Adventures with Stormy

[vickim]

Last month, I brought Stormy home to live with my family and me. I posted pictures then, and I apologize for not updating this time around, but I will soon.

 

Puppy raising is a lot of fun, and a lot of work. So far I've had no luck with house training. I got off to a great start--she was crated whenever everyone was out of the house and never messed in the crate. As soon as she came out of the crate, she was taken outside and she went potty outside. Then my husband decided she was big enough and left her out of her crate. As he is the last one to leave for work (and the one to let her out at lunch time), if he decided he is not going to do it, then it is just not going to happen (think brick walls). I let her sleep in bed with me at night and she usually hops down and pees on the floor at some point during the night. Now that I see the pattern, I know that I have to get up and take her outside when she hops down. If I catch her in the act and say "No", she will stop and we'll rush to the door and she'll finish outside. Not crating her is going to significantly delay her house training, I know, but my DH is NOT going to work with me on this (he's the type that believes that dogs should be free as possible and doesn't even put a collar on his own dog). All I can do is praise her when she does go outside and clean up when she does not make it outside.

 

Stormy knows her name, knows the words "No" (though doesn't always listen if she is feeling full of vinegar), "Sit" (both verbal and hand sign; in fact, I think she does a bit better with hand sign than verbal though I have noted no hearing impairment--I just teach both verbal and hand just in case of future impairment), "Come" (though just can't come if there are too many distractions; we're working on this. I keep telling myself she is just a baby). She also knows "Leave It" and "Drop It", though is not reliable with it--for that matter, she is not 100% reliable on anything, but she is just 12 weeks old.

 

She is a lot of fun--one of her funniest quirks is how she barks at her food dish. Doesn't matter if it's empty or full; she will bark at it. If it's empty, she barks at, pushes it around the room at breakneck speed, catches it in her mouth, and charges around the house until it flips over so that it is upside down. Then she can't catch in her mouth anymore, so she barks so more, and pushes it around even faster. If the food dish is full, she barks, play bows, hit the edge of the dish with her paw so that food goes everywhere and then meticulously eats each piece of kibble. Her favorite toy is the big dog's collar (did I mention how DH refuses to even a collar on his dog? Every time I put one on, he takes it off. Anyway, Stormy found the collar and LOVES it). She picks it up, shakes it and then tears around the house with it. The big dog (Zeus) hates this, as the collar as one tag on it and makes the collar jingle and he does not like a lot of noise.

 

Stormy is very friendly with people and other dogs. It's hunting season, so right now the extended family from downstate comes up every weekend. Now that the dog ban is lifted, they bring their dogs. Stormy has done very well with all of them, and they have been very tolerant of her puppy antics (though a correction here and there does occur, and as long as the dogs aren't trying to kill each other, I let them settle their own differences. I just stand ready to intervene). One thing that does have me a bit concerned: Stormy appears to be a bit food aggressive. Zeus backs off the food in question most of the time if she wants it, unless it is high value, then he growls like he means business, and she does listen to him. One time she nipped me hard when I bent down to retrieve something she wanted (I forget what it was; something I was going to let her eat; I just wanted it in smaller pieces. I didn't even think about it: I tapped her on the nose hard enough to make her yip. Whether it hurt or she was just startled, I don't know. I didn't mean to tap her, I just reacted, but on the other hand, she has not offered such a behavior again. I'm trying to get her acclimated to food being taken away at unexpected times (My stepson's daughter is two and will being coming to visit at some point. And you know how kids can be. I don't want that child nipped), and Stormy has not offered so much as murmur against me.

 

One behavior that she has offered that I did not teach at all; she just did it: when we are out walking and I stop, she will sit nearby me and then look up at me to see what it is that I want next. I wouldn't even know how to teach this, but I have praised her up for this. I do wish she would sit a bit closer to me.

 

Feedback on anything I am doing right or wrong is welcomed--please be kind; this is my first time raising a puppy and it is as much a learning experience for me as it is for her.

