Could I have some dog advice please

olop

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Last year me and my husband of 10 years split up and my dog who we have owned since a pup has taken this very hard. She absolutely adored him and since he has left I have had a very difficult time managing her. She is 7 years old.

I've obviously had to change my job so she is now left at home 10 hours a day albeit I go back at lunch to let her out so its not a full 10 hours. She gets a walk for 20 minutes before and after work and she has the run of the house. Previously I only worked 20 hours a week and my ex worked from home so there was always someone around the house or she would be left for a maximum 4-5 hours at a time.

Unfortunately she has become very protective of me. When I take her for walks she viciously barks at anyone that is walking towards me until they have passed. If I go to a pub with her and sit outside and someone approaches my table she will viciously bark at them too. She seems to do it to men more than women but it is both. She is not bothered by children. If I didn't keep hold of her she would bite someone I think and I am afraid that this is going to happen at some point soon. I am at my wits end with it and I am now getting to a point where I don't want to walk her anymore.

Does anyone have any suggestions at what I can do? She is obviously a very upset dog but I cant do anything to change the situation I am in.
 

Chiffy

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So sorry about your situation. One dog living with one person can get very possessive even without the added sadness of missing your OH.
Is there any chance of a dog walker in the middle of the day, so your dog has longer out of the house and doing something. A couple of 20 minute walks each end of the day isn't much unless it's a very small dog.
At the weekends it sounds as if you need to try and sort some socialisation, with both other dogs and other people. Have you any friends who can visit or join you on a walk?
I am sure there will be others answering with some suggestions for you.
 

CorvusCorax

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Sorry you have been having a bad time.
What breed is she and what collar and lead combo are you using? It's very hard to give advice over a forum but at the moment it sounds like a self rewarding tactic. It may be that she saw your OH as the main person in your group and now that he is gone she is feeling insecure and may also be mirroring any sadness or loss or stress that you are feeling.
So she gets stressed/unprotected and barks and will think that when the person has backed off or passed by 'job done, the scary thing has gone away'. I would see if you could find a trainer who will help with real world socialization and obedience who will help you teach the dog that other people are not scary and when they are ignored, good things happen.
Until then I would consider a muzzle but make sure it is properly introduced (there are videos online)

If you don't have loads of time for walks in the evening then I'd look into brain training games you can play with her around the house to keep her occupied.
I don't know what your hours/circumstances are but I worked long hours with a commute either side, I ate breakfast and dinner in the office and got a head torch and tabard and made sure my dogs for walked or drove them somewhere well lit. It was a pain but ok in the short term.
 

AmyMay

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Please get a dog walker or send her to doggy day care.

You are out for 10 hours a day and probably sleep for 7 - so your dog essentially has 17 hours a day on it's own.

20 mins each end of the day can't possibly be enough for her - so that, coupled with lack of company must be proving incredibly stressful for her.

Edt: Looking at your other posts I see your dog is a staffie - a particularly social and energetic breed.
 
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twiggy2

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I would guess the dogs unwanted behaviours are more to do with being left so much combined with a lack of exercise than your ex not being about.
How much exercise did she get before?
 

MotherOfChickens

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I wonder if something like BorrowMyDoggy could be of use to you OP? maybe worth investigating-agree that your dog probably needs a bit more company/stimulation.

I have a local FB group for people to meet up for dog walks or if you can, a local dog training class of some sort might be fun for both of you. scentwork and cani-hike (or cani-cross if you like running) is good for all sorts of dogs and we have reactive dogs at both classes. scent work games are easily done for 10/15mins in the home and will help her focus and relax afterwards.
 

Equi

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Sorry to hear of your marriage break down but agree that the dog needs a lot more exercise and a lot more company. Staffordshires don't do well with no contact and exercise - 40mins a day on a lead is not enough mentallly or physically. Does your oh still work from home? Might be awkward as **** but if he was willing to have the dog during the day it could help the problem ? Failing that day care but I know many won't really take a staff esp if she's showing aggression.
 

olop

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So sorry about your situation. One dog living with one person can get very possessive even without the added sadness of missing your OH.
Is there any chance of a dog walker in the middle of the day, so your dog has longer out of the house and doing something. A couple of 20 minute walks each end of the day isn't much unless it's a very small dog.
At the weekends it sounds as if you need to try and sort some socialisation, with both other dogs and other people. Have you any friends who can visit or join you on a walk?
I am sure there will be others answering with some suggestions for you.

