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newdad · 12-21-2012, 04:49 PM

Just thought I'd give everybody an update. Again, thank you SO much for your kind, encouraging words when Jake ran away and the suggestions for creating a better relationship with Jake and Roxy.

1. Jake is much less aggressive towards me now. Maybe his neutering helped, too. He is still very afraid of me, though. When my girlfriend is gone, he hides under the bed most of the time. He generally won't let me come near him, or if he does, he just shakes or makes a screaming noise. I take him out his crate and outside for potty every day after work, but he's terrified the whole time. He will potty, though!

2. Roxy is just very wild. She barks at every noise she hears, especially at night. She potties in the house constantly. We've put a potty pad down, as she does most of her potty in the house at night while we sleep. We crate them during the day, so we don't want to crate them at night (and my girlfriend likes sleeping with them on the bed). Roxy will pee and poop everywhere except the pad, generally under my desk. We have to clean the carpet daily. When we take her outside for potty, she takes 5 to 10 minutes to go potty. She doesn't really look for a spot, she just goes wild. Running all over the place, smelling leaves and trees, barking at stuff, pulling on the leash in every direction. She eventually decides to potty after 5 to 10 minutes, where she does the "potty walk" (intense sniffing and butt low to the ground) and then goes, but it's anybody's guess where she's going to go. It's hard to praise her after that, because she doesn't seem to care if I praise or don't react at all. She just runs away to go sniff stuff and be wild. The house reeks of potty constantly, so it's been tough to get any progress with her. She doesn't seem to learn anything.

3. What's a good way to "positively reinforce" that Roxy shouldn't be constantly barking at stuff? I've read so much about positive vs. negative reinforcement, and we want to praise and nurture the pups, not punish. We shake a can of coins if Roxy incessantly barks at night, and it temporarily helps, but what's a method for praising being quiet?

Any advice is always welcome. Thank you.

12-21-2012, 04:49 PM	#28
newdad YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: USA Posts: 8	Just thought I'd give everybody an update. Again, thank you SO much for your kind, encouraging words when Jake ran away and the suggestions for creating a better relationship with Jake and Roxy. 1. Jake is much less aggressive towards me now. Maybe his neutering helped, too. He is still very afraid of me, though. When my girlfriend is gone, he hides under the bed most of the time. He generally won't let me come near him, or if he does, he just shakes or makes a screaming noise. I take him out his crate and outside for potty every day after work, but he's terrified the whole time. He will potty, though! 2. Roxy is just very wild. She barks at every noise she hears, especially at night. She potties in the house constantly. We've put a potty pad down, as she does most of her potty in the house at night while we sleep. We crate them during the day, so we don't want to crate them at night (and my girlfriend likes sleeping with them on the bed). Roxy will pee and poop everywhere except the pad, generally under my desk. We have to clean the carpet daily. When we take her outside for potty, she takes 5 to 10 minutes to go potty. She doesn't really look for a spot, she just goes wild. Running all over the place, smelling leaves and trees, barking at stuff, pulling on the leash in every direction. She eventually decides to potty after 5 to 10 minutes, where she does the "potty walk" (intense sniffing and butt low to the ground) and then goes, but it's anybody's guess where she's going to go. It's hard to praise her after that, because she doesn't seem to care if I praise or don't react at all. She just runs away to go sniff stuff and be wild. The house reeks of potty constantly, so it's been tough to get any progress with her. She doesn't seem to learn anything. 3. What's a good way to "positively reinforce" that Roxy shouldn't be constantly barking at stuff? I've read so much about positive vs. negative reinforcement, and we want to praise and nurture the pups, not punish. We shake a can of coins if Roxy incessantly barks at night, and it temporarily helps, but what's a method for praising being quiet? Any advice is always welcome. Thank you.