A Couple Of Problems With Luka

[teekay]

Hi all

Luka, my aussie shepherd puppy in case you haven't seen my other thread :) , is 13 weeks old today. On the whole he is a wonderful puppy and is very quick to learn. We have encountered a couple of problems, though, and I was wondering whether I am doing the right thing. Would welcome any suggestions.

1. He does have a tendency to bark. Mostly it is to try and get Jenna or Mya, my other 2 dogs, to play, but sometimes it is just to try and get some attention. Obviously I do not give him any attention when he is barking but any hints on how to get him to stop would be great. If I do "shhhh" he will stop and I have been giving him a treat but then he will just start again, so not sure if this is the best tactic.

2. Leaving him when I go out. I have not left him for extended periods yet, but I have left him when I do the school drop off/pick up. Only out for about 30 mins at the most. I put him in his crate with a kong with some peanut butter in it and he is fine going in there but invariably when I get back I can hear him yap yap yapping. I have been waiting till he is quiet, even if only for a couple of seconds before I put my key in the door to try reinforce that barking will not bring me back but, again, any other suggestions would be very very welcome. I always go out without any fuss and when I get back I open the crate, open the door for him to go outside and don't really talk to him at all. Trying the make the whole coming and going thing as boring as I can. he is totally fine with me disappearing into another room so he is not that attached to me and he is happy in his crate at night so I don't think he hates the crate.

Here is my little man, I'm sure piccies are a necessity in this forum :D

[wuffles]

Aussies do like a good woof Sorry, I don't have much advice as mine is relatively quiet. But I do know that many Aussies are naturally more barky than others.

Regarding the crate, have you tried penning him instead with a bit more room to move? Mine was a very very very active and inquisitive baby and did NOT like to be out of the action. She improved when she had more space and to be honest, I ended up leaving her outside with our other dog because that was where she was happiest. I realise most people won't do this but in our situation it was the best solution we had.

[kiesha09]

I had the same problem with my girl re yapping in the crate. I just made her kong a bit trickier to keep her entertained for longer. I got some chicken mince & pureed vegie mixture and 3/4 filled it. I froze that part of it and topped it up with non frozen chicken mince & vegies or peanut butter. This would keep her entertained for about 1/2 hour and by that point she got tired and went to sleep. The peanut butter only takes about 5 minutes before its gone.

Also maybe make sure he has had a good play session before he goes in.

As for the barking for attention I would just completely ignore him when he does it. Even move to another room until he is quiet. Saying 'shhh' is giving him attention (exactly what he wants) and is reinforcing the behaviour, increasing the liklihood of him trying it again.

[Simply Grand]

God Luka's gorgeous!!

Re the barking, whatever you do, do it NOW! After my troubles with Riley's (Sheltie) barking I made sure to be on Quinn (Aussie) about it from day one. And an Aussie bark is much bigger than a Sheltie one, Quinn is six months now and has just started to change from a puppy "arf" to a loud "woof". Thankfully she doesn't do it often. I found a firm, deep, growly "ugh" type noise worked quite well with her. It probably did scare her a bit but I was so determined not to have two barkers, and it seems to have worked. She'll still bark now and then at other dogs and at things out of the ordinary but not just out of excitement all the time like Riley does.

Also, like wuffles, when she was a baby she was penned at one end of the house with access to the hallway and bathroom with bed, toys, food etc while the boys were on the other side of the barrier. I also let her mix with them pretty early, maybe about 11 weeks, once she could get up and down the back stairs safely. I've found food is quite good for keeping her busy for a short time but things to figure out like boxes or plastic bottles with treats in, or even

empty or with a chewy toy in, that she has to destroy to get into keep her occupied. Those and the rest of the ornaments etc in my house...(rolly eye man)

[teekay]

Thanks for the replies. :)

With regard to the yapping in the crate. I think I have accidentally found a solution, for now anyway. If I put the other 2 dogs outside and Luka in his crate, with his kong, he is fine. Done this the last 4 days and he has been great. I even set the video camera up to see what happened while I was out and he just settled down to sleep after finishing his kong.

I have been ingnoring him with his barking too and I think he seems to be doing it less, other than when he is outside playing with the other 2. He doesn't usually bark when it is just him and Jenna playing but if Mya joins in then Mya and Jenna start playing and he's barking as if to say "Me, don't forget about me. Play with meeeeeeee". :D

[Simply Grand]

That's so cute teekay! I clearly remember watching baby Quinn running up and down the yard trailing behind Saxon amd Riley while they raced and played, she looked exactly like she was thinking "play with meeee" too :D

Glad to hear he's settling down for you!

[zeebie]

Yep Aussies love to bark :laugh: Its like "me me me"

Refocus every time dog barks inapropriately, try using a rattle made out of a used small baked bean tin or spag tin put some tiny pebbles like you get for aquariums into it and then cover top opening with cloth wrap, elastic band securely around to hold, and then tape it. Use this by rattling loudly whenever he barks and the minute he refocuses to the tin looking at it or you and stops barking say sit and reward. You have to be 100% committed to it and you will find that within a week the dog will stop and sit the minute you even pick up the object without rattling it.

Next the return home crate barking, yes my dog is good in crate without any food reward but as soon as she hears the car pull in downstairs it is on so I wait at door and when i hear her stopped I open and immediately say good girl and as crate is just inside door I am able to release her and she sits and I give affection reward.

also as suggested you could try leaving him in a larger room like laundry with a chew - tendon strap/pigs ear etc, around 13 weeks teething starts so you get lots more chewing, nipping and general 'mad" behaviour until those gums settle and new teeth come through. I froze treats in ice cube tray and placed down stairs in laundry where I have baby gate at door to foyer so she can see out but not get into house. this made such a difference to her.

Good luck