My next door neighbour goes in on the days I cant get back from work and she spends about an hour with her......unfortunately whilst on a walk with her a few days ago we bumped in to her and Honey decided to do her barking and my neighbour is now not keen to go in which is understandable :(

Sorry you have been having a bad time.
What breed is she and what collar and lead combo are you using? It's very hard to give advice over a forum but at the moment it sounds like a self rewarding tactic. It may be that she saw your OH as the main person in your group and now that he is gone she is feeling insecure and may also be mirroring any sadness or loss or stress that you are feeling.
So she gets stressed/unprotected and barks and will think that when the person has backed off or passed by 'job done, the scary thing has gone away'. I would see if you could find a trainer who will help with real world socialization and obedience who will help you teach the dog that other people are not scary and when they are ignored, good things happen.
Until then I would consider a muzzle but make sure it is properly introduced (there are videos online)

If you don't have loads of time for walks in the evening then I'd look into brain training games you can play with her around the house to keep her occupied.
I don't know what your hours/circumstances are but I worked long hours with a commute either side, I ate breakfast and dinner in the office and got a head torch and tabard and made sure my dogs for walked or drove them somewhere well lit. It was a pain but ok in the short term.

Yes is a staffordshire bull terrier crossed with a jack russell. I use just a standard lead and collar combo, the lead is very long though and she can walk quite far in front of me on it its almost as long as a retractable one.

Please get a dog walker or send her to doggy day care.

You are out for 10 hours a day and probably sleep for 7 - so your dog essentially has 17 hours a day on it's own.

20 mins each end of the day can't possibly be enough for her - so that, coupled with lack of company must be proving incredibly stressful for her.

Edt: Looking at your other posts I see your dog is a staffie - a particularly social and energetic breed.

She has been tried in doggy day care and attacked a few of the other dogs so I was told that I wasnt to bring her back and they also suggested that doggy day care is not the right thing for her because of her aggression unfortunately.

I would guess the dogs unwanted behaviours are more to do with being left so much combined with a lack of exercise than your ex not being about.
How much exercise did she get before?

I only worked part time before and she used to spend every afternoon at the yard with me and I would hack out with her and my boy so we used to go for miles :( Unfortunately I dont have the horse anymore so I am no longer able to do that.

How sad .
I think doggy day care or a walker is likely to be the answer .

See above - I was asked not to bring her back to doggy day care and I dont think I can trust a stranger going in to walk her at the moment.

I wonder if something like BorrowMyDoggy could be of use to you OP? maybe worth investigating-agree that your dog probably needs a bit more company/stimulation.

I have a local FB group for people to meet up for dog walks or if you can, a local dog training class of some sort might be fun for both of you. scentwork and cani-hike (or cani-cross if you like running) is good for all sorts of dogs and we have reactive dogs at both classes. scent work games are easily done for 10/15mins in the home and will help her focus and relax afterwards.

I'm in Essex are you local? I would like to join a dog walking group as I do have weekends free.

Dog walker, sweet. Haven't heard from you for ages. I'm sorry to hear this, hope you're ok.

Thanks hun - I'm good thanks, over it now just worrying about my little pooch!

Sorry to hear of your marriage break down but agree that the dog needs a lot more exercise and a lot more company. Staffordshires don't do well with no contact and exercise - 40mins a day on a lead is not enough mentallly or physically. Does your oh still work from home? Might be awkward as **** but if he was willing to have the dog during the day it could help the problem ? Failing that day care but I know many won't really take a staff esp if she's showing aggression.

He moved away up north so that is not an option and unfortunately I moved away with him because of his job so none of my family are nearby to help me out. I have a handful of friends but they all work so I am not able to ask them either :(

Thank you for all of your replies appreciate it. I did take her to an aggressive dog class a few months back but they said it was a training issue more than an aggression issue which I didnt think was right as the dog is good as gold at home and as I said I used to be able to hack her out with my boy and she knew all the commands, I wouldn't have been able to do that if I had a training issue.
 

