Problem Behaviors & How to Solve Them
There are plenty of ways to address any particular problem in training and many exercises to do each thing. There is no one way to do things. Below are a handful of ways to fix each issue that we commonly deal with.
Remember to get a dog to stop doing a bad behavior, you have to add a punishment. A punishment is anything the dog perceives as negative or that the dog does NOT like. When the dog stops doing the unwanted behavior, and is doing a good job, it is to be followed up by a reinforcer. A reinforcer is anything the dog sees as a positive or that the dog LIKES.
The common suggestions you will see that we use as “punishments” or corrections you will see below are… A tap on the remote collar, a pop on the prong collar, pet corrector spray, pennies in a can, etc.
Those are the main ones you’ll see suggested but other punishment options include: A firm voice, yell, bonker, taking away food, spray bottle, etc.
The common suggestions you will see that we use as reinforcements you will see below are… Treats, verbal praise, petting the dog, playing with a toy, etc.
With that being said, let’s jump in!
Potty Problems
Potty Training - See this link here.
Eating or rolling-in poop - Remote collar, Prong Collar, Pet Corrector
Exercise: Take the dog where he is eating or rolling in poop, wait until he does, apply a correction for the poop rolling or eating
Recommend for client to add pure pumpkin to their dog’s diet to deter them from eating their poop
Eating poop is called “Coprophagia” and while it is nasty, it is very common. You can get treats that make your dogs poop taste bad. Suggest to the client that they get the treats that make the dogs poop taste bad. Here is a link to some: Here.
Won’t go potty without owner being outside
Exercise: Put the dog outside and watch the dog through the window, or a camera and wait until the dog goes to the bathroom. As soon as the dog does use the restroom, let the dog back in the house to reward the dog going potty with coming back inside! If dog is scratching to get in, ignore the behavior or correct the behavior
Note: This one is harder to fix. The only way to really fix this is to let the dog go out by himself. So put the dog out, wait the dog out and then reward the dog by letting him come back in the house after going potty.
Mouth Problems
Barking at people (through window, reactively on walks, etc. NOT FEAR BARKING WITH GUESTS) - Remote collar, bark collar, prong collar, pet corrector, bird house bark box
Exercise: Have a friend or neighbor walk around outside/take the dog on a walk, when the dog barks, apply a correction when the dog barks. Reward the dog with a verbal praise or a treat when being quiet.
Exercise: Have the RC on the dog and just wait until someone walks by the window and when someone does walk by the window, give the dog a correction
Note: If a dog is barking reactively on walks, you can catch the behavior before the dog barks by watching their body language. Before they bark, they will raise their head, their tail, their ear posture changes, etc. Their hackles may go up. They may low growl first, etc. You can correct the dog for these things before the dog goes crazy barking.
Note: For indoor barking, the bird house bark box works well if the family doesn’t have a RC or a bark collar or they just need a good off-leash option. This is a great option with single dog families. It isn’t the best option for multiple dog households because if one dog barks, all the dogs hear the noise.
Barking at the dog next door - Remote collar, bark collar, bird house bark box
Exercise: Let the dog outside and when the dog barks at the neighbor dog, use the remote collar. If they are using a bark collar, the collar will do most of the correcting for them. If the dog is close by, feed him when he stops barking or reward with a verbal praise when quiet
Tip: If they are using the bird house bark box, hang it on the fence by where the dog is barking
Barking in the crate - Remote collar, bark collar, crate training, move the crate to a place where they can’t hear the barking, bird house bark box
Exercise (Assuming the dog has been properly crate trained): Put the dog in the crate, leave the room, when the dog barks, stim the dog. Try using its working level for a while and if it isn’t working, turn the collar up until the dog stops barking. If the dog yelps after a stim, don’t stim again unless the dog barks. Let him out immediately when he is quiet in order to reward the silence and give lots of snacks.
**Note for crate barking, the rules of the collar kind of reverse, the dog has the collar on in the crate for a while even when they are not home and asleep. So this means the dog needs a break with the collar off while the dog is actually out of the crate.
Howling - Remote collar, bark collar
Exercise: Wait until the dog howls and correct the dog, reward the dog when quiet.
Whining - Leash correction, spray bottle, remote collar, place command
Exercise (If the dog is out): Wait until the dog whines and apply one of the corrections above. Reward the dog when the dog is quiet.
Exercise (If the dog is in kennel): Put the dog in the kennel, leave the room, correct the dog when the dog is whining. Let the dog out immediately when the dog is quiet to reinforce the dog getting out by being quiet.
Note: Lots of whining especially in dogs (not puppies) is due to boredom. Puppies whine a lot more than adult dogs. So walking/working the dog out AND providing mental stimulation are the best way to avoid these behaviors all together.
