Aa
anxiety
We just adopted a 7 year old collie/golden retriever mix. He is totally adorable, has a great disposition, knows a few tricks, and loves to swim.
On the down side...we learned ( after signing adoption papers ) that he suffers from extreme anxiety. He digs holes under fences to get out, won't come back when called ( but boy am I getting a LOT of exercise chasing him 5 to 13 blocks each day! lol! ) barks non stop if left outside by himself for even a few minutes, will defecate, urinate, and totally " redecorate the house" if left inside the house by himself for even a few minutes, and gets very pushy on the stairs.
Other than that? He's great!
However, I have one neighbor who has " The Jones' syndrome" Meaning she HAS to have everything other people do, or better. Her husband refuses to let her have a dog, so she sits there and complains about everyone's dogs ( except the one neighbor who she has somehow remained "friends" with. Their dog barks every time it is outside, but they tell me that " that's ok, because their dog is only 7 months old...so she doesn't know better" but our dog is 7 years, so he MUST know better....groan.
Anyway...we have one of those Thunder vests coming ( 2 weeks they say ) but until then, need some other ideas.
We can't leave him alone, and even though it's only 11 Celsius here right now, it's still against the law to leave a dog in the truck...even with windows down. So I can't even go shopping until we resolve this issue.
Yes, my neighbors are THAT anal. Maybe I should start calling the dog catcher every time her cat comes into my yard and attacks things, animals, and people. Just kidding, but it's making me so angry.
Any and all help would be appreciated.
On the down side...we learned ( after signing adoption papers ) that he suffers from extreme anxiety. He digs holes under fences to get out, won't come back when called ( but boy am I getting a LOT of exercise chasing him 5 to 13 blocks each day! lol! ) barks non stop if left outside by himself for even a few minutes, will defecate, urinate, and totally " redecorate the house" if left inside the house by himself for even a few minutes, and gets very pushy on the stairs.
Other than that? He's great!
However, I have one neighbor who has " The Jones' syndrome" Meaning she HAS to have everything other people do, or better. Her husband refuses to let her have a dog, so she sits there and complains about everyone's dogs ( except the one neighbor who she has somehow remained "friends" with. Their dog barks every time it is outside, but they tell me that " that's ok, because their dog is only 7 months old...so she doesn't know better" but our dog is 7 years, so he MUST know better....groan.
Anyway...we have one of those Thunder vests coming ( 2 weeks they say ) but until then, need some other ideas.
We can't leave him alone, and even though it's only 11 Celsius here right now, it's still against the law to leave a dog in the truck...even with windows down. So I can't even go shopping until we resolve this issue.
Yes, my neighbors are THAT anal. Maybe I should start calling the dog catcher every time her cat comes into my yard and attacks things, animals, and people. Just kidding, but it's making me so angry.
Any and all help would be appreciated.
Chock -- Guess I'll put my two cents in, as we've had an older adoptee that had a barking problem, a younger dog who sneaked under the fence and, like you, I was fortunately in good shape to chase her down,10-plus blocks, and so on.
First, DO find an organized dog training class. One is all you need, it will make you the pack leader (from the Cesar Millan, "Dog Whisperer" TV show), or you could call it the Alpha Dog. It will also make the dog obey much better.
Next, put a choke leash on your dog for only ONE THING: Taking him for walks in his yard with you! Yes, you walk your dog in your own fenced yard on a leash. That way, if he does anything you don't like, you can stop him right there and tell him "No," and as others have suggested, us a pocketful of little treats to reward him when he does something right. This is also an excellent time to "train" him as you learn in the class you attend.
Next, you should find a place in your house, the size of a room, and take up the carpet and lay linoleum in there. Put down newspaper near the door. Put a sleeping bed in there, a nylon chewing bone, and any other pet store chew toys... he will need his toys for friends, to pass the time, to expend energy. We had some rabbits one time, a very large linoleum kitchen, and we installed "Dutch" half doors, so they would stay in there and not chew on wires and such. So, if you have a room larger than a bathroom, you can divide it off that way.
