dog advice please... getting desperate.

Hi Beckstar.

We too have a rescue dog. He was a year old when we got him and we've had him just over 2 years.

He is extremely aggressive with other dogs and we have tried everything, including paying over £400 in one-on-one trainers to no avail. No obedience class will take him because of his aggression. I am willing to muzzle him but I can see why they would be reluctant.

We don't have any of the problems you have in the house luckily - that must be making things harder to deal with. I don't have a lot of suggestions but maybe try getting some puppy training books and going back to basics with regards to house training?

Don't give up on her. If she can't be trusted around dogs and livestock and she can get aggresisve with people, then I think you are being very responsible muzzling her. We do the same with Buster if we're going somewhere that dogs are likely to run up to him. We have accepted that it's likely Buster will always be an aggressive dog and take measures to ensure it's never more of an issue than it has to be. He's a lovely dog in every other way so we've decided we can live with it as he's great with people and kids.

Not much help but will be watching this thread with interest!

What kind of dog do you have?

Thank you, this is my little cookie dog shes a whippet and staffy cross.

I think that going back to basics might be the best idea for her messes. I really really don’t want to give up on her, especially after such a bad start in life.its probably got something to do with the way i try to train her too, as i said she my first dog so im not doing something right!)

Thanks for the advice and I do believe that it probably does have a lot to do with the way i handle her. If i see another dog i will practically run the other way just to avoid it so she must be able to sense this.

yes she does go outside and i have never once praised her for doing so. I never really thought about it from an attention point of view before so that could make a huge difference as she craves a lot of attention in general anyway.

Do you think it would be better if I don’t let her up on sofas and beds? as someone once said that this can create big problems too. I am very soft on her but don’t want to create more problems than needs be.

i agree about the RSPCA as i think its very irresponsible of them knowing my lack of knowlege and experience of dogs. oh and i live in leicester by the way

Ahh she's lovely.

9 times out of ten I absolutely agree with you Sange. Unfortunately this doesn't seem to be the case with Buster. OH doesn't get nervous about anything, certainly not other dogs coming his way; and some of the time the only reason I even realise there's a dog in the vicinity is when Buster starts going mental! So before I've had a chance to show nervousness IYSWIM? As I say we've spent a fair amount of money on dog trainers and nothing has worked so far. Oh well, c'est la vie!

This is our Patterdale/Lab cross.

Haha - bloody understatement of the century Sange! From the reseach we have done, all Patterdales can be little devils. To be honest they generally just don't make great pets as they are essentially working dogs. Unfortunately no farm etc would take Buster so it was a case of a normal home or being put down (he was found wandering, completely emaciated, round the streets of Bradford and was rescued the day before the pound were due to put him to sleep). We absolutely adore him though! If we're honest, he's not the dog we wanted when we set out to rescue a dog but we wouldn't swap him for the world now.

Do you have a pic? What kind is she?

We have an Alsatian Husky Cross. She's my little sisters dog and she's only 5 months old and very powerful. My sister watches that Dog Whisperer programme on TV and i have to say that at 5 months old, the puppy is very well behaved.

Ps - the pink bit on her nose is a carpet burn. she was trying to bury one of her chew toys

Loving your lurchers Sange!!!

I've got a rescue dog too, he's had a horrible old life, been abandoned and found wandering as a stray in Ireland, looked after for a bit then shipped over here to the Dogs Trust where we got him from.

From experience (he's my second rescue dog) then I completely agree with praising the good behaviour and completely ignoring the bad. Finn messed in the house when we first had him and still now sometimes wets in the kitchen. You have to try and see it from their view, no-one's ever taken the time to show them the right thing to do so they simply don't know not to do it. I still now go loopy bouncing around praising him and saying 'good boy, well done' when Finn goes out for a wet in the garden and when he goes on his walks. He craves my attention so rewarding him verbally when he does the right thing makes him want to do it again. Ignoring him when he does the wrong thing reinforces this. I also strongly believe that you shouldn't punish them for messing in the house. If you were desperate and had an accident would being shouted at help.

It is a long old process though and sticking with it will be hard work but so worth it. She's gorgeous and I think you're ace for taking on a 'damaged' dog.

Think you've had some good advice re the aggression too, you need to distract her when you see a potential problem coming up so she's thinking about you and not the other dog. Does she like balls? Finn will ignore anything and anyone if he has a ball (or if I have it!) Also load yourself up with treats and give them to her everytime she does something right. Even if it took her a while to get there!! She'll soon learn that you hand out the tasty stuff!

Good luck x

Here's our boy.