Nipping - The fish hook method, thumb on the tongue, spray bottle, pet corrector spray, remote collar, prong collar
Exercise: Let the dog bite on you, correct the dog using any of the methods above. Reward the dog when it isn’t biting.
Exercise: Run around, move quickly, get the dog riled up and get the dog biting you, when the dog does, punish the dog. Reward the dog when the dog isn’t biting.
Puppies: For puppies, the best way is the fishhook method, thumb on the tongue, etc. Try not to use the prong, remote, etc. because they are puppies.
Note: Do not use the pet corrector with young puppies because we don’t want to scare the puppy.
Chewing - Remote collar, pet corrector, spray bottle, Yucky/Bitter Spray
Exercise: Put stuff out the dog will want to chew on. When the dog does, apply a correction. Reward the dog when he is not chewing and give the dog something he/she can chew on.
Note: Lots of chewing especially in dogs (not puppies) is due to boredom. So walking/working the dog out AND providing mental stimulation are the best way to avoid these behaviors all together.
Note: Supervision goes a long way. Keeping an eye on the dog or putting the dog up when you can’t watch him is the best move.
Try Yucky/Bitter spray on items. (Tell them to be generous with the amounts & revisit them often as the spray wears off after some time)
Growling (mild cases) - Spray bottle, remote collar, prong
Exercise: When the dog growls, correct the dog. Reward the dog when the dog doesn’t growl.
Note: There is lots of context for growling. If a dog is growling when someone approaches their food bowl, this is something that should be corrected. We want the dog to learn that he can’t growl at people for being close to his food aka “resource guarding”. But, if a dog is growling at a kid for playing too rough, we clearly want to teach him this isn’t okay. But the dog is saying verbally he is uncomfortable and doesn’t like what is happening. We want to correct that to teach the dog that growling at humans isn’t okay, but we also want to teach the child to NOT do that to the dog because he doesn’t like it. With that being said, there is some nuance here. We want to show the dog what NOT to do but also look at what the dog is telling us in the context of the behavior.
Social Problems
Jumping On People - Knee, spray bottle, leash w/ prong collar, remote collar
If the dog is jumping on the owners, show them how to use their knee. Make sure they know to use their knee to POP the dog. Not use their knee to PUSH the dog.
Exercise: Make sure the owners have the collar they are using on their dog ready when you/guests arrive so you can address the jumping. When the dog jumps, have the owners correct the dog. Reward the dog when all fours are on the floor with treats, petting, etc.
Note: Make sure the owner is educating their guests on their expectations for their dog.
Exercise: Go outside during the lesson for a 1-3 minutes a few times and ring the bell or knock and go in and get really excited. Get the dog a bit riled up and excited to see you. When the dog jumps, correct the dog for jumping. Reward the dog when he/she has all four on the floor.
Exercise: Have them get someone to come over during the lesson and when the person comes in, have the owner correct the dog when the dog jumps. Reward the dog when he/she has all four on the floor.
Pull on leash - Prong collar, loose leash walk, heel, crazy-man-walk, remote collar
Exercise: Take the dog on a walk and when the dog pulls, give the dog a tug on the leash using a collar of some sort. Reward the dog when he/she isn’t pulling.
Exercise: Put a prong collar/slip lead on the dog and walk with the dog and when the dog pulls, give the dog a tug on the leash and turn and walk in the opposite direction. This is called the crazy man walk. Reward the dog when he/she isn’t pulling.
Exercise: Put a remote collar on the dog and walk with the dog and when the dog pulls, tap on the remote and turn the opposite way. Reward the dog when he/she isn’t pulling.
Smelling crotches - Leash correction, remote collar, condensed air, spray bottle, use knee to back them up, place command
Exercise: When the dog sniffs a crotch excessively, punish the dog using a method above. Reward the dog when he isn’t sniffing a crotch.
Submissive/Excited peeing
Exercise: Ignore the dog when walking in or taking the dog out of the crate. If guests are coming over, greet them outside with the dog or have the guests ignore the dog when they walk in. This is something that goes away with age and maturity.
Tip: If you know the dog is going to pee, have the dog greet you outside so the dog doesn’t pee on the owners floor.
Jumping and trying to paw down the leash- When the dog jumps up and tries to put its paws over the leash, this is normally a sign of poor leash handling OR stress. Moost commonly, a dog pawing the leash down comes from poor leash handling and applying constant tension on the correction collar. What we want to do here is try to hold the leash over the dogs head so he can’t paw the leash down WITHOUT applying pressure on the prong/slip lead. So when the dog jumps up to put his paws over the leash, hold the leash up high so he cant throw his paws over the leash.
Inside Problems
Getting on furniture - spray bottle, leash, remote collar, push dog off couch, bonker, pet corrector spray
Exercise: Run and plop on the couch and be really animated. When the dog jumps on the couch, scoot the dog off the couch/grab the prong and pull/spray corrector/add whatever correction you are using. When the dog is off the couch, reward the dog.
