House rules for your dogs?

Cahill

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my rottie has free range but is very well behaved.he usually sits on his own settee quietly and you hardly know he`s here.he sleeps on the bed because we have no upstairs heating (for our benefit lol) he has a good lot of exercise in the morning so is chilled out for the rest of the day x
 

RobinHood

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Not allowed on the sofa. Being a lurcher he struggles with this so I keep a chair on top of it!

Not allowed in my room without permission, which would only be if he's sick/injured or a thunderstorm.

Tbh he's out in the yard with me all day so only in the house overnight. He tends to get straight on his bed and not move until the next morning.

Before he was a full time yard dog he used to sleep on my bed. Absolutely no chance now unless he'd had a very thorough bath!
 

Spring Feather

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My dogs are outside dogs with indoor/outdoor access 24/7. Their dog room is right next to our kitchen and if they want they can come inside but only one of the young ones ever comes in without being asked. My older dogs wouldn't ever come in without being invited; they are just very polite dogs and always wait for direction where the house is concerned. If there's a thunder storm they all ask to come in, and are cordially invited. Once they are in, they are allowed anywhere downstairs. Most of them are huge dogs and wouldn't go upstairs even if you tried to make them. They are allowed to lie on the sofas if they wish and 4 of them will; my little border collie always snuggles with me on my sofa. The other 2 always lie on the floor on the rug for some reason. None of them will look at us if we are eating and none beg or dribble. Mine are outside on the farm with me all day and they are my entourage; wherever I am on the farm, you will always find 6 dogs very close by.
 

MissSBird

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Not allowed upstairs - our last boy Nevis never had an issue with it, but we've had to get a babygate to enforce it with Lui, and if you don't shut it properly he'll have it open and sneak up.

Not allowed on the furniture without permission and must immediately get off when asked.

No food from human plates/must not eat food left on a low table unattended. He does hang around whilst we're eating, but I put that down to his general preference to be near the family and, as long as he doesn't pester us at all, he's allowed to be nearby.

Tug of war is a favourite game of Lui's, but every game ends with the 'leave' command which is always obeyed.

No tugging when walking on the leash - kind of important with a bear (even a little one!).

Must wait for permission before jumping out the boot of the car. Though this is a bit of a work in progress with Lui. He knows the idea but he gets so excited about trips that all sense seems to fall out of his head - this is the dog that tried to jump into the car before I'd even got the boot open once and smacked himself hard off the back of the car.

That's about it really, other than expecting general good manners of don't get in the way and don't be a pest.
 

_GG_

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Um, 4 dogs, not allowed in the kitchen and never have been. They are allowed on the sofas if we ask them up, but they're not allowed to just jump up when they feel like it. They're not allowed near us when we are eating so have learned to just leave the room and lie down...but they always reappear the moment we finish and we still haven't worked out how they know :)

On walks, if there is a gap in a hedge or we're going past or through a gateway, they are not allowed to be anywhere but behind us (because we can't see around corners or through hedges so it keeps us in control). They are not allowed out of sight, but they generally never go more than 100yards away from us.

Same as MissBird, we just expect these manners/behaviours. We don't shut doors to keep them out of the kitchen, they just know their not allowed.
 

Auslander

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Must stay in the boot when in the car
10518699_10152641692160730_8018794518778352498_n.jpg

Must not chew my stuff
10171218_10152718673740730_2646865088052502257_n.jpg

Must not get on the sofa
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Must not distract me when I'm working
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Must not use human crockery
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Must not go upstairs
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Must not get on beds
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I think the training is going very well!
 

Enfys

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Auslander :D I love red setters :)

House rules for mine?

None, because they are not house dogs (GSDs)
Born and raised outside they will occasionally ask to come into the basement if there is a storm but within 5 minutes they are overheating and asking to go out again. They just are not happy indoors.

