Aggression with "High Value Items"

[JuneyB]

The first time my boy did this (he was 10 weeks old or so) I blew into his face...he released the sock and got lots of pats.....along with the "drop" word......

from then on we did not have a problem...tho he tried to get possessive over a bone once....a really firm "DROP" worked....

unfortunately, once they decide they can get away with something....they just seem to never forget it!!! good luck!

[Ilovemypuppy]

Be very careful with alum....................


http://www.perigee.net/~jrjohns/aluma.html

[Ilovemypuppy]

Alum is ONE of the toxins in vaccines :o((

http://www.lowchensaustralia.com/health/vacc.htm

Better the train away this behaviour than bandaid it.

[TrishB]

However, keeping in mind that we're not talking about large doses (reference Dr. Stanley Coren) and it's a training tool, in which once the goal is achieved, you wouldn't use it any longer. Add to that, it tastes HORRIBLE and they'll only get a pinch of it to get the point.

To that end, I think we've already offered alternatives in this thread to the OP's request for booby traps.

[Jill L]

ZB Realzibozinovin:

Instead of shaking your head at these posts, why don't you share your secret of how you have broken dogs of these aggressive behaviors. It sounds like you could help a lot of people. Jill

[mannurse801]

Just 2 days of hard-core leave it and drop it training, Kimba is really comming around. No miracals, but deffinate improvement. I found that decreasing the importance of items is helping. She could care less about socks now... put a tennis ball and tied a sock, she ignores it now that she can have one... She is great at dropping her toys, and we have worked our way up to dropping leaves and even treats, so we are getting there. Her leave it is getting great too. Out on walks, a leave it command will generally make her look the other way. If she barks at people (wanting to play), a leave it will usually calm her down and keep her walking. I mean, she is only 17.5 weeks, and doing great. I had a trainer friend of mine over, and she could not believe how good she was. In the ast 2-3 days, for some reason, Kimba has slowed he need to be Alpha, and really submissed to us. Weird, but obedience must be helping. It seems all she want to do is train. Our trainer suggest short 10 minut sessions. But Kimba want to keep going. Last night, we were working for 1 hour, nd both of us had an awsome time!

Just to let you know, after a long talk with my wife, She finally aggreed to listen to my advise. She is responsible for "trick" training, which I find is very satisfying for her and Kimba. She is such a quick learner. She learned "HIGH FIVE" in 3 minuts, and will now repeat it without a treat, scary how smart these guys are!!! Thanks for the help!!

Just to let you guys know, I work at my ;local Health Unit, and we have this stuff we use to test if our masks work. It is a spray with a substace called BITREX in it. Search on the web. But this stuff should be put into a anti-chew spray! Safer than Alum, and works 1000 times better!

[dragonlover]

Originally Posted by Jill L

ZB Realzibozinovin:

Instead of shaking your head at these posts, why don't you share your secret of how you have broken dogs of these aggressive behaviors. It sounds like you could help a lot of people. Jill

A very good point Jill

[bailey03]

Ok I am new to the site. But I have a suggestion. One thing that might be causing it. Pay attention to any behavior before they take an item. Ours use to sit a certain way before hand. If you notice it destract the dog. It might just be trying to get your attention. Yes the whole putting stuff on everything so it leaves a bad taste sounds good. But you should not have to spend all that time proofing your entire house. As far as treats try not to do that. All that will do is teach the dog that if he takes something he will get a toy or treat. Ours figured it out and we had to stop. He would take stuff just to get the attention. The best thing is to evaluate the entire situation. Pay attention to time also. Our Rott for some reason around 3:00 everyday would start to act up. We figured out that is when the neighbor comes home and he hears them. So we kept him distracted at that time so ho would forget about it. I know it is hard to keep everything off the floor we have two children and it is hard. But the other way to look at it. By keeping the stuff away from the dogs grasping area it helps keep the house clean and has taught our kids to clean up after themselves. I know ever dog is different, but my biggest suggestion would be to really evaluate the situation, look for little things you normally wouldn't notice. After about a month we figured out all the little things that would set him off and corrected them. Now he is two and never gives any problems. I hope this helps some.

[TrishB]

I think I post this is every other thread, but here we go again:

"A tired dog is a good dog."

If your dog is tired (intellectually, emotionally and physically) they won't bother trying to find things to entertain themselves.

[bailey03]

That is a great way to put it. Off course if you ignore your dog they will act out to get attention. If you give them the attention they need they will be good.

[ZB Realzibozinovin]

To Jill L and dragonlover and whomever else.

I'll continue to shake my head, cause there is just way too many people doing the wrong things with their dogs and not paying attention to the dog's actions, nor their own actions when correcting the dog.

