Out Of Control

[mummytodakota]

I've got a 10 week old staffy pup that it completely out of control, i dont know what to do any more. It doesn't stop biting, barking, & chewing everything including my 2yr old daughter! I have got it heaps of toys, plenty of chew things & it still does not stop. My daughters now got several bite & scratch marks over her face, arms, & legs. I don't know what to do any more. I've had plenty of dogs over my lifetime but nothing this crazy. I've been trying to toilet train as well & nothings working. It is still purposely doing wees everywhere throughout the house. It thinks it owns the place & wont leave my pug alone, its constaly biting & snapping at it as well. Its mayhem here & i cant live like this. How can i control it? Im at my witts end.

[Dogsfevr]

"It is still purposely doing wees everywhere throughout the house."

At 10 weeks it isnt doing it on purpose,it simply isnt toilet trained which means the method your using isnt working or your alloiwing it more opportunties than its age is ready for.

I truley dont now what you expected but you seen to be expecting alot from a puppy thats 10 weeks old & you have most likely had for 2 weeks.

What its doing is perfectly normal EXCEPT you need tos et the boundries.Toys & chews will not stop your pup from being boistrous & enthusiastic which is all the normal traits of a staffy.You need to start training pup whats acceptable & what isnt & the pup shouldnt have that much access to a young child to be able to scratch,play bite.

What sort of training are you doing with pup(sitting,lead training???)

What behaviour where you expecting from a staffy pup that your not getting??

How much time is spent with pup playing outside??

Have you talk to your breeder regarding the issues you are having.Have you considered sending the pup back to the breeder??

Your pug & staffy are worlds apart in needs & excitement & your staffy will never be like your pug BUT staffies are great dogs but need training from day 1.

He doesnt think he owns the place .The pup doesnt have a leader to follow & its doing what it pleases.

Edited April 28, 2008 by settrlvr

[cavNrott]

I've got a 10 week old staffy pup that it completely out of control, i dont know what to do any more. It doesn't stop biting, barking, & chewing everything including my 2yr old daughter! I have got it heaps of toys, plenty of chew things & it still does not stop. My daughters now got several bite & scratch marks over her face, arms, & legs. I don't know what to do any more. I've had plenty of dogs over my lifetime but nothing this crazy. I've been trying to toilet train as well & nothings working. It is still purposely doing wees everywhere throughout the house. It thinks it owns the place & wont leave my pug alone, its constaly biting & snapping at it as well. Its mayhem here & i cant live like this. How can i control it? Im at my witts end.

Return IT to the breeder urgently. If you did not buy this puppy from a breeder then surrender him/her (I don't know which gender because you refer only to IT) to a reputable rescue group as soon as possible.

This is a baby puppy. You are expecting far too much. Chew things and toys don't train puppies. Training is the responsibility of the owners and the behaviour of the puppy will reflect the efforts (or otherwise) of the owners. If nothing is working then it's not the fault of the puppy. IT doesn't know anything until you teach IT. In other words, you get out of a puppy what you put into it.

IT doesn't purposely urinate everywhere through the house at all. Like a baby human, a baby puppy has no control over bowels and bladder. The reason it's peeing inside is because you are not teaching IT what you want IT to do. This pup sounds to be doing exactly what normal baby puppies do.

Please return to the breeder or surrender this puppy ASAP. Give this puppy a chance to find a home where IT will be trained in how to behave and to be loved as a puppy should be.

[SkySoaringMagpie]

I've got a 10 week old staffy pup that it completely out of control, i dont know what to do any more. It doesn't stop biting, barking, & chewing everything including my 2yr old daughter! I have got it heaps of toys, plenty of chew things & it still does not stop. My daughters now got several bite & scratch marks over her face, arms, & legs. I don't know what to do any more. I've had plenty of dogs over my lifetime but nothing this crazy. I've been trying to toilet train as well & nothings working. It is still purposely doing wees everywhere throughout the house. It thinks it owns the place & wont leave my pug alone, its constaly biting & snapping at it as well. Its mayhem here & i cant live like this. How can i control it? Im at my witts end.

What method are you using to toilet train?

Have you discussed the behaviour with its breeder?

Without knowing much about your situation, if this were me I would institute a strict NILIF program. If you google NILIF, you'll find a range of resources.

[persephone]

It is still purposely doing wees everywhere throughout the house.

No, it's not

Your puppy is a BABY..a bit like a 12 mth old little human.......not much control over bodily functions, and not quite used to to the rules grownups impose

I think there is a communication problem between you... 10 week old pups aren't usually deliberately disobedient...as they haven't had much time to LEARN the 'right' way to behave

Please either get a trainer in, or return the pup to the breeder.

It is not fair on YOU, your daughter, the other dog, OR the puppy

You have enough to do with a 2 yr old in the house... maybe wait a while before you attempt to train a new puppy..

