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| Feet under the table; Jealousy etc | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: 22 Oct 2012, 06:01 PM (508 Views) | |
| Harvmeister | 22 Oct 2012, 06:01 PM Post #1 |
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Mum to Marsh, Harvs, Sedge, Pip, Bolli and Flumpy
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Mr Flump has settled in nicely since he arrived about 3 months ago. He is very good with all of my pack, but is starting to show signs of jealousy, clingyness and food guarding. He is starting to respond to commands nicely, but is getting hyper before walks. He seems to be panicking. I have been at home a lot lately, but do pop out for an hour or just 20 minutes daily. Is this a normal phase/pattern of settling and becoming unsettled as he builds in confidence? And especially as he builds in confidence in the pack? I am careful about food and stick to a raw diet with boring biscuits to snack on if necessary. Basically, he picks out the nice bits he likes and leaves the rest, so he is not hungry. I keep the protein to about 20 - 23 % max and his tummy and everything else is good and normal. They often get raw bones and picks out the ones he likes, devours them, then settles, with any bickering to steal from the others, or vice versa. Any advice please? |
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| Harvmeister | 22 Oct 2012, 06:11 PM Post #2 |
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Mum to Marsh, Harvs, Sedge, Pip, Bolli and Flumpy
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That's without any bickering, not with! |
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| pangolin | 23 Oct 2012, 11:52 AM Post #3 |
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GSD Addict
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Quick disclaimer, I'm no dog behaviourist, this is just how I'd go about things personally. Firstly I'd manage the situation because if a food guarding moment escalates, that itself could cause you more problems longterm. So I would be feeding him separately to the others, either behind a door, a babygate or in a crate. Stress itself can cause a lot of other behavioural issues so even if he seems to be OK eating amongst the others, he may be feeling tense in that situation and removing him from it may take some pressure off him and improve his behaviour otherwise. Secondly, I would consider using something like a DAP/Adaptil diffuser or collar to help settle him. The problem with calmatives is that they don't all work with every dog, so you may need to try a few alternatives if the Adaptil doesn't help - there's oral supplements like Zylkene, Calmex, Stressless, valerian and/or skullcap, Calm & Focused (mentioned here http://s10.zetaboards.com/biggsd/topic/7399206 ) and so on. Then there's the alternative diffuser, Pet Remedy, which is oils like valerian, as opposed to pheromones like Adaptil. Other products include TTouch anxiety wraps and Thundershirts (you can make your own calming shirt using a t-shirt - snug fit around the shoulders and then gather the remaining fabric around the waist with a hairband/tying it in a knot - up on the back of the dog so it doesn't dig in when they lie down) Thirdly, I would consider a vet check to make sure all is OK with Mr Flump. Health conditions can often cause behavioural issues. Pain, for example, can often cause or worsen guarding behaviour, cause a dog to become clingy, make them dislike other dogs being too near (could appear as jealousy) and so on. Then there's medical causes for anxiety, like certain vitamin deficiencies or hormonal problems - I would have a full blood test panel done including a comprehensive thyroid panel (not just the bog standard TSH levels). Kiki suddenly developed separation anxiety this year, as well as other slight behavioural changes (becoming reactive to dogs, more clingy in the house, not wanting to play with Casper, etc) and blood tests discoverd her thyroid levels to be very low. Several months on, on a daily dose of an artificial thyroid hormone Soloxine, and I nearly have my old Kiki back - a few little behavioural quirks to iron out but she is loads better. Once you have ruled out or treated any medical cause, I would firstly be doing lots of self-control exercises. These don't necessarily have to relate to the issues at hand, but working on his self-control in any situation can help him be more restrained overall. So, for example, things like sit-stays and down-stays teach him to response to you at a distance and can also help with his clinginess in the house (it's often recommended for mild separation problems, to do stays and slowly work your way further away, then enforce a stay while you leave the room and return, taking longer and longer to return). Not letting him dash out of doorways, making him wait for a release word before he has his dinner, fetches a toy you've thrown, gets up from a down-stay, etc. Working on a 'leave it' command is another one for self control, also teaching him not to grab at treats or try to 'mug' you for them out of your hand. Also the "go wild and freeze" exercise may help - this is like the theory of teaching a dog to bark so you can teach it to be quiet, you teach a dog to go hyper on command so you can pair it with being calm on command. Good video on door dashing here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQLEdnztAFw Go wild & freeze - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzM0nvlQPsY No mugging - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t37zLMLT6KA&feature=plcp Leave it - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhGiOIQnH4Q&feature=plcp Adding a release - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKHTYneseaw&feature=plcp Impulse control game - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJd3XceMxN0&feature=plcp A couple of books I'd recommend for the separation issues are Patricia McConnell's "I'll be home soon" http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ill-Be-Home-Soon-Separation/dp/1891767054 Nicole Wilde's "Don't leave me" http://www.amazon.co.uk/Leave-Seperation-Anxiety-Nicole-Wilde/dp/0981722733 The latter is more indepth, but the former summarises a lot of the information in a good, easy-to-read booklet. Some people don't like to call it separation anxiety unless it really is a severe anxiety - toileting in the house out of distress, destroying the place, not eating out of stress, howling constantly, etc. but to be honest, whatever the label, lots of the methods will apply regardless of the severity. Desensitizing the dog to leaving cues, building up the time left gradually, etc. will help, and if the case isn't as severe, you might just be able to progress through each stage a bit more quickly. I'll just mention a couple of things that helped with Kiki, though they're