Just returning to post a quick update. The other day Bartleby was on his bed happily chewing a toy and me wife gave me the command “Madmonk, Sit!” and I instantly sat down.
Bartleby instantly looked up and the toy fell out of his mouth. Imagine a puppy being slack-jawed astonished and you get the picture. His reaction was so cartoonish I couldn’t stop laughing. Thanks again for the advice. I’d post pics, but don’t have any account to do it from Needless to say, he’s adorable.
I think it makes perfect sense. One of my SiLs whines when she berates people, specially her children; when she gives instructions she sounds like a grown-up, but when she’s angry she sounds like a toddler. After more than ten years I still want to tell her “do you think you could speak like you’re the adult? Your eight year old daughter is sounding both older and more logical than you!”
Does she also tend to give the dog complicated commands? That’s something I often see people do, both with dogs and little children, and women tend to do it more than men. From your last post she’s capable of short commands, but the tendency to elaborate may be something she’ll have to look out for.
Excellent advice, I do very similar exercises except I leave out the religion parts (my dogs have all been atheists, my cats agnostic).
Additionally, if the dog hasn’t had formal training, I’d enroll the dog in a six to eight week group obedience course and have your wife take him.
Throughout the animal world the thing that most affirms who’s in charge, is who eats first!
Time the dog’s meals so they immediately follow hers, and you’ll send a very strong direct message. With very little actual effort on your part.
You’ll be surprised at how well this will work, I think.
Good Luck!
These are what I was going to say. In canid packs s/he who brings the food leads.
Also with both of you, all good things should be preceded by the dog sitting calmly. Food, petting, going through a doorway, crossing the street, permission to join you on the sofa, etc. All should require him to sit calmly first.
This habit saved my bacon when I couldn’t get Celtdog to understand that jumping on people was bad. He was thrilled to see them and extremely attention-driven, so just lost his mind when strangers entered his orbit. But when sitting calmly became the only way to get petted, he stopped jumping. Sometimes he sits on their shoes in his eagerness to get close enough, but I’ll take it. LOL!
I had a cat, and having never raised one before, trained her like a dog. She came when called, and sat up and begged, etc. I never could break her of knocking over my water glasses though.
ROFL!
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DiL knows where he stands. Pretty sure he he knows he ain’t worth shit. The three went off today. A neighbor he doesn’t know caught him easily, despite her lack of a cop car. (he likes cop cars). Little Girls ran off, though they don’t know my car. No McDonalds freight.
Dogs are fucking stupid.
FTR, she’s cute. Dogs don’t know cute.
Melville reference. well done.
I named him after the Melville character.
Tada!
Thanks, I don’t make the smart jokes too often.
And you expected him to mind?
ETA: Oh, precious thing!
Adorable. Don’t you just hate that though? You spend a fortune on buying them toys, and they sit around playing with the packaging. SMDH
Awww, too cute! Kali and Loki say hi.
Gorgeous! I was going to say I love the name “Bartleby”, but now I can also say, the name is somehow just a perfect fit! 
Handsome hounds.
I love telling him to do elaborate tricks he’s never been trained to do and then telling observers “he prefers not to.”
Kali (the GSD) blushed and murmured a thanks.
Loki just shrugged her shoulders and said, “well, yeah”.
I know, right?
I mentioned we play a game I call piggy/chicken/ball. I throw three items and then call out the one I want him to bring back and drop then the next and the next. Each round gets faster and faster and more frantic until finally I’m screaming “Bartleby! My God where’s chicken? Bartleby, chicken is out there somewhere, where is chicken, Bartleby what have you done??!!”
Inevitably, he runs back to get an item with the previous item still in his mouth, then he kind of shuttles each item one by one back to me. Move the piggy a foot, go back and get the chicken, etc. It’s my favorite thing in the world. My wife and I think it’s hysterical. My in laws were like “WTF is going on?” Plus Bartleby growled at my father in law, so he’s got some sense.
Translation?
