Dog Behaviourist and Dog Expert Witness Nick Jones MA brings you dog behaviour and dog training videos.
My work involves assisting owners and families with various dog behaviour problems. This ranges from puppy training issues or problems with puppy behaviour to cases of aggression between dogs or towards people in and out of the home. My work also involves looking at cases of separation anxiety, lack of recall, jumping up, nervous and anxious behaviours such as fear of fireworks or any other situation a dog may struggle in.
My role as a dog expert witness involves assessing dogs for the courts that have either bitten or have alleged to have bitten a person. I also carry out dog behaviour assessments for banned breeds, most commonly the pit bull terrier.
I hope you enjoy all that you find, and feel free to drop me a line with any questions or suggestions using any of the links below.
This explains guarding perfectly. Ive got a rescue red lab 2 1/2 years sits and waits perfectly for food yet when he steals stuff or if i try and put ear drops in he goes ballistic, barks, runs off, growls and if pushed then snaps. I know the previous owners traded everything for treats but we now have a dog that expects a vast amount of daily treats and is overweight.Last owners also allowed couch and slept on their bed (didnt have his own bed) and still believe he had no issues and thought this behavior was totally normal. Its a hard battle!
It can be worth training g in a hold and give exercise in preparation for the future thefts so as to reduce the conflict. Stick to the sensible boundaries you are implementing. Many people don’t see poor behaviour from their dogs as their buttons are not being pressed or that various situations are not being addressed/challenged. Remain calm and consistent and you’ll get there.
How can you talk about how to fix resource guarding with a video of a dog that doesn’t show this attitude. Sorry but your video has no benefit for some of us that are already dealing with a dog that shows resource guarding.
My dog has started barking in the garden for about a month now. Drives me nuts as I live in the city & have neighbours all around... This looks brilliant, will try this and update in a few weeks 😀
Hi there this is My second message to you and I really hope that you post some more recent videos because the more you post and the more I share your videos you can actually make good money on RU-vid, I’m the one who made the mistake, letting the dog sleep in the bed The problem is and the answer is to put a bed in the kitchen and have her start sleeping there so my cats the four of them can sleep in the bed. The problem is I live in a building and the dog will bark excessively even if I put distractions in the kitchen, such as a plastic mat with frozen peanut butter on it. How do I break this vicious cycle of my dog guarding the bed or me or the toys in which I will get rid of all of that for now I really need your advice.
Hi there people are dumping their animals in Florida so I found a Shih Tzu one year old and I have four cats that are used to sleeping in the bed whenever they feel like it and getting all of the attention. I really need your advice because I have come along way with desensitizing the dog with the four cats, but unfortunately, the dog sleeps in my bed and constantly barks guarding the bed or me. Of course I made the mistake because the dog was abandoned and every time I would try to get her not to sleep with me all she would do is bark except she does really well. When I need to leave the house, I am retired and would love all the advice you have to share, my goal is to be able to have the cats in the bed but this one year old Shih Tzu barks excessively when any cats are nearby, any advice would be so appreciative, and I am so grateful but I do realize this video was made a few years ago
You could try a simple approach of if there's barking, quickly place him on the floor, once he's calm and quiet he can come up again. So you Maintain this simple approach until he learns to settle and be quiet on the bed. A few days of strict management like this and see where you are in that specific situation. Good luck. Keep me posted 👍
Ooooh,,..it's my Rhodesian Ridgeback Belo's 2nd birthday today, and I'm off out to shop for this. He's going to love it and I love it that you mentioned to give gifts, which I'll do too. So gorgeous 🙂
Our one year old golden Pyrenees is starting to gaurd our sons room where she sleeps sometimes and now the couch where she sits a lot. She is going after are little dog who is ten years old. She has started going after our kitten that walks by the couch. And has gone after the other animals when we are standing around eating. Keep in mind we are a family of 8. We have 6 kids from 16-8. The way she has been going after the dog is escalating. Getting scary. We are trying to keep them separated when they are in the house.
