Trying to figure out a positive & effective way to stop TOPAZ from being so resourceful with toys & bones.
She doesn't care much about the old toys BUT if we get a new toy she grabs the toy & tries to keep my other dog away from it. If he even comes near her she does a low growl & if he gets closer it's loud & obnoxious growls. NO biting but loud scary growls, snapping & wrestling. There's no growling at me or my husband.
At first we removed the toy & (showing it's MINE) would only give it back when she calms down. Or we just rotate toys so she doesn't become attached to any one item. Then we use the spray bottle to stop any escalation.
Trying to reinforce the message that fighting is not allowed but also don't want them to resort to biting instead of growling. She's the same with bully sticks or rawhide so we don't give these anymore.
Anyone have any better ideas?
This probably isn't so much an idea as an anecdote.
Gizmo's favorite thing to do is pace. That's just what he does best, but when he wants to rest, he scootches Angel off their pillow and takes her spot.:eek: The pillow is plenty big enough for both, but just in case, there is a well loved blanket that everyone (every-dog-one that is) likes to chill on. When Angel decided enough was enough, being the sweet gal she is, she took over the blanket. Guess where Giz wanted to lay down then? :rolleyes:
We solved the whole thing last month.
When Giz woke Angel up to move her off whatever bed she was sleeping on, we immediately called her up on the couch with us. He did NOT like that. About a week of her getting all the couch time and he has stopped taking over her spot. He will go to whichever spot is empty and give us "can I come up on the couch" eyes.
I'm sure there will be a new brand of Basenji Bullheadedness next month!:D
I never buy just one new toy. They both get one. I decide which dog gets which toy at first, but there is no real "ownership". Frequently they'll each "need" to know what the other has and there'll be drop and trade thing going on, but no fights.
When Giz woke Angel up to move her off whatever bed she was sleeping on, we immediately called her up on the couch with us. He did NOT like that. About a week of her getting all the couch time and he has stopped taking over her spot. He will go to whichever spot is empty and give us "can I come up on the couch" eyes.
I'm sure there will be a new brand of Basenji Bullheadedness next month!:D
That is a wonderful idea. We will be adopting an older puppy soon as a companion for Alani and I'm anticipating her doing things like this all the time. She just seems like that kind of dog. So it's nice to get a head start on ideas…thanks.
At first we removed the toy & (showing it's MINE) would only give it back when she calms down. Or we just rotate toys so she doesn't become attached to any one item. Then we use the spray bottle to stop any escalation.
all excellent ideas!
I would use a leash for a slight correction. keep her on leash, even if it's just dragging on the floor, so it's easily accessible. give a LIGHT "pop" of the leash when she gets snarky and give a firm NO. if she's not being snarky though - praise her, to encourage it.
also, if my dog gets particularly antsy - i.e. chases the cat. I say LEAVE IT! if he does it a 2nd time, he's told "on your blanket" which in my house means get your toosh on that spot and don't move until released. after 5 min, I release him - by then he's forgotten about chasing the cat.
also, if my dog gets particularly antsy - i.e. chases the cat. I say LEAVE IT! if he does it a 2nd time, he's told "on your blanket" which in my house means get your toosh on that spot and don't move until released. after 5 min, I release him - by then he's forgotten about chasing the cat.
Jessi-that's great stuff!! You really do run your house dont you 
that's awesome training. Where did you train Tucker??
Trying to figure out a positive & effective way to stop TOPAZ from being so resourceful with toys & bones.
She doesn't care much about the old toys BUT if we get a new toy she grabs the toy & tries to keep my other dog away from it. If he even comes near her she does a low growl & if he gets closer it's loud & obnoxious growls. NO biting but loud scary growls, snapping & wrestling. There's no growling at me or my husband.
At first we removed the toy & (showing it's MINE) would only give it back when she calms down. Or we just rotate toys so she doesn't become attached to any one item. Then we use the spray bottle to stop any escalation.
