Growling
|
|
| Welcome to the forum!
My very first suggestion is that you not grab him by the collar to take him somewhere, lest you be bitten. I would suggest that you leave a leash on the dog all the time so you have a little bit of control. I'm sure others will jump in about the rest of the resource guarding issue specifically, or the growling in general. Please consider registering here so you will be better able to follow the discussions, and so that you may be contacted privately. Good luck! EDIT: I see that you have already registered. Great! |
| Welcome.
Agree with Ron. I have a dog who doesn't like to be grabbed by his collar - it's an automatic roll onto his back. Then you can never get him to move. What about feeding issues? Can you touch his food while he is eating? Try to be the one to feed him - establish that you are higher in the pack. Make him work for his cookies. |
| One thing to add to the great suggestions posted... take his growls seriously. He's actually doing you a favor by giving a warning. I usually don't scold for growling because it's better than bypassing the warning completely and going directly to a bite.
Not sure what others think but how about being the sole person to feed him his meals? Use the sit command (wait him out if necessary), then give him his dinner. You might also consider enrolling him and yourself in a basic obedience class so you learn to work together... it can be a great bonding time. Lots of small treats as rewards. A professional trainer may also be able to give you some pointers on working through the guarding behavior. Oops... just one more thing to consider. Instead of trying to haul him by the collar to where you want him to go, call him him to you (Mario Come!)and bribe/reward him with a treat. (Again, make him sit before giving it to him.) You achieve the same results but with less tension/challenge on both sides. Good luck to you! |
| The book I am reading right now The Dog Listener, suggest eating before your dog, which we all know is hard because of hectic schedules so she also suggests eating a cracker at least. Have the dog's food on the counter and take a cracker making it look like you are eating from the dogs bowl. Eat the cracker and then give the bowl of food to your dog. The whole alpha dog thing which a lot of the issues lie with dogs and humans. I am started to do this. Very interesting book |
Quote: He growled a few times but only at me, once I told him "No No, bad Mario" when his face was nestled in the garbage. Another time was when I reached down to grab his collar to take him outside. I think its best to take him out because he's not aware of his limitations for our yard. I don't want him to run. Also, he growled when I picked up a toy, that was near him.
Two things, here. First the growling. You need to understand that he is communicating to you when he growls. He is saying "I don't like that". If you choose to continue, then he may go to the next step, as it is obvious to you that he hasn't communicated strongly enough. So, you need to find out why he is growling and work with that. If he doens't like you grabbing his collar, then you can work with him so that he does. I don't think it is the collar, per se, but what happens afterwards, which is usually hauling him off somewhere. So find another way of getting him to where you wnat him to do. And as for garbage? Move it to a place he cannot get to it. You can teach him "off" or "leave it" so you do not have to touch him. But I don't understand the "outside" comment....what limiations are you refering to? The yard boundaries? If so, then he must go on leash or get a fence. It takes a long time to train a dog area boundaries, and personally, I never trust a dog 100% not to go outside of them. Get a fence or take him out on a leash at all times. If you want siggestions on how to get him to enjoy you touching his collar and how to get him to leave it, we can help with that. In the meantime, be careful, and previously suggested, take heed of his warnings. Growls are good. |
First off, congratulations on your Mario sheepie (what a great name!  )
I agree with everyone's input...especially taking the advice of Jan Fennel with her book "The Dog Listener". It really is amazing the difference it makes once you put into play her suggestions! Welcome to the forum! |
Didn't find exactly what you're looking for? Search again here:
Custom Search
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|