Keeping my dog off the chair

[Tree Frog]

One of our two 60 lb dogs has torn up a new recliner to look out the window. When he sees a dog or cat, it's like he's so excited he doesn't know how to handle his energy, so he bites whatever is closest. He's never bitten our other dog, though she would likely bite him back. He bit holes in the blinds when he looked out the window, so when we replace those, I put up some film that limits his ability to see outside. Unfortunately, that causes him to either jump up on the windowsill to see out or he climbs on the recliner. If I remove the film, I think he'll just bite the windowsill. We are considered purchasing an indoor fence that will shock him when he gets close enough to the chair/window, but they have inconsistent reviews. They also emit a sound when the dog gets close to the unit. I'm concerned this will set off our other dog because she will freak out of she hears beeping (think fire detector/security system needing a new battery beeps.) This usually only happens when we're not home because we get on to him about it when we see it happen. He responds to us (generally he's a people pleaser), but we're often not home to correct him. Currently we're putting him in the kennel when we leave the house, but we'd like to be able to leave him out.

Any suggestions? My dh is ready to get rid of him.

[Innisfree]

22 minutes ago, wilrunner said:

he's so excited he doesn't know how to handle his energy,

Personally, I might start with this bit. How much exercise does he get on a daily basis? Has he had obedience training in a class with other dogs?

If either of those elements is lacking, I'd fix that first.

He's 60 lbs? How old is he? What breed or mix?

He sounds like he has a lot of extra energy to burn off.

The training classes are often good for working on socialization, which might help, plus they'll make him think, which will also use up a bit of energy. Daily practice on new skills and some long walks or runs or chasing a ball can't hurt, and might go a good way toward calming him down.

There are other things to try, but if he's not getting basic exercise needs met, I'm not sure how effective they would be. Other people will hopefully have other ideas.

[Pen]

I agree with plenty of exercise and also basic ctraining as in post above.  

 

In addition: 

Could you give him a sturdy observation platform of his own with a cheap cushion you don’t mind him biting?

Then find something he doesn’t like the taste of like Bitter Yuck and spray blinds, windowsill Etc 

At the same time work on dog training like Leave it, and settle down type commands.  Possibly  with help from people arriving or driving by  (or whatever sets him off) when you are home to work with him.  

 

 

I keep most furniture covered with blankets etc to protect from pets.   

Edited January 6, 2020 by Pen

[Innisfree]

We have used a scat mat (mild electric shock) to keep our dog off the sofa. But that isn't really the problem you're describing. He isn't just going to sleep in the recliner; he's so full of energy that he's destroying things. Right? I think that's not really about how to keep him off the recliner, but about how to wear him out and calm him down.

Like Pen said, we've practiced having people arrive at the house and having the dog get used to that and behave. That's a good idea. 

Edited January 6, 2020 by Innisfree

[Tree Frog]

1 hour ago, Innisfree said:

Personally, I might start with this bit. How much exercise does he get on a daily basis? Has he had obedience training in a class with other dogs?

If either of those elements is lacking, I'd fix that first.

He's 60 lbs? How old is he? What breed or mix?

He sounds like he has a lot of extra energy to burn off.

The training classes are often good for working on socialization, which might help, plus they'll make him think, which will also use up a bit of energy. Daily practice on new skills and some long walks or runs or chasing a ball can't hurt, and might go a good way toward calming him down.

There are other things to try, but if he's not getting basic exercise needs met, I'm not sure how effective they would be. Other people will hopefully have other ideas.

 

1 hour ago, Pen said:

I agree with plenty of exercise and also basic ctraining as in post above.  

 

In addition: 

Could you give him a sturdy observation platform of his own with a cheap cushion you don’t mind him biting?

Then find something he doesn’t like the taste of like Bitter Yuck and spray blinds, windowsill Etc 

At the same time work on dog training like Leave it, and settle down type commands.  Possibly  with help from people arriving or driving by  (or whatever sets him off) when you are home to work with him.  

 

 

I keep most furniture covered with blankets etc to protect from pets.   

 

1 hour ago, Innisfree said:

We have used a scat mat (mild electric shock) to keep our dog off the sofa. But that isn't really the problem you're describing. He isn't just going to sleep in the recliner; he's so full of energy that he's destroying things. Right? I think that's not really about how to keep him off the recliner, but about how to wear him out and calm him down.

Like Pen said, we've practiced having people arrive at the house and having the dog get used to that and behave. That's a good idea. 

1 hour ago, Innisfree said:

Personally, I might start with this bit. How much exercise does he get on a daily basis? Has he had obedience training in a class with other dogs?

If either of those elements is lacking, I'd fix that first.

He's 60 lbs? How old is he? What breed or mix?

He sounds like he has a lot of extra energy to burn off.

The training classes are often good for working on socialization, which might help, plus they'll make him think, which will also use up a bit of energy. Daily practice on new skills and some long walks or runs or chasing a ball can't hurt, and might go a good way toward calming him down.

There are other things to try, but if he's not getting basic exercise needs met, I'm not sure how effective they would be. Other people will hopefully have other ideas.

