Need help with a dog--ASAP!

[duckluck]

Quote:
I think Onthespot hit what I was going to say right on the spot.

 

[Cara]

Please do not put him in the crate with a leash on, leaving a collar on is not a good idea either. I have seen dogs strangle this way, and that will be even harder to explain to her. I'd call her and ask where she wants him boarded, the little horror isn't worth the trouble.

 

[Tala]

Quote:
I just want to know HOW they manage this??

My 4 year old hasn't been a day without a collar and we use an airline crate every day. There simply isn't anywhere inside the crate to snag a collar on.....I'm not seeing how it's possible.

 

[savingdogs]

Quote:
I think Onthespot hit what I was going to say right on the spot.

I agree with the above as well.
I work at a boarding kennel so I get to handle these types of dogs. We have some special devices that duplicate the method described above, but the basic idea is you have a leash that loops over the head, which you can do from quite a ways away from the dog. When you take a dog out for a walk, it tends to "pack up" with you and usually is better behaved by the time you return it to the crate or whereever you are keeping it. At a boarding kennel, we have the luxury of having a door and a little "room" for them to get pushed into rather than having to push them into a crate, But if you just push them in, no-nonsense, you can crate up most reluctant dogs. Just go about it like you expect them to go in and push them in. Use your pole to get the slip lead off. Or leave it in if you can supervise. I never recommend leaving a slip lead on an unsupervised dog. The first time is hard, but each time they get better. Every time you "win".

At boarding kennels we find that grumpy fear biters become friendlier with longer contact. Pretty soon they figure out you bring food and water and take them out for walks. You might even find the dog warms up to you after a few days. Just keep being the calm, assertive, matter-of-fact leader and make your movements slow. Offer treats as a distraction (like when you are putting on and off a leash or getting them into a crate). Alot of dogs will dive into a crate for a treat you throw in the back. Just be glad you don't have to give a dog like this medicine or put drops in its eyes every day!

This is really more than you bargained with and she should be paying a boarding facility with staff trained and ready to deal with this kind of dog. Where I work we charge 25.00 per day for those services. Where I used to work we charged 12.00. We also have gloves, special "catch poles", training collars, different size and types of kennels, and we are people who find these dogs a challenge and winning them over a triumph. It is very easy to be bitten by a fear biter if you don't know what you are doing, so be careful, move slow and if possible give her back the dog!

 

[Cara]

Their ID tags can snag in the holes in the sides. Some dogs will freak out and flip rather than calmly try to release themselves as a human would. Spend enough time around kennelled dogs and unfortunately you will see how possible it is. It would be a freak occurrence but it only needs to happen once to kill a dog.

 

[Tala]

Quote:
Ah, I see.

We only use the rivet-on style tags for hunting dogs. They don't get caught on anything. (Mainly I got them because they don't make any NOISE!)


So it's not the collar, it's the DOG TAGS. Gotcha.

 

[()relics]

Sounds to me like the dog may have insecurity problems....He may have been a lower member of his litter/pack and he has learned that the only way he gets any action is by showing aggression.....He learned that in order to survive he had to impose his wil or at least make everyone think he was going to impose his willl on the other dogs/puppies in his pack...Now he feels that he must treat every other being in the same manner....AND IT IS A HARD HABIT TO BREAK...I have been working with a healer pup that has some of the same issues that you have listed...She is spoiled by her owners and never mistreated and generally listens to them, if she feels like it...BUT add any other thing that breathes air and she loses her mind...she growls bites/nips then runs and hides...When I started to work with her I used my dogs,GSP's, to try and socialize her...She did the bite and run thing even though they are/were no threat at all to her...I call her my OCDog...Her owners are at a loss, can't take her anywhere,can't do anything with her...she is a train wreck....
So now with your dog...I would approach him without fear, its going to be tough but you have to do it...but let me add his kennel is HIS HOME, be careful when he is in/around it, HE WILL BITE YOU TO HURT YOU...anyway approach him and if he challenges you grab him by the scruff of his neck, not his collar, and give him a little shake,DON'T scramble his eggs, a little shake and push him down and hold him, letting him know" I don't like it when you do this"...DON'T shout...just let him know firmly...If he sees you as the boss, eventually he will become more and more comfortable around you and learn not to Over React to things that don't bother you....The pack mentality...If the alpha dog is ok with the situation then the lesser dogs fall in line...Don't misread him and think "maybe he has been abused/beaten/mistreated"....He may very well have...But to fix him he needs you to be the boss.....Good Luck...The little heeler I'm working with is going on 3 months of training and I still wouldn't trust her around a strange child...

 

[Terri O]

He is a bit better today. We dont have to dump him out anymore. Just open the door and he comes out to go outside. He has attached himself to my DH. (he pets Max every time he puts his paws on him) He wagged his tail a bit today when our beagle went over to him. He still will growl and snap at you if you happen to look inside the kennel when he is in it. We keep the door shut during the day so we dont have to get him out to potty him. He is fine when he is out. The JRT and her BC friend are staying in the other room with a gate so all is in harmony today.
Thanks for all the help! Terri O---who will be glad when 10 days have passed!