Adjusting High Work Drive to House Dog - Page 4

Thanks, ALPHAPUP and zdog.  Your comments are completely on target.  I used to equate excitement with happiness.  NO, NO, NO!  Bad Owner!!  All the praise to boost his confience contributed to the problem.  So I am being more careful, but, ALPHAPUP you wrote "there are a number of things to do so the dog has the correct outlook and Attitude towards You."  If you have the time I would like to hear more on this from you.
It may be because of my mistakes or his age, but I know if he even thinks of nipping a person he sees us as equals and isn't showing the proper respect.  I want to be consistant but I think I am missing some opportunities to re-inforce commands.  For example he stands outside the door, so I open it and say "come."  He actually would prefer I come out and play, so he waits.  I usually leave him out.  If I go out to bring him in and enforce the "come," the "games begin"(I have to catch him) and he won!  Then there is barking at the neighbor's dog.  He won't stop and he's hard to catch or distract with treats or games. So I have a tendency to wait to give a command I may not be able to enforce.  The trainer suggested a long lead, but that would be chewed off in 3 minutes!  Am I missing something here or is this a common problem?!

 

hi ..  ... again' outlook' .. as i wrote .. dogs do things with purposeness ... ok .. you undestand he [ understands ] wants to work you to 'play the game' [ BTW a highly intelligent dog !!].
                   yup .. my 13 week pup ... dominant , independent .. i want her to come indoors [ she wants to play with 8 adults near big pen ..] so she comes to the door ... in my hand i have a nice marrow bone , she doesn;'t walk in , fast enough .. door closes .. a minute later - door re-opens ...  " lexi hier"  ,[ she knows hier ] the bone is presented .. well she moves that butt and in she goes - gets a bone .. following days .. i go to the door and it opens , food treat .. in she goes , no "hier " needed .. again and again ..now when i go through the door ... so does she.. _ I changed what ' going through the door 'means to her !! but that is through learning word association and conditioning a behavior - the outlook [ not a bribe .. that's different] has  been changed .. i have given her reason / motivatuion to make the choice of coming to the door.. cxoming therough the door has more meaning to her .. .. when she has truely learned i will always put myslef in a position to follow through , if needed and enforce what i mean for her to do !! but generally when i wean off the treats .. the behavior of coming through the door has become manifest .. at this point you may use a long line to help him make the right choice] , [ the choice you want].-- the pup only gains when she makes the ' right coice'. she wants to play if i have a toy ... then she must sit , then go to heel .. then she gets to play .... when she eats .. she must platz first ... freedom is a privledge , everything is earned ..
            so ..there are different things you have to address ,,1. the relationship withn your dog .   2. dogs don't unlearn [ previous behaviors] but they can learn new ones... also .. if you are not outside .. your dog may have to much freedom ... it takes care of itself rather than needing you !! IMo - you are the one to allow the dog to do .. when you are not there , unless kenneled ,, he has the worls to himself .. would you listen ?  i need stop here .. but you must be in control of every little thing your dog does  and he must offer something to gain something [ he needs].

"freedom is a privledge , everything is earned .."  This will be my mantra.  Thanks again, ALPHAPUP!

If your kid could throw a 95 mph fastball, would you tell him to stop because you are too busy/lazy to take him to little league?

There are lots of american parents with this attitude.  I HAD PARENTS LIKE THIS!!!  The same applies to dog owners, only its more likely to happen because "its just a dog" and not a "child".

He will calm down in 3 to 4 years.  Just be patient.

Everybody has chimed in with varying degrees of solutions, however as stated earlier it looks to my like this is simply an under-excercised dog that hasn't turned 3 years old yet.  Try walking the dog 5 miles MINIMUM a day, everyday wearing an empty dog back pack.  It may not wear him out, but it could be enough to make his indoor manners less destructive.  Later you can add more miles and/or a small water bottle or two in the dog back pack.  Also, do you crate this dog ever?  Its looks like this ower just escalated a "simple issue" to "unsolvable" in thier mind without trying the most simple and obvious baby steps.  You said you are retired, can you spend a couple of hours a day walking the dog on hilly terrain with real inclines?  Do an hour in the morning and an hour at night.  Your problem could be solved in less than a week.

