July 13, 2008
My rescue dog is getting more destructive every day what should I do?
I rescued a 4 year old Golden Retriever/Great Pyranese mix. He has lived outside his whole life, ate table scraps, was matted, no vet, and not attention. We took him into our home and he has done great! Then he started eating the towels in is crate, then he busted out of his crate and ripped my curtains, then he destroyed the plastic tray into shreds. Then he jumped the fence, got out of the house, and jumped the fence again. What do I need to do with this dog? I moved his crate in front of the door so he can see out, put hooks on it, tied it with rope in hopes he’ll still be in it when I get home from work. He seems to be getting worse. II can't leave him outside and I'm afraid to leave him inside my house outside of his crate and he is destroying his crate. I also have a 9 month old Shepherd/Collie mix who is an angel.
When he lived outside alone he would dig, climb the fence, cry and try to get in the house. My husband has left for the week and I know the dog misses him, though the eating towels from his crate started before my husband left. I walk him every night and am practicing obedience with him. He can climb pretty well. I have cats so I haven't trusted him alone in the house. He only stays in his crate during the day. I have left him out with my other dog alone for maybe an hour and they were fine. My other dog chewed up a chair when we left her alone for too long outside her crate.
You need to do some obedience training with this dog…
I commend you for adopting and saving a life instead of contributing to the pockets so fat from suffering of dogs ( puppy mills and backyard breeders)
Sign up for some classes, that will help excersize the dog, mind and body. Make sure you are getting your dog plenty of physical excersize through the day, a walk each morning and night would be best.. Playtime, etc.. so he is nice and tired when its time for the kennel.
Also do some training with him for the kennel.. Theres a good chance he was left in a kennel for long periods of time wherever he was being abused, so he see's this thing as a threat.
Put his food and water in there when he isnt in it, so that he associates it with good positive things..
Then move on to putting him there for 5 minutes, set him in there with a Kong filled with peanut butter.. He will probably ignore it fo awhile but he'll love it eventually..
When this stresses him out les, move up to 10 minutes at a time..
This will be a time consuming process, but your dog and your belongings will thank you afterwards..
I went through this with my Staff who had TERRIBLE separation anxiety… If you'd like to chat more about it with me, please feel free to email me!
Filed under Golden Retriever Rescue by admin
Comments on My rescue dog is getting more destructive every day what should I do? »
take him to training.
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He's angry about something. Or maybe you could talk to a professional trainer. What about an outdoor kennel for him during the day, and a doghouse in it? Then, when you get home from work, have him indoors. Make sure your yard has a 6 ft fence, or at least your kennel has a 6 ft fence.
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First, I would take him to the vet, to rule out any medical issues.
I would keep crating, but don't put anything in the crate with him to eat.
I would also try to walk him more and get him more exercise.
Then take him to a trainer (positive training).
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Sounds like this dog is suffering from separation anxiety. Talk to your vet about this. There are medications that can help your dog calm down so you can keep working on the other issues from his past.
Good luck!
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Taking him from the outside environment to an inside environment might have been to much for him to adjust to. You probably should have set up a kennel outside that you could keep him in, while also bringing him in and out of the house to introduce him to the house. If a creature isn't use to an environment, its natural for them to be "destructive", you have to train him even if he is 4 years old.
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Give him something to do!! I know a lot of folks on here are against leaving dog outside.. but if you have a properly secured kennel (with a cement-block floor and a roof, and a proper dog house) your dog may enjoy being outside during the day, as opposed to a boring kennel in the house. he was a yard dog, and misses this interaction! if that's not an option, try a gorrila-tough dog crate.. and leave him in the house with the tv on.. a kong to chew, and bedding he won't shred. Good luck.
References :
You need to do some obedience training with this dog…
I commend you for adopting and saving a life instead of contributing to the pockets so fat from suffering of dogs ( puppy mills and backyard breeders)
Sign up for some classes, that will help excersize the dog, mind and body. Make sure you are getting your dog plenty of physical excersize through the day, a walk each morning and night would be best.. Playtime, etc.. so he is nice and tired when its time for the kennel.
Also do some training with him for the kennel.. Theres a good chance he was left in a kennel for long periods of time wherever he was being abused, so he see's this thing as a threat.
Put his food and water in there when he isnt in it, so that he associates it with good positive things..
Then move on to putting him there for 5 minutes, set him in there with a Kong filled with peanut butter.. He will probably ignore it fo awhile but he'll love it eventually..
When this stresses him out les, move up to 10 minutes at a time..
This will be a time consuming process, but your dog and your belongings will thank you afterwards..
I went through this with my Staff who had TERRIBLE separation anxiety… If you'd like to chat more about it with me, please feel free to email me!
References :
Since he lived outside his entire life before he came to you, this new "inside life" must be very stressful for him - the crate especially. Take him outside and exercise the heck out of him before you put him in the crate at night. This will tire him out so that he'll sleep. He would need that anyway. He sounds like a big dog. Also, my dog loves when I cover his crate with a blanket or towel. He seems to feel more secure this way. You can try obedience classes. This will give him a sense of confidence, and would be a great bonding experience for you both. Spend a lot of time on positive reinforcement. Remember, he's had a tough life, and this new life, as good as it seems it should be, is very confusing for him.
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I think your dog needs some adjustments. One thing we did in my grandpa's farm long ago … mark the spots/things he likes to chew and take some bitter solution and rub over it. How ever, there is a huge down side to it - if the dog is temperamental it might start clawing and make the habit worse.
I would suggest you contact my friend Darlene - who is an Author, Journalist, Speaker and Certified Animal Behavior Consultant.
http://www.darlenearden.com
http://perpetuallyspeaking.blogspot.com
http://www.redroom.com/author/darlene
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http://petgazer.blogspot.com/
Has he EVER in his life been crate trained??? Some dogs just don't take to the crate or they suffer from such separation anxiety that they destroy the crate in an attempt to get out.
You are going to have to recrate train him, do you have a garage you can lock him in when you aren't around?? What does he do in the house if you leave him un crated? Does he destroy the house? This dog will require extensive training, one to accept the crate and two to break him of his separation anxiety.
How was he when he lived outside?
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Keep him in the crate but take the towel out. He does not need it anyway. Get him a heavy duty metal crate and get him some Kongs and fill them with peanut butter or something else that he will like and put them in his crate when you are gone. That will give him something to do while you are gone so he is not so bored. Get him in training.
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