[Electric]

Getting really really annoyed now

Timbers about 5 months now and so far no real love just hard work.

One thing that annoys me the most is when she is posesive over things. She seems to think the couch is hers and whenever you go to move her off it she will bite you extreamily hard and then i get angry and smack her on the nose (i know i shouldn't) but i just get so wound up and then she bites harder and it turns into a fight. What should i do?

 

[Murphys Dad]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

First thing: RELAX!!!!!! She is a puppy.
I think that you should put things in proportions. This is exactly the age where she is testing you. To learn what she should and shouldn't do. You need to exercise her as much as you can, excessive playing will do the job. Then just work with a schedule, and set limits.
If she is getting posessive, don't let her get on the couch, don't let her sleep with you, and make sure you eat first and then she gets her meals.

The key is patience!!!

 

[DaisysMom]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

Eleanor is right. Patience is the key.

Daisy was possessive about the couch, but we stopped letting her up and it solved that problem.

 

[angelaH]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

Our last beagle, Spotty, went through that stage. Timber thinks she is boss right now. You have to become 'pack leader' again. This means she must not go on the couch for the time being. Put obstacles on it if need be.
From today make sure you leave or enter a room BEFORE her. Make her sit before allowing her out (or in) of a room. She has to walk next to you, or behind you on the lead. Dont let her pull. After weeks of this sort of thing she will have more respect for you.
DONT hit her, or shout, it doesnt help.

 

[Makaella's Mom]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

group, correct me if i am wrong but i believe if the biting continues and is as serious as it sounds that you can pin the dog on his back, holding its mouth like its mom would with her mouth and growl like she would. i did that with my mal's but that was years ago - is that old thinking??

my sister used a special mat for the furniture, when nothing else would work and she says it literally took only once and thry never tried to jump on the couch again....?

 

[Murphys Dad]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

I don't know about the pinning, but about the couch: put some balloons on the sofa/couch and cover with a bed sheet. She will only try once or twice and stop! Apparently they are scared of balloons and the unsteady feel is not their thing!

 

[DaisysMom]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

Originally Posted By: Chloe's MommyI don't know about the pinning, but about the couch: put some balloons on the sofa/couch and cover with a bed sheet. She will only try once or twice and stop! Apparently they are scared of balloons and the unsteady feel is not their thing!

Oh my gosh, Daisy is so scared of balloons. My son had one that he brought in a few weeks ago and I didn't think anything of it but Daisy was terrified. If that balloon was near something she wouldn't even approach it.

 

[Brisen]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

Hi Peter! Maggie doesn't have possessive issues, but she certainly has many others. Her obedience training was delayed, but she starts in 3 weeks, and we're hoping this will help with some of her 'issues'...potty training, incessant barking, running away when called, and many others, LOL.

Have you though about obedience training with Timber? She's definitely at a good age for it!

 

[Smeagle]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

Originally Posted By: P3terTimbers about 5 months now and so far no real love just hard work.

One thing that annoys me the most is when she is posesive over things. She seems to think the couch is hers and whenever you go to move her off it she will bite you extreamily hard and then i get angry and smack her on the nose (i know i shouldn't) but i just get so wound up and then she bites harder and it turns into a fight. What should i do?

She is a puppy - puppies ARE hard work. By having high expectations of our pups, we set them up for failure. It is hard to hear sometimes, but your puppy is a reflection on you. By getting angry at her and smacking her not only will she never learn the correct behaviour (because she doesn't understand that what she is doing is wrong, she does not think or feel like we do), she will not see you as the leader nor will she respect you.

When she reacts to you moving her off the lounge she is biting you back because that is what you have taught her by getting angry and smacking her. You have taught her to be reactive, and she is challenging your authority by reacting the way you have shown her.

Some ideas you might want to try out:
- Instead of telling her off for being on the lounge, get her a bed or crate and teach her that's where she needs to be. When Daisy would jump on the lounge when she was a puppy, instead of telling her off I taught her the OFF command. I did this by getting a treat and coaxing her off the lounge, whilst using the word off, then giving her LOTS of praise for doing the right thing. Instead of just kicking her off the lounge I would show her the alternative and encourage her to be on her bed/in her crate instead. This way, you are praising her for doing the right thing and showing her where her place is.

- As hard as it may be when we have naughty puppies, do not lose your temper with her. By getting in a fight with her she has proven she has no respect for you and wants to challenge your authority. What training have you done with her? I would suggest putting her on the NILIF program (nothing in life is free). It is the way ALL dogs should be trained. A good article on NILIF:
http://www.k9force.net/index.html?row2col2=nilif.html

I would also implement the triangle of temptation program when you feed her - definitely worth doing!
http://www.k9force.net/index.html?row2col2=tot.html

Remember that as a baby puppy she needs you to be a strong, consistent and CALM leader so that she can learn from the behaviour you show her. At the moment it is clear she has no respect for you - I went through this stage with Daisy and I had to re-evaluate how I was training her so I could get the best out of her. Almost two years on and she has come along in leaps and bounds

ETA: I just wanted to add that training your dog is a life time commitment... our dogs are never really trained - training is something that we need to do every day for the life of our dog. Teaching Timber to do the right thing will take time, it is meant to, so don't feel that you are failing or will never have a well behaved dog - puppies are hard work, they take time, but you WILL get there eventually.

