Hey Guys,
My boyfriend and I recently got our puppy Ninja on Craigslist from a really sweet woman who I guess couldn't take care of her due to family circumstances. Ninja is such a sweet puppy, a total love bug, not really aggressive at all, but oh man, is she stubborn. She's between 5-6 months old, and she's really having some behavioral issues.
Right now, we're trying to get her crate trained, as she keeps having accidents in the house. Any time we put her in her crate (and we nicely lure her in with treats/toys, so we don't make it negative) she starts whining and crying. This is a problem, because although either my boyfriend or I are home a majority of the time, there's maybe 3 hours a day, that's she alone, and as soon as I close my front door, I can hear her start to bark her little head off again.
The main problems we're facing:
1. Potty TrainingShe'll go to the bathroom when we bring her outside, and when she does, we make it a REALLY BIG DEAL. Give her lots of lovin' and a treat, but then often, as soon as we get back inside and I turn my head for a second, she's squatting in the other room already going again. I've thought at first, maybe we just we're being patient enough outside, but there are times when I just bring her out for a quick pee/poo that I'm outside with her in our yard for almost 35 minutes. And she'll STILL go inside. I'm currently keeping a leash on her while she's in the house and tying it to my waist so that she's always RIGHT near me, and I can catch her right as she's starting to go, but we're still having problems. Am I expecting her to change too quickly for her age? (She's 5 months old)
2.Commands: Sit, Down, Stay, ect Ninja is a stubborn little girl, anytime she hears us say sit, she looks at us with a "Why should I" type look. I've recently started treat training (which I've heard isn't great to do, because then they get used to getting treats for doing that they should do anytime) and she'll always sit right down for a treat, and she'll lay down. On occasion I can entice her to sit with her favorite tennis ball too, but how do I get her to listen with out a toy or treat. Often I say "Sit!" and she just looks at me, and I'll repeat it over and over again, and I can TELL she knows what I'm saying because as soon as I pull out a treat she suddenly will do it. (Tricky little girl!) Should I just continue to treat train her and solidify the commands, or should I be doing something else to make her learn these for the future. Sometimes, upon hearing a command, not only will she not do it, she'll just walk away from me, meaning I have to walk after and put her but on the ground and physically make her sit! (she's very stubborn and defiant).
3.Barking!!!(IN THE CRATE) She's only a barker when she's in her crate. Otherwise she's pretty good unless she sees another dog or person while we're on a walk. We've tried spraying her with a water bottle to get her attention to quite her down and then praise her when she's quiet. Sometimes it works, sometimes she just keeps barking, and ANYTIME we leave she is barking up a storm! What can we do to ease the crying the barking both in and out of the crate?
4.Jumping on peopleShe's still a jumper! Any time we let her out of her crate, go outside, have a friend over, anything, she jumps up repeatedly. We have been pushing her off of us and saying "Off!" and then praising her when she stays down for a minute, there seems to be VERY little improvement with her on this.
I know that we got her at a difficult age, from what I've read, she's probably going through a stubborn streak, I'm looking for some advice, any that you can offer me! I'll take books, websites, articles, personal experience, magical spells (haha) what ever you've got!
She's my first puppy, and I want to make sure that I can take her to family events and bring her (almost) everywhere with me! My boyfriend and I can't get enough of her, but this constant battle is wearing on us, we're not going to give up of course, just want a good strategy for training her right!
My boyfriend and I recently got our puppy Ninja on Craigslist from a really sweet woman who I guess couldn't take care of her due to family circumstances. Ninja is such a sweet puppy, a total love bug, not really aggressive at all, but oh man, is she stubborn. She's between 5-6 months old, and she's really having some behavioral issues.
Right now, we're trying to get her crate trained, as she keeps having accidents in the house. Any time we put her in her crate (and we nicely lure her in with treats/toys, so we don't make it negative) she starts whining and crying. This is a problem, because although either my boyfriend or I are home a majority of the time, there's maybe 3 hours a day, that's she alone, and as soon as I close my front door, I can hear her start to bark her little head off again.
The main problems we're facing:
1. Potty TrainingShe'll go to the bathroom when we bring her outside, and when she does, we make it a REALLY BIG DEAL. Give her lots of lovin' and a treat, but then often, as soon as we get back inside and I turn my head for a second, she's squatting in the other room already going again. I've thought at first, maybe we just we're being patient enough outside, but there are times when I just bring her out for a quick pee/poo that I'm outside with her in our yard for almost 35 minutes. And she'll STILL go inside. I'm currently keeping a leash on her while she's in the house and tying it to my waist so that she's always RIGHT near me, and I can catch her right as she's starting to go, but we're still having problems. Am I expecting her to change too quickly for her age? (She's 5 months old)
2.Commands: Sit, Down, Stay, ect Ninja is a stubborn little girl, anytime she hears us say sit, she looks at us with a "Why should I" type look. I've recently started treat training (which I've heard isn't great to do, because then they get used to getting treats for doing that they should do anytime) and she'll always sit right down for a treat, and she'll lay down. On occasion I can entice her to sit with her favorite tennis ball too, but how do I get her to listen with out a toy or treat. Often I say "Sit!" and she just looks at me, and I'll repeat it over and over again, and I can TELL she knows what I'm saying because as soon as I pull out a treat she suddenly will do it. (Tricky little girl!) Should I just continue to treat train her and solidify the commands, or should I be doing something else to make her learn these for the future. Sometimes, upon hearing a command, not only will she not do it, she'll just walk away from me, meaning I have to walk after and put her but on the ground and physically make her sit! (she's very stubborn and defiant).
3.Barking!!!(IN THE CRATE) She's only a barker when she's in her crate. Otherwise she's pretty good unless she sees another dog or person while we're on a walk. We've tried spraying her with a water bottle to get her attention to quite her down and then praise her when she's quiet. Sometimes it works, sometimes she just keeps barking, and ANYTIME we leave she is barking up a storm! What can we do to ease the crying the barking both in and out of the crate?
4.Jumping on peopleShe's still a jumper! Any time we let her out of her crate, go outside, have a friend over, anything, she jumps up repeatedly. We have been pushing her off of us and saying "Off!" and then praising her when she stays down for a minute, there seems to be VERY little improvement with her on this.
I know that we got her at a difficult age, from what I've read, she's probably going through a stubborn streak, I'm looking for some advice, any that you can offer me! I'll take books, websites, articles, personal experience, magical spells (haha) what ever you've got!
She's my first puppy, and I want to make sure that I can take her to family events and bring her (almost) everywhere with me! My boyfriend and I can't get enough of her, but this constant battle is wearing on us, we're not going to give up of course, just want a good strategy for training her right!