DOG BEHAVIOR FAQs
Barking
Barking - At the door
Baby - Preparing for  
Chewing
Counters - Keep off
Crate - Training		 Crate - Whines in
Digging
Grass eating
Housetraining in a new home
Leash - Won't eliminate on
Litterbox - Dining
Stool eating
  

                     
Q: I am moving into a new home and I am worried about my dog, Tivoli.  He's had problems with his housetraining in the past and I am afraid he may have some mistakes once we move.  What should I do?
A: You should go back to basic housetraining just as if he were a new pup.  It will be especially important to always keep him within eyesight for the first four weeks.  When you can't watch him, confine him to a relatively small, safe area. You may want to consider getting out his crate or exercise pen, if he is trained to use one.  Take Tivoli around the home and introduce him to all the rooms and teach him these are living areas to be kept clean.  Do this by asking him to sit for a treats and playing with him and his toys in all the rooms.  Frequently repeat these exercises.  After about four weeks, you can gradually begin allowing him to have freedom in the home.  If there are areas that will always be off limits to his roaming, you can use a motion-activated alarm, like the Scraminal to keep him out.
Q: How can I stop my dog from barking?
A: If possible, try to eliminate the cause of as much barking as you can.  For example, if the pet barks at dogs or cats through the window, close the blinds or keep it out of the room where it sees them.  If it barks at birds, move the bird feeder.  If the dog barks at the mailman, move the mailbox, if possible. You should do whatever you can to keep the pet quiet when you are not around to interrupt its barking and reinforce quiet behavior.  Changing the area where you keep the pet may help.

It is very important to consistently interrupt the pet EVERY TIME it barks.  You can do this with a water gun or you can keep the pet on a leash indoors.  Whenever the dog barks, immediately say “Quiet” and pull it toward you. If he continues to bark when you pull on the leash, buy a head halter (Gentle Leader).  This will allow you to close his mouth with a little pull.  With time you will find that it only orients toward the noises or movements, but won’t bark because you have consistently interrupted it every time it tried.  At that point, you bring out the rewards.  Every time there is a noise or the pet sees some movement, but he doesn’t bark, praise him, and give a very special meat or cheese flavored treat.  Be careful not to reinforce the barking by giving him any attention or anything he wants when he barks.  Even a light scolding may act as a reinforcement if the pet really wants your attention.  If you need to keep the dog quiet when you can’t supervise it, consider a citronella anti-bark spray collar.  It’s a humane device that is effective in stopping barking without the use of shock. 
Q: I have a nine month old Labrador who chews on everything.  How can I get him to stop?
A: Most young dogs are curious, active and can’t be trusted alone in the home or in the yard for long periods until they are at least one to two years old.  This means you will have to keep the pet within eye sight constantly.  You will also find that a leash can be very helpful way of the pet out of trouble by preventing it from sneaking away and chewing.  When you can’t do this, you will need to confine it to a dog run, crate or a dog-proofed room. Be sure the pet has some toys that will really keep its interest, like a Buster Cube, Kong toys, Goodie Ships, Bite-A-Bones and other toys that can be stuffed with treats.  Any time you see the pet chewing on one of the toys, toss small treats in the air that land next to it, so the pet will think that chewing on toys will make food fall out of the sky.  On some objects, you can use a commercial spray, like Bitter Apple or ChewGuard, to make them taste bad.  Also, try to give your pet lots of exercise every day, so it has less energy to be destructive.  Don’t use any type of punishment to try to stop the chewing.  This can cause frustration that will make the problem worse, or can lead to aggression.
Q: How can I teach my Standard Poodle, Peugeot, to stop stealing things from off the kitchen counters?
A: The easiest way to teach most pets to stay off counters is to put a motion activated alarm on the counter.   You can purchase one in our training center or from an electronics store, hardware store or travel store for about $35.
Q: What is the best way to teach a puppy to use a crate?
A: Avoid forcing or coaxing the pet into the crate. Have training sessions during which you toss very small treats into the crate for the pet to chase after and eat.  If it plays fetch, toss the ball into the crate for it to retrieve. When you feed the pet, place its bowl of food in the crate.   When you are home, have the crate in an accessible area.  Occasionally hide treats and toys inside for it to find.  Be sure the pet has some toys that will really keep its interest when it is confined, like a Buster Cube, Kong toys, Goodie Ships, Bite-A-Bones and other toys that can be stuffed with treats.  Any time you see the pet chewing on one of the toys when it is out with you, toss small treats in the air that land next to it, so the pet will think that chewing on toys will make food fall out of the sky. 