AmyMay

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It may be that you have to make a decision ultimately between the horse or the Dog then, if a walker or day care is not an option.
 

MotherOfChickens

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I am not local to you but it might be worth looking for groups near you on FB. We have a Dog Socialisation walking group and there are lots of breed specific ones.

I think maybe you took the training issue comment the wrong way. It is a training issue in that you can train him out of it (or learn to deal with it), it doesn't mean he's not trained in other ways. I do urge you to get help with a trainer for this reactivity as this could quickly become a situation whereby you can't take him anywhere.
 

CorvusCorax

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Most dogs are good as gold at home and when not subjected to stress. It's when dogs are subjected to stress (like us humans when we are placed in stressful situations) that you see what's really in their heads. It IS a training issue in that you need to help her deal with what she finds stressful and teach her that other people are OK.

I'd see if you could join a walking or training group, it would give you a whole new leash of life and a new (if slightly mad) social circle. My reactive dog improved no end with tracking training.
 

olop

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It may be that you have to make a decision ultimately between the horse or the Dog then, if a walker or day care is not an option.

The horse has already gone as I couldnt afford to keep him anymore. I didnt have an option with the dog as my ex-husband walked out on us.

I am not local to you but it might be worth looking for groups near you on FB. We have a Dog Socialisation walking group and there are lots of breed specific ones.

I think maybe you took the training issue comment the wrong way. It is a training issue in that you can train him out of it (or learn to deal with it), it doesn't mean he's not trained in other ways. I do urge you to get help with a trainer for this reactivity as this could quickly become a situation whereby you can't take him anywhere.

I have some numbers for some trainers in the area but a lot of them only work during the week which is really annoying and course I cant do as I work such long hours.

I would definitely like to join a socialisation group though so I will check out what I can find on facebook. I've contacted a few of my friends to see if they would be happy to come on walks with me so she can meet people/other dogs that way.

I see what you mean with the training comment, they didnt want her in the aggressive dog group though and wanted me to join in with the normal training classes which I wasn't very happy to do at the time because of the way she was reacting.
 

olop

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Most dogs are good as gold at home and when not subjected to stress. It's when dogs are subjected to stress (like us humans when we are placed in stressful situations) that you see what's really in their heads. It IS a training issue in that you need to help her deal with what she finds stressful and teach her that other people are OK.

I'd see if you could join a walking or training group, it would give you a whole new leash of life and a new (if slightly mad) social circle. My reactive dog improved no end with tracking training.

Thank you - I will definitely look in to joining a walking group :)
 

MotherOfChickens

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I see what you mean with the training comment, they didnt want her in the aggressive dog group though and wanted me to join in with the normal training classes which I wasn't very happy to do at the time because of the way she was reacting.

a reactive dog isn't necessarily excluded from training and they generally improve when in a class and doing a job. (I don't go to ringside/obedience type classes though) As long as everyone is clued up. we have reactive dogs in all the classes I attend and its a non issue. in fact the cani-sports are ideal for energetic, reactive types. I'd also look at borrowmydoggy, you never know-there may be someone desperate for some dog company nearby who could be perfect for him. there's a cani-sports Colchester group that also do cani-walking, cani-cross people are all pretty nice ime.
 

CorvusCorax

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Honestly, any good, experienced trainer won't care about barking, they'll have seen it all before.
The idea is that the dog will be so engaged/pre-occupied that she'll not be bothered at barking at anything.
 

Kaylum

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So my rescue dog was reactive to other dogs and barked continuously when we started dog training classes in an enclosed hall. Not nice for me or her, had her since February and she is not really a foody but does not mind chicken. The first ever class I went on my own for the first session as that is what you need to do to talk about your dog. So the next week we went with the dogs and she started barking barking barking barking so I started distracting her with her high value food (the only thing she is interested in) chicken. I realised my dog was actually nervous rather than aggressive. The next week we went barking barking distracting, the week after barking distracting and so on. In between the classes we have been walking off the lead with a non reactive dog who is not interested in her. This gave her confidence.