Thanks, Momosgarage.  I think I was unduly concerned about my dog's behavior because a trainer assessed him as dominant and it was 12 years since I owned a puppy to know myself what was an "issue" and what wasn't.  I now agree my dog is more underexercised than actually having behavior problems.  The initial question was, how can I exercise my dog more than just walking him, because I believe I could walk him all day without tiring him, and he can easily go 5 times as far as me.  I could work up to longer distances, but what about in the meantime, and will walking ever be enough?  So I asked about alternate games and activities, to move beyond the "obvious."  Since no one seems to think playing ball and kong will cause injuries, these are more likely going to be the supplemental exercises before or after the walk.  I wouldn't have asked for advice if I thought the problem was "unsolvable." 
Of course my dog is crated.  But I also left him out in the fenced yard for limited periods of time because I thought it was more stimulating to watch the world go by, than to sleep indoors in a crate when he wasn't even tired out to begin with.  But I can see how giving him too much freedom set him up for getting into trouble. Keeping him with me, along with more frequent walks and playing chase seems to have calmed him down quite nicely, and I again thank everyone for their input.  

a few things not mentioned yet ...

crate games (look it up on youtube or google).

using food and marker training (teach him to down on a specific pillow or rug. this works for me, I toss treats from my bed to keep my dog in his resting spot)

kongs with peanut butter

treadmill

swimming

make dog work for his food (feed in crate, too)

build a run for him outside and put things inside it he can destroy. mine likes to chew up kiddie pools. run is reinforced w/ cattle panels along bottom of fence to prevent digging and electric fence wire along perimeter to prevent climbing or jumping on fence.

baby gate to enclose dog in specific area of house to teach manners there first

teach calmness in a crate, then a room, then the house. food treats rule!

Donna

Hey Donna,
I actually had not been to youtube to watch dog training videos until about 1 week ago, so when I tried, I found so many interesting topics I didn't know where to begin!  My dog loves his crate and knows basic commands.  Can you recommend any series for that level?  Some of the activities look like fun, but I have crates in rather enclosed areas compared to those huge recreation buildings.  Oh to have acreage with ponds,etc.!  Peanut butter is about a 2 minute snack.  Maybe it should be frozen??  Swimming we are working on.  So far he's just in walking around and out again.  And he will probably be crated in our house for a very long time because he and the 5 cats drive each other crazy if they get the chance.
But basically, what I'm seeing is, make everything a game, fetching, not fetching, stop, start, wait. The games are training and the training is exercise. Maybe I'm finally "getting it."

I have a very simple solution to exercising your dog safely. Buy a horse's lunge line, and teach him to lunge! You can do this anywhere, and keep the dog safe. You may need to use a flirt pole to keep him motivated. Your average pet store doesn't stock flirt poles, but you can make your own by purchasing a lunge whip at the same time as the lunge line, and attaching a favourite toy to it.

Interesting thought, Sunsilver!  I have never seen a dog exercised on a lunge line.  Makes me dizzy to think about it!  Without some sort of lure I can't visualize a dog running around at the end of a line continuosly.  But it would be safe.
I have contacted a German Shepherd trainer who worked alot of GSDs at New Skete.  She will evaluate him for the kind of work he needs, I hope, and we will be able to start some classes.  Thanks again everyone! 

micaho -- you can saved money too .. i use at times an old inner tube of a bicycle , or two .  ! has good stregnth and flexability , or a bungee line you buy at home depot for cheap. as far as a flirt pole ... an old kitchen broom handle with a rope tied on it to attatch a fleece toy /rag.