I think I'm going to find a new home for Boris... or put him down
- Thread starter Fran27
- Start date
I buy mine stuffed animals from the thrift shop for a quarter apiece. They kill them in short order, and they have a good time doing it, but for 75 cents for the three of them, who cares? Other than it's a mess to clean up. I don't have any dogs here who eat stuff, they just rip, shred, and destuff.
Same here. I no longer even THINK about soft toys from ANY dog supply..........they cost too much and are gone within minutes. I used to buy the "yankers" when Orson was younger, @ a price of 16.00 the Fish lasted quite some time but now that he is older THOSE don't make it a whole day so NO MORE.
It doesn't break my heart to lose .50 cents and clean up some stuffing
Better than him eating my shoes, furniture or walls
It doesn't break my heart to lose .50 cents and clean up some stuffing
Better than him eating my shoes, furniture or walls 
Unfortunately, though, at least according to Donaldson's "Mine!" (certainly a more knowledgeable expert than me), giving a dog "all the toys he wants" isn't really going to help with resource guarding. He'll still get something that you have to get back from him at some point, and in that moment, THAT's the only object he'll care about.
I think it's wonderful that he doesn't guard bones or other objects, just soft objects. You can start practicing taking things away from him using the bones or whatever he doesn't guard, and then as he gets confident with you, you can move to higher valued objects.
So, you could start by giving your dog a bone - hand it to him, let him put his mouth on it, but don't let go of it. As soon as he puts his mouth on it, take it back and then give him several REALLY good treats and praise. Do that several times, until he starts getting excited about you taking the bone back. Then do the same thing, but let go of the bone for just one second, then take it back and give lots of treats. Repeat several times. Then gradually work up to letting him have the bone for 5-10 seconds, then take it away and give lots of treats. Then start to give him the bone and walk away - just about 6' at first - then come back, take the bone, and give lots of treats. Then start adding distance and duration that you're gone.
All you're doing here is teaching your dog that when you take something away from him, he'll get HUGE rewards. After only a few trials, he'll probably completely loose interest in the object, and that's fine. You still need to repeat taking things from him so that will become ingrained in his mind. As he gets very comfortable with you being around lower-value items, you can move to higher-value items - just take the steps slower.
You can see that this does take a lot of time, effort, and patience. I still don't believe that you, Fran, have the time to do all of this, and that's ok. But I will say that it's certainly not a lost cause, and in the right home I think he could definately get better.
I think it's wonderful that he doesn't guard bones or other objects, just soft objects. You can start practicing taking things away from him using the bones or whatever he doesn't guard, and then as he gets confident with you, you can move to higher valued objects.
So, you could start by giving your dog a bone - hand it to him, let him put his mouth on it, but don't let go of it. As soon as he puts his mouth on it, take it back and then give him several REALLY good treats and praise. Do that several times, until he starts getting excited about you taking the bone back. Then do the same thing, but let go of the bone for just one second, then take it back and give lots of treats. Repeat several times. Then gradually work up to letting him have the bone for 5-10 seconds, then take it away and give lots of treats. Then start to give him the bone and walk away - just about 6' at first - then come back, take the bone, and give lots of treats. Then start adding distance and duration that you're gone.
All you're doing here is teaching your dog that when you take something away from him, he'll get HUGE rewards. After only a few trials, he'll probably completely loose interest in the object, and that's fine. You still need to repeat taking things from him so that will become ingrained in his mind. As he gets very comfortable with you being around lower-value items, you can move to higher-value items - just take the steps slower.
You can see that this does take a lot of time, effort, and patience. I still don't believe that you, Fran, have the time to do all of this, and that's ok. But I will say that it's certainly not a lost cause, and in the right home I think he could definately get better.
Fran,
Congrats on the twins! I remember reading about Boris before. I just wanted to add, I would never allow a dog that I couldn't control around my kids. And yes, some owners may be able to handle a dog like yours, but I really don't think this is going to happen in your situation...(Just from everything I have read).
So whatever your decision would be, I just wish you the strength to make the right one for your family.
Be Strong!
And we are behind you.
Julie.
Congrats on the twins! I remember reading about Boris before. I just wanted to add, I would never allow a dog that I couldn't control around my kids. And yes, some owners may be able to handle a dog like yours, but I really don't think this is going to happen in your situation...(Just from everything I have read).
So whatever your decision would be, I just wish you the strength to make the right one for your family.
Be Strong!
And we are behind you.
Julie.