Having Problems...Help

People were crying over staffies being dumped and PTS just a couple of days ago. Here's a rescue staff cross in a family home, it's not ideal, the OP has asked for help and the rescues are full to bursting without another one being bumped back.

I understand why people are frustrated by this post, I am, but we can either offer help or scare the OP off. Come on EK, I know you are a bully person, if rehoming is seen as an option by the OP, I am sure you would be the first to offer help.
 
Is there a spare stable at the yard or would they let you set up a run-would mean a bit of stimulation and space!
 
OK OP, so as you know it's not ideal to leave a dog for that long, so let's not go over that again.

What distractions does she have in the crate, in the way of kongs / bones etc?

What can she hear - do you leave the radio on?

Henry doesn't like being left either - normally I don't need to leave him, but if I have to go into London for the day he can be on his own for as much as 7 hours (not crated, shut in the kitchen but with his crate door open and anything he could destroy removed!). On these days I will:
  • Make sure he has had a long walk before I go
  • Leave him with a long lasting treat like a raw bone or a frozen kong
  • Leave the radio on (Classic FM, as the music is more relaxing)
  • Get someone to come in and walk him if possible

I think you might have to suck it up and try and stretch to afford a dog walker - is there any way for you to make a bit of extra cash to help? Maybe some home work in the evenings?
 
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She is either finding it hard to hold or she is becoming stressed at some stage during the day, there is a solution, but I don't like the sound of giving it and her still being locked up for 8 hours (that is not acceptible) and im not having a go (you clearly know this yourself) you need to down size the crate, as believe it or not placing a dog in an over sized crate will make the dog (esp in this scenario) more prone to pass motions) the crate gives her room to pace and stress and , I know people think big crate and room to walk around, but crates are for (short) periods for a well exercised dog to allow it to be safe and sleep not as an inddor run! they are no replacement for exercise space, so no point in thinking of them like that.

If you cannot afford the £160 fair enough, but surely you could maybe compromise at half and have her walked half of the week and make sure you come home long enough to walk her and stay late at work on those other days?
Im not sure an outside kennel is the answer, she may indeed be noisy (is she a staff?) apologies if not, but they are obs highly sociable animals and they can create holy hell if they have never been placed in a kennel and escape very easily:rolleyes: and esp on their own.

Why is she crated? is she destructive or suffer seperation issues?
 
EK your comments are a bit of a waste of time and help nobody but thanks anyway.

there is a kennel at the yard that is used for people who need somewhere to put there dogs when thay are there and i have thought of putting her there through the day but again i doubt my YO would be happy with a barking dog all day? and she woudl be on her own.

through the day in her crate she has a fresh bone from the butchers (i get her one every week) and her teddy. I dont give her her ball as that is her 'walk toy' and i imagine that she woudl just get bored with it really quickly? her walk in the morning is about 40mins which is spent pretty much in the field up by my house with her running riot whe whole time and then at night she will either go up the forest for a couple fo hours or out with my OH and the mountain bike for about an hour sometimes less depending on how tired she gets. weekends she can be out on the hill for up to 8 hours.

i have been thinking about this on the way home (thank you for your thoughts and suggestions you have all really gave me some food for thought and made me realise that i really do need to make changes) and i think that i will come home at lunch time and take her out i only get an hour and 40 mins of that will be used travelling but if i take her in the car i can take her straight to the field for 20mins run around whilst i eat my lunch? and im going to put some feelers out and see if anybody at the yard knows of anyone who would be interested in a spot of dog walking as that would be the ideal answer (or my OH could finally agree to me being a lady of lesiure then she would never be left alone!)

edited to answer your last question Cayla, yes she is destructive she chewed a hole through the wall to the outside cavity, ate her way through the kitchen door, broke into the living room and ate the couch and destroyed it (we thought we had been burgled) this all happened just after we got her which was why she was re-crated and she settled for a long time so i thought i would try her out the crate again and gave her run of the kitchen but she soon lapsed and started messing every day so i thought that this was due to her haveing too much room so i put her back into the crate and again she was fine for a long time but over the last few months she has started messing again (in the crate) not every day but mayb a couple of days/week?
 
