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Engineer Lenk posted:For 'sit' and down, put it on verbal if you've captured it and don't bother with luring. You can read up a bit on freeshaping, basically you'll do a session where you only click for offering a sit, treat in position then release him with whatever word you're using (I use 'ok', some people use 'break' or 'free') and toss a treat to get him to reset himself. When he's popping into a sit really quickly while you're just standing there empty-handed, start using the word 'sit' right before he sits. When you can ask him to 'sit' when he doesn't know he's in a training session and he's got it, then repeat the process with 'down'. You can cue transfer a verbal to a hand signal (with an empty hand) if you want that option too - just precede the known command with the new cue and repeat until he's not waiting for the known cue and just jumps into the behavior. This is really helpful, thanks a bunch! The emergency harness helped somewhat today. I kinda hosed up with his real harness today. Things were going fine until I started getting him used to the click of the harness. I didn't realize how loud it would be until it was too late so it spooked him so he got really fearful of the harness  . It's actually one of two things that has spooked him so far. He's been super chill about everything except for sudden loud noises. I managed to get him touching and sniffing it when it's on the ground again, but once it's in my hands he gets nervous again so I'll have to work on counter-conditioning him.Also, I can't seem to find the post anymore, but I could have sworn I saw either in this or the training thread a post where someone listed all the hand signals they use for their dog tricks. Does anyone have a list of commonly used ones somewhere? I'd love to steal them. I would never have thought to used an up motion for sit for example.
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Dec 23, 2014 03:22
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Engineer Lenk posted:I wouldn't let a dog pull on a collar and expect them to ever learn loose leash walking. Use an emergency harness and make fitting a harness your top priority for work at home. For whatever reason, they call that a 'suitcase' around here... My wife is really struggling with the training/behaviour of Hana (outside the house, she's fine inside) and we're going to take a private lesson with a trainer. Based on the phone conversation, it sounds just as much about modifying our expectations and behaviours as the dogs!.
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Dec 23, 2014 05:22
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Hold the harness in your hands at a distance from him and charge the click of the buckle like it's a clicker.
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Dec 23, 2014 05:57
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Engineer Lenk posted:Hold the harness in your hands at a distance from him and charge the click of the buckle like it's a clicker. Yeah that's what I was attempting to do at first. I've dialed it back to clicking when I reach/lift the harness for now so he gets comfortable.
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Dec 23, 2014 06:40
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Are puppies supposed to pee everywhere until 1 year old? Not mine, but that's the excuse I've been provided to not let it into my room.
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Dec 25, 2014 19:38
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supermikhail posted:Are puppies supposed to pee everywhere until 1 year old? Not mine, but that's the excuse I've been provided to not let it into my room. No puppies are NOT supposed to pee everywhere. Our 5 month pup isn't 100% perfect, but we can certainly let him in our room (with supervision) without worry.
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Dec 25, 2014 20:16
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Our 5 month Boston Terrier "Finnegan" has developed an annoying habit, and I'm not sure what the best solution is. Lately he has been jumping over our fence and running around the neighborhood. It's only happened twice so far and we've been there to see him do it and have quickly recovered him each time. However, now that it's been more than once, we need to stop it ASAP. Unfortunately, our fence is pretty low (like 4 feet high) and due to us living with a draconian homeowner's association, it will be highly unlikely that we will be allowed to install a taller one. It isn't like we've left him alone in the yard for long periods of time and he's trying to escape from boredom. Both times have been when he's needed to go out to pee. We've opened the door for him, he went outside and did his business, but then hopped over the fence. The first time was when he saw a someone walking their dog and most likely just wanted to play. The second time there was no one around, and he just ran over to a nearby fire hydrant. For now, we have decided we will always have him on a leash when going outside to pee since we can no longer trust him to go by himself. But we need to come up with a better long term solution where we don't have to put on shoes and grab his leash every time he need to go pee in the yard. And, of course, I should include a picture of the little scamp: 
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Dec 30, 2014 01:56
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Tramii posted:Our 5 month Boston Terrier "Finnegan" has developed an annoying habit, and I'm not sure what the best solution is. Lately he has been jumping over our fence and running around the neighborhood. It's only happened twice so far and we've been there to see him do it and have quickly recovered him each time. However, now that it's been more than once, we need to stop it ASAP. Unfortunately, our fence is pretty low (like 4 feet high) and due to us living with a draconian homeowner's association, it will be highly unlikely that we will be allowed to install a taller one. That pretty much sounds exactly like your only solution aside from obviously training in a rock solid recall and 'boundary'. You really can't raise the fence? that's pretty ridiculous, 6 foot is often the minimum height for housing a medium to large dog - does your HOA not allow dogs? Can you put a buffer inside your fence around the perimeter, like a barbed wire moat so he can't get at the base to jump up? Is this your only yard? Also see this http://www.clickertraining.com/node/2409
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Dec 30, 2014 04:21
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Wow that is an especially adorable boston  I like that he has a face so he can breathe and everything.
