help

[kellie_420]

i have a 7 or 8 month old pit bull / australian shepherd dog and when he doesnt get his way he eats things like brand new carpet, linoleum, books, shoes, trim around the doors, can anyone tell me how i can get it through his head that he's not suppost to do it? any help would be appreciated thanx

[Renee750il]

This sounds like a job for CreatureTeacher!

One of the first things I'd suggest, if he's doing this mainly when you're gone, is to give him a large Kong toy stuffed with peanut butter and goodies and then frozen to work on and keep him occupied while you're gone.

It also sounds like a puppy-proofed room is in order. He also needs plenty of exercise, mental as well as physical. Puzzle balls are good for that, and you can devise games to make him use his brain as well, like hide and seek.

[Barb04]

Bitter Apple is great. I have the spray and just learned it comes in gel form to spread on electrical cords, etc.

I've had 5 dogs past and present in my life and go through the same thing with each and every one of them.

Did you always have this dog or did you just get him?

[Doberluv]

Well, well, well....where is Creature Teacher? I must go online too much...been here, saw this, thought I'd wait, but here goes what I think and then let's see what CT thinks. Sometimes two ideas are helpful and sometimes just one is. LOL. )depends on the idea, I guess)

What, may I ask, do you mean...when he doesn't get his own way? That sounds sort of complex. But, I'll give you just a general opinion about puppies in general until I find out more info from you. This is my guess:

Puppies don't know much. They don't know what's good stuff, what's stuff they can play with. They get bored. They get restless, think they need more attention than we think they need. They get bored, they get bored, they get bored. LOL.

Puppies, especailly certain breeds really need a job to do to make them feel important. LOL. They need lots of periodic exercise that gets the ants out of their pants. They need training...basic obedience training. This keeps them mentally and physically stimulated and makes them tired. (tired pups are good pups) Obedience practice can be short, but frequent. They need toys that are suitable for them to chew, praise when they chew those. When your pups behavior is not to your liking, try not to react in a way that he may think you're rewarding him for....(attention) Even when you are verbally scolding, sometimes they think you're just talking. Of course, you can't ignore everything they do. You have to stop it now. So, just pull the dog off of something or take it away and don't make too much ado.....replace with something else that he can play with and reward for that. Try to puppy proof better so he can't get things that you don't want him to get. Everytime he does, that is self rewarding. Maybe keep him in a room that doesn't have elecric cords or too many things for him.....for now, till he settles. But do all these things....find a special place for him when you can't watch him....a crate, a puppy proof room (small) or pen. And give him lots to do off and on during the day.

[kellie_420]

i got him when he was a puppy puppy like 4 weeks old i thought that was really young but i don't know the lady i got him from had a litter and the mom stopped feeding them and they were eating already so she gave them to good homes i got the runt about two weeks after i got him he tryed to play with the cat well... she didn't like that and she swatted him in his face not he is blind in 1 eye but it doesn't seem to bother him he has his toys that he knows is his but i have to get him new 1s every week because he eats them i take him out to run in the mtns. we play Frisbee, ball and catch he goes into town with me when he can. he has a pen out side and a carrier inside he loves both even though he doesnt spend alot of time in either i can try a puzzle ball that sounds like it could help i have never herd of bitter apple spray though but i can look for it he really doens't chew on wires i guess thats a good thing he knows basic commands like sit, down, stay, and come and what i mean about when he doesn't get his way is when he gets mad or in trouble or when he thinks he deserves something but nobody gives it to him so he thinks he should get it himself. thanks for your help i hope to get even more advice all that comes in can help.

[Renee750il]

Sounds like a good candidate for NILIF training to me, doesn't it to you, Doberluv?

[kellie_420]

whats NILIF?

[mrose_s]

"dog-proof" one room, and ut him in it when he misbehaves would be my suggestion...

[mrose_s]

NILIF stands for Nothing In Life Is Free, like, they cant have their food unless they sit etc

[Doberluv]

I agree with Renee. NILIF is the idea that the dog needs to earn his resources, (treats, pats, attention, anything he wants by doing a sit or down or whatever command he knows) first before he gets it from YOU. You are in control of these valued things and he learns to pay attention and respect you better because he WANTS these things. http://www.sspca.org/Dogs_TANSTAAFL.html

He also learns that because you control these things, you are SUPER DUPER important in his life and without you, he couldn't live, so that makes him REALLY look up to you. LOL.

It's all kind, gentle, rewarding type training. There is no need for domination or harshness. There is no place for that in training any animal. For you to be his leader, you need to be respected and dogs don't respect owners who get them to comply by use of fear of avoidance of punishment. This is why positive training methods work so well. There's that looking up to you aspect which is so fundamental in a dog. They look UP to their "alpha" and trust them to guide them and make rules. Assertiveness, confidence, insistance and consistance will all help him to feel secure that he has a great leader to help him grow.

NILIF is really good for dogs who are showing an excessive amount of pushiness or are challenging their owner. It doesn't hurt one bit to use some of these suggestions. They're great for any dog. But I, personally wouldn't worry about carrying it to the extreme if you're not having any aggression problems from your dog.

But it IS basic, good manners to sit/wait before getting their food bowl instead of barging into it before you've even set it down or sitting and waiting while you open the door before busting through. Those things should be taught to make a more pleasant situation and a dog who respects some rules.

I've never asked my "vicious" Doberman to sit every time I want to pat him or to sit before he gets a toy every single time. I do it sometimes and not others. BUT, I have never ever had one inkling of a challenge out of him. He clearly knows that I'm the rule maker. LOL. He has been shown what I expect about so many other things and has learned some manners so then it's not necessary to make him do all this stuff for every little, nit picking thing. But when starting your pup out, it sure is a good idea to get some of those manners started. He'll really know who's whom without a rough road...all pleasant, rewarding, fun learning. That's all it takes.



Keep up that good obedience practice every day and make it fun and rewarding and he'll soon grow up and get out of the chewing, mouthy, bratty puppy stage. LOL.

[Renee750il]

You know, Doberluv, I hadn't thought about it before, but NILIF training is good training for owner as well as dog! It teaches both about boundaries and expectations.

[Doberluv]

Oh yes....when you think about it, I bet we use it every day, without even thinking about it...that is...if we're half way self disciplined about anything. LOL.

When I mow my lawn, which is quite large, I'll think to myself, "Ok..when I'm done with this section, I'm going to stop and get a drink of water, (because I'm soooo thirsty) and sit for a while." But, every time, without fail, I change my mind and think to myself, "Well...nevermind, I'm almost done...only have this one last, large area behind the driveway. I'll just finish and be done. LOL. So, I make myself earn my water. (kind of dumb, really, seeing as how I suffered severe heat stroke last summer.) LOL.

[Renee750il]

That works too, although I was thinking more along the lines that it trains us to be consistent in our dealings with our dogs, lol!

Guess ol' Pavlov was right about all of us, hmmm? :D

[Doberluv]

Oh! LOL! I'm a little slow. Hee hee hee. Ok...so you mean, when we do right by our dogs when training, our dogs reward us. When we suck at training, they don't reward us. LOL.

[Renee750il]

Perr-zactly! :D