It sounds as though you could do with some help to address these issues one by one in the home. Keep her off the couch until the behaviour resolves and good luck with seeking direct help.
Great video! Im sure i can get my 1 year old male jack russel to behave like this demonstration but what do i do if im out the back garden with him on the lead and someone walks past the gate or a neighbours dog starts barking?? Those two things set him off immediatley! Do i just take him straight back inside?? Or keep trying to distract him from the reactive thins around? Thanks
Hold the lead/long line in anticipation of these passes and spend that time pro actively keeping his attention. You can use the lead to interrupt barking with a clear 'be quiet' and bring him to your feet when barking starts. Then reward the quiet with a 'goooood quiet' in a soothing tone. Stay nice and calm but stay there as it's your presence that is the management technique. Good luck and thank you.
Not so much the wrong thing, as some will do this anyway for the first few weeks. Daytime sleeps in a crate downstairs could help the transition and plant the idea and expect that sleeping in a crate out of there bedroom is okay. If the landing is large enough, you could begin to locate it there for a week or more and then make the shift to downstairs when pup is ready. A puppy Kong with a dob of soft cheese inside can help when placing puppy inside to create a positive distraction. It'll be fine 👍
Thank you, I will be trying this with our 5 month old cavapoo. The problem is, as soon as he's come back in, he wants to go back out again. What to do then? I can't get anything done when he's like that and can't spend all day outside with him on a lead. Should I just ignore then or do you have another video about barking in the house please? This one has been super useful! Thank you x
Consider a routine of going out every hour and not in between unless you think he really needs to go. Filtering requests to go out to play or pee will ease as he matures! Well done. Barking in the house. Direct him to a bed or mat and sit and stay and to be quiet. As soon as he is quiet, reward and use the 'good boy' in a nice tone. Practice doorbell and door knocking at home. Create the noise then send to bed straight away and reward. Do half a dozen of these each day and that should allow you to create a habit that doorbell = go to bed and be treated. Treats can be faded out over time. 👍
It can help initially to be on hand at night in the first week or so, but then to move quite quickly to extending that time alone - how long often depends on the age of the puppy. But many owners need their sleep too, and I know that many pups can go 6,7,8 hours clean and dry. If there is a puddle then don’t sweat it and most dogs will become dry and able to sleep alone as a result. As always, each case is different and so adjustments might be made to help. Thank you. Nick
Hi Nick, we’ve got an 8 week old cockerpoo puppy, on the first night he woke up around 6am and we had come down to a fresh morning poo in the crate, we have then been coming down in the morning around 5:40, at this point he is still asleep and he then wakes up as we come into the room and he will whine a little bit, we wait for him to stop then take him out to go toilet, he then comes back in and goes back to bed for short while… My question is, should we be waiting for him to wake up naturally and then for us to go down and let him out or are we okay going into the room and him waking up because of us coming down and then letting him out?
You’re looking over the longer term to go and let him out later and later as his control improves. Sounds like you’re off to a good start in any event. Maybe aim for a 15 minute delay each week or thereabouts so that you get more sleep in keeping with when he is ready to wake and do his business. Good luck and enjoy.
