A young, emotionally-needy dog. Ideas?

[onelanerode]

I would expect some of that to diminish as she gets more used to how life is. We have one dog who is far more clingy than the other. He’s better now, more mellow, but there are times we prefer he left us alone, like when we’re eating.

So we taught a “go lie down” command, and that’s what we use when his neediness gets to be a bit much, i.e., we’d like to eat without sad-eyes staring 8 inches away from our plates and drooling.

“Go lie down” is usually in a bed about 8 feet from the couch; there are beds in all the rooms we’re commonly in, so it’s not like dog has been banished to his crate downstairs or something.

But I imagine Kryswyn thinks I am a hard-hearted B … :eek:

[cowboymom]

I think she is actually an aussie cross, not GSD. I know her coloring makes one think GSD but Aussies can have the same pattern/color and something about her just screams Aussie to me. Including what you say here about her.

I say just keep on keeping on. She’s trying to sort it all out still and is starting to find her place in matters. Working dogs are adaptable to their lifestyles-many many MANY border collies, heelers and aussies spend most of their days sitting on a flatbed waiting on hay feeding time and only come out to work when needed. This whole “cater to the job” thing applies to a point but the life katarine provides is absolutely ideal and sufficient for this dog.

Kat, I think you just want to tap into that early Noodle method of patience and consistence. She’ll realize that she doesn’t need to cling and she’ll outgrow the spazoid behavior. My dog Shoni is nearly a year old and is just a bit ahead of your pup on the behavior scale. It’s in your pup’s nature to really want to bond with a person and now that she has a chance she’s picked the right guy, she’ll settle down on the stalker behavior soon enough. Right now it’s still Christmas morning in her little doggy mind.

Truly some dog people need to get over themselves. This Maximum Best Dog Care Giver Evah and Do It the Way I Say approach is just ridiculous.

[vacation1]

OP got the wrong dog at the wrong age. I don’t think she’s horrible for not wanting a clinger, but it’s unreasonable to expect most puppies or younger dogs to be laid back and independent. They have too much energy, and they’re too inexperienced, ie, need to learn too many things. An older (5+) dog would probably have fit in better.

As for the type, the dog looks like a shepherd/collie mix. In my experience, both GSDs and collies will not leave their people alone for an instant. We might wander over a cliff. They follow you, they want to touch you, they stare intensely and passionately into your eyes and bark suddenly if you, by sheer accident, happen to open a book, newspaper or anything else that removes your attention from them. Me, I like it. It makes me feel wanted. It seems to make some people feel like taking out a restraining order. And I get that. Though dogs do adapt, so OP’s little stalker is probably going to be fine.

[katarine]

Thanks guys- the aussie handle had occurred to me as a possibility, her eyes aren’t shepardy to me, if that makes sense.

When i got home today DH was at the barn, chilling. I drove past and down to the house. Sweet girl came halfway and did the low tailed uncertain wag…who do I stalllllk? very sweet. I called her to me for hugs and kisses, I changed and we went for a ride. I rode Chip and ponied the donkey. Chico donk taught her that sucking up to a horse’s heels is a bad idea

I just asked if ya thought she’d chillax, not a schedule, not a complaint, not a condemnation. jeezohpete nothing your dogs do get on yalls nerves, ever? LOL

[Pcostx]

[QUOTE=Kryswyn;6276343]
Wow. Just. Wow.

You have a PUPPY, who lived in the emotional wasteland of a shelter, and now that she has human companionship that she is offering total unconditional love, trying as best she can to thank you for saving her life, you want her to ignore you because her attention too much for you?

Don’t worry about doing anything. After she keeps getting rebuffed enough she’ll stop stalking you. She won’t understand what she’s done wrong because all she’s trying to do is please you. You’ll leave her sad and confused, but at least she’ll be alive, which is better than being euthed at the shelter, or adopted out to someone who ends up abusing her.

Please don’t ever get a Jack Russell. They’re for people who want companions, not animated furniture when they get a dog.

:rolleyes:
:mad:
:([/QUOTE]

AWESOME ANSWER! LOVE IT!!

Poor puppy, she sounds like basically the PERFECT DOG, housebroken (although it doesn’t sound like she gets to actually come into the house much :(), good with the cats, doesn’t chase cars, ignores the horses, etc., etc.
:yes:

[katarine]

yes, she’s pretty much perfect. And her wiggly butt is still outside as I type

[tallyho392]

i just love the name soap…lol…makes me think of a white pouf-ish dog, so i was anxious to see the real thing!..okay, not a poufy dog, but still a terrific name!

having never owned any shepherd breed before i got my anatolian, i was quite surprised at how needy and clingy he is…then i read about GSD tendencies, and chalked it up to shepherd-ness, being young, and being a rescue…but havig 110lbs or so trying to fit inot your pocket, staring at you through the windows,no matter if HE is outside or I am outside…lol…it can be a bit wearing…steps on the backs of my clogs when i walk, has to “break into” any conversation i am having with the other dogs…but, as he is just over 2 yrs and still a goober, i am figuring time will make him chill out, as you are thinking the same with yours…

i think it is harder to handle when an animal is different than expected…not wrong, just different…and you have the added burden of noodle memories…

i was also wondering if perhaps some of th human directed behavior might be because the pup doesn’t know your older dog,either, so doesn’t have as much reason to hang with him as noodle did?..just a thought

[katarine]

Could be, Tally- she plays with him and he has cottoned to her pretty well, they have a little deal they are working out, seems like. Time will tell.