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Dec 30, 2014 04:27
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Toilet training question. Sterling is a 15 week old Sheltie and we've been following the toilet training methods in the OP. We do have accidents though - he will usually happily do his business when we take him out, but sometimes he holds it in and he hasn't clicked that he can still go outside when he wants to - eg he will pee on the floor in a room with an open door to the yard, when we may have only taken him out 5min earlier and he didn't do anything. It is probably also worth noting that at his dog daycare during the day they let him pee on paper on the floor because they don't have an easily accessible outdoor area for the frequency that puppies need to pee. So there is probably some confusion there because I can pee at daycare inside but not at home wtf? Do I just have massively high expectations for a pup not even 4 months old on this front or should we be doing something different training wise? (Also holy crap this pup is a garbage disposal unit, I have never seen anything more food motivated in my life. He is such a cheap date we do his training mostly with normal kibble.) EDIT: while I'm at it, crate question. Sterling was fine being crated overnight and all of a sudden for the last two nights he's been a goddamn nightmare. We're travelling and he's in an air crate (which he was previously fine with) so there are a few new variables but we'd been away for 5 days before he lost it. After keeping me awake until 1am last night trying to work out what the heck was wrong in between 10-15min bouts of ignoring him (answer: just didn't want to go to bed, full of beans) I ran him absolutely ragged today, heaps of walking, playing, a trip to another city and lots of people meeting him, AND stopped him from napping earlier, he is STILL awake and full of beans and whining in his crate. What am I doing wrong, or is just he is a puppy. Tamarillo fucked around with this message at 10:56 on Dec 30, 2014 |
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Dec 30, 2014 08:39
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Peeing on the floor at daycare will almost absolutely set his potty training back. RE: crate training nightmare, just keep at it. Pups change day by day, so it's normal to have the occasional setback. The first step is making sure he doesn't actually need to relieve himself. The second step is consistency. It's great that you ran him so ragged earlier, but sometimes it doesn't translate into settling for the night.
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Dec 30, 2014 13:45
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Tamarillo posted:EDIT: while I'm at it, crate question. Sterling was fine being crated overnight and all of a sudden for the last two nights he's been a goddamn nightmare. We're travelling and he's in an air crate (which he was previously fine with) so there are a few new variables but we'd been away for 5 days before he lost it. After keeping me awake until 1am last night trying to work out what the heck was wrong in between 10-15min bouts of ignoring him (answer: just didn't want to go to bed, full of beans) I ran him absolutely ragged today, heaps of walking, playing, a trip to another city and lots of people meeting him, AND stopped him from napping earlier, he is STILL awake and full of beans and whining in his crate. What am I doing wrong, or is just he is a puppy. Our pup is five months old and will walk to her crate each night at bedtime and happily sleep. When traveling for the holidays, however, she's been a nightmare. I think changes in routine are tough for young dogs.