For one, it is just not as easy as saying one, two, three this is what one should do. Every dog is different. I've tried before to talk a few people through some things or rather ask them questions, most did not get what I was talking about. Now, when I went to their houses, I saw what was happening with my own eyes.
Here is an example with one family: DaisyDoWop, a female Rott (about 8 months to a year old) was chewing badly on things when the family was at home. When I went to the house and stayed for most of the day, I watched the interaction between family and dog. Every day, the family would bring out this remote control car and DaisyDoWop would chase it around. The family said it was to exercise the dog. Good game of chase where the family really did not have to get off their butts. Anyway, when the game was finished and everyone went back to their routines, the car was left somewhere close to DaisyDoWop's bedding area in the living room. The car was not on, it was just parked in the corner. DaisyDoWop never bothered the car, but she bothered everything around the car that was on the floor or on the coffee table etc. The family was constantly telling her to stop! So what I did was I took the car and put it up in the closet. DaisyDoWop watched me put it in the closet and watched when the door was closed. Then the family went about their normal routine. Talk about a changed dog, DaisyDoWop fell right in step with the family and did not touch anything on the floor or the tables. We even left her in the house for a few minutes to see what she would do. The family scattered several things on the floor and then we all went outside and left DaisyDoWop in the living room. We came back in after about 30 minutes or so. Nothing was touched on the floors or the tables. To this day the dog has not messed with anything since. And to think it was all because of a remote control car. The family never used the car as a chase method. Instead, they started taking her for walks.
Here is another example: Jutosh was a male Rottweiler about 2 years old. He had a habit of growling at the wife, but never the husband when being told to do something. The thing was in this case, the wife was too lenient on both commands and using her voice. I told both hubby and wifey to get on the same sheet of music when it came to commands. Then I had the wife take the dog in a quiet place, put the dog in a lay down position on its side with head and body both on the floor. Then I told her to sit beside the dog and just talk normal and quietly to the dog. If the dog tried to get up just gently push his head back down. I told her to gently place her hands on different parts of the dog (Not in a petting manner) as she talked. This was calming to the dog. Then when after a few minutes of talking to the dog, I told her to let the dog up by calling its name in a lower octive then what she was doing when talking quietly to the dog, and I told her to snap her fingers at the same time when delivering the command. Then I told her with the same low voice to tell the dog to sit. It did without growling at her. What the dog had to do was tell the difference in her command voice from her normal voice. After that, she was able to deliver commands with no problems. Anytime the dog was acting up, I told her to put the dog in the lay down position, talk to it and then command it to get up. This way the wife was gaining back the control that her dog had taken from her.
So you see, every situation is different. But most situations can be correctable if the family or person is paying attention to the actions of the dog. Plus, the family or person has to look realistically at their own actions.

[cevert9]

Originally Posted by mannurse801

Hey everyone. We have a 41/2 month old 3/4 Rotti, 1/4 Dobbie mix. She is generally a sweatheart. Very affectionate, like all new people, and does amazing in her obedience. We have one MAJOR issue. When she gets ahold of something she should not have... sock, wrappers, underwear, rocks, small stick.... you get the picture. Something clicks in her brain and she gets crazy aggressive, and will not give up the item. I know that teaching leave it and not giving her the opportunity to get these things is the key, but it not always possible. Anyway, when I try to get the item from her, she snaps, growls. And when I do get a hold of her muzzle and try to pry her jaws apart, I cannot even move her mouth. I push her joules into her teeth, but it just enrages her more. Most item will be release with a food item, but not everything. She bit me hard the other day while trying this. We are working hard on leave it. She is not possessive over he toys or her bones or anything other that stupid objects. How do I curb this behaviour? I need help. Thanks alot, Ian

Hello everyone....I'm new here.

You should start with "trading up" offer her something that she may hold a higher value on than what she is holding on to. I haven't seen a dog turn down a bowl of food or good treats. There is a book called "Mine" written by Jean Donaldson that is an EXCELLENT reference on resource gaurding. You can purchase it at http://www.dogwise.com Check out clicker training also. That has worked wonders on my nine month old male Rottweiler. He loves it. He works hard for his treats, etc....it's on the lines of the NILF philosphy, but better. http://www.clickingwithcanines.com

[cevert9]

Originally Posted by JuneyB

The first time my boy did this (he was 10 weeks old or so) I blew into his face...he released the sock and got lots of pats.....along with the "drop" word......

from then on we did not have a problem...tho he tried to get possessive over a bone once....a really firm "DROP" worked....

unfortunately, once they decide they can get away with something....they just seem to never forget it!!! good luck!

I wouldn't recommend blowing in ANY dogs face pup, or adult. From four to 12 weeks a puppy starts to disearn what is "safe" and what is "not safe." One pup may forget about that blow in the face and never go back to it. Another may have been scared by it and will remember it as "not safe." Anything involving the face such as blowing, pointing a finger, spraying water, kissing, petting etc can cause fear snapping or biting issues. Watch a dog or pup sometime when you are in or around it's face. With many thier lips tighten and they look away. That is because all of those things are actually insulting to a dog. When we do those things, we have crossed a line.

[Jill L]

ZB: I appreciate your response and I agree, every situation is different. Jill

[Snooze]

i am having the same issue with my 1 yr old, he loves to snatch and run. If i offer a trade he drops it immediately. But by offering a trade, aren't I creating a game and encouraging him to snatch again, especially if he is a highly food motivated dog?