Puppy problems

[littlelion]

I love my chow puppy, Lion. I give him a lot of hugs and I never hit him. But I hate it when my chow puppy mouths people. He thinks it is all games and fun but my family and I don’t think so. My chow puppy, Lion, mouths my legs when he is excited but I don’t like it so I always tell him NO. He would stop for a second but when I move, he starts to mouth again. One time, I was really angry and gave him a really serious NO and he growled at me. He thinks everything in the house is his toy and he chews everything.

Also, he is really scared of the water so he never goes to the back yard when it rains. It creates a problem because he goes to the bathroom in the house. How do you make him not so scared?

I have having a lot of problems training Lion to listen to me. My boyfriend tried to help me train him by punishing Lion. Whenever Lion bites his leash and won’t let go, my boyfriend would pull the leash up. My boyfriend suggested using a dog shock collar to make Lion listen more.

Is there a better way to train it?

[katman]

I'm in the same boat. How old is Lion? My Puppy is 4 months.

[littlelion]

Lion is eight weeks old. He gets a lot of love in the house. My dad spoils Lion with food. He eats cooked meat with no bones. I walk him at least 2 times a day. I let him chew all the rugs in the house now. I just bought him a new chew toy. Don't worry, I love Lion too much to put in a shock collar.

I had been reading chowchow.org forum religiously for the past few days, trying to enforce time out methods but I don't think it works on him. I put him in a room for 3 minute tops. One time, when he came out, he growled at me. He still chews on his leash, which I HATE and I gave him at least 3 time outs and he still chews on the leash. It is getting worse, not better.

As with the mouthing problem, I feel like it is going to get worse. He starts BITING my brother. My sister runs away from him now.

[Grab]

I would stand up and walk away/leave the room when he mouths. Mouth on skin= end of fun and attention. It usually doesn't take long for pups to pick that up

[katman]

Tried that. My puppy follows and thinks the game is on!

[littlelion]

Did any of you try puppy classes? Do they work? I am going this saturday.

[sue]

at 8 weeks old he is just a baby under no circumstances what so ever should a shock collar be used.puppys do mouth dont let him chew rugs or any other furniture. at this age he is starting to teethe his teeth will cause him pain there for have chews around the house if he mouths you move your hand away and give him a chew and do the same if hes chewing furniture.
as for the peeing after he has been fed or drinks water take him outside straight away stay outside with him for as long as it takes until he goes when he does say wee wee and in a high pitched voice good boy.every time he pees give lots of praise.
hes a bit young to go to training lessons so it would be better if you went on your own and then you could watch what goes on at classes and ask advice.
the first command you should teach is the down command give the command of down say it once only then put him in the down position and keep him there it will take time to learn you should practise this for 5 minutes in the morning and evening.
i hope all goes well for you.

[kingalls]

I recommend reading this tread: http://forum.chowchow.org/viewtopic.php?f=29&t=3815

[august-ewok]

Please remember Lion is only 8 weeks old. DO NOT USE A SHOCK COLLAR!!!!!!! IT IS NOT NECESSARY! Having said this, how long have you had him? Most medium sized dogs are separated from the Mother 's at 8 weeks. These 8 weeks with Mom and siblings are crucial to a dogs development. Dogs go through various stages of learning so if you are aware of this then you need to worry less.

The first thing I am going to tell you is that Chows are very independent dogs that require lots of repetitive training. You need to show Lion that you are the boss in a nice way. I suggest you read a dog training book written by Monks of New Skeet. They have many great advice that you can use in conjunction with puppy classes. They also talk about how dogs to develop so you can understand your puppy's behavior. My first dog ever was a Chow and I never took him to a puppy class but followed the dog training book and he ended up being a great dog that lived with me for 13 years.

Lion is obviously teething so you need to make sure that every time you or anyone catches him chewing anything other than his toy, to say a firm No to stop the behavior then give him the chew toy and encourage him to chew on that. Your puppy does not know the difference between his toy and all the objects in your house. You need to spell it out for him. Again be patient and repeat this training and he will eventually get the message. Also I do not recommend walking away when he mouths since he will interpret this as play not training. Another good way to help curb bad behavior is to tire out you puppy by taking him out walking 4 times a day. The more energy the dog uses walking the less he can use when bored. Dogs bad behaviors are often from boredom. Your puppy should be going out at least this often to relieve himself. He has under-developed bladder and intestines so they can't hold pee nor poop for more than a couple of hours. Once he is completely grown, he will be find for up to 8 hours. I hope this help you out. Post more questions if you have any. I will check periodically to see if I can help further.

