Worried our 6mo old might kill our Dachshund

[EAO76]

Well we took both Romeo and Mercedes in to be evaluated by a behaviorist yesterday. She thought that Romeo was trying to be the pack leader but was being unfair. And that possibly Mercedes should assume the roll. Also that because Romeo does bite/mouth when he plays, that he needed to stop that. And that because I get down and play with him and let him mouth me, that he feels like I'm a playmate rather than a pack leader. So anyway, They are keeping him for two weeks to work with him. And then they will work with us as well. Gave us a book called "Leader of the pack" to read. I was sad leaving him there and we miss him already.

I get nervous about board & train facilities. How reputable is this training facility? Did you do a lot of research on them before leaving your pup there? How can they work on the problems between the two dogs if you only left one dog there? Are they going to come to your home to work with you & the two dogs together where all the “triggers” are?

Also it is NORMAL for dogs to mouth each other when playing (as long as it’s not doing damage). I do agree though that your dog may see you as a playmate not a leader.

 

[BxrMommieNAZ]

Yeah I would have to agree about doing MEGA research and even then I don't think I'd leave my dog for someone else to train. If you're not involved it won't do any good IMO and at such a young age they are still SO impressionable if anything were to go wrong while he was there it could really cause issues for him for life. I also agree that I don't understand how they can combat the problem without working with BOTH dogs and showing you how to correct the behavior before it escalates without your other dog being there to work with also.

I don't know, personally I'd be looking for a company or person that would come to your home daily or a few times a week for x number of weeks to work with you in person rather than leaving your dog at a facility behind closed doors where anything can happen.

 

[DannDeb]

Yep, we researched this place. The trainer is actually the author of the book I refered to
" Leader of the pacK " you can check out their website here: http://www.acanine.com/
After we sat down with the trainer for 1.5 hours during the elvaluation we felt very good about what she had to say and about the trainer herself and the facilities. I would be a little leary about leaving Romeo there as well if I hadn't seen it done many times on the Dog Wisperer. We will be making some visits during the stay and will be working with him as well during those visits. Then he is scheduled for obeidience class after his stay.
We have started reading the book which is available on Amazon as well with very good reviews. So far I like what I'm reading. The availability of behavoirist's are in short supply around here. So we feel pretty fortunate to have found one with these credentials within 20 miles of our home.
We have made the committment so I guess we'll have to hope and pray at this point that the results will be good, cause the only other option after this is to re-home Romeo.
Thanks for the concern.

 

[sargboxerluv]

I can't believe she said Romeo is being unfair and Mercedes should assume the pack leader role! People dont get to choose which dog is more dominant, the dogs decide that, and if he thinks it should be him, he is going to act like it, same with her. Although she should be the natural leader because she was there first and is older, it may not turn out that way.

I do think its a good idea for him to be "on campas". Dogs learn very well from other dogs. However, if both of your dogs want to be pack leader, it will always be an issue. One has to be the less dominant dog. Even if they see you as the pack leader, which they obviously should, they will still rank themselves, no matter how many dogs you have.

You said he bites/mouths, hopefully during this experience the other dogs will put him in his place as far as that is concerned. That alone may be a lifesaver, than maybe your other dog will not feel bullied and the need to retaliate.

I definitely agree that his being allowed to mouth you is a problem. When he gets back, do not allow him to do this. Pick out some toys that you can use to play with him. If he mouths you instead of the toy, then play time should be over. He will learn fast what makes the fun go away and what keeps it going.

I was told by a dachshund owner that they do not like other dogs unless they are raised together. They were bred to burrow, find and kill rodents. They are supposed to be fearless in that way, so she may never back down from Romeo even if she feels threatened. Being as Romeo is the pup, he should be the one to back down when she has had enough. But of course he has way more energy then she does. This is another area I would hope the campas dogs can teach him - when enough is enough.

I do hope this works out for you guys.

