dog training help

[canesisters]

I posted this in a dog training forum and so far have only had one person reply - and they told me to put them on a leash (uh... did that..)
I know we've got some folks here who have had great success training their dogs. Anyone want to offer some help??


I have a situation that I'm hoping someone can help with... I believe it may be hopeless.

I have a large fenced in back yard and the dogs (3) spend a good part of the day out there. The issue (the biggest one right now anyway) is when the come in or go out.

Here's the 'big picture'. The yard if fenced with a wooden 3-board fence. I have the underground radio fence hanging along the bottom board and the 2 larger dogs wear the receiver collars. They have NO problem with the fence. They stay several feet away, it keeps them safely contained and away from the road. They do, however, have to have the collars put on and taken off as they come in and out of the house.

Going out isn't as much of an issue, but I think that it may be part of the problem. We put the collars on and open the sliding glass door - and it's a mad dash out the door, down the steps and off to tear around the yard. I don't really care and it's fun to watch, but a version happens coming in too...

We let them in one at a time, so that we can remove the collar and wipe muddy feet if necessary. But the MOMENT the collar is off, it's off to the races again. They will tear through the kitchen, into the den, around the coffee table - taking a swipe at any cat who dares to be withing playful reach - back through the kitchen (ignoring angry people) and back around again. Once dog #2 comes in - it's a repeat ... in duplicate.

Now to complicate matters. I have a roommate. She is a complete pushover with them. I've heard her saying things like "Now don't run Gilligan, you know you're not supposed to run through the house. Gilligan.. Gilligan you know you're not supposed to be acting like that. Slow down. Why do you do that. Come here. Gilligan? Gilligan.." And she is at home all day with them.

I've tried putting a leash on them as they come in the door. But the leash has to come off eventually, and off they go. I've tried having a hand full of kibbles or treats and keeping them at the door ... until the snacks are gone, and off they go. I've tried yelling.... I've tried catching them on the 'return trip' with a spray bottle...

And it's getting worse. They have recently started waiting at the door and jumping against the glass when they see one of us near-by. I just turn and walk away if they jump, but she will start waving at the 'happy-to-see-her' dogs and saying things like 'You want to come in?? You want to come in now??"

It's hopeless, isn't it?

 

[Smart Red]

First you have to train the roommate.

Consistency is required to change behaviors. If your dogs are crate trained, you might have them go to their crate as soon as they come in. After they have calmed down they can be left out into the house. That will also give you time to clean them up and take off the collars one at a time.

What kind of dogs are they?

 

[bj taylor]

cane, I know the miseries of dog training. it can be tough.

I think the first step is a conversation between you two & come to a consensus on the goal.

w/the dogs. I would start w/a goodie they have to perform for in order to get it. take the collar off. let them do their thing when they come in, as you stay right where you are holding the goodie in your hand. wait for them to come to you to see what it is. make them sit. then give it. praise them. make them sit right in front of you like well mannered dogs. use the goodie as a lure to reposition them. make it a goodie that is more attractive than running around is.

every time they come in, they get a goodie - only if they sit mannerly. graduate it to laying down. soon, they should immediately come to the sit when they come in - looking for that goodie. if they get their goodie legitimately and then go into their running - verbally correct, put the collars on & out they go. in 5 minutes, repeat. When they get this part figured out - praise them & soon graduate to big praise instead of goodie with goodie thrown in at unexpected times so they never know when they'll hit the jackpot.
If they are out & jump on the door to come in, close the curtain (or make a temporary curtain that you can close) no conversation with them - just visual rejection. in a brief minute, open the curtain. you're essentially slamming the door in their face & rejecting them when they jump on the glass. you are making jumping on the glass a negative experience.

you've got two problems obviously. one is the dogs & one is your roommate. she needs to understand that disobedient dogs are nobody's friend. she needs help to understand that she is contributing to a problem rather than helping to solve it. she also must understand that it must be consistent - every time. dogs don't do inconsistent.

that's my ideas on the subject. wishing you luck, however you handle it.

 

[Carol Dee]

Good Luck. I agree with BJ . My husbands dog behaves better for me in the house (and the yard for that matter) than he does for my DH! CONSISTANCY is the key. Examples: DH lets dog in house and he jumps and barks at DH (play with me.) I order *Kennel* every time he enters the house , he gets a treat when he goes to kennel. Now he just comes in and heads for the kennel which is great when the feet are muddy (Towels in there.) He lets the dog come sit by him (or on him while watching T.V.) Dog will climb up and down and up, all night until DH gets mad and tells him to go lay down, dog jumps up onto his lap! And he lets him stay!!! Talk about confusing the orders. I say Lay Down and point to the floor. He lays down. So far I have had no luck training Hubby. Good luck with the room mate.

