Ideas for dealing with a high strung dog?

My brother has a large dog he got from a pound about five years ago. He's a large mutt about the size of a German Shepard. He's a nice dog but has always been a bit hyper. They recently had to move in with his inlaws and their Great Dane. The dog has gone crazy. He pisses everywhere and when they aren't home the other day he chewed through the bedroom door. They have tried a dog trainer and he is on Prozac which isn't really helping. The wife is ready to have him put down if they can't get him to behave. I would take him but we're in no position to get another dog right now. Any ideas on what to try to get him back under control?

Wonder what he is bred with. I bet he needs a lot of company or a lot of space to run. Just a high energy breed and those are probably the only options, sadly.

How much exercise is he getting? A worn out dog rarely misbehaves.

EastCoastMojo wrote: How much exercise is he getting? A worn out dog rarely misbehaves.

This.

Maybe doggy daycare would help wear him out. We take our pug once or twice a week, he loves it

Any idea if it's separation anxiety vs. acting out?

To me it sounds like the dog is bored. Bored dogs look for E36 M3 to get into. Or out of in the case of chewing through a door. If it has any working dog in it at all (and it sounds like it does with the whole shepard size mentioned) it needs stuff to do, or it's going to wreck up the place quicklike.

Does it have anything to chew on that isn't the house?

If our dogs don't have bones, sticks, toys, etc, they will chew the house out of boredom.

Shawn

Toys. Lots of toys. Figure out what the dog into. Some like shaking things, others like chewing or squeakers. Also, regular walks and some discipline. Some work should be required for any meals or treats. That means sitting and staying until I give the command to eat. Dog puzzles are good too.

My favorite way of wearing out my dog takes two tennis balls. Toss one, then when the dog has retrieved it, toss the next. You can switch back and forth between the two to keep the dog running for fifteen or twenty minutes.

Try bicycling with your dog. This will burn off energy quickly. There are a number of widgets to help you connect your dog and your bike.

If that's a German Shepard mix, that dog needs to run.

Exercise and entertainment. Some dogs need more than others. Especial under new stress situations. If they don't have the time to give to the dog, they might want to consider giving it away. Best interest for both the dog and them, since the dogs destroying the house.

nepa03focus wrote: Maybe doggy daycare would help wear him out. We take our pug once or twice a week, he loves it

How much does this cost?

RossD wrote: Exercise and entertainment. Some dogs need more than others. Especial under new stress situations. If they don't have the time to give to the dog, they might want to consider giving it away. Best interest for both the dog and them, since the dogs destroying the house.

This, my daughters dog has separation anxiety, when we leave he has to be kenneled or he gets himself into trouble. When it is hot he does not want to go outside, but will run around like crazy inside the house.

Sounds like a job for The Dog Whisperer. I think he would say "more dog walks."

In my experience, big dogs, especially under the age of three to five, depending, in the house, alone for extended periods is A Bad Thing. Probably little dogs too, but I don't have that kind. For example, Rhodesian Ridgebacks are known for chewing couches in half.

I had one that loved tennis balls. Throw him one and he would instantly pop it.

Exercise. Run that thing till he drops. Repeat daily.

Dr. Hess wrote: I had one that loved tennis balls. Throw him one and he would instantly pop it.

I recently took in a 3yo male GSD. He pops a few tennis balls, but chews the felt off the rest(except his newest one for outdoor fetch playing)

Thus far, he has only chewed up a pair of sandals I needed to throw away and the blanket that was his kennel pad. Since then, its only been tennis balls.

Wally, sorry bud, but by the sounds of it, your brother is that dog's bitch. You have to assert dominance over most of them. If not, you get a dog worthy of its own MTV reality show that meanders around saying "berkeley you, I do what I want" all the time.

In reply to SyntheticBlinkerFluid:

^^this

especially if its even a little bit shepherd. its a working breed. Its not meant to sit there or just goof off a little bit.

pinchvalve wrote: Exercise. Run that thing till he drops. Repeat daily.

Yup, run and roughhouse(if he's capable of playing nice, "ouch" and "no" must be valid commands) every day. The dog is worried (and presumably alone all day) in a new place with nothing to do, if he's too tired to do much of anything when nobody is home, problem is solved.

All dogs respond well to exercise. Mine takes 45 minutes of frisbee per day.

Sounds like he was "okay" when he was the only dog in the household. Try re-homing him as opposed to putting him to sleep.

He seems to get a lot of exercise, his father in law works from home and takes the dogs out throughout the day and he is well behaved when they are home. The problem comes when he's home alone. If they can't get the problem solved soon he would like to find a home for him but my brother is nervous about giving him to someone while he's a problem.

Could he be chained up, electric fenced, or crated when nobody is home?

Kenny_McCormic wrote: Could he be chained up, electric fenced, or crated when nobody is home?

Mine unfortunately has to be crated when no one else is home. He will get himself into trouble with no parental supervision.

Wally wrote: If they can't get the problem solved soon he would like to find a home for him but my brother is nervous about giving him to someone while he's a problem.

First off as mentioned before, he (the dog) is not a problem, the level of training and behavioral modification he's receiving is the problem. A new home with an owner who is familiar with working breeds would be just fine for him.

ryanty22 wrote:

Kenny_McCormic wrote: Could he be chained up, electric fenced, or crated when nobody is home?

Mine unfortunately has to be crated when no one else is home. He will get himself into trouble with no parental supervision.

Why do people feel the need to say "unfortunately" when talking about crating? Crate training, if done right, is one of the best things you can do for your dog. My dogs all have crates, more importantly they all LIKE their crates. Often times if I cant find them when Im home they'll be in their crates just hanging out, taking a nap. It's where they feel safe, its their "den".

I have this argument within our rescue all the time. We rescue mill dogs who spent their whole life in a cage so many members of the rescue think its terrible to ever put them in a cage again. Guess what, when being in a cage is the only thing they've ever known, its familiar and safe. When that cage suddenly has blankets and toys and is a happy place, there's no stigma. My mill dogs are the first ones into their kennel when its time to "kennel up" (a command all my dogs know) If we are every in an emergency situation I won't have to herd my dogs, one command and they are all in their "homes" and we are loading them in the RV to evacuate. There's nothing unfortunate about that as far as the dog's well being is concerned.

Ryanty22 you are doing right by your dog, keep it up. Wally, tell the BIL to get a crate, large enough for the dog to turn around in and start using it. A dog that's had no experience will protest at first but he will come around.

Kenny_McCormic wrote: Could he be chained up, electric fenced, or crated when nobody is home?

As long as Im ranting. No. Chained up implies outdoors. Leaving your dog semi-immobilized outdoors puts them at risk to predators and other dangers. If you must leave a dog outdoors use a fully fenced chain link dog run.

Electric fence, won't stop a dog from running. If a dog wants to bolt they'll bolt right past that barrier and keep going, I've seen it too many times. They also require a great deal of training and conditioning to work even when they do work, it seems like lack of training and conditioning are the whole issue to begin with here.