Guest greytmiles Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 Hi all, So I made Miles 'lay down' for a bully - business as usual. I leave the room, come back in, go over to pet him (we've done this 50x before), and he growls at me. I VOG him 'NO', and take the bully and put it away. In addition, I wouldn't let him up on the couch with me for the rest of the day. I would just put my body across where he'd try to climb up and say 'Mine!'. I wasn't physically touching or moving him. I also wouldn't play with him when he'd try to solicit my attention - I'd look the other way and pretend he was invisible. Was this 'extra' bit of discipline at all helpful, or should I have ended the matter with taking away his bully? Did I overreact about the whole situation? Thanks! Erin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivon Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 I wouldn't fret over it, I have no opinion on whether it was helpful, but I would dare say it didn't do any harm. Quote Ivon, Spud, Karma & Sasha Missing Darla (05-22-96 03-01-2010) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jenznaz Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 I do this, too sometimes. I agree with ivon that it's not harming or confusing him. IMO You're letting him know it's not okay to resource guard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JAJ2010 Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 Realistically he probably forgot about it within 10 minutes.... but doing what you did sure enforced the "Mom is the boss" concept so it sure didn't hurt! I do the same thing. Don't piss the Momma off! Quote ------ Jessica Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BooBooMama Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 Later tonight you can give him the bully stick again and see how he reacts. Reinforcement is the key. (Or so I am told. Personally I am a push-over!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kudzu Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 (edited) You didn't over react. It is a disturbing thing that should not happen. However, it is highly unlikely Miles associated not being let on the couch with having growled at you earlier. It is also not likely showing a leadership role for one day will have much effect. Guess it depends on the dog & the person. It didn't hurt though. And trying to think of this from Miles perspective for him it could be more like, "I tried to warn her to leave my bullystick alone. Not only did she not leave it alone, she stole it & wouldn't give it back. Next time I better up the ante if I want to keep my bully stick." Do you practice trading up with Miles? If not, you may want to so he knows that he has no need to defend his stuff from you. Edited April 28, 2010 by kudzu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 Couch and bully stick have nothing to do with one another. Ditto kudzu's post -- check out some of the posts on "trading up" in this forum (do a search -- you'll come up with better stuff than I can summarize right now). Basically, start with something less desirable and teach the dog that letting you take things away is a joyous, happy, and well-rewarded occasion ... ==> no more growls. Quote Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in IllinoisWe miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest PiagetsMom Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 If he isn't off sulking somewhere, I doubt you hurt anything, but you probably satisfied your need to make a point more than actually teaching him that he can't growl when you take his bully stick. I don't get upset with my pups very often, but when I do, I have to remind myself that just because I'm still upset does not mean that they're still thinking about it - they're not. I know some feel that you should just be able to take things away from your pup, but personally, I wouldn't take something like a bully stick without trading up. You just never know when you might catch them in just the right mood to be grumbly - a piece of cheese works like magic for my pups. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LindsaySF Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 Ditto Batmom and Kudzu. You probably did confuse him a bit, as not playing with him and refusing couch privileges has nothing to do with his defending a bone. The alpha people will tell you that you are reasserting being the alpha, but the dog really has no clue why you are acting that way. That said, unless he is an insecure or spooky dog, he has probably gotten over it and forgotten all about it by now. But ignoring him and stuff like that doesn't really accomplish anything useful. I would work on trading up for the bone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Spencers_Greyt Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 Dogs don't have long term memory. The only correction that would connect with him is right when he growled and you took the bully stick. Everything else you continued to do would have confused him as he wouldn't know why he was being punished. Corrections need to be done right when they happen never in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Greyt_dog_lover Posted April 29, 2010 Share Posted April 29, 2010 How long have you had your hound? Reason I ask is if you have had your hound less than about 6 months or so, I wouldnt be giving high value treats at all. If you have had your hound less than 6 months, there is no trust built up there, so your hound does not trust you enough yet to understand that you will give back the wonderful thing you just took from him. Obedience classes and recall training should be accomplished before high value treats are entered into the daily routine. Just my opinion. Chad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.