My little 1yr old Dachshund/Chihuahua/Rat Terrier/Min Pin/Corgi (these are what multiple people have seen in him) does not have all his marbles.
He was found last March wandering down the side of a very busy road (according to the person who brought him to the shelter I volunteer at). While in the quarantine block, this dog howled and screamed nonstop for almost five hours (people did talk to him and pet him). While in the “cute puppy pen” he chased his tail, chewed on his foot and made vocalizations that sounded like a cross between a human child and a Chimpanzee. No one wanted him.
Then I see him, get attached (I also watched a volunteers child carry him upside down:smack:) and decided to adopt him. They actually gave him to me for FREE and said it was because I had “done so much for them”, at that point I had volunteered for a total of one month. :dubious:
I took him to Petsmart and signed him up for a training session. The trainers is very good and I have seen alot of dogs that went through her classes. He barely got his certificate. He barked and growled at the clicker, would not walk correctly and would not release the treat when practicing “drop it”. He has his own hallway full of toys, a giant nest of old towels and blankets, and his food and water. We are SLOWLY getting him to the point that he can sit with us in the living room, without him attempting to chew everything in site or bug the cats (he wants to play, they don’t). He gets 2 hours per day of running around a 3 acre pasture with three other dogs (he is in constant motion out there).
Vet has diagnosed him OCD and neurotic (vet has been in practice 30+ years and had never seen a dog like him). Oh, and he also had no clue how he was supposed to interact with other dogs. He would jump on a strange dogs head and look confused when the dog growled at him. He has improved in that area.
We had a crazy dog once. She was a purebred yellow lab, probably not from the best of homes or breeding, maybe not quite on the level of “puppy mill” though.
She was just plain crazy. She chewed and chewed and ran and played and jumped and chased and barked and howled and ran and destroyed everything she could get her jaws around. In the nine month period before we simply couldn’t handle her anymore:
[ul]
[li]Pulled up the outdoor carpet on our back porch. [/li][li]Destroyed an empty fish tank and ate all the gravel.[/li][li]Chewed through the 4" wooden beam that held up the back porch.[/li][li]Ripped screens from every window that she could get to. (Six.) And then destroyed them.[/li][li]Destroyed at least a dozen food dishes and water dispensers. [/li][li]Chewed or otherwise destroyed at least six dog beds.[/li][li]Pulled planks out of the fence so that she could escape, on at least 10 occasions. [/li][li]Dug holes the size of a refrigerator in the grass and ate the dirt and rocks and grass until she was sick.[/li][li]Went to obedience school at the local Petsmart. Flunked out.[/li][li]Went to more obedience school at a trainer for unruly animals. Flunked out. [/li][li]Went to a 6-week boarding program with a trainer that could only be equated with the Dog Whisperer. Finally learned some manners. [/li][li]Within 1 month had forgotten everything.[/li][li]Was exercised three times a day. For extra energy drain, we kids would let her pull us on rollerskates or a skateboard, as she raced around the neighborhood parks for an hour or more. She was like the Energizer Bunny. [/li][/ul]^^
The expenses and irritation were mounting, the neighbors were complaining and we simply couldn’t deal with her anymore. We gave her to a rescue for labs, and hoped that they could find her a better home, and maybe most of her puppy awfulness was over and she could make a fresh start somewhere else.
The underlined parts are what’s wrong with your dog (dunno about Corgis). Seriously, stubborn mixed with aggressive mixed with yippy mixed with hyperactive. It will probably be work, but keep up on the training.
Probably more than most people do, and they routinely give older animals away for free so it’s not like every adoption is profit. Good on ya.
Pics work if you remove everything outside the “https…jpg” range.
He sounds like a dog who was kept in a cage and ignored for his whole life to date. It will probably take years before he ever unlearns the behavior from his neglected puppyhood. The most important thing right now is getting him to trust you and relax.
He might benefit from some one on one lessons with the trainer you mentioned. It’s good that he’s around other dogs, too. It’s good for him to have dogs modelling correct behavior. But mostly it’s probably going to be a matter of patience.