Read something lovely earlier which really touched a chord with me 'Rescuing one dog won't change the world but for that one dog the world will change forever.'

This is one of mine as a baby pup. I'm a dog sitter & just applied to the KC to be an accredited breeder. TBH I'm not much help with the aggression other than keep treats in your pocket at all time & if are out & see other dogs, make your dog recall & sit & reward with a treat. Distraction is a wonderful thing! It's not easy but if you perservere it can make a big difference. Try watching Cesar Milans videos (library?) as he is good at rehabing pitbulls.

With regards to the house training, treat your pooch like a puppy. Take her outside straight after every meal. Take her out every hour when you are in the house. If you have to leave her, personally I would put her in a large crate as dogs almost never mess in their own bed & then take her out the second you get into the house. Everytime she goes where she is meant to make the most enormous fuss of her. Ignore her if there is an accident & get some of that spray from Pets at Home which gets rid of the smell so if she does go on a carpet then she doesn't keep going on the same place. I would also suggest you put a puppy pad down in the kitchen so if she is desperate she can use that.

Personally I would never let a dog on the bed & it isn't great to let them onto the sofa as it is very much a pack status thing. The person who is sat in the dominant (higher) position is higher up in the pack. That said, I have got 3 dalmatians sat next to me on the sofa at the moment!!!

I think it is awful the RSPCA rehomed her without assisting with her training. Then they wonder why dogs get sent back. Not clever.

Aw this bought a little tear to my eye... Loving the pics of everyones pups!

We're having a similar problem with our Jack Russell, he's impeccably trained in every way other than his aggression towards other dogs and people who come to the house who he doesn't know/ like. We've tried positive training and distraction techniques but when he sees someone he doesn't like *nothing* will distract him. Not even treats. Its really sad, as hes such a good little boy, and hes making a bad reputation for himself and I have exhausted any knowledge I have of dog training with him on this ☹️ And we can't afford the money for a professional unless its guaranteed to work. Sigh.

Just to echo what everyone else has said though, with other training (obviously it hasn't worked for me with the aggression!), just make a huuuuuuuge fuss of her when she does something right and try to ignore when she does something wrong and hopefully you should see some improvement, although it will take time.

What gorgeous dogs everyone has.

Thanks though guys, some really fab advice so I will put some of it to use and see how I get on. I wasn’t sure about getting a crate as I felt kind of guilty putting her in there but if it has a positive outcome then I may have to try this.

Although I’ve moaned about her she’s part of the family and the only way she will ever go back is if she puts me or my family in danger. Until then I made a commitment to her and even if her last owners didn’t I’m going to put all the effort and love in the world into her.

I've heard stories of dogs who are told off for messing in the house eating their own poo to hide the evidence ☹️. I would definitely recommend puppy training pads. Put them down in the place in your house which the dog uses as a toilet the most often. Also, consider buying or hiring a carpet cleaner so you don't have to keep replacing the carpet. You can also get deodorisers from pet shops which will get rid of the smells which encourage the dog to mess indoors again.

My dog is also a rescued dog. They can get a bit anxious and nervy because they are not used to being loved and having a 'forever home'. Here's mine, looking very muddy.

Look on Freecycle/Preloved/ebay for crates. You can get them quite cheaply if you look around. Get the biggest one you can & yes, she will make a fuss when she first goes in it but if you reward good behaviour with treats & start off with a few minutes & build it up then she won't be scared by it. A crate is really the only way you will be able to stop her messing when you aren't in the house.

Don't feel bad about getting a crate for her - Dogs learn to love them and see them as a little safe haven all of their own! ?

The puppy pads are really good if the dogs 'get' them. With my first dog (a cavalier) we used them and they worked really well. We kept them in the same position until he knew that was his place to go, and gradually moved them (every couple of days or so, only by a few cm) towards the door until they ended up outside. My JRT however didn't understand at all what they were for, and we toilet trained him by just putting him outside every hour or so and making a huge fuss when he went.

i feel so guilty for telling her off after messing now.... on the upside though i just took her out and gave her few doggy choccy buttons which she goes mad for and gave her lots and lots of fuss....fingers crossed this works, she def enjoyed the attention given to her.

i do have a carpet cleaner but the stains started to look so bad even the cleaner wasnt doing much about it i was getting embarresed when people came over.

Definitely don't feel guilty. Training a dog is hard and you have to experiment with different methods to find what works best with your dog; sounds like the praising is working really well ?. Crate training is a really good idea. If you decide not to use training pads then maybe you could put down an old bit of rug or carpet to protect the floor that you can take up when guests come over? Not very attractive but could be an option in the short term.