I don't know staffies..but the pup sounds as if it is very bright, strong willed, BORED witless, and not yet aware of the boundaries.Perhaps it is not the 'right' pup for your household? Not every pup will fit into every situation...

Edited April 28, 2008 by persephone

[animallover12]

mummytodakota a puppy at that age should not have full run of the house thats your first mistake i did it with my cavalier king charles spaniel. Now what i reckon you should do is confine this puppy in a puppy pen somewhere inside on tiled or an area that is easly cleaned. When puppy is confinedt with a bowl of water,his toys and bed take him outside to go to the toilet every 30 minutes. Take him outside straight after he has waken up from his nap 30 minutes after his had something to eat and drink and after play time. I gave Bomber my cavalier king charles spaniel the run of the house when i first got him 4 weeks ago i now have him confined to a puppy pen and haven't had much accidents inside since. This puppy needs training by you, Have you thought about puppy class and then obedience school. Its going to take time,patience,training and love of your part to make this puppy a well behaved dog.

[Cosmolo]

Have you considered a puppy pre school or one on one session with a qualified trainer? If you pm me your email address, i can send you through the booklet we normally give out at puppy school which will cover many of the problems you mention BUT nothing will be better than getting some professional help- as soon as you are able

[helen]

I agree with Cosmolo, you need to get training help ASAP. The puppy simply needs to be taught the correct way to behave as he doesn't know. This is how he acted with his litter but needs to be taught how to behave in a human world now he is away from this mother and litter mates.

There is an author Gwen Bailey that has written some excellent puppy training books, Puppy School and The Perfect Puppy. I would recommend these books but not as a replace for going to some training, just as an extra aid.

[Bob]

I believe that you do need to start from square 1.

However, I don't believe that your pup is doing anything it did not find necessary to do where it was whelped and raised.

In regards to toilet training most of our pups are done by the time they leave here. There are adult dogs that they follow to an appropriate part of the yard for this activity by five or six weeks of age. It is amazing to watch a litter of six/seven week old pups dash outside first thing in the morning to have a piddle, some of them don't make it much past the steps but they do make the effort. You are going to have to watch this one for signs that he needs to go, take him out, then praise his "performance".

In regards to the biting and scratching he does need to be taught what is okay and what is not. For your daughter she needs to be able to move away from him, growl at him refuse to play with him when he is rough. We give them a little growl and use the term "gentle". If they don't pay attention we move away, refuse to play. The pup wants to play and at times they will be rough. You can give them an opportunity for rough play with the chew toys, have "tug-of-war" competitions, etc. The pup will soon realise that if he needs to play rough he can take it out on those toys. Not you, your daughter or the pug.

You will need to work hard with him over the next several months though. Be consistent in what you are asking of the dog. Don't growl at him for mistakes, clean up quietly and reinforce outside performances. Give him more opportunities to be outside for toileting also.

Good Luck with him.

Regards,

[mummytodakota]

Okay i appreciate all your replies but give me a break here. I HAVE been putting in every effort possible with her, i HAVE been teaching her proper toilet training ways, i HAVE been doing lead training with her. The only mistake which i can see is what a previous poster has said, i've given her full run of the house within reason. This is only because we have always had inside dogs to love & cherish, we want her to be part of the family. I take her out to the toilet every 30 mins without fail, when she has eaten or had a drink, after a sleep etc. Maybe i was expecting her to be a bit more advanced than she should be at this age, but thats only because i was comparing her to all our previous dogs we have had, and no they werent all pugs! We've had kelpies, border collies, etc. Toilet training with them was very simple, they picked it up very quickly. I am by far NOT going to return my baby to the breeder, i didnt get her to give up that damn quickly. I was just seeking some ideas/help. Maybe it wasnt such a great idea to do so. And yes, she starts puppy pre-school tonight. And maybe she is a little bored but we take her outside every hour or so for play time, as we cannot yet take her for walks.

Edited April 29, 2008 by mummytodakota

[Sezy]

Okay i appreciate all your replies but give me a break here. I HAVE been putting in every effort possible with her, i HAVE been teaching her proper toilet training ways, i HAVE been doing lead training with her. The only mistake which i can see is what a previous poster has said, i've given her full run of the house within reason. This is only because we have always had inside dogs to love & cherish, we want her to be part of the family. I take her out to the toilet every 30 mins without fail, when she has eaten or had a drink, after a sleep etc. Maybe i was expecting her to be a bit more advanced than she should be at this age, but thats only because i was comparing her to all our previous dogs we have had, and no they werent all pugs! We've had kelpies, border collies, etc. Toilet training with them was very simple, they picked it up very quickly. I am by far NOT going to return my baby to the breeder, i didnt get her to give up that damn quickly. I was just seeking some ideas/help. Maybe it wasnt such a great idea to do so. And yes, she starts puppy pre-school tonight. And maybe she is a little bored but we take her outside every hour or so for play time, as we cannot yet take her for walks.

