French Bulldog Causing Carnage

[Jackie77]

Thanks for the responses. I can't take her back, problem is I love her to the moon.

Right. So I'm looking into:

NILF

Great Dane SA method

Clomicalm (see my vet and behaviouralist)

Managing her environment (keeping her confined but not crated for long periods)

Ohhh I feel so much better now I have a plan.

Thank you xxxxxxxxx

[Pjrt]

Thanks for the responses. I can't take her back, problem is I love her to the moon.

Right. So I'm looking into:

NILF

Great Dane SA method

Clomicalm (see my vet and behaviouralist)

Managing her environment (keeping her confined but not crated for long periods)

Ohhh I feel so much better now I have a plan.

Thank you xxxxxxxxx

Just to be clear, there are vets & behaviouralists, then there are veterinary behaviouralists. The latter is what you need to find.

People here may have recommendations if you let us know the general area you are in.

[Jackie77]

Oh wonderful thank you. I live in Shorncliffe.

[Dogsfevr]

Thanks for the responses. I can't take her back, problem is I love her to the moon.

Never say never ,sometimes you can simply be the wrong fit for an adult rehome & no amount of loving will make the DOG happy so make sure you also consider the dog & that doesn't mean your a bad owner just not the right home & that means being at work may not be in her best interests .

You could still do all that you have listed & the dog just not fit in .

It is still important to keep the breeder in the loop & the breeder should be very concerned if the dog isn't settling in .

[The Spotted Devil]

Thanks for the responses. I can't take her back, problem is I love her to the moon.

Right. So I'm looking into:

NILF

Great Dane SA method

Clomicalm (see my vet and behaviouralist)

Managing her environment (keeping her confined but not crated for long periods)

Ohhh I feel so much better now I have a plan.

Thank you xxxxxxxxx

Just to be clear, there are vets & behaviouralists, then there are veterinary behaviouralists. The latter is what you need to find.

People here may have recommendations if you let us know the general area you are in.

Good post. Agree with showdog too.

Edited June 10, 2016 by The Spotted Devil

[persephone]

Never say never ,sometimes you can simply be the wrong fit for an adult rehome & no amount of loving will make the DOG happy so make sure you also consider the dog & that doesn't mean your a bad owner just not the right home & that means being at work may not be in her best interests .

You could still do all that you have listed & the dog just not fit in .

It is still important to keep the breeder in the loop & the breeder should be very concerned if the dog isn't settling in .

yes.

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[Boronia]

Do some Qld based Dolers think that Jane Harper may be able to help?

She has some good reviews here as well as several MDBA awards

http://www.dogsontrack.com.au/

[Taliecat]

I was about to suggest Jane Harper as well!

I've heard such great things about her.

[Papillon Kisses]

Give the amount of distress your dog is in, I really do think you need to see a vet behaviourist, not a dog trainer. The key word there is vet. What area are you in?

Edited June 11, 2016 by Papillon Kisses

[Cosmolo]

It is worth bearing in mind that some behavioural trainers work in conjunction with the clients existing vet to get the dog on medication etc. Just because someone is a trainer doesn't mean they can't recommend medication- they just can't prescribe it.

What has the breeder said about the issues?

[Jackie77]

The breeder is supportive and upfront about the issues so.....

I am going to contact Jane Harper.

[coogie]

The breeder is supportive and upfront about the issues so.....

I am going to contact Jane Harper.

I would also recommend Jane Harper she is great.

[persephone]

The breeder is supportive and upfront about the issues so.....

I am going to contact Jane Harper.

I hope jane is able to help you . :)

[Steve]

At a guess the dog hasn't been inside all the time - it would be a rare breeder who allowed dogs free reign of the house when they were not there- and then all of a sudden she is an inside dog and expected to know the rules. Training is great except that you have to be there to catch the bad behaviour to make it work . It doesn't sound like separation issues to me just doing what ever she wants to do when alone.

Personally I'd buy a pen - not a crate so she has room to move and be contained but able to move away from where she sleeps to go to the toilet if she needs to when you are out similar to this one - My link and only allow her inside when you are there to train her.

[asal]

what astonishes me is if you had a child would you leave it alone with things it can destroy?

why do it with a dog?

set aside an area for her with access only things she can have,not run of the whole place and I know a friend whose dog hated being left alone, although in the case of yours she isnt alone she has the other dog. my friend bought those treatballs and put bits of food in them and she spent hours winkling them out.

