Unhappy with dog behaviourist service

sheramber

Going to a bed and not kicking off are two separate training needs. Teach each separately. I say this from experience. My dog learned to go to his bed in the kitchen when someone came to the door but he still barked his head off all the way there and while  in his bed. Teach a ‘settle’ - lying quietly and relaxed- and ‘bed’ and then combine the two. Much more successful than trying to teach two things at once. Remember a Romanian dog may have  a host of bad experiences associated with people.

ladyholly

We have had up to 4 dogs at once and while I would say having another dog is helpful for training a new one in how to live in the home and how to react to environment specific training needs to be done on a one to one basis at least initially. Dogs from abroad do tend to have specific issues as many of them have been street dogs for most if not all their lives unlike in the UK where we have strays but they are usually picked up very quickly.

If you havent been shown how to implement the training can you phone him or her and ask how to do it but remember the behaviourist is there to help you not to do it. We used to have a friend who was a trainer and behaviourist and she always said her job was to train the owners not the dog. Training dogs is a lifetime comittment and the 3 we had who all died last year were given continuous training throughout their lives to the day they died.

Dont give up it will come right but does take time and comittments from all the family.Iif they wont co operate do the best you can and take comfort that the dog has a better life than it would have done.  

WackieO

sheramber said:

Going to a bed and not kicking off are two separate training needs. Teach each separately. I say this from experience. My dog learned to go to his bed in the kitchen when someone came to the door but he still barked his head off all the way there and while  in his bed. Teach a ‘settle’ - lying quietly and relaxed- and ‘bed’ and then combine the two. Much more successful than trying to teach two things at once. Remember a Romanian dog may have  a host of bad experiences associated with people.

Our Rommie rescue definitely had a bad start in life but thankfully the two and half years have been much better for him:) 
We're practising getting him to go to the bed at the moment so maybe we can work on settle at a later stage but it's definitely going to be a long process! 

sheramber

Don't just make training to go to bed a training exercise. Involve it in everyday day life.

Go to bed while I make your dinner - the reward for that is getting your dinner, a high value reward.

Go to bed while I put my coat on  to take you a walk- again a high value reward

Go to bed while I hoover so the dog is out of the way.

All my dogs were taught to go to their beds while we ate. 

Another useful exercise is 'middle' where the dog comes and sits between your legs which can restore some control over the behaviour.

SensibleSarah

Rommies can be really challenging - they are wired quite differently to UK rescues. I say that as someone who has had rescue dogs of various types for 30+ years. My Rommie hasn't ever lived on the streets or experienced cruelty as he was rescued very very early, but his genetics play a huge role in his instinctive behaviours. Modifying these behaviours isn't impossible, but it often takes a very different approach to 'normal' dogs. 

To the OP, if your Rommie has guardian breeds in his bloodline then the issues with visitors is very very common. Mine is a Romanian Mioritic Shepherd mix and has loads of guardian traits in his behaviour. His kind of dog are essentially bred, generation after generation, to be very independent-minded, live without much human interaction or instruction and live on a mountain or farm protecting the animals there from wolves and bears. They need to make their own decisions about what is a threat and choose when to act because there is no one to decide that for them.

Transfer that kind of dog to an urban environment with 'threats' everywhere and these dogs tend to struggle to adapt from what their instincts are telling them to do vs what is socially acceptable in modern life and dog ownership.

I'm just over 18 months into the journey with my Rommie (he's now 2.5 and came via his previous UK home, which he'd been in since he came over at 4 months old. He was rescued at under a week old with his siblings and hand-reared.) and although he has come a long way from the absolute nightmare he was at first, he still needs very careful management in some areas of life and probably always will. Meeting his needs so he can be happy and settled has meant I've had to make some changes to my life and routine, but it's working. 

I know that OP doesn't want to be spending any more money on behaviourist/training right now but I can hugely recommend online courses from 'The dog's point of view' - Google it to find them. They specialise in Rommies and have mini-courses which aren't too expensive for things like dogs that react to visitors etc. They also often have special offers so I've never paid full price. Since I started using the principles I have learned from a couple of the reactivity courses on there, I've seen a huge amount of progress in my dog as I understand him much better and why he does some of the things he does. 