Unfortunately, much as I would love to have cats and dogs in the house, I simply can't because within minutes my husband would be a wheezy, red and runny eyed, sneezing mess :(
 

Bellasophia

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Auslander...your post gave me a grin and you and your dog look so happy ....onwards and upwards!
my two sleep in our bed,use the sofà,and are allowed free range of the house...yet i think they are well trained. they dont mob visitors,Dont beg food,dont pull on lead ,dont dig up my garden and are social with other dogs.I can live with that.
 

Auslander

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Auslander...your post gave me a grin and you and your dog look so happy ....onwards and upwards!
my two sleep in our bed,use the sofà,and are allowed free range of the house...yet i think they are well trained. they dont mob visitors,Dont beg food,dont pull on lead ,dont dig up my garden and are social with other dogs.I can live with that.

He's the same - doesn't beg, doesn't annoy people, doesn't cause any trouble, and he's a lovely, happy, smiley dog. Not bad really, considering that a year ago, he was a snarling, snapping, hatrack, who'd never known what being a family member was all about! He's still a bit anxious about stuff, but he's a different dog from when the one that came off the boat from Ireland!
 

NellRosk

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My dogs don't really have rules... *hides face* They have access to all the house/ all the furniture. The only thing I can't abide is them being on the sofa if I'm being a slob and eating my tea on it so they get shoved down then. But apart from that they're just little human dogs who sleep in my bed with me (great source of heating in the winter!). Unless the bf is round haha!
 

Dizzle

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He's not allowed on the bed (until OH goes to work then he comes in for a snuggle before I have to feed the baby :D), oh and he's not allowed to lick the baby, which he seems to have got the hang of quite quickly.
 

Overread

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Hmm rules and husky don't seem to go together well for us.

General things:
1) No going upstairs - enforced when young with a small gate, now no gate and she's mostly good about that. She tends to come up only when the cat does (because cats are the enemy and must be chased) but is good at coming back down. Other times she'll come all the way up to follow me (I think I gave her one too many treats - she even has a 6th sense for when I'm making a sandwich - she is, however, good at eating up the fatty bits of ham I don't eat).

2) Don't hurt the cat - yeah that rule is never really obeyed.

3) Don't jump up at the table - mostly follows this rule well, however it was a disaster early on; dog trainer (used to labradors) tried to teach her not to jump up with treats and the clicker method (I never understood that). So one time she jumped up - pushed down, told down then click and treat. So she did it again - and click and treat again - so she worked out if 2 paws on the table means one treat - all 4 paws on the table must mean even more treats (said dog trainer didn't last too long ;)).
Though that said she mostly never jumps up (unless you leave sausages, ham, beef, chicken, lamb, or such unattended!). She will semi-often jump up and sit on one of the chairs like us (clearly waiting for her plate of food - not that its ever appeared).

4) Don't run off whilst on walkies
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Still working on that one (though she was fine - haltie came off but collar stayed on - she was also mostly protesting at wanting to continue digging up the mole/vole/shrew in the ground than continuing on)


5) er yeah that's most it for rules. Most no-go areas are fenced up pretty well (took a few trials and errors and if a pheasant is on the perimeter fence she can still bust through that to go get them). She'll also dart out of the gate if that is left open (that was more a case of training certain family members to check the front door is locked with husky on the inside before opening the gate and driving up); and like most huskies once she's got a run under her paws she's off.


Lovely dog, really affectionate, never bitten anyone (nearly bit the vet once though but when you've an ear infection that really hurts and someone starts pushing things in your ear - even when you tell them not to - well its understandable) but training is a mythological term for her mostly. Although saying that as she's gotten older she's got better at coming inside when called in from the garden.

Always had downstairs and outdoor access most of the day.
 

AmyMay

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He's the same - doesn't beg, doesn't annoy people, doesn't cause any trouble, and he's a lovely, happy, smiley dog. Not bad really, considering that a year ago, he was a snarling, snapping, hatrack, who'd never known what being a family member was all about! He's still a bit anxious about stuff, but he's a different dog from when the one that came off the boat from Ireland!

