I recently adopted another dog from the pound for my current dog to play with. She is about 2 years old and I was wondering if we could teach her any tricks, or if she is just plain too old. Also is there anyway to break her bad habbits?? She gets into the trash and gets on our bed. Or is she too old to have her bad habbits broken??
2007-03-16 18:47:37 · 12 answers · asked by TUBBY 4 in Pets ➔ Dogs
Absolutely!
You can actually teach her new tricks, and help her understand what behaviors are unacceptable.
Take it slow and be consistent.
Find out what she already knows and build on that.
Daily training in short sessions with rewards of praise & treats will give her the opportunity to learn new things, but build a bond with you, which is actually more important atm.
As far as unwanted behaviors :
Remove those things that you can from her reach that you dont want her going into. Put the trashcan in a closet, or up out of reach, etc.
You don't like her on your bed, then you can acutally kill 2 birds with one stone. Teach her an "off" command. Have treats handy, and when you find her on the bed, tell her off. Lure her off with a treat just after you say "off", and when she gets off- give her a treat and praise her with "GOOD PUPPY!" and petting her. POsitive reinforcemtn usually works best, but for the more stubborn dogs, you may need to invest in a water bottle. Add a little bit of vinegar in the bottle. When you tell her "off" and she dosnt get off, give her a spray- and when she finally does get off, still praise her.
Patience and Consistency is key !
Good Luck!
2007-03-16 19:11:09 · answer #1 · answered by yarmiah 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes you can teach her new tricks and you can break her of bad habits. It will take a bit of patience, as old habits in a dog are hard to break, but it can be done. Most dogs will work for treats, so work that into your training. If you become the Alpha person in her life, she will do just about anything for you.
2007-03-16 18:55:05 · answer #2 · answered by ? 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
For sure you can!
It was on the show Mythbusters the other day. On nine and a half points out of ten, the two old dogs were able to satisfactorily learn and perform new tricks-no problem.
The new environment you've given (along with a lot of love) can be the impetus for an old dog to overcome his lazy, stick-in-the-mud ways and learn new behaviors-you just have to have the patience and most of all-consistency to educate her.
Good luck!
2007-03-16 18:55:00 · answer #3 · answered by omnisource 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes, she'll learn just as surely as you teach her and love her and make her feel relaxed and a part of the family. My father's old dog came to live with me several years ago and he learned something new everyday, including helping me make a fire in an old wood stove, down to pretending to flick the lighter with his paw to start the kindling. And, he learned to heel without ever needing a collar or leash ever again. And, he learned that if he went off chasing coyotes on top of a mountain when I was freezing my butt off waiting for him in the open that I would drive away and leave him to freeze his butt off in the open, and to be sitting most sheepishly on the spot where the car had been when I returned an hour later. Gosh.
2007-03-16 19:02:25 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your dog is definitely young enough to learn tricks and to learn better habits. I worked with dogs for 11 years and found that dogs of all ages, like people, can learn with proper training methods. Check into local obedience schools. The cost for basic classes is well worth it and you will meet other people that are experiencing the same types of problems. I think that it is really cool that you adopted! Good luck!
2007-03-16 18:58:40 · answer #5 · answered by Sasha 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes, older dogs learn new things very well! I wanted my older dog to be in a parade with me, as he 'matched' my horse so perfectly. I decided to teach him to pull a wagon. I put the harness on, and in about 5 minutes he was pulling like a pro!.
He was 9 years old, and had never done such a thing before..
2007-03-16 19:01:28 · answer #6 · answered by Chetco 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
She's not too old to learn new tricks or break bad habits. You just have to work with her and probably just being around your current dog, she'll learn a lot.
2007-03-16 18:54:07 · answer #7 · answered by Buddy28 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
yeah you can teach old dog new tricks by taking it to a obience classes
2007-03-16 18:51:08 · answer #8 · answered by Jenna 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
My wife has been trying now for nearly 30 years.
No!!!
This Old Dawg....
Does the usual....
Eats
Pees
Poops
& Lay around the house listening to music.
2007-03-16 20:12:19 · answer #9 · answered by Old Dawg 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, you can. Besides, a two year old dog isn't an "old dog," she's just past her puppy years!
2007-03-16 19:03:26 · answer #10 · answered by mnemosyne0 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