Jessie's Mum Posted March 23, 2006 Report Share Posted March 23, 2006 Hello all I am new to the forum and am having fun with an addition to the family - Jessie - who arrived on a friends doorstep one night complete with lead in tow! We did all the right things - contacting police, posting ads etc but unbelievably she has never been claimed so now lives with me and my husband, 2 cats & 2 greyhounds (very strange combination, I know). I am so soft though, I cannot see a dog left without a home.... Anyway, generally speaking Jessie has settled well and gets on with all the other animals. She is however a devil for running to the door and making silly screaming noises everytime either I or my husband stand up! As a result she is making the greyhounds even crazier than they already are, not to mention driving us mad with the silly screaming noises! Does anyone have any suggestions for me as to how I can stop her doing this please?.... She's nearly knocked us off our feet a few times - she can't get to the door quick enough - even if we aren't even going in that direction!! This also happens when she has only just come back in from outside so it's not that she isn't getting the exercise & attention on our walks/playing out etc. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Kate :confused: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted March 23, 2006 Report Share Posted March 23, 2006 Kate - Welcome! You need to post this down below in the General Discussion Section. This upper part of the board topics is oriented towards working stockdogs (sheepdogs, cattledogs, etc.). The section for companion animals and other issues is the second section. That said, it sounds like your lucky girl (lucky to have found you!) is just very excited when you get up and hopeful of some action outside. Since Border Collies are often not "barky" some have other interesting sounds they make where another breed of dog might just bark. I'm sure folks will post with some good suggestions how to deal with this because, if you "reward" the noise with taking her outside, it will only reinforce the behavior. You probably need to rechannel her interest and focus into doing something "constructive". A program called "Nothing In Life Is Free" might help (you can google and find out more about that). Rather than going to the door and fussing, she needs to "do something" acceptable when you guys get up - have her sit, down, stay, do a trick, whatever, or just learn to do nothing at all - praise and reward (treat or petting) the acceptable behavior(s). When she is calm and quiet, then you can release her to go to the door and take her outside, if that's your choice. It appears that going outside is something very appealing to her and she is simply excited about it. By not redirecting those energies into something suitable, but occasionally rewarding her by taking her outside, she has learned that that behavior may result in her getting what she wants, and so she does it every time "just in case" she will get her desire. Maybe she also needs more physical/mental activities to engage her body and mind. Best wishes and thank you for being so kind to a lost soul! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebecca, Irena Farm Posted March 23, 2006 Report Share Posted March 23, 2006 Patricia McConnell addresses both these issues specifically in The Other End of the Leash. I highly recommend you look for this book (Amazon should have it, if it's not available to you locally). I really can't improve on how she describes her approach. Good luck and thank you for rescuing a dog in need! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammy525 Posted March 23, 2006 Report Share Posted March 23, 2006 My library has the book as well. If its not at your local library, they can order this for you from another branch and send it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebecca, Irena Farm Posted March 23, 2006 Report Share Posted March 23, 2006 They might not have it at a UK library, however. I don't know how international Ms. McConnell's exposure is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jessie's Mum Posted March 23, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 23, 2006 Many thanks to Sue R for your help - that all makes perfect sense - I'll just have to think of a suitable 'constructive' task to steer her attention as you suggest. I shall let you know how I get on! Thank you also to Rebecca & Tammy525 for their suggestion re the book - I love reading so I shall have a look for the ones you suggest. I need all the help I can get with her! Thank you all for your kind wishes & sorry for posting this topic in the wrong place! Thanks, Kate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted March 23, 2006 Report Share Posted March 23, 2006 Rebecca and Tammy were both right for recommending Patricia McConnell's book. It is very helpful. Best wishes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allie Oop Posted March 23, 2006 Report Share Posted March 23, 2006 Welcome! My 11 mo. old BC makes a noise and runs to the door (kind of like you described) whenever she observes us putting on our shoes, getting a coat, etc. (The verbalization she makes is a little like a loud warbling "ah-OOO" - drawn out, or several in a row like she is trying to tell us - "Hurray, a walk/ride!") We kind of like it and my son actually encourages her to do it. She usually only does it if it is near to the time she gets her walks/park runs. However, if it rattles the nerves of you and your furry family members and it happens every time you even move, I can see where that might be a problem. Do you let her outside when she runs to the door? Some dogs are just more vocal than others, but you can recondition Jessie so that she no longer equates your movements with the positive reinforcement of being let outside into the garden or whatever. If you do let her outside when she verbalizes, stop letting her out when she makes the sound and tell her firmly "No, quiet". Put her into a sit and then restate the "No, quiet" command, if she continues. Because you don't know her history, she also might not be used to being kept inside and it is driving her a little crazy. That kind of situation will usually get better with time. I second the others in their recommendation of the Patricia McConnell book because it does talk about how to deal with this issue. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jessie's Mum Posted March 27, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2006 Hi Deb & Allie Thanks for your thoughts & your best wishes. We tend to try ignore Jessie when she is running to the door (for exactly the reasons you have just said), although I haven't tried the sit command when she does it so I will certainly try that, thank you! We suspect that she has certainly been a working dog as she is not a novice with commands - she certainly understands what I want her to do - she's just a little overexcitable! Since I posted my original pleas last week I have taken Sue's advice and have been working on this very hard. However, I know it's early days but we haven't sorted the running to the door bit yet, although Jessie is certainly now aware that she has to do a few tricks before she goes outside. (Poor thing, bet she's nearly weeing herself sometimes, but she still heels, sits etc!!) Sue - am I doing the right thing here - just want to check I'm on the right lines as per your suggestions...... When all 3 dogs want to go out I tell Jessie to 'sit' and 'wait' while I let the greyhounds out. Then I give Jessie my full attention and command her to do various things e.g. heel, sit, paw, rollover etc etc. Each time I reward her with a treat (assuming she does as she is asked!) Then we gradually make our way to the door, again with 'sit' and 'wait' as part of the process before letting her out to join the greyhounds. Am I on the right lines? Shall I just persevere along these lines, or do I need to tweak anything? Thanks in advance! Kate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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