Stay strong, you have done the right thing by asking for help. My lab was a toad to toilet train, she would pee inside straight after peeing outside .

Talk at puppy school as to the issues that you are having and maybe try the staffy thread???

Feed the pup in kongs to help slow it down.

[mummytodakota]

Where can i find the staffy thread?

[Allerzeit]

IT?

[Allerzeit]

And have you taken the time to speak with the pups breeder and gain their advice?

[Bonmedia]

I've got a 10 week old staffy pup that it completely out of control, i dont know what to do any more. It doesn't stop biting, barking, & chewing everything including my 2yr old daughter! I have got it heaps of toys, plenty of chew things & it still does not stop. My daughters now got several bite & scratch marks over her face, arms, & legs. I don't know what to do any more. I've had plenty of dogs over my lifetime but nothing this crazy. I've been trying to toilet train as well & nothings working. It is still purposely doing wees everywhere throughout the house. It thinks it owns the place & wont leave my pug alone, its constaly biting & snapping at it as well. Its mayhem here & i cant live like this. How can i control it? Im at my witts end.

I would suggest you get a copy of the new Puppy - Petr or Pest? Its a great D.V.D. and should help you tremendously. You can get a copy direct from Bonnie's Dog Obedience The Gap. Brisbane. Where is your pup sleeping at night? Is it confined in a crate? If not why not? You need to keep a young pup around you but in a pen. You can buy and use something like a childs playpen, and put the pup in there, that way you get some peace and quiet. If you want more information, find a good puppy school and take him along,l

Best of luck. Bonmedia.

[sjl79]

Hang in there, it gets better.

We have pics of Timmy at 10 weeks that we thought were cute lil puppy action shots. We put them on the computer recently and saw he was actually mid piddle! He had no clue. He would jump and nip, and cry when left alone. Refused to walk, or when he did he'd pull.

I cried one day at around the 11 week mark as I was just so frustrated with him. I wondered what I had done getting myself into this?!

Fast forward 11 weeks and LOTS of DOL surfing and he is a toilet trained little gentleman of 22 weeks. Sure there is a LONG road ahead, but it gets easier as they mature.

We crate trained to get the toiletting under control, we would crate him at night next to our bed and get up to let him out to toilet - he's a mini foxie with a tiny bladder so that was up to 4 times a night. Now he pretty much sleeps through. You must watch her like a hawk, ie. one step behind her, ready to correct and re-position any wees, OR crate her when you can't watch her. There are heaps of articles on crate training if you search DOL and the web.

Another tip I heard was to spray his crate and its bedding with lavendar (a few drops in a large atomiser of water), it's calming and he associates his crate with lavendar. Then after few days of doing this, spritz the carpet and furniture with the atomiser so he sees the whole house as non toiletting area. We didn't resort to this, but if you are desperate, it's worth a go.

One method we followed religiously was to never let him see us clean up the mess, the theory being that if they see you clean it up they see you as their mum who will continue to clean up, or worse still they think "ooh, she likes that there, I'll leave another present later!". I stand by this theory as the pee and poo parties we threw (lavishing attention and praise on the poop when it was in the right spot) really worked, he was chuffed that we'd pick up his "gift" and dispose of it!

With the jumping, nipping and scratching, we would correct and then stand tall and firm ignoring him, he soon got it (took about 4 solid weeks, not fun when you are kicking back with a chardy and have to get up and dramatically turn your back with arms crossed!).

Reward ALL positive behaviour, sitting nice, being gentle etc. We also practiced getting Timmy to lick honey off our hand and said "kisses, good kisses" in a praising tone. Now if he nips our toes we say "aaargh" to correct and he'll usually back up with a kiss.

Hang in there, it gets better. I remember walking Timmy one morning and being overheard by a (horrified) elderly lady as I muttered, "That's it, next Saturday's paper - free to a good home, accessories included".

Also, look at diet. Timmy was F-E-R-A-L on dry food, absolute monster. We switched to a raw BARF diet and he is so much calmer and focussed (less wee too as he doesn't need to drink so much to counter the dry kibble!).

Keep us posted on your progress.

ETA: Lots of toys on rotation helps too, we tend to put fresh ones out whilst he's out of the house and put them in odd spots like under the coffee table or in the corner for him to discover.

Edited April 29, 2008 by sjl79

[sjl79]

Photographic evidence ... can you spot the wee?

[Sezy]

Staffy thread

http://www.dolforums.com.au/index.php?showtopic=75473

Kiss guide to raising a puppy is a good book as well.

