Pleading to Victoria for Help! More Than One Problem!

[Sebastiandoggie]

I am posting this for Victoria, and I am pleading for her help. If anyone else can help, please feel free to respond, as well, but I'm hoping that Victoria will see this post. My dog's situation is a bit rare as I think the reason for most of his problem is the fact that I moved him from one country to another.

Hi Victoria,

I am writing to you regarding my wonderful little boy called Sebastian. He is an almost six year-old red, smooth Dachshund. I am an American living in England, and I brought Sebastian to England in 2009 from the US where he had been living with my mother. I’ve had him since he was six weeks old, but he had been living with my mother as I moved back and forth between the UK and the US for several years (2006 to 2008). In 2009, I finally went back to the US and brought him back to England with me. While he lived with my mother, he had the run of the neighbourhood as my mother lives in a very rural area with few neighbours. Upon moving him here to England, however, he has developed some behaviour that worries me. I’ve tried to work on them with him, but I’m finding it difficult as both my husband and I work, and Sebastian spends a great deal of time with my mother-in-law. I was hoping in contacting you that you would be able to help us.

First off, he shakes a lot. Most of the time it happens when we take him places, out to pubs and public places, but sometimes he does it when he's at home and my husband and/or I leave the house. It worries me, and I know it’s probably due to anxiety, but I’m not sure how to remedy it. Plus, he just started doing this since he came to England. He's been left in the house by himself before, and hasn't ruined anything in quite some time.

Second, his behaviour has gotten quite aggressive. Yesterday, I was walking him on the sidewalk, and he went for a car that was passing by. He also goes after joggers and bicyclists sometimes and has been known to start barking and growling at people on the street when he’s in the car with us. He jumps up on people a lot, as well. He’s also bitten me over one of his toys. It was such a deep bite that I had to go to hospital. He’s aggressive with his food, treats, and when telling him it’s bedtime, too. Most of the time, his aggressiveness is directed at me, but I’m concerned that he might lash out at someone else like a guest or a stranger on the street. The biggest thing is the postman. He attacks the front door, and he’s so aggressive that he’s ripped up the post before.

Third, he barks incessantly at everything in the back garden and through the front door. Any movement he sees, and he’s off. From birds in the trees and flying overhead to neighbours in their own gardens, he barks at everything and is constantly on alert.

I also am concerned about his teeth. He’s had one tooth removed due to an abscess because the tooth was broken. (I have no idea how it happened - my cousin backed over him with her car in September of 2009 a couple of months before I brought him to England, and I'm not sure if that's how his tooth was broken.) However, his teeth are not very clean, and his breath is horrible. I’ve tried changing his diet, and it’s made no impact on his breath. He will not let me brush his teeth. In fact, he’s tried to bite me over that, too. I have these tooth wipes that I’ve recently tried using on him, and he puts up with that for a while, but I don’t know what impact they will have on the quality of his teeth. He hates doggy toothpaste.

Lastly, I would like to be able to let him off his lead when I take him out, but right now, I’m scared of him either not coming back or getting hit by a car.
I’m very concerned that all of his behaviour problems have been caused by my moving him from the US to here. He simply does not know what his boundaries are, so I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to let him go off his lead. However, I’m more concerned about any damage this might be doing to him psychologically. The shaking really worries me. He’s been to obedience class in the US when he was about two years old, so he knows basic commands, but he’s a very stubborn little boy and only does things (most of the time) when he wants to. I’m asking for your help because, unfortunately, I’m afraid this has now become more than my husband and me can handle. I've read through your forum and website, but I'm so confused about what to do and where to start, I'm not sure a forum or website is really going to help us. (Also, my husband and his mother will not listen to what I say as I was the one who went to the obedience class with him years ago, so I DO know a thing or two. Plus, I watch your show a lot. Therefore, they need to be told by a professional what’s right and wrong about dog training.)

Please help?

[emmabeth]

Not Victoria I am afraid, however I can offer some advice here.

Regardless of where/how/when the problems occurred (its interesting to know but it isnt going to change what needs to be done), you do have some issues that need fixing.

They pretty much ALL stem from fear - fear of exactly what in each situation we dont 100% know. Some we can guess at though.

Your first task is to manage him/his life so that he cannot hurt you, and cannot hurt a stranger. The second aspect of this management is to ensure he does NOT get to practice these behaviours again, because they can become ingrained and a habit and because if he feels the need to react some way, he is still feeling scared.

So - Out and About.