I’ve taken on a dog that for the first time ever for me, resource guards. As I can see it. She feeds well with others. She even travels & sleeps well with others. She happily shows the other dogs her favourite toy but as soon as it’s on the floor she guards. The ball however she even growls at me. At first she went for me but I took it any way & took it away. Her favourite toy which is a squeaky duck toy. She doesn’t squeak it but she happily gives it up for me to see & give it back. This sprocker is 18 months & has been treated like a princess at last home. She wants to be above everyone. We have a no furniture rule at ours for every dog. My three spanners are very good with other dogs, they give others space & behave appropriately around others. Very calm & very mannerly. Very chilled in our house. Mabel is nervous & at the moment she’s still after three weeks, figuring out her own feelings but we have a strict routine & all come to work with me as a gardener everyday. She is socialised with a muzzle on but muzzle is only for socialisation. Just so she can meet others without me having to take a hold of the lead when she greets others. I’ve slowly been gently stroking to the areas around her problem issues but she did have matting that I spent time gently & in time taking out. We make game with her touching my hand with her paws for praise & the difficult areas, a treat. I have her on food appropriate for her & she has no free rein all the time. There are only certain places I allow her off for a run, but long walks on a long lead & lead work as well as work with me has helped a lot with feeling more chilled. The only issue so far is just the dropped toy or weirdly, greeting again, my dogs. All are the same sex too. We don’t play games, the others do but she is on a lead just watching with me whilst the others play so she can be close but she learns to be calm & keep anxiety levels down. Great post. Very helpful.
I have a 21 month old working Cocker Spaniel, who we rescued 3 months ago. She started the crazy running around the garden barking every time she goes out about a month into having her. I have been taking her into the garden on lead at night ever since to avoid the noise when neighbours kids are in bed next door. So will make this a habit to do everytime she goes out in the garden to hope she learns not to do it. The only problem is, I am a Dog Boarder and there are days when I have lots of dogs at home and now that the weather is better the door is open and they are in the garden a lot more. Bali then barks as she's playing, so I'm getting her in whenever she does this as I do not want to annoy the neighbours. Is there a way to also prevent the barking when she's playing, or am I just going to have to continue to get her in whenever it happens? She gets two good hour long walks per day, and playtime with the other dogs as well, so gets a lot of exercise.
Hi Sally, thanks for the question. For that type of issue, you’ll need to be present and have the barker on a lead or line - 10-15 feet in length say and you can then allow interactions when she is calm and to allow more line and freedom as this develops, but to address excessive behaviour that you see starting and culminating in barking. Bring her to your feet quickly and demand a sit or down for moment as of to suggest that there is a reason not to bark. Wait for calm and then allow her to go away again, and again you’re aiming to mark what we do we want, but also to address in a balanced manners what we don’t want so that the dog understands you’re in control of the event overall 😁
@@AlphaDogBehaviour Thank you for your fast reply, I will try this, so a long line on her all the time even when she is playing, so I can bring her back to me for correction easily.
I took over care of my elderly parents' 10-year-old 55-pound Portuguese Water Dog and had to train him to sleep in a crate. He was used to sleeping with them, hogging the whole middle of the bed, and getting up once or twice a night. The first night was miserable. I did sleep on the floor next to him because I knew it was such a shock in his routine. The second night I slept on the sofa in the same room as him. The third night I slept in my own bed. As a compromise, I did get up at 5am for the first couple of weeks, then worked my way back to 6:30, which is when I had to get up anyway. After the first week, he stayed dry all night. I discovered that peanut butter in a kong toy was a magic bullet for getting him to run to the crate. I saved it for bedtimes only. He had a favorite blanky he snuggled with in the crate and after that first week of misery, he was very happy. He's been gone for about six months now and I'm thinking about a puppy. Your video is very sensible and compassionate. Thank you.
Thank you. Dogs touch our lives in many ways and a dog in your life that you provide a loving, yet balanced approach is a wonderful thing. Your approach re the crate use sounds excellent, well done you.
