how do i retrain the bf?? and any ideas for the dog!

sammy_kaye18

arrrggghhhh!!!!!!!!

Does anyone else have this problem!

My bf loves our dog Bruno - hes a jack russell/staffy cross btu has more the jack russell gene. Hes 6 years old and a rescue dog and lovely but he needs some more training (hes 6). he was jumping up at us, jumping up at our son and only really obeys the sit command so in the day whilst our sons been at school ive been doing a few basics with him,

Not alot but like ignoring him when hes jumping up at me and then praising him when he sits, then if he jumps up again the technique si repeated and he gets it.

Earlier it is our 3 year olds job to feed the dog (i put it all in the bowl and my 3yr old gives it to the dog) so i told Bruno sit, which he did, and stay which he did. My son put the food down, the dog stayed, he still stayed and then i told ben 'right tell him' and ben said 'get your food brun' and the dog went and ate his dinner so he is learning basic commands.

I also for one donyt like beign jumped all over whilst im on the sofa so im trying to get the dog to stay on a blanket onteh floor which he has been doing with the help of a few chews and treats thats where he stays happily.

But the bf :mad: is undoing all my good work as soon as he coems home, the dog jumps up at him and hes all cooey to him like a baby, bf sits on the chair and the dogs all over him, round the headrest, over your lap, etc.Plus he barks like mad when bf feeds him (he feeds him eactly the same as what i feed him) but yet hes perfectly silent when me and our son feed him.

Im not sure if im training the right one!!! Any idea how i can get it through to bf to help me train the dog?? or at least follow my lead?? Ive been trying 5 years to housetrain the bf but its still not working - dishes left everywhere, clothing everywhere, no manners.

Also i was wondering if anyone has any idea to un encourage chewing - he chews everythgin he can get - plus he is very destructive, i got a small kong for him which he chewed through in about 2/3 minutes - any ideas on non destructive toys or how to stop him doing it??? He is walked 4 times a day (3 of them are 10-15 minutes each and one is for 45 - 60 minutes) depending on weather.

many thanks in advance

WeirdoMagnet

It sounds like you are doing great with the dog training - keep it up! :T

Hmmm - how to train the boyfriend?! I guess you've told him how hard you are working to train him, and that he is coming home and undoing it all? And how important it is that Bruno doesn't jump up, especially around little ones. Like you say it is important to be consistent and for everyone to have the same rules.

Maybe if he really won't listen to you, you have to manage Bruno so your BF can't allow these things to happen. What about when your BF is due home, you pop the lead on Bruno so he stays with you, and have yummy treats to reward him for staying with you? And not allowing your BF to feed him? I think if you do that a couple of times, he'll (the BF) see that you're serious.

If it is any consolation, we get this a bit with Tilly when we go to relatives or have people to stay. People ask if they can give her a treat, so I say she has to do something (a trick) for it first, and only give her a little piece, and they obey the first time, but then you see them giving her great big bits of food, for 'nothing', and they say 'oh it's Christmas/special occasion/just a one-off' - like she knows that! :mad: Like you, I then have to spend time teaching her not to beg for food. So, I've decided to put a stop to it. If people can't do what they're told, I'm going to have to fib and say she's got an allergy and can't have anything other than her usual food! Honestly, it's easier to train the dog that train the people! :rotfl:

For the chewing - does he chew less when you've tired him out mentally with some training? It could be that although he's getting enough physical exercise, he also needs mental exercise too. You could try clicker training - that will help you with just his basic obedience and his mental stimulation. What about a treat ball, where he gets (some of) his kibble in a ball with a small opening, and he has to push it round for the biscuits to fall out? What other toys does he have? Tilly loves 'cuddly' toys that I get from the charity shops - she loves to pull them apart and pull all the stuffing out.

bumpybecky

you need to think about what motivates him and then offer that as a reward for good behaviour...

would beer work?

WeirdoMagnet

bumpybecky wrote: »

you need to think about what motivates him and then offer that as a reward for good behaviour...

would beer work?

LOL! :rotfl: I was going to say ignore the bad and reward the good!

cluuuuur

Tell your boyfriend that unless he wants to be rehomed that he should really housetrain himself. Crate him when you leave him alone in the house, and definitely reward the good behaviour.

As for the dog...

Have you tried one of the black kongs? They're definitely stronger (my staffie doesn't make a dent in these with her teeth, but she IS quite small). Nylabones are also brilliant for "chewy" dogs. If he's chewing stuff you don't want him to you could always try something like bitter apple spray to put him off it in the first place - most dogs hate the taste.

MrsTinks

I'd seriously think about rehoming the boyfriend myself :rotfl:

You're doing great on training - looks like you're the pack leader and frankly your dog thinks your bf is the omega dog in the house - ie the lowest ranking. The cooing and so on he makes when he gets home is the same as saying "your majesty im terribly sorry i have been absent! no-one else but you matters, not even the lady whos normally in charge is as important to me as you" and so your dog is stressing because it has NO idea what its position in the pack really is. you act like you're in charge, but HE doesn't show you the respect that the pack leader would normally command. He shows THAT to the dog.
Consistency is the key. he can make as much fuss as he likes of the dog, but he has to wait till the dog is calm and he has said hello to you and the little uns. then tell him he has to wait till the dog relaxes before he calls the dog and makes as much fuss as he wants.

MrsTinks

oh yeah and chewing... once he knows his place in the pack you should see a reduction in the chewing too as chances are at the moment he's chewing to relieve stress... our dog has the occasional chew bone but its been over a year since she last chewed a skirtingboard, shoe, table, chair, sofa or anything else nailed down or not

Psykicpup

I shouted NO in a loud firm voice & then in the ensuing silence told Mutt to sit & DH to stop TRAINING the dog to disobey me!
I then explained to DH that unless he was willing to pay for the vet bills -explained in a mo- that I had to have complete control of the dog ,& unless he wanted to stay home with the dog & kids & the chaos that would happen, he had to support me with the dog - & oh yes there was a 3rd option but HE had to explain to the children....
yes I made it quite clear that an uncontrolled dog is a dangerous dog & as such should not be around children. I explained that him doing one thing & me the other is just confusing the dog & possibily cruel to the dog. That this very thing may cause the dog to not listen sometime when its VERY important (think slipped lead etc or worse)
I wish the Mutt had been so easy to train lol

ps this was quite a while ago now - had no arguements when training the latest, a GSD.......

WeirdoMagnet

tine wrote: »

You're doing great on training - looks like you're the pack leader and frankly your dog thinks your bf is the omega dog in the house - ie the lowest ranking.

I think it's more likely that it's the training and consistency (from sammy-kaye) that's working, rather than being "pack leader". The Dominance Theory - the one where you have to be pack leader over your dog has been debunked by many eminent canine behaviourists and also revoked by the original researchers.

Psykicpup

Georgina wrote: »

I think it's more likely that it's the training and consistency (from sammy-kaye) that's working, rather than being "pack leader". The Dominance Theory - the one where you have to be pack leader over your dog has been debunked by many eminent canine behaviourists and also revoked by the original researchers.

I agree - this is the theory where you cant let your dog sleep in a doorway etc - when my DH was in hosp - thats exactly where my dog chose to sleep - he knew I was upset & wanted to protect me - he was even more differential to me during this time & totally attentive - soooo sweet. A well trained dog loves you & it doesnt matter where he sleeps etc - the only thing is I try to feed him after us - at least his main meal lol - otherwise dinner gets earlier & earlier or he tries to hassle while we cook! - the exception is if the slow cooker is on - I cant bear the thought that he has had the smell of cooking allday & is hungry lol

sammy_kaye18

Yeah bf is a nightmare with the dog.

Tine - yeah he does tend to faff about with the dog alot, but then if the dog does want a cuddle ont eh sofa (im not saying he never gets them, occassionally he does when hes calm and not bouncing round the place like a loony) but i go down on the floor with him for a cuddle and play then back to my chair.

Georgina - yeah thats exactly what bruno does - if you give him a teddy it decapitated within seconds and im left picking up stuffing for hours on end afterwards.

cluuuuur - yeah i got him a red kong and it was liek the smallest one they did (think it should have been for a terrier size dog) but as hes half staffy i hink he just found it not challenging enogh adn destroyed it - im wonderign whether to get a big black kong 9the sort of size that he can hold but not get his teeth round enough to chew it.

The only other toys ive managed to give him are solid toys - like a solid rubber dog ball (the heavy ones) but he still has chewed it to a degree and its falling apart. I did get him one of those rubber throwing hoops but he chewed through that too. He does have these special dog bones - they are liek solid but sort of plastic form wilkinsons - you get either a bone or a hoop. Tennis balls - infact any ball - doesnt last longer than a minute before its in the bin.

Psychikpup - my bruno sleeps in the hallway. We dont tend to let him in our room as he has this annoying habit of yapping in his sleep when hes dreaming really loudly and it keeps me up as hes usually on my side of the bed curled up on a blanket so we had to shift him to the hallway. Now hes in the hallway (with his doggy bed) he wont sleep int eh bed he chooses to sleep layign down right up against the door - which bugs bf because he can hear the dog sort of rubbing against the door - doesnt bother me in the slightest quite comforted knowing hes there.