I would quit taking him to pubs, busy public places - I think this behaviour is indeed anxiety and the fact he is getting worse and aggressing when a single target is within range means he ISNT coping. It is likely he just shakes and doesnt lash out at busier places because he is overwhelmed and doesnt know which to have a go at first (its very common!).

Instead, take him to REALLY quiet places where you can keep a really good distance from traffic, people, other dogs, cyclists and joggers etc - as far away as you need to be so that he will happily take a treat from you, not shake or lunge or bark. He does have to be able to take a treat or enjoy a game with a toy, so that you can then reward him everytime one of the things he is scared of appears in the distance.

As well as this, because we live in the real world where things WILL get nearer or appear suddenly, you need to take evasive action the second you see something getting too close. Do NOT wait for him to react, get the heck out of there before he reacts, get somewhere safe and reward him.

This is not forever - it is for now! Make life as EASY for him and you as possible, some dogs are so extreme that their owners start this process at the far end of their hallway with the door open, and take some days to get as far as the front door. Do whatever it takes to get the distance you need to work with him.

In the Car - the simplest way to solve this is to crate him in a fabric crate that he cannot see out of whilst he is in teh car. He is probably safer in a crate like this too. You can get tube shaped ones that fit on the back seat if you do not like the ones that go in teh boot. Since he is not a large dog even the regular shaped ones should fit on the back seat anyway.

Indoors - aggression towards you over food and toys.

When does this happen? Is this when you take things from him? Or when you approach him when he has something? Or when you are just walking by some distance away?
Why does he not like bedtime, w hat does bedtime mean for him?

For the post issue, put a postbox outside, or a net or cage on teh back of the door so he cannot get access to the post to shred it. You can also teach a dog that the sound of post falling through the letter box is a trigger for a treat, however this will only work if you are home when the post comes so I prefer a management method entirely for this as with UK postal services, most folk have gone out!

Barkign at stuff he can see.

If this is through glass doors/windows - block his view, either long term with the use of removable frosted window film (so if you are in a rented property you can remove it with no damage to the glass once you leave!) or s hort term with lining paper and tape. This is another behaviour like the barking/lunging at the post that is a self rewarding one, its fun to do regardless of your presence or what YOU do and its great to do when hes alone. Preventing him from doign it is the first step.

If he does this when hes outside with you then I would put a harness on him with a trailing line on before he gets to go outside, and use that to swiftly and without fuss remove him from the garden for a ten second time out back in the house. Repeat t his a often as is necessary for him to get the point (but beware, going inside and forgetting about it for an hour will teach him nothing, it needs to be in/out/in/out etc as long as the behaviour occurs!).

There is more advice than this but we need to know more detail about his daily life, also what he is fed and the answers to my questions about his aggression towards you over food/toys/bedtime. Let us know and we can help you.

[Mattie]

Did he go into quarentine when he first came into the UK?

[Sebastiandoggie]

Okay. Mattie, no, he didn't have to go into quarantine because he waited his six month wait in the US with my mother.

Now for Emmabeth's posting:

They pretty much ALL stem from fear - fear of exactly what in each situation we dont 100% know. Some we can guess at though.

You say it's all fear. I'm not so sure. He shakes even when he shouldn't be afraid of anything. For example, earlier today, he was wanting to go outside (he goes in and out of the back garden most of the day). I was getting ready to shower, so I told him to wait. Before I jumped in the shower, I noticed he had started shaking. What set it off, I don't know. I'm just wondering something. When he was staying with my mother, he had full reign to go where he wanted without being controlled or kept inside or contained. I'm wondering if he shakes sometimes because he wants to do something (go somewhere, etc.) and is not allowed to when he wants to. What do you think?

I would quit taking him to pubs, busy public places - I think this behaviour is indeed anxiety and the fact he is getting worse and aggressing when a single target is within range means he ISNT coping. It is likely he just shakes and doesnt lash out at busier places because he is overwhelmed and doesnt know which to have a go at first (its very common!).

Instead, take him to REALLY quiet places where you can keep a really good distance from traffic, people, other dogs, cyclists and joggers etc - as far away as you need to be so that he will happily take a treat from you, not shake or lunge or bark. He does have to be able to take a treat or enjoy a game with a toy, so that you can then reward him everytime one of the things he is scared of appears in the distance.

