rehoming Oliver

[debbiedaywalker]

I totally sympathise with you!

My new pup Dex wants to chase my house bun Hazel constantly. I have tried the treats and leave but the cheeky little monkey would make like to chase her then promptly sit in front of me with a 'I left her now I'd like my treat' look on his face, then go and do it again.  But now I can't risk them being together now as his biting has got VERY hard! and he did start to snap his jaws at her.  Luckily Hazel wasn't too worried about being pursued.

Now we let Haze have her time out when Dex is asleep on one of our laps and so far so good, even if he wakes and sees her he accepts that he can't go down.  It's not ideal but I'm sure that with time he will get used to her.  

[spanielcrazy]

I know it's very frustrating, and at times they will drive you mad, but you must keep in mind that he is still a baby puppy, that none of this behaviour is necessarily permanent. It's all part of the learning, for him and for you. He's not being dominant, his barking is at his excitement about the rabbits, and when he redirects the barking at you it's to say "But mum, rabbits are soooo exciting, don't you know?"  And a lot of it is just puppy exuberance, and this will mellow in time

By now you know that telling him off does no good (but sometimes it does make us feel better for a moment  ) You have to redirect his attention and energy, whether by doing a quick obedience routine in front of the rabbits, or throwing a ball, or doing something he is good at so he can be successful.
Don't tell him what he can't do without showing him what he can do. 

Do you have a brave rabbit that you could hold so he could sniff it and satisfy his curiosity?

Best of luck to you 

[supaspaniel]

My rabbit is not the slightest bit phased by my dogs...but then George and Linus were around before her, so she grew up with them. She does freak out a bit when a new dog approaches her, but she soon gets used to them. So perhaps the rabbits will cope sooner than Oliver 

When I brought Luke home in June he barked constantly at the rabbit...now he just goes up to her and looks...and he's 15 years old, so I've managed to train him ...so you should be able to train Oliver..if not then send him here 

Time and patience ..it will happen 

[881meryl]

To be completely honest, with all the many problems you've posted about, it may be the best thing for him.

I totally agree.

[Cob-Web]

To be fair to Ollie - none of his behaviour sounds particularly dominant, or strong - just normal puppy behaviour - which not everyone is prepared for 

When he's with the rabbits, he starts barking at them. I can't just ignore him, so I go in and tell him off, which directs the barking onto me. I can't ignore this either as the barking upsets the rabbits. So I have to catch him and put him into his crate, but he thinks all the chasing is great fun and a game. I don't know what else to do.

Why is allowed unsupervised access to the rabbits, even when they are in their run, if his barking upsets them?  Keep them separate unless someone is closely supervising, and then he won''t bark, you won't have to tell him off, and he won't bark at you.
Why are you putting him in his crate when he barks? It should be safe place, not a punishment; walk off and leave him if you aren't happy with his behaviour - or distract him and reward him when he does something positive - chasing him will be the best game ever for him, so he will "bark" to make you chase him over and over again 

Ollie needs do not sound excessive for a 5 month old pup - I do realise it is probably easier on you as a family to give him up if you think "he" is the problem  but it is a lot harder to rehome a dog that has been labelled "trouble" than it is one who is perfectly normal but for which you were not fully prepared and are unable to commit to 

If you do decide to rehome him, then a reputable rescue will be able to assess him and find a suitable new home; but to be honest, any cocker pup (even a show cocker) would have presented you with most of the same issues that you consider to be a "problem". 

[Beth]

To be fair to Ollie - none of his behaviour sounds particularly dominant, or strong - just normal puppy behaviour - which not everyone is prepared for 

When he's with the rabbits, he starts barking at them. I can't just ignore him, so I go in and tell him off, which directs the barking onto me. I can't ignore this either as the barking upsets the rabbits. So I have to catch him and put him into his crate, but he thinks all the chasing is great fun and a game. I don't know what else to do.

Why is allowed unsupervised access to the rabbits, even when they are in their run, if his barking upsets them?  Keep them separate unless someone is closely supervising, and then he won''t bark, you won't have to tell him off, and he won't bark at you.
Why are you putting him in his crate when he barks? It should be safe place, not a punishment; walk off and leave him if you aren't happy with his behaviour - or distract him and reward him when he does something positive - chasing him will be the best game ever for him, so he will "bark" to make you chase him over and over again 

Ollie needs do not sound excessive for a 5 month old pup - I do realise it is probably easier on you as a family to give him up if you think "he" is the problem  but it is a lot harder to rehome a dog that has been labelled "trouble" than it is one who is perfectly normal but for which you were not fully prepared and are unable to commit to 

If you do decide to rehome him, then a reputable rescue will be able to assess him and find a suitable new home; but to be honest, any cocker pup (even a show cocker) would have presented you with most of the same issues that you consider to be a "problem". 