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Dec 30, 2014 17:54
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Not a puppy question, but does anyone have experience with sheltering dogs? As in taking dogs in for some time while they don't have a permanent home. My wife and I are thinking about doing this since we're trying to determine if we can handle adopting one due to our schedules and living arrangements. In theory we can shelter the dog for as long as we want to, so if we realize we really can't care for it properly we just turn the fella back to the sheltering organization. Wondering if there are some tips to make the dog more comfortable in a temporary home, or stuff I should look out for when sheltering. We live in an apartment so it would probably be a small, older dog.
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Jan 5, 2015 12:35
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Hugoon Chavez posted:Not a puppy question, but does anyone have experience with sheltering dogs? As in taking dogs in for some time while they don't have a permanent home. What you're talking about is usually called fostering. Though if you're fostering hoping to adopt it's usually a home trial. I fostered a staffie for a week and a half or so over Christmas. All you really need to do is quickly and gently introduce to your routine, make sure you give the dog plenty of toilet breaks (more than you'd expect maybe for its age/amount it drinks) to avoid accidents and don't get worried if it doesn't eat for a few days. Hug a dog, hang out with a dog, I dunno it's all pretty straightforward stuff.
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Jan 5, 2015 13:49
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Fraction posted:What you're talking about is usually called fostering. Though if you're fostering hoping to adopt it's usually a home trial. Ah, alright. English is ont my native language so I didn't know how it was called. I was more worried about weird behaviours an adult dog could have when in a foster home, but mostly just trying to get some stories about fostering and what to expect.
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Jan 5, 2015 14:45
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No prob; wasn't trying to be a dick. If you search on the forums for foster/fostering you'll probably find stories of it. Generally the things you want to watch out for are difficulty settling (pacing, nervousness, toilet accidents), separation anxiety and resource guarding. Let the dog settle at its own pace, give it a quiet space to retreat to where you won't disturb it (i.e. some dogs like to go into a covered crate or a dog bed in a quiet room), keep your interactions calming and friendly wherever possible. Unless you're great at reading dog body language, don't test if it has resource guarding by sticking your hands in its face when its eating or playing with a toy. Most rescues will place a dog with you that has issues you can deal with. Let the rescue know what you can and can't deal with as a fosterer. You'll be expected to work on any issues such as separation anxiety, house training or bad manners on leash. As I say I had a staffie over Christmas, treated her like one of my dogs and sent her on her home trial a good few days ago. I saw her yesterday for the first time and she tried to haul her new owner over to me, screaming, and peed on the floor in excitement. Foster dogs tend to get attached--and you to them, so make sure you can handle that first.
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Jan 5, 2015 15:02
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Yeah thanks for helping me grasp the term, I know you were just clarifying it!Fraction posted:As I say I had a staffie over Christmas, treated her like one of my dogs and sent her on her home trial a good few days ago. I saw her yesterday for the first time and she tried to haul her new owner over to me, screaming, and peed on the floor in excitement. Foster dogs tend to get attached--and you to them, so make sure you can handle that first. This is the main reason I'm not sold on the idea, while it might be hard for us to give him back if we feel like we can't adopt it, we're signing up for that, but I don't want to hurt the poor guy if that happens and have to send him back to the where he came from. Good call on the resource guarding thing, I'm used of my past dogs to basically scoot over and let me eat from their plate if I was inclined to do it, will have to take into account that a foster dog will probably have a lot less trust.
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Jan 5, 2015 16:09
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How normal is it for a dogs eye to water in the winter? It's just her right eye and the discharge is clear. Would this be a new dog owner over reaction or is it something that could be wrong with her? We have had her for two months and this just started as it got colder I just would like a second opinion.
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Jan 6, 2015 01:09
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So dumb question. How do I get a dog to gnaw on his bones? We've tried out a couple and he is definitely interested in them. He'll walk up to us and if we offer it to him he'll grab it, and then go stash is in his crate or by his bed. He just likes having them around but doesn't chew on them. Someone recommended soaking one in chicken broth to see if that'll do the trick so I have one marinating right now. Is it a question of experimenting until we get one where he chews instead of keeps? I'd like to get him something so he can clean his teeth and occupy his time.
