maeflower Posted November 6, 2020 Report Share Posted November 6, 2020 Please someone tell me when the incessant digging behavior gets outgrown! Rylie is 5 months old and when out in the yard I can turn my back 5 seconds and he's digging! I don't really leave him out alone but if I run inside for a quick minute to get a drink or my phone he's tearing in to the favorite spots! I refill and boom they're dug out again. I even sprinkle cayenne pepper over the area to no avail. I know he's just a puppy but it is amazing the amount of newly planted grass he can destroy or the layers of mud he can get himself covered in! So frustrated but I've heard they outgrow it! My other 2 border collies rarely dug so this is new to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puppytoes Posted November 6, 2020 Report Share Posted November 6, 2020 Never leave him alone. Ever. Most behavior is a result of motivation and opportunity. Digging is very self rewarding so he's motivated. Remove the opportunity, every single time and try to create a fun new association with the backyard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maeflower Posted November 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 7, 2020 Thanks puppytoes! So right about not leaving him. He will start digging while I am simply walking across the yard to get a frisbee! I have gotten lax in paying 100% attention and he really does seem totally motivated by the digging. Time too to go back a step and put a line on him again to let him drag around. He's getting away with chasing our cats a little too much lately too. He loves the chase but is friendly to them when they don't run. I need to buckle down again and stop the chase! The backyard for him is a time of frisbee, puller toy, jolly ball, and tennis balls so he does get the stimulation and energy release but it is the quick little times my back is turned that he heads to his favorite "digs". Thanks for the reminders that I've gotten too lax and expecting behavior that is appropriate without teaching him what isn't! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aschlemm Posted November 7, 2020 Report Share Posted November 7, 2020 One of my Borders was a digger. A friend told me to put her stool in the hole. It stopped her from digging out the old holes, she did continue to make some new ones but, in time, that quit. (And she went on to other crazy behaviors ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D'Elle Posted November 7, 2020 Report Share Posted November 7, 2020 A dog will not ever outgrow a behavior that is self-rewarding. A border collie may make a self-rewarding behavior into an obsessive behavior. So, under no circumstances should he be allowed to dig. Stop it now, as said above, by not letting him out of your sight. I would further suggest having him on a long lead when outdoors. Not just dragging, but you holding the end of it. And observe him closely. When he starts showing the body language that he's going to dig, you can flick the leash a little bit and say whatever your "stop" cue is. While doing that, go over to him. If he starts to dig, say "Uh-Oh!" and pick him up (if you can) and take him back into the house for a little time out in the crate. If you teach him that all the fun stops if he digs, he will learn that it is not a productive behavior. But, since he has been getting away with making himself gleeful by digging for a while now, it will take some time to break him of the habit. Just be 100% consistent, be kind, be firm. Treat it as if it were a law of the universe, like gravity. The same way you'd say "uh-oh! You fell down!" to a small human child, you say to the dog "uh-Oh! You started digging. Now you need to go take a time out" Act as if it's not punishment at all, but rather a law of nature. This is just something that now happens every single time he starts to dig. 100% consistency in this is vital. If the pup gets away with it once in 15 or 20 tries, he will simply continue to do it figuring that one of these times he will get away with it. I also very strongly reinforce your feeling that you should not allow the chasing of the cats. Not at all. It's a bad habit and not fair to the cats, who really do not appreciate it. Curb that completely right away. Puppies need to have wild and free play time. So do small human children. But you don't let them do things that are destructive to themselves, each other, or others or to things. So think of it as keeping him safe and keeping everything around him safe from him. Boundaries are necessary with all youngsters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AussieBC Posted November 7, 2020 Report Share Posted November 7, 2020 Great stuff as always D'Elle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maeflower Posted November 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 7, 2020 Thanks for the suggestions everyone and will take your suggestions seriously and put a stop to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
song.sparrow Posted November 9, 2020 Report Share Posted November 9, 2020 Has anyone tried having a designated spot where digging is allowed, essentially a doggie sand box? I was wondering if that is a good or bad idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maeflower Posted November 17, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2020 Song.Sparrow I had tried that with Rylie. We had had a big tree cut down and where the stump was ground, he loved to dig there in the wood chips. I thought ok this is a good place to be his digging spot. Nope, he still could dig to the center of the earth in that area but also dug anywhere else some scent cued him of another good place to dig. So far the only thing that has been working is the suggestions others made about never leaving him alone in the yard and he is on a long leash a lot of the time. The long leash is mostly so I can get to him when he starts chasing squirrels along the fence. They run along the top and he goes crazy chasing them and barking and I'm sure my neighbors don't appreciate it at 6 in the morning. With the long leash I can now get to him to stop the chase. I do worry about it getting wrapped around a tree or something but for now I'll continue to use it when needed. I do really hope that some day when he's older, he can have free access to the yard without my having to be out there. Afterall what's the use of a nice big fenced yard if he can't have access except when I can be available. Off the subject but how do I add a quote of what the previous poster had said? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D'Elle Posted November 17, 2020 Report Share Posted November 17, 2020 My experience is that it's darn near impossible to train a dog that it's OK to dig here but not there. And even if it were successful, if the dog found a place elsewhere that looked or smelled like the place he is allowed to dig, he's dig there, and that may very well not be appreciated. Best just to curb the behavior altogether. It's likely that in time you will be able to trust him in the yard without leash or supervision, but only if you take the time now, for as long as it takes, to train him to behave as you want him to. maeflower--- to quote a section just highlight it. A box will appear that says "quote selection". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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