The thing about taking him to quiet places is getting there. I don't drive so taking him somewhere to be in a quiet place would require that I walk him through places that aren't quiet such as on the sidewalk past people, cars, other dogs, cyclists, joggers, and so on. Although we live in a quieter place, so maybe I can find a route that's not as travelled. I'll look into that. Also, he's so alert with everything, I'm not sure he'd take a treat from me while out in public. He's never been good with acknowledging me while in public - we had that problem during training class many years ago. He HAS learned some commands, though, so maybe I'm not giving him enough credit for that. We'll see what happens and go from there.

In the Car - the simplest way to solve this is to crate him in a fabric crate that he cannot see out of whilst he is in teh car. He is probably safer in a crate like this too. You can get tube shaped ones that fit on the back seat if you do not like the ones that go in teh boot. Since he is not a large dog even the regular shaped ones should fit on the back seat anyway.

Problem: he's not crate-trained. Admittedly, I've been rubbish with crate-training him. I tried to do it when he was a puppy, and I guess I gave up. I tried crate training again in 2009 just before bringing him over from the US, but it was only for about a week, and he pitched a fit when we left him in the crate at BA World Cargo to send him over. Honestly, I don't know how he survived it, and this may be the largest cause of his anxiety and fear. He doesn't like being in the back seat and usually won't stay there if we put him there.

Indoors - aggression towards you over food and toys.

When does this happen? Is this when you take things from him? Or when you approach him when he has something? Or when you are just walking by some distance away?
Why does he not like bedtime, w hat does bedtime mean for him?

This happens with toys when I take things away and sometimes he will growl when you get close to him but not all the time. It's not so bad that he does it when someone passes by. As for food, once he has the food, you have to let him have it or he will bite you if you try to take it away. This really worries me because he will literally eat anything he comes across when we're out, so if he gets ahold of chocolate or something else harmful, we can't get it away from him. We have to watch where he walks and sometimes pull him away if he gets close to something he shouldn't eat.

I don't know why he doesn't like bedtime. He'll be laying on the couch, and I'll say it's bedtime, go to pick him up, and he'll snap or jump at me. There's no growling or bearing of teeth involved, though. But if I just tell him it's bedtime and tell him to come to bed, he'll eventually get up and come to bed. (Word of note: he sleeps in the bed with my husband and me. He does have his own bed but hasn't been sleeping in it recently, although he's never slept in it every day.) We don't really make it a big deal that he sleeps with us, and we don't force him to sleep in his bed, so I don't know why he doesn't like bedtime. In fact, he sometimes plays with a toy on our bed while my husband and I are getting ready to go to sleep.

For the post issue, put a postbox outside, or a net or cage on teh back of the door so he cannot get access to the post to shred it. You can also teach a dog that the sound of post falling through the letter box is a trigger for a treat, however this will only work if you are home when the post comes so I prefer a management method entirely for this as with UK postal services, most folk have gone out!

Moving the postbox is, unfortunately, not an option as we live with my husband's mother. However, we try to keep the door to the hallway closed so he can't see the front door. But if he even hears the letterbox, he'll react.

Barkign at stuff he can see.

If this is through glass doors/windows - block his view, either long term with the use of removable frosted window film (so if you are in a rented property you can remove it with no damage to the glass once you leave!) or s hort term with lining paper and tape. This is another behaviour like the barking/lunging at the post that is a self rewarding one, its fun to do regardless of your presence or what YOU do and its great to do when hes alone. Preventing him from doign it is the first step.

The front door is frosted over. It's the movement he barks at, the difference in light and shadow that he sees and reacts to. He doesn't even have to see anything. He also barks at noises such as cars, peoples' car doors slamming, kids in the street, neighbours, birds in the trees, everything literally that makes noise he barks at. We can deny him access to seeing the front door, which is a start, but I'm wondering about what to do when he barks at things he hears.

If he does this when hes outside with you then I would put a harness on him with a trailing line on before he gets to go outside, and use that to swiftly and without fuss remove him from the garden for a ten second time out back in the house. Repeat t his a often as is necessary for him to get the point (but beware, going inside and forgetting about it for an hour will teach him nothing, it needs to be in/out/in/out etc as long as the behaviour occurs!).

We will DEFINITELY be trying this one.

Thanks so far for the advice. I look forward to hearing more of what you have to say and to try out these new things with him. I simply want him to be a happy and healthy dog.