 

[Smeagle]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

Hi beaglemom

This is also known as the alpha roll and most trainers do not reccomend trying it ESPECIALLY with reactive, bossy dogs like Peter's. Pinning a dog on the ground like this will often results in the owner getting bitten. There are many other ways to put the dog in line (and I by no means am a pure positive trainer, I am all for aversives, but under the right circumstances only!).

An owner with a dog who respects him will not need to use physical force to dominate their dog. Timber has already proven that she will bite back if challenged, so Peter needs to change the way he approaches her or she will keep biting

 

[Makaella's Mom]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

good input! if only i knew it twelve years ago i wouldn't have had to wrestle my 120 lb mal to his back!!! lol - live and learn.

thanks!

 

[Smeagle]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

Hey, I learnt the hard way too! Two years ago I was in a very similar position to Peter. Boy owning a challenging dog can be a learning curve!

 

[Spencer's Mum]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

Well, I would have to say that if your dog is getting posessive of the furniture, then she immediately loses all privleges of being allowed on it, any of it. If you are worried about getting bit then leave a short leash on her so if you need to, you can get her off. EVERY time she jumps up, you tell her to get off (only once) and if she doesn't get off, you get her off. If you don't become the alpha dog now she is going to run your household before you know it. She needs to know that you are bosss. It does take a lot of work and consistency but you'll get it.

 

[JetEngineMech]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

I've done the pinning with Diggity and my previous dogs years ago, a German Shepherd and a Black Labrador. It's easier to do while they're young than trying to establish who's boss after the fact. It took more work for my wife though, perhaps because of my deeper voice. Diggity and I can still roughhouse, and she can get rough, but she always calms down when I say so. And I would never pin her just because I could, only when she was trying to become the dominant.

She also went through the don't move me stage, especially if she was sleeping. She'd wake up biting and snarling, more so with the kids (the ones who never pinned her as a matter-of-fact). It helped if we would wake her before moving her, but in any case she grew out of it and now we can mover her fuzzy butt over when we need to sit down.

 

[Smeagle]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

Originally Posted By: JetEngineMech
She also went through the don't move me stage, especially if she was sleeping. She'd wake up biting and snarling, more so with the kids (the ones who never pinned her as a matter-of-fact). It helped if we would wake her before moving her, but in any case she grew out of it and now we can mover her fuzzy butt over when we need to sit down.

Snapping and growling when woken suddenly isn't aggression though - its a reflex.

 

[Zookeeper]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

I have always said that 5 months is when bad behavior is at its worst, I think it's the same thing as the terrible twos with kids.

Like others have said, puppy training would be to your benefit right now, and hers.

 

[RhodaTse]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

I would say puppy training. They will work on your pup individually with each every problem. Charlie went to Petsmart, money's worth. Everything is well said, great advise from our BW folks. I had the same problem with Charlie with our couch. There are in total 3 big holes on it! I sewed it back together and now I put a throw over it. I bought this static device thing on line, after one incident that he tried to dominate the couch, growled at me. I took the couch back, it is mine!

 

[Lucy's Mom]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

You've gotten a lot of good advice here. Five months is when you are just getting into the teenage beagle stage, where a puppy seems to forget everything previously learned, and challenges authority. So, keep up discipline, be calm, and do as much activity as you can with your pup.

How many positive interactions do you have in a day? Obedience training is a great way to exercise, show your authority, and do something fun all at the same time. I didn't know how to make it fun until enrolling in training classes, however. I highly recommend them. Just be sure you work with someone experienced with either hounds or terriers.

My husband and I have used the NILIF program for our dogs, and it worked quite well for us, so I'll second that suggestion.

 

[gooberlx]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

Originally Posted By: beaglemomgroup, correct me if i am wrong but i believe if the biting continues and is as serious as it sounds that you can pin the dog on his back, holding its mouth like its mom would with her mouth and growl like she would. i did that with my mal's but that was years ago - is that old thinking??

my sister used a special mat for the furniture, when nothing else would work and she says it literally took only once and thry never tried to jump on the couch again....?

My wife raised German Shepard a number of years ago. While the pup was growing, and especially into young adulthood, she would pin the dog on his back, growl and even bite at his neck. Given the GS's closer heritage to the wolf it may make more sense than the beagle, but it could be worth a shot if the problem continues. Shadow grew up to be an ideally obedient dog, he fully knows his place, and has never exhibited any such behavior problems.

It seems silly or excessive to some people, but he came from Police K9 unit stock...so at 110lbs and very very alpha genes, care had to be taken in keeping the dominance order in check.

 

[Smeagle]

Re: Getting really really annoyed now

Quote:
My wife raised German Shepard a number of years ago. While the pup was growing, and especially into young adulthood, she would pin the dog on his back, growl and even bite at his neck. Given the GS's closer heritage to the wolf it may make more sense than the beagle, but it could be worth a shot if the problem continues. Shadow grew up to be an ideally obedient dog, he fully knows his place, and has never exhibited any such behavior problems.

I didn't know GSDs were closely related to the wolves?? I think someone is pulling your leg

Wolves are a completely different species to dogs. Sheppies would be as closely related to wolves as a beagle.

And a common misconception about wolf packs - alpha wolves do not force other pack members into an alpha role. Being the alpha other dogs will submissive of their own accord, without the alpha needed to physically push them onto the ground. As I said in my earlier post, if you are the boss you do not need to physically force a dog to the ground. Advising a stranger over the net to do an alpha roll with their dog is actually very dangerous, alpha rolls are often the best way for an owner to get bitten, especially as the OP's dog has already proven that it will bite when challenged in a physical way.