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Gina | 10 months ago
My Almost 2 Year Old Dog Has Started To Nose His Way Out The Door When I …

My almost 2 year old dog has started to nose his way out the door when I leave the house. This has only been going on for about a week. There are two people who live in the house with him. This problem started when I was leaving for a weekend. His other person was here for the whole time I was gone I have been gone for weekends before. I need help to try to stop this behavior so we don’t have to keep him locked in part of the house so we can get out or in the house.
Please help

6 Responses

Comments

  1. Krista Magnifico

    I’m not sure what your question is.
    Are you worried about him escaping while you are out? If so then I do think that placing him in a cage while you are away is the safest thing to do. If you are away all weekend and this is your dog and your responsibility for his care and safety then this is another question you must answer as his primary care giver. If you share custody of this dog with someone in the house then I think you both need to sit down and discuss the situation.
    It sounds like your dog knows you are leaving and is upset about it. We don’t want to discourage that kind of loyalty and love do we?

  2. Laura

    How is the dog getting out? At what point of your departure is he leaving? I suspect this needs to involve a behavior change in the humans as well as the dog. Reevaluate HOW you leave, and what you focus on as you’re leaving. Make sure the door is closed securely when you leave. If the door doesn’t close securely, look into fixing that issue.

    I would also make sure the dog understands that we don’t go outside without a person. Take the dog outside, spend time outside with him, and bring him back inside when you come back in. (Dogs shouldn’t be unattended outside anyway, so this is a safety thing beyond training.) Work on barrier training – train the dog not to cross exterior doors without being told to do so. Look for a training club to find a good trainer to help you work with this issue. (In the Baltimore area we have Oriole Dog Training, which offers a wide array of training classes. Most major cities have at least one training club.)

  3. Gina Post author

    Thank you for your comments. He tries to get out as we open the door to leave. For almost 2 years we have always have him sit and stay telling him we love him and will be back. My question is how do I stop this behavior. He is way to strong for myself with a shoulder injury to walk him so taking him even to the car to take him for training is not what I can do or even afford. Just looking for an idea

    1. Laura

      The other person isn’t willing to work with him?

      Making a big deal out of leaving is part of the issue. I have a shelter mutt who came to us with some separation anxiety (on top of everything else) and she absolutely door dashed when we first got her. We built a routine of giving a high value dental chew just before we leave, and we require her to go to place (go to her bed) before she gets it. Until he has a better grasp of not door dashing, use a barrier! Baby gates are relatively expensive and very, very useful. Crating is also a good skill every dog should have, and should be practiced regularly – don’t discount this as an option.

      There’s a LOT of training you can do at home. I mentioned a local training club for the widest variety of training options available, but you don’t necessarily need to go someplace to get a trainer in your home. Additionally, you can investigate Denise Fenzi’s dog sports university online at https://www.fenzidogsportsacademy.com/

  4. Gina Post author

    Thank you again. My dog is a very larg boy! He seems to be getting a little better! ( he dies not like the door being closed) . The other person ( my brother who is his actual owner) does work with him just not enough to my liking. The dog and I play out in the yard all the time. We are going to try again this weekend to see if the behavior is better. I just can’t do it by myself.

    1. Laura

      Set up a daily training routine with him. At least 5-10 minutes a day will work WONDERS for his overall behavior.

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Amanda | 10 months ago
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1 Response

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    As this is a very small mass and in an area that is difficult to surgically remove I recommend that you see your vet for a discussion on how we diagnose lumps and bumps. In almost all cases we need to remove the mass and submit it for pathology review.

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1 Response

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    I’m sorry to hear about your puppy. I strongly recommend that you place him in a small carrier or cage and get to a vets office. Do not allow him to walk or jump or over exert himself or he can cause more damage or worsen whatever is going on. The vet need to do an examination and maybe take an Xray.
    Keep him calm and quiet and do not give any medications without speaking to a vet first.

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Ethan | 11 months ago
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Good evening. Before reaching out and scheduling an appointment with vet in the morning. I will ask here.

We have a 9 year old Sharpei-Hound mix named Emma, that has had a significant change in personality with-in the last 3-4 days. Overall her “Normal” behavior is what you would imagine with a blood hound; laid back and basically lazy. But when she’s outside her Sharpei side shows; playful but a little more on the aggressive side.

We have a fenced in property, and ability to closely monitor her and our other dog; a 12 year Chocolate Lab. With that said, 1 week ago February 25th we were going through our bedtime routine. Both dogs went out. Our Lab came back in rather quickly, but Emma stayed out a little longer before making her way back to the door.

When she came inside, she was shaking very much and appeared traumatized. My wife and I attempted multiple times to check her over and give her some love. But very unlike herself she did not want any part of it. She had No signs of cuts or abrasions or any type of trauma. But the only thing was when we touched the top of her head more over her left side she would yelp and whimper.

The next day she was back to her normal self. Only with in the last 3-4 days we are noticing some rather concerning things with her. That has never been previously observed.

1.Today she has developed a lump about the size of an acorn on the top of her head and still cries out when touched.

2. Appetite has not diminished, but she has had an increase in amount of water drinking.

3. She seems to be having trouble hearing.

4. Significant “Spotting” the last 3 days. This has never occurred before. And yes she is spayed.

5. Tonight when letting the dogs out after supper, I found Emma sleeping on her bed but with her eyes wide open and shallow breathing. I initially thought she had passed away suddenly, but after jolting her she awoke and came to in this rather “dazed and confused” state.

6. I would say that she is a slightly lethargic, she still wanted to go out and play but was more stand off-ish when around other dog and kids.

As stated we found no signs of being bitten by another animal, and until within the last day or so she has been her normal self. She has no underlying health problems, and is very active for being 9 years old.

We will be setting up an appointment, but in the meantime looking for help or assistance of others who have experienced this with their dog.

1 Response

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  1. Laura

    I can’t fathom what this might be, though a toxicity comes to mind. Definitely get her to the vet.

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Jean-Pierre | 11 months ago
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I might start giving him iv fluids under his skin because he’s never drank enough water.

Thank you

2 Responses

Comments

  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,

    I really have to recommend that you see a veterinarian for help with this. I would want to check things like hyperthyroidism or anything that might cause muscle loss or weakness. I would also be concerned about joints and joint pain causing him to to be reluctant to use the litter box. Maybe a pain medication like gabapentin or solensia might help. Also adding something like Purina hydra care or canned food with water added can help. My point is there are lots of things to talk about that might help the underlying cause for this.

    1. Jean-Pierre Post author

      Thank you I’ll call a vet tomorrow, he seems better today, I started giving him water in his pate food Purina, he has no problem with his litter box, he had a hard peice of poop he could pass it was breaching so I sat him in warm water and that worked, I can fell his colon it seems like normal amount in there but it’s a little hard.

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