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I know a lot of people let their dogs hoon in the field, I do to, and that is fine when time is tight, but driven exercise like biking or jogging, even on alternative days, will tire her more.
 
I do get where your coming from one of our dogs is crated at night and occassionally through the day (in the day if no ones home because we have cats and they come and go as they please. At night because she can be grumpy and likes the bed to herself which upsets the other dog).

They are walked at least 3 times a day by me or my parents (Uni days are only 1/2 days and I work at night) if she has to go in the crate during the day as well as at night then on top of her morning walk they play ball. When we get back they go straight out for a walk, a game and some quality time (possibly some obedience training). They also have the occassional agility session and trips to Uni (walks, socialisation and training session with lecturer). I don't have a full time job and am lucky that some areas of Uni allow dogs. Have never used dog walkers or left them with family/friends but it's worth looking into.
 
I would be lengthening that morning walk, as you need her really tired during the day - sorry, earlier mornings needed! Tired puppies are good puppies - a 40 min walk is a normal little stroll for Henry and certainly not one that would tire him out.

Re the crate - in the short-term, to ease any clean-up, I would start saving all your newspapers and lining the crate with a good layer. Also, invest in beds with removable fleece covers - pets at home do them, the covers dry out in a flash. If you get two, you can have one to use while the other is washing and drying.

Whip out the soiled papers, bung the bedding in the washing machine, wipe the bottom of the crate with an anti-bacterial floorwipe, put a new layer of paper down and the spare bed in - done.

She might be getting bored of her bone, so a kong could be good - you can change the fillings regularly and freezing it overnight makes it last far longer.

However as you say, ultimately you do need to make changes so she is not left for so long at a time.

Good luck.
 
I have re-read my post and feel a bit bad for sounding harsh. Sorry, I just kinda got a bit wound up.
Hats off to you for sticking with her after she has trashed your house, you must be some diplomat to placate your oh after those episodes. Also for recognising that things aren't ideal and asking for a bit of help.

I don't think a teenager walking her is a great idea, i think people see dogs like her with a youngster (unless they were late teens perhaps) and get a bit worried. Also given her breeding she will be rather strong.
There must be someone at the yard or local that isn't working and would appreciate an extra few quid a week to walk her, especially if it is someone nearby who would be walking their own dog. 2 are as easy as 1 really and sometimes better as they exercise each other. Watch though, i had someone who was supposed to help me with my dogs for a few weeks (lot's of years ago) and i found out she was sitting around my house drinking my coffee with her boyfriend and running up my phone bill!
Could you maybe put an ad up in the post office. Maybe there is someone who would appreciate doing it in return for a bit of help with walking their dog at the weekends or something.

Also can you or your oh get up a bit early and give her at least 45 mins in the morning or maybe half hour with the bike to really tire her.

Would she maybe go out in the run outside if your older dog was there too?
 
Actually folks it was said tongue in cheek..I`ll put a label on it next time for you.Changes need to be made,this dog is underexercised mentally obviously;ALSO,a constructive suggestion,feed raw food..you will find the hyper-overactivity will very likely disappear.However,eight hours crated and then poss another period of the same length while you sleep..not acceptable.
Part of it is non stimuli and the other part is having her human pack gone;`fraid you`ll just have to find someone to help you out ,paid or not,as it is a staffie mix(?) rehoming may not be an option anyway.
 
