2 year older untrained dog. Anyone own polite training tips that will work?
Sorry this is long ...
I recently took in a homeless dog. I think he's approximately 2 years old and a border collie cross. He's not very well trained and is greatly skittish/nervous.
He will sit/lay down when I tell him, but not straight away - he hesitates next finally sits after the 3rd time I tell him.
He's also very nervous & have fear urination.
When I put food down for him, he sniffs it then just walk away.
I try to encourage him to eat it, but he a moment ago cowers or sits down and urinates and then runs to his bed.
He's obviously been abused and it doesn't transport much to make him afraid or urinate or run away.
He hasn't been socialised and doesn't close to other people or dogs and is impossible to take for walks.
I've manage to train him to not pull on the lead, so he's getting good at walking in good health, but as soon as he see's another dog or person he freaks out, tries to struggle out of the collar to run away. I have to wander him when it's quiet (early morning & late at night), when no-one else is around.
It takes profoundly of time/patience to try to make him do something, but I don't want to give up on him. He's such a gorgeous dog & so sweet - not at all aggressive or anything. Just enormously nervous. There's no way I'll just administer up on him.
I'm just finding standard training useless. It doesn't work with him.
I've trained 2 puppies before and found it jammy, but it just doesn't work with him, he's too nervous.
It's as whether he just always thinks that something discouraging is going to happen or that I'm going to hurt him. When I tell him to sit, it's like he think its a punishment. Even just giving him food. He'll just put his tail between his legs, urinate etc.
I don't know what he's been through or what's happened/been done to him. He be in very bad condition (dirty/smelly) and slightly overweight when I get him (probably because he never went out for walks etc. Can't have be due to over-feeding because he was actually very malnourished).
He's only nervous about everything.
I'm just interested to know whether anybody else has had experience with
afraid dogs or any good advice on how to train a dog like this.
A good positive simply trainer can help but mostly it seems this dog doesn't know how to be a dog. A lot of patience will be required. I generally recommend Tellington TTouch for this kind of situation. It is a method of working with animals to release their fears as well as other things. You can travel to www.tellingtontouch.com and look up the practitioners to see if there is one in your nouns. You can also get some CDs etc of the work but I find a person with a licence to be more useful in the early stages. They will give support to teach you things to do as well.
Hang in here and just be really calm and patient.
Don't give him any thing negative surrounded by the training.
. Train the dog like a pup, use treats and or toy, Keep it short. Praise Praise Praise, and allot of time and patience.
Also try using more signal nouns then verbal.
Find out how to get him on the show the Dog Whisperer with Caesar Milan. Lol. But yeah, it's sturdy to train dogs like that so I would try to take him to a professional.
the shelter where on earth I work uses the book "good dogs, great owners" by brian kilcommon. it is a very easy read and the dogs at the shelter respond very well. also look into "help for your shy dog" I don't know who it is by, but if you put it into amazon.com it will pop up. the header is purple on the book and it works very economically for shy dogs, I've used it on shy dogs at the shelter. good luck!
Answers: my dog Murphy be the same- we rescued him after he was knocked into the side of the road by a car. He have been dumped at the Cattle Market down the road by some cruel farmer, in the hope someone would pinch him (at least it was better than drowning)
he was extremely retiring and anxious- hated people standing up near him (unless he know them) and people knocking at the door. He would also try to protect us from eveything and would rush to my side if someone strage be in the house.
What you need to do is:
1. Dont encourage the fidgety behaviour- do not comfort him when he cowers, barks or urinates. He will think this is the right behaviour if you do. At the same time, dont shout or tick off. Just say 'no' in an authoritive voice and bring him outside(for weeing), or ignore the practice.
2. For training to sit, lie, etc, give him a tasty treat respectively time he does the right thing so that he learns it is to rewarded. Eventually you can move onto a friendly pat, or a 'good boy' everytime he sits.
3. When someone comes to the house, bring him out of he room, bring them inside and sit them down, after introduce them. He will see them a less of a threat if they are not hovering over him- permit the person ignore him unless he makes the first move- he will next learn that people are not there to upset him, just there in standard and might give him a rub if he says hello.
4. while walking, completely humiliate other people, dont discourage or asuage his behaviour, just take on as normal.
5. introduce other animals like you introduce humans- bring them into the room first so they are already part of the scenery- dont permit them trespass (this is how he will see it).