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Jan 10, 2015 01:43
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This is Mishka, it's his first night with us as we took him away from his mom, brothers and sisters (something he was fine with until late this evening). He pretty much slept with his head in my lap for the four hour car journey, a little bit of drooling and whining while we were going through country lanes but didn't throw up, and had no problems on the motorway once we got to straight driving. He made up for it by making us wait an hour and a half after drinking before going to the toilet outside and he's drunk more water since so it'll doubtless be a late night waiting for him to decide he needs to go again. We've been shutting him in the room his crate's in and/or in the crate and coming and going all evening, he had no problem with that until we actually sat down to have dinner when he decided to prove he knows exactly how to howl as loudly as possible. First puppy socialisation class is on Friday, then he's getting his second set of jabs the following week and starting puppy classes full time. The trainers have already let us know he's going to be the biggest in the class (6 other puppies, none bigger than a retriever).  Edit: And he just decided to stop crying and lie down in his crate and go to sleep with what he's decided is his favourite toy. Obviously I have the best puppy in the world (I might possibly be slightly biased).
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Jan 10, 2015 23:43
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PST posted:This is Mishka Yay! I was wondering when you'd be posting an update. Mishka is so adorable.
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Jan 10, 2015 23:55
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I have meant to ask for a while now, why puppies can't be taught to go in something similar to cat litter. I understand it's the normal practice to line their toilet with a cloth (I fail to see how that's hygienic, or compatible with eventually going outside)?
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Jan 11, 2015 09:03
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I'm terrified of cutting my dogs nails, but it's also a huge hassle to bring him to a groomer to get them done. That said, I'm considering biting the bullet and getting some clippers and doing them at home. Any recommendations on methods and clippers? It's a medium to large sized dog.
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Jan 11, 2015 20:17
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So I've been looking into adopting a dog and am looking for advice on potential breeds. I live by myself in a two bedroom apartment while I go to grad school. I spend about 8 hours a day in lab, but I can make it back to my apartment in about 10 minutes. I've never owned a dog though. I've been looking into Boston Terrier's they seem active and affectionate, and adapt well to apartments but I'm worried about leaving them alone while at school. Greyhounds are another option, I'm just worried about such a big dog in an apartment. I'm open to suggestions though. I'd love a good companion, if he can join me on hikes or run's that would be a plus.
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Jan 12, 2015 02:37
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Mishra posted:I've been looking into Boston Terrier's they seem active and affectionate, and adapt well to apartments but I'm worried about leaving them alone while at school. Greyhounds are another option, I'm just worried about such a big dog in an apartment. I'm open to suggestions though. I'd love a good companion, if he can join me on hikes or run's that would be a plus. A Boston wouldn't be able to join you on any strenuous activity, they have pretty hosed up respiratory systems from the smushed face so running and hiking would be very difficult for it. I'd probably also stay away from terriers or herding dogs unless you're willing to put the time and effort into the exercise and stimulation they need to not wreck your apartment. I'd contact a local rescue and see what they have in the way of 20-30ish pound chill mutts for your apartment buddy 
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Jan 12, 2015 03:11
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Hah hah hahhh So I got a Boston Terrier (a year ago today  ) and if you value your sanity do not do the same. Maybe some BTs are low energy or can't do anything strenuous but holy poo poo Sherlock will do a million things and then be ready to do a million more and then will so happily do a million more. And the energy stores don't go away... they don't drain... he just gets frustrated and turns into an rear end in a top hat. The best solution that I have for this is to put him in doggie daycare which is an expense that you should try to avoid if possible. Before I moved and still had a treadmill he would run for 3 miles a day. but this face 
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Jan 12, 2015 03:33
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luscious posted:The best solution that I have for this is to put him in doggie daycare which is an expense that you should try to avoid if possible. Just the other day I was dreaming about how I should have gotten a nice lazy dog like a boston instead. Guess that dream was not so accurate then! Daycare is what we have to do with my Luna too. Doggie day care 3 weekdays, 2 small walks around the local park (morning and night, 15-20min each) on the 2 weekdays she stays at home, and usually 1-2 'big' walks ( dog beach, or regular beach or trail) each weekend day. This keeps her pretty happy and is fun for getting us out of the house too. She's just been spayed however, and isn't allowed to go to daycare or do anything strenuous for 10 days. It's been three and she is loving INSANE without proper exercise. Post-beach trip (a brief moment of reprise):  On that note, is there anything to do for her during this post-spay period to keep her calm? She's on painkillers and refuses to slow down at all. I kind of wish the vet had doped her up a bit with some doggie valium so she'd take it easy :/ We're allowed to take her for gentle on lead walks but I'm guessing she's feeling a bit uneasy/in pain/feeling vulnerable because she is flat out refusing to go our normal neighbourhood route to the park, just sits her bum down and tries to go home the whole way. Has anyone's dog reacted like that after a spay? I'm hoping she'll be back to enjoying walkies when she's properly healed up.
