Dog Owner Chat v4

[Imzadi83]

hey everyone c: i've been having a problem with my border collie (as always) and was wondering if someone knows how to fix it:

the kiddo constantly picks up items off of the ground. just two days ago he was carrying a dead frog. we tried to train him to drop them with numerous piles of treats, but he realized that we were trying to lure him. thus, every time we approach him when he has something in his mouth, he'll mostly likely swallow it or run away. i'm worried he's going to eventually hurt himself out of his stubbornness. is there a way to train him?

i swear he's too smart omg

It sounds like you may need to work on fading the lure and on proofing the leave it. You may also need to increase the value of your treats. He may be more likely to drop what is has if he knows it will get him a piece of chicken versus a piece of kibble. Here are some training videos to help you out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVivnOwiMoA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hInjqMSOYgs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMNup72dGyA

If you can spot things in the yard that he normally would pick up that you don't want him too, but aren't toxic, you could try spraying them with some bitter apple before he can get to them. In the long run training would create a more reliable drop it, but in the short run may help you out.

And of course the more you can supervise and make safe the areas he's in the better. It may mean keeping him on a short lead until training progresses, but could ultimately save his life in the mean time. And yes, I know that's a big ask and dogs are quick.

When you approach him if he looks like he's going to bolt try calling his name and going the other way so you aren't chasing him. If he swallows what he has don't reward him. Work on the drop it inside with low value items he doesn't mind giving up (sometimes give the item back and reward) and slowly up the ante of dropped item value. Also practice in various locations. Only up one criteria at a time though (value, location, etc.) Good luck.

[orpheus.]

As someone with a dog that I got at 6 weeks old from a BYB (and yes they are a BYB, they allowed a female in heat to come in contact with a intact male. There are very very few instances where that is a actual accident.), don't do it.

Chewie was socialized out the wazoo, he's a stranger reactive mess of a dog. Litterally my most socialized dog, and he's a mess due to bad genetics.

Gotta agree with this.
I love my dog but she is a mess, afraid of other dogs, afraid of new people, suffers from SA, afraid of cars and various objects. It's taken a lot of work to get her to where she is now, and still there's a lot we struggle with.

If you want a service dog then you'd need something sturdy and reliable, a 6 week old BYB puppy is most likely not going to be that. If you can wait until the pup is 8 weeks that'd be better obviously, but you still don't really know what you'll end up with health wise and otherwise.

I hope either way that you end up with a dog you can enjoy and work with, at the end of the day it is your choice. c:

[xXocea]

@turmoil

Instead of approaching him every time you see him with something in his mouth try to back off a bit. If it's nothing dangerous for him you should just let him drop it on his own accord. What you've done by doing so has made him start resource guarding. If you don't fix it soon, you'll end up with an aggressive dog who'll snap or snarl at anyone who tries to approach him while he has a toy, or is eating his food.

What I suggest you do is NOT to try and train him to drop things when you just naturally find him with stuff in his mouth. Instead enter a training session where you purposely give him objects, and encourage him to bite onto and tug on a toy and play with it ect. Then after you should stop the play session by holding the toy and not letting him tug and play with it. Hold it really still. Eventually he'll get bored and will release the toy from his mouth. When he does that say "Drop it" (Or whatever cue you want to use) Only say the cue once he's done so. Don't nag him or repeatedly say "Drop it, drop it, drop it." That'll make him learn to tune you out and ignore whatever's coming out of your mouth. Then immediately resume play. Don't stop and fish around for a treat to give him. His reward or 'treat' is to play with the toy again. Get excited with him, amp him up, have fun with it!! This method is easier (In my opinion) than trying to get the dog to drop it by enticing him with food. Especially if he's not a super food-motivated dog.
Videos to help with this: 1 2 Others

Another thing you could do is teach him a "leave it" cue. Like if you see something on the ground he's likely to go after and pick up.
If he goes after it tell him to leave it.
Here's some videos to help: 1 2 3 Others

[Muggywort]

Puppo
So, this is my dog, Sadie. We really don't know what breed she is but she appears to have some Blue Heeler along with a few other breeds mixed in there. We don't really care what breed she is but her genes may help us figure out why she acts the way she does towards other dogs.

Yesterday, me and my family went out hiking and invited a few other people along. One of the people along brought their huge golden lab with. When they met, Sadie started showing her teeth at him everytime he tried to sniff her or generally be friendly to her. She has done this in the past with other dogs aswell. I'm not sure if this has to do with her genetics or if she wasn't exposed to her littermates enough when she was a puppy. She is a rescue dog so we know nothing of her past and are trying to peice together the reasons for why she behaves like this.

[Imzadi83]

Puppo
So, this is my dog, Sadie. We really don't know what breed she is but she appears to have some Blue Heeler along with a few other breeds mixed in there. We don't really care what breed she is but her genes may help us figure out why she acts the way she does towards other dogs.

