It's been two weeks now since I brought my chocolate lab pup home. Crate training seems to be going well, aside from a couple of accidents in his crate during the first two days.
I have yet to let the pup roam free in the home, so in order to give him some free space while he's inside I've built him a 25sq ft. play area and it's located in the living room where someone is always around. Problem is I don't think I socialized him with the area properly. As I'm typing this hes shredding up the newspapers I've laid down and occasionally he'll have a barking tantrum.
When I place him inside the area I reward him with a treat and ensure that there's a toy inside for him to play with. Despite these measures he'll occasionally pee in there or have a whining tantrum. Some methods I've attempted to employ are to play with him for a brief period or stand close by so as not to make him feel lonely - despite this the issue persists.
The only place he seems content with is hanging out in the backyard (which is small mind you) or playing with me in the living room.
So essentially:
1. Despite what I've tried doing, how do I get him to enjoy the space>
2. How can I get him to stop peeing in there. I take him out into the backyard at least once an hour yet there will be the odd time where he'll release.
Originally Posted by http://hubpages.com/profile/shibashake
Reward Dog Training - Bad 1
May not always solicit a prompt response to your commands.
For most dogs, a reward may not be as strong a motivator as an aversive stimulus (e.g. leash jerk, slap on the muzzle, alpha roll). Some dogs may dislike an aversive stimulus to such an extent that they fear it.
Fear is one of the strongest motivators for dogs and most dogs will respond more consistently and more promptly to it compared to a reward.
Consistent and prompt response to commands becomes important when your dog is involved in a life or death situation, for example when he is running into traffic.
Reward Dog Training - Bad 2
May sometimes require creativity to out-think your dog.
With reward dog training, you may need to get creative and come up with your own obedience training methods. This is especially true when you are trying to stop bad behaviors such as jumping, leash biting, or biting.
While there are many reward methods for stopping these behaviors, they may not always work with your dog. I.e. your dog may decide that the reward from the bad behavior outweighs your offered reward. As a result you may need to experiment with a variety of methods and reward systems before finding one that works well.
In contrast, fear is more universal as a strategy. The same aversive method, for example the leash jerk, can be applied to a wide variety of situations. Reward Dog Training - Bad 3
May require that you bring along some food or toys when on walks and outings.
Remember though that dogs do not care about the monetary cost of a reward. Many dogs consider sticks, pine cones, and leaves to be quite exciting and awesome. If you find yourself in a situation where you need a quick reward, some may be readily available in the trees and bushes around you.
It is sometimes possible and very desirable to use the dogs and people you meet during walks as rewards for your dog. For example, if he doesn't jump, he gets to go up and meet the new person. Once he starts jumping move him back, do a sit, and restart the greeting.
As your dog training lessons progress, you can begin to phase out the food rewards. Be careful to phase the rewards out slowly so that your dog stays motivated.
Reward Dog Training - Bad 4
May cause your dog to gain weight.
Obesity can sometimes become a problem if you give your dog too many dog treats.
This issue can be easily resolved by using part of his regular meals as training rewards, using smaller sized treats, and switching to low calorie food and treats.
I am not saying that reward dog training is bad. But aversive dog training is also accepted and sometimes there is more of a need for one over the other. My dog was trained using a combination of both techniques. Each has its risks and its positives.
James, you have gotten some great advice (apart from the hitting which I don't agree with)
Instead of going through and quoting all the responses I will just type up my own (sorry guys )
At 10 weeks old he is the equivalent of a toddler just learning how to walk and get into things.
Hitting him and disciplining him isn't going to do a great deal at this point, it's great to start training at this age but don't expect dramatic results.
Toilet training is a tough one at this age, you just have to grin and bear the accidents and praise praise praise when he goes potty in the right place (being outside)
When we have puppies we set up their little area or room completely covered in newspaper on the floor then we put their bedding down over top in one corner or side.
Puppies will rarely potty on their bedding and naturally go towards the paper (which is the rest of the space) As the days/weeks go by take away some of the paper exposing carpet, the pup should still keep going on the paper as you are only making the papered space smaller a bit at a time.
Once they are confident going on a smaller piece of newspaper then we start on training them to go outside.