What a lucky dog to have found you. Brilliant photos. Especially the 'sofa' one.
 

_GG_

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He's the same - doesn't beg, doesn't annoy people, doesn't cause any trouble, and he's a lovely, happy, smiley dog. Not bad really, considering that a year ago, he was a snarling, snapping, hatrack, who'd never known what being a family member was all about! He's still a bit anxious about stuff, but he's a different dog from when the one that came off the boat from Ireland!

*Ahem*

I feel I have a duty to portray the truth of the matter here! I can say, without any cause for hesitation, that the dog is an absolute terror. Not only did he see me as a rather comfortable pillow, but also a toy and later on, my legs were apparently a great substitute for a towel!!!

Granted, I may have played a small part (if you consider saying, "alright monkey, come on then" while patting my thigh to be inviting) in him using me as a pillow, but the rest was all him. He also brought about a very rare and unusual sight for Auslander! Not many people have seen me run...she has, and I pity her for it and hope she has recovered fully!

;)
 
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MotherOfChickens

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He's the same - doesn't beg, doesn't annoy people, doesn't cause any trouble, and he's a lovely, happy, smiley dog. Not bad really, considering that a year ago, he was a snarling, snapping, hatrack, who'd never known what being a family member was all about! He's still a bit anxious about stuff, but he's a different dog from when the one that came off the boat from Ireland!

mine is a red setter, he's a lovely dog and yours looks fab. I take it yours is from working lines as he has rather less coat than mine, would love to get one like that next time around :)
 

Charmin

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We have two little ones, a border terrier and a dachshund x whippet, all rules go to pot. They beg, steal lap space, sneak onto furniture and wriggle into beds. But they sleep in the kitchen on their bed, never upstairs.

They're not allowed to chase the cat but now she chases them...

When we had the GSD's they were a lot stricter, not allowed upstairs or on sofas, no jumping up or mithering etc.
 

Auslander

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mine is a red setter, he's a lovely dog and yours looks fab. I take it yours is from working lines as he has rather less coat than mine, would love to get one like that next time around :)

Yep - he's a working setter (the irony of that statement makes me laugh!) Much smaller, and less flowing hair to deal with! We ran into a posse of show setters out walking once, and the difference was quite marked. He's a bit skinny anyway, but he looked like a real waif next to them!
 

MotherOfChickens

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Yep - he's a working setter (the irony of that statement makes me laugh!) Much smaller, and less flowing hair to deal with! We ran into a posse of show setters out walking once, and the difference was quite marked. He's a bit skinny anyway, but he looked like a real waif next to them!

mines from show lines and is oversize :) super dog but would prefer one a bit smaller with less hair next time around-dont see many working strains over here mind and OH will not have a rescue.
 

blackcob

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No rules in our house really. We all pile up on the sofas, they're welcome on the bed when I am in it (but not when OH is also in it but only for reasons of practicality, 2 x humans and 2 x sibes can't fit in a standard double) and they hang around while we eat.

Morning:

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Evening:

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Work hard, snooze hard. :p
 

Overread

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Lovely pair of huskies there Black!

And yeah ours sleeps on the armchair too (she's also determined that leather chairs are not suitable for huskies as one will slip of far too easily - that we no longer have any leather chairs is only incidental to her wishes though ;)).
 

