|
Welcome to the YorkieTalk.com Forums Community - the community for Yorkshire Terriers. You are currently viewing our boards as a guest which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community you will have access to post topics, communicate privately with other members (PM), respond to polls, upload content and access many other special features. You will be able to chat with over 35,000 YorkieTalk members, read over 2,000,000 posted discussions, and view more than 15,000 Yorkie photos in the YorkieTalk Photo Gallery after you register. We would love to have you as a member! Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please, join our community today! If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please click here to contact us. |
|
| LinkBack | Thread Tools |
01-04-2014, 02:34 PM | #1 |
Yorkie Talker Join Date: Dec 2013 Location: United States
Posts: 12
| How to Teach My Puppy I'm Pack Leader? My puppy has serious seperation anxiety. I know that dogs have seperation anxiety when they think they're pack leader. So how do I teach him that I'm pack leader? And any tips on seperation anxiety? I've already tried ignoring him when he first sees me. |
Welcome Guest! | |
01-04-2014, 02:58 PM | #2 |
YT Addict Join Date: May 2013 Location: Saint Marys, Ga
Posts: 494
| Not sure about the separation anxiety, but I make Gina wait and let me walk through a door before she does, or into another room. I would suggest some training classes, and socialization at a dog park, or just around your neighborhood. Good Luck, and I know others here can give advise on the separation issues. Welcome to YT. Cheers Quad & Gina
__________________ Assume Nothing, Question Everything, Start Thinking! RIP Megan 3/1998-5/28/2013 |
01-04-2014, 04:33 PM | #3 |
Yorkie mom of 4 Donating YT Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: LaPlata, Md
Posts: 23,247
| I really don't feel that they have separation anxiety because they think there the pack leader. Where did you hear that from? Separation anxiety is fear and sometimes its so bad it requires medicine.Separation Anxiety | ASPCA
__________________ Taylor My babies Joey, Penny ,Ollie & Dixie Callie Mae, you will forever be in my heart! |
01-04-2014, 05:43 PM | #4 |
2+2=4 X the Love ♥ Donating Member | I think that the anxiety and the pack leader role are two separate things. Each that needs to be dealt with in different ways. As for teaching him that you are the leader I think that teaching him his commands (sit, stay, & here) and to listen to you will go a long way in solving this issue. Making sure that he know you are the teach/leader and what you say goes. Not allowing him to not do as you ask of him is a good way to start. Making sure that he understands the commands and does them the moment after being told. If you should allow him to test the limit and boundaries you are allowing him to take control. Always have him leashed when working on your commands, that gives you control of the situation. Two to three 10 minutes sessions a day will work wonders. The anxiety issue normally stem from being left alone too often or for long periods of time. At least that is how I understand it, being a stay at home mom I don't know much about it. I would suggest making sure he has plenty of toys to keep him busy when you are way. And also working with him doing some behavior training in some quick leaving and reentering the home exercises. Rewarding him for having a calm demeanor before you leave and reenter is very important. Always reward the good behavior and ignore the bad. I've seen it done before and it seems to work.
