cheryl33 Posted December 19, 2009 Report Share Posted December 19, 2009 Hey guys Need a bit of advice about Henry, I'm getting so frustrated with him. Whilst he has never been the most obedient dog, for the most part he's pretty good. In the last few weeks his behaviour is getting quite embarrassing. The first thing, he seems to have become quite nasty on lead. He growls and barks at other dogs, trying to go for them. He shrieks at them too. The second thing is, he ignores me. He ignores me when I call him for his tea, when I call him in from the garden, when he scratches himself and today, when I let him off. Today for example, let him off on our usual walk and he toddled off in the opposite direction towards the road. I was screaming at him to stop but he carried on into the road, luckily no cars. I had to keep him on lead for the rest of the walk and then he was shreiking, growling and barking. He will sit in his basket and chew himself and bite, despite me telling him 4 or 5 times to stop. Its only when I get up to tell him stop, he stops. I havent changed his diet and he isnt on any medication. He doesn't seem stressed out by anything. Is it just old age creeping up on him? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reds Posted December 19, 2009 Report Share Posted December 19, 2009 Just to rule out the obvious, have you checked his hearing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheryl33 Posted December 19, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 19, 2009 sorry - yes, his hearing is fine. When you open the fridge, wherever he is in the house, he will dart down to the side when I say time for bed, he plods to his bed, when I tell him to sit/down for a treat he does, when I say 'where's the puppy' he chases after Molly, so his hearing is fine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
safneo Posted December 20, 2009 Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 Maybe you could start a work to earn programme with him? Make him 'work' for his dinner. Take his food out on walks, keep him on a long line and get him to return to you for his food reward, making him randomly do things around the walk and at home etc. Looking at when this behaviour started, can you pinpoint it to any changes that have happened in his life? Maybe Molly arriving, you moving etc? I wonder whether he has taken advantage of you a little when you were having a tough time and has 'learnt' to ignore you? I have one that tries just that at every opportunity! Maybe if he isnt food motivated, try with a special toy that he loves. Keep it for walks only. Is it possible for you to walk him alone, even just for one walk a day? Then you can practise getting his focus on you with other dogs around and he can learn to relax on lead. You can also assess what his behaviour is like without Molly around.I wonder if he is maybe trying to protect her on lead? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheryl33 Posted December 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 Hey Andrea, thanks for that. It's literally been the last 2 or 3 weeks. We've been down here 3 months now and I've been working shifts pretty much since I got here. He isn't very food motivated and he isn't interested in toys. Now that you have suggested I think maybe its jealously over Molly as she is so demanding? They get the same amount of walks, flyball etc but I will take him out for walks on his own x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
safneo Posted December 20, 2009 Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 (edited) Hey Andrea, thanks for that. It's literally been the last 2 or 3 weeks. We've been down here 3 months now and I've been working shifts pretty much since I got here. He isn't very food motivated and he isn't interested in toys. Now that you have suggested I think maybe its jealously over Molly as she is so demanding? They get the same amount of walks, flyball etc but I will take him out for walks on his own x Its worth a try. And its a starting point to rule out reasons for his behaviour change. Even if he isnt food orientated, he might be a bit more so if he has to work for his dinner. If he doesnt get any in a bowl and realises that he only gets it when he does as asked then it will make 'working' a whole lot more rewarding for him, which at the end of the day is why dogs do anything really. Whats in it for them! Good luck. Edited, just another thought re the ignoring thing, now that he has Molly to play with he doesnt have to pay as much attention to you? I believe that sometimes dogs build up a bond with each other to the detriment of the one with the owner, so again walking him alone sometimes will help with that if that is the case. Edited December 20, 2009 by safneo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suzeanna Posted December 22, 2009 Report Share Posted December 22, 2009 Just saw this...have you had a vet look at his skin? my daughter in law has a westie..think he's around 13 now..and he's forever getting grass seeds in his feet, ear infections, skin infections..you name it! he chews himself till he's red raw sometimes. He's got an ear infection now, that doesn't want to clear up! I gather westies are prone to it..Rhum is also deaf when he wants to be and very grumpy, but apparently he's always been a grump! They are coming up for xmas..complete with ten month old grandson and Rhum..that should be fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheryl33 Posted December 28, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 28, 2009 Hi suzeanna, his skin really good at the moment, the best it has been for years. I've walked him separately over the last few days but still nothing. He seems to be getting naughtier - only way I can describe it. Dont know what to do x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
safneo Posted December 28, 2009 Report Share Posted December 28, 2009 I cant see if you mentioned earlier, but what are you feeding him on? And have you changed the food in the last few months? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
safneo Posted December 29, 2009 Report Share Posted December 29, 2009 (edited) Just to add that a few days of walking him alone wont make too much difference. Maybe try and do training on his walk with his dinner for reward. When Neo lost trust in me due to bad training experience, I took his breakfast out on our morning walk and fed it to him all the way round in return for 'tricks'. I would give him commands (that he knew) all the way round our 'on lead' walk. Heal, sit, down, paw, front, hide, watch me etc. Each response got him a piece of kibble. He started off not really interested and after a couple of days sussed that this was how brekkie came. He did get his tea at home so he didnt starve. Eventually it got that he now loves to work and it rebuilt our bond. Maybe you could try something similar? It never hurts to spend one on one time with dogs from time to time. Edited December 29, 2009 by safneo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheryl33 Posted December 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 29, 2009 He's fed on Burns x Its difficult to motivate Henry with treats and stuff and that is due to me treating him like a baby when I first had him. He will only sit or come back when it suits him He has had a lot of upheavel the last few months - Molly arriving, moving down here and now moving again in a few days. I am going to start properly when I move to the new place, start work and get into a routine. I will try that with the food though. Will let you know how we get on xx thanks xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
safneo Posted December 29, 2009 Report Share Posted December 29, 2009 Yes, being unsettled won't help. Wait until you can get into a routine that should help calm things down a bit, then you can start working with him again. Keep us updated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheryl33 Posted March 6, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 6, 2010 Just wanted to give you an update! Things have improved tenfold since we moved and got into a routine Henry is much happier and his behaviour is getting better - he comes back to me, he doesnt ignore me and just generally seems happier Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
safneo Posted March 7, 2010 Report Share Posted March 7, 2010 Great news Cheryl,I thought it might be all the upheaval and he was possibly reacting to you being down too. Thanks for the update. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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