Now, on the barking, as I said, we adopted an older German Shepherd Dog, and he would run up and down the front yard fence and bark at anything that moved. So, what I did was go straight outside when he barked, and I'd look over the fence, up and down the street, saying to my dog, "What is it? Where did it go?" Since by then I was "pack leader," he immediately became quiet, he looked with me up and down the street. I praised him for being quiet, distracted him with a tennis ball, and went back in. This went on for several weeks, until he finally "turned the corner" and quit all that barking!
Let's see, the way we have ALWAYS done our dogs when we used to work, and even now if we both go somewhere without the dog, is we say the exact same thing every time we go out the door... ours is, "We'll be back." When they hear that, they go lay down or stay laid down and just watch us go out the door from where they are. That trigger phrase is a big help, it reassures a dog that we would say the same thing before we went through the door.
If you work, before you go, wake up early enough to take that dog, on a leash, outside to do his business. Also, it gets a good walk in, too, to drain his energy to some degree. You also can make sure he pees... if you don't know where he goes and he doesn't go at first when you go out, then YOU pick a pee spot and take something he's peed on in the house, and lay it out there and hammer it into the ground or against a big tree. It should be a somewhat private place in the yard, near a tree, and you say the same thing every time you go to that spot, "Go pee in the bushes," or whatever you feel comfortable saying over and over. Most dogs will want to go right away, at least pee anyway, FIRST THING. So, go there first, then begin a long walk all the way around the yard, correcting anything he does wrong.
You can run a very lightly charged electrical wire all the way around your fenced yard. Once he's been buzzed once or twice, he will NEVER go near that fence again... but don't JUST use an electric fence as advertised on TV with no natural fence! You gotta have a fence. If you have a door you use that opens up into a part of the yard that is not fenced and electrified, BUILD IT. In lieu of electric (test it yourself, so you'll know what it will be like for your dog), the other advice here of digging down and putting in additional fence underground is the other way to do it, equally effective, harder to do, but works fine.
YOUR particular situation, your dog must learn STAY, NO, WAIT, STOP, TREAT, SUPPER, GO OUTSIDE, PEE IN THE BUSHES, WE'LL BE BACK, WHERE'S YOUR TOY? Stuff like that. Also, keep that dog on a leash in your own yard always for about a month. This requires extra time from you, maybe even coming home for lunch, he should go out at least four times a day, first thing in morning and last thing at night. ONLY put him in his special alone room when you are actually going to go away in the car and leave him. ALL OTHER TIMES, he should remain free to dash about the house as he pleases.
Keep up all outside within fence times up for a whole month. THEN, bring the leash and just go out with him, and by then, you should have taught him to HEEL. That's what you will say when he's on-leash and off-leash. He will have no idea he's not on a leash the first few times. Later, he will realize he's not, but he's under your control. Continue to walk with him in mornings and afternoons for a pretty good while, a month after the first month is ideal. By then, he will have encountered either a slight buzz shock from the electric fence or the underground field or chicken coop fencing. By the by, we used to throw big pieces of wood (and still do) to any places where the fence has developed an opening on the ground. We always have a lot of trees (we've lived in three places over our 30 years of marriage, all with a gazillion trees, and husband would sometimes use a chain saw, but often a big branch would crash down and we could snap the thicker part into one- two-foot long thick wood, and put them where either the escape artist Chow mix would go through (eventually we had to save up and install ourselves a cement-post wooden fence all around the property, which we also threw wood where the opening was a little large... you see, a wooden fence won't move, and if you design it where the planks hit the ground all the way down, around, and back up, and across, the dog cannot get through...
I'm telling you, while it's good to have some background on an adopted dog, as long as you walk with a dog daily in your yard on a leash and later just with him, and secure his yard regularly, and play with him in the house with his various toys a couple times a day (you can sometimes put them all in a basket), put about three beds around the home with a "baby" in it (at pet store, most dogs just love those fake sheep-fur doll-shaped things), they normally will not relieve themselves where they sleep... and also, it will give you a place to tell your dog to go when you don't want him up in YOUR bed at night. We allow our dogs to relieve themselves on our porch and our deck... easy to hose off, great when the weather is bad, etc.
