Hi :)

michellegretz

michellegretz

Member
Hi I'm Michelle,new here. I decided that since my husband has started collecting dogs and expects them to train themselves, I need to do something.
I have 4 dogs 11yo lab Daisy(with us for 5), a 2 1/2yo 110lb rotti Dino(with us for 1.5), that's the size of a great dane, a 1 1/2yo 'alaskan' rescue Kane, that was wild as a pup (then in a kennel for months, his first time in a house was when we brought him home 6 months ago) and a 7month old collie/lab Bailey that we were only taking until we could find her a good home, a month ago but I've fallen in love with.
We've just moved into a big old farm house with lots of land for them to run.
I've never trained a dog myself but it is definitely time to
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michellegretz

michellegretz

Member
Daisy, Dino, Kane and Bailey.
Well I really want to work with Kane the 'alaskan' most. He's terrified of my husband. To the point where he hides if my husbands in the room. He's never hit an of them which is everyones first assumption. He's very loud with a booming voice though and comes off as aggressive but even if he's speaking softly treats in hand the dog avoids him. Bailey has issues with my hubby too she pees herself if he speaks directly to her. But she'll come to him to be pet . AndI have no clue how to change it
 
Gracegeorgina

Gracegeorgina

Experienced Member
Your dogs are beautiful! I would recommend just starting by making them sit and shake as mine learnt that fast and it got them really excited to learn.
 
Linda A

Linda A

Experienced Member
Welcome! I will be following your threads as I also have a dog who is fearful of strangers, especially men. In three years I have not found a way to get her over it.
 
k9 crazed

k9 crazed

Experienced Member
Welcome and good for you for committing yourself to change!
You might try having your husband feed the dogs if he isn't already, as well as being the dispenser of the best tings like real meat treats and stuff. He can give them to them just for approaching him at first and build up from there. remeber not to coddle them if they act afraid just be calm and non reactive.
I would start with the basics sit down, wait at the door, wait for your food. You may want to check out the book Feeling Outnumbered? It's for folks with multiple dogs. I have had 4 at a time(3 Newfs and a Smooth Collie) but we've decided our max is 3! Best of luck! There are some very knowledgeable folks round here. Plus, don't forget Youtube the all hours educator!
 
jackienmutts

jackienmutts

Honored Member
Hi and welcome!! Thanks for taking in all these pups!! They're just gorgeous!! Having your husband feed them is a good idea for starters. He who contols the food is indeed someone to befriend. :D If at all possible he should try to lower his voice just a little, especially around Kane. Kane obviously is afraid of him, so lots of work to be done there. Does Kane like treats? If so, if your husband could carry some tiny treats in his pocket and just toss Kane one when he walks by, nothing expected of him, just good stuff coming from your husband, that would be a good start. He doesn't have to say Kane's name, look at him, nothing - just toss him some little treat whenever he walks by. Doesn't matter if Kane is under or behind furniture - just have him toss a little tidbit to Kane - Kane will eventually start associating good things with your hubby. It will take time, don't expect change overnight, or even in a week - or even maybe in a month. Change will happen .. when it does.

As for Bailey peeing when he speaks to her - as hard as this might be, see if he can avoid looking directly at her when he's speaking to her. Again, that booming voice may seem very intimidating, and is causing her to submissively pee. She can't help it. I hope she's never getting in trouble for this. Please (as hard as it is) just ignore it, clean it up, and move on. It's not a housetraining issue, it's a fear thing. You may want to see if he'll start taking time to sit quietly - very quietly - on the floor and spend a little "quiet time" giving treats, soft pets, talking softly to the dogs, so they get used to a different side of him. Tell him dogs like to see that "softer, gentler" side - and they won't report him to the "macho police". :LOL: I know training husbands is sometimes a lot harder than training dogs! :ROFLMAO:

There are loads of training threads on the forum, read thru them. We love helping, so if you need any help, just ask - we're more than happy to help in any way we can. This forum promotes positive-based training methods. We reward dogs for good behavior, and ignore what we don't like. I'd recommend watching some Youtube videos by Victoria Stillwell, Kikopup, Tab, and Zak George. You can get lots of ideas on how to begin training - there are loads of videos. Victoria Stillwell has a whole series, as does Kikopup, covering just about all the basics. I'd suggest watching some, then asking questions - we're all here to help.
 
MaryK

MaryK

Honored Member
Welcome and kudos for adopting such beautiful dogs:D I was going to give the same advice as Jackie Mutts has given you. So just follow all she's said and with time your gorgeous doggies will be thinking your husbands the best thing around town, well apart from all those yummy treats of course:D
 
k9 crazed

k9 crazed

Experienced Member
Maybe not Feeling Outnumbered- I don't think it was as positive as is known to be beneficial now... Sorry, old brain!...
 
michellegretz

michellegretz

Member
Thank you all so much already! The hubby has started carrying a pocketful of treats and giving them to Kane and Bailey both when he walks by and Bailey hasn't peed herself since he started and Kane came to me to be pet last night while hubby was sitting beside me! For the first time ever! That's amazing! This might be much simpler than I was anticipating.
 
MaryK

MaryK

Honored Member
That's FANTASTIC news Michelle!!!!!!!!!!!!!:D Very happy for you and your husband! It's not hard to train using clickers and treats. Kane and Bailey will now be thinking 'hey that man with the deep voice sure is one fantastic treat dispenser, nothing scary about those treats":D
 
sara

sara

Moderator
Staff member
Welcome to the DTA!

You have already gotten fantastic advice, I can't add anything more :) I know what it's like, working with fearful dogs, but it's so worth it when they start to come around!
 
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