Is my dog stupid???

Hi

I have a cavalier king charles and haven't had a dog before so i dont know the norm but she is 6 months old and teaching her a simple trick like lay has now taken 8 days and she still doesn't do it.

I say sit, she sits, i say lay, she stares at me with a blank look, so i lay her down by taking her front legs and streching them to she lays and then give her a treat.

Is it ment to take this long???

Sit and stay she lernt in a day or two.
Shake hands took 3 weeks.
Jump she lernt in a day.

Peeing....that is annoying she KNOWS not to pee in the house KNOWS it but 1-2 a week she does it and KNOWS its wrong because she runs to her bed (in her crate) and she ONLY ever does that when she pees, WHY does she do this, i have spent week trying to teach her to go to the door and put her paws on it but she wont.

Is this normal, any one have any ideas for either of these issues???

Heavens no your dog is not stupid!

This is how I taught Diego.

Get down to the dogs level.
Put the treat in one hand.
Tell the dog to sit.
Then with your other hand tap on the floor and just keep saying the same word or words what ever you have been using. I use "Lay down" I keep repeating it over and over.. tapping on the floor ... I try raising my voice to sound happy and playful. I think it makes learning for the pup fun. Once your dog lays down give the treat immediately and praise him! I kept repeating it over and over till I knew he got it. Then though out the day... here and there I will make him go though it again.

With the peeing situation.. not sure about that. We are potty training now.
Have you tried a bell?

Ring the bell = go potty

Trick to the trade..when teaching down..place your hand just behind the shoulder blades..and press. thumb on on side of the spine, fingers on the other..right beside the spine don't squeeze, just press.not hard..doesn'st hurt, but there is a pressure point right there and they will imediantly down no strain for anybody. Pulling the legs out does acheive the down position but i think it confuses the dog..makes them think"heywhatthisgutdoingtomylegs?" instead of "oh..down..got it". There is a pressure point also right infront of the hip bones in the muscles along the spine like the small of our back. If you have the right spot..the dog will instantly go into a sit. It doesn't hurt them at all..there is no stress in their face, no pushing hard on your part..just an easier way to communicate you wants. I find the less talk and the quickest way to get your point across is the best way to teach a dog a lesson. Lessons should be very short and often repeated during the day..i never but never yell..in fact talk even quieter and put some sugar in your voice not a playtime yipppee voice, but a love voice quiet and low will make them realize that you are pleased with them and make them want to try to please you all the more. I don't get along with treats during training because i lose their attention to what is in my hand or pocket..and i want them to do this for me..not the treat. The only exception i have to that is learning to sit pretty.

Your dog is not stupid. Everyone learns at their own pace and maybe life is just too exciting for her. I wouldn't assume that she KNOWS not to pee in the house. If she knew that she wouldn't do it, would she? It takes a lot of time and dedication to house train and I"m sure she'll get it.

This is one of my favourite sites on clicker training. You might get some helpful tips here. It's worth a try! http://www.clickerlessons.com/lessons.html

Thank you for the advise, i will try a bell and i will try the pressure point too, THANK U.

Thanks for the link.

Forgot the out issue...set a timer and take her out so often that it eliminates the need for her to ask..just to start until you have a pattern down of Knowing yourself when she needs to go..especially when you see her wake up and after a big drink or dinner..after you have a routine established..then you can begin to watch her and see if she is "sneaking into another room." Then run to the door and show her how proud you are of her going in that direction. A bell is wonderful..I really discourage scratching on the door because of paint. Victor stomps his feet and paces to the door to let me know. She sounds confused to me..i don't think you have a clear communication going. I had to teach a jack russel once that was a true preformer of the sneakly leg hike..i kept him on a leash..attached to my belt loop until he learned that freedom was earned not given. He was an older dog and had established a long time habit of marking his territory. It was neccesary to housebreak him before he could go to his new home. When we went out of course was big praise about what a macho man he was..he just had to learn outside, not inside. you must absolutely get rid of any trace of scent in the house..that just sends confusing signals to them. Sam's club sells a carpet cleaner called odorban that works and there are many others on the market as well. Soap an water are not enough. Bleach on any floor surface it will not harm.