Hope these few tips will also help you along with the other great tips here. And your vet is your dog's best friend, really, so if you got an endless pee and destruction problem, despite your best efforts, ask him about a great trainer or his own ideas to stop it. He'll know if he's a good vet. Let us know. We all read with great interest all about your wonderful dog!!! He just needs some behavioral training for about a month or two, and then he should be good in general, a regular dog, just keep in mind ALL dogs have a little quirk that simply cannot be cured, so let hem have at it, unless it's personally very disturbing (biting, destroying important property, etc.)
Oh, and consider installing those pretend wood floors, they last longer than real wood and pee stays on top (especially with newspaper around), so there's no more rug to rip up. If they like to rip up the couch, NEVER LET HIM ON THE COUCH, that's an OFF command at all times. GG
First, DO find an organized dog training class. One is all you need, it will make you the pack leader (from the Cesar Millan, "Dog Whisperer" TV show), or you could call it the Alpha Dog. It will also make the dog obey much better.
Next, put a choke leash on your dog for only ONE THING: Taking him for walks in his yard with you! Yes, you walk your dog in your own fenced yard on a leash. That way, if he does anything you don't like, you can stop him right there and tell him "No," and as others have suggested, us a pocketful of little treats to reward him when he does something right. This is also an excellent time to "train" him as you learn in the class you attend.
Next, you should find a place in your house, the size of a room, and take up the carpet and lay linoleum in there. Put down newspaper near the door. Put a sleeping bed in there, a nylon chewing bone, and any other pet store chew toys... he will need his toys for friends, to pass the time, to expend energy. We had some rabbits one time, a very large linoleum kitchen, and we installed "Dutch" half doors, so they would stay in there and not chew on wires and such. So, if you have a room larger than a bathroom, you can divide it off that way.
Now, on the barking, as I said, we adopted an older German Shepherd Dog, and he would run up and down the front yard fence and bark at anything that moved. So, what I did was go straight outside when he barked, and I'd look over the fence, up and down the street, saying to my dog, "What is it? Where did it go?" Since by then I was "pack leader," he immediately became quiet, he looked with me up and down the street. I praised him for being quiet, distracted him with a tennis ball, and went back in. This went on for several weeks, until he finally "turned the corner" and quit all that barking!
Let's see, the way we have ALWAYS done our dogs when we used to work, and even now if we both go somewhere without the dog, is we say the exact same thing every time we go out the door... ours is, "We'll be back." When they hear that, they go lay down or stay laid down and just watch us go out the door from where they are. That trigger phrase is a big help, it reassures a dog that we would say the same thing before we went through the door.
If you work, before you go, wake up early enough to take that dog, on a leash, outside to do his business. Also, it gets a good walk in, too, to drain his energy to some degree. You also can make sure he pees... if you don't know where he goes and he doesn't go at first when you go out, then YOU pick a pee spot and take something he's peed on in the house, and lay it out there and hammer it into the ground or against a big tree. It should be a somewhat private place in the yard, near a tree, and you say the same thing every time you go to that spot, "Go pee in the bushes," or whatever you feel comfortable saying over and over. Most dogs will want to go right away, at least pee anyway, FIRST THING. So, go there first, then begin a long walk all the way around the yard, correcting anything he does wrong.
You can run a very lightly charged electrical wire all the way around your fenced yard. Once he's been buzzed once or twice, he will NEVER go near that fence again... but don't JUST use an electric fence as advertised on TV with no natural fence! You gotta have a fence. If you have a door you use that opens up into a part of the yard that is not fenced and electrified, BUILD IT. In lieu of electric (test it yourself, so you'll know what it will be like for your dog), the other advice here of digging down and putting in additional fence underground is the other way to do it, equally effective, harder to do, but works fine.
YOUR particular situation, your dog must learn STAY, NO, WAIT, STOP, TREAT, SUPPER, GO OUTSIDE, PEE IN THE BUSHES, WE'LL BE BACK, WHERE'S YOUR TOY? Stuff like that. Also, keep that dog on a leash in your own yard always for about a month. This requires extra time from you, maybe even coming home for lunch, he should go out at least four times a day, first thing in morning and last thing at night. ONLY put him in his special alone room when you are actually going to go away in the car and leave him. ALL OTHER TIMES, he should remain free to dash about the house as he pleases.
