"Normal" dog behavior?!

[aliki]

There was a post a week ago that was more of a rant about living with two dogs that did not belong to the Original Poster, and how to deal with them. The gist of her rant included living with two dogs that:

1. Begging/stealing food (including jumping on kitchen counter)
2. Jumping on humans
3. Pulling on the leash
4. Excessive barking

And overwhelmingly, everybody

Comments

[tabloidscully]

No. Dogs should be trained and can be trained in a way that isn't punitive or cruel.

However, I think dog breeding plays a major role in the outcome.

We trained Little Bit, a Pomeranian/Pekingese mix, the same as we did my Savannah, a German Shepherd/Brittany Spaniel mix. But a defining feature of Pekingese and Pomeranians is that they can be incredibly stubborn and demanding. So the outcome has been very different. Savannah would sit, stay, lay down, come. Little Bit refuses to do tricks--he will come when called, and he even understands the concept of the other commands, but I have failed to convince him it's worth his time and investment to do so.

Unfortunately, after Savannah died a few years back, he developed separation anxiety. He doesn't destroy the house, thankfully, but he will jump on us after we get home until we pick him up, which is irritating and not a trait he had previously. I've yet to figure out how to break him of it.

I'm not sure if we'll continue having dogs after Little Bit goes, but suffice it to say, if we do, I will definitely be training them as we did Savannah, who was just about the perfect dog.

[aliki]

You are right, I'm sure breed plays a role in it. We had a German Shepherd too, and they were very eager to learn.

As an aside, we had a Little Bit too, but he was a cat! :)