[ladybug1802]

Hi. I have the same problem with my dog Dylan and the postman.....he barks like a mad thing as soon as he hears the post come through the letterbox. Always has, and probably always will. But I keep the door shut from the hall into the living/dining room, and then have a baby gate from the kitchen at the far end of the hall (as well as a door), and te living/dining room leads through to both the kitchen and the hall. So he barks but cant get to the door....if i forget to shut one of the door or the gate, he does run and launch himself at the door and grab the post, shake it around and usually chew it up. Although occasionally if it is on the floor he will pick it up and bring it in to me! But to be honest I have had had more serious issues with him being fear reactive to strangers, so to me, this is not a big issue, so I havent bothered about it. I think the easiest and most efficient thing to do, if you cant put a box on the back of the door, is to simply keep him away from the door.

Now you say he freaked out when you l;eft him in the crate to travel over, and to be honest I dont blame him. He really should have been crate trained, and happy being in a crate, before being expected to endure a long haul flight in a crate. I am no expert but I do think this may be a root cause of some of his behaviour changes......that would have been quite scary for him, then he has moved to another country, change is routine/lifestyle etc.

Have you tried clicker training with him? The reason I think this might be a good thing to do, is because you say he doesnt pay attention to you in public.....I found with Dylan that now, when i bring the clicker out and he sees it, he gets all excited! He loves learning things with the clicker, and I have a clicker attached to the lanyard I have my gundog whistle on when we go out on walks....often if he looks at me and I touch the clicker, he comes running back without me even asking him to! The clicker training may help him focus his attention?

With bedtime I think the main issue why he snaps at you when it is bedtime is because he is telling you he doesnt want to be picked up. You say he comes of his own accord happily when he is left to come on his own.....so let him do this. A lot of small dogs dont like to be picked up, but they get picked up a lot because of their size....and if they are tired they are going to want to be left alone even more.

[Sebastiandoggie]

Hi ladybug. Thanks for the advice. Yeah, I know he should've been crate trained, and looking back, I have been very selfish with him. I wanted him over here in the UK with me because we'd been apart for so long. I guess I was thinking more of myself than of his wellbeing. But now that he's here, I know there are issues that we need to work on to better his health. I know the anxiety is not good for him.

I've always picked him up, and bedtime is the only time he snaps or jumps at me when I go to pick him up. He's a very lovable dog and loves to be held and cuddled, so the idea that he wouldn't want to be picked up at that one time of the day is baffling. However, I will no longer pick him up for bedtime and just let him come to bed with my husband as I go to bed earlier than he does.

I'd thought about clicker training since he really is in tune with noises. Maybe the noise of the clicker would keep his attention more than my voice.

Honestly, the attacking the post is the least of my issues, but I'm worried it all ties into his aggression, and the last thing I want is for him to injure or scare someone and they sue us. This area of the country doesn't have the nicest or most understanding people in it.

[runlikethewind]

Please don't be dismissive of what Emmabeth is saying - she is an experienced trainer, especially with fear aggressive dogs (and many many people on here have them, myself included). All the things you describe ARE fear barking. He is worried about these things around him and some dogs will bark to get the 'scary things' to move away. That is what it is all about.

There might be an association with the shower which caused him to shake. That is fear and anxiety. Why was it so important that he sat and waited in one spot for you whilst you had a shower? Did you at least reward him for waiting with a treat or a play afterwards.

Before you misunderstand what clicker training is about, it's not about getting attention. Please read the thread in the article section on it. It will help you form a bond =- a relationship - with the dog.

It would be nice if you could join a small reward-based class - one which is in a big enough hall for him to cope or better still outside. We all have plenty of advice to give you. Avoidance is just the first step. There are many ways you can help your dog overcome his fears - stick around and ask about them but first you must begin to understand your dog and develop a relationship with him.

he also does need to have recall training if you are concerned - this can be achieved on a long line. But you need to start thinking in terms of rewards for doing the right thing, not punishing the wrong things (because he has no idea what the wrong things are). A lot of this frustration and over reactivity around barking in the garden is to do with possibly not having enough to do? A mentally tired dog is a less reactive dog. What's the typical day like for him?

re the teeth, what food are you feeding him? Would you consider giving him a raw piece of meat for teeth cleaning once in a while - raw chicken wing etc or an antler dog chew. It's quite normal that some dogs hate their teeth cleaning (much as some people have a fear of dentists!!) - you can avoid this by giving him foods and treats that clean the teeth themselves. if you must clean his teeth, you'd do it through desensitising him. there are plenty of you tube videos on how to do this.

[Sebastiandoggie]

Okay, runlikethewind, first, I wasn't being dismissive about what Emmabeth had told me. I value the advice of everyone on here because I feel overwhelmed, and I need help. I was meerly throwing out an idea I had thought of because I didn't understand what he would've been scared of. This is a learning experience for me, as well.