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Jan 12, 2015 04:34
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supermikhail posted:I have meant to ask for a while now, why puppies can't be taught to go in something similar to cat litter. I understand it's the normal practice to line their toilet with a cloth (I fail to see how that's hygienic, or compatible with eventually going outside)? You can teach dogs to go in litter boxes but it's gross and stupid and not practical unless I guess you have a tiny chihuahua or something. I've not heard of lining their toilet with a cloth, closest is pee pads which are also kind of dumb when you could just take your dog to pee outside.
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Jan 12, 2015 07:35
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Ah. It's a puppy, and it seems like a cold winter. Right now according to the Internet -4 C which is 25 F also according to the Internet. Could that be a justification? (Not a chihuahua, though. At a layman's guess, it's probably called "a mixed breed".)
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Jan 12, 2015 08:10
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Mishka day 3. Mostly housebroken in that he's making noise when he needs to go rather than just going on the floor. He did use a puppy pad once on the first night, then again yesterday morning but since then hasn't had an accident inside. A little too quick on the uptake for this as last night and then again this morning he whined and barked at the door and on going out totally did not need to go to the toilet at all. He did, however, need to chase every leaf he could see. The first night he slept in the crate for three hours without a problem. That was obviously a fluke as last night he got very stressed very quickly, so i'm going to go through all the steps slowly. Sit/Stand/Stay is going slowly, in part because he automatically sits very nicely the moment i have food in my hand. Luring the movements has been a challenge because of how he likes to paw at my hand rather than actually move. He seems to be pretty name-proofed now, my wife and I sat on opposite sides of the room and the little scamp thought he could just go from one to the other of us without the hassle of waiting to be called and clicked for responding. Walked him around my house outside, he's pretty good at not pulling but does like to sit down and stop or plant his feet when he wants to chew on a leaf or bit of moss he's dug from between the paving slabs. Picture bonus 
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Jan 12, 2015 13:03
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couldcareless posted:I'm terrified of cutting my dogs nails, but it's also a huge hassle to bring him to a groomer to get them done. That said, I'm considering biting the bullet and getting some clippers and doing them at home. It's not that hard if your dog is used to it and is calm about it. Since they tend to feel your own attitude, you have to remain calm yourself, too. Basically cut the tips and leave an inch or two of leeway between where you're cutting and the red vein inside your dog's nail. Anecdote: back when my family and I were pretty piss poor, we had a boxer (that was my best friend for 13 years and I still miss every loving day) that could not calm down, so we didn't cut her nails and barely managed to scrap enough money for a grooming every three months or so. One day my mom got tired of being a total pussy and sat down and cut her nails. I was arriving from school at that moment and I just saw my dog running around gushing blood and my mom panicking and chasing her. She didn't hurt her much but it was pretty scary. For our next dog we made loving sure she was used to us cutting her nails and everything went ok! Said boxer once swallowed a whole sock and I (once again) came home from school to my dog whining with a poo sock hanging from her rear end, but still happy to see me and wagging her two tails and throwing poop everywhere. Man I miss her.