Good luck and hang in there, it does get better

[Sezy]

Photographic evidence ... can you spot the wee?

heheh cute, I mean naughty puppy

[NoodleNut]

Hang in there, it gets better.

Fast forward 11 weeks and LOTS of DOL surfing and he is a toilet trained little gentleman of 22 weeks. Sure there is a LONG road ahead, but it gets easier as they mature.

We crate trained to get the toiletting under control, we would crate him at night next to our bed and get up to let him out to toilet - he's a mini foxie with a tiny bladder so that was up to 4 times a night. Now he pretty much sleeps through. You must watch her like a hawk, ie. one step behind her, ready to correct and re-position any wees, OR crate her when you can't watch her. There are heaps of articles on crate training if you search DOL and the web.

With the jumping, nipping and scratching, we would correct and then stand tall and firm ignoring him, he soon got it (took about 4 solid weeks, not fun when you are kicking back with a chardy and have to get up and dramatically turn your back with arms crossed!).

Reward ALL positive behaviour, sitting nice, being gentle etc.

Hang in there, it gets better.

Keep us posted on your progress.

ETA: Lots of toys on rotation helps too, we tend to put fresh ones out whilst he's out of the house and put them in odd spots like under the coffee table or in the corner for him to discover.

Ditto to many of these points.

Our pup is coming up to 22 weeks. I can say she is now 'toilet trained (touch wood) .. no wee in the house for 4 weeks... yipeee! Has only ever pooed in the house once at 8 weeks. I am sure she will have an accident at some point .. will no doubt be my fault in not seeing the signs though.

The past 3 months (got Noodle at 8 weeks too) have been exhausting (at one point I was getting up 3 times a night ... 11pm, 2am and 4am and then 6am to toilet her .. I kids you not! It was crazy and I think my fatigue would only have been surpassed by breastfeeding my two kids!! At least toileting Noodle didn't last twelve months!!) but worth the effort.

We had her penned inside for the first 3 - 4 weeks .. in and out on a regular basis for toileting .... then penned outside for one week on and off during the day to get used to her new surroundings outside. Now she is only crated at night and outside or inside (when we are home she is in) on and off during the day. Plenty of rotated toys. Meal sonly fed in treat balls .. make her work for her dinner.

Puppy school for 4 weeks and starting obedience this weekend. Lots of visits out and about (safely of course .. the mental stimulation of just going out in the car can be enough to subdue a pup and in addition good socialisation and getting to 'show off' our people magnet (people are ususally suckers for pups so the pup gets rewarded for four paws on the ground .......gets you a pat from people).

Noodle is still not free to roam the house. She is sitting on the kitchen floor as I type this (off leash) .. the computer is in the kitchen and this is where all of us spend 85% of our time. She only comes off inside when I do the training sessions inside with her and late at night when the kids are in bed and the house is quiet. Outside she has full reign of the backyard.

In the morning when she is inside (after she has been outside from 6 - 7am) and the kids get up (and she is hyper and excited to see them) she is on a long lead attached to the kitchen drawers ... kids take one step back when she tries to jump and they are out of range. No nipping .. again out of range .. same with my husband and I. Lots of reinforcing back turned, arms crowwed and looking at ceiling .. kids have it down pat, admittedly older than your daughter. Four pwas on teh ground gets you a pat. Our six year old was fearful of Noodle's mouthing but is now very confident and Noodle only occassionally tries to mouth .. usually if she is very excited or losing teeth ( the situation for the past 2 weeks).

I would definately recommend a pup being restricted inside until they learn good manners (not jumping or mouthing or nipping) and toileting is 100% successful. We have had no damages either inside or outside with Noodle chewing things she shouldn't. As an aside a friend of ours had $3000 worth of damages in the first month that they had their lab pup at home ... I kid you not .. yes, you counted the zeros correctly..... chewed up a Blackberry her husband had for work and then chewed up his designer glasses ... great when he was giving a presentation the next day to 350 people! That pup was getting very close to being re-homed LOL (tongue in cheek .. they knew it was their fault not their pups)

Our pup only has access to her rotated toys of which there are many.

Lots of home training .. doggy push ups now (our ten year old son does this with her .. sit, reward, drop reward .. up down up down ... she loves it and the tiny bits of cheese she gets). The past two nights I have been surfing the tricks area of DOL and following the instructions taught Noodle to sit, drop and roll over on command (with hand signals and reward) and tonight she has got the idea of 'shake hands (when I finally figured out that she was not putting her paw up because the floor is slippery and she couldn't stop slipping into a drop position ... she did it perfectly 5 times in a row when we got on the carpet ... silly me!!)

This puppy training is incredibly hard work but as others have said it has dividends of having a social dog that everyone loves and is a part of the family. keep looking around the DOL site .. there are plenty of ideas that will assist you.