Keep up all outside within fence times up for a whole month. THEN, bring the leash and just go out with him, and by then, you should have taught him to HEEL. That's what you will say when he's on-leash and off-leash. He will have no idea he's not on a leash the first few times. Later, he will realize he's not, but he's under your control. Continue to walk with him in mornings and afternoons for a pretty good while, a month after the first month is ideal. By then, he will have encountered either a slight buzz shock from the electric fence or the underground field or chicken coop fencing. By the by, we used to throw big pieces of wood (and still do) to any places where the fence has developed an opening on the ground. We always have a lot of trees (we've lived in three places over our 30 years of marriage, all with a gazillion trees, and husband would sometimes use a chain saw, but often a big branch would crash down and we could snap the thicker part into one- two-foot long thick wood, and put them where either the escape artist Chow mix would go through (eventually we had to save up and install ourselves a cement-post wooden fence all around the property, which we also threw wood where the opening was a little large... you see, a wooden fence won't move, and if you design it where the planks hit the ground all the way down, around, and back up, and across, the dog cannot get through...
I'm telling you, while it's good to have some background on an adopted dog, as long as you walk with a dog daily in your yard on a leash and later just with him, and secure his yard regularly, and play with him in the house with his various toys a couple times a day (you can sometimes put them all in a basket), put about three beds around the home with a "baby" in it (at pet store, most dogs just love those fake sheep-fur doll-shaped things), they normally will not relieve themselves where they sleep... and also, it will give you a place to tell your dog to go when you don't want him up in YOUR bed at night. We allow our dogs to relieve themselves on our porch and our deck... easy to hose off, great when the weather is bad, etc.
Hope these few tips will also help you along with the other great tips here. And your vet is your dog's best friend, really, so if you got an endless pee and destruction problem, despite your best efforts, ask him about a great trainer or his own ideas to stop it. He'll know if he's a good vet. Let us know. We all read with great interest all about your wonderful dog!!! He just needs some behavioral training for about a month or two, and then he should be good in general, a regular dog, just keep in mind ALL dogs have a little quirk that simply cannot be cured, so let hem have at it, unless it's personally very disturbing (biting, destroying important property, etc.)
Oh, and consider installing those pretend wood floors, they last longer than real wood and pee stays on top (especially with newspaper around), so there's no more rug to rip up. If they like to rip up the couch, NEVER LET HIM ON THE COUCH, that's an OFF command at all times. GG
Puppy update.
Again, the vet said she would eat her hat if this dog is more than 4 years old.
The teeth are in way too good of shape, and he prances like he's 6 months old.
She thinks the last owner or the animal shelter lied about age to get rid of him...or something.
Anyway...he's doing so much better...after shredding the carpet in 3 rooms, urinating everywhere, etc. I think it was spiteful/testing us type of urinating, as I am always home so leave the door open to the backyard.
He will do ANYTHING for a piece of hotdog!
I tell Taiko to sit and stay, then give my little guy a piece of hotdog, he will go and hide, and then I'll tell Taiko " go!" and he goes to find my son...who rewards him with the hotdog.
He's VERY well behaved at the dog park off leash area. It's when we get home that we still have troubles. As soon as the front door opens he's gone.
I know he just wants to explore his surroundings, but he could at least wait for me. lol!
The only other issue is that he gets too excited ( with or without thunder vest on) when it's time to go anywhere. I have tried to get him to sit so that I can put leash on, but he just can't do it. He acts like my little guy ( who has Tourette's and ADHD ).
Again, the vet said she would eat her hat if this dog is more than 4 years old.
The teeth are in way too good of shape, and he prances like he's 6 months old.
She thinks the last owner or the animal shelter lied about age to get rid of him...or something.
Anyway...he's doing so much better...after shredding the carpet in 3 rooms, urinating everywhere, etc. I think it was spiteful/testing us type of urinating, as I am always home so leave the door open to the backyard.
He will do ANYTHING for a piece of hotdog!
