Dog Owner Chat v4

[Dream~]

I had the same issue with Oreo. He hurt his back once jumping down from a bed, so we got him some stairs and at first he didn't use them, but we praise him every time he uses them. Now he mostly uses them, but there are times he unfortunately chooses not to.

I plan on posting pics of Ruby soon! I'm going to try and get some tomorrow, but no promises since she's so energetic and hard to keep still. She's almost 13 weeks old, and almost 16 pounds. She's growing so fast, she's already taller than Oreo! She did seem to go through a fear stage for a few days when she was around 12 weeks old, but she's over it now.
Can anyone suggest some registered names that go well with Ruby? I'm having a tough time with that, I want to use "Complete Chaos", but it just doesn't seem to go as well as I would like for Ruby. I thought about naming her SSR's Complete Chaos, "Random", but I was already to attached to her name. Example of a name that I love: Making A Connection, "Wifi"
Sadly I have to board her at a vet clinic tomorrow or the next day while I go on vacation. I'll miss her lots, and I hope she gets plenty of attention while I'm gone.

[Roman'sGirl75]

What about Precious Gem's Blood Red Ruby? I'm just tossing that out as a suggestion. My husband's white shepherd is named Acelyn's Twilight Rose Gypsy Moon and my black shepherd is Nyx's Midnight Fallen Star.

[Dekal]

Buy a clicker. Load it for a few sessions, click = cookie. Remove the steps from the bed and take them into a quiet room, click/cookie any interactions with the step until he is seeking them out. Once he decides the steps are the place to be, take them back to the bed and repeat the process there.

[Naeco]

-snip-
Can anyone suggest some registered names that go well with Ruby? I'm having a tough time with that, I want to use "Complete Chaos", but it just doesn't seem to go as well as I would like for Ruby. I thought about naming her SSR's Complete Chaos, "Random", but I was already to attached to her name. Example of a name that I love: Making A Connection, "Wifi"
Sadly I have to board her at a vet clinic tomorrow or the next day while I go on vacation. I'll miss her lots, and I hope she gets plenty of attention while I'm gone.

Ruby in the Rough
Blood Red Gem
Pass Up the Lamp

The last one is about how in Aladdin the cave collapsed because the monkey wanted the ruby instead of just the lamp. So, if Ruby is mischievous, this would work perfectly.

[pizzas and scream]

when ever my stepdad hugs his girlfriend who lives with us, Lucy will bark at them/her.

I don't know if I should believe to much all barks mean the same "word in dog" but it seems to be a bit of a sharp alert bark.
is this bad? we have a lot going on right now. so training and fixing the problem won't be top prority.
or sometimes her bark is like a yelp. not a pained yelp as one does if stepped on.

when I pet the cat Gary, Lucy comes rushing over, and gets "wiggly and wants to be touched" but she dosen't normaly come to me for "please cuddle". only when some other animal is getting attintion. but she won't bark at the cat and I. or chase the cat away. sometimes she goes to try to touch Gary as well, when the dog does the grooming with the teeth.

[Dream~]

@Roman'sGirl75 & @Naeco

Thanks to both of you for the suggestions they were all great and I'll have to think about those for sure.

[Imzadi83]

when ever my stepdad hugs his girlfriend who lives with us, Lucy will bark at them/her.

I don't know if I should believe to much all barks mean the same "word in dog" but it seems to be a bit of a sharp alert bark.
is this bad? we have a lot going on right now. so training and fixing the problem won't be top prority.
or sometimes her bark is like a yelp. not a pained yelp as one does if stepped on.

when I pet the cat Gary, Lucy comes rushing over, and gets "wiggly and wants to be touched" but she dosen't normaly come to me for "please cuddle". only when some other animal is getting attintion. but she won't bark at the cat and I. or chase the cat away. sometimes she goes to try to touch Gary as well, when the dog does the grooming with the teeth.

Lucy is resource guarding her people. She will need some training, staring by not rewarding her when she does it. Give her plenty of attention at other times and none she tries to horn in on Gary's (or the girlfriend's) attention time. Give her something else to do before those incidents occur, like a high value treat/toy that she only gets when someone else is getting the attention instead of her to teach her that others getting attention instead of her is a good thing. Also trying to tire her out before your Dad's girlfriend comes over can help too.

Resource guarding, if left untreated, can be bad as some dogs escalating into biting. And of course as with any other problem behavior the longer you let it go on the worse it can get, and the more difficult it will be to correct. The most important thing to remember is that you have to be consistent. If you know you are going to have a time where you can't do that I would recommend putting the dog away rather than allowing her to do the behavior of resource guarding which is self reinforcing.

And if she starts to nip/bite at people/other animals I would recommend enlisting the help of a professional trainer, just make sure they use only positive reinforcement training.

[Jewel Melody]

My dog really hates her paws being touched (which I know is normal), and today I was able to clip three nails. They aren't fully clipped because she still hates her paws being touched, but I made progress c:
I don't worry too much about her back paws because she chews them short, I think she would do it to her front paws if she could get the right position, but she hasn't been able to do that.

Any tips for making sure I don't clip the quick? I took off just a tiny little bit and I know I haven't cut into it, but her nails are black, and I have a high fear I'm going to cut the quick.

[pizzas and scream]

when ever my stepdad hugs his girlfriend who lives with us, Lucy will bark at them/her.