RhaLoulou

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When I thought about this I wasn't sure who has trained who! My dog is not allowed on furniture at home but sits on the sofa with my mum when she is at my parents. Begs from me but won't even look at OH when he is eating. Sleeps by the bed in her own bed on a night but waits until OH has driven off to work, I swear she checks he has gone, then jumps on the bed for a cuddle. There is a 'keep your brown snout out' rule on cupboards, dishwashers, rucksacks etc. !
 

twiggy2

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my 2 old boys are mainly outside but were always great in the house and could be trusted with food/furniture/cats but one did not like unknown kids , the lurcher is indoors and rules are no going upstairs/on the furniture (she follows this unless there are fireworks), not counter surfing (she mostly sticks to this one but you can never leave her with access to the kitchen unless someone is in there), no begging she needs to be sent away from the table most days and if you leave food on it she will have it), she is the most testing dog I have ever had/trained or worked with and will always steal food if left with it-she is great with people/kids and other dogs, terrible with cats but great with the ferrets.

they are all so different and that's what I love
 

MrsElle

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Hugo is allowed on the furniture but not in bedrooms. He has to, and does get down when told. He isn't allowed to beg or nosy in cupboards or shopping, and is definately not allowed to steel human food that has been left within reach. We try to stop him jumping up, but it's very difficult to resist his little hairy lordship and to push him away :D

He's not a bad lad for a 5 month old JRT.
 

ChesnutsRoasting

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Allowed anywhere they want to go. Except upstairs - my daughter keeps fancy rats & them with lurchers/terriers isn't a good mix! Absolutely, no crapping on brand new £500 rugs allowed though, That's my one rule!!
 

Lunchbox legend

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Definitely not allowed on bed (sleeps in my sister in law's bed with her and her dog when she dog sits but knows he can't do it at home).

Has to sit and wait for permission to go to food bowl or bone. When getting out of car, has to get out of crate and sit by door, look at me and wait for permission to get out of the car.

Must walk nicely on the lead - being pulled along drives me nuts!

Is allowed on sofa but has to get off when told. Is allowed to play until 9pm and then it's "cut off" and he has to settle down.

The rules we're 'still working on' are a) not to jump up and b) not to frighten the Rottweiler - he's a little jrt x god-knows-what ;) .
 

LadyGascoyne

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Our border collie has never needed to be taught manners. He's even invented a few rules for himself.

He doesn't go into the kitchen, apparently he feels that it's not appropriate. He won't go upstairs unless my father is away in hospital and he thinks it necessary to guard his bed. He won't go on sofas unless you really insist. He waits until he's asked to eat his dinner. He is very respectful of cats, although I think our old boy Sylvester taught him that one.

I have taught him to sit before crossing a road, just because it seems safer, and not to walk behind horses. He also wouldn't be allowed to beg or jump up but he's never had to be told. He's a superstar.

1240114_10202192201753426_468641700_n_zpsf1a51d89.jpg
 

Meems

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My little dog has never begged in her life - I find it hard enough to get her to eat her own food, so no way is she going to beg for any of mine. Oh actually very occasionally if I'm eating Maltesers she will just sit and stare at me. Won't bark or jump up, just sit and stare.

I looked after a friends JRT's once and they were an absolute nightmare. Sooooooooo food obsessed I found it really annoying. I guess the majority of dogs are like this, mine is the exception.

She's always been allowed on my bed and the sofa (I don't mind because she doesn't moult).

She's always been really well behaved but it getting a bit snappy as she's getting older. I've just taken in a lodger and my dog is being kept in a crate at the moment until she can stop acting like a Rottweiler when she sees her.
 

Scarlett

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Allowed on sofas but must ask for permission first and are shoved off/told to get down if they don't ask. Allowed upstairs and on beds, again - with permission. No begging - ever. Must leave human food if human gets up and leaves plate (they actually do do this, they will leave a juicy burger if told to . . . but I can't for the life of me get Fred to leave my tea - as in mug of). Must wait for human to give them permission to pick up any food dropped . . . must wait for human to give them permission to eat their own food. No jumping up at visitors. Nose out of dishwasher and bags of groceries.

Not many rules really . . . they know them all and (mostly) stick to them. Daisy is, right now, asleep next to me on the sofa and I love being able to just reach over and give her a ruffle.

P

Exactly this. Ours knows to ask first and that food that's not is his bowl is none of his business.
 
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