I agree with all of this. Particularly about using a reputable rescue if you do decide to rehome him.

[Harveypops]

Would the breeder that you got him from take him back?  If not I agree with the above.

[sarah25]

To be fair to Ollie - none of his behaviour sounds particularly dominant, or strong - just normal puppy behaviour - which not everyone is prepared for 

When he's with the rabbits, he starts barking at them. I can't just ignore him, so I go in and tell him off, which directs the barking onto me. I can't ignore this either as the barking upsets the rabbits. So I have to catch him and put him into his crate, but he thinks all the chasing is great fun and a game. I don't know what else to do.

Why is allowed unsupervised access to the rabbits, even when they are in their run, if his barking upsets them?  Keep them separate unless someone is closely supervising, and then he won''t bark, you won't have to tell him off, and he won't bark at you.
Why are you putting him in his crate when he barks? It should be safe place, not a punishment; walk off and leave him if you aren't happy with his behaviour - or distract him and reward him when he does something positive - chasing him will be the best game ever for him, so he will "bark" to make you chase him over and over again 

Ollie needs do not sound excessive for a 5 month old pup - I do realise it is probably easier on you as a family to give him up if you think "he" is the problem  but it is a lot harder to rehome a dog that has been labelled "trouble" than it is one who is perfectly normal but for which you were not fully prepared and are unable to commit to 

If you do decide to rehome him, then a reputable rescue will be able to assess him and find a suitable new home; but to be honest, any cocker pup (even a show cocker) would have presented you with most of the same issues that you consider to be a "problem". 

I agree with all of this. Particularly about using a reputable rescue if you do decide to rehome him.

And me.

If you was going to Re-Home him i would tell your breeder they might have him back and do it for you.
When we sell puppies we always ask them to let us know if they cant keep the dog,we would take the dog back and re-home

[supergirl]

And me.
If you was going to Re-Home him i would tell your breeder they might have him back and do it for you.
[/quote]

A lot of breeders have contracts - know mine does.  If for any reason I can't keep the dogs then she has to be contacted first and has to agree to any re-homing.

[kalem]

I agree with this, I drew contracts up when my litter when to their new homes that I should be contacted if for ANY reason they could no longer keep the pup regardless of age, your first port of call would be to the breeder, I hope you can sort this situation out, bringing up a puppy is no easy task, its such a shame at times you have had to do this alone, I wish you every best wish and remember its Oliver's needs that need to be considered as hard as that may be 

[speedyjaney]

To be fair to Ollie - none of his behaviour sounds particularly dominant, or strong - just normal puppy behaviour - which not everyone is prepared for 

When he's with the rabbits, he starts barking at them. I can't just ignore him, so I go in and tell him off, which directs the barking onto me. I can't ignore this either as the barking upsets the rabbits. So I have to catch him and put him into his crate, but he thinks all the chasing is great fun and a game. I don't know what else to do.

Why is allowed unsupervised access to the rabbits, even when they are in their run, if his barking upsets them?  Keep them separate unless someone is closely supervising, and then he won''t bark, you won't have to tell him off, and he won't bark at you.
Why are you putting him in his crate when he barks? It should be safe place, not a punishment; walk off and leave him if you aren't happy with his behaviour - or distract him and reward him when he does something positive - chasing him will be the best game ever for him, so he will "bark" to make you chase him over and over again 

Ollie needs do not sound excessive for a 5 month old pup - I do realise it is probably easier on you as a family to give him up if you think "he" is the problem  but it is a lot harder to rehome a dog that has been labelled "trouble" than it is one who is perfectly normal but for which you were not fully prepared and are unable to commit to 

If you do decide to rehome him, then a reputable rescue will be able to assess him and find a suitable new home; but to be honest, any cocker pup (even a show cocker) would have presented you with most of the same issues that you consider to be a "problem". 

Just to echo what Rachael has said, she has given you loads of sound advice.....Ollie sounds like a normal puppy not a troubled dog....please contact your breeder or a reputable rescue if you do decide to rehome!

Janey

[Cotswold Girl]

I am a rehoming co-ordinator for NESSR .... and about 3 months ago I got a call from a family ... their 2 year old springer had eaten the pet rabbit .... the dog had grown up with the rabbit .... and they were left unsupervised .... and one day the family came into the garden to find the dog tucking into the remains of the rabbit. Horrified they rang the rescue to rehome the dog ... who was by all accounts a fabulous pet other than the rabbit eating.

I was sympathetic to a point .. terrible to lose a pet in those circumstances but at the end of the day I had to be honest with them. What did they expect, spaniels are bred for hunting and retrievin game and will given half a chance eat a rabbit. A few days later they rang back and decided to keep the dog it was not his fault.

My three spaniels ignore my ferrets but my terrier camps outside their hutch and run and barks at them ... they are not the least bit fussed.