 

[DannDeb]

Sargboxerluv,
Everything you say is true. We've been reading the book "Leader of the pack" while Romeo is away and there is sooo many things we did wrong raising Mercedes. We now have to try and retrain or just plain ol train Mercedes period. But we are begining to understand the dynamics of the roll of pack leader. From us being the pac leader to the order of leadership of the dogs. It is apparent to us that Mercedes was trying to be the pack leader but so was Romeo and since he was the bigger dog. And being a puppy. He wasn't excepting Mercedes role.
We hope we can get it worked out when Romeo returns. We are now more educated and have more tools to use in dealing with the problem.

 

[Widges]

Well done to you all. I think that it is great that you saw the problems, looked around for a solution, are getting the help that you need and you are willing to work on the problems rather that re-home one of your dogs. I wish you a wonderful future with both of your dogs.

 

[DannDeb]

Update-Long

Well we went to pick up Romeo the other day and all I can say is WOW! He is a totally different dog. They had us sit down when they brought him in. They walked him around the room for a while before bringing him over by us. He was walking by the trainers side without getting all excited by seeing us. Then she brought him over and told him to "sit", and he sat, told him "down" and he laid down. We greeted him. Then she walked him over to this raised bed and told him "bed" and he jumped on to the bed. went through the "sit" and "down" commands again and then "wait" and he stayed there untill she said "ok" Then they had us go over to the door and make him "wait" while we walked through the door and he waited until the "ok" command was giving. Is this really our Romeo?
Anyway, they worked with us and answered a ton of questions. We feel pretty good about the whole thing. They do use a pinch collar and leed for training and I notice when we take it off, he tends to go back some of his old ways. But I don't think it will take too long before he gets it. They also used and so do we lots of treats for rewards when he does good. We couldn't be happier.
Thanks everyone for all your help during this stressful time!!!

 

[EAO76]

Anyway, they worked with us and answered a ton of questions. We feel pretty good about the whole thing. They do use a pinch collar and lead for training and I notice when we take it off, he tends to go back some of his old ways.

Yes, that is pretty common with these types of training methods. Once the negative reinforcement is removed he has no incentive to behave. That’s why when dogs are trained with pinch, choke, etc you have to continue to use the device. So it begs the question, is the dog behaving because he’s trained? Or because he is avoiding being uncomfortable? A completely trained dog should do as it’s told whether it’s connected to a leash or not.

Anyway, I hope that you continue to be happy with his progress. However just a warning I have had one of my dogs trained by someone else. He is PERFECT for the trainer but not as well behaved with me. He is still pretty good but there is definitely a difference between how he behaves for the trainer vs. me. So while there is a “convenience factor” in having someone else do the training, there is also the problem with transferring the training back to the owners. I know many trainers say that is not the case but unless your timing, tone, (and MOST importantly) body language, etc is EXACTLY like the trainer’s then the dog will respond to you differently. Because dogs watch our bodies for clues on how to behave and body language is not something you can really replicate.

I believe body language is the main reason why dogs respond so dramatically to Cesar Milan (not that I am promoting him).

So what is the plan in regards to the issue with the two dogs? Are you working on that at all?

 

[DannDeb]

This is Deb

You are right about the dogs being different for the owner than the trainer. I am a parent trainer and see this all the time. The process of teaching the parents what it is I do to get the results I do can be long and frustrating for everyone. Thus, I am realistic about what we are going to be able to do with Romeo. We have our strengths, but it is obvious Romeo is trained to the pinch collar. I have been doing things without it to reinforce what he learned with it on. I do this in small increments, short lessons. He is a very good dog. We know it is a time and consistency factor, more the latter. Thanks for your thoughts and experience. We are determined to make this work. Everyone feels safe now and that was the biggest immediate concern. We start basic obedience Tuesday. Deb

 

[BxrMommieNAZ]

Well and please remember he's only 6 or 7 months old, I mean time in training not to mention just the dog settling down as he gets older is a HUGE factor, so if you're getting that kind of a response at that young of an age and you keep it up and are consistent and do it daily, etc I think by the time he's a year old you will have a fabulously behaved dog on or off the collar.