[Kurosbuddy]

Hi There! First off, Lion is a very cute puppy and congrats on becoming a chow "owner". Everybody has given you great advice and one important thing to remember is that Lion is still a baby. I have never in my life met an 8 week old puppy of any breed that didn't manage to have accidents in the house or chew the leash. It is also quite normal to chew and mouth and even bite during teething, as others have pointed out. I would highly recommend training with treats as an immediate reward for correct behavior plus LOTS of praise. Once Lion knows a few simple commands such as "sit" and "leave it" you can ask him to do these things when he starts to chew someone or something he isn't supposed to. He'll soon learn that he'll get a treat for listening to you, so he'll be inclined to forget the chewing and obey the command. In the beginning you can even hold the treat over him as you give the command so he knows it's there. You'll have to have little bags of training treats all over the house but it works! It's all about distracting him from the bad behavior and teaching him what he should be doing instead. Also, if your chow is anything like any chow I've ever owned, he won't be all that food motivated, especially if he is getting lots of treats and good food anyway. If he doesn't seem motivated by the treats then cut back on the yummy food at meal time (feed kibble instead) and use little bits of the cooked meat as training treats. Only give him treats when he has done something good or has obeyed a command.

Lastly, I would recommend that everybody in the house, your parents, brother and sister to get in on the training! This way he'll view everyone in the house as somebody he is supposed to listen to and having a bit more control over him will make your sister less afraid.

Hope this helps and good luck!!

Katie (and Kuro)

[Sarahloo]

Everything you've read here you need to pass on to your dad. He is the dog's primary caregiver, he's the one who is responsible for the potty training and the puppy's training in general. It's possible that your dog thinks of your dad as his master. I know that that might be painful to you, but it just makes sense for the puppy to bond closest to the person he spends most of his time with. You can't potty-train him alone, because you're not home during the day. You can continue your dad's potty-training efforts in the evening, but it's your dad who has to do most of the work. If he's allowed to chew on the carpet all day, he's not going to understand why he has to stop just because you come home. You and your dad need to get on the same page puppy-wise. Lion needs rules and he needs love and attention during the day too. It's not enough for your dad to make sure that Lion is still alive when you come home. He needs to do most of the (day) work, like make sure that he doesn't ask impossible things of your little boy's bladder. I don't know if that's expected of him, but he simply cannot hold it in for the 10 hours of your absence. He needs to go at least three times while you're away, probably more often. That's probably not what your dad signed up for, but he's going to have to do it nonetheless. Tell him it's just for a couple of months, and it won't always be that much work.
Spend as much time with Lion as you can! You need to bond, and he has to learn to trust and respect you, otherwise he won't. And please tell your siblings to grow up and not be afraid of a little puppy. If they don't assert themselves and gently tell Lion who's boss now, you are going to have a major problem on your hands once Lion is older and a power-hungry teenager and is going to want to use your submissive siblings' backs to climb up your family's social ladder!
You are blessed to have this little creature in your life that came to you with a clean slate, and no issues whatsoever! Make sure it stays that way! Sit your boyfriend down and explain to him that you can't electro-shock an 8-week-old baby without messing it up so bad that it can probably never be fixed again. Keep an eye on our boyfriend when he's around the puppy. I'm glad that you are aware that violence is NOT the answer here. Don't allow him to mess your little darling up! Personally, I think it is strange that he growls at you, but I might be wrong! None of my dogs has ever growled at me, not my 2 puppies, not the poor creature I adopted from the animal shelter. As I said, maybe he does not yet think of you as a person who he has to obey, maybe he thinks he only has to obey your dad. You have to earn your respect by making sure all his needs are taken care of all day. He needs to be able to trust that you or your dad give him the chance to relieve himself when he has to go. It's especially horrible for Chows to have to go inside, and they do everything in their power to hold it in to not have to soil their own territory. My Chow doesn't even like to pee in his own garden!!! Everything he "owns" has to be in pristine unsoiled condition. So if you "make" Lion pee inside by not letting him out, you betray his little puppy trust. Couldn't you get some time off work when your puppy arrived as is advised in just about every book I've ever read about dogs?
As others have already said, a tired puppy/dog is a happy, well-behaved puppy/dog. Lion needs to have fun and intellectual stimulation during the day too, so your dad needs to take care of that as well!

