on the topic of dogs

[Sarah&Braydon]

does anyone have an advice for me bout my dog,
wen we first got her up until we moved (8 weeks to a yr old)
she was such a good dog she never barked never jumped up wen u ate slept thro the nite etc the model dog.
then wen we moved she started barking not all the time but enough to stress u out.
then wen Bray was born it all changed and has slowely got worse, she has never hurt and im 99% never will hurt neone and Bray aint always gentle to her, but now she gets up 2-3 times in the nite, is for ever jumping up, scratching at doors and forever trying to get food out of Brays hands, and u can not even think of watching a tv programme that has a dog or ne animal in even if the animal on the telly dont make a noise she will still spot it and bark for bout 10 mins at a time
she is really starting to wind us up and my dad is starting to have had enough and is seriously thinking of giving her away which i really dont want to happen so ne ideas would be much appreciated

 

[Fluffy Bunny]

Without being too blunt - is she getting enough exercise? I know how hard it is when you have a little one but as a rough estimate dogs should have at least 2x half hour walks a day. What breed is she?

Sounds alot like attention seeking/ boredom to me. [/b]

 

[Sarah&Braydon]

she is a cavalier so she is not allowed on awalk for more than 20 mins a day, suffers with her back legs but we spend alot of time playing ball and tug etc

 

[Fluffy Bunny]

Mmmm...if it is not an exercise issue another thought is that it is an attention seeking behaviour. You probably shout at her/ interact when she is doing the 'naughty' things which is exactly what she wants - dogs don't differentiate between you telling them off or talking nice things to them, they are just glad of the human contact. If she is doing something you don't want her too tell her 'No' once and if she continues remove her from the situation, eg if she is barking at the telly and won't stop, tell her 'no', if she continues say nothing and lead her into another room and leave her on her own there. This is the worst thing you can do to her and gradually she will learn that if she is told 'no' and continues she will be put on her own. Re-introduce her to the family when the behaviour has stopped e,g she stops barking/fretting and lays down to go to sleep. Give her lots of fuss and tell her she is a good girl.

Do what you would do with your children reward good behaviour, ignore bad behaviour!

Like with gruntie, I recommend Jan Fennell and 'The dog Listener' as a great book for helping with behaviour problems.