Is Your Fur-Baby A Little (Or Big) Hellion?
Or in other words, do you have a misbehaving dog?
We have three dogs. One Biewer Yorkie that is 10 years old this month. He is a yapper, but pretty much a good kid. We purchased 2 Lab puppies last year that are now about 15 months old. They are beautiful and loving. But they are little hellions! Well, not exactly – they are just puppies that are now 60-70 pounds!
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They have many of the common misbehaviors below, that we are working to resolve.
Common Misbehaviors and Possible Reasons Why
This is a little off-topic, but I am reminded of it when thinking about misbehaving dogs 🙂
There is a hilarious scene in “The Pink Panther Strikes Again, directed by Blake Edwards (1976)” where when attempting to avoid assassination, Inspector Clouseau checks into a hotel. On his way to his room, he sees a small shaggy dog sitting on the ground. “Does your dog bite?,” Clouseau asks the man at the desk. The man says no, so Clouseau stoops to pet the dog, who immediately chomps down on his glove. “I thought you said your dog did not bite,” Clouseau says. “That’s not my dog,” says the innkeeper!
Do you have a misbehaving dog? Sometimes the behavior is because they are young and need proper training. Often their behavior is caused by their breed. For example, terriers were bred to hunt small animals that were often underground. For this reason, they are natural diggers and are also very vocal. So, our Yorkie is a digger. He digs in his beds, outside, and on our bed. We allow a lot of the harmless digging because we understand why he is doing it.
Do you have a misbehaving dog. Sometimes the behavior is because they are young and need proper training. Often their behavior is caused by their breed. #Dogs #MisbehavingDogs Share on XIf your dog is digging excessively or is destructive, it could be because they are bored or trying to hide a possession. Many people with diggers will create a safe digging area such as a sand pit. Many times bad behavior can be corrected with a little more exercise.
The dog’s breed needs to be taken into consideration before adding them to your family.
What are some other common misbehaviors?
Chewing
Our Labradors are big-time chewers. More than one dining room chair leg has baby teeth marks on it 🙁 We found that sturdy chew toys like these rings or bone toys are effective chew toys. They are almost indestructible and the dogs really like them. Chewing is natural, especially with puppies that are teething. Or again, if they are bored they will chew. So get some appropriate chew toys and keep them exercised.
Pulling
Pulling when leashed is a very common bad behavior. If your dog does that, don’t pull back. Pulling back can hurt them. Instead, just stop and let the dog return to you. This may be hard to do if your dog it big and strong. Some trainers recommend these prong collars. They kinda look like ancient torture devices, but I have watched training videos that show success with them. Plus they are guaranteed to be safe if used properly.
Excessive Barking
Most dogs bark to some degree as a warning, responding to another dog, they are bored or want attention. Before you can correct excessive barking, try to find out why they are barking. When correcting excessive barking, don’t yell back. They will take this as a game – they bark, you yell, etc. Trainers have tips for teaching your dog to be quiet. This is a good article about training.
Inappropriate Elimination
Peeing or pooping at the wrong time or wrong place can be very irritating. It can damage your floors of other possessions. Inappropriate elimination is difficult to control until a puppy is properly housetrained. After they are housetrained and start inappropriately peeing or pooping, first check with your veterinarian to be sure there is nothing physically wrong.
Some dogs do this for attention or being submissive. If you have a male dog, they may start marking their territory. The best thing is to be quiet and calm. Punishment will just make things worse.
Jumping
Our Labs are jumpers! It was not so bad when they were tiny babies, but that did not last long! Now at over 60 pounds, the jumping is not so much fun. I recently had a total hip replacement and had to stay away from them until I recovered. Even now, several months later, I am nervous that they will make me fall.
This is our own fault because we did not properly train them to not jump. We are working on it now, but it’s harder than it would have been when they were smaller.
I have tried to train them by lifting my knee to block them. Like I said above, this did not really work. Expert trainers will say the best way to stop jumping is to turn away and ignore them. Don’t make eye contact or touch them. They will learn that jumping is not appropriate.
Jumping is another way of getting attention and when you scold them or acknowledge them, they are actually being rewarded for bad behavior.
If you want your dog not to do something, be consistent by making it clear to him in a kind manner. Take the time to teach your dog rules using patience and positive reinforcement.
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