Secondly, I wasn't making Sebastian stay in one place while I showered. That's cruel, and yes, I played with him afterwards. In fact, he went to the bed, climbed under the covers, and went to sleep while I was showering. I've been trying to monitor him in the back garden because the neighbours here that border the back garden aren't the nicest people, and I'm afraid they might try to do something to Sebastian if he keeps constantly barking at them.

I DO reward him for doing the right thing, and I try to ignore him when he does the wrong thing.

Please don't react to my post like I know nothing about training. I did learn a thing or two when I took him to his first obedience class, as did he, but his behaviour has definitely changed since moving him here, and I came here asking for clear-cut advice on what to do.

His typical day is usually with my mother-in-law since my husband and I work full time to make ends meet. On nice days, she takes him walking. However, if I am to learn how to train him, so is my mother-in-law and husband, and they don't listen to me. They take telling them how to do something as criticism and usually don't pay any attention to me.

As for his teeth, I first had him on Iams food. Then I changed him to James WellBeLoved twice a day which is all organic and natural food. I also give him, at night, a small amount of cooked, lean, minced beef. The treats we give him are natural treats with no preservatives and junk. His breath, however, has not changed from the Iams. He has plague on his teeth, but they're not terribly dirty.

[ladybug1802]

Honestly, the attacking the post is the least of my issues, but I'm worried it all ties into his aggression, and the last thing I want is for him to injure or scare someone and they sue us. This area of the country doesn't have the nicest or most understanding people in it.

Try not to worry too much.......as has been said already his aggression is rooted in fear for sure. It is often hard for us as humans to understand the fear, because it is often fear of things we cant relate to. And there is a lot of variations in the fear and it shows in different ways! I have a dog who's fear shows itself by lungeing and snapping and being what would be termed as 'aggressive', but which I now realise is just 'reacting' to the triggers he is afraid of. The barking of Sebastian is the same....in fact Dylan barks when he sees someone walk past my front window too. I luckily live in a quiet cul-de-sac and the only people to walk past are my close neighbours...but it is his way of telling these people he sees as intruders to "go away"....and of course, because they were walking past anyway, they DO go away!! Dylan barks a lot more at noises at my parents house.....tv noises and other noises I dont really notice, far more than he does at home, and I think it must be that although he is relaxed and happy there, its not like he is at home. So it is probably the same with your little chap.

Try to relax - you are doing really well and its great that you have come on here looking for help. The people on here are great and I got some fabulpous advice when i came on last year when I was really stressed about what to do for the best with my boy....and we are both soooo much more relaxed now! Just keep coming back and asking anything you need to!

[Sebastiandoggie]

Thanks. It's hard to think that I'm probably the reason he's so anxious and afraid, but I'm willing to do what I need to in order to help him.

Thanks for the advice and peptalk. I'll be doing what I've been told and reporting back in.

[ladybug1802]

A lot of us have been there.....done things in good faith in the past that we now realise was not the best route. I know I have - I got a so called positive reinforcement trainer/behaviourist in to help.....long story short she was NOT all positive and she caused my poor boy to be noticeably more stressed for a good few days after she left. She was told to never come back again. But we have all made mistakes.....best now to not think about the why's so much as what to do to help little Sebastian. It will happen...it just does take time!

[Dibbythedog]

Has he been checked over by a vet lately in case pain is contributing to his aggression?

If I were ín this situation , I would consider consulting a qualified Behaviourist / trainer .
Alison

[jacksdad]

Thanks. It's hard to think that I'm probably the reason he's so anxious and afraid, but I'm willing to do what I need to in order to help him.

Thanks for the advice and peptalk. I'll be doing what I've been told and reporting back in.

Don't beat your self up over it. I haven't read this entire thread, but I can see the names of the people who have. I have no doubt you got good advice. because we have the more developed brains it's easier for us to rationalize out that X or Y really isn't a threat or scary, making it easy to forgot that it's not our perception that matters, it's our dogs.

But erroring on the side of caution and labeling something as a source of danger and thus requiring a fearful response in nature means you have a better change to live and reproduce. If you don't and discount something as a source of danger and thus not responding from a fear place, you could end up dead and/or food for another animal.

The actual response to something fearful can be counter intuitive. particularly when that response looks aggressive. often fear based aggression is really a desire to drive away that which is scary.

