# Are we doing the right thing by our puppy?



## Monkeymands1977 (Apr 15, 2014)

Me again, hope your not getting sick of my questions!

I know a few people have posted about puppies having shark attacks but ours at the moment is either fightin biting jumping up or barking at us or the cats. And no matter of saying no or ignoring is making a blind bit of difference.

He's only been with us 2 weeks, and I'm worried from where we let him up on the sofa in the first week that we've made a rod for our own back? 

His crate training is excellent, I've taught him sit and lie down, and now working on paw and wait. But anything to do with no or down seems to mean he barks, bites and growls a little too, his tail is wagging like its a game. 

Is this all normal for a v?! The only loving puppy is when he's asleep it seems at the moment...


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## hobbsy1010 (Jun 4, 2011)

Hi,

I wouldn't worry too much about the sofa mistake, we've all done it!!

It will only be another two weeks before you'll be able to keep him outside 24/7!!

Just give him an extra blanket if he complains..... :-\

Hobbsy


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## mswhipple (Mar 7, 2011)

It's all normal, Monkeymands1977. Normal. This, too, shall pass.


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## aliciavp (Mar 14, 2014)

Lazlo did that too - once he gained confidence he would bark at us when we would say "no" - especially when I caught him upstairs in our bedroom!! He would growl when I gave him orders, chew his lead, bite the backs of my legs... and would just be generally annoying! 

It took about 2-3 weeks and his behaviour improved, I would say - as soon as they're vaccinated and you can take them on walks and to the dog park... much MUCH better. Less nipping, barking, more tired cuddles on the couch - we've taught Lazlo to wait until he's "invited" onto the couch - takes a little work, but it's worth it!


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## Monkeymands1977 (Apr 15, 2014)

Thank you all. I'm glad it's not us! 

Aliciavp that made me laugh saying it was annoying, cos it really is haha! Did you just keep doing though and then it eventually instilled?

We are doing the inviting up. We make him sit or lie down and then say come up.


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

My first V would get on things he knew he shouldn't, then bark so I knew he was up to no good. It was his way of saying "I want attention now." At first I fell for it, and would remove him. He would do it again 5 minutes later. It took me a little while to figure out just crate him. Then I could get what I needed to do accomplished in a 1/4 the time. 
Doing it that way gave me more time to work with him, and he had my full attention when he was out of the crate.
A short lead also helps in the house, for removing them from all the things that are off limits to them.


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## Ruthie_67 (Jan 25, 2014)

Oh man I remember those days all too well ...!! After hair pulling (mine by me), even tears, and my own stubbornness and perseverance I now have a 24 week old viz who has been through exactly the same stages as yours. Yes, he still "argues" with me over the rules sometimes, he still uses his teeth to greet us and others but not in a way that marks your hand, once the sharp ones are gone it's a lot easier and he has learnt to control his bite to "gentle" We didn't ever make him wait to jump on the sofa with us, so you are doing better in that respect! He is also wonderfully crate trained and hasn't made it to our bed ..... yet. I know sometimes it can feel like you will always be left with a crazy, bitey, barky, growly dog but you won't, he will grow to love and respect you and the feeling will be mutual.


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## Monkeymands1977 (Apr 15, 2014)

I can't wait for them to be over! He's just had to go into his crate as he just wouldn't stop. I don't like crating him loads but feel it's the only way at the moment for me to have a break!


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## Bob Engelhardt (Feb 14, 2012)

Oh, man am I glad we got a 5 year old!


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## dextersmom (Oct 29, 2013)

Monkeymands1977 said:


> I can't wait for them to be over!


Noooooo, don't say that  Trust me, in a couple months you will totally want those puppy times back! Try to enjoy them because they grow up sooo fast (I know it doesn't feel like it now, but they do!) and you'll start wanting another just so you can relive puppyhood again!


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## emilycn (Jul 30, 2013)

When Lua was little, she'd sometimes get a quick, 2 minute time-out in her crate. It was no-nonsense, but definitely not punishment, and definitely not super happy excited "yay! let's get in the crate!" I just carried her over, placed her in and shut the door behind her. The timeout got her to cool it with the sharking and the growling and the chasing until the next time she got overly tired and wound up. It was like a power nap, but for puppies. What came out of the crate was an entirely different creature than the beast that went in. 

As for the couch thing, I never made a big deal about her asking to be on the furniture (that she's allowed on --- there's some that we never let her lay a paw on) because a very large part of the reason I got a vizsla was how affectionate they are. I wanted her to cuddle with me. But I may do it differently with the next one -- it's a real drag when she launches through the back door onto the couch with muddy paws. But still, we started teaching her to wait to be invited on the couch with us, and although it takes a lot more time and patience, it's working. I think there's not a lot a well socialized puppy learns that can't be reversed later. It just is harder to break a habit than to make one.


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## aliciavp (Mar 14, 2014)

Monkeymands1977 said:


> Thank you all. I'm glad it's not us!
> 
> Aliciavp that made me laugh saying it was annoying, cos it really is haha! Did you just keep doing though and then it eventually instilled?
> 
> We are doing the inviting up. We make him sit or lie down and then say come up.


I actually now tell him off once or twice... and if he doesn't obey, once very loudly then I ignore him... it seems to work, but he still does love to creep up the stairs when he thinks we're not watching...


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## charliecoyot (Nov 26, 2012)

@ aliciavp: Talk about the 'creeping' - I'm sure many have similar stories:

Roothee the V will lightly walk to the kitchen trash, ever so slowly putting her head over the edge and lightly grabbing a paper towel - acting as if she's soooooo sneaky. Then an abrupt 'leave it' command gets her to immediately drop the paper towel and look as if to say 'WHAT!, I wasn't doing anything!'. So darn funny - even after 50 times.


