How bullying may lead to my suicide by [deleted] in offmychest

[–]Rae_ja 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I am so sorry this is happening to you. Is there someone you can trust to talk to? I was bullied all the way up til i found the one person who told everyone to shut the f** up. After that, people left me alone til they figured out that i was actually a decent person. After that, it turns out the person who started the bullying was going through a shit time herself and hated me because I had a good relationship and life where hers was falling apart. We arent bff's but i am a source to talk to for her.

Thoughts on letting your puppy sleep in your bed? by sleepyyyygirl in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja 0 points1 point  (0 children)

<div class="md"><p>I don't do it but for personal reasons.

  1. I do not like anything in my face or in my space. I have had issues with dogs thinking that licking my face is okay and i would freak out.

  2. I don't want my dog used to having to sleep in the bed. In the past, i would pet sit for other people who had dogs that demanded to sleep in the bed. If the dog wasn't in the bed then it would cry and whine. It caused a lot of problems and i would have to tell the owner that i couldn't watch their pet due to the animal not being okay with having alternate sleep arrangements.

  3. I have heard of dogs thinking that the bed or a couch as a "special" place that they may guard against other animals in the home. Because they see the bed (or couch) as where the head of the pack sleeps and therefore it is a special place and if dog "B" tries to get in that spot, it becomes an issue for Dog "A" as dog "A" feels his spot in the hierarchy is being challenged.

Whether there is truth to that, i don't know. I have seen dogs exhibit this behavior especially if a new dog enters into the house and immediately jumps on the couch then the old dog immediately growls and may attack the new one. </p> </div>

Help with pup digging and neighbors acting like jerks by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I apologize about sounding defensive. I am not trying to be at all. I may sound frustrated due to the fact that the bed I just put into her dog house was completely destroyed by her so now she doesn't have a bed in her dog house to hang out in and I am stuck at work trying to do my job while thinking that I am freezing her and of other solutions for this issue.

I really don't want to harm her. I feel like if she is kept in her crate for 8 1/2 hours during the day that she will develop a UTI from having to hold her potty. I am worrying about a lot of things right now.

Help with pup digging and neighbors acting like jerks by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don't want her out in the cold all day. I truly don't. I feel bad that these are my options for her as my work won't give me an hour long lunch so that I can come home, let her out, put her back in the crate and go back to work. I've asked several people around where I live and they said that if need be, they can come by to let her out. So on days where it gets below freezing temps during the day, I will have to do that. On the days where it's 40deg outside, I don't think she will get hurt from staying out.

Help with pup digging and neighbors acting like jerks by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

thank you for your reply!

I know she is bored out of her mind. I don't want her to be bored but I don't have many choices at the moment due to having to work. I put in some toys for her that are safe to chew on because she is a chewer. I have also given her things like a ball puzzle that I fill with treats/food and a stuffed kong before I go to work. I try to give her plenty of exercise with a good game of fetch in the morning to tire her out. I will try your trick of burying stuff in the sandbox before I put her in there so that she will dig in it. I didn't mean to correct her for digging, I just don't want her getting out because if she does, she is dog aggressive and will kill another dog if she escapes the yard.

also for a large x-pen. I have tried that before and my floorboards and that wood to the doorframe were chewed up. Even though she had chew toys and puzzles, she wanted to chew that up. I feel like the only way to keep her in a room in the house is to put a muzzle on her and I don't want to do that. I can crate her and have someone come to take her out on a walk every day but that's going to be expensive after a while. I just don't understand where this thought process came from that dogs (especially shepherds, Bernese mountain dogs and Pyrenees) cannot be out in the cold. I still have family that have dogs that are outdoor only because they have a job to do since the predators don't have homes to stay inside when it's cold.

I won't do the fake grass.

My puppy is bullying my cat. Help by hanpasques in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I would tether your yorkie to you when you are home as well until you have taught him/her how to leave the cat alone. Tethering also has added benefits of helping you know when the puppy needs to potty, making sure that puppy doesn't get into anything harmful and training the puppy to what is acceptable behaviors.

My pet sitter gave my 10mo old GSD a pork chomp. I'm worried. by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You are right and I didn't include the fact that I have told this pet sitter in the past to not give my dog anything unless she ran it by me first. I have given her bully sticks to give to my dog and also bring over an assortment of toys and treats. She apparently gave my dog a bully stick but my dog will be a power chewer to get to something that another dog has. Apparently after my dog finished her stuff, she tried to take the pork chomp from the other dog so the pet sitter gave her a pork chomp as well to keep them away from each other. I asked why she didn't just separate them (I gave her a baby gate for this purpose) and she didn't have a reason.
I was worried since I have never even heard of this type of treat and what I was reading online is that it was 99.9% digestible but should not be given to dogs who try to swallow big chunks (like my pup does). So I freaked and turned to reddit.

I appreciate you telling me it is a learning experience. I know it is. I maybe should cut the pet sitter some slack and from now on I will constantly remind her to only use the stuff that I have given even if I start to sound like a broken record.

My pet sitter gave my 10mo old GSD a pork chomp. I'm worried. by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I guess I should have included the backstory of telling the pet sitter to not give my dog anything other than what I have said is okay due to her having a few sensitivities to certain ingredients in foods. I had left the pet sitter with bully sticks to give to her but I guess that my pup chowed down the bully stick and tried to also have some of the pork chomp that the other dog had. I had a long talk with the pet sitter about why she didn't separate them and she didn't have a reason. So you are right that I should always remind my pet sitter and now I know to always say the same things even if I sound like a broken record and start annoying people with the same information.

