Abby is 20 weeks old. She was rescued at 10 weeks. She was house trained and being all good, but we just got back from a week long vacation with her and now she is tearing the house apart! She even attacked my computer and ate off keys! What to do? She isnt responding to the newspaper on the ground as a bad thing anymore? Any suggestions on what to do?
What is wrong with her?
- Thread starter Abbysmom
- Start date
What is the newspaper suppose to do? What's wrong with her? She's a puppy, another specie. She doesn't think like you do or develop like a human. She comes with an entirely different set of values and is amoral. She's not being bad and there's nothing wrong with her. She is doing what is completely normal for a dog.
I recommend you read up on the stages of puppies and remember that she's a dog. The book, Culture Clash by Jean Donaldson will explain all this and more. I highly recommend it.
I recommend you read up on the stages of puppies and remember that she's a dog. The book, Culture Clash by Jean Donaldson will explain all this and more. I highly recommend it.
She went with us on vacation and was the perfect angel. As for the news paper, we dont believe in hitting her or spanking her, so we hit a newspaper on the ground and say bad dog. It has always worked before. Just went into the bedroom to discover that she pulled up the carpet in there and tore out the foam underneath. Maybe its seperation issues...
I just edited my post while you were writing. They have different stages. They can be easy for a month or so and then difficult, then easy again, then difficult again. Scaring your dog, saying "bad dog" will do nothing to teach her anything except to fear and distrust you. I strongly recommend you educate yourself asap about puppies....should really always be done before getting a puppy.
Startling, frightening a puppy just so you can distract it is NOT necessary. This kind of thing can have bad side effects. There are other ways to train a puppy, other ways to distract a puppy, to prevent the puppy from engaging in unwanted behavior in the first place, to teach alternatives, to reinforce wanted behavior, to set a puppy up to succeed....on and on. And they don't include aversives.
You can't just leave a puppy to his own devices anymore than you would a 2 yr old child. They need constant supervision. They're unsafe when not supervised and your stuff gets wrecked. There's nothing wrong with the puppy.
You can't just leave a puppy to his own devices anymore than you would a 2 yr old child. They need constant supervision. They're unsafe when not supervised and your stuff gets wrecked. There's nothing wrong with the puppy.
Abbysmom,
She must have been out of your sight when she chewed the coputer and ripped up the carpet. If you can't keep an eye on her 24/7 then look into crate training. It's not only annoying to have a destructive dog, it's dangerous for the dog. What if the next thing she chews up is an electric cable?
I read this recently but I don't know whether it was here or on another forum. I hope the author will forgive me for repeating it...
What to do when you're dogs ripped open the garbage when you were out?
1. Stamp angrily over to the crate.
2. Grab yourself by the scruff and throw yourself inside.
3. Slam the door and repeat: I will not leave my dog unsupervised, I will not leave my dog unsupervised...
After much repition, hopefully the lesson will sink in.
She must have been out of your sight when she chewed the coputer and ripped up the carpet. If you can't keep an eye on her 24/7 then look into crate training. It's not only annoying to have a destructive dog, it's dangerous for the dog. What if the next thing she chews up is an electric cable?
I read this recently but I don't know whether it was here or on another forum. I hope the author will forgive me for repeating it...
What to do when you're dogs ripped open the garbage when you were out?
1. Stamp angrily over to the crate.
2. Grab yourself by the scruff and throw yourself inside.
3. Slam the door and repeat: I will not leave my dog unsupervised, I will not leave my dog unsupervised...
After much repition, hopefully the lesson will sink in.
R
I echo the others. What's wrong is not with her.
Puppies this age should NEVER EVER be out of your sight unless they are confined so that they can NOT get into mischief.
Stop the negative startling, and start helping her do the right thing. As someone much wiser than I told me many years ago, the WHAT TO DO list is much shorter than the WHAT NOT TO DO list.
Are you in puppy training class with her? If not, now's the time for that as well.
Puppies this age should NEVER EVER be out of your sight unless they are confined so that they can NOT get into mischief.
Stop the negative startling, and start helping her do the right thing. As someone much wiser than I told me many years ago, the WHAT TO DO list is much shorter than the WHAT NOT TO DO list.
Are you in puppy training class with her? If not, now's the time for that as well.