Your Opinions... - Page 1

OK....I didn't want to hijack the thread about the cruelty of not training...(which has taken an interesting turn anyway) not going there!
But I wanted to describe what happened this afternoon, nothing major, just a turnabout I had with our source of much frustration, Lil' Bit.
We love her, my husband treats her like his furry daughter anymore (the problem!); & for the most part she happily does anything he asks.....EXCEPT leave her sister alone.
Her sister, Ansgar, is my problem child...no real problem except that she's a passive lapdog, EXCEPT when her sister tries to eat her. With big chomps!
My husband insists that his little dog is horribly ferocious, & so also insists that I crate my other 2 dogs when Bitty is out, for their safety. Since my husband is home alone with the dogs while I'm at work, & I don't want him doing stuff that he feels is not safe when I'm not around, I concede that issue.
But my husband has been literally dragging Bitty by the collar past the other 2 dogs crates, as she snarls & lunges towards them...of course Ansgar snarls & lunges back at her, & Beckett just gets all excited & bounces around, stirring the pot.
Well, I had just had enough this afternoon! My DH always says, "She'll tear you up, Jackie..you can't handle her!" And I usually sigh & let him do his thing, but I had just HAD it with the crate fighting.
I took Bitty by the pinch collar, put her between my legs so she would feel 'protected', & made her sit right in front of Ansgars crate. After a moments struggle she realized I was having no shenanigans, & she quit her crap. And just sat there. She was rewarded with a loosened pinch, some petting, praise.....so she stayed sitting there. And Ansgar turned her back & sat down in her crate. And Beckett 'Platzed"! After a minute, we walked calmly to her crate, at the last minute I let her go free, & gave the 'crate' command, she went bouncing in, no problem. After her door was closed, she turned & let one angry bark at her sister, but stopped when I said "no".....Ansgar came out, then Beckett, no further excitement. I asked DH to take Bitty out again to see if he could do it, too; he declined for now.
So, what do I do next? Insist that DH take a turn & try to coach him? Show him a couple more times, & then just leave him to his ways? I think he likes the idea that his dog is this terrible beast that only he can tame; & I think that's awful!
See, I'm really asking how to train my husband!
jackie harris

I'd ask Beetree. 

LOL! That's it! BeeTree would know, she's had great success lately!
The sad thing is, I believed him, & went into this little experiment half expecting to get my arms chewed off, & yet it was as simple as basic discipline & reward.
I sure hope Bee can show me how to accomplish that with Carl!
jackie harris

Let your DH go lick his wounds and give him some time to recover his manhood that you dashed with your supreme feminine skills.  Then ask him to do it right with no witnesses and pretty soon it will have been his idea all along and you can bat your eyes at him as he beats his chest.

LOL DebiSue, you hit that nail on the head! I really wasn't trying to show him up....I just wanted some peace & quiet, & for him to not keep getting his legs all scratched up (he's got prosthetic knees, I worry about infections from dog scratches since he's also diabetic). And the little dog is really a nice dog, she doesn't breathe fire most of the time! Everyone else gets along very well, & while I'll never let those 2 run loose together, I expect house manners. And so should he....(shouldn't he?)
He'll get his his chance tomorrow when I'm at work.
jackie harris

Jackie, clearly you need to put the pinch collar on Carl. [JK]

Seriously, though, I don't see anything wrong with agreeing with him, yes, Bitty IS horribly ferocious...and that ferocity must be contained, the dragon must be mastered, for the good of everyone. Does he realize that when Bitty puts on that kind of display, she's also displaying just how little regard she has for his authority in such circumstances?  One's dog should respect one's authority in ALL situations, not just the ones the dog chooses.
That his little bitty Bitty girl feels free to curse at and threaten her housemates makes a strong case for her only being willing to concede to him when it suits her.

Thanks Hexe, I was toying with that collar idea!But I'll save that for another forum!

Yes, I'm not sure how to make him understand how serious this could become...I don't take foolish chances with the dogs, & that's what this equates to in my mind. I don't want to come home from work someday to find someone's ear got ripped off through the kennel wire, or worse. Nor do I want to have to see Carl go through another surgery because of an infected prosthesis!

I'll certainly keep trying, & it heartens me to see how easily correctable she really is. If only Carl were so readily reschooled.

He took her out this evening, & same ol' same ol' bringing her back in. He just moved it along a lot faster, so it was over with by the time I got to them. Then he disappeared for a while.....  This is gonna take a lot of patience.

Any guys care to share their perspective?

jackie harris

Hmmm.  Maybe you can turn this into 'teaching Ansgar & Beckett to ignore Bitty when they're crated' instead of what it really is...teaching Bitty to behave herself, too.  Have him do exactly as you did with her so 'they' learn to lie quietly in their crates?

Or....maybe you can get him to understand that by him dragging her past them in a rush, he's actually telling her that they ARE something to be on guard against, so if he continues to do that, he clearly is intending to do just that, which means these dogs will never be able to get along well.

Plus, he's hurting her when he drags her past them with the pinch on...she doesn't connect HIM with the pain, 'cause she's looking at her sister.....Bitty thinks Ansgar is the cause of her discomfort, & Carl's anxiety. I'm not going to belabor the issue tonight...I've got a couple days off coming up, I'll try just 'getting' her for him, & putting her in for him, until he offers to try again. I'll try each of these ploys, & I'll update.

Thanks very much for your input, much appreciated!

jackie harris