# Demanding behaviors, need advice



## redd (May 25, 2014)

Redd is nearing his 1st birthday. Great dog, happy, crazy energy, very loving, very needy, very demanding.

I am aware that we are the reason he is demanding..... he runs to the back door and whines and barks and we let him out. He barks and paws his food bowl and we feed him. He barks and jumps around the freezer and we give him ice (sometimes). He has really trained us, unfortunately. We are aware of it and now mostly ignoring him now when he is insistent.

Recently his behaviors have ramped up. He runs around the kitchen barking and jumping...I don't know what he wants. We completely ignore him. He has been less obedient (seems to have gotten back into the keep away game- steals kitchen towel/keep away, grabs shoe/keep away.... not coming when called, etc). He has taken to "attacking" a few of our accent rugs. Its like all the sudden he has a bad attitude! 

He gets plenty of exercise. He gets around 8-12 miles off leash just on the weekends. More sporadic during the week nights. He got a 8 mile FAST run with my husband last night on the mountain bike and came home acting crazy. Running around the house barking, careening off the sofa and recliner. 

He barks at his food for a good 5 minutes before he will eat, paws at his bowl, pulls the carpet out from under the bowl. 

Any thoughts? I am going to put him back on leash walks for "training" purposes, go back to basics with training again... anyone else's V go through this? Literally just thought of something..... some of these behaviors seem to coincide with a different food- he was on ProPlan Savor Chicken/rice and I switched him to Savor beef flavor. Same brand.


----------



## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

It sounds like he is just one of the pushier Vs, and yes many of us have been trained by them. We wake up one morning, and think what have I done.
Redd needs two things. The first is to learn how to settle, the other mind work that leads to obedience .
Look into clicker training him, and then you can overlay the training with less treats as he comes along. Because he is vocal, and will cut up if you just try crating him when he is demanding. Instead get a pad/towel, dog bed, anything that you want to use to teach Place. Have a leash on him, and command Down. I'm assuming he knows the down command, if not teach it first. Your going to work on increasing the time he has to stay down. When he does it right click and treat. If he does it wrong, no praise/treat and don't get on to him. Just walk him back and start again. Dogs get this the easiest if you don't call them to you, but instead you walk to them to release them. Your going to start slow by sitting in a chair next to him. Later you can start walking away from him, just short distances and staying in front of him. Later to the side of him, and then one of the harder ones for them , walking behind them. They want to see you, so behind them is the one that comes next to last. The last is walking into another room. 
Your going to use this when he starts being real demanding. I'm not saying don't ever give him ice, or don't let him out if he barks at the door. You might let him out the first time he barks at the door, but if he does it again 5 minutes later. tell him no, and have him go to place.
With the ice, I would start telling him Ice, and give him some once he stands nicely a couple of times a day. If he is barking, and demanding ice, he goes to place.
Your not trying to take away the things he loves, just putting limits on them.
Be sure to have happy fun time after each training session is over. Its stressful on a pup to learn a new way of life.


----------



## Rbka (Apr 21, 2014)

Nico is just coming out of a moody teenager phase that started in December (he's 14 months now). We had to start crating him when leaving him alone again which we had stopped doing at 4 months old.

I don't have any specific suggestions for you but here is the link to an article I thoroughly enjoy about this stage of v life (it is posted on our fridge as a reminder!) http://www.trader.co.nz/versatiledogs/articles/awkward.ht

Good luck!


----------



## redd (May 25, 2014)

TexasRed said:


> It sounds like he is just one of the pushier Vs, and yes many of us have been trained by them. We wake up one morning, and think what have I done.
> Redd needs two things. The first is to learn how to settle, the other mind work that leads to obedience .
> Look into clicker training him, and then you can overlay the training with less treats as he comes along. Because he is vocal, and will cut up if you just try crating him when he is demanding. Instead get a pad/towel, dog bed, anything that you want to use to teach Place. Have a leash on him, and command Down. I'm assuming he knows the down command, if not teach it first. Your going to work on increasing the time he has to stay down. When he does it right click and treat. If he does it wrong, no praise/treat and don't get on to him. Just walk him back and start again. Dogs get this the easiest if you don't call them to you, but instead you walk to them to release them. Your going to start slow by sitting in a chair next to him. Later you can start walking away from him, just short distances and staying in front of him. Later to the side of him, and then one of the harder ones for them , walking behind them. They want to see you, so behind them is the one that comes next to last. The last is walking into another room.
> Your going to use this when he starts being real demanding. I'm not saying don't ever give him ice, or don't let him out if he barks at the door. You might let him out the first time he barks at the door, but if he does it again 5 minutes later. tell him no, and have him go to place.
> ...



\TexasRed:
Redd is trained to sit/stay. We have not worked much on down/stay (he does know down). But to sum up, we should teach down/stay in a "place" and train him to stay there without leaving for any reason until he is released.... Right? 
We will work on it. Rbka's article is full of good advice as well, basically ignore his "look at me!" behaviors and this too shall pass! Let's hope so.  He is really such a good dog otherwise.


----------



## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

> teach down/stay in a "place" and train him to stay there without leaving for any reason until he is released.... Right?


Yes.
You don't even really have to teach the stay command, if you teach Down means Down until told otherwise. Place is taught the same way you teach a puppy to go to the crate on command. The only difference is they get to be in the open with you. Teaching it clicker style, means the dog wants to learn it, if they are food motivated, with others its the one on one attention/praise they get while training. I have no problem teaching a dog something new with praise, or treats. Slowly letting them get the idea through trial and error, but don't be surprised if they decide to push it after its a known command. When that happens, I take the dog by the lead and place them back where they should be without saying a word. No emotion, so they are not getting the attention they are after.
Just be sure to work in small steps, and short training sessions a few times a day. Stay way from longer training sessions while he is still learning what you want from him. If you run into a step that he is having a problem with, go back to the previous one for a couple of days. They will normally get the next step when you start training it the second time.

Don't be a all work and no play owner. Mental training stress them until they learn how to relax when on place. They need the happy fun play owner to keep their sprits up, and know that they did a good job.


----------



## mommaofalot (Apr 10, 2014)

I have taught Koda the "place" command but with "go lay down" instead of saying "place". She knows when I say this she must go lay on her bed and can not get up till released. I use this when company is coming or if she breaks a rule. It works so well that recently she will put herself in "time out" if she knows she has broken a rule haha ;D. She is very good at sitting in front of people to get attention but some times the excitement takes over and will jump on people occasionally so teaching her go lay down until some of her excitement leaves helps to avoid the possible jumping.


----------



## R E McCraith (Nov 24, 2011)

WHOA !!!!! the command that stops almost everything !!!! PIKE just turned six - we still get the WHOA board out 1-2 times a year 2 reinforce the command - the command only works when you can get eye contact - you have 2v able 2c the pup - try it uwill like it -


----------