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Jan 12, 2015 16:52
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Hugoon Chavez posted:
 Leave maybe a few millimeters. You cut nails tiny bits at a time, and even black nails change their appearance as you approach the quick. It's important for you to keep your dog's nails as short as reasonably possible. If your dog isn't too squirmy, you can learn to do it yourself fairly easily. There are plenty of how-to videos on youtube for it. This is a good one: http://youtu.be/MM4HQDb1Ef0
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Jan 12, 2015 17:07
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Hugoon Chavez posted:Basically cut the tips and leave an inch or two of leeway between where you're cutting and the red vein inside your dog's nail. a single nail on one of my dogs' feet is prob around or less than 1 inch, dude
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Jan 12, 2015 17:14
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Moto Punch posted:Just the other day I was dreaming about how I should have gotten a nice lazy dog like a boston instead. Guess that dream was not so accurate then! Daycare is what we have to do with my Luna too. Doggie day care 3 weekdays, 2 small walks around the local park (morning and night, 15-20min each) on the 2 weekdays she stays at home, and usually 1-2 'big' walks ( dog beach, or regular beach or trail) each weekend day. This keeps her pretty happy and is fun for getting us out of the house too. She's just been spayed however, and isn't allowed to go to daycare or do anything strenuous for 10 days. It's been three and she is loving INSANE without proper exercise. Yeah, Ellie got spayed on the 9th and I felt the same way. 24 hours for now she will be convinced that she is 100% again, and you'll begin the fight against her tearing her stitches out by running around like a maniac.
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Jan 12, 2015 17:16
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Err yeah I'm dumb with your weird heretic measuring system, I was thinking about 3mm, heh. Don't let your dog's paw become eagle claws.
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Jan 12, 2015 17:17
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PST posted:Mishka day 3. The best piece of advice I can give you is to not take those behaviors for granted. When your dog's a puppy things come easy (relatively). They stay nearby, they are relatively receptive when it comes to new concepts (sit/down/stay) and they nap constantly. Do NOT let yourself fall into a false sense of security. Once your puppy gets a little older they'll become much more independent. That's great! But you're going to go through a "terrible two's" just like regular bipedal kids. You want to continue to be diligent with your training, make sure you work on loose leash walking and recall daily (IIRC a life less recommends at least 5-10 minutes a day minimum, more if you and your puppy can handle it - 5-10 minutes a few times a day. They may correct this though.) Something I wish I did is taught our dogs to chill the gently caress out. We were so excited about PUPPIES that we played with them all the time that they weren't sleeping or eating. It was a lot of fun, and when they're puppies they get worn out quickly. Now that Artemis is 2 and Jada is almost 2, I have to spend up to an hour and a half at our (currently dinky) dog park running them around and playing fetch for them to not be bouncing off the walls by the time my wife gets home. Every day. In the cold. Which I actually really enjoy - it worked out well for me because it keeps me from sitting on my rear end all evening long and gets me going for at least that long every day, but at the same time it's very exhausting and if I can't for any reason it falls to my wife, who is so much not a fan of the cold that she'll walk them for the bear minimum potty breaks and that's it. Good luck, and again be diligent. Don't let early success make you think you don't need to work hard to keep it up. The more consistent you are now the better off you will be later, trust me. e: added quote because drat that was a lot of replies and made it confusing mcswizzle fucked around with this message at 18:13 on Jan 12, 2015 |
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Jan 12, 2015 17:44
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mcswizzle posted:
Yup, we fell in to that...Sherlock learned all these commands so quickly, so we figured he was smart. We got lax in our training regime...and now he's being a little jerk-rear end. We're slowly working him back in to a training routine, but sometimes he'll just sit there and stare at us when we tell him to come. He used to come bounding whenever we said come...now, when he does come, he very slowly walks, usually sniffing things along the way and taking his time. Yup...going to be a long road to get him back to where he was. So here's a question: water in the crate. I know we're not supposed to, but when we let him out after long stints in his crate he'll dart for the water dish and drink it dry if we let him. I usually let him go for a bit and take it away, but man he's thirsty. We're trying to work him up to longer time in the crate...aside from overnight, we're up to a few minutes shy of 4 hours (he's just about 5 months old). Short term we're aiming for only coming home once per day. Right now I take an early shift and my wife takes a later shift, so between 8 and 5 he gets let out twice. My wife lets him out right before 8, then I come home and let him out at 11:50, and my wife at around 3:00, then I get home at 5 and let him out. The morning stretch is the longest, and I feel like it's a long time to go without water. What's the solution? I don't trust him to knock it over or otherwise spill it, and I don't trust him to ration it, but at least if we make it available then it's his option. He hasn't had an accident in his crate since Thanksgiving, and even then it had been a couple weeks. But then again, maybe he hasn't had accidents in his crate because he isn't getting any water...so there's that. We saw some hamster-style water dispensers at the pet store that look like they're designed for this sort of use. Are those any good? Or is that too degrading for a dog?