In terms of the other older dog helping... my middle-aged steady labrador rescue dog is absolutely no help whatsoever and in fact is one of the main direct causes of some of my Rommie's most challenging behaviours. Doing seperate daily walks (not every walk) and training with them has been pivotal to progress with behavioural issues. 

WackieO

SensibleSarah said:

Rommies can be really challenging - they are wired quite differently to UK rescues. I say that as someone who has had rescue dogs of various types for 30+ years. My Rommie hasn't ever lived on the streets or experienced cruelty as he was rescued very very early, but his genetics play a huge role in his instinctive behaviours. Modifying these behaviours isn't impossible, but it often takes a very different approach to 'normal' dogs. 

To the OP, if your Rommie has guardian breeds in his bloodline then the issues with visitors is very very common. Mine is a Romanian Mioritic Shepherd mix and has loads of guardian traits in his behaviour. His kind of dog are essentially bred, generation after generation, to be very independent-minded, live without much human interaction or instruction and live on a mountain or farm protecting the animals there from wolves and bears. They need to make their own decisions about what is a threat and choose when to act because there is no one to decide that for them.

Transfer that kind of dog to an urban environment with 'threats' everywhere and these dogs tend to struggle to adapt from what their instincts are telling them to do vs what is socially acceptable in modern life and dog ownership.

I'm just over 18 months into the journey with my Rommie (he's now 2.5 and came via his previous UK home, which he'd been in since he came over at 4 months old. He was rescued at under a week old with his siblings and hand-reared.) and although he has come a long way from the absolute nightmare he was at first, he still needs very careful management in some areas of life and probably always will. Meeting his needs so he can be happy and settled has meant I've had to make some changes to my life and routine, but it's working. 

I know that OP doesn't want to be spending any more money on behaviourist/training right now but I can hugely recommend online courses from 'The dog's point of view' - Google it to find them. They specialise in Rommies and have mini-courses which aren't too expensive for things like dogs that react to visitors etc. They also often have special offers so I've never paid full price. Since I started using the principles I have learned from a couple of the reactivity courses on there, I've seen a huge amount of progress in my dog as I understand him much better and why he does some of the things he does. 

In terms of the other older dog helping... my middle-aged steady labrador rescue dog is absolutely no help whatsoever and in fact is one of the main direct causes of some of my Rommie's most challenging behaviours. Doing seperate daily walks (not every walk) and training with them has been pivotal to progress with behavioural issues. 

That's really interesting to read about your rescue.  I've no idea about the background of mine but he was about 2-3 years old when he came to us and I don't think he had lived in a house but was possibly fed by someone but not sure how regular.  Thanks for the recommendation about the online course - for now I'll persevere with the advice given but will keep it at the back of my mind.  Just seem to have a lot of spending this month in particular!  

WackieO

sheramber said:

Don't just make training to go to bed a training exercise. Involve it in everyday day life.

Go to bed while I make your dinner - the reward for that is getting your dinner, a high value reward.

Go to bed while I put my coat on  to take you a walk- again a high value reward

Go to bed while I hoover so the dog is out of the way.

All my dogs were taught to go to their beds while we ate. 

Another useful exercise is 'middle' where the dog comes and sits between your legs which can restore some control over the behaviour.

Will try and remember to send him to bed throughout the day  

sheramber

Another tactic for reaction to visitors is to ask people not to ring the bell- disconnect it? or knoock. Ask them to phone you to advise you that they are at the door.  Ask personally and/or put a notice on the door.

"Do not knock. Dog in training. Please phone xxx to advise you are here."

That way you can move the dog  to another room and introduce him to the room when the visitor has settled down. that way the dog gets less stimulation.

gill5blue

Hi Wacko,
As a dog trainer, and dog Instructor with many years of experience and lots of qualifications, sheramber has given you very good advice.
Also go back to the behaviourist and ask what qualifications they have (to warrant a high price charge) because you not need any qualifications to call yourself a dog trainer/behavourist.
gill5blue