Soap was a dumped starved pup I found in a culvert at about 5 months old. DH thought he looked like he was covered in suds, so we tried Suds. Too hard to say. That morphed into Soap

[Bicoastal]

Channeling the ever-positive ZuZu

[QUOTE=katarine;6277429]

she can chillax
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=3758662733777&set=a.1307450455002.2046389.1492791407&type=3&theater [/QUOTE]

Big Kitteh!! Looks almost as big at Miss Chillax.

@katarine;6277429

jeezohpete nothing your dogs do get on yalls nerves, ever? LOL

Oh yeah! Running list:

• The whole supervising the bathroom thing :lol:
• Stepping on bladder pressure point when snuggling on couch
• Demanding humans as self-warming furniture…my boobs are great puppy pillows
• Stealing my warm spot if I get up in the middle of the night
• Housekeeping to include vacuuming and emptying trash cans
• Ignoring sleep-in-Saturday by jumping/rolling on me, licking, wagging, yipping

Ahhhh the joys of indoor dogs. No really: I love em :D.

[GraceLikeRain]

On this forum you have people who spend hours discussing which premium grain free food is the best, the merits of different types of dog beds, etc. On this forum we have people who take their dogs everywhere they dog, performance people, conformation people, etc. Your decision to adopt a working breed
puppy as an outside farm dog is something that is very foreign to most of us.

What you really wanted out of this thread was for people to affirm your decision to wait out this behavior and hope it disappears with age.

You asked us if we thought your dog would relax and become less clingy. We response honestly and said that she probably wouldn’t because it’s not in her breeding but giving her a job might help.

It seems a bit unfair to be frustrated at people for being honest.

[QUOTE=katarine;6277429]

nothing your dogs do get on yalls nerves, ever? LOL[/QUOTE]

Um, no?

My 7 month old puppy is great with everyone including horses, other dogs, cats, babies, etc. He walks perfectly on a leash, does not destroy anything, and never has accidents. He is willing to learn, gentle, and has a great attitude.

If I ever find that he is demonstrating an unwanted behavior (i.e. barking) then I first look at myself and admit that it was my shortcomings and lack of consistency that resulted in this habit.

I then alter my approach and reshape his habit into desirable behavior.

I can’t imagine being annoyed with my dog day in and day out. I don’t think that creates a foundation for a healthy relationship.

I hope that without changing anything your dog magically decides to change her nature and become the independent dog you desire so that she does not continue to be a source of annoyance and frustration :no:.

[katarine]

My dogs are dumped dogs. So are the cats. We get a ton of them dumped off on our county road, and a select few, we’ve kept. Most I take to the shelter. When I had room in my heart and wallet for another dog, I made the effort to ‘rescue’ one of those little lives in exchange for the more-than-a-handful I’ve carried over their threshold over the years. I adopted a shelter dog. I don’t want a medal for that, or special favors… but I want it to be plain that to me a good dog doesn’t necessarily know who her daddy is or what the AKC says she should be. She’s cute as a bug, wicked smart, and figuring it all out, and we’re figuring her out.

Let me state this in plain language:

**What I really wanted was input from folks whose dogs had, or had not, settled and chilled a little over time. That, and maybe a cheeseburger.
**What I didn’t want was to define why they aren’t on the sofa watching the Kardashians at noon on a Tuesday
**I am, we are… perfectly fine with Elsa NOT growing out of this clingy stuff. We’ll adapt.
**And I expressed my appreciation to those who suggested helpful hints on how to best support her needs.
**I absolutely plainly stated I would work on creating a job for her, thinking about ways to help her find her purpose. I think that’s just great. I’d like it to be laundry, but the opposable thumb issue is going to be tough.

Grace, if you are hellbent on being disappointed in me, my choices, my hair color, my beer selection…that’s ok and that’s your right. But in your quest to use Sad Smileys, you purposefully drove past the fact we do like this little girl, she’s fitting in fine, and I just had a question.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=3609669409037&set=a.1307450455002.2046389.1492791407&type=3&theater

[katarine]

PS I absolutely LOVE my Chip horse. but when he paws in the corner of his stall in anticipation of dinner, it annoys me that he slings shavings everydamnwhere. My failing? Slow with supper oh, the humanity.

I better go weep softly over my overwhelming and crushing failure as a human bean.