He's about 7 or 8 years old. We got him from a rescue 6 years ago who worked with me with training him. He used to do the same, over excited thing when we walked, except he bit me or the other dog, whichever was closer. He doesn't do that anymore. He knows settle, leave it, sit, stay, go to bed, and down commands. He will wait by the open back door while I make sure there are no animals before I release him (he caught a skunk in my garden and hauled it out. I don't want a repeat of that!). I feel like he's decently trained except for this one area. He's calm inside the house and outside, though he'll chase balls til the sun goes down. He and his (adopted) sister wrestle outside and chase each other, though that's becoming more limited due to her age and hip dysplasia. 

He probably could be walked more often. I'm a little frustrated with being they only person in the family who will work with either dog, but that a post for another time. His overall energy level isn't particularly high unless there's an animal outside. Then it goes sky high in about .8 of a second. 

He was socialized with other dogs when we first got him, but he hasn't been around them much in the last couple of years.

Thank you for your help and suggestions.

Edited January 6, 2020 by wilrunner
Corrected autocorrect

[Tree Frog]

The dog we're talking about is the tan one.

Edited January 6, 2020 by wilrunner
Correct autocorrect

[Pawz4me]

I'm kind of brain frazzled at the moment and don't have any advice, but the behavior your dog is exhibiting is usually referred to as displacement aggression (when biting another dog or person is involved) or displacement behavior. It's when a dog is frustrated by one thing and lashes out at something else. You might Google those terms and see if you can find anything helpful. My one piece of low tech advice to create a barrier, if you think it might work, is to buy one of those clear carpet runners and place it upside down as a barrier. Lots of dogs and cats don't like stepping on the little sharp "nubs." He may be one of those dogs who gets so hyped up he can ignore stuff like that, but if so you could return it. Plus the last time I bought one at Walmart it was like $4. So not much lost.

[Tree Frog]

1 hour ago, Pawz4me said:

I'm kind of brain frazzled at the moment and don't have any advice, but the behavior your dog is exhibiting is usually referred to as displacement aggression (when biting another dog or person is involved) or displacement behavior. It's when a dog is frustrated by one thing and lashes out at something else. You might Google those terms and see if you can find anything helpful. My one piece of low tech advice to create a barrier, if you think it might work, is to buy one of those clear carpet runners and place it upside down as a barrier. Lots of dogs and cats don't like stepping on the little sharp "nubs." He may be one of those dogs who gets so hyped up he can ignore stuff like that, but if so you could return it. Plus the last time I bought one at Walmart it was like $4. So not much lost.

Thanks, Pawz. I'll look up displacement aggression and see what I can do. We have a piano stool I've placed on the chair that works, but it doesn't always get put back on.

[73349]

While you're training him out of it, can you put the chair elsewhere?

Edited January 9, 2022 by Carolina Wren
typo

[sweet2ndchance]

We have a "no dogs on the furniture" rule at our house. When the dogs forget their manners, we put a box in the recliner they like to jump in when no body is sitting in it. We put something heavy enough in the box that they can't knock it out of the way but still light enough for us to move when someone wants to sit in the chair. After a week or two of the box in the chair they usually stop trying and ignore the chair again. Both of our dogs were shelter dogs/rescues so we did have to work for a long time to retrain them to the rules we wanted and break old habits. We've had one of them for about 5 years now and the other for about 3 years. We only have issues with them forgetting the rules very rarely now. If you don't have a box handy, a medium or large size moving box will work. They are less than $2 at Walmart or Home Depot.

[Tree Frog]

18 hours ago, sweet2ndchance said:

We have a "no dogs on the furniture" rule at our house. When the dogs forget their manners, we put a box in the recliner they like to jump in when no body is sitting in it. We put something heavy enough in the box that they can't knock it out of the way but still light enough for us to move when someone wants to sit in the chair. After a week or two of the box in the chair they usually stop trying and ignore the chair again. Both of our dogs were shelter dogs/rescues so we did have to work for a long time to retrain them to the rules we wanted and break old habits. We've had one of them for about 5 years now and the other for about 3 years. We only have issues with them forgetting the rules very rarely now. If you don't have a box handy, a medium or large size moving box will work. They are less than $2 at Walmart or Home Depot.

We had that policy, too. Unfortunately, it's gone by the wayside, though they need to be invited up. With the exception of a couple of specific beds, they don't get on the furniture. However, he hasn't damaged any other furniture. Only the chair that's by the front window. I'm trying to keep the keyboard stool on it, which is  usually effective.

17 hours ago, kand said:

Is there a chance separation anxiety is at play, since this usually happens when you’re not home? The destruction of blinds and near windows is classic for separation anxiety. If he does fine in his kennel, I would consider it a kindness to him to kennel him when you go out. You could give him a yummy treat like a filled Kong or something to make it a happy time for him.

I didn't think about separation anxiety as a possibility. This last time (and worst time) was right after the kids went back to college. Our older dog has been wandering around the house for the last few days looking for them, which she has never done before. Interesting thought. Thank you.

[ktgrok]

I think the only way to solve this when you are not home is either the scat mat recommended above or to use a baby gate to keep him out of that room while you are gone. Can you gate him in another part of the house?

Then keep working on that problem when you ARE home.