Trying to reinforce the message that fighting is not allowed but also don't want them to resort to biting instead of growling. She's the same with bully sticks or rawhide so we don't give these anymore.
Anyone have any better ideas?
Sadly, I don't have a lot of advice for this problem. It is something that we deal with in a household of five basenjis. One of our girls is a lot like Topaz…and she usually just guards her space...but on a bad day she will launch across the room at our male. I can usually catch her starting her routine, and step inbetween them...sometimes just saying her name is enough to interrupt the behavior.
But as far as toys, we have to be very careful what we allow free access to play with. Some things are just too valuable to the dogs, and I don't expect them to share. We can have nylabones, and most hard rubber toys around...and we have a BUNCH of them...but anything more "special" than that is something they enjoy in their crates.
In some cases it is just easier to let the dogs sort out possession issues on their own...as long as there aren't actual fights happening. If one dog is saying "this is mine" and the other dog doesn't care...neither do I, usually.
Sometimes with possession guarding, if you take the item away, it just makes the dog escalate their guarding behavior. You could train the dog that is guarding, that as soon as the dog that triggers the guarding starts to move, call both dogs over for treats. Don't wait until guarder starts carrying on though..then you would be reinforcing that behavior. You want "guarder" to think, every time that dog starts moving, mom gives me treats. Pretty soon, instead of growling, she will run over to you. It should work...but I haven't done it with my dogs, mainly due to lack of inertia
Jessi-that's great stuff!! You really do run your house dont you
I do run my house, I feel it's the only way to have harmony. by doing so, everyone (2 cats and 1 
get along wonderfully, they mind their manners, and we have very peaceful evenings.
The place I pm'd you about (the daycare/kennel) is the same place I trained my dog. (keep in mind though, I only have ONE dog. it may be a bit different if I had two or more B's to keep in line!)
Sahara will NOT leave my cat alone, when she tries to come in the house through Sahara's doggie door, Sahara is fast on her heels. She tries to grab her by the neck and bite her. I have tried everything to keep Sahara off of her except move her to another part of the house. I think it is part of her to chase the cat, she watches even my neighbor's cat when it is outside. She would be great as a hunting dog in Africa. She is very stubborn though and will not even listen to me when I try to keep her off of the cat. Any suggestions, I just want them to get along. My cat is almost 18 yrs. old and doesn't have many good days left.
I would put some sort of barrier between them…let the cat have an area that hers alone, and safe.
We have two cats, a 13 yr old and a 2.5 yr old. They have lived in harmony with Gypsy their entire lives. They used to snuggle together to sleep. In fact, the old guy has outlived two other dogs!
Then Jazzy moved in. Two years later, it's STILL a battle. We worked hard –HARD -- on "Leave it!!", and Jazzy has EXCELLENT obedience for that , except where the cats are concerned. IF I see the cat first and say, "Leave it", she almost always will. But if the cat catches her eye first, she's gone before I even know what happened, and she won't stop once she's in run-mode.
We keep a gate across the hall that leads to the kids' bedrooms and bathroom. The litter boxes, which used to be in the garage, are now in that bathroom {I HATE that!!}, as is the cat food/water.
The gate is removed at night after Jazzy is tucked into her kennel and replaced in the morning.
The cats have learned to stay in the bedrooms during the day, and roam the house at night. They don't seem to mind; all they really used to do was sleep on the couch all day. Now they sleep on the beds all day. Sometimes the younger cat comes down while Jazzy is sleeping and gets up on the back of the couch because she knows she is safe as long as she stays there {Jazzy is not allowed on the furniture and honestly never breaks that rule, even when the cat is there}.
I feel bad about it, but what else could we do? Ah well. maybe it's a more natural lifestyle{?}
Some dogs just don't get along with cats. And some cats just can't get along with dogs. Sometimes you just have to take personality into account and make accomodations.
