Dinverro Posted October 25, 2013 Report Share Posted October 25, 2013 Noelle has been home since last Saturday and has got a few commands well such as sit, paw, down (sometimes) and despite a few accidents, she is pretty good going to toilet outside. I understand that they can be very selective when it comes to hearing but she is not so great at coming to us and she is whining and howling when put in her crate and left if we go upstairs, which is especially bad at night after she goes to the toilet outside... I am wondering what we can do? How much training should we do a day? Also, what are the best ways to tell them off or drop something? She doesn't respond very well when we tell her "bad" and we usually have to tap (not hard) her side to tell her off..... Anyway, I know they need lots of work but just thought it would be good to have some insight from people that have experience with owning Huskies from pups... Anyway,,,,, patience !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshmp5 Posted October 25, 2013 Report Share Posted October 25, 2013 Repeat, repeat, repeat. Storm really never got the 'drop it' command. but he sits and lays down etc pretty well. His recall isn't great but it works in the back yard. unless he's found a new 'toy' to play with. and by toy i mean killed another groundhog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Removed #5 Posted October 25, 2013 Report Share Posted October 25, 2013 Hey, David, Good Morning - at least for me, I've just gotten up so bear with .... I'll take your comments one at a time. Listening/responding - get used to it, as the expression goes "It's a Husky thing!". I think you'll find that it's a matter of her deciding whether there's anything in it for her if she responds. Considering that when they were a working breed (and I know many still are) they were "out-front" and they had to decide, quickly, whether the situation they were going into was safe or not - they became a very "thoughtful" breed. We see the same thing today, we ask them to do something and they decide whether they want to or not. Some do respond better than others and I think a lot of that is based on gentle training and a true relationship between human and dog. I use all the "standard" commands with my two, set, stay, come, lay down, go away!, get down!, etc but there is only one "command" I use for bad behaviour "No!" - as I said above, they're smart enough to understand what they're doing (generally) [well, okay, I lie, sometimes it comes out as "You better not..." and sometimes as "uh-unh!" but it all means "No!"] I talk a lot to my guys, "Are you ready to go out?", "Are you telling me it's time for food?", etc so when I come out with a sharp "No!" it gets their attention and there is no other correction. I've become a strong advocate that they simply do not respond to physical punishment in the way we would expect - other breeds seem to accept it better and acknowledge it better - Husky's, as a rule, don't! Positive learning and reinforcement work wonders! I don't crate mine, but from what I've read the major trick to getting to accept that the crate is their kennel is to make it a good experience - and if I were him, being locked in someplace that I didn't like would not be a good experience. It takes a lot of time, putting treats in the crate, feeding them in their crates, encouraging them to go into their crates to nap (and making sure that no one bothers them when they are in their crate) makes a big step in helping them learn that their crate it theirs. BTW, remember that these are pack and den animals, they want to be with their pack (you all) all the time! You'd probably find that bringing her into the bedroom (in her / another crate) would end the night time whining. Last comment and it's one that I advocate strongly for several reasons, while you're training keep a leash on her inside as well as when you're out. First, it means that you can correct without getting your hands into potentially sensitive areas - reaching for the collar of an upset dog is real apt to get you bit! It's also a handy way to put them in "time out", remembering that they want to be with you, simply tieing them to something where they can see you but not be a part of the activity until they calm down and respond correctly will work wonders. ( I'm not saying tie them to it for any great length of time - 3-10 minutes is more than enough! ) Lastly, if they're really doing something that they shouldn't be, you can grab the leash and lead (don't drag) them back away from <whatever>. Saves a lot of wear and tear on nerves, yours and theirs. Edited because I just realized we're talking about a very young puppy. Pack behaviour says that a pup this young is allowed to do anything it wants (within dog reason). It's called "puppy license". At this age, short of extreme behaviour, there is no correction within the pack. Mom may get up and walk away if the behaviour becomes too out of hand, but no nipping or physical correction at this age. It's at this age that you pup is learning social behaviour - and putting him in the crate at night and leaving him is completely foreign to pack behaviour. You're building a pup who may go on to have some real separation anxiety problems in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mydiamond Posted October 25, 2013 Report Share Posted October 25, 2013 "She is not so great at coming to us": I can answer this in two different ways. First, she's just a puppy. Second, she's just a husky. Either way I think you get the picture sorry.. that's really all I can say "she is whining and howling when put in her crate and left if we go upstairs, which is especially bad at night after she goes to the toilet outside" : leave her with something to play with, or maybe leave the TV on. If you're sure she's not howling because she needs something, leave her be. This is tough love. She's just a baby and she wants her family to be close to her ALL the time but that's not how it works unfortunately... You gotta work and all. So yeah she needs to learn that whining doesn't mean Mom and Dad would come right away. The "after toilet" part might only because she's excited. You can't shut an excited dog on a crate... They'd make terrible noises. Now this is just an assumption, but don't talk to her when you take her outside for a potty break. Simply to keep her calm and reserved. "How much training should we do a day?" : there's no real answer to this. Some dogs are very eager to learn, some just aren't. Which one is Noelle? but even those who love to learn new things need break times so usually I teach Dime new tricks in his play area, which is also where I put his water bowl. That way in case he needs a break from the training session he can just go and take a sip. Other than that it's just the matter of reading body language. You'll soon notice when she got bored and doesn't want to learn anymore. "Also, what are the best ways to tell them off or drop something?" : by saying it out loud I don't use my "drop it" command anymore so I can't remember how did I teach it, but I remember Dime drops anything he holds instantly if I say "drop it!" in a loud, serious tone. But that's my super submissive boy there. "She doesn't respond very well when we tell her "bad" and we usually have to tap (not hard) her side to tell her off....." : nah don't worry I tap/touch Dime too when "no!" or "hey!" doesn't work. Right now I think it's just the matter of age.. but when a dog is way too fixated on something she won't hear you. So that touch would be in order. If you don't want to get to the level where you need to tap, say "no" before she got too fixated. Say level 10 is when the unwanted behavior occurs (for example lunging on a cat on walks), you gotta correct her at level 2 or 3 (maybe when she turns around and looked at the cat for more than 2 seconds). At level 5 or so she'd already be fixated and won't hear you. "Anyway,,,,, patience !! " : There you go :D good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emma Posted October 25, 2013 Report Share Posted October 25, 2013 Hi there, looks like you've already gotten some fantastic advice from Al and Olivia. Looks like you're already doing well so far with her training and toileting, just be consistent with the crating, and yes taking it upstairs might indeed get you a good nights sleep! The thing about training is it takes many times to learn something good but only one time to undo the good work! This is why we advocate sticking to your guns so strongly. I haven't got anything useful to add but would like to wish you all the best of luck. Look forwards to seeing photos of your beautiful girl as she grows up. . Xxx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Halligan Posted November 2, 2013 Report Share Posted November 2, 2013 For coming when called off leash I borrowed what my K-9 unit friends call a 360 ( ridiculously long leash) and practiced calling her with treats it seems to work very well but after some research I've been to afraid to ditch the leash, let y'all know what happens when I'm confident it will work Sent from my XT907 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Removed #5 Posted November 2, 2013 Report Share Posted November 2, 2013 John, I have a 100 foot lead that I use for Sasha - when she's on lead she'll come to me when I call, virtually all the time. There might be some hesitation, but she does respond sooner rather than later. The couple of times she's been off lead - accidentally - her response is "catch me if you can!" My saving grace when either of mine get off lead is that I can follow them in my jeep and when they're run out they will come to the jeep. I've lost one dog because I was sure I had the exception - never again. It's not worth the heartache. Check the first line of my signature. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Halligan Posted November 2, 2013 Report Share Posted November 2, 2013 I'm sorry to hear that but thank you for the advice Sent from my XT907 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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