Seeing as how he likes ripping up the paper you could try substituting it for puppy pads, these are a cloth like material with plastic backing and they are very absorbent. Even though they are cloth they don't feel like bedding due to the slightly crinkly plastic backing.
Another alternative that is new on the market (I have not tried them) is fake grass. You can by washable patches of fake grass for your dog to potty on, it gets them used to the feel and sensation of going on grass.
First of I'd like to thank you all for your responses, some more colourful than others. None the less I've received some insight into the two different schools of thought that are out there.
Thank you Shaz for the summary!
I did purchase some puppy pads but I haven't used them as of yet due to a simple issue that came up. I was under the impression that having pads inside and attempting to get him to pee outside may be confusing to a pup. When the pup is given two choices (indoors vs backyard) it could lead to problems with respect to potty training.
Before I move forward on replacing the newspaper with the puppy pads (I feel like that's a good idea), I just want to get some confirmation that this is a good approach.
Also I'd like to get some feed back with regards to my schedule for the puppy.
5:30 AM - 30 min walk
6 - 9 AM - Back in the Crate
9:00 AM - 1 Hour walk / jog
10 - 1 - Hangs out in the pen I built him or the backyard.
1:00 PM - Lunch
1:30 PM - 1 Hour walk
2:30 - 7 - Hang out in pen or backyard (every hour I try and take him to the backyard to pee.
7:00 PM - Dinner
7:30 PM - 1 hour walk / jog
8:30 - 11 - Hang out in pen / backyard
11:00 PM - 30 min walk
11:30 PM - Bedtime in crate
*If I or someone else is not home for any duration of time we crate him.
This is just personal opinion but I think there is a little too much exercise at the moment.
Medium/large breeds can end up with joint problems if you exercise them too much at a young age, running around playing is fine but fast walking or jogging should be left until they are a little older.
Slow walks are fine though, it will tire him out and socialise him.
If it were me I would substitute a couple of the walks for playing sessions... just chasing a ball in the backyard and having a little one-on-one time at home.
Would be a good idea to do this at the 1:30 walk... I'm not sure how common it is in labs (hopefully someone can help me out) but I know that any larger breed can be susceptible to bloat if they exercise too close to eating.
Bloating is where the stomach twists and the food inside it creates gas which makes their stomach expand... because it is twisted there is no way for the gas to escape.
Other than that your schedule looks really good, you are definitely spending plenty of time with him
Start with reward obedience training on your puppy.
It will be easier and less stressful, on both you and your puppy, to start with reward obedience training. I started out with aversive obedience training and it made my puppy develop even more behavioral issues as well as develop dog aggression. Even aversive based dog trainers will not use leash jerks and alpha rolls on dogs that are younger than 6 months old.
Today, I only use reward training because it is more effective for me and my dogs.
It is also important to establish yourself as the leader of the pack by controlling your dog's resources through the Nothing in Life is Free (NILIF) program. This simply means that your dog has to do something for you (e.g. a Sit) before he gets any resource (e.g. food, toys, affection, freedom). Any bullying will be ignored or will result in the removal of that resource.
Puppy Training
The Other End of the Leash: Why We Do What We Do Around Dogs
Price: $6.50
List Price: $14.95
Don't Shoot the Dog!: The New Art of Teaching and Training
Price: $8.00
List Price: $12.76
Many people make the mistake of equating pack leadership with the use of aversive training. Aversive dog trainers may tell you that for a difficult, strong-willed, dominant dog, you must use stronger, punishment based methods in order to show him who is boss.
This is not true.
One of my dogs (a Shiba Inu) is extremely strong willed and can be quite difficult but he responds much better to reward training.
I've switched the newspapers for the puppy pads but he's already begun chewing those up. I've lined the edges of the pads with diluted dabs of tobasco sauce.
Any better solutions? What can I do to stop him from chewing?
I've switched the newspapers for the puppy pads but he's already begun chewing those up. I've lined the edges of the pads with diluted dabs of tobasco sauce.
Any better solutions? What can I do to stop him from chewing?
Is he teething? That's going to bring you a whole new understanding of chewing. When he gets seriously into teething I'd recommend some beef bullion ice cubes. Tasty, soothing to irritated gums, and cheap.
The Tabasco sauce is a great idea, a little vicks vapor rub can also work to stop them chewing (I recommend this for b*tches in heat) or bitter sprays from pet stores.
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