I tell Taiko to sit and stay, then give my little guy a piece of hotdog, he will go and hide, and then I'll tell Taiko " go!" and he goes to find my son...who rewards him with the hotdog.
He's VERY well behaved at the dog park off leash area. It's when we get home that we still have troubles. As soon as the front door opens he's gone.
I know he just wants to explore his surroundings, but he could at least wait for me. lol!
The only other issue is that he gets too excited ( with or without thunder vest on) when it's time to go anywhere. I have tried to get him to sit so that I can put leash on, but he just can't do it. He acts like my little guy ( who has Tourette's and ADHD ).
A year ago I had been experiencing panic attacks that always resulted in fainting, mostly in public places, even on a date once. It was humiliating and actually pretty dangerous. So i saw a doctor who gave me some medication, but the effects soon wore off. Searching one day I found a website that had a pretty good review recommending a product to treat my anxiety. I read the review and ended up trying out the method. The technique worked instantly! Because i'm not scared and know i can handle any attack, the attacks went away.
If you want to learn more about what I used (The Linden Method) here is where I saw the review ( http://anxietyendshere.com/the-linden-method-real-users-linden-method-review ) . It tells you about everything that comes with the system and exactly what it will do for you. Check it out, hopefully it will help you like it helped me!
If you want to learn more about what I used (The Linden Method) here is where I saw the review ( http://anxietyendshere.com/the-linden-method-real-users-linden-method-review ) . It tells you about everything that comes with the system and exactly what it will do for you. Check it out, hopefully it will help you like it helped me!
Tony is right, this can be a long process and takes time and patience. If you work outside your home, this can be very difficult to deal with. I am a firm believer in crate teaining but tony is right, this just may exacerbate the problems. If you have a crate, you might try setting it up with the door off or open. See if he will eat inside it, or take treats inside it. Do not close him up in it. Yes, there have been dogs that have injured themselves trying to get out.
Try looking up NILF dog training.
Yes,mainly exercise is a great idea. Do you know if he is ok around other dogs?
I would still look in to a basic Obedience class given by a good instructor. This could help his confidence and help him bond more with you. You need to get a connection with this dog.
Get some treats. Wirk on a Sit command. Hold the treats up by your upper chest. This will encourage him to look at you. When he sits, praise and give a treat. You can move in to other simple commands like Down and Stay but don't move on until he has mastered the new one.
Try looking up NILF dog training.
Yes,mainly exercise is a great idea. Do you know if he is ok around other dogs?
I would still look in to a basic Obedience class given by a good instructor. This could help his confidence and help him bond more with you. You need to get a connection with this dog.
Get some treats. Wirk on a Sit command. Hold the treats up by your upper chest. This will encourage him to look at you. When he sits, praise and give a treat. You can move in to other simple commands like Down and Stay but don't move on until he has mastered the new one.
Hi. Well, the reports say it all don't they. This is a behaviour resulting from how this dog has been kept, but it's now instilled into him - and it will take a huge amount of patience and effort to remove it from his personaility. Sep anxiety is an uphill struggle, particularly when it has been going on for so long. I agree completely with Margot, a shock collar is not the answer. I'm not convinced crating or the Thunder Shirt are the answer either, actually. Crating may restrain him, but it will also frustrate him and potentially increase the fear and anxiety to such a level he may hurt himself.
I had a dog once that was crated due to sep anxiety issues, and he ripped his paws to shreds after only 10 minutes of being in it. That particular behaviourist's program definitely didn't work.
The answer here I think lies in exercise, No 1, and getting him to recognise you as alpha, so he understands your word is law. This will build confidence (he can relinquish his fears and start to relax). The other side to this is to gradually get him to appreciate "being alone" is fine, and there's nothing to get worked up about it. This is the hardest part of the plan. It will mean consistency, effort, time and frustration. Dealing with this may take a year or more - be prepared.
It's also imperative that everyone in your household adopts the same techniques.
I would certainly deal with the garden area as a priority, making it dog-safe, so he can't escape.
