Category: Top Dog

I have 2 dogs that are both very anxious and have separation anxiety, and they both are aggressive and destructive chewers. They will also eat things they aren’t supposed to, like pieces of the toys they destroy. So far, the only toys I have found that can withstand their chewing are the black Kong toys, but there is a limited variety of those toys to choose from. I am looking for something I can leave in their kennel with them while I’m gone that they aren’t able to chew up or swallow and preferably something interactive because they tend to get bored. They are a 28-lb Boston terrier and a 15-lb dachshund.

I have two very active golden retrievers and we live by an open air space which is great for off leash ball chasing for the one that is high energy. My other golden does not like to chase a ball, but is highly anxious if not with the other one- so I go to the space with my husband who throws for the one while I walk around the space with the other. The problem is that the place is full of goose poop and no matter how vigilant I am and how much i try to redirect she always gets a few mouthfuls. I have tried retraining and have had no success- I am worried she will get sick from this. Should I consider a muzzle for our time at that space?

My girlfriend and I just got a 4 month old male corgi puppy and he seems to me slightly scared/wary of men.

He’ll let me pick him up, pet him a little and what not. But any faster than “slow motion” movements gets him skiddish.

He loves my girlfriend and is attached to her ankle practically and really easily opens up to other women we’ve introduced to him.

I’m guessing it’s because the breeder that had him only had a mother and two young children around him as well as other dogs.

When my girlfriend leaves the house and it’s just me and him. He just cries/howls while keeping a distance from me.

We’ve had him for about a week now.

How can I work to get him to like me like he does with my girlfriend?

Thank you in advance! This is just so sad for me hahaha. I’ve wanted a puppy for so long and now I’m chopped liver.

Hi all.

My 12 week old pup recently had a health scare when he decided to chobble down something with raisins in. My kiddo had set it down on the table and dad saw him pinch it but made no effort to stop him from eating it- (he didn’t realise raisins were toxic) Que a VERY expensive vets bill later and he’s home and fit and well. HOWEVER. He yet again!!! Has managed to bulldoze his way into the kitchen and headed straight to the bin. This guy has knocked the bin over and swallowed a kfc chicken fillet, a couple fries & a slither of red onion (of all bloody things) He’s vomited it within 5 mins of consuming it & I of course have inspected the contents and saw the small slither of cooked onion.

Firstly, one small slither of onion – will that constitute another vet trip? Secondly, anyone else’s pup a complete gannet? im watching him like a hawk now paranoid because i know onions are toxic. Luckily hes vomited straight away but still. I’ll be a nervous wreck. He’s insured but I still have to pay a hefty sum as his insurance doesn’t kick in for another 2 days.

He’s allowed to go out for his first walk in a weeks time so I’m understandably paranoid about the extent this behaviour will go to. I don’t want him inhaling slugs next. Is it worth muzzle training for the foreseeable?

Thanks

Hi everyone! My 6.5 month Cavalier x Bichon has always been a fantastic sleeper at night. He sleeps in his crate from about 9 pm to 7:30 am, with very rare issues. He doesn’t usually wake up in the night, and usually sleeps until my husband gets up for work, or only a little earlier.

One thing to note is that he’s not very food motivated. We’ve tried lots of different foods and he’s not bothered and it’s always a struggle to get him to eat. So we don’t really have that option for enrichment. He also doesn’t care for Kongs or lick mats, and I’ve tried everything on them. If anything requires too much work for him to get he just doesn’t care. He likes some treats but doesn’t really eat his kibble.

The issue I’m struggling with at the moment is the fact that he just will not settle down at all. He gets so overtired and overstimulated that he humps me and my husband (or any other person he can) quite persistently. He’s barky and bitey and whiny for attention. It’s relentless. This is always worse during his witching hour (or 3) before bed, where he’s overtired but simply will not settle down. But it’s becoming a problem during the day as well.

When he was younger, we used to just crate him for enforced naps because he’s not very good at self regulation or self soothing, but lately he’s refusing to settle in the crate during the day or while we’re at home. He will bark at full volume, which worries me with neighbours and means we can’t use our sitting room (only place for his crate). If I let him stay out of the crate he would basically just terrorise me without ever sleeping. I can play and play with him until he’s falling asleep, or take him for walks, but then he’s quickly back up and biting, humping, barking whilst yawning and getting increasingly unhinged – so the crate feels like the only option.

If we leave the house he is silent, doesn’t mind the crate or being left – though he doesn’t seem very well rested when we get back, so I think he wakes a lot listening to see if we’re back yet.

Any advice? Or am I doing the right thing and it’s just a case of persisting until he grows out of it?

I have a 3mo puppy who has discovered demand barking. Is looking at the puppy considered reinforcing? (We click and treat when quiet, we anticipate behavior, and have patterns, it's just that the treatsdisappear so quickly that we don't yet have an alternative behavior that will last through a meal)

I’m getting a puppy and I have to get a small breed ( under 20 pounds) because we travel from Boston to Florida a lot now. I’ve owned Golden Retrievers in the past and I’m afraid a small breed will be “barky” or hyper. I’m looking for a breed that is relatively calm and doesn’t bark too much. Easily trainable would be great too! Any suggestions?

The first month was insanely hard.

(Golden puppy) We had multiple talks of bringing him back to the breeder. He peed and pood everywhere. Nipped my son. Chewed up the cord to my favourite lamp.

I realized this morning that Today was the first time I said “I love you” to him. Not sure when it happened but at some point between 2am pees outside, fantasies of texting the breeder expressing this dog was impacting my mental health, and hating my life, I started to grow fond of him and not regret my decision.

He’s definitely ours now, and with crate training and consistency he’s already signalling to us when he needs to go outside (we thought it would never happen).

It gets better. It’s still hard sometimes, but it gets better.