Petfinder.com forums :: View topic - Dog Training Oct 24-30 with Pia Silvani! [ ]

Last edited by Petadmin on Mon Oct 24, 2011 10:51 am; edited 1 time in total

Join us this week, October 24th - 30th for Dog Training with Pia Silvani!!

Pia is Vice President of Training and Behavior at St.Hubert's Animal Welfare Center in Madison, New Jersey. She has developed various courses focusing on reward-based techniques, which are extremely effective in the enhancement of the bond and relationship of our companion animals. Twenty years ago, through the research of many people, Pia was instrumental in developing a behavior department for St. Hubert's. Today the shelter offers pre-adoption and post-adoption education to all adopters. St. Hubert's now has a very successful private consultation department for pet owners specializing in aggressive and anxiety-related problems. Pia writes behavior articles for the shelter's newsletter, library and magazines around the country. She has been written up many times in national and international newspapers and magazines. She gives guest appearances on television and radio. Her book, Raising Puppies and Kids Together: A Guide for Parents, has been nominated for several awards. She has spoken on three continents at various conferences and forums and routinely with trainers and shelters to assist them in improving and expanding their education and programs.

Welcome Pia!!

Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 9:48 am Post subject:

I am dealing with a very fearful dog. Gypsy is 8 years old & was adopted in August. She is completely vetted & has no health issues. She is lab mix, medium size. She is literally terrified of everything. It has taken 2 months to get her to the point where she allows my husband to pet her. She still won’t eat if he’s in the room and will only eat if I hand feed her.

She has adjusted to our other dogs & cats and has no issues with them or with my 14 year old son. My older sons & husband are still somewhat scary.

My big problem at the moment is her potty habits. She is terrified to be outside. The only place she routinely feels safe enough to potty is my bedroom. We have tried the happy potty dance routine every time she goes outside but she still seems convinced she will get beaten for going outside. I have tried - putting her in the yard alone, sitting in the yard with her, leashing her & wandering around the yard & taking her for a walk. Nothing seems to work.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Pia's Answer:

Dear keltoicrone

First of all, I must commend you and your family for adopting a senior dog. This is so admirable since the seniors deserve to spend their later years being loved.

Since she is exhibiting lots of fearful behaviors, we can only assume that she had little or no socialization, especially with men. With time, she should develop more confidence and trust with your husband and son. Make sure they are doing wonderful things for her (i.e. feeding, giving treats, etc.) Don’t make a big deal about her behavior and try to encourage her to eat or take treats.

Regarding her potty habits - - dogs have surface preferences. It sounds as if she may never have been outside since she is afraid to go out either on a leash or without one. You may want to acclimate her to wee wee pads to start to see what her surface preference is. If she goes to the pads, then you can gradually move the pads closer and closer to the door and eventually outside. You may need to crate her when you cannot watch her or set up an ex-pen so she cannot relieve herself on your carpets or floor.

Since she is fearful, we have had great success with dogs by putting a Thunder Shirt or Anxiety Wrap around them. There are a lot of natural products you can use to help her relax as well. You may want to look into a DAP collar (dog appeasing pheromone) which has the scent of a lactating bitch and can have a calming affect on many dogs. Also, there is an aromatherapy called Chill Pill by Aura Cacia which is lavender and Roman chamomile. You can put a few drops of this on her collar.

I wish you the best of luck and with time, I’m sure she will come around.

Posted: Thu Oct 27, 2011 3:06 pm Post subject:

How do I keep my dog from jumping on guests that come to my house? I have tried keeping him on a leash when people come over, distracting him with treats, and keeping him in his crate while people enter my home. I haven’t had much luck, do you have any suggestions?

Pia's Answer:

Dogs that jump up to greet guests is a very common problem and not always an easy one to resolve unless you can be consistent. If the dog is permitted to jump on some people and not others the dog will continue to jump on everyone.

Here are a few tips and suggestions:

1. Never correct the dog for jumping to greet. If you do, the dog will associate the correction not only with jumping but with people. What can inadvertently occur is that the dog antcipates a correction when people come over. You have now changed his mind about people.

