Dog problem

[zapsmom]

Well, I finally am finished my c&c cage. But I have a problem. My dogs can see my boys now. We have two golden ret. Our male (Sam) doesn't seem too interested, but our female (Clover) won't leave them alone. She keeps whining and sometimes barking at the cage. I've even caught her pawing at. I can't seem to deter her.
Any suggestions would be grealy appreciated.

P.S. We're locking the dogs out of the room when they can't be watched properly.

[WEAVER]

I would definately not leave your pigs unsupervised around the dogs with the way they are acting, especially with your being bigger dogs, they could get through that cage if they are determined enough.

I would not allow the dog to act like that, everytime she did I would get onto her, and get on her hard. My border collie actually thinks the guinea pigs are "higher" on the ranking scale than her because I want her to think that. Than she knows--I mess, with the pigs, mom messes with me.

If she just will not leave them be, barking uncontrolablely, digging by the cage, alarming the pigs and correction alone is not working I would put her leash on when you are around to correct her, tug the leash fairly hard, say "leave it". Do your dogs know the command "leave it"? If not that is the first step!!!

Last resort is a liquid called Bitter Apple. It comes in a spray bottle. Dogs hate it (I personally hate to use it unless it is a last resort).

Training the dog and rewarding the dog for behavior that is acceptable is the key, disaplining the dog automatically when the behavior is not acceptable is the other key. It is going to take some time and work, but your pigs lives could be at risk if you to not get the problem corrected.

Please keep the dogs seperated from the pigs until this gets fixed. So many dogs have injured or killed guinea pigs right before their owners eyes.

[DaCourt]

I have 2 dogs. One is Golden retriever mix. Can I ask how old the dog is that overly interested? If it's a puppy or younger dog, then breaking this habit should be pretty easy.

[zapsmom]

Both the dogs are about 2 1/2 years old.
So far we are just keeping them away from the cage unless we are within arms reach. Sam doesn't seem to care about them too much, the only time he shows interest is when they make noise. Even then he just checks to see what made the sounds. We have been giving Clover trouble when she paws at the cage. For the most part she just whines, now and then she gives a bark but its always only one, because we are on her as soon as she does and she gets kicked out of the room.
We're still working with them. It took a while to get them to stay away from the cats. We use "down" and "back off" to keep them away from the cats and we have been using the same to keep them away from my piggies.

[DaCourt]

I would not remove the dog. They are like kids. THey want what they can't have. Instead, flip him, dominate him. Gently, but firnly, grab the scruff of the neck and get him onto his back. Hold him there and tell him no. This is what dogs do with each other when establishing dominance. THen make him sit there right next to you. He will get the hint.

[GSL1445]

We have 3 dachshunds (mama and 2 puppies), and they don't bother the cage. We had been warned about our particular breed and the fact that they are born hunters, but we have not had any problems. Our cage is up off the floor. They dogs can't see in it. The only one interested in the cage/pigs has been the Mama dog. She hears something squeaking in there. She is very maternal, I think she thinks there are babies in the cage. She lays beside it on the floor and listens to them sometimes. I think she worries about them like puppies. The puppies are oblivious to them and don't seem to care, except occasional curiosity.
If they did act up, or try to do something stupid around the pigs, I would scold them and crate them for a while like "time out". That is the punishment we use and it works well for barking issues. I think it just calms them to be in the crate/bed and they forget about what they were all worked up about. I think that using the same command you use for your cats is a good idea, it lets the dogs know that those are a no no and you are being consistent with them. Dogs understand that.

[Coopdog]

Spray bottles work great, too. Keep one in the room with the pigs, and if Clover misbehaves, one quick sprits of water to her face along with a stern "NO!" will usually get the message across.

It could be that Clover just wants to get a better idea of what these little critters are. Goldens are usually pretty good about stuff once they understand the rules.

Is there any way you could do a safer introduction, so that she can thoroughly see and sniff them and understand what they are? My dog was terribly curious when we first brought Louise home and went nuts trying to get closer to her. But after a few sessions of CAREFULLY letting him see and sniff her to his heart's content, he decided she was just another critter in the house and he has been fine ever since. Now he all but ignores her, even when she's on floor time.

[DaCourt]

Originally Posted by Coopdog

Spray bottles work great, too.

Goldens are usually pretty good about stuff once they understand the rules.