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## Cakegirl (Mar 28, 2014)

Oh wow, so THAT'S what shark attacks are! I have been letting our ten week old ride in the car with us, but the past few times he has gone berserk. The worst was this Monday when I was taking him to the vet. He was in the passenger seat, and then started lunging and biting at me. I put him back into the seat (kind of freaked out because I was driving and his behavior was dangerous), and he just started barking like crazy and kept coming back at me. He was in a mode and seemed unstoppable. 
Our trainer told us that Vizslas have a very specific way of playing than other dogs do. He said when he starts biting or gets in to that unstoppable mode, to just very calmly get up and put him into his exercise pen or crate. Don't show that you are irritated or exasperated or anything else, just remove yourself from the behavior.


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## dextersmom (Oct 29, 2013)

Cakegirl said:


> Oh wow, so THAT'S what shark attacks are! I have been letting our ten week old ride in the car with us, but the past few times he has gone berserk. He was in a mode and seemed unstoppable.


LOL yup! Be glad you made it to 10 weeks before they started 

@charliecoyot - Dexter likes to grab gloves, paper towel, etc. off the kitchen bar counter when he thinks we're not looking. He has to stand up on his hind legs to reach it. The other day he went for the Kleenex box while I was washing dishes on the other side of the bar counter. The look on his face when he popped up to steal the box and got "caught" by me watching was hilarious!


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

Its always good to have a crate for car rides.
We have all let them ride in the car at one time or another not crated, but its not a good idea. If in a wreck they become projectiles. A secured crate is safer for them, and you.
When I lived on a busy street, there was a head on collision in front of my house. Is was caused by a dog jumping in her owners lap, because it saw a squirrel.


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## Monkeymands1977 (Apr 15, 2014)

That is good Cakegirl to go 10 weeks. Finn does his daily, and at least 5 times a day! 

I have taken to putting him in his crate for up to 10 mins, basically once he has calmed down, then let him out again. It does take a couple of goes before he has calmed properly!! But definitely knowing the signs, its all tiredness, and when we say go to bed, he's off into his crate!! 

Thankfully haven't had the bin situation yet! But he's reaching so much more now, it won't be long!!!


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## rkbetz (Apr 4, 2014)

Ahhhh, shark attacks! These are new to us as we have not had a V before. We haven't crated her when she is sharking because we didn't want her to associate the crate with punishment. We have been using a spray bottle but sometimes it just isn't around or you can't get to it fast enough.

Ours is definitely stealthy. She'll trail silently along behind you and then as soon as you open up a door she bolts in like a flash, grabs whatever she isn't supposed to have, and then runs to her hidey-hole to chew on it. We have learned to not keep anything on the floor, put the toilet paper up, close the toilet lid, etc. Ugh. She can grab the toilet paper and run out of the bathroom and halfway across the house before you can catch her. Amazing feats I have yet to see with another dog.


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## tknafox2 (Apr 2, 2013)

You are experiencing perfectly normal and expected Vizsla puppy antics. My pup would steal a sock, or a slipper, hair brush etc. and then the game of cat and mouse was on... he had it, knew I wanted it. I got to where I had tasty treats in my pocket "always" for any just itimes... not to reward bad behavior, but to entice him to come to me and trade his goody, for mine. They learn fast, and soon you will not need a treat, they just do it. Even when I had him off leash, and I wanted him to come back to me so I could put the leash back on, I would just find a stick or a leaf, piece of paper, anything that caught his attention & curriosity. and he would come running back to check it out.
Another trick I learned from this forum... when you want him to come with you... don't fuss over "come" just ...Turn your back on him and say "come on lets go" and walk the other way. He will be right on your heels, (most likely, however there are exceptions to every rule...Ha Ha )
Another trick that many of the forum members have used with" sharky" pups is to place a toy in their mouth when you greet them so they can't bite at you. If he drops it, pick it up and toss it. 
Good luck... this stage of puppy hood will pass.


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## redd (May 25, 2014)

Regarding the biting and shark attacks- I will likely get "boo-ed" for this, but 2 days ago I found a bottle of Cherry Blossom room spray, emptied and rinsed it and filled with water. It still had a faint smell and tasted (yes I tasted it) soapy. Anyhow, I sprayed right above our 8.5 week male V's head during and attack and said "no!". He was astonished, and didn't like the spray. He stopped biting. He has been so much better, only sprayed one more time. We are now working on "gentle" and it's going pretty well! 
Plus, he smells good, lol.


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## number10 (Jun 2, 2014)

aliciavp said:


> Lazlo did that too - once he gained confidence he would bark at us when we would say "no" - especially when I caught him upstairs in our bedroom!! He would growl when I gave him orders, chew his lead, bite the backs of my legs... and would just be generally annoying!
> 
> It took about 2-3 weeks and his behaviour improved, I would say - as soon as they're vaccinated and you can take them on walks and to the dog park... much MUCH better. Less nipping, barking, more tired cuddles on the couch - we've taught Lazlo to wait until he's "invited" onto the couch - takes a little work, but it's worth it!


This is re-assuring. I can't wait to get her to the park. I don't have kids myself but countless nieces and nephews and nearly-nieces and nephews, and I've been inviting them around to play and help pup learn to be a social pup. They won't want to come if she continues to behave like this little monster. And she is often so quiet and gentle: no-one believes me! The barking seems to be "limited" to barking at the cat. Fingers and everything crossed it doesn't extend further.


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