Next, start leaving him in another room for 1 minute - do this several times a day, and keep doing it for a week. In week 2, increase the time to 5 minutes. Week 3, to 10 minutes ... and so on. Only increase the time if your dog has "learned" to deal with being alone and isn't whining, scratching, etc., during the time limit. In the end, what you need to do is teach your dog he cannot demand your attention and get it, he can only have your attention when you want to give it. I know this is a tough one for many dog owners, but it's important with sep anxiety to get inside the mind of your dog ... and think like a dog ... so you understand how he thinks.
Training classes will definitely help, but I actually think regular daily exercise is even more important, as this will help him relax - and once he's relaxed, the anxiety will be reduced.
Good luck.
Tony
I had a dog once that was crated due to sep anxiety issues, and he ripped his paws to shreds after only 10 minutes of being in it. That particular behaviourist's program definitely didn't work.
The answer here I think lies in exercise, No 1, and getting him to recognise you as alpha, so he understands your word is law. This will build confidence (he can relinquish his fears and start to relax). The other side to this is to gradually get him to appreciate "being alone" is fine, and there's nothing to get worked up about it. This is the hardest part of the plan. It will mean consistency, effort, time and frustration. Dealing with this may take a year or more - be prepared.
It's also imperative that everyone in your household adopts the same techniques.
I would certainly deal with the garden area as a priority, making it dog-safe, so he can't escape.
Next, start leaving him in another room for 1 minute - do this several times a day, and keep doing it for a week. In week 2, increase the time to 5 minutes. Week 3, to 10 minutes ... and so on. Only increase the time if your dog has "learned" to deal with being alone and isn't whining, scratching, etc., during the time limit. In the end, what you need to do is teach your dog he cannot demand your attention and get it, he can only have your attention when you want to give it. I know this is a tough one for many dog owners, but it's important with sep anxiety to get inside the mind of your dog ... and think like a dog ... so you understand how he thinks.
Training classes will definitely help, but I actually think regular daily exercise is even more important, as this will help him relax - and once he's relaxed, the anxiety will be reduced.
Good luck.
Tony
Wanted to add, try going to the ASPCA.irg web site. They have a lot of useful information they is just too long to try and post here. Do a search for Separation Anxiety.
You got the report before or after adopting him? Due to his age and level of anxiety, I doubt a shock collar would have any effect. I am not a fan of them either.
My biggest concern, at this point, is him running off. I assume you are in a house? What size yard? I am busy this morning but would suggest you try the basic Obedience training, if you can find a good instructor. If you have a local All Breed club, check with them or your Vet may have a recommendation. Work with treats to try to get his attention and to focus on you. You need to get that mental connection.
Did the Vet mention possibly trying a low dose anti-anxiety med?
My biggest concern, at this point, is him running off. I assume you are in a house? What size yard? I am busy this morning but would suggest you try the basic Obedience training, if you can find a good instructor. If you have a local All Breed club, check with them or your Vet may have a recommendation. Work with treats to try to get his attention and to focus on you. You need to get that mental connection.
Did the Vet mention possibly trying a low dose anti-anxiety med?
We got a history report from the Humane Society.
It states that he was with the first humans for 7 years.
Says he can shake a paw, sit, and lay down.
They said that they could not leave him alone "ever" for even an hour. They said he would redecorate the house when they were gone. He would not go into a kennel/crate. He would push his way past people whenever the door was opened and it would take them hours or days to get him back.
It did not state whether or not they both worked. It does not mention if they ever took him for training.
The second people had him for 3 weeks. He was destructive, ran away all the time, would not go into kennel, would not listen, etc.
The Humane Society's vets said that he suffers from extreme anxiety, won't enter a kennel ( even for treats) and they say they figure he has a fear of enclosed spaces.
They are "guessing" that he had been locked into a small room for long periods of time...probably a small bathroom that they figured could not be destroyed easily.
In summary:
Both previous owners state that he is good with older children.
Both also state that he is not good with cats or other small animals that run.
If it moves it's free game.
Both state that he runs away all the time.
Both state that he will jump over small fences or dig under large ones to get out.
Both state that he would bark incessantly if they were gone.
All 3 state that he has severe separation anxiety.