Sometimes when you press on them, they resist and press back. I guess it must work for some dogs, but I didn't have to press. I just held a treat in my hand and had them sit first by holding it above their head a little bit and back. Then I'd have them follow my hand with their nose to the floor and they just naturally lie down. And then praise and give the treat. Maybe the dog wants you to use correct grammar...lie, not lay. LOL, just kidding with you. No, seriously, dogs don't naturally like to lie down because they're more vulnerable that way, so it kind of goes against their grain.

If you have the right spot..there is no resistance. Showed this to a woman with a huge pyrenees...she couldn't believe it..the dog sat immediantly, and downed the same way.

There is a similar method for getting a horse to drop it's head for you. Pressure points between the ears. I used to use it all the time but I've decided I'm not a fan. They would wait for the touch instead of learning a command so I would always have to use it instead of giving an easier command. Of course I've never heard of that one for dogs. So I don't know how well it does work.

Actually, from what I hear that breed of dog is VERY intelligent. I did quite a bit of research on them because I was seriously considering adopting that breed of dog, that is, before I found my Bailey and fell in love at first sight.

As someone mentioned before, if your dog isn't learning a trick, you just have to go about it a different way. They simply aren't grasping the way you are trying to teach it. Don't be afraid to help her if she isn't understand.

You might want to consider obedience classes which encourage positive reinforcement. I know the humane society here offers them for only $50 for an 8 week beginning course, and you get a partial refund if you show up to all of them. They will be able to teach you effective methods to train your puppy.

Puppies take patience, but she'll get it. She must be beautiful, I LOVE Cavalier King Charles Spaniels!

Cindy

it shouldn’t be taking that long or any where near that long. But to be honest its properly your training not the dogs intelligence all the spaniel type dogs are intelligent although the Springer and Brittany can be stubborn.

My bcs usually take 15 mins to learn and new trick.

I suggest you read some books on how dogs learn because I really think its your training rather than the dogs intelligence.

Sometimes a dog 'won't learn' because it simply doesn't want to do what you want it to do! You have to not only make it fun, but let the dog find out that doing what you ask pays off big in good attention.

I've also noticed that more intelligent dogs can tend to be more difficult to train. Certain things they will do immediately, but other things that they don't see a need to do - or just plain don't like to do - they will balk and act like they have no idea what you want from them.

Or because your dog doesnt know what you want it do.

If your training is clear and consistant then it should pick it up extreamly quick You also need the motivation to get the will to learn. Just play keep it fun make your dog want to do it.

pretty much everything i would say has already been said but i just figured i would say this.

Theres no such thing as a stupid dog sweet heart.

not meaning to be rude ... but this is ure first dog???
im 15 and ive had 6 already... plus about 7 rabbits, lots of fish, 3 cats and birds and horses.
how old r u... im just interested in noing
im sorry if i ofend u, none ment

Oh, Pits! Haven't you ever met a dog that was just a lovable, dumb goof or a real scatterbrain? They're a lot like we are, they come in all degrees of "smartness" but, unlike us, they all have that huge capacity to love - so unless you need your dog to do specific things that require a certain intellectual capacity, it really doesn't matter if you've got a dog that's an intellectual titan or one that's a loving goob, lol!

One of the most delightful dogs I ever met was this gorgeous Irish Setter without a brain in her pretty head.

I wish Kelly was a member but she is soooo busy..she could tell you about her Dinky!
Dinky was her miracle baby like my Tate..almost died at birth..long recovery when everything should be growing great guns..they were just hanging on to life by a thread..and something got lost in the process..even the dullest pencils in the box have a purpose..the Monks of New Skete wrote a wonderful story about one of thei saints that was just that,,goofy and silly and they did't think he was going to work out at all..gee i wish i remembered where i read that in the end he did a good thing!