 

[journey11]

Sounds like they have excess energy to burn. Are they young dogs? When my pibble was young, I bought a really cool doggie hiking backpack to put on her for our walks, since no amount of walking could tire her out easily. You fill the pack with a couple of small water bottles (according to the dog's ability, start out slow). If they are getting some really good exercise before coming inside, they will be much quieter and ready to listen to you. The initial burst is probably fueled by excitement at getting to come in. Dogs really, really hate being separated from us, their people. There will be some discipline you'll need to enforce faithfully, like the crate training Lynn mentioned, but you won't get through to them easily unless you tire them out first.

 

[canesisters]

Lots of good tips yall. Thanks!

Red, they are: A yellow lab (Rosie), a sheltie/beagle/??? (Gilligan), and a poodle/JRT/schnauzer/???? (Yogie).
Yogie is very old and pretty much just quietly goes about his own business.
Gilligan (the castaway) was tossed out of a truck on the road just up from my house. I suspect that he's smarter than I am and is just tolerating me. He is the ring leader of most of the action.
Rosie was a 'Just keep her a couple of weeks till I figure things out' from my SIL. That was almost 2 years ago.

Unfortunately, training my roommate isn't very likely. She's been here for a few years and still hasn't learned the difference between 'Off' and 'Down'. To my dogs, 'Off' means 'get off of what you are on' - like off the porch so I can get down the stairs, or off the sofa so I can sit down. And 'Down' means lay down.

Like Carol's dogs, mine live with 2 sets of rules, mine and RM's. When I start up the steps to the door I say 'Off.' and they clear the porch. And just a stern look is enough to back them off if they try to crowd me. But RM carries on a steady stream of 'Get down! Go away. Get out of my way! MOVE!' When I'm home there is no barking in the house. Yogie is so shrill that he could probably shatter glass. It's not an issue, they just simply don't do it. But if they are inside and I make some noise outside, I can hear them going off - even if she is in the room with them. So anyway, I figure that I'm just going to have to work on teaching them what I expect when I'm the one letting them in.

BJ, last night I dug around and found 2 old cheap-o collars. While outside doing 'the evening chores' I took their radio collars off, replaced them with the the 'inside' collars, and showed them that I had a pocket full of chew sticks. They were excited to go inside and spent a good bit of time racing back and forth from me to the door. Everytime they took off to the door, I found something to be busy with.
When we finally made it inside, I put a leash on Gilligan, showed them the chew sticks again and walked slowly to the den. Once there, and they were sitting they got the treats (in several pieces to make it last longer).
It actually worked! Well... mostly worked - but that was the first try.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Cane, I think you are getting great advice. Yeah, food can work wonders if you can get their attention. And I fully agree. Dogs are conditional learners. What they do when I tell them to sit is different than what they do when my wife tells them to sit.

Not that it sounds like you need it, but Ill put this out for general information. I recently had a problem with one of the dogs jumping up on the kitchen window and destroying the screen. Id close the blinds and ignore her. My wife would talk to her through the window. With me inside and the dog outside, how do you do a correction, either with positive or negative reinforcement? Frustration!!!

I got one of those Petsafe collars and remotes where you can push a button and send a correction. Ive got the Petsafe underground fence too. They operate on different frequencies. The other dog is not affected by the remote push button system. They sell two different ones. When I talked to Lauren at Petsafe, she said the only difference in the two is range, but I think the power of the correction may be different too.

We keep the remote in the kitchen. You have to be really close for it to go through the window. It took a few corrections but the dog has finally stopped jumping up there. Im not saying she has totally learned. Im sure there will be future episodes. Thats why Im waiting to fix the screen. This is not the sharpest dog Ive ever seen. It took this dog about a year and a half to figure out how to eat. Shes four years old and occasionally still needs a refresher course.

This thing has its limitations. It does not go through walls. You have to have the remote with you when you see the bad behavior. But if you need a way to correct behavior at a distance, this can end a message. Now, Cane, your problems is figuring out how to get your roommate to wear the collar.

 

[so lucky]

Maybe you could "watch" episodes of The Dog Whisperer while your room mate is there. Some of the information about consistency and not prattling on might sink in subconsciously.
Not having the same goals and tolerance levels is a problem whether you are talking about parenting kids or dogs. I feel for you. You have been given some really good advice here.

 

[canesisters]

Now, Cane, your problems is figuring out how to get your roommate to wear the collar.

My life would get so much less complicated if I could get a collar on her!

 

[baymule]

Dog Training
1. Eviction notice for Room Mate
2. Rolled up newspaper for dog.