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@geezerette wrote:
I've been going through the same thing for the past year with our new dog. Total frustration. I think it's more difficult for those of us who have/had dogs that were easy to train. I know what I need to do, I just can't seem to do it!
First thing, you need to stay calm. Which I find probably the hardest thing to do. An excitable dog will not calm down if you are frustrated with her. You need to be assertive, neither harsh nor wish-washy. And at this stage, sometimes you have to pick your battles. Figure out which things are most important for your dog to learn now, and concentrate on those. Other things can come later. If you're constantly saying "no!" to everything, your dog will soon tune you out.
Secondly, if your dog is energetic and/or excitable, exercise is a necessity. My dog is the best behaved dog on the planet when she's exhausted. And your idea of enough exercise might not be the same as the dog's. I thought a daily three mile walk would be enough for our pup, but that doesn't even come close for her needs.
Third: patience, patience and even more patience. For the past thirty years, we've had dogs that fit into our life perfectly within six months. With this one, over a year later I'm still having to train and reward. Oh, she knows exactly what to do, but I constantly have to remind her to do it.
Also important is finding out the magic bullet with that particular dog that can be used as a reward. Something that she can't resist. With mine it's food. And outside a squeaky toy will also get her attention immediately. (Be careful with squeaky things though, because the sound will usually just get a dog even more excited.) I have little bags of treats all over the house and in all my coat pockets to be available to divert her attention under any circumstance. She has to sit (or lay down) and be quiet for a bit until she gets the treat. That stops the unwanted behavior and gets her calm, at least for a minute. Use small pieces, though, because you will using a lot of them!
Pook gave you great advice about the sit/stay behavior. For your particular example, once my dog learned she would be rewarded for sitting, we did that going out and coming in the door every time. It takes time (this is where the patience part comes in), but it won't take long before your dog associates "door" with "reward". Then she will learn, "door", "sit", "stay/calm", "reward"--in that order.
As for the "Dog Whisperer" methods, I generally tend to agree with the others, but he does have some valuable basic ideas. Such as remaining calm and lots of exercise. You have to take a lot of that show with a grain of salt, it's a show. You don't see the amount of work or methods that he (and his multitude of trainers) use regularly that actually produce the desired results.
Most of all, accept the dog for itself. I learned in the first few months that this dog was not at all like the last few I'd had. It didn't mean she was a bad dog or that I loved her any less, it just meant that I had to learn how to deal with her. She has her own quirks and she also has things I've learned to overlook. Best of luck to you both!
@geezerette Excellent post. It is a good reminder to those of us with a puppy....especially a puppy that is like none other that came before them 
. Patient, calm, reward.......we're living it! (or least trying our best LOL)
@geezerette wrote:Nine days? Heck, you guys aren't even acquainted yet! I didn't realize you'd only had him for such a short time.
Does he like to play ball? I would suggest throwing a ball for him to fetch (if you haven't tried that already). I've found that wears my dog out faster than just letting her amuse herself in the yard. It also promotes the human-dog bond, as well as teaching listening and discipline.
If he has been moved around from home to home, it's just going to take him a while to associate fun and food with his new people. And much like children that are bounced from place to place, he's going to have to realize that yours is his final stop. Good for you taking on this poor guy and giving him a loving home!
@ Yes, thank God for balls and a long hallways. We could never walk Willie enough to wear him out.
He was on a dead run to me.........that's why it is blurry. We highly recommend playing ball!
@Mj12 I just clicked on it! Oh! My Goodness! You know what that was? It was where I looked up Michael Parks for someone else on the forum and it didn't clear the posts and that's how it ended up there. Thanks for the information, I'll change it but it's probably too late. It's terrible for me to do that mainly because there are people here who are scared to death to click on something and me posting something wrong doesn't help their fears. As for me, I am careful but most computers warn you if a website is not good.
Mine does anyway. If you have good security on your computer...thanks again...I owe you a lolly-POP!
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