So, again. try to put behind you any mistakes you have made. we all make them. What's important is you searched out help and in my opinion (as a fellow scaredy dog owner) you came to the right place.

[emmabeth]

Good questions

The shaking in some situations could be stress/frustration - however we do not know that and if you assume it is not fear, and treat as if it is not fear when it is, you could do more harm. If you treat as if it IS fear and it isnt.. wheres the harm?

For reacting to noises - regardless of why, its very rewarding to do. If he is scared its rewarding to be able to DO something about that fear, if he is excited its still rewarding to be able to react and barking is always fun to do! He is after all bred to bark at things (go down the hole. shout about what you found down there - do not back off regardless of whether whoever lives in the hole is bigger or scarier than you are.), so his instinctive breed traits are already telling him to bark, if somethig moves, bark. If you hear something, bark, if you are scared of something, bark. Bark bark bark.

I would start out by pairing a sound with a reward - you hear a sound he'd react to, chuck him a good high value reward. Sound = reward, over ad over and over. Until he hears a sound and looks to YOU 'hey, that means reward'. He cant bark if he is sniffing or eating a treat. Similarly he cant bark if he is ragging a rope toy or slurping cheese spread out of a Kong toy. Use these things to your advantage!

The fact he isnt crate trained as in 'is ok to be left ina room alone, crated' may nto matter so much in the car as he isnt going to be left in there. Make it fun, make getting in the car, into the crate rewarding to do with food and toys. Build it up slowly until he can handle the car moving. If you dont go in cars all that often just do the same things with the crate in the house so he sees that as a fun place to go and settle down with someone sat nearby. You dont hae to get as far as him being shut in there and left alone.

The big red flag to me in one of your posts however is this, that he will not (or you reckon he will not) take a treat from you when outdoors. Right there to me that says 'this dog is SUPER stressed'.

Not only is he super stressed, but he has no reason to pay attention to you or focus on you, I would actually bet then that once you are out ofthe house and he is on the leash, he is barely even aware you are there (maybe as a minor irritation slowing down his progress), there is SO much else that is important to him, whether its stressful 'exciting' or stressful 'scary'.

That has got to change, and the good news is that the processes you will go through to build up his confidence in and out of the house, will also build his confidence and trust in YOU.

If you honestly cannot set foot outside the front door without hims witching off to you and going into 'stresshead' mode, then start indoors! Look up clicker training @(theres a thread on here in the articles section and also look at www.clickertraining.com). It isnt the only way to build up yourdogs confidence himself and inyou but it IS a great way to do it, and it doesnt really matter if you teach him useful stuff or tricks, its the learning process that works the magic!

Also play games with him, scenting games where he tracks a scent (after allt hats part of his job) to find the toy or treat. Puzzle solving games such as the Nina Ottoson toys wher ehes gotta work out how to get the food out of the puzzle, feeding from Kongs and other food dispensing toys rather than from a bowl.

All these things will work his mind - the more his mind works on good things, and the more his mind works interacting wtih you, the more you boost his confidence and the less time he has to spend going nuts at the various sounds and sights of life.

Work on games that involve self control too - simple every day things like sitting and waiting before he gets a reward, sitting or standing calmly before the leash goes on (and a clear signal if he leaps up midway that you WONT respond until he IS calm, such as you dropping the leash ad walking away for a minute or so!).

Then, stopping doing the things that either wind him up with excitement, or with fear - don't take toys from him. If they are in hism outh, they are his (and if they are by his paw or under his body or in his bed beside him!). Instead, offer him a swap for a higher value item. If you REALLY need something back that he has taken, distracting him with something higher value (such as getting the lead out for a walk and going to another room) to 'change the subject' is a much better plan as you can distract him, shut a door, remove the item later away from him. Never lie to him though! If you try to get things back by diving after him and snatching stuff hes goign to either bite you, hard, or hes going to swallow the stolen booty fast. Both are horribly dangerous!

For actual walks, once you have him accepting food from you in the garden or by the open front door (make sure you use a leash for safety!), try a really short walk just a few minutes even, where he MUST walk on a loose leash and give you attentionwhen asked, in return for rewards, the whole time. Build it up from two minute wanders from the door ot the pavement and back, to ten minute sessions. Forget going somewhere, forget completing a set route even - ten minutes of solid WORK, concentrating and responding to you, is WAY WAY more tiring than dragging you around and yelling at stuff for half an hour!

[ladybug1802]

I love reading posts from all you knowledgable people......it reinforces points that I missed and teaches me constantly. Love it!