Let’s get this straight guys: You are all unpapered trash, you better be grateful and mind your manners or it’s off to the shelter for you!
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b6dc09b3127ccecd2ca0c1259600000010O08AZN2TRm4Ytwe3nwA/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

[tabula_rashah]

I think she’ll get it eventually. My parents GSD/ Rottie mix was like that at first- then as she got into the routine, she became fairly independent. And, while she liked to be where they were, it wasn’t a got-to-be-touching-you, needy thing- it was more of a I’ll lay on the rug and keep an eye on you thing. Now that both of my parents have retired and are home a lot, she’s actually gotten back into the needy thing but my parents treat her as their child and won’t back her off. Greta does have a “job” though that she takes very seriously- she watches my niece like a hawk and is great at it.

In other words, I think as long as you are consistent in the this is how things work here, I think she’ll be fine

And I can’t imagine a much better place to be for a dog than the set up you’ve got- sounds like doggie heaven to me!!

[katarine]

You know, TR, when we built the house, DH said NO cats. I don’t want a cat, litterboxes, ugh.

Christmas night, 2004, these eyes shined in my headlights. Done.

Yeah, we have three now: Phee, Owlly, and Gravel. Suckerrrr

[tabula_rashah]

[QUOTE=katarine;6278307]
You know, TR, when we built the house, DH said NO cats. I don’t want a cat, litterboxes, ugh.

Christmas night, 2004, these eyes shined in my headlights. Done.

Yeah, we have three now: Phee, Owlly, and Gravel. Suckerrrr ;)[/QUOTE]

Oh now don’t go talkin about cats- you probably do evil things to them too like let them outside or feed them dry food.

[cowboymom]

:no: :no:

katarine, someone should video you abusing your animals and take it to the authorities or at least post it on youtube. clearly you are a depraved animal abuser…

[farmgirl598]

I agree with Kryswyn and Pcostx. try to think of things from the DOG’S point of view. can you say Empathy??? i’m not saying the dog has it bad with you, just that she has feelings you should try and understand…

[solara]

Yes, I think she will calm down and give you space as she settles into her new home. But I think the real improvement may be a while off - once she’s out of her energetic “puppy” phase. Here’s my experience with a clingy GSD my mom adopted, named Sassy (nicknamed Sassyfras, of course :D):

She was neurotically clingy at first - followed us into the bathroom (tried to help mom when she was sick by following her there . . . ew), whined when we left and (I think) all through the day. She’d been abandoned twice before, and mom picked her up at a kennel where she hadn’t had human contact for months, so we gave her slack (we also loved her absolutely to death).

Eventually - after a year or two - she got the idea that we weren’t going to leave and never come back, and that she didn’t need to watch us all the time. As she aged, she was always happy to see us home, though, and she still followed mom around quite a bit, but let her have her space. She was never comfortable leaving the house, though, and would cling to our sides like velcro, because that was how she was abandoned before.

She also became the foster mother to one of our kittens (sadly gone now :() and taught him to play like a dog. So this big old 90lb GSD and a 10 lb grey cat would run around, chasing each other and just having a wonderful time. The other animals really helped, actually - I bet your older dog will become your puppy’s “pack” with time, and you and DH their leaders. That’s the relationship you need with GSD’s anyway - they need to know their place in the pack order, or they’ll lead it. But they’ll do anything for you if you love them.

I miss Sassy so much . . . love your new dog, let her know, and just keep with positive reinforcement. It worked really well with Sassy.

[wendy]

well, most herding dogs (most DOGS) desperately want to DO THINGS WITH YOU, not just get a pat and be expected to go hang out somewhere. Herding dogs in particular, but most dogs in general, also tend to NEED a job to do- they are really unhappy just hanging out. And really, dogs do need more than just a yard to wander around in to be healthy- for one thing, dogs need exercise to be healthy and happy, and dogs don’t self-exercise, so it doesn’t matter how much land you have, or how wonderful your fenced yard is, you still have to exercise the dog. Bored herding dogs who haven’t been exercised and given a job to do tend to make up their own jobs, which often include non-stop barking, digging giant craters, “herding” the livestock, “guarding” the farm from all comers, wandering off and killing the neighbor’s chickens, chewing things up, etc. you get the picture.
I too think you may have gotten the wrong kind of dog if you don’t want to actually spend time with the dog, working and training and exercising the dog. This particular dog may be satisified with a few minutes of obedience/tricks training plus some fun fetching every day- many dogs are- maybe you should try it and see if you enjoy it and if it satisfies the dog. If it’s a hard-core working line dog, though, you might have to figure out an actual job around the farm the dog can do.

[cowboymom]

Did you miss the part where the dog goes with them on a ride nearly every day? People that know katarine really know that they don’t come home and watch tv-they are hiking and moving around their property, riding daily, riding every weekend, home more often than most working people, and they are excellent animal caregivers. and they live where it is perpetually warm; I would say they are outside with their animals as much as the animals are inside with them.

I have had six aussies, a couple crosses and known scores more, most of them actual working ranch dogs though mine are now pets. Every last one of them sleeps by the door or the truck until there’s something to do once they’re over a year or two of age. None of them are spazoids that have some blind freaky need to be constantly entertained or supported. But any working dog will gladly become a neurotic freak if they have an owner that will foster that behavior. There is a middle ground where “go be a dog” is really very good for a dog.

Reality Town is a good place to be. :yes: