Exercise R Us

Question:

My 14wk Kelpie/Heeler seems to have every bad trait a dog could have. He is not showing any sign of being toilet trained. He constantly jumps at you and has caused about $1000 damage to our home. We have children and I am home during the day, so it is not lonliness or boredom. He is taked to the beach to run and daily to the paddocks. He has to have company all the time and if outside ever by himself he just continuosly scratches on the doors. I’m sick of him being inside the house now because of his littering and he is becoming a big dog now. The Vet did say that it was unusual that he is not trained yet. My husband is becoming increasingly wilder with him and I fear for "Ben’s" future.

Response:

14 weeks is still WAY TO YOUNG to expect any kind of success with housebreaking!!!! You must exert patience, as a dog can only ‘hold’ its bladder for one hour for every month of age.  So, at 14 weeks (3-1/2 months) your dog has to go EVERY 3 HOURS. If your husband wasn’t prepared to deal with a puppy, you shouldn’t have gotten one.  But you got him, and now you must learn to take care of him. Get yourself a trainer or enroll in puppy kindergarten classes.  You and your husband should take turns going to the class with the dog. BTW, banishing the dog to the backyard is NOT going to housebreak him, its only going to make him a very bored/aggressive dog. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> My 14wk Kelpie/Heeler seems to have every bad trait a dog could have. > He is not showing any sign of being toilet trained. He constantly jumps > at you and has caused about $1000 damage to our home. > We have children and I am home during the day, so it is not lonliness or > boredom. > He is taked to the beach to run and daily to the paddocks. > He has to have company all the time and if outside ever by himself he > just continuosly scratches on the doors. I’m sick of him being inside > the house now because of his littering and he is becoming a big dog now. > The Vet did say that it was unusual that he is not trained yet. > My husband is becoming increasingly wilder with him and I fear for > "Ben’s" future.

Response:

 The training hints below are all good. Follow them. There IS something else, however. Your puppy is three month old! Surely you don’t expect a tiny baby puppy to be toilet trained, and obedience trained all at once! They have to grow up a little, and you have to work with them during that time.  Build a puppy pen outdoors, and keep the puppy there when you can’t work with it. This is nothing more than a very small management problem. You wouldn’t buy a horse and turn it loose in your house would you? Same thing!

: I wonder if you are expecting him to toilet train himself?  It is up : to you to train him, and now it is time to start again from the very : beginning.  Do you have a crate?  If not, get one or build one.  When : you do not have the time to ACTIVELY watch your dog every minute, he : should be in the crate.  Take him outside on a leash first thing in : the morning, decide on a phrase to associate with doing his business, : and use it.  If and when he goes, praise him like he just gave you the : crown jewels.  After he eats, same thing.  After he naps, same thing. : After he plays, same thing.  If you have put him in the crate for a : while, take him outside when you let him out.  You need to go out with : him every time, and he needs to be on a leash.  If you want him to let : you know that he needs to go out, hang a couple of small bells near : the door he goes out, and encourage him to hit them with his paw when : you go out.  You might even start saying "You want to go out?" as you : head for the door.   : If you leave the house, he should be in the crate or a small, easily : cleaned room, not running around the house. This avoids having to : scold him every time you return to the house because he has done : something you consider naughty (like eating the sofa or peeing on the : rug). : As for the other behaviors, you need to take him to dog training : classes.  I notices you are writing from Australia, and depending on : where you live, you may or may not have access to classes.  I : understand that distances can be a problem (:> : Go to the bookstore or library and look for books on dog training- : read a few, find one you like, and use it.  I am afraid that yelling : at him for being "bad" when he does not know what you consider "good" : does nothing more than confuse the issue.  Since you are the one at : home with him during the day, you should be the one training him. : Your husband should also read the books, and use the commands, but you : must both use the same methods and commands, or confusion will be the : order of the day.  It is possible to train even the most stubborn dog : using positive methods.  Look for "Don’t Shoot the Dog" by Karen : Pryor- it is not strictly a dog training book (works on husbands and : children too), but her methods work very well.  Any book by Carol Lea : Benjamin would be good too, as would the "Howell Book of Puppy : Raising" or "Mother Knows Best".  Good luck, and don’t give up!  Let : us know how Ben is doing. : Ruth Mays :  Cinnaminson NJ :    maysrg at mosquito dot com :      If you want to reply, you know what to do with this.

Response:

>> My 14wk Kelpie/Heeler seems to have every bad trait a dog could have. > He is not showing any sign of being toilet trained.

What are you doing to train him?  (See, unless you take an active role in teaching him what you want him to know, you really can’t blame him for not properly reading your mind.  He’s only a dog, after all.) > He constantly jumps > at you and has caused about $1000 damage to our home.

A lot of this might be prevented with closer supervision.  Even more might be fixed with training and EXERCISE.  Kelpies and Heelers are incredibly active breeds – intense, active, and great stamina.   > We have children and I am home during the day, so it is not lonliness or > boredom.

Perhaps not loneliness, but don’t be so quick to rule out boredom.  How much dedicated, one-on-one interaction does the puppy get?  (Other than being punished for mistakes?) > He is taked to the beach to run and daily to the paddocks.

With a 14-week puppy of these breeds, were I foolish enough to get another puppy that age of these breeds (once was enough, thanks!), I would probably have a schedule something like: get up, feed puppy, potty puppy, 30-45 minutes of romping with puppy combined with 5-10 minutes of basic training stuff, puppy takes a nap in his kennel and I go to work.  At noon, puppy goes out to potty, then we take a 20 minute walk around the neighborhood, working on leash manners and seeing the sights.  Puppy goes back in kennel, I go back to work.  After work, puppy fed again, goes out to potty, another 45 minute romp (chase and fetch were very popular, as I recall), then he takes a nap while I fix supper.  Out to potty again after supper (out to potty after every nap!).  Short training session – mostly recall-type stuff.  An hour or two in front of the TV, one last potty call, then bed.  EVERY day.  Or I wouldn’t complain if the puppy ate the house, that’s what they do when they don’t get enough physical and mental exercise. How long would this keep up?  Well, my youngest dog is two, so we’re down to 30-40 minutes of active fetch every day, and another hour or two of throwing tennis balls in the house.  But he’s full Heeler, and I understand that Kelpies don’t wind down as quickly. > He has to have company all the time

This is called "bonding".  It’s what dogs do.  I haven’t been to the bathroom alone in 8 years. > The Vet did say that it was unusual that he is not trained yet.

Change vets… > My husband is becoming increasingly wilder with him and I fear for > "Ben’s" future.

Substitute ‘husband’ for ‘vet’ in the above advice… Look, you’ve got a puppy from two of the most active, intense, and persistently obnoxious breeds there are.  Personally, I love those qualities in a dog, but somehow I get the feeling that you don’t share my tastes in canine characteristics.  You could find a home for Ben that might appreciate him a little more, and adopt an adult dog that is already housebroken and trained.  It’s better than being constantly irked by a puppy who is, after all, only doing what puppies do. M.

Response:

>>> My 14wk Kelpie/Heeler seems to have every bad trait a dog could have.

You have yourself a VERY active crossbreed… Kelpies and Heelers are super dogs; they need activity and stimulation much more than some other breeds. Take all the advice you have been given on this so far! Dogstar716  "He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog.  You are    his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true,    to the last beat of his heart.  You owe it to him to be worthy of such    devotion"    – Unknow

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