The vet I took him to said he suffers from it as well.
She (the vet) thinks that the original people got him as a puppy, taught him a few tricks, got bored of him as he grew, ignored him, he got destructive over the years, and they dropped him off at pound. This is just her guess, but she assumes it to be true because why else would they ( after 7 years ) suddenly get rid of him for destructive behavior...unless something else really bad happened to him.
And like she said, not all people who surrender a dog are going to tell the truth. The first set of people who dropped him off may have only had him a week. They may have found him somewhere or it may have been given to them by someone else. People have been known to "cry" because they don't want to give up a loved one...when in reality it's their neighbors dog that they kidnapped because they disliked it.
So your guess is as good as mine.
The vest will be here in 2 weeks so hoping it helps.
I was told by my neighbor to use one of those jolting collars, but I can't...others can use them, but I don't have it in me to do that.
It states that he was with the first humans for 7 years.
Says he can shake a paw, sit, and lay down.
They said that they could not leave him alone "ever" for even an hour. They said he would redecorate the house when they were gone. He would not go into a kennel/crate. He would push his way past people whenever the door was opened and it would take them hours or days to get him back.
It did not state whether or not they both worked. It does not mention if they ever took him for training.
The second people had him for 3 weeks. He was destructive, ran away all the time, would not go into kennel, would not listen, etc.
The Humane Society's vets said that he suffers from extreme anxiety, won't enter a kennel ( even for treats) and they say they figure he has a fear of enclosed spaces.
They are "guessing" that he had been locked into a small room for long periods of time...probably a small bathroom that they figured could not be destroyed easily.
In summary:
Both previous owners state that he is good with older children.
Both also state that he is not good with cats or other small animals that run.
If it moves it's free game.
Both state that he runs away all the time.
Both state that he will jump over small fences or dig under large ones to get out.
Both state that he would bark incessantly if they were gone.
All 3 state that he has severe separation anxiety.
The vet I took him to said he suffers from it as well.
She (the vet) thinks that the original people got him as a puppy, taught him a few tricks, got bored of him as he grew, ignored him, he got destructive over the years, and they dropped him off at pound. This is just her guess, but she assumes it to be true because why else would they ( after 7 years ) suddenly get rid of him for destructive behavior...unless something else really bad happened to him.
And like she said, not all people who surrender a dog are going to tell the truth. The first set of people who dropped him off may have only had him a week. They may have found him somewhere or it may have been given to them by someone else. People have been known to "cry" because they don't want to give up a loved one...when in reality it's their neighbors dog that they kidnapped because they disliked it.
So your guess is as good as mine.
The vest will be here in 2 weeks so hoping it helps.
I was told by my neighbor to use one of those jolting collars, but I can't...others can use them, but I don't have it in me to do that.
Agree with tony. Wow, where has this dog been for 7 years? This should have been disclosed before the adoption, if they were aware of it. Hope the Thunder vest helps. I would like to know also. SA can be very hard to deal with. You certainly don't want him running loose and getting hurt or worse. As for the fence problem, you might try burying chicken wire under the fence line and this might help with him digging out. Worked for us some years ago to keep a dog out of our yard.
You might try taking him to some basic obedience classes. He needs to learn to listen to you and trust you. Will he tolerate a crate? Is there one room he can be confined to you can dog proof?
You might try getting a couple large Kong toys and see if those will keep him busy.
You might try taking him to some basic obedience classes. He needs to learn to listen to you and trust you. Will he tolerate a crate? Is there one room he can be confined to you can dog proof?
You might try getting a couple large Kong toys and see if those will keep him busy.
Hi. Please go back to the animal shelter, rescue shelter or where ever you got this dog from and ask about his history. How has he been while kennelled? Understanding what began this behaviour may help resolve it. It may also be a settling down stage ... and as things progress, the behaviour may improve. I'm inclined to think it might not, though, because sep anxiety only gets worse without intervention. This means a lot of work. The Thunder vest might actually help ... let me know if it does. Exercise is definitely going to be a real key to solving this ... you need to tire your dog out with regular exercise, every day, for at least an hour. Can you achieve this?
Tony
Tony
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