The problem I am having with my 6 month old isn't that she resource guards regular things like toys but its things she shouldn't have as if she knows I don't want her having them, like something has fallen off the side be it a piece of plastic, paper etc and she will back off from me and make a faint "huff" unless I offer a high value treat that gets her attention and quickly take item away she will guard it but not bite me as such but may gently mouth, the outdoors is the extreme though, she picks up and eats and swallows so much especially stones and pebbles but any thing like old food even if rotten is appealing to her and if I call her and/or say leave it she will turn her face away from me and quickly chew and swallow before I can distract her, offering a treat does nothing and thats if I have it ready in time, often she will pick up a stone as she walks into my home (outside my house is a area with decorative pebbles and stones, its a shared entrance with neighbours) and I have mostly worked out how to distract her enough to not pick one up and if she does she mostly drops it if I give her even a small treat and quickly move away, big items like what happened today nothing distracts her, she picked up something big on walk just outside house and no amount of treats distracted her and she ran away from me each time I got close so I had to do the dangerous act of putting my hand near her (with other hand full of treats and grab it out of her mouth, she lunged at me and nipped hand which made me drop the item and when she went to get it off floor I showed her my other hand but she bared her teeth and barked and bit my hand and gave a "dent" in the skin, not enough to make it bleed but just enough I have 3 tiny (like less than mm each wide) scratches on my hand. I want to get her out of this behaviour when shes still young but as its outdoor she has the problem with I don't know what to do
Just be careful where you put your dog down. Keeping them locked away from social exposure to humans, other animals and a variety of experiences during the socialisation period can lead to a dog that is anxious, nervous and struggles to be social in later life. Ruby has developed into a well balanced dog, free from anxieties as a result of a thorough and careful socialisation. Thanks
First of all, I appreciate that you take the time to answer most questions in the comments. I have a ridgeback pup of 6 months old and she goes absolutely crazy in the garden. The first weeks I always went with her to the garden, but I think my mistake was that I did not do this long enough. Now she barks at people walking by or just at random. I do think it has to do with some anxiety (tense stature and hairs upright) What do I do? She does wait on my command to go outside and I already tried letting her out on a leash. When she barks I would go back inside let her calm down and on my command she can go back in the garden (on a lead) and repeat this. Even this doesn't seem to help. Some people say that I should distract her with exercises or a toy. Any tips?
Thank you. Is she getting ample off lead exercise in open spaces as you may be fighting that energy and she releases it in the garden in an undesirable way as you describe? Be careful re leaving her alone in the garden unsupervised as this is how certain behaviours can develop, such as barking and so on. Distractions at meal times could help her focus quietly on emptying kibble forms. Kong Wobbler if she has the drive for it, or a Classic Kong if using moist food. I don’t leave a dog in the garden alone in its first year due to reason I state above. Thanks!
Thank you for the quick response. I don't let her outside anymore without me accompanying her. When we go for a walk she is often off lead to release that energy, otherwise she is still not tired. We also do some brain games, tug of war etc. Do you mean I put the food (e.g Kong) outside as a distraction or inside to release energy? I also notice she seems very eager to go outside, so my guess is that the barking is also some form of self-reward.
I mean to give to Kong in the garden with you keeping a close eye on her. Also, be sure to apply calm exits into the garden using a Wait command a few seconds before allowing into garden. Rushing out of the door is self rewarding and can result in barking from the outset. 👍
Our rescue dog is between 2 and 3. He's a hound and constantly chases and barks at the birds nesting in our garden. Will this work to stop him barking at the birds? Thanks so much for all of your videos
I've got 2 English Staffys. Sarge is a 20 month old, well exercised, behaved and gentle temperament...until we got 10 week old Major. Sarge and Major play very well together and tolerates the puppy teething, but Sarge has nipped Major a few times over ALL toys and has started to resource guard. Now I keep them separate when playing with toys, but Sarge drops his favourite toys & is HYPER fixated on ANYTHING Major has. What else can I do???
Strict control of behaviour when together and lift up all contentious items so no issues in your absence. Major will be full on at this age and as he matures he should settle. Good luck :)
Hello Nick great video albeit 10 years old, you mention in the clip a video on the introduction of the whistle can you please point me to it as I can not spot it, thanks Deano
Stop giving the dog access to the couch and use it’s own bed. Keep a lead on your dog in the home for easy control should it misbehave or get on the couch without permission. I would never allow a dog on the couch without permission by me. Hope that helps a little
Do u lock the puppy in a crate overnight as I thought u shouldn't do that? I'm getting a new puppy on Monday, our first to be honest do I'm looking at pointers to train her correctly.