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Q: My dog whines in the crate during the night.  How do I get it to stop?
A: Avoid giving any attention at all when he is whining, don’t console, scold, yell or make eye contact. When you confine him, give him several toys stuffed with treats, like Kong toys.  If the pet is whining when you need to let it out, blow a whistle or make another novel noise that will cause him to orient and be quiet for at least fifteen seconds, then let him out when he is quiet. At the pet’s dinner time, repeatedly toss pieces of food into the crate for it to chase several times.  Then, toss a few treats into the crate, close the door and fasten it for 5 seconds (less than it takes to begin whining) and let him out for a treat.  Repeat, gradually leaving the door closed for longer periods.  Keep a written record to measure your progress.  Play fetch, tossing a toy into the crate for him to fetch.  Hide toys and treats in the crate for him to find when he is loose in the home with you. Provide as much aerobic exercise as possible each day – hire a dog walker to help. And finally, buy some inexpensive ear plugs.

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Q: How can I keep my dog from dining in the cat's litter box?
A:

While severe nutritional deficiencies can cause an animal to eat cat feces, this is unlikely to be a problem for a pet on a good commercially prepared diet unless it has a maldigestion/malabsorption disorder causing chronic loose stools.  In most cases we don’t know exactly why some pets develop the desire to eat cat feces.  If the cat has intestinal parasites, the dog can be infected by dining at the litter box.  Unfortunately, this  is a relatively common behavior problem that isn’t easily changed with simple behavior modification.  There are two basic ways to keep the pet out of the box.  The first option listed below is usually the most practical.
   1.  Make it inaccessible:
         a. Put the box on a table
         b. Put the box in another room where the only access to the room is through a cat door or over a baby gate that the dog is unable to use.
   2.  Make it undesirable
         a. Confine the cat(s) in another room of the home with a second box.  Place a motion detector alarm in the box, so when the dog gets his nose in the box, it makes a very loud noise.
         b. Confine the cat(s) in another room of the home with a second box.  Put cayenne pepper or another aversive-tasting substance on the cat stool in the box.

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Q: How can I prepare my dog for a new baby?
A:

1. First of all, think about all the things that might possibly change for your pet when the baby enter the home (less exercise, one feeding instead of two, can’t get on the furniture, can’t jump on people, can’t get attention on demand all the time, etc.) and gradually start making changes.
2. Take more control of the pet
    a. Review obedience training, concentrating on sit, and especially, stay.
    b. Make the pet sit, and sometimes stay, before it gets things from you.
3. Make pet look forward to seeing the baby.
    a. Play a recording a baby at such a low volume that the pet shows no anxiety.  Have play sessions and give the pet treats as it hears the baby recording in the background.  Gradually increase the volume.
    b. Avoid punishment and other negative experiences when the dog is in the room with the baby.
    c. Associate good things with the baby.  Give the dog special meat treats only when the baby is present.
4. If the pet has a history of aggressive behavior, you should call and make a behavior consultation appointment to discuss what risk factors.

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Q: My dogs digs all over the yard. How can I make her stop?
A:

Here are some tips for the digging problem:

1. Prevent digging:
    a. Bury a section of chain link fence (chicken wire for small dogs) two to three inches under ground in the areas where the pet digs.
    b. Move large rocks or landscape timbers over the areas.
    c. Pour concrete over the area.
    d. Keep the pet indoors when not supervised for six to twelve months so the digging behavior is forgotten. (This may be the easiest solution)
    e. Get rid of stimuli for digging (snakes, rodents, spilled foods)
    f.  Provide shady area so the dog doesn’t need to dig into the cool ground.

2. Dramatically increase the amount of daily exercise.

3. Teach the pet to play with toys in the yard
     a. Play with a soccer ball
     b. Leave large plastic balls in the yard for it to push around.
     c. Provide toys that can be stuffed with food (Buster Cube, Kong toys, Goodie Ships, Bite-A-Bones)

4. Give the pet something to do away from the ground by building a platform on top of the dog house for the dog to climb on and watch the surrounding areas.

5. Provide lots more interactive play with the pet in the yard (fetch, Frisbee).

6. Using punishment to stop the behavior: 
    a. Don’t allow the pet to go outdoors unsupervised for at least 3 to 4 months during training.  You don’t want it to ever succeed.
    b. Every time the pet starts to dig, provide a humane punishment (squirt with a water hose, give a correction with a remote activated citronella spray collar.  Look for one at Petstore.com.  To be effective, the pet must be interrupted EVERY time it starts dig and should not see you apply the correction.  That makes this technique difficult.
    c. Never apply any type of punishment if you don’t catch the pet in the act.  Delayed punishment may make problems worse.
    d. Avoid hitting, forcefully shoving the pet’s head in the hole, filling the hole with water and pushing the pet’s head in it.