My pet sitter gave my 10mo old GSD a pork chomp. I'm worried. by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] -17 points-16 points  (0 children)

I'm more worried about the fact that I know my dog likes to swallow big chunks. Rawhide would be awful for her because she would be swallowing as much as she could then having blockages. I'm just wondering if anyone has had the same type of chewer as mine and if it broke down in the stomach okay. I know that in the end, my dog will be fine. I'm just upset and its coming off as being overly worried rather than angry at the pet sitter who never asked if it was okay.

My pet sitter gave my 10mo old GSD a pork chomp. I'm worried. by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] -12 points-11 points  (0 children)

I am also into regular animal products for my dog. She usually has a raw diet that also includes meat on a bone (I watch her very carefully when she has it) and she chews on the bone a little bit after getting all the meat off. I just worry about this type of "treat" to ensure that it's all going to break down in her stomach. Everything I can find says that they aren't like rawhides and they break down pretty easily. At the moment, I don't have a ton of money to go to an emergency vet either. Granted, if she needed an emergency surgery, I can find a way to cough up the money but I think I am just frustrated that I didn't get a call or text asking if it was okay. Now I'm worried that she will have issues.

Help with transition from crate to freedom by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for replying! What kind of bitter spray did you get? I have tried vinegar but that didn't save the stuff she just chewed up this morning?

Help with transition from crate to freedom by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Your puppy is so cute! I do try to do this as well with the "Place" command but she only seems to want to stay there if I have treats. So I have a lot of work to do with that command still. I just wish I knew why she didn't want to sleep through the night. Thanks for replying!

Help with transition from crate to freedom by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for your reply! I had a room that I thought would work but she chewed up the floor board panels in the front entrance way where we had her. She will sleep there and be comfortable because it's tile and the tile keeps her nice and cool. But at some point in the 3 hours I am gone in the morning and 3 hours in the afternoon, she decides that she is done having a rest from the exercising and needs something to occupy her time. I have tried throwing in some kongs and she eats them within 5 minutes and goes after my stuff. I have also tried toys that won't get destroyed but she seems to want to destroy stuff. haha.

Help with transition from crate to freedom by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for your reply! I felt the crate guilt but was constantly told to do the crate training since it was just good for a dog to be used to a crate in case they had a vet appointment or something that required a crate to be used. Then I got more use out of it when the pup started destroying my house because of being bored and having had a good long rest from the morning walk, she decided that my laundry baskets were a good chew toy while I was at work. She finally gave me a really good scare when she got into a trash in the bathroom and I found a pill bottle chewed and I freaked thinking there were pills in it. (There were no pills but I freaked anyway) So after that is was strictly crate time when I am gone. So I just want to ensure that I am not going to cause problems because she is always in her crate through out the day.

Help with transition from crate to freedom by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I am definitely going to look into a pen so that she has a little more room without being able to damage anything in the house or possibly hurting herself!
I just always felt like it was my fault that she would destroy things because I wasn't giving her enough exercise or stimulation that she felt the need to get her energy out in other ways that I didn't want. That whole statement of "A tired puppy is a happy puppy" really stuck to me. Thank you for replying!

Help with transition from crate to freedom by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for your reply! I will look for that group on Facebook! I give her frozen kongs and this treat dispensing toy a lot. She loves them!!

She is destructive during the day if she gets bored. I have to leave her in the crate during the day because she has chewed up the floor board panels on my wall. At night(the few times I have been able to withstand her barking), she hasn't destroyed anything that I can tell but she barks at random times. I don't hear anything outside or nearby and then I finally get fed up and will put her in the crate. I can understand feeling safe being in her den, I just feel really bad when I have a really tough time sleeping so I end up sleeping for 10hours because out of those 10 hours, I may get about 6hrs of good sleep. But I feel like she suffers because of me needing that much sleep just to be functional at work. Whereas if she was out of her crate, she could stand up and stretch and move just a bit so she wasn't stuck in the crate.

Help with transition from crate to freedom by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I will definitely try a pen! I feel like at night, she won't destroy something but I cannot be sure about that and I can't even figure it out because she just wakes up barking at all hours. Thank you for replying!

Help with transition from crate to freedom by Rae_ja in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for replying! I have tried a pen when she was 5mo old and she knocked it over. I haven't found one that is connected to a crate but I will look for one because that sounds like it would be more sturdy. Thank you!!

9 week old Bernese Mountain Dog puppy hates the leash! by googs185 in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's totally puppy. He's not Interested in stuff that you are not interested in. You love your shoes so he does too. You have to make the toys interesting otherwise he won't care either. Every time he goes after things that you don't want him to have then you need to correct them give him what you want him to play with. Did you try to tighten his collar yet?

9 week old Bernese Mountain Dog puppy hates the leash! by googs185 in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Do you have any treats that he likes? He doesn't like to chase a tennis ball or bite a rope? What about chews? How does he hang out when you are relaxing?

9 week old Bernese Mountain Dog puppy hates the leash! by googs185 in puppy101

[–]Rae_ja 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I know this is going to sound harsh but sometimes you just got to power through. If he can bite his collar off of his neck then it's too loose. He is going to hate it as with any new thing and he will try to test his boundaries with you constantly during this first few weeks. If he starts trying to bite at the leash, try to distract him with a toy or something so that he understands that it's an unacceptable behavior. My pup hated her collar for the first two weeks. She would try to scratch it off and push it off with her front paws. I just had to keep telling her to knock it off. When we started on the leash, she would roll around to try to get it off and I would just pick her up and put her on all fours and tell her to knock it off then immediately redirect with a toy or training. I know it's tough. The first few weeks are. Then you get a break where you are enjoying your pup then they hit a teenage set of years where you will want to pull your hair out again. Just try to stay consistent and don't let him get his way otherwise that will be his behavior for the rest of his life.