Yesterday, me and my family went out hiking and invited a few other people along. One of the people along brought their huge golden lab with. When they met, Sadie started showing her teeth at him everytime he tried to sniff her or generally be friendly to her. She has done this in the past with other dogs aswell. I'm not sure if this has to do with her genetics or if she wasn't exposed to her littermates enough when she was a puppy. She is a rescue dog so we know nothing of her past and are trying to peice together the reasons for why she behaves like this.

It could be one or both of those things, also lack of or improper socialization by her pervious owners (or bad experiences if she was a stray) could play a part as well.

Dog aggression is not uncommon. You can help her learn how deal with dogs through proper positive reinforcement training but ultimately management will play a big part in this. Keep her on leash and don't allow her to approach other dogs as well as try to keep other dogs from approaching her. This latter can be difficult but you can at least avoid places that are designated off leash.

The fact that a fight didn't break out is good. She was telling the other dog she didn't want to be approached, this is your signal to get her out of that situation in case the other dog is not respectful of her boundaries. She is showing bit inhibition, which is a good thing, but it's unfair and dangerous to push it. If she doesn't want another dog in her face, respect that and remove her. Ask the other owner to do the same with their dog.

Sometimes a more careful introduction between two dogs is helpful. Parallel on leash walking followed by a quick greeting can go a long way. Take it slow. Some dogs are picky about how they meet other dogs, or which dogs they like. And some will never befriend any other dogs. You may have to accept the fact that Sadie just may not want other dog friends, and that's okay. As long as she isn't lunging to get at other dogs and attack them, and as long as you can control her it shouldn't be a problem.

If you can afford/have access to a positive reinforcement trainer you might want to look into one as well. Perhaps a behaviorist too.

Sadie is a beautiful dog.

[turmoil]

@imzadi83
i'll try to use more treats and see if that works. we usually use chicken strips as treats, but i'll think about changing it up to different flavors. maybe that'll convince him to drop it. i appreciate you adding the links too, i'll show it to my family so that we can try to train him better ^^

@RebelliousWinter
ooh! i never thought about using the tug toy as a method to get him to learn drop. i'll definitely try it out. also, thank you too for the links!

[.Middy.]

Dorky dogs went on a hike today! Met up with some new people, and guys I am legit so proud of Kes. Normally she will correct dogs that get in her face or are pushy. Only her dog friends are allowed to get in her face, definely not new ones lol.

Today she did amazing and only corrected the new dogs once when they ran into her. They were in her face fairly often (Kinda pushy dogs lol) and she just looked at me for help rather than correcting them! Which I don't mind her correcting bad behavior, but it's defiently easier to find new hiking people if she doesn't lol

Her shining moment was when we ran into some labs offleash. I put her in a sit stay to the side of the trail, and she held it great while we talked and the labs were rude and all over us, sniffing her treat bag, all up in her face more than once, ect. Just super rude dogs. She held her sit and gave me perfect focus while they were touching and sniffing her!

Held a real nice heel while on the paved trails too! Overall super proud! So she got a cookie from the dog bakery after lunch! Didn't keep her heel as well in there though lol. Need more work around food scents for sure!

[zaz]

If you are going to gamble on a puppy, get one from a shelter or reputable rescue. Support a good organization rather than lining the pockets of someone too irresponsible to keep a in heat female safe, and then sending the pups home way too early which can lead to future issues.



Gotta agree with this.

Do you guys have any tips for training a dog to not pull on a leash? I know this is an extremely basic question but I've never been able to do it right. The dog we just got re-homed to us is a big Pit, and on leash I don't think he realizes how strong he is.

[Imzadi83]

If you are going to gamble on a puppy, get one from a shelter or reputable rescue. Support a good organization rather than lining the pockets of someone too irresponsible to keep a in heat female safe, and then sending the pups home way too early which can lead to future issues.



Gotta agree with this.

Do you guys have any tips for training a dog to not pull on a leash? I know this is an extremely basic question but I've never been able to do it right. The dog we just got re-homed to us is a big Pit, and on leash I don't think he realizes how strong he is.

Here are some training videos to help you out...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFgtqgiAKoQ&list=PL7287C737FB745168 There are multiple videos in the playlist that will likely be useful to you.

A front clip harness can help but is no substitute for training. Consistency is key, the more you can deny your dog moving forward when the pull the quicker he will understand that the only way to get where he wants to go is to not pull. Practice inside first then out side in a calm environment before going into more stressful ones as much as you can.

[awakening souls.]

Ah guys, I'm so excited!

I know this isn't specifically dog-related, but I'll be helping out at a local animal clinic starting next week. This is to strengthen my experience with animal patients for the future, as I'd like to hopefully become a vet somewhere down the road. I likely won't be helping out with anything major - cleaning out crates, changing sheets, sanitizing tools, working as the receptions for a little while - but every bit of assistance makes a difference, right?