troublesome dog

tiff

You could find a dog trainer near you on this site http://www.apdt.co.uk/index2.htm

You could also ask at the vets for a local dog walking service that they might have details of.

JennyW_2

village_life wrote:

i appreciate all the comments and the berating for taking a dog - however we had hoped that a dog being loved and looked after by us two is better than a dog left alone in a recue centre pen all day

despite us work during the day, we still lavish attention on him in the evening and enjoy the time we can spend together - and hoped that the dog would appreciate living with us rather than in an anonymous rescue centre.

you obviously sound as if you care about this dog and what to do what's best for him but the bottom line is that being left all day is not suitable - he's feeling abandoned, lonely and getting stressed. If you think about it, what does he have to look forward to once you shut the door and go to work? I expect he does appreciate some attention in the evening but in all honesty, you cant have that much time once you get in, have dinner etc.

I know rescue homes aren't ideal for dogs whilst they're waiting for their "forever homes" but at least they have routines, regular exercise and companionship.

village_life

jenny

i accept your comments- this scenario applies (at worst) to tuesday, weds and thursdays - i ALWAYS work at home on a monday and friday and some weeks i dont go away at all - so we hoped it wouldnt be an issue

the problem has only come about as i got a project in london which is demanding me there midweek at the moment - the last thing we want to do is get rid of the dog, so we're trying all avenus.

researcher

Then I'd go with the neighbour option for a lunchtime wee, and leave the dog in a room with the curtains closed and a chatty radio station for company. Maybe a couple of special toys would be good too?

Whenever we leave our dog we don't make a big deal, as I read somewhere that this upsets them more. He just goes to sleep!

llh189

Jenny,

Jenny I think that you are a little hard on the OP, also several posts now indicate that 4/5 hours is the limit to leave dogs during the day anything after that is cruel but the OP dog is not upset at hour 4 and it isn't a pattern that has developed over time, if the post was regarding someone asking for advice about getting a dog and the maximum time that he / she should be left than this advise would be perfect but not in this case.

Not all dog owners have the ability to stay at home all day or only be out for 4 hours at a time, if this were the case the dog popuation in this country would be a small percentage of what it is and dog homes would be over run by unwanted dogs!

My advice to the OP is to contact either your local vets and the shelter that your dog came from to find the details of a trained dog trainer (make sure that they have relevant behavioural training) and start the process of going through retraining which can be long stressful and sometimes costly, most if not all dogs can he retrained even the stubborn ones! I agree saty away from the shock collar!

I would also pop to see your neighbours and explain the situation, the worry of being reported for noise pollution is the last thing that you need and this should relieve some stress for you. I was reported for the same issue and quite frankly it just made the situation worse for us, we didn't even know our dog was barking until the letter came from the council - nice neighbour!

All the ideas about curtains, dog flaps and radios are good but will probably only work for dogs with slight issues but I wouldn't start anything until you have had some advice from a behaviourist.

HTH

seven-day-weekend

Now I remember why I have never wanted a dog.....

black-saturn

Is there any way you can keep him indoors when your out instead of outside? If you get him a cosy bed and a few toys he might be OK. If he does his doo doo's on the carpet it will just have to get cleaned up. Unfortunately thats what dogs do.

As for the constant barking - you don't live opposite me do you?

seven-day-weekend

Are dog walkers any help? Maybe one could take him for a walk in the middle of the day.

Eels100

I do wonder why you have got yourselves a dog which is of a nervous disposition and at 9 has obviously had a less than wonderful past when you both work all day, but I'll try to offer something constructive.

The dog is almost certainly suffering from separation anxiety, a nervous problem caused when dogs are insecure and are or have been left for long periods. They will often express some form of displacement behaviour which can take the form of destructive behaviour, vocalising or trying to escape. This can be resolved (I wouldn't ever use the term 'cured') but will take several months if not years of consistent effort from you and your wife, and this may not be possible given your working committments. Having said that, the dog is also a committment, and I would postulate that the best solution for the dog would be a combination of having someone tend to him during the day and setting up some counselling sessions for you both with a member of the APBC via your vet.

If you are not willing or able to provide this level of committment then rehoming would be the only other reasonable option, but I would ensure you do this via a more sensible rehoming centre (check out Dogpages) to ensure this little man doesn't 'bounce' homes ever again.

Good luck.

Raksha

Although not ideal, adult dogs can actually cope with being alone for 8 or so hours, they'll mostly sleep (use a webcam or similar to watch if you don't believe me) so long as they aren't suffering from seperation anxiety, and nervous dogs seem to be more prone.

You can also get a plug in called a Dog Appeasing Pheramone (DAP) defuser from you vets - this helps to calm dogs and is particularly useful around firework time.

AS others have said, please do NOT use aversives like shock or spray collars, they might seem inocuous to us, but for a sensitive dog can be horrendous, and whilst they might stop the unwanted behaviour, other behaviours, often even worse, can surface.

Your best bet really is to find a trainer with an interest in behaviour, or a registered behaviourist (look for UKRCB or APBC), ask your vet for a referal to ensure you don't get a 'cowboy'.

Feel free to PM me if you like.