2. You can put him in his crate for the first 5 minutes until people settle down. Once he is settled, let him out and have people ignore him so he realizes that they are not there to visit with "him." When he is calm, they may greet him.

3. You can ask people to toss a handful of treats or dry kibble on the floor when they come in so your dog is rummaging around the floor for food. Lead the people out of the "hot zone" where the jumping occurs. They should not look at the dog or say hello to him. Attention is only given when the dog is calm.

4. You can try taking him outside to greet people (on a leash) and then walk in together. With some dogs, this works quite well.

5. The last option would be to purchase a white poster board and use it to block the dog's path to the front door. He must remain behind the board until the guest can enter and sit down. Once again, no one should look at the dog or pay attention to him.

I wish you the best of luck. This takes time and typically goes away with age.

Posted: Thu Oct 27, 2011 3:35 pm Post subject:

Hi there! I'm looking for some advice on my new 3 month old Boxer/Mastiff/GS pup.

I live in the Chicago land area so as the winter approaches, I fear I won't be able to give her much exposure to walks like I normally would in warmer weather. I've already started so leash work in the house, but like most new pups, she goes right to bite it and has no idea what is going on. Outside of house and backyard practice, and walks when I can, what else would you advise to start proper leash habits in such a young pup?

She is a quick learner with already 3 commands down. I've only had her for 3 weeks so she's doing great compared to my current and previously owned pups.

She's going to get pretty big, pretty fast so any tips you have to assure a good leash walking pup would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Pia's Answer:

Hi KellyGal,

You are doing great. She sounds like she will be a big girl and will need the exercise. Exposing the dog to all types of weather is important so you do not end up with a dog that will not go out when it is raining, cold or snowing. Start early!

You can spray the leash with a bitter tasting product which you can purchase at your local pet store. This should deter her from biting on the leash.

Also, if she is pulling a lot, you can put her on a “no pull” harness. These work very well since the bolt of the leash gets attached to the ring of the harness which is located on the chest band. These are also helpful since they do not cause injuries to the neck or trachea as some collars do when a dog is pulling.

I recommend finding a good puppy class in your area. What you want to look for is someone who uses reward-based training methods. Visit a class before you sign up to ensure that all puppies are having fun and that the people are treated with respect and enjoying themselves as much as the puppies. Sadly, there are some old-fashion training schools still out there that use harsh methods. I would not recommend these.

Keep up the good work!

Posted: Sat Oct 29, 2011 4:33 pm Post subject:

Hello, I have a large, very excitable, German Shepherd mix. He is very friendly and loves people, so much in fact that when he sees people he gets too excited and starts barking and snapping his teeth. This is obviously very intimidating for people and I’m not sure how to make him stop. He ignores the kibble that I bring on walks to distract him and starts running in circles even though I have him on a no pull harness. How can I teach him to stop snapping his teeth and barking?

Pia's Answer:

Dear Debby,

First, you may want to put him on a Gentle Leader or Snoot Loop. You can purchase a Gentle Leader at most pet stores and a Snoot Loop, which I prefer, at www.snootloop.com. This will give you more control. You can stop his barking and snapping of his teeth.

I would bring something better on your walks than kibble. While he might like it at home, it's not good enough when he is around distractions. Do a taste test to see what really turns him on. When you are on your walks, begin to feed him upon the site of the person. If he takes the treats too hard, he is probably aroused. You can toss the treat on the ground and say "find it" and continue to do this until you pass the person. Once the person is gone, he should receive no treats.

I also recommend taking him to a reward-based training class in your area, if you haven't already done so.

Best of luck,

Pia

Posted: Mon Oct 31, 2011 1:21 am Post subject:

What is licking behavior in dogs? I have a large 3 year old dog that insentiently licks. He tends to lick people’s jeans and his bed, but he also licks the carpet, the cabinets and sometimes the glass door. I don’t know why he does this or what it means?

Pia's Answer:

Hello Zero,

This sounds like a behavior that has turned into a compulsive behavior. Dogs lick to groom themselves, greet or if they have an injury, they might lick the injured area. However, when dogs start to lick objects where you cannot interrupt it, the behavior has turned into an obsessive compulsive behavior. You should probably speak to a veterinary behaviorist regarding this issue.

Good luck.

Pia

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