My current beast is also a rescue and I can’t use the clicker with him. The sound freaks him out. He’s afraid of cameras, too. I wonder if the clicker reminds him of the shutter sound. Anyway, the click sound - it’s not the click that’s important. You might find a different little noise maker that you could substitute in. Or even a special word that’s only used for that one thing.
Oh, yeah, what you’ve got there is a French Buldachsihuahua; may Og have mercy upon you. Keep him running each day and feed him morning and night. That should keep him calmer than the once-a-day schedule which works for some dogs.
I assume they had him neutered before they let you take him home, but how long ago? Some males continue calming for a few months as hormone levels drop.
Best wishes! He’s a real cutie, and lucky to have you!
We suspect he was the product of a puppy mill, purchased via a pet store. I forgot to mention, the class was one-on-one. Part of his problem is he cannot focus on one thing for very long. Sort of ADD.
He sounds like a dog whose poor breeding and poor early environment combined to create a pretty difficult dog. But cute! Clicker training is the best thing to help him learn to focus – which is essential if he is going to learn useful things. Daily exercise will help him calm him down. As will having a special place to chill out (dog crate) that he loves.
Not sure if this would be advisable for him, but what worked best for our puppy to learn house rules was some time at an in-home doggy daycare. The other dogs were far more effective for him to learn from, than us. And a home-based daycare meant that he really was learning “house rules” about not chewing up rugs, cables, chair legs, etc…
even then it depends on the individual dog. my sister and BIL have a King Charles spaniel they adopted from a rescue; most likely he was a caged puppy mill stud. he’s not yippy, neurotic, or anything which would resemble “OCD.” For a long time he was afraid of his own shadow, probably due to the lack of socialization. As far as King Charles spaniels go, he’s probably the least yappy and energetic one I’ve encountered.
My crazy Dog, James , was rescued from a defunct pet store. He was the runt of the litter of tea cup chihuahuas. He’s nuts, but in a good way. In my experience with dogs, the smaller the dog, the bigger the issues. He is antisocial unless you pick him up, after which he will lick your arm, face, etc for hours if permitted. He attempts to mount the patient pit bull and beagle, both of whom appear to mock him and generally he won’t eat unless hand fed. For all of his two pounds, he’s more work than the other three dogs. I wouldn’t trade that mad man for anything. He also barks at the TV set and he is the designated barker for the others
That just sounds like a lab. Ours was wild and ate everything until she was 3 or 4 years old, then became calm and lazy. That’s been my experience with several labs. A friend of mine got rid of his because it kept eating the water faucets on the outside of the house and flooding the yard.
Ever had a dog who liked to fetch? The kind of dog who constantly searched for something to bring to you to throw and there wasn’t anything they would bring you a twig or a tiny rock or anything at all and if you happened to be heaven forbid otherwise occupied they would drop it on your shoe over and over and over and over and over until you said goddamn it and put it on top of the closet upon which the dog stood looking at the top of closet barking and barking and barking until you got it down and threw it?
I know how you feel, my dog is crazy too. No offense. Celtdog is a rescue found in deepest darkest Baltimore at approximately two years of age. Here’s a list of what he does to make my Mom crazy:
Asks for sixteen to twenty walks per day Then poops on the carpet even after we just came in!
Noses her hand with his ice cube nose.
Forgets he’s eaten and begs for a meal five minutes after he’s already had one
Always trips my Mom nonstop (When I say non-stop I mean every moment he’s in the house) He thinks it’s his job to do figure eights around her feet at all times.
Always lays between her and the floor on any piece of furniture, thus trapping her in the bed or the armchair or anywhere else he can. Mua ha ha ha haaaaaa!!!
Is extremely lovely and nice to all people and dogs EXCEPT the dog next door (Bear) who has never been anything but sweet to him. We have no idea why, but he even lunges viciously at their door any time he passes it. Otherwise, sweetest dog you ever met.
So, that’s the reason I know what you’re going through. Hang in there, buddy!