I don't know if I should believe to much all barks mean the same "word in dog" but it seems to be a bit of a sharp alert bark.
is this bad? we have a lot going on right now. so training and fixing the problem won't be top prority.
or sometimes her bark is like a yelp. not a pained yelp as one does if stepped on.

when I pet the cat Gary, Lucy comes rushing over, and gets "wiggly and wants to be touched" but she dosen't normaly come to me for "please cuddle". only when some other animal is getting attintion. but she won't bark at the cat and I. or chase the cat away. sometimes she goes to try to touch Gary as well, when the dog does the grooming with the teeth.

Lucy is resource guarding her people. She will need some training, staring by not rewarding her when she does it. Give her plenty of attention at other times and none she tries to horn in on Gary's (or the girlfriend's) attention time. Give her something else to do before those incidents occur, like a high value treat/toy that she only gets when someone else is getting the attention instead of her to teach her that others getting attention instead of her is a good thing. Also trying to tire her out before your Dad's girlfriend comes over can help too.

Resource guarding, if left untreated, can be bad as some dogs escalating into biting. And of course as with any other problem behavior the longer you let it go on the worse it can get, and the more difficult it will be to correct. The most important thing to remember is that you have to be consistent. If you know you are going to have a time where you can't do that I would recommend putting the dog away rather than allowing her to do the behavior of resource guarding which is self reinforcing.

And if she starts to nip/bite at people/other animals I would recommend enlisting the help of a professional trainer, just make sure they use only positive reinforcement training.

considering the situation of everything going on. I don't know if I could do it my own. my stepdad is not going to do it, because of so many things going on. and even if i shake and cry and yell and say it could get bad. it won't get a "ok i'll help you" he just chuckles and tells Lucy to calm down.

I don't think I'd be allowed to put her away.

i don't think he'll let me give her a high value treat because it would be people food. and Lucy's favorite toy is chewing on wood. she dosen't go for anything. and i'm should not let her have real wood.
and I don't know how i would put her away. do I tell my stepdad "what she is doing is resource guarding you from Vicky. tell me when you are going to hug Vicky so I can distract Lucy or put her in the bathroom. or we need to buy her new treats so she won't bark at you guys anymore. sometimes dogs start to bite people when their human is not being attintive to them. ignoring her does nothing"


the friend/girlfriend of my stepdad lives with us. so I would have to try to jog this dog for two miles to really really tire her out. then tire her out before bedtime. as i am in my bed. and it seems like, at evey 8 or 8:30 I will hear her yap. and that is when Vicky goes to bed in her own bed. so then I would need to jog the dog for a mile to tire her out? even if it's snowing and very cold?

[Imzadi83]

considering the situation of everything going on. I don't know if I could do it my own. my stepdad is not going to do it, because of so many things going on. and even if i shake and cry and yell and say it could get bad. it won't get a "ok i'll help you" he just chuckles and tells Lucy to calm down.

I don't think I'd be allowed to put her away.

i don't think he'll let me give her a high value treat because it would be people food. and Lucy's favorite toy is chewing on wood. she dosen't go for anything. and i'm should not let her have real wood.
and I don't know how i would put her away. do I tell my stepdad "what she is doing is resource guarding you from Vicky. tell me when you are going to hug Vicky so I can distract Lucy or put her in the bathroom. or we need to buy her new treats so she won't bark at you guys anymore. sometimes dogs start to bite people when their human is not being attintive to them. ignoring her does nothing"


the friend/girlfriend of my stepdad lives with us. so I would have to try to jog this dog for two miles to really really tire her out. then tire her out before bedtime. as i am in my bed. and it seems like, at evey 8 or 8:30 I will hear her yap. and that is when Vicky goes to bed in her own bed. so then I would need to jog the dog for a mile to tire her out? even if it's snowing and very cold?

In theory, maybe, I don't know how much exercise Lucy needs. Exercise won't be a cure either, just something that can help. The exercise wouldn't have to occur before bed time, just increasing the amount she gets overall may be helpful. And exercise isn't just about long walks outdoors. There are games you can play with her indoors to stimulate her body and mind too.

Obviously if the girlfriend lives with you (sorry I missed that part) then putting Lucy away whenever she's around won't be an option. You can't make your stepdad take the problem seriously, but maybe you can gently point out that resource guarding can become problematic, and that it would be a good idea (and easier) to work on It sooner rather than later. You can also mention that it would be a good educational experience to help train Lucy. If your relationship with the girlfriend is okay perhaps you could include her in the discussion as well. I would not shake, cry, and get upset though as that shows immaturity and will not get you taken seriously.

I wouldn't recommend wood as a chew toy either. Have you tried antlers?

If you know she starts barking at a certain time can you do a game/play/training session before that? Maybe give her a puzzle toy before you go to bed?

Sadly the reality of your situation may not allow you to fix this problem. Unfortunately there is no quick fix.

My dog really hates her paws being touched (which I know is normal), and today I was able to clip three nails. They aren't fully clipped because she still hates her paws being touched, but I made progress c:
I don't worry too much about her back paws because she chews them short, I think she would do it to her front paws if she could get the right position, but she hasn't been able to do that.

Any tips for making sure I don't clip the quick? I took off just a tiny little bit and I know I haven't cut into it, but her nails are black, and I have a high fear I'm going to cut the quick.

They have clippers with nail guards, and ones that are electronic that detect the quick. The latter is rather expensive though.
Clipping a little at a time is really the best way to go.

You could use a dremel to help file them down too. A lot of people swear by them but I had a bad experience so I don't use one on Chloe anymore. You can also have the vet/groomer do it if you don't want to.

And it goes without saying, but make sure you have septic powder on hand in case you do clip the quick.