[gcv-border]

I have no advice about how to get your husband on board with regard to housetraining, but I would be keeping the pup in the crate more often while you are home and also overnight. In and out, in and out (of the crate)- it is very confusing to a puppy since you are not being consistent. BTW, my husband thought the crating was "not natural", but he did not interfere with my training (either housebreaking or otherwise) and now (5 years later) believes in crate training because my dog is the best-trained one we have ever had. I occasionally take in foster dogs and the crate has been a lifesaver. Even if DH still thinks that it is better for the dog to 'be free', he hates pee in the house more than worrying about crating a dog.

 

It is probably just me, but I wouldn't let her play with her food dish and spill the food all over the place. It may be cute now, but not so cute once she is older, IMO. There are appropriate toys (Kongs, antlers, etc.) and inappropriate toys (dog bowls, socks, etc.) When my dog was a pup, he liked to pick up his empty food bowl (stainless steel or plastic) and play/run with it. The simple solution was to buy a heavy ceramic dog bowl that he could not pick up in his mouth.

 

Food guarding: train her to think that every time your hand comes down near her food bowl, she is going to get something better than what is in the bowl. It sounds like that, right now, she thinks you are going to take something away. Give her a few pieces of kibble in her bowl, and when she starts eating them, throw something REALLY good (bits of chicken, cheese or steak) into her bowl. In the beginning, just toss the good stuff in. As she gets used to your hand coming close to her bowl with good stuff, you can bring your hand closer and closer. This may take several weeks or more. Don't rush it. Eventually, she should not stop eating when you put your hand in the bowl, or she will stop/slow down eating since she is waiting to see what else is going to drop into her bowl. Use the same approach with toys: if she is playing with a toy, give her another better toy to play with when you take the first toy away. I call it the "trade game".

 

The sit behavior is a great start. Keep rewarding that and work on getting her to sit closer to you - in front, on left side or on right side.

 

Keep having fun with your pup,

Jovi

[vickim]

I was also thinking playing with the food dish was not a good idea. I've also noticed that she does not play with the dish at all if I put the kibble on a plate (no glass; I don't use glass for feeding pets) and, in fact, she seems to prefer eating off a plate. I don't know if this is a good alternative or not, and certainly won't work with water, but until I get to the store this weekend and can get a larger bowl (I'm thinking she doesn't like a smaller bowl) it will do. The idea of a heavier one that she can't pick up is a great one! I will definitely have that in mind when I go to pick one.

 

She will not touch the Kong I got her. I even got the one you could fill with tasty treats. Maybe it's too tough for her right now? I did find some somewhat softer spiny rubber-like balls that she enjoys and I look them over every day to make sure that nothing is coming off of them. She loves her squeaky toy. She has not tried tearing it apart, which means that so far she has not lost the toy (I don't know what the batting they stuff the toys would do to her digestive tract but I can't imagine that it would be anything good). She also loves to chew on bones, and to combat her food aggression, I will randomly pick a moment where I will walk up to her, say her name if she has not looked at me so I don't startle her, and then take the bone away for a minute or two. As long as she does not react badly, she will get it back quickly. Also to combat her food aggression, and for some extra one-on-one time, I hand-feed her one piece of kibble at a time. So far she has not offered any further food guarding behavior.

 

Stormy also nips at heels. I don't know if this is an attempt to herd or just puppiness. Since I don't want her doing this I tell her no, and give her something appropriate to chew on (This procedure worked very well on the furniture; she mostly leaves the furniture alone now. I just nee to remind her a few times a week now instead of several times a day. The heels are taking longer).

[Urban Borders]

I was also thinking playing with the food dish was not a good idea. I've also noticed that she does not play with the dish at all if I put the kibble on a plate (no glass; I don't use glass for feeding pets) and, in fact, she seems to prefer eating off a plate. I don't know if this is a good alternative or not, and certainly won't work with water, but until I get to the store this weekend and can get a larger bowl (I'm thinking she doesn't like a smaller bowl) it will do. The idea of a heavier one that she can't pick up is a great one! I will definitely have that in mind when I go to pick one.

