Need some serious help with dog

[handoverfist]

I have a very hyper 7-month month old basenji mix. I try and run about 3 miles a day with her, so I don't think exercise is the problem. Some of the problems we are having with her are leash pulling, play biting, chewing, jumping on tables, scratching door when we let her in backyard, and barking. Whenever she play bites, we grab her muzzle, but this doesn't seem to alleviate the problem. Also, whenever we catch her doing something bad, we tell her no and put her into her crate for a timeout. We can never leave her loose in the house, because she gets into anything and everything. We usually leave her tied up to the end table in out living room. She also tears up any toy we give her. If the toy has stuffing in it, she will pull it all out and leave a big mess on the floor. The other day she chewed a 2 inch hole in our actual carpet. So my parents basically said to either train her right, or we have to give her away. We did the Petsmart training, but that really didn't help. We have looked into professional training, but that is costing in upwards of $900. Anyone have any advice on what to do? Thanks!

 

[AcidicFury]

Your best bet might be the pro training.

 

[djNickb]

Electroshock therapy

 

[handoverfist]

Originally posted by: djNickb
Electroshock therapy

We don't want to do the shock collar, because we don't want to hurt her....

 

[KarenMarie]

Not to be mean or anything... but a dog is a huge commitment... and a member of the family. Would your parents get rid of a hyperactive child if it was wreaking havoc in the house?

Talk to the vet, do research online... I have loads of experience with cats, but am sorry to say... not a lot with dogs. Do you have a backyard she can run around in?

Here is a google search on hyperactive dogs. But I would still ask a vet.

Good Luck, poor little doggie!

 

[Adul]

they have collars that deliver a good shock to them... 200+ bucks for one.

 

[AlienCraft]

You are expecting too much from a puppy that hasn't had consistent, proper training.
Step up to the plate, accept your responsibilities as an owner and quit complaing about items that can be replaced. Toys are going to be destroyed, doors will be scratched, but those can be replaced or repaired. Once you lose your humanity by selfishly abdicating your responsibilty, it is a long road back to it.
Get a training book, sign up for classes that ARE available, get in touch with a BASENJI owner's group, search the iNTarWeb for training tips and enjoy the lifelong companionship that is the PLUS side of pet ownership.
The negatives include picking up the poop, and them dying before you. Get used to it.

 

[Hoober]

She's a puppy, what do you expect? That sounds like pretty normal behavior for a 7month old dog. I'm not familiar with the breed, but my labrador was the same way. He mellowed out as he got older, and he's a well behaved dog. It just took some time and training and patience to get him over the puppy stages.

 

[lightpants]

You might think it is cruel, but a shock collar can work wonders if used correctly.
Just zap yourself before you put it on the dog, you will see it is just like when you rub your feet on the carpet and touch a doorknob. It enables you to correct your dog with out having to catch it first. When you chase it around, trying to catch it and discipline it, it thinks you are playing. By the time you administer the discipline the dog it doesn't know why it is being corrected. With the shock collar you can correct the dog from across the room, when it is in the act.

 

[Pathogen03]

Just a few things I noted,

Ideally:


When they play bite, jam your hand in their mouth and hold it there for a minute or so.. They learn to hate that REAL fast, and they stop trying to put things in their mouth.

dont use the crate as a time out, just get on your hands and knee's, hold the dogs head facing you, and yell at it.

Your dog WILL get older and will stop tearing everything apart as time passes.

 

[ReiAyanami]

time-out crate? the puppy doesn't know wtf that means, you have to hit it to show her you're serious.

smack the bitch on the ass (yes that is the correct term)

pinch and point at what she did wrong. -->use a dog whistle.<--

puppies are meant to be hyperactive, wait a few more months after her first b-day. as long as she doesn't poo in the wrong places, right?

 

[handoverfist]

She definately has a big backyard to run around in. I am taking responsibility for the dog, and I am not complaining about the material things. It is my parents that are, and they ultimately have the final say in wether we keep her or not. She also barks when she has to go, so I give her plus points for that

 

[maziwanka]

Originally posted by: handoverfist

Originally posted by: djNickb
Electroshock therapy

We don't want to do the shock collar, because we don't want to hurt her....

whatever you do, DO NOT GET THE SHOCK COLLAR! we had a horrible experience with that whole setup.

she's just a puppy and she's acting that way. bear with it.

 

[Hammer]

beer. it will calm the dog down and it will sleep a lot.