Is there any way you could do a safer introduction, so that she can thoroughly see and sniff them and understand what they are?

All very good points. Spray bottles are a great training aid. I don't even need water in the bottle any more. My 2 see it, and stop whatever they are doing. We use the flip and dominate meathod if the offence is bigger than a squirt.

Goldens are known for wanting to please. They want to understand the rules.

Try sitting on the couch with one of the piggies. Put the pig in a cozy or something so he feels safe. Gradually let your dog get closer. Do this over and over and he will get it.

[C&K]

My dog can't be trusted with the pigs either, she usually jumps up at the cage (it is on a table) and looks at them, I don't trust her though, and have a feeling if she saw one scurry across a floor, her instincts would kick in (she is 50 pounds, and kills mice)

Still though, she understands not to mess with the pigs in the cage, but does look at them when I am around. her tale wags, she seems very unagressive.

I would not allow the dog to behave argressively and would work towards actively correcting this behavior through training. She needs to learn her place, like with anything else.

In the interm, if the cage is on a table, I would consider bolting it down to the table and zip tying all the connections together, so it can't be knocked to the really easily. This is by no means fool proof, but should at least help improve the stability of the cage to prevent a right before your eyes type of accident.

Good luck.

[DocDolittle]

Definitely try to safely introduce them. I've found that my two dogs were curious about them until they found out what they actually were, and then they pretty much lost interest, although my beagle mix still gets a yearning to look at them once in a while. My lab saw what they were and is now constantly terrified when ever I bring them out. She apparently thinks that they're freaky little critters.

If they don't lose interest once they know what they are, I'd definitely use training as a solution. I've often found that retriever type dogs, who are very family oriented and only want to please, work better with positive training, so, while training the dog what's not acceptable and correcting her with a water bottle/dominance may help, training the dog what is acceptable would probably show the most progress, i.e. giving her loads of praise and food rewards whenever she lays quietly by the cage. Whenever she stops barking at the piggers or something, immediately award her so that she gets the idea that if she doesn't scare/bark at the pigs she gets praise.

However, keeping the dogs away from the cage when you can't supervise them should probably be a rule no matter what, because every dog has it's unpredictable day. You never know when it's prey drive will kick in.

[zapsmom]

Thanks everyone for the advice. I really appreciate it.
I'll be trying the different methods that were suggested and keep you posted.

[CavySpirit]

Great discussion. I'm going to also copy this thread over to the Cage Safety forum.

Thanks,
Teresa

[wolfie]

I know you are annoyed with Clover right now, but you,ve just got to love that Golden joy for life and curiousity! "Down" is a very effective command, but the most powerful command you can use is "Down Stay". If you're dogs are fully trained with a "down stay", they will learn to lay down and not move until you release them. You can also teach them the command "No Paw". At 2 1/2 years old, your dogs are probably still adolescents with lots of energy. Try giving Clover a good, long work out (fetch or however you exercise them). Then when she is tired out, try the down stay next to the cage . If you would like a few golden and guinea giggles keep reading.

We have a ten year old Golden. Even though she is a senior she is full of playfullness. Her first experience with a guinea pig was 4 years ago when we babysat a cousin's female guinea pig. "Bailey" was quite used to dogs. We safe proofed my daughter's room, put our dog in a down stay and let Bailey out. We were stunned when she would have nothing to do with us. She ran right to our dog Ceana, laid down and began nibbling on the tufts of fur sticking out from Ceana's paws. Ceana just sat there with that beautiful golden smile and a look that said "See, I knew she would like ME!"

We recently adopted two little guinea pig boys of our own, who are not used to dogs. Now I hope I won't be attacked- but they are housed in a extra large Tommy marchioro cage and rolling stand. That said, they spend most of their time in a 4 X 4 cube playpen (crib pads, towels, fleece and all of the accessories and toys). Our dog is quite bewildered and has been quite inventive in her attempts to create a relationship with them. First she tried dropping a tennis ball into the playpen (and believe me, she would NEVER share her ball with another dog!). When that didn't work she decided to bring in one of her big stuffed, squeaky toys- which we intercepted!) Finally last night, she found a more effective way. She realized that when the hay bin is full, she could use her nose to knock out some of the hay. That sent our two boys running to eat the hay and allowed some sniffing and checking out on both sides. Hope this made you smile. Good luck and don't give up on introducing them! Wolfie