[littlelion]

I used to leave Lion with my dad at his work but he barked and growled at everyone that he didn’t know. Now I leave Lion with my grandma. She just feeds him with the puppy food I gave her and that’s it. I am the one who bath him, walk him, play with him, pay for his food, toys, shots, etc. I am sad I can only do that when I come home from work.

I usually take Lion out for a long walk to the beach where there are a lot of people and other dogs. I am trying to get him used to seeing different people and dogs. But it’s been raining like crazy in Boston, MA. Lion is terribly afraid of the water and it’s nearly impossible for him to go to the bathroom when there is rain out. So he had been going to the bathroom inside for the past two days even though I walked him outside.

Lion behaved really well yesterday despite the fact that he went to the bathroom inside on his puppy pads. He didn’t mouth me as much. I am planning to go to the training class this Saturday. I want to know if it will help Lion behave better and I will let you guys know! I will also check out the book, “Monks of New Skeet” recommended by the august-ewok.



Thank you for all of your lovely responses.

[sue]

being frightened of the rain is something that you both have to overcome carry him out into the garden sit down and keep a hold of him and keep talking to him in a high pitched voice tell him what a good boy he is do it for just a few minutes. if it rains for 3 hours then you should have taken him out at least 3 times.your going to get wet but it will work its self out.he will soon realise theres nothing to be frightened about because you are there to protect him.

[Auddymay]

Read the link Kingalls posted. It is spot on advice, and covers all situations concerning mouthing. CLASS- yes but make sure it is positive reinforcement, not negative reinforcement (punishing for wrong behavior). Think Victoria Stillwell from Animal Planet as a positive trainer.

Meat treats should be stopped- unless Lion earns a treat. If treats are for nothing, your Chow will do nothing! To get you started, teach him 'watch me'. When you have a treat, say, "Lion, watch me" and put the treat by your eye as you also point at the outer corner of your eye with the treat hand. Once you make eye contact, say "Good Boy" as you hand him the treat. At the beginning, let him know the treat is in your hand, so he can track it to your eye. As he gets better, make him keep your gaze a few seconds longer. Eventually, you will be able to do the command without first showing him a treat. Always use the hand gesture, because dogs respond better to visual cues than verbial.

Why is 'watch me' important? Because you cannot train an animal, or get it to obey any command if you can't even get their attention. Finally, if Lion will take a treat while you are out and about, ask a few friends to help you out... give them a treat, and ask them to walk past Lion, but not look at him. If they can get near him without a growl, have them drop the treat by Lion and say good boy! Even at a pet store, you can employ some customers and curious children to help with the nice stranger game. Soon he will learn if he growls at strangers, he gets nada, if he remains calm, it's a treat.

Keep us apprised of your progress, these are the most important socializing months for Lion.

[NanouetJon]

I have an 11 wk Chowling - Nukka - and my 2 yr old Maddoxx. Mouthing at 2 yrs is different from 8 weeks. Maddoxx mouths me now (almost never) and gets ignored by me (time out philosphy) but the 11 wk old its all about diversion.

We use Dog Bitter (commericial product that tastes bad) we use it on the things the puppy tries to chew that he shouldn't ( Coffee table, cables and our hands or feet when he is playful) You can substitute lemon or lime juice. Once he mouths the bitter, he gets a NO and then I offer him something h can chew on, a bone, a rope or a toy. since the bone tastes better than the bitter hand he accepts and walks away.

Once he gets older and he understands his space and respecting mine, then we will do mouth exercises without the bitter.

To be honest, the 2nd chow is doing most of the training, but we are using the same techniques we did on the first.

Keys are : Consistency, everyone and all the time. If he learns sometimes it is ok and sometimes it is not then you work for nothing.

Second tip: Nothing is free: You want my attention (sit) you want a treat (Sit) you want a treat ( pee outside) you want to play ( bring me a toy)
But be fair with the puppy at this point: Maddoxx (2) has to work hard for a treat (sit, give paw and then lay down) the puppy has to sit and look at me.