Jealousy/Ignoring

[Kgypsey]

We are having an absloute nightmare with our pup TK at the moment, he is very strong willed, completley different to Charlie (our 3yr old cavvy) and just really rules the roost with him, he absoloutly ignores EVERYTHING we say or do to or with him, he barks constantly, in or out of his cage, takes all Charlies toys off him, will growl at Charlie if he has a toy or if Charlie is chewing a toy will stand and bark at him none stop or try to bite his eyes (obviously we stop this behaviour by removing TK), this means that we cannot have toys out for the boys as they just fight over them (well TK does, Charlie will just let him tae them off him).
We are semi detached and our neighbours have complained to the council (we own our home) about noise nuisance from TK, if he wants out of his bed he barks (shouts at us) none stop, he wont stop (we have tried ignoring him), we have tried placing him in another room, he just barks all the time, we hve tried a water mist, he ignores it, we hve used stern commands and still do, we remove him from whatever situation is happening and put him on 'time out' as out vet suggested, none of it makes a blind bit of difference, he will just continue to shout at us and then when finally let back into the room will go straght back to either barking at Charlie, stealing whatever it was he wanted. He is taken out on long walks twice a day, i am home all day with the boys, i play constantly with them, but TK doesnt like it if Charlie is being stroked so it makes it difficult to give them both my attention.

I just dont know what else to do, I thought cavvys were supposed to get along well, Charlie is so placid that he will not stick up for himself, I adore TK but we cant carry on like this. Any advice please!

[apwerner]

I am by no means an expert, but we had a tiny bit of an issue with Forrest showing dominance traits when be was younger. Have you tried any of the techniques to make them know you're in charge? I don't know how much of this was puppy behavior or actual showings of dominance, but Forrest would bite quite a bit and sleep on top of our heads and was very defensive of me and mean to my boyfriend. This is silly, but it was almost like he thought I was his girlfriend and if Tony tried to kiss me Forrest was so angry. He also humped everything. So, we tried the technique where you sit on the ground and pick the dog up from his belly (right behind front legs) and hold them eye level with you do a deep growl in your throat and never lose eye contact. Forrest used to stare us down, but eventually he would look away and not want to keep looking us in the eye. We didn't do this too often, but certainly whenever he was really bad. Even if you don't do the growl or picking them up, the eye contact thing worked wonders. Never be first to look away. After a month or so he didn't show a single one of the dominance signs and is an absolute delight. Again, I'm not an expert, but that's what worked for us. Make sure they know you make the rules.

[Kgypsey]

Def worth a go, right now i will give anything a try! I think we had such a easy time with Charlie that TK has been a shock to the system, just did not expect such possesive dominant behaviour and to be honest the first time he tried it on I expected Charlie to put him in his place and he didnt, which I think then just added fuel to TK's fire as he then realised that he could pretty much get away with anything with Charlie. Thanks so much for replying x

[Sabby]

I am no expert either, but in all my puppy & obedience training you teach the puppy/dog the look at me command. You want your dog have eye contact with you all the time when training. So I would think teaching the dog to be scared to look at you isn’t a good thing either.

How old is your dog? Has it been to puppy training socialisation classes? Also you need 1 to 1 time with you puppy without your other dog being involved.

[Soushiruiuma]

I would get him to a dog park for some quality time with other dogs, and exercise. We have a special side of our park that is only for small dogs, it's great because I don't have to worry about a big dog grabbing or trampling my babies.

In my opinion, tired puppies are happy, well-behaved puppies, and 2 walks a day just isn't getting him enough exercise. You might also consider doggy daycare a few days a week.

Regardless, getting into a training class with a good trainer will do you tremendous good. They will work with you on getting him to focus on you, on helping you communicate with him, and getting him to understand what's expected. It is money well spent, just make sure you have a good trainer, certifications are usually APDT, and CPDT.

I would definitely not be growling at him.

[Kgypsey]

Definaty food for thought. he is really not afraid of us, that is almost part of the problem, i guess the fact that he see's us as no threat to hi dominance. We go to puppy/dog training already, have been doing since he was vaccinated, it has made no difference whatsoever, his behviour there, is so different. There is is timid, shy, scared, he refuses to get out of my arms etc, is afraid of every dog/person nd everyone i try to discuss the issues i have with him at home look at me like i am mad! He refuses to socialise with other dogs, will not meet them, he is happy with Charlie and that is it, he does not growl or anything like that, just wont go near them. Then the minute we get throught the front door at home, it's like a switch it turned, he is shouty, demanding, possessive, jealous, dominant etc he really is a gob.
I have epilepsy so whilst he does only get 2 walks a day, they are long walks, he is off lead the entire time, so running around and they are both knackered after, I have to be careful about where i go on my own in case of a fit, and i cannot drive anywhere, I thought that I was doing pretty good. He is 6mths old and Charlie is nearly 3yrs.

[Soushiruiuma]

He sounds just like a spoiled child.

Do not hold him when he is at class. That's ridiculous, he isn't in any danger.

Off lead walks should be sufficient, it gives enough opportunity for him to really burn energy.

What kind of trainer are you working with? Is it a local pet shop-type class? Or a truly experienced trainer? There are trainers who can come to your home, and work on problem behaviors individually (like barking).

Are you practicing his training at home? When he starts doing an undesirable behavior (barking, stealing, etc), take him aside and have him do all of his commands in a combination "sit, down, stay, come, sit, leave it, ok, sit, down, sit" or something like that. Work on his speed, making it fast-paced and unpredictable for him, so he really has to focus.

The other method I've heard of for discouraging bad behavior is to put some coins in a tin can and seal it. When he starts barking, you shake the can. The rattling is unpleasant, and if he learns that barking means you'll make that awful noise, hopefully he'll stop doing it.

[lindylou]

hi
try an anti bark collar ive just seen it on the internet it may help

[Sabby]

hi
try an anti bark collar ive just seen it on the internet it may help

Sorry but anti barking collars are cruel and should be banned. Especially the shock ones. Also with the spray ones if you don't get the timing right you just confuse the dog of what you want from it.

[ashleighelizabeth]

I have epilepsy so whilst he does only get 2 walks a day, they are long walks, he is off lead the entire time, so running around and they are both knackered after, I have to be careful about where i go on my own in case of a fit, and i cannot drive anywhere, I thought that I was doing pretty good. He is 6mths old and Charlie is nearly 3yrs.

Your pups are lucky to have you to take them on those nice walks off leash. It sounds like you are doing a great job of getting them exercise. I wish I had advice about the other stuff, but I am a first time dog owner and my little guy is still a puppy, so I don't have much experience. I definitely agree that practicing the commands at home is key. Also time outs really worked for us with Sonny. We would put him on time out for about a minute when he was chasing our cat or playing too rough with the cat. It was pretty tiring in the beginning because we were constantly giving him time outs, but pretty soon he caught on "If I chase the cat, I go on a time out" and now he very rarely gets a time out.