Note: If you’re teaching couch manners where the dog is allowed on the furniture after the password is given, do the same thing listed above. But when the dog is down, then pat the couch and give the dog the release command.
Note: The name of the game here is consistency. You have to make sure that if the client is doing couch manners that they are ONLY letting the dog on the couch when they give the dog the password.
Bolting out the door - Teach door manners
Exercise: See Basic Command Tips and look at the door manners section.
Learning boundaries in the house - Use leash and stay command, plus tape (if needed) to draw a line, remote collar
Exercise: Put blue tape down to visually show the dog where to NOT go. The best tape for this is blue painters tape. Walk over the line and tell the dog to stay behind the boundary line. When the dog crosses the line, give a correction to the dog. Reward the dog when the dog is behind whatever line he need to stay behind.
Examples of where people may want boundaries: The kitchen, behind the kitchen island, a nursery, etc.
Note: It may help to teach place and stay first. It may also help to teach door manners first. You can start with boundary manners, but place/stay and door manners may be a nice supplemental thing to add in.
Counter-surfing, Stealing food from High Chair, Stealing food from couch, Stealing from other dog - Remote collar, prong collar, pet corrector spray.
Exercise: Put some kibbles on the counter or a different food the dog likes. Wait until the dog jumps up and give the dog a correction. Reward the dog when the dog doesn’t jump or all four are on the floor.
Exercise when the dog won’t do it in front of the client: Put some kibbles on the counter or food the dog likes. FaceTime someone else’s phone set the phone up where you can see the area you’ve setup. Then from another room, use remote collar to give the dog a correction. Reward the dog when the dog doesn’t jump.
Begging - Pet corrector spray, prong collar, remote collar
Exercise: Teach the dog place for when the humans are eating or use pet corrector spray, prong collar or remote collar when the dog is actively begging or whining for food.
Note: Another way to fix begging is to simply ignore the dog when the dog is begging.
Stairs (Won’t go up)
Exercise: Put leash on dog (slip leash more than likely) and add some tension and bribe the dog with a treat and use your words to get the dog to go up the stairs. This will likely take more tension on the leash than anything else. Reward the dog like crazy when the dog goes up and make it a huge deal!
Note: If the dog is scared of the stairs, when you’re starting, only make the dog go up a few stairs. Make the dog go up more stairs progressively as the dog becomes more comfortable.
Stairs (Won’t go down)
Exercise: Put the leash on the dog and have the dog go up a few of the stairs and call the dog down to you off the stairs. Then go up a few more stairs and call the dog down to you off the stairs. Repeat until the dog goes down the stairs reliably. Reward like crazy when the dog goes down.
Stairs (Rushing up/down behind owners)
Exercise: *you must first teach nice door manners and release word to do this. Start with the dog on a leash and prong or remote collar. Get the dog to the top of the staircase and work the stay command. Start by backing down the stairs facing the dog. Once at the bottom, release the dog. Repeat until you can walk down the stairs with your back facing the dog. Reward when the dog is doing well. If the dog rushes down without being released, correct the dog and move the dog to the top of the staircase to restart.
Note: A leash can be helpful for this in the beginning. You can also use body spatial pressure to get the dog to go back up the stairs. It is the same “floor is lava” exercise we do for place and stay. Correct the dog until the dog is back at the top or bottom of the stairs where he is supposed to be.
Drop It - Treats
Exercise: Once the dog has something in their mouth (best to practice with toys), put a treat up to their nose and say the words “Drop It” until they drop the item. Reward once they let it go. This will teach the dog that there is an exchange system but ultimately they understand that if they listen they get something better.
Exercise: Put hands on toy and press gently on dogs nostrils and wait for the dog drop the toy. Reward when the dog he drops the toy.
Note: One of the best rewards for the drop it command is to let the dog have the item they just let go of. This shows the dog that
Leave it - Pet corrector spray, prong collar or remote collar
Exercsie: Put treats, or items the dog commonly goes for, out on the floor in front of the dog. Let the dog approach/walk by the items/treats and when the dog approaches, start to say “Leave it”. When they inevitably go for the item on the floor, give them a correction. When they choose to NOT get the item because you said “leave it” before they got it, reward the dog.
Won’t let you put the leash on/collar on
Exercise: This is normally an issue when the dog has learned that getting the leash put on is a game and the dog will run away from the handler. What we need to do is break the pattern of how things happen. Normally, the handler will take the leash out and walk up to the dog and it won’t let him put the leash on. What we should do is grab the dog and walk the dog to where the leash is and hook the dog up while we have ahold of the dog.