[Staffyluv]

Thanks for the responses. I can't take her back, problem is I love her to the moon.

Right. So I'm looking into:

NILF

Great Dane SA method

Clomicalm (see my vet and behaviouralist)

Managing her environment (keeping her confined but not crated for long periods)

Ohhh I feel so much better now I have a plan.

Thank you xxxxxxxxx

It definitely sounds like separation anxiety.

First things first - start putting up everything you don't want trashed because it will take time to get settle the dog and retrain.

Have you considered a thunder shirt?

I have had good success with one for my lad - he only has anxiety when he is in unfamiliar places but we put his thunder shirt on and he is a lot less stressed.

I have had a couple of foster dogs with issues - crate training helps heaps (especially when the dog sees the crate as a safe and secure place to go.

I cover my crates with a sheet - over the top, down the front and back and one side (leaving the other side open, so the dog can come and go, while training.

start by putting a few really good treats in the crate and reward the dog loads (lots of good puppy and pats).. Then leave it for a couple of hours and repeat.

Then repeat after 15 minutes and again after 4 hours - vary the times between training.

I find that if the dog sees the crate as a positive place, they will often settle in there, if you go out... Note this takes time, patience and consistency..

Also can you offer her toys, bones, kongs or other treat dispensers (I freeze cottage cheese and some tiny kibble bits in mine).. If you have a couple of dogs and one is a resource guarder - I probably wouldn't do the treat thing, unless you can be home and monitor the situation..

A big marrowbone can take hours of chewing fun.

Can you introduce games for pup to play while you are out - hide and seek (put a few chicken necks or something around the yard and teach pup to seek them out)..

Good luck - DOLers can probably recommend a behaviourist in your local area..

[Steve]

Im not sure why its been labelled separation anxiety especially when you say she is quite happy to go into her crate. Seems to me that the dog is simply treating the house as if its her kennel so she can go where she wants , mark her turf, do what she wants while you're not there just as she probably did in her kennel at the breeders place. This is akin to leaving a 3 year old toddler at home alone and expecting to come back and all is well. She is throwing herself at the fence because that's probably learned behaviour from being in a pack in a kennel setting.

Ive got some pretty well behaved dogs who I never have to correct while they are in my home but I wouldn't leave any of them locked in my home with free run of the place for 8 hours at a time

To me this is more of a management issue than a fancy name that makes excuses for what is happening.

[juice]

I agree with steve, you need to limit her access and start showing her what she can do.

Atm she is like a kid in a candy store.

[Mjosa]

Staffyluv some good suggestions there as with other posters but when I saw your suggestion of chicken necks I was

To the OP take it from one who has had Frenchies for 34 years please DO NOT FEED WHOLE CHICKEN NECKS!!!!!!!!

With the structure of a Frenchie in the head area they are not capable of chewing on and swallowing a chicken neck, they would and do try to swallow it whole, I have heard over the years of quite a few Frenchies choking to death on them.

I feed raw chicken necks to my kids but they are chopped up into bite size pieces and the day they have them for a meal I supervise them.

Marrow bones are fine.

[mita]

We adopted a young sheltie from a registered breeder. Shelley had grown too tall for showing....she had nor been in-house raised, but in kennels (with time for exercise, of course). Soon she started ripping to pieces soft furnishings when left home alone. I'd never heard of separation anxiety & totally misread the situation. I thought she needed reassurance & took a lot of notice of her....patting & cuddling. Little did I know I was making it worse.

I took her to a vet-behaviourist at the University of Qld Small Animal Hospital. In just one session, that person 'educated' me about separation anxiety, what causes it & what the dog is actually doing. Most of all she made the point, you can't change a dog's behaviour but you can change your own behaviour.... which then causes the dog to act differently. Penny dropped.... this is the same principle for dealing with children with behaviour problems. So all the things she told us to do, then made perfect sense. They weren't all that complicated but the vet told us the benefit would come from doing them consistently & persistently (same again with children!). Because for new learning to over-drive old learning, takes time & practice.

Short-term use of low-dose Valium was prescribed. Valium does not sedate the brain.... it's a muscle relaxant & that's how it hoses down anxiety. So the brain (no muscles there!) is left at full alert to absorb the new learning.

Yes, Shelley came good. So best thing is to have good guidance from a qualified behaviourist preferably vet-behaviourist, or a behaviourist who works in with a vet...where both really know what they're talking about.

Edited June 15, 2016 by mita