__________________ Mommy to: Quincy, & Ruby Bella / Miah & Brandi Gone but Never Forgotten Visit: Bella Dawns for all of your Custom Pet Wear needs. |
01-05-2014, 09:13 AM | #5 |
Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Syracuse NY
Posts: 14
| I have heard this before too. I read that they freak out when you leave because "the leader can leave his pack, but the pack can't leave the leader." I personally do not understand the connection. It seems like a lot of articles I read say pretty much EVERYTHING is attributed to a dog dominating it's owner. From sleeping in the bed with you, to seperation anxiety... I don't get it. I don't know much about seperation anxiety except toy breeds are more prone to it. I think I would definitely crate him when you're gone so he doesn't freak out and hurt himself though. |
01-05-2014, 09:46 AM | #6 |
♥ Love My Tibbe! ♥ Donating Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: D/FW, Texas
Posts: 22,140
| I have used the below technique to train anxious and barking dogs how to accept being left alone without misbehaving or becoming destructive. It is long, wordy and the copy/paste from my Word program can cause some of the words to run together but you might read it over and see if it might work for your girl. It was originally posted about an adult, male dog with female owner. When enough time and repetition is used to teach this method, it has worked every time to desensitize the dog to the concept of being left alone and they learn to relax and accept this fact of their lives. But it takes a lot of dedication and repetition by the owner, working faithfully with the dog. I hope it can help your sweet dog feel less anxious when you leave her/him home alone. Separation Anxiety Most anxious dogs that aren't used to it get nervous and anxious when their owners leave the home. Firstly, take all emotion out of your leaving. Do not feel sad for him or tell him goodbye - just like pack leaders in the wild don't when they decide to go on a hunt or take a walk - they just walk away and nobody freaks. They are impersonal and matter-of-fact in how and what they must do. So no emotional goodbyes or hello's when arriving home. Act like a pack leader. Your dog is a pack animal and is genetically in tune with a firm but fair leader. As far as your actual leaving, just slowly desensitize him to your leaving and soon he will come to accept it. But you must desensitize him to it slowly and allow him to adjust to each step. Be patient with that baby - his anxiety can be overcome with time and patience and knowing what to do. Keep your training sessions short and impersonal, matter-of-fact. (You can reward him once each exercise is over with a big, loving play session and lots of loving hugs, kisses.) Give him a lovely food-stuffed kong toy, sit down and watch him playing with it, take up your keys and purse and whatever else you do as if to leave home and sit back down and just watch him. Don't go anywhere. Just sit there. Now this is key: keep repeating this for a day or two on a weekend over and over, giving him different things to chew on or play with as you get ready to go but don't. After a day or two of this, when he's playing with his kong and has accepted your getting your things together, get your keys/purse, watch him for a while then get up and without saying one word to him or looking in his direction, just like an alpha wolf who acts in its pack without question from one of his pack members, walk out of your door outside. Shut it. Stand there 10 seconds and walk back in, DO NOT NOTICE HIM AT ALL, no matter how he's dancing around your feet or whining in joy, put your things away and sit back down where you usually sit when you watch him with his kong toy. Repeat this over & over and keep increasing your times outside to let him learn slowly that though momma goes out the door, she will be back and I'm really okay. Slowly but surely as you stay out longer and longer but do come back in, he'll have grown to accept this action as inconsequential in his life and soon grow to accept your leaving without thinking a thing of it -he'll know he gets a good thing to play with and some good food, momma will be back and he'll accept it. B4 long, he will just accept your leaving without any toys or kongs or anything. After a while, include getting in the car in this training exercise, even starting it up and getting right back out and coming in the house without noticing him. Repeat repeat repeat - sitting in the car awhile with it running. Eventually, drive around the block and then back home, inside, not noticing your dog and putting your things away, coming to sit in the same place on the couch where you always sit during this training. Once you have sat there a while after each training session, now it is time to play and reward that anxious baby who is learning to be a goooood dog so now have a blast with him. Lots of love, hugs, kisses, tugowar, etc. Happy, happy rewards for his efforts are definitely in order! If you are patient enough to do this, it works EVERY SINGLE time and turns an anxious, crying dog into one that accepts leaving as just a part of his day.They soon learn to adjust their day to sleep while we are away and be ready togo when we get home. I would also start him on a good positive-rewards training program such as in Tamar Geller's The Loved Dog book. This will teach him to bond well with you as you develop a strong relationship that he will not question, no matter what as he knows momma is always gonna keep it fun, loving and always rewarding for him.
__________________ Jeanie and Tibbe One must do the best one can. You may get some marks for a very imperfect answer: you will certainly get none for leaving the question alone. C. S. Lewis |
01-05-2014, 03:42 PM | #7 |
Action Jackson ♥ Donating Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Maryland
Posts: 17,814
| Separation anxiety has nothing to do with being a 'pack leader'. It's pretty self explanatory... they get anxious when separated from their humans. You've been given great advice above on how to deal with it. Pack leader theory has been debunked by the very people who created it years ago while studying captive wolves. So pretty much anything you read about it is mostly hogwash. Check out youtube. There's some great trainers, such as zakgeorge21, kikopup, pamelamarxsen, tab289 and more.
__________________ ~ Brit & Lights! Camera! Jackson! CGC ETD TKP ~ Follow Jackson on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jacksontheterrier Last edited by Britster; 01-05-2014 at 03:44 PM. |
Bookmarks |
|
|
| |
|
|
SHOP NOW: Amazon :: eBay :: Buy.com :: Newegg :: PetStore :: Petco :: PetSmart