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Chicken

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    Added a third and now we have a bully

    in Training and Behavior discussion

    Posted

    I thought I would provide an update on the bully 😂😂

    Thank you for all the replies and advice.  
    Everyone seems to be getting along.  The bully is being less of a bully and all are getting along well. 
    Now to tackle the stairs🤦‍♀️.  My girls are smaller so this will be an experience with a large boy.  We are not in a rush and will take it slow.  

    Added a third and now we have a bully

    in Training and Behavior discussion

    Posted

    1 hour ago, FiveRoooooers said:

    MiMi Sizzle Pants was such a good girl!

    (sorry for the hijack)

    Hijack away 😀.  Doesn’t bother me a bit. 

    1 hour ago, greysmom said:

    We've never had siblings at the same time, but we have had as many as six greyhounds (plus 4 cats and two humans) of varying ages and genders in a 900 sq ft house.  It's totally possible to have a calm(ish!) and organized household without causing a lot of stress.  None of them met beforehand, and, like Jan, I just expected everyone to get along and made a plan to make sure that happened every time another was added.  Set everyone up to win!!

    It just takes some thinking ahead about management and being organized, and all the humans agreeing on what/how things should happen.

    So it sounds like we are doing everything correctly, they just need time to sort it out.  
    i appreciate the reassurance.   I have found multiple places discouraging three hounds but want it to work 

    Added a third and now we have a bully

    in Training and Behavior discussion

    Posted

    25 minutes ago, greysmom said:

    Hound 1 is the odd girl out and outnumbered by the siblings.  It's an uncomfortable and anxiety-inducing feeling in a dog who's always been in charge, so she's reacting by trying to solidify her position in the most aggressive way she can to try and stop one of the other two - the large male - from taking her position from her.  Additionally, by bringing your numbers to three, you now have a "pack" of dogs which can sometimes change the dynamics in a home drastically.

    First thing - YOU decide who is going to be the leader of your little pack.  I'm assuming girl #1, but you may decide the #3 is assuming the role.  Dogs are most comfortable when positions are well defined, and they will make up their own if left to their own devices.  If you don't, there will be continued jostling for position until they work it out on their own, and it can sometimes get ugly and dangerous.  Use their muzzles (on everyone) until you feel you can trust them after an honest and objective assessment of their behavior down the road when things have stabilized.  It can take several months for the new dynamics to solidify so don't give up on monitoring and reinforcing too soon.  DO NOT leave them unsupervised without crating or muzzling at this point.

    Reinforce who you decide will be the leader by using some easy behavioral cues - they sound like a lot of hooey, but our definition of what is appropriate is different from theirs.  The leader gets everything first - food (separate them and put the leader's food down first, but do not allow the leader to get at the other's bowls when they are finished), treats (give to the leader first), toys (put them away and only give them to isolated dogs one at a time for now), the leader gets to be in front on walks, gets attention from the humans by themself and special attention with solo rides/brushing/yard time basically anything that's considered special in your house. 

    The leader of the "dog pack" needs to understand that YOU are the leader of the "house pack" so continue to set proper boundaries for rules and schedules and the dispensing of food.  If the leader starts getting too pushy with people, revert back to NILIF training to make sure they understand who is responsible for leading the house.

    Having multiple dogs can be really fun, and most of us who own greyhounds end up having packs of them (of varying sizes).  It's important to remember that it's up to US to set the rules and maintain order.

    Thank you for the advice.   We were doing a lot of this.  We established hound 1 as the leader and are giving her food, treats, putting her leash on…all first.  She gets attention first, etc.  

    I was worried that we were on the road to failure.  I know it takes time but I just hate to see them anxious.  I am glad to hear success stories I have heard discouraging stories.  

    Added a third and now we have a bully

    in Training and Behavior discussion

    Posted

    We just (as in two days ago) added a third hound to our house.  The second and new one get along great, but the first one has become a bully.  We are using muzzles, walks, and no unsupervised time but how can we ease our first one’s stress and help acceptance of the third?  I know it’s only been two days, but I want to ensure we are doing everything the best way.  In case it matters hound 1—girl, never raced, brought home at 15 months, is now 3 and has also been an alpha. 67 lbs.   Hound 2—-girl, raced for a brief time,  brought  home at 2.5 years, is now 3, and  is very submissive 64 lbs.  Hound 3—boy and littermate to hound 2. Raced for a longer time, is 3, seems submissive, 80lbs. 
    Any input is appreciated. 

    Fear of going down stairs and training

    in Training and Behavior discussion

    Posted

    15 minutes ago, Trudy said:

    Do you have anywhere near by that has a smaller flight of stairs - just a few? This way, you can work with just a few stairs, though she may just jump down them.

    She actually is able to navigate the steps at my mothers house.  There are two outside and three inside.  She walks them without jumping.  They are more open than these. She gets scared when she knows we are going down the stairs but unfortunately we have to in order to get outside.  I am at a loss and really hate putting her through this every time she goes out.  She actively wants to go up, but hates the down. 

    Fear of going down stairs and training

    in Training and Behavior discussion

    Posted

    18 hours ago, Onyfalk said:

    My girl completely refused to go down stairs. She went up pretty easily, I just went straight up the stairs after our walk and she followed the lead. I tried everything to get her down, all kinds of treats, holding her harness so she had support, manually moving her feet one by one, carrying her almost to the bottom of the stairs so she only had to do a couple of steps. I even put down a runner to make the stairs easier to grip but nothing worked and the more I tried to coax her the more scared she got. Just as I thought she would never do it I heard her coming down the stairs without me. I watched as she carefully went all the way to the bottom of the stairs before going back up and doing it again like she was practicing. She still isn't super comfortable going downstairs and won't do it if people are too close. I think she just needed a bit of time without me hovering over her.

    Right now ours won’t even go near the stairs if we are going down. Going up is getting better.  She will walk to the steps and put her paws on the first step then look over her shoulder as if we aren’t coming to help her quick enough. 
    I am hoping with time she will be confident to go down. 

    Fear of going down stairs and training

    in Training and Behavior discussion

    Posted

    Hello 

    I adopted our first retired greyhound two days ago.  She is doing wonderful learning to go up the stairs but is terrified of going down.  Unfortunately, she has to go down to go outside (2 flights).  We will gladly carry her down until she is able to learn to navigate the stairs but are their any tips on helping her not be terrified of us even carrying her down.  I hate seeing her so afraid. 
    She is almost 14 months old. 
    Thank you 

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