Exercise: Grab the leash first and hide it behind your back. Grab a treat and walk the dog over to the place or have the dog sit in front of you. Once the dog is sitting, give the dog the treat and grab the collar. Using your other hand, clip the leash up to the dogs collar.
Dog won’t go in crate and makes the handlers chase him
Exercise: This is common right before the handlers leave in the morning for work OR when going to bed at night. What we want to do is change the pattern of how we get the dog to go in the crate. Normally, people try to put the dog up as the last thing right before they leave. What we need to do is start calling the dog to us before we are ready to leave, grab the dog and then put the dog up. All you need to do is change the order of operations.
Exercise: Use a high value treat as their crate treat. They only get it once they are inside the kennel. This will show them that the crate is a happy and safe place. If a client decides to do something like peanut butter in a kong ball, make sure they are giving the dog that treat ONLY for kennel time. Once the dog is let out, pick it up until they need to use it again.
Won’t Go Through Doggy Door
Exercise: Put the dog on the leash and have you on one side of the door and the owner on the other side of the door. Put the leash through the doggy door and pull the dog through the door to you. When the dog gets out through the door, give the dog a crazy amount of love, praise and treats. Make it a huge deal they walked through the door and then repeat!
Taking over the bed - This one is pretty simple. No dogs allowed in bed. Or if the dog growls when in the bed, push the dog off the bed.
Outside Problems
Digging in the yard - Rocks in the spots the dog was digging, remote collar, put their feces in the hole
Exercise w/ remote collar: Watch through a window or security camera and when the dog digs, just the remote collar on higher level so that the dog associates the higher level with the digging motion.
Won’t come in from back yard - Teach recall well
Exercise - Hook the long leash on the inside of the door handle then let the dog go out on the leash then call the dog in. If the dog doesn’t come, tap the button on the remote collar.
Chasing Cats/Cars/Squirrels - Teach recall well
Exercise: When the dog chases something, call the dog, if the dog doesn’t come, tap the button on the remote collar. Reward when the dog comes. Tip: You will probably have to turn the collar up here.
Rolling in Dirt, Poop or Dead Animals - Spray bottle, remote collar
Exercise: When the dog rolls in dirt, poop, dead animals, etc. Punish the dog using whatever method works on that dog. Reinforce when the dog stops doing this.
Scratching at back door - Remote collar
Exercise: Let the dog out and when the dog scratches on the door, tap at a higher level to have the dog associate the higher level with the motion of scratching. Let the dog in when he isn’t scratching to reinforce the dog for not scratching.
How to stay in car when car door opens - Teach stay and door manners first
Exercise: Have the dog on the leash and barely open the door and tell the dog to stay while reaching in and grabbing onto the leash. Once you have the leash, open the door the rest of the way and make the dog wait. Use the password to let the dog get out of the car.
Won’t get in the car - Flat collar, Prong collar
Exercise: Get really excited and get the dog really excited! Open the door of the car the dog will be getting into, back up and run to the door of the car. Get really vocal when the dog gets close to the door “Jump Up, Up, Up, JUMP JUMP! UP” And add tension to the dogs collar and get him in the car. When the dog gets in, go crazy with praise and treats!
Two things will happen here: the dog will stop completely or get in.
If the dog puts the breaks on: Add tension to the dog and lift the dog in the car and still be really excited and vocal with the dog. When the dog get in, PRAISE! BIG PRAISE! TREATS! Repeat until the dog gets in with no tension.
*Note: Try moving the front seats up to show the dog that it has enough space to jump in comfortably.
How to ride well in the car - Various Exercises Below
Try giving the dog a Kong with Peanut Butter in it to distract their minds while in the car.
Try having the dog in a harness and restraint or anchor dog to something in the care using a leash.
Teach Down and Stay well
Exercise: Start with dog riding around the neighborhood with the dog in front of passenger in the passenger floor board to create comfort for the dog. Once they’ve gotten better, move them to the back seat.
Yard/Gate Boundaries
Exercise (Off-Leash): Go get some work flags from Lowes or Home Depot and place them in the yard where they don’t want the dog going past. Start by letting the dog walk to the line and if the dog crosses the line, tap the collar and recall the dog. Make sure the dog is on leash if they are not at the off leash phase yet.
Exercise (Off-Leash): You and the family walk into the street off the curb. Make sure the threshold is clear from grass to concrete or a curb to the street, etc. Step on the other side of the curb into the street and tell the dog to stay and walk into the street. If the dog comes in the street, tap the collar until the dog is back where it belongs.
Exercise (On-Leash): You and the family walk into the street off the curb. Make sure the threshold is clear from grass to concrete or a curb to the street, etc. Step on the other side of the curb into the street and tell the dog to stay and walk into the street. If the dog comes in the street, give them a couple pops on the prong collar until they are back where they should be and then repeat the word stay. Once you are ready for them to cross over, give them their release word.
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