Constant Telling Off!

[Pete and Jo]

We have had Jarvis for 2 1/2 weeks now and as I work from home most of the time, I have to contend with the constant barking as he knows I am upstairs.  He is real little live wire so you can imagine the need to shout 'no', 'off', 'stop', 'leave it' all the time, and I have even resorted to barking and growling back at him.

I hope it is normal, but I am starting to feel a bit of a bully and do not want Jarvis to be scared of me.

Any advice??

[Woody's Mum]

Hi There,

I am no expert but have you tried totally ignoring Jarvis? Even if you are shouting at him, he is still getting attention, which is what he is after! I know its not always practical to leave a puppy barking downstairs though.

Is he barking at the bottom of a stair gate or in a seperate room entirely? If its the stair gate (Daisy does this) then try putting him in a seperate room behind a closed door so he can't hear you or your movements. Give him a filled kong, get your ear plugs and stick with it!!! He is very young though and probably just wants reasurance, he'll probably settle down once he gets into a routine.

Good Luck!    

[PennyB]

You might want to bring in some 'timeouts' rather than contiuosly saying no etc for same thing. If he continue sot do something after you've already said no then do a timeout for a shortwhile (ignore him while you do this including eye contact and when you let him out his timeout do the same). He may just become immune to the word no or shouting as often he wants your attention and by doing this you're giving it to him.

I also found I was making too much fuss of Ruby each time I went upstairs and came down (I also work from home), which seemed to exacerbate the problem so I'd just walk up and downstairs without doing this (I used to go straight the bathroom or kettle 1st then I'd say hello). Mind you at the age your pups at (I assume he's a pup) I had to go downstairs frequently to take her out for housetraining her (don't rely on door being open or dogflap at this stage as they have to be taught) which I did with the minimum of fuss.

Have you got Gwen Baileys Perfect Puppy book (Smiths sell it as do other bookshops)

[Emma&Harry]

we've had harry (almost called Jarvis) for 3 1/2 weeks and i also work from home and had this problem. It has taken some time but i chose to ignore him - i left him with plenty to occupy himself with and nothing of value that he could destroy and gave him no eye contact as i walked past (deliberately) to let him know that I wasnt bothered by being seperated from him. This also helped when he used to wind himself up and bark when he was left at home on his own. But he aslo knew what time he would have my attention once he got used to routine.

I thought working from home would be 'easier' for Harry but it did create this problem of him trying to get my attention and not wanted to be left on his own even more. I did do a lot of searching on the web for this as i too started to feel like i was forever telling him off, and was getting quite distraught myself!

i agree with Penny B - Gwen Baileys perfect puppy book has got a lot of useful info in

 

[s baxter]

does he have a crate? you could plan your day with play times and rest times and toilet times.play inside or out ,then into the crate for time out/rest.it will do him good to learn to be alone and content with it .we found a radio on helps our dog to relax,also blends in household noises.i work from home as a nursery nurse looking after children and i found popping out and in the kitchen(where Alfie is based) he  then knows i`m around and excepts that i may even come into the kitchen to make a cup of tea , i ignore him often enough when going in that he realises that i`m not always going in just to see him .stuffed kongs are great and Alfie loves to roll around his ball that drops out treats now and then that keeps him busy for ages

[scooby's mum]

Hiya all

I too work from home and, as I am a childminder looking after young babies, I cannot let Scooby into the lounge during the day as he's too giddy (he's 5 months) - consequently he stays in the kitchen behind a baby gate.

At first, because he knew I was there, he used to whine and whinge, which I ignored.  Now he only cries when he can see me in the lounge, otherwise he's fine.

My advice would be to ignore him - puppies are like babies, if you give them attention for being naughty, it's still attention and they will keep on doing it.

Scooby has started barking at me while I'm in the kitchen to get my attention so each time he does it I ignore him and, fingers crossed, he'll soon stop.  Here's hoping!!

[Pete and Jo]

Thanks everyone.  I will try the ignoring more which he will have to get used to anyway, especially as I am out for 5 hours tomorrow!!

He is in a little utility room with a child gate at the door to the kitchen so I am sure he doesn't feel enclosed.  He loves his bed in there so it's not like he doesn't like the room.

Is chewing hard cardboard rolls OK?
What do you put in the kong and how do you block the holes?

[PennyB]

Thanks everyone.  I will try the ignoring more which he will have to get used to anyway, especially as I am out for 5 hours tomorrow!!

He is in a little utility room with a child gate at the door to the kitchen so I am sure he doesn't feel enclosed.  He loves his bed in there so it's not like he doesn't like the room.

Is chewing hard cardboard rolls OK?
What do you put in the kong and how do you block the holes?

May be try just walking round the house and ignoring him occasionally as well.

I use a large biscuit (usually a charcoal bonio) to put at the bottom of the kong then fill up with his Burns and cream cheese (low fat) or cheddar cheese so it compacts a little


I used to let mine chew cardboard rolls but unfortuantely Wilf now likes to think of it as a source of food!

[jenx]

I had the same trouble, i thought of myself becoming a bully. As i have 2 children under 6 i am constantly saying NO to them. Merlin thinks i am talking to him, so he sulks. I have now resorted to ignoring all of them
Merlin is awful for cardboard. He is always chewing, i say always. Only when he comes accross it! I do take it off him, as he also thinks of it as a food source. (little rascal)
 

[lorri]

Hi

Great name. Well our Jarvis who will be a year next week hated getting time out for being naughty and when he was allowed back into the room he was usually very sheepish well for about 3 mins before he got put out again. It really worked time out though and he quickly learned.

Lorraine and Jarvis

[Sue H]

Hi Pete and Jo !!

Another ruse you can try to keep him occupied is to get one of those treat balls that have one or two small holes in them, and you put some of their kibble inside it.  They need to nose the ball around so that the bits of bikky fall out, and if they cotton on to that, they spend ages chasing it about and hoovering up !!

Don't forget to subtract the kibble you put in from the rest of his diet though, as keeping him occupied like that doesn't mean he is getting much actual exercise!!

[Bellbellsmum]

Yeah, I agree.  Ear plugs and ignore him.  They soon learn.  I was off sick from work and left Bella downstairs.  She could hear me coughing upstairs.  When i didnt come down and didnt shout, she soon gave up.

She will cry when left alone in a room and she can see you. but I find ignoring works then too.  Shouting just makes them think you are talking back. After all they dont speak English do they?  

If he is very young I would leave him for a short time, come back and extend the times so he knows you come back. But only when he is being quiet.  They really do learn ever so quickly.  I know Bels did.

I really feel its important that they get used to people coming and going and not bothering with them every now and again.  They get so much attention when they are tiny that it is hardly surprising they cry when we ignore them.  I found it impossible to leave Bels in a room without feeling bad, but she soon learnt to be by herself in the kitchen and goes in of her own accord for peace and quiet when the kids are running amock.   l