my dog is driving my family crazy! help!?!?

Question

i got a 2 year old mini poodle yesterday. she has to sleep in her crate in the garage. she is constantly whining and barking. please please PLEASE tell me how to stop this. WE CAN'T SLEEP!!!! she can't sleep in the house. should i invest in one of those collars that gives a light shock???

Answer 1

New dog? Sleeping in the garage? Why can't she sleep in the house, You have a crate to put her in. She can't run all over. Let her sleep in the crate in your room. Do you think she may be scared being in a new home and all. Don't sound as you even want the dog.
Stay away from the shock collars and find a good home for her, It don't sound like she has one there.

Answer 2

First off I am not sure why you say she cant sleep in the house. She is probably barking because she wants to be with someone. If she is potty trained, try letting her in your bedroom in her crate. Let her know you are there she is scared and wants to be with someone. This is a new home for her. THink of a 2 year old baby being given to a family it doesnt know. She would cry and whine and want to know she is loved. If you are not against it I would let her sleep in the bed with you for a few nights until she gets used to the place. You can also get a 2 liter bottle and fill it with hot water and wrap it in a nice soft towel. Place it in the crate next to her and place her crate in your bedroom for a few nights. It will make her feel warm and safe like she is near her mommy. It takes time for dogs to adjust. Poodles do tend to bark a lot in general. I hate the shock collars and although I know people that have them I would only say to use that as a very last resort!

Answer 3

You knew, according to your previous question, that one of your family members felt uncomfortable with a dog, because of a bad experience, yet you still went ahead and got a dog anyway. She's in a brand new environment, scared to death, in a crate, in the dark, alone, in the garage and you wonder why she's driving you crazy, constantly whining and barking. What kind of life is that for her? I can't begin understand your logic! Dogs are pack animals and need to be inside with the family and paid attention to, played with and shown love and affection, not locked up in the dark and alone. That's being so cruel and unfair to the poor dog. How would you feel? You are abusing this poor dog and are very irresponsible. Shame on you! You should never have gotten her in the first place and now you want to get a shock collar and abuse her even more. You also said in your other question that you wanted to sell her, which is it, do you want to keep her and treat her the way she should be treated or do you want to sell her? Do the dog a great big favor and give her to a rescue organization, or to someone who can be responsible enough, to care for her the way she should be taken care of and loved, instead of keeping her locked up, like she's in some prison.You obviously can't handle it! Don't do this to her, it's so cruel and unfair. Give her the chance to live a long and happy life. Be responsible and give her that chance!

Answer 4

Please, please, please don't get one of those stupid shock collars! Our dogs sleep in their crates in our bedroom. Because dogs are social animals and they need to be with their pack, they do much better when they are close to us! Sinse you can't keep her in the house for whatever reason, I would suggest that you put her favorite toy in the crate with her and put a piece of clothing, a blanket, a towel, etc that has your scent on it in the crate with her, that way she won't feel so alone when she is stuck out in that scary garage all by herself all night long! : ( She is getting use to a new house, a new family, sleeping in her crate and being left out in the garage.. She will cry for a while, that is just what dogs/ puppies do. Once she gets use to everything she will get better. I would also suggest that when you are putting her in her crate you say "go home", "go to you room", "go to your crate"... whatever you want to say, and as soon as she goes in her crate give her a treat. That will help to show her that her crate is a good, safe place for her. You also need to make sure she is getting plenty of exercise, love and attention everyday! My husband and I have medium breed dogs and we walk our dogs 3 times a day everyday, for 30 to 45 minutes each walk. People often assume that small dogs don't need to be walked.. that's crap! They are still dogs, no matter what size they are! I would suggest that you take her for 2 to 3 walks a day everyday. I am not sure how long you should walk a dog that small, but I would guess maybe 15 minutes for each walk?? I really have no idea... I would suggest that you start off taking her for a 5-10 minute walk and then for the next walk make it a little longer. Do that until you figure out how long each walk should be. Or, you could ask someone that has a dog that is the same size how long they walk their dog for. Anyway, that's all I can think of to really help. I hope this has helped you out some! Good luck! : )