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Q: Why does my dog eat grass.  Is something lacking in her diet?
A:

A dog might eat grass for a number of reasons:
-Food has been spilled in the grass
-There is feces in the grass
-It tastes good by itself
-As a displacement behavior when the pet is excited, anxious or in conflict
-As a response to an acute stomach inflammation (this would be beneficial in case the pet swallowed something toxic and needs to vomit)
It wouldn’t be due to a nutritional problem unless the pet was on an extremely poor diet, or had a maldigestion/absorption disorder.

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Q: My don't wont eliminate when she is on a leash.
A: Buy  twenty to thirty feet of very light nylon line.  Tie a small leash-type hook on to it os you can attach it to the pet’s collar.  You can get one from a hardware store.  That way you will have control outdoors, but if you leave it slack the pet will not realize it is on a lead.  Gradually shorten the long line, and eventually you will be able to use a regular leash.

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Q: My dog is a Dalmatian and he constantly barks at the door to get inside and be with me.  My neighbors have started to complain. What can I do so he doesn't bark?
A:

Social, attention-getting behaviors are often  partially reinforced by the owner, so the first step is to make sure that you’re not reinforcing the behaviors.  Here are some tips to control the barking:

1. Be sure the pet never gets any attention at all when barking, whining or jumping on doors.  That includes eye contact, calm talk and scolding. 

2. EVERY time you put the pet  in the yard, stand by the kitchen door out of sight. As soon as he comes up to the door, immediately open it, ask him to sit-stay for a few seconds, give a treat and calmly invite it inside.  Gradually make the dog  stay quietly for longer periods before giving the treat and letting him inside.  Once he can stay quietly for at least five minutes, then go to the next stage.

3. Continue to stay by the door EVERY time you put him out.  Now, instead of opening the door right away when the dog comes up, wait five seconds, open it and request a sit-stay for a treat.  Gradually increase the time you wait before opening the door.

4. Anytime during training that the pet barks, immediately interrupt the barking with a sharp noise.  Use a shake can (to make one, take a tin can [such as one in which peanuts are sold], place six large coins in it and seal it.) or a compressed air horn.

5. If you need to keep him quiet when you can’t supervise him, consider a citronella anti-bark spray collar. It is a humane device that is effective in stopping barking without the use of shock.

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Q: How can I stop my dog from bolting out the door whenever someone tries to leave?
A:

First, you need to teach people not to leave the door open long enough for the dog to escape.  Every time the pet has the opportunity to successfully escape, the problem becomes ten times greater to correct.   Have a family meeting.  Put up signs.  Do what it ever it takes to have everyone cooperate.

Start by asking the dog to do a sit-stay before it passes through any door in the home.  Practice the stays at the doors very frequently.  Never let it go through the door to the outdoors without doing a sit-stay for at least ten seconds.   During training sessions, put a ten to fifteen foot lead on the pet.  If it starts to take off, you can stop it and take the dog back to resume the stay position.  Practice, practice, practice and have some patience.  This is not a problem that will be solved over night.

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Q: Why does my dog eat stool, and how can I stop this disgusting behavior. 
A: While severe nutritional deficiencies can cause an animal to eat feces, this is unlikely to be a problem for a pet on a good commercially prepared diet unless it has a maldigestion/malabsorption disorder causing chronic loose stools.  In most cases we don’t know exactly why some pets develop the desire to eat stool.  It can be a real challenge to change the habits of these fecal fanciers.  First, you need to deny access to stool whenever possible. Keep the yard scooped at all times.  You should always go outdoors with your pet on a leash so you have control over where the mouth goes.  Next, you need to assertively interrupt any intention to eat stool.  One way to do this is with a shake can.  To make one, take a tin can (such as one in which peanuts are sold) and place six large coins in it and seal it.  As soon as the pet focuses on some stool, toss the can so that it lands next to it, so that you interrupt it without making it fearful.  Repeat the maneuver until the pet learns to stay away from stool.  Patience is very important since this can take months to accomplish.   Another tool that is humane and works very nicely to interrupt this type of behavior is a remote-activated citronella spray collar.  The pet wears a collar that sprays a citrus spray when activated by remote control. 

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