 

She will not touch the Kong I got her. I even got the one you could fill with tasty treats. Maybe it's too tough for her right now? I did find some somewhat softer spiny rubber-like balls that she enjoys and I look them over every day to make sure that nothing is coming off of them. She loves her squeaky toy. She has not tried tearing it apart, which means that so far she has not lost the toy (I don't know what the batting they stuff the toys would do to her digestive tract but I can't imagine that it would be anything good). She also loves to chew on bones, and to combat her food aggression, I will randomly pick a moment where I will walk up to her, say her name if she has not looked at me so I don't startle her, and then take the bone away for a minute or two. As long as she does not react badly, she will get it back quickly. Also to combat her food aggression, and for some extra one-on-one time, I hand-feed her one piece of kibble at a time. So far she has not offered any further food guarding behavior.

 

Stormy also nips at heels. I don't know if this is an attempt to herd or just puppiness. Since I don't want her doing this I tell her no, and give her something appropriate to chew on (This procedure worked very well on the furniture; she mostly leaves the furniture alone now. I just nee to remind her a few times a week now instead of several times a day. The heels are taking longer).

 

Re: food guarding. Stormy is upset (she is anxious) when you come near her with food. So, if you think about it this way, you want to stop doing anything that increases anxiety about food, and start desensitizing and counterconditioning (as above) her to you being in proximity to her food (but she has to remain always under threshold for this...you can only approach to the point where she still seems comfortable, and then reward her for tolerating that. Her tolerance should increase with time).

 

It's important to realize that "testing" your dog, by picking up her bone and then just giving it back, or hand-feeding kibble, is probably going to increase her anxiety and not decrease it. Think about how you'd feel if your husband came and picked up your plate at dinner, held it, and then put it back down (and not with anything extra delicious on it, either!). Repeatedly. Or if you had to wait to get one forkful at a time at dinner, and never knew when the food would stop coming. Actually, sometimes I've seen dogs do much better when they're free fed kibble, and don't have to go through any elaborate sit and wait before a release to the bowl. Because the resource is always there, or is more readily available, they don't need to be so anxious about that resource any more.

 

NB: If you do have a 2 year old over, please feed Stormy away from the child. The vast majority of aggression towards children occurs in the context of resources, and you already know Stormy is nervous in this situation.

[Urban Borders]

Also, try baby food, wet food, peanut butter, or cream cheese in the Kong. If my evil demon of a puppy was getting all of her food out of this by 3 months (http://www.caninegenius.com), then yours can probably figure out a Kong with the right motivation :-)

 

Nipping is normal puppy behavior, but should be addressed now. Redirect her to something more appropriate, and give her a break if she's too worked up (i.e., give her a chew toy in her crate). Crates are pretty awesome for house training. Obs is 6 months old, she runs into her crate on cue, and she's had a total of 3 accidents in the time that I had her. Two of those were my fault, because I let her goof off when I let her out of the crate, instead of shuttling her outside.

[Gloria Atwater]

You've gotten good advice here, so I'll only add a couple things.

 

One, do NOT let the baby play with her if any sort of food is involved. If the child is eating, put Stormy outside, and if Stormy has a treat or chew toy, keep the child away. That's a recipe for disaster.

 

Two, I second not letting her play with her food bowl. That's going to be annoying later. Ditto about playing with the jingly collar that bothers your older dog. Don't let her get into behaviors that might cause strife with the other dog, later on.

 

Third, how old is she? Be careful of her jumping off the bed, since that could injure puppy shoulders!

 

I'm very sorry for your husband's attitude. That's could make things a bit tough on the puppy, if she's not getting consistency in the home. But she has to be familiar with a leash and collar, and if hubby won't tolerate collar and tags, make sure she's microchipped when she gets older. And good job on stopping the heel nipping!

 

Best of luck with the little one.

 

~ Gloria

[Gideon's girl]

Who cleans up the messes from him leaving her loose. If you leave them for him, he may change his mind about proper house training. It works for my husband.