Oliver sounds like a typical puppy who is doing the job he is bred for if you don't want him barking at the rabbits then keep him away from them and redirect his instincts to a different hunting activity.

I have not read any other posts about Oliver so if you are determined to rehome him go via his breeder or a good rescue that will make sure he doesn't end up in a puppy farm or with a home that will not be able to cope with normal spaniel behaviour.

[Karma]

To be honest, I'm at a loss as to what to post.  
You've been through so much to get your family on board with what Ollie needs, you've been given so much good advice here about how to go about training, as well as how to get your family on board, and your suggesting giving up on him because he is yet again acting like the puppy he is...  

As others have said, he is not "too dominant" he just doesn't know where he stands.  He shouldn't be allowed near the rabbits unsupervised (Honey was only allowed in the garden unsupervised from about the age of 10 months), as he is too young to have any self control - they are very exciting and this causes him to bark.
How have you gone about socialising him to the rabbits?? He should have met them (up close and personal) for very short bursts right from the word go, then they wouldn't be exciting...

I have lost count of the number of people who have said that telling a dog off doesn't help if he doesn't know what is expected of him - show him how you want him to behave and reward this.  

As others have said, if you do feel that, as a family you cannot give Ollie the time, patience and consistency he needs, then please contact your breeder first, and then a reputable rescue - and please be honest with them that Ollie is not a problem dog, just a pup that you as a family were not prepared for.

It sounds to me like you all still have too high expectations as to how he should behave (and are expecting him to know what you want without showing him).
At the minute, from Ollies point of view, the Rabbits get you very wound up and cross (he won't necessarily realise you are cross because he is barking)....  

[Joules]

To be fair to Ollie - none of his behaviour sounds particularly dominant, or strong - just normal puppy behaviour - which not everyone is prepared for 

When he's with the rabbits, he starts barking at them. I can't just ignore him, so I go in and tell him off, which directs the barking onto me. I can't ignore this either as the barking upsets the rabbits. So I have to catch him and put him into his crate, but he thinks all the chasing is great fun and a game. I don't know what else to do.

Why is allowed unsupervised access to the rabbits, even when they are in their run, if his barking upsets them?  Keep them separate unless someone is closely supervising, and then he won''t bark, you won't have to tell him off, and he won't bark at you.
Why are you putting him in his crate when he barks? It should be safe place, not a punishment; walk off and leave him if you aren't happy with his behaviour - or distract him and reward him when he does something positive - chasing him will be the best game ever for him, so he will "bark" to make you chase him over and over again 

Ollie needs do not sound excessive for a 5 month old pup - I do realise it is probably easier on you as a family to give him up if you think "he" is the problem  but it is a lot harder to rehome a dog that has been labelled "trouble" than it is one who is perfectly normal but for which you were not fully prepared and are unable to commit to 

If you do decide to rehome him, then a reputable rescue will be able to assess him and find a suitable new home; but to be honest, any cocker pup (even a show cocker) would have presented you with most of the same issues that you consider to be a "problem". 

Just to echo what Rachael has said, she has given you loads of sound advice.....Ollie sounds like a normal puppy not a troubled dog....please contact your breeder or a reputable rescue if you do decide to rehome!

Janey

Agree with this too - you have been given loads of good advice.  Ollie does not sound any different to how Coco was or probably most of the other pups people have posted about on here    It took me months to stop Coco from chasing my alpacas and harrassing them at every chance but she was not doing anything out of the ordinary - it was annoying and stressful but I just had to work hard to overcome it.  Cockers are gundogs - why leave him with access to rabbits if you cannot understand what gundogs are bred to do??  How many dogs would not be overexcited if put in front of a run with rabbits in it? It is down to you to teach him how to behave around them.   I do not see how a 5 month old cocker can really be "too strong" or "too dominant" for any adult - unless you are a family of pixies    But as also been said, if you are really convinced that you cannot manage him or are not prepared to deal with his training needs, then it might be kinder for him to go to someone who is happy to take on what is after all, normal puppy behaviour    Sorry if this sounds harsh but you have had a lot of great advice here since you got Ollie and he does not seem to have any terrible faults - if you want a dog that is totally passive and submissive, then a cocker is probably not the breed for you.    I hope you manage to find a solution and sort out something that suits Ollie and lets him have the life he deserves.

[minimoo]

To be completely honest, with all the many problems you've posted about, it may be the best thing for him.

I totally agree.

       i agree too , reading the previous threads, you dont sound mature enough to cope, hes only a baby and will be so for along time yet, the poor dog will be a nervous wreck by the time he is 2 , what do you expect a puppy to do with rabbits, i will repeat myself hes a puppy   ::)they are like moving fluffy toys to most dogs, oh and does he bark alot, thats a shock too, sorry i cannot be sympathetic at all