At the sametime as the dog training classes (which are actually owner training classes) we started flyball, which required energy focus and bonding. She went from running out of the arena on the first training session to going over the jumps collecting the ball and running back without nets, with dogs running next to her.

Last week we went on to a crowded beach with dogs running around her and children playing she ignored them, focused on her tennis ball and had a fantastic time.

My point is you have to put work to help your dog and training classes aren't only for dogs/owner who don't need help in fact they are for those that need help.

She also gets walked off the lead as much as possible. They need interaction and attention and focus.

The most important thing in her life is YOU and it is YOU not the dog that needs to learn how to cope and help her. Believe me I could have cried at those times when I felt disappointed about how she was getting stressed but you are taught how to cope with the situations.
 
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ester

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A lot of people that dog walk around me seem to do training too so I wouldn't write that off as an option as they would know how to handle it correctly?
 

olop

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a reactive dog isn't necessarily excluded from training and they generally improve when in a class and doing a job. (I don't go to ringside/obedience type classes though) As long as everyone is clued up. we have reactive dogs in all the classes I attend and its a non issue. in fact the cani-sports are ideal for energetic, reactive types. I'd also look at borrowmydoggy, you never know-there may be someone desperate for some dog company nearby who could be perfect for him. there's a cani-sports Colchester group that also do cani-walking, cani-cross people are all pretty nice ime.

Honestly, any good, experienced trainer won't care about barking, they'll have seen it all before.
The idea is that the dog will be so engaged/pre-occupied that she'll not be bothered at barking at anything.

So my rescue dog was reactive to other dogs and barked continuously when we started dog training classes in an enclosed hall. Not nice for me or her, had her since February and she is not really a foody but does not mind chicken. The first ever class I went on my own for the first session as that is what you need to do to talk about your dog. So the next week we went with the dogs and she started barking barking barking barking so I started distracting her with her high value food (the only thing she is interested in) chicken. I realised my dog was actually nervous rather than aggressive. The next week we went barking barking distracting, the week after barking distracting and so on. In between the classes we have been walking off the lead with a non reactive dog who is not interested in her. This gave her confidence.

At the sametime as the dog training classes (which are actually owner training classes) we started flyball, which required energy focus and bonding. She went from running out of the arena on the first training session to going over the jumps collecting the ball and running back without nets, with dogs running next to her.

Last week we went on to a crowded beach with dogs running around her and children playing she ignored them, focused on her tennis ball and had a fantastic time.

My point is you have to put work to help your dog and training classes aren't only for dogs/owner who don't need help in fact they are for those that need help.

She also gets walked off the lead as much as possible. They need interaction and attention and focus.

The most important thing in her life is YOU and it is YOU not the dog that needs to learn how to cope and help her. Believe me I could have cried at those times when I felt disappointed about how she was getting stressed but you are taught how to cope with the situations.

A lot of people that dog walk around me seem to do training too so I wouldn't write that off as an option as they would know how to handle it correctly?

Thanks for all of your replies - I have rallied round all of my friends who have dogs and three times a week we are going to do some socialising together so she gets to go out with other dogs. I just need to join a training class now, hopefully that will help us out :)
 

HNHBenK

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Please get a dog walker or send her to doggy day care.

You are out for 10 hours a day and probably sleep for 7 - so your dog essentially has 17 hours a day on it's own.

20 mins each end of the day can't possibly be enough for her - so that, coupled with lack of company must be proving incredibly stressful for her.

Edt: Looking at your other posts I see your dog is a staffie - a particularly social and energetic breed.

I have to agree to get a walker/career mid day is the best idea or even better a family member your dog already know
 

eatmyshorts

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Sorry to hear of your troubles :-(

Echo MoC comments re finding a local dog walking or canicross group. Apart from immediate benefits, this will allow to you & your dog to possibly meet contacts who might be able to help out later while you are at work. Generally speaking, dogs working in harness use approx 4 times as much energy as one just walking/running, so if you are pushed for time in the morning, a 15min canicross would utilise it well (I know loads of staffies who love canisports).
 
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