[vickim]

Stormy LOVES to jump, and I know better than to let her. Every once in awhile, she just took a blind leap off the top of the steps outside (I forgot to mention that she also knows the word "Outside" and it's the one thing she is 100% reliable on. I say the word outside and she goes to the door. Now we're working on her sitting patiently at the door and waiting for me to actually open it.). Keeping her on a short leash stops this, but I can't wait until she's old enough to do some agility. In the meantime, we have plenty to keep us busy with her basics.

 

Last night she seemed to grasp the concept that if she brings me her ball after I toss it, I will toss it again and she can chase all over again. She was entertained with this activity for nearly three minutes last night, a lifetime in her puppy span of attention. And this morning, she all of sudden seemed to understand down for lay down (lie down? I have a degree in English, but I still confuse those two words).

 

I've tried filling the Kong with peanut butter, but she doesn't seem interested. I"ll try cheese next, or better yet, meat, since she loves any meat product and, in fact, brought home a 'treat" while I was at work yesterday. Apparently one of the family was successful in hunting but not as successful at getting rid of the carcass appropriately as I asked. When DH let Stormy out for a potty break and lost her, guess where she went. When he found her, she was trotting home with a trophy, immensely proud of herself. I've laid down the law about where NOT to dispose of carcasses.

 

I'm looking high and low for a training class nearby for Stormy and I, but the only thing I can find that is nearby is someone that will train your dog for you. I want someone to train me to train my dog. A place where not only can I learn how to train, but socialize her her with dogs and people. Even if I have to go one-on-one for training, I would do that. Anyone have any ideas? There are no listings in the yellow pages.

[gcv-border]

I'm looking high and low for a training class nearby for Stormy and I, but the only thing I can find that is nearby is someone that will train your dog for you. I want someone to train me to train my dog. A place where not only can I learn how to train, but socialize her her with dogs and people. Even if I have to go one-on-one for training, I would do that. Anyone have any ideas? There are no listings in the yellow pages.

 

I agree that you should find a class (or privates) where the trainer works with both you and your dog. If you can find a class, do not count on it for socialization since most classes I have attended frown on 'mixing' of the dogs. A class can sometimes be tailored to include a socialization period for the dogs, but generally, a class is best used for training - with distractions. Socialize your dog by bringing her with you to dog-friendly places - parks, stores, etc.

- or ask friends with dogs for play-dates. To find training resources, I would start asking at your vet's, pet food store, closest dog training club, and other dog owners.

 

Jovi

[arf2184]

Maybe this will help in finding a trainer: http://www.freedoglistings.com/dog-training/michigan/

 

Stormy sounds fun! Just make sure you are not encouraging behaviors that will be annoying rather than cute when she's an adult. I would not allow her to play with food bowls or collars.

 

From my dogs, in addition to them knowing 'drop it' I expect to be able to take food or items out of their mouth without resistance from them. I teach/practice this from the time I bring the dog home. I make a game out of it. I take something and then we either play with it, or they get something better (or at least something more appropriate). Its not something I 'train' during meal time just for the sake of doing it though (meal time is for eating after all and they have the right to eat in peace). Being able to take food from my dog comes in handy, especially with Bear. He sometimes takes both his and Meg's food and I have to retrieve Meg's from him (they eat a raw diet, not kibble so we're talking hunk of raw meaty bones). Or he'll occasionally grab a large something off the counter and I'll have to take it away so he doesn't make himself sick scarfing it down. Just because I can take food or high value items from him though, doesn't mean anyone can.

 

You will likely get to the point where you can take things from Stormy, but don't expect her to allow a toddler or stranger to do the same. Stormy won't view the toddler the same as she views you so its best to keep food and toys out of the picture when baby is around.

 

Oh, and don't worry about perfecting things at this point. She's a baby and she will make mistakes and she has a short attention span. Keep training short and fun. Right now she's just learning your language and what you want. Be consistent in your cues and reliability on her part will come with time and practice.