 

[Reel]

Try to pay more attention to your dog. I doubt the dog pulls all of the stuffing out of the toy immediately after you turn your back. You should be around your dog at such a young age and keep an eye on it. When the toy starts becoming ripped or torn, you need to take it away and put it in the trash. I have a very hyper dog too at about 5 months but if I am not home or not in the same area of the apartment as her, I will put her in the crate. I do not trust her to be alone because she might destroy things or get in places she shouldn't at this age.

 

[HonkeyDonk]

as most ppl have said already, this is how a puppy acts.

my dog was just like that when he was little and we ran across the idea of giving him away a few times, but never did. It just takes time for the puppy to learn things...and they learn one thing at a time too.

So he might stop chewing socks eventually but will still jump onto the table, etc. Just give it time, love the pup, but also keep at disciplining him. It will sink into his brain eventually.

 

[thedarkwolf]

There is a reason a lot of the dogs in pounds are around 7 months + or - 2 months in age and you are discovering it.

 

[Nitemare]

Originally posted by: handoverfist
She definately has a big backyard to run around in. I am taking responsibility for the dog, and I am not complaining about the material things. It is my parents that are, and they ultimately have the final say in wether we keep her or not. She also barks when she has to go, so I give her plus points for that

I thought basenji's did not bark.

She's a puppy, train her and show her who is the boss

 

[handoverfist]

Ya I don't think she is a true basenji, thus the barking...

 

[Emveach]

I have a pure blood basenji, and a female as well. They are one of the hardest dogs to train as they are very independent. Try a harness for walking her. A regular leash will not work on a basenji thats pulling to get to something. Shock collars also do nothing as a basenji will ignore the pain to get what it wants to get to. As far as chewing, mine also loves to tear the stuffing out of toys. No big deal, just don't buy her toys with stuffing. To keep her from chewing on things, make sure she has plenty of toys of her own to chew on, and use a spray called Grannys Bitter Apple on things you don't want her to chew. That stuff works everytime.

Play biting is something a puppy will do. If you want to break her of it, don't grab out her mouth. That's part of the game as far as she sees it. Just stop playing with her when she does it. She will learn that if she wants to play, she can't bite.

Hitting the dog is a bad choice, but if you feel it's a must, do not ever use your hand to hit her. She will come to fear what hits her and if its your hand, you will have a dog that won't trust you. Pick something that you can reuse, can keep laying around, and don't normally have on you.

One of the things I've trained my dog to do is to know when you yell, shes in trouble. The suggestion to hold her face as you tell her no is the best. If there is no way to get hold of her to yell, which is tough with a basenji, make sure that you sound mad and be loud. If my dog does something bad, I can make her stop and lay down on the floor just be yelling no in a harsh way.

It's gonna take some time, but you'll be able to get her under control if you work at it.

 

[handoverfist]

Thanks for the replies. I am still confused on what to do when she is play biting. Some ppl say to grab muzzle, while others say to turn around and ignore dog. Or is it a combination of both?

 

[lavagirl669]

I highly recommend taking her to some basic obedience training.

Classes are usually pretty reasonable and well worth it.

I took my Maltese for basic and advanced obedience, and she has none of those
problems.
Its not so much about the dog's personality, but more about the things she was allowed
to get away with and develop into habits that are obviously annoying.

People often give up, but they don't realize that they played a large part in the dog becoming
the way they are-good or bad. This is why the dog pounds end up full of unwanted pets that no
one has the patience to train or work with.

It can be reversed, just will take time, patience and effort.

Good luck!

 

[lavagirl669]

Originally posted by: handoverfist
Thanks for the replies. I am still confused on what to do when she is play biting. Some ppl say to grab muzzle, while others say to turn around and ignore dog. Or is it a combination of both?

DON'T grab her muzzle....this will only encourage the behavior.

I recommended leash behavior modification to someone with a dog problem a while back:
barking dog

 

[handoverfist]

Well, we did the petsmart puppy training... So she learned sit, down, stay. But she doesn't do it 100% of the time...

 

[Philippine Mango]

These guys are right, I feel really bad that I gave my dog away. Though we had to because the living situation we were in was not optimal. We had him for about a year (1998-1999/2000) and we felt it was hopeless. I remember when he would play bite and that didn't bother us, he was simply teething. So I put my hand in his mouth and let him teethe until he was done. He stopped doing that and we decided he couldn't live inside because he pooped on the floor and peed too many times. So we put him out side but then poop started collecting and it was just too difficult to get rid of. It was a very awful situation for him and I regret having to put him through it. So we gave him to a friend who runs on the beach daily (lives on the beach). Just feel really bad, maybe we should have put more effort into him...