Just seen this thread, nothing I can say that hasn't been said already

HOWEVER, OP whereabouts are you in Scotland? I've got trustworthy dog-walking contacts all over the place :) PM me if you're interested.
 
ok so update...had her out the cage last night and she slept in the kitchen, so hopefully going forward this will happen every night now as long as she doesnt try to kill the kitchen again (to be honest there aint much left for her to eat, shes even had the floor up) had her out with the bike this morning so a much more constructive walk as opposed to running round like a lunatic. It was quite funny last night actually as she went away into her crate with her teddy and was looking at me like...eh why are you asking me to go into the kitchen. I am speaking to my boss today about getting home for lunch times and got a kong on order from t'internet for a change from her bone.

So! hopefully this will sort out my problems, again thank you very much for not ripping me to shreds and giving me some honest constuctive advice/opinions.
 
Just a couple of odd thoughts that might help:

- during lunch, if you have limited time, try doing some obedience with her. As long as she gets morning and evening physical exercise, she may actually find it more tiring to stimulate her brain during lunch. 20 mins of obedience, doing fun tricks, etc. may just be enough to calm her down a bit.

- when you say she soils, is it wee or poo or both? It might be worth having a chat with your vet to see if there is any physical reason. B was a very difficult dog to toilet train, and the one most prone to weeing accidents for years, until at 11 she started having obvious incontinence, was put on medication and has not had an accident in 18 months - makes me think there might have been a problem there all along.

- if she soils in a cycle, is there anything that triggers it? Could something be happening while you are away, e.g. noise, or upset of some kind? Is there anything that matches the cycle of her soiling, e.g. bin collection? If the soiling is stress related she may improve with a DAP diffuser/collar - they don't cost much and work well with some dogs so may be worth a try.

Good luck!
 
booboos - I understand what you're saying but I really think it's purely the fact that this dog is expected to hold herself for 8 hours in a crate that is causing her to mess.

OP - thanks for the update, fingers crossed she respects your kitchen now. If she can have a bit of freedom from her crate that's fab!

I really think if you can commit to letting her out for a toilet break and a bit of a play every lunchtime, she'll relax and be a different dog. Then you and your OH can look forward to coming home to her and you'lll have a happy little dog.

Well done for asking for help and making changes :)

P.S: Got any pics of her???????
 
I agree that keeping a dog in a crate for 8 hours during the day is far from ideal and could well be the cause of the problems, I just thought other people had made that point, OP had taken it onboard, so I didn't have anything to add to it. I do think the physical health aspect is worth looking into, it's just a visit to the vet afterall, along with the lifestyle changes OP could introduce with the dog walker, etc.
 
Booboos said:
I agree that keeping a dog in a crate for 8 hours during the day is far from ideal and could well be the cause of the problems, I just thought other people had made that point, OP had taken it onboard, so I didn't have anything to add to it. I do think the physical health aspect is worth looking into, it's just a visit to the vet afterall, along with the lifestyle changes OP could introduce with the dog walker, etc.
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Agreed :) Sorry, didn't mean to sound like I was dismissing this.
 
mollichop said:
Agreed :) Sorry, didn't mean to sound like I was dismissing this.
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You didn't sound like that at all!!

It's just that I was surprised that B's weeing seemed to have had a physical cause all her life, I had assumed it was a training issue all along, so it's worth checking out amongst everything else.
 
Nothing to add thats not been said already really but I am assuming the dog is more staffie than bulldog as my bulldog would sleep for ever if he could and is very lazy so not looking for lots of exercise.

What I would say if full credit to the OP. Here is someone who has got caught up in a situation that is not ideal ( but lets face it she's not the only one with home alone dogs, there must be loads out there ) and it is clear she cares about the dog and getting the problem resolved.

There has been some really useful advice from people here and I'm sure solutions can be found for both dog and owner.

My quick fire solutions would be. Not crate the dog overnight, I feel its isolating.
Take her for a long run in the morning so she snoozes in the morning, either the OP or a walker arrive at lunch time for a run and company and then a good walk in the evening. At the moment it doesn't sound like the OP is spending time with her ie. out at work all day and asleep all night.

Good luck I'm sure with a bit of re-organisation things will get better for you both. xx
 
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