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Jan 12, 2015 20:18
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We've had Waffle for 3 weeks now and things are improving slowly with training. The one thing I seem to have hit a roadblock with is to get him over his fear/anxiousness/inability to do large stairs. He's capable of doing small 4 step staircases in the garage and in the backyard patio. However, he can't go up and down floors. I managed to lure him up 3-4 stairs going up from the main floor to the upstairs, but he seems stuck now. Specifically he'll just stretch for the food being offered. His rear legs stay on the ground floor. I've managed to get his rear paw up once only. Trying to get him comfortable with going downstairs to the basement, I have not been able to get him to take one single step on a stair whether with encouragement or luring. There is some progress since we adopted him, I suppose. At first, he would come nowhere near the door, but now he will happily stick his head in the doorway while we walk up. I have not tried leading him by the leash because I've been training loose leash walking with him and don't want to gently caress anything up leash related. Carrying him up is out of the question because he's a 60lbs GSD/Golden mix. I want him downstairs because that's when we spend the most of our time on our computers and I want him to sleep with me in my room.
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Jan 12, 2015 20:49
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DaveSauce posted:
I have a friend who uses a dog-sized hamster waterer for her Havanese. Most people just use something like this:  I would maybe just put a small amount of water in there, rather than fill it up all the way.
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Jan 12, 2015 20:54
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DaveSauce posted:So here's a question: water in the crate. I know we're not supposed to, but when we let him out after long stints in his crate he'll dart for the water dish and drink it dry if we let him. I usually let him go for a bit and take it away, but man he's thirsty. I'd say that about 4 hours without water isn't going to kill him. If you're concerned he's drinking too much when you let him out of the crate (or he's drinking enough to make himself sick) don't give him that much water. Half-fill the water bowl, or block access to the water feeder (we have a 2.5gallon gravity fed water bowl, for example) so he doesn't run straight to it. I have a friend that has a little aussie mutt and that dude just doesn't understand how to drink. I mean, he's fine now, but when he was a puppy he'd drink literally until he couldn't handle it anymore, and then had to pee almost immediately. My roommate at the time restricted when he could have water (frequently, but not free access) and monitored how much he drank so that he didn't go crazy. He had accidents intermittently until we started paying more attention to his intake. If you are insistent on allowing access to water in the crate, A) be prepared for more accidents and handle them BAU and B) I would not fill the container up. Best case he can't spill that much, worst case he drinks it all but it wasn't enough to instigate a need to pee. At least until he gets accustomed to it. I want to say it was pizzadog(?) that told me to just have some faith in my dogs which led to us first trying to leave them uncrated. Besides short days - around 6 hours max - that my wife and I would be gone we crated them and had a dog walker come in the middle of the day, until about 1 1/2 years old. We might have been able to get away with it sooner than that, but I was always worried about "what would happen". Eventually, when we moved, we just decided to try it, and we leave them uncrated every day, with access to our big water jug, from 7:45a-5p, sometimes (infrequently) a little longer, and never had an accident. One day you'll just have to have faith that your dog isn't going to piss on all of your stuff. It might take practice - especially if he has separation anxiety issues.
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Jan 12, 2015 22:09
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