wife's life is another home.

angela

This nailed it.............separation anxiety. Labs are notorious for it.

[ODDJOB UNO]

"MR SNUGGLES HATES YOU!" and he told me to tell you this:



theres this thang called a freeking SHOCK COLLAR!


level one zap=mellow "hmm i am screwing up" aka strike 1 1st step upon OBSERVED bad dawgie behavior.

level two zap= "wow i am screwing up bad" aka strike 2 2nd step upon OBSERVED bad dawggie behavior.

LEVEL 3 ZAP= "HOLY SHEEET I AM FOOKING UP SO BAD AND I AM AFEARED AND I WILL BE A GOOD LIL DAWGGIE OR MY HUEVOS OR OVARIES WILL SPONTANEOUSLY COMBUST RIGHT HERE AND NOW AND WHY AM I 4 FEET OFF THE GROUND KIND OF SHOCK!

my lab was chewing on hoses. A LOT! and it was 5 times a day. it was comical until ya look at 100ft quality hoses cost.


well since we smarter than the avg bear.........we sought WISE MEN! and the dawggie wise man gave me a SHOCK COLLAR that he uses on his springer spaniels duck dawggies. he is MR BIRD HUNTER MR DUCKS UNLIMITED AKC LINEAGE ON EVERYONE OF HIS DAWGS! and he knew his poo:


so.............i set up my hide in laundry room with a 6 pak(natch) and a chair, and watched my lab after installing shock collar attack my hose for the zillionth time.


had control on one(1). saw dawg start chewing on hose, dropped my beer, and pressed "LEVEL 1 ZAP" and dog stopped. hahahahhhahahaha it worked.


stayed out in laundry room. about 15 minutes latter, damn dawg attacked hose. dropped my beer, pressed LEVEL 2 ZAP, dawg howled and backed off.


went and drank rest of 6 pak and came back..................gawd damn dawg was chewing on hose again.


dropped beer, pressed LEVEL 3 (yer feeked) and watched that dawg howl like it got hit by a freight train and LEVITATE 4 FREEKING FEET OFF THE GROUND! and run like a mofo.



and ya know what? that damn lab if i even touched a hose went into the next county. not EVAR AGAIN DID IT CHEW A HOSE!


cost : i borrowed shock collar or buy at cabelas.

(1) 6 pak.

my time.


too simple huh? end of poor dawggie behavior class.



its how ya train champion bird dawgs and it works. same as for rattlesnake training here. place non venomous snake on ground, dawg comes close, ZAP THE DAWG and the next time dawg sees snake.....................hes in the next county!

[ForBell]

Originally Posted by dhoward

Sheesh. There's a lot of hostility here....

dog folks are like that.
ex-gf would stop along the street if she saw a dog being mistreated - administer a severe tongue lashing to the owner. it was always a sight to behold - surprised she didn't ever get slapped around.

I agree, members here seem to not get the message - this family sees the dog as a commodity and not a Being. OP needs to let the dog go to "friendly family".

[dan88911]

Hey, just my 2cents. Haven't had a dog scene I was a kid. Would have one now if there was no maintenance beyond exercise. Back to my point you ever watch that Dog Whisper guy. Fascinates the heck out of me watching him fix problem dogs. Yeah, man find a good professional dog person to fix things.

[Rikao4]

ok folks..
lets give G a break..
I am..
as he points out..
it's really not the dog...
it's the keepers..

and before you all put those collars on your dog..
put it on yourself or kids..
then as ODDy likes to say and do...
crank it up..
these collars are like guns..
without training...
dogs get hurt & ruined..

BTW it's not a shock collar...
its a corrective collar...

[carambola]

I have no solution, but i do have a question.

If she is only doing this when you aren't home, who is in the house that is new and exciting and she just has to meet?

I'm a dog guy, but my dogs are dumb. Must be a reflection of the owner.

[mikester]

You could also consider crate training her. I never really felt that was a good option myself until my current lab. We rescued her a few years ago from a local shelter and a friend gave us a crate she had. We knew we would not want to be leaving her lose in the house and after speaking with a lot of folks we tried it.

Actually, when I say 'tried it' I simply put it in the house and left the door open with a comfy blanket for a cushion.

She started sleeping and taking naps in there on her own. She may have been crate trained before. As it stands now though she prefers being put in her crate when we need her 'contained' more than she would like being outside for hours. She doesn't often spend more than a few hours in there at a time but there are occasions where she will spend the day in her crate.

[KFC911]

I love labs...my last old girl had a 14 year run before I had to put her down. I AM a dog person, and I guarantee that I would modify this behavior without resorting to shocks, etc. but I've always had the "gift'. That said, there is no way in hell that I would make an older dog (she's not there yet, but soon will be) stay outside in the Fl heat...it's simply time to find a new home for this one if you can imo. That's just my .02 and I don't mean to pile on...the "dog pile"

ps: One of my best buddies had a black lab when I lived in Jax. When he got married, his wife banished her to the back yard . About the age of your dog, the wifey came around, and she enjoyed her later years inside. They all don't chew, have seperation anxiety, etc...they are absolutely a product of their masters. If you can't do this...both your family and the dog deserve better....good luck!

ps: Mikester replied while I was typing. Nuthin' wrong with crating a dog at all (I only do while mine are small puppies)...heck, they sleep all day anyways

[javadog]

Options:

Give the dog away.

Let the dog stay where it used to live and clean the space and the dog more often.

Let the dog into the house, where it will actually be part of the family.

Get another dog, so yours has a companion, since your family isn't filling that need.

Give away the dog.

JR

PS: Bonus points are available if you can figure out what I think you should do.

[teenerted1]

angela had the best advice i have read so far.

think of it this way you kicked the dog out of his 8yr home. but you didnt properly dog proof it too. wimpy latis and screening will not hold a lab at bay.

you problably should have done some training too before you made the change that the pup had a new area during the day that he was to stay

[greglepore]

Crate training works, and dogs don't really mind crates. They won't poop in a confined space where they live, but you have to do the right thing by the dog and take it out when it needs to go. It'll take more time with a mature dog.

Labs are very high energy/drive dogs-not the choice for an ambivalent family, but you have the dog.

You really need an honesty check-do you REALLY want the dog, or is it just you can't accept the failure of letting it go... no guilt if the dog goes to a loving home, and a lab is easy to place. I mean, seriously, if you don't want the constant companionship, why have the dog? That's not a judgement on you, just a fact...too many people in this situation "refuse to fail" when everyone would be happier by moving on. Like a bad marriage...