Answer 5

I agree - no shock collar for this dog. And please, do not crate her in your garage. That is not setting her up for success.
What's happening with her now is called an 'extinction burst' - which means that the dog is trying and trying a behavior that has gotten her rewarded before. Example : the dog makes noise in her crate and a human comes in, looks at her and says "Be Quiet!" That's a reward for the dog, so she does it again, and probably louder. The human comes in again : "I said, shut UP!" Voila - the dog is rewarded again for the barking. And so on.
To help your dog stop this unwanted behavior :
1. Be sure your dog is empty (fully pottied) before crating.
2. The dog is exercised a LOT before crating.
3. The dog has a chewy, a stuffed frozen Kong, or other interactive treat-dispensing toy in there to work on.
4. You are using DAP (a plug-in Dog Appeasing Pheromone; available online or in shops) which will help to calm the dog.
5. You are proactively working on making the crating a positive experience for the dog (see http://dogpublic.com/articles/article.aspx?t=puppies&sid=14&pid=97 for more)
6. If the dog makes noise, you are ignoring it. Remember that any interaction with you at all is rewarding and will encourage the barking behavior. Concentrate on rewarding the dog for being quiet! If you need to make things clearer for your dog, keep a sheet draped over the back half of the crate and when you hear noise, cover the crate completely.
Be consistent and fair, and you will teach your dog that being quiet quiet = rewardable, and making noise = you get nothing at all. Stick to your guns and be sure to communicate to your family about how it's going. Good luck!

Answer 6

Does she normally whine and bark or is just when she is in the crate at night?

Sounds like she wants some company and companionship. Why can't she sleep in the house in the crate?

Do you know anything about her life before you got her? You may find that she was always with someone and now feels abandoned. My "pound puppy" was the same way the first 6 weeks I had her. We eventually gave in (since we weren't getting any sleep) and let her sleep in our room in the crate. After a few nights of adjustment and reassuring her, she settled down enough and now sleeps without crying or whining. (We've had her for 3 years; it took a few weeks to train her.)

If you cannot, under any circumstances, bring her in, try a radio, or alarm clock as they do with weaning puppies from their mothers.

Good luck.

Answer 7

She's driving you crazy after 1 day? You have some serious issues! Your family members felt uncomfortable with a dog but you gone one anyway. That is not very responsible. Where are your parents????? You are very immature and unable to take care of a dog properly. Find another home for this dog so she doesn't have to keep suffering.

Where do you live? I'm coming to take the dog somewhere safe and lock you in a crate in the garage by yourself when it's dark and cold!

Answer 8

She's in a new place and scared, as others have said. She is actually behaving very naturally for a dog in a new place, with new people.

Also, dogs are pack animals. They don't adjust to being isolated. They need to be in a group. They're pretty flexible about who's in the group...they don't have to have dog companions, they can consider their people their pack. But many dogs get crazy if isolated in a place like a garage.

I'd say teach your dog the manners she needs to live inside your house as an animal member of the family. Don't try to make her adjust to a situation that goes against her instincts. As an adult dog, she is ready to be trained and be a fast learner.

Please, no shock collar. They're cruel. And mini and toy dogs are fragile. They need gentle handling to do well. I think their small size also makes them feel very vulnerable when people aren't pleased with them - they know they can't fight back effectively, as a big dog like a Doberman or Rottweiler could - so they need both physical and emotional gentleness.

You should feel free to use your vet as a resource when you need help with your dog's behavior. Call the vet and ask for advice. My cats' vet charges enough that I feel fine about asking for the occasional phone consultation.

Answer 9

Was she an inside dog before? Why can't she sleep inside? Since you just got her yesterday, she is not only adjusting to a new family but to a new way of life. I wouldn't recommend shocking her on top of all that. I'd recommend trying to get the decision makers in your family to let her come inside.
Instead of the shock collar, (which is expensive) invest that in getting her groomed and bring her inside!

Answer 10

Please do not shock your dog, that is unhumane and unfair to her. Why don't you give her time to calm down? She's in a new home and she's scared. Why does she have to sleep in the garage if she stays in a crate?

edit: I read your other questions and it sounds like yours isn't the ideal home for a dog so just give it to a rescue group. You do not live in a dog friendly home and clearly got the dog as a status symbol.