Thank you, interesting you started from Dog Lane - can you park free there? Lovely video - nice dog and I did like the rich colors, nature sounds and scenery and the Severn. I visited Bewdley over the weekend and I want to move near there.
Yeah I had a jack russell who was so friendly he’d literally follow people home. The 2 people he followed home , 1 had groceries and he followed the smell from the bag. She said he crashed on her couch all night, and just sat there. She said he made her want a dog. The other lady happened when he escaped and she picked him up and took him home. She said she fed him. He wasn’t aggressive, so she was standing outside our house waiting for us to come home. We drove around looking for him, and when we got back, she was holding him. It was so funny.
When we got a chihuahua puppy 15 years ago he cried and cried so we couldn’t get sleep. My husband wanted her in our bed to get sleep and felt bad he was crying. He then slept in our bed for almost rest of his life. Our next puppy we plan on changing the bad habits we made with our past chihuahua.
@@AlphaDogBehaviour I felt bad as our daughter came along and I made him sleep on his own because I didn’t want a dog and a baby in the bed. If you instil good habits early it saves you in long run.
Hi Nick, I have read a lot of articles that suggest leaving a puppy to cry for long periods in its crate can cause alot of distress. Also an 8 week old can only hold pee for up to 3hrs. Our puppy goes to the toilet frequently throughout the day so I don’t want to cause the puppy distress by sleeping amongst its own mess at night. are you recommending not going down at all?
In the very first week or two I may return if the pup wakes at say 5am onwards, offer a toilet break and then back to bed as you’ll need to stay well rested yourself (this can be overlooked by some). There on in I don’t return and that I aim to create a routine that is something like 11pm to 6am crated with no returns and o from there. This can be seen as a starting point, as each dog differs and you’ll need to remain flexible. 👍
Thank you for your message. Please fill in my enquiry form answering the additional questions and I shall respond shortly. Many thanks. Nick www.alphadogbehaviour.co.uk/contact
I love your videos! It inspired us to do the same with our dog on youtube. Your dog is always so cheerful and happy and the scenery is so relaxing. Keep up the good work!
You will lose control of what your dog does when alone in the open, such as to develop unwanted habits like barking, digging, escape, eating things etc. always best to supervise.
Thanks for your videos--they are so helpful! How much sleep does an eight-week puppy need during the daytime? Do you put Ruby in her crate at regular intervals for a nap? Or just wait until she falls asleep, then put her in her crate for a nap? I will be getting a Cockapoo puppy soon, and I know puppies need quite a bit of sleep, but I don't want to let her sleep so much during the day that she is awake all night.
Thank you and glad they are helping. 8 week pups tend to rise and fall in terms of activity throughout the day. As long as the pup is allowed to expend energy (some are ‘lazy’, some are more active, so it does depend on your pup tbh), it will all work out, so try not to over think it in advance as you’ll find a routine after a couple of weeks I’m sure. I do place my pups in the crate for daytime sleeps, as it greatly helps the night time crate use and allows you to go do other things knowing the pup is safe and secure. I try to place the pup inside before they are fully asleep and they usually are so tired it works fine. Doing this from day one and sticking with it should work out fine for you. Good luck and enjoy the ride!
Our 10 mo old dog has recently started trying to fight our 3 yr old dog at meal times, and really any time he gets overly excited. We are trying to manage that by keeping them separate at meal times and paying very close attention to when he gets overstimulated, which is helping (but still kind of there). However at the dog park yesterday he started a fight with another dog over a ball, which he has never done before. Additionally, at day care twice in the last week he has humped our 3 yr old dog repeatedly to the point we cannot take them to daycare together. If they separate them at daycare the 10 mo old gets major separation anxiety regarding the other dog. He also doesn't hump any other dog, nor has he humped any dog in front of us. They are separated most of the day with no issues. Any help is appreciated!