probably covered in the books. - using Kongs smeared with a little cream cheese, or a handful of titbits scattered on the floor, to make EVERY exit positive. If I was nipping out to take rubbish to the dustbin, popping up to the loo, going to get changed, etc. I would always put a smeared Kong or a handful of titbits down. Not enough food to fill her up but just to make me leaving the room have a positive association. I prepared some Kongs and kept some treats by the door for OH to do the same too. - working on 'settle'. Not to be confused with just sending a dog to its bed, or to a down-stay, but actually relaxing. So I put a chair next to her bed and sat by it, and I picked a criteria - start easy. If she approached the bed, she got a treat. Then I upped the criteria - approaching wouldn't get her anything now, I waited for her to touch the bed, even just one paw, and treated her. Two paws, treat, three paws, treat, all paws, treat. Then she had to sit down before she got a treat, then lay down. That's when the settle really got specific..so I waited and waited, and eventually she went to rest her chin on the bed because I was being boring and not offering any treats. Even just the movement of her head a bit lower got her a treat. Then she had to actually rest it on the bed, treat. Rest it for 2 seconds, then 5 seconds, then 15. After she learnt to do that, she had to shift her wait - from an alert down, I waited until she shifted her weight to one hip, in a move to relax. Treat for that. You work through all the stages until you have the dog laying in a relaxed position, then you start using a 'settle' command, and increase duration. This is all done over multiple training sessions, so not necessarily all in one go - just 5 minutes here and there throughout the day. I found that Kiki would be much more likely to go to her bed and actually settle on it when left, after I regularly did this training - she learnt that it was calming to go and relax on bed. - frozen Kongs. I slowly increased the challenge, from a Kong loosely stuffed with raw chunks, then loosely filled with mince, then crammed full, then frozen for an hour or two, until I reached freezing the Kongs overnight. A Kong filled with frozen mince will last them at least 30 minutes, and gives them a good workout to empty, so it tires them out for the morning. Not only that, but licking and chewing both release endorphins that help relax a dog. Edited by pangolin, 23 Oct 2012, 12:36 PM.
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| pangolin | 23 Oct 2012, 12:37 PM Post #4 |
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GSD Addict
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Fell foul of the word filter I see - I meant "to grab quickly", not the rood term for a lady's bits Post edited to make more sense than the random "furry friends" the filter added in!
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| Harvmeister | 23 Oct 2012, 12:51 PM Post #5 |
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Mum to Marsh, Harvs, Sedge, Pip, Bolli and Flumpy
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That's brilliant thanks! I've just had a quick scan through for now, but what I can see I am doing a lot of the settling work already. I also feed him seperately. He was neutered two months ago (inc retained testicle) and he is changing very slightly from that. I will have a good read/look later as it all looks really helpful, thanks! |
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| pangolin | 23 Oct 2012, 01:11 PM Post #6 |
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GSD Addict
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If his behaviour has worsened from the neuter (sorry, not sure if you meant this negative stuff has appeared since then, or that he's improving slightly since then) then it could be worth a vet check in relation to that. Were there any complications from the op, e.g. I read just today about a dog with a retained testicle having its bladder nicked during the more complex op - it only took a few stitches to sort but the dog was in a bit more pain than a regular neuter op. I have heard that some animals can have a bit of a surge of hormones post-neuter though, not sure if it's true in dogs, but often heard that they can be worse before they get better! Whether that's true or not, it will take a while for his hormones to dissipate post-neuter. Another thing I forgot to mention, but as well as how he behaved outside the house, you may find altering what you do on walks or in the garden helps too. Although many dogs love fetch, for some dogs, the adrenaline it can create can cause more problems. Some dogs just get so hooked on the chase that they are, in effect, addicted to it and although it may be stressing them out, they can't stop. So if you play fetch a lot, you might want to tone it down for a bit to see if it helps. Kiki loves fetch but I decided to switch it for something requiring more mental stimulation than physical stimulation - so she went on her longline and we headed to a field with long grass and I'd just potter about letting her sniff all the rabbit scents, throwing treats in the grass for her to sniff out, etc. Sniffing can be a relaxing behaviour for dogs too - you often see a dog purposely turn away from another dog and sniff as a peace offering as such, it's a behaviour used to diffuse a situation. I still provide an outlet to run thoguh, I took up running with the dogs and I make sure I'm changing directions, calling them 'this way' or 'that way' - so not only are they stretching their legs but they have to focus on me and my commands too, which keeps their brains engaged. I find they 'come down' from a run a lot quicker (and are more tired ou from) than if I'd just gone out and thrown a ball back and forth. Plus I feel it's got to be better for their hips too, no sharp braking or turning to grab a ball, and as I'm right there running with them I can guage whether the surface we're on is a bit hard on the joints or if it's getting too warm, we're going too far, etc. as I'm feeling the effects too - unlike just standing still throwing a ball for them. Also trying to avoid things that stress him out outside the house may help too. Kiki's thyroid issues caused her to become a bit reactive at dogs too, when she's normally great, so to keep her calmer I would walk at less social times to avoid other dogs. The less she reacted outside the house, she calmer she was inside the house. I put blankets up on the windows of the car so we could drive places without her reacting at dogs we drove past, I kept the blinds half-closed to avoid her seeing dogs walk past the house, etc. Edited by pangolin, 23 Oct 2012, 01:19 PM.
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Post edited to make more sense than the random "furry friends" the filter added in!
1:35 AM Jul 11








