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I desperately need help training my puppy. We spent over $1,000 on a training course that came complete with a shock collar with a remote, have done group classes, tried reinforcement with treats, tried a clicker, etc. I try and train him at least 10 minutes every day. Nothing works!
He destroys things while we're not there, is incredibly clingy all the time, jumps on us and guests, and barks at the cat. I truly need help - what are some good resources that people have tested with difficult puppies and know work? He's about 1 year old for context.
Edit: More context. He can sit, lay down, roll over, fetch, and is pretty good at coming when he's called. What he really needs help on is 'heel' and 'off' - the latter being similar to 'down' or 'drop it.'
You have your work cut out for you. I saw you mentioned he is a plot hound mix, hounds are notoriously stubborn and can be difficult to train. And if he’s already one year old, some of that behavior will be more difficult to get rid of than if he were, say, 4 months old.
I’d recommend getting a crate and practicing crate games with him. I know a lot of people are anti-crate, but I’ve had a lot of success using a crate with multiple dogs. It allows you to lock them up when you leave the house giving you peace of mind that they won’t destroy anything. And it doesn’t have to be permanent, just something you keep until you can trust leaving them home alone.
I also second the other commenters suggestion to revisit the dogs exercise regiment. Running around the backyard is great, but your dog wants explore. Hikes are best, but walks are good too. I’d recommend at least an hour a day walking, hiking, or running with your dog. Dog parks can also be your friend, but can be dicey. People have strong opinions on dog parks. Personally, I think they can be great if you can find a dog park with responsible owners and if you have a dog who is well socialized.
I’m also not a big fan of shock collars, particularly for non-aggressive behavior. They can turn a dog more aggressive without a lot of benefit. Positive reinforcement is best, but there’s also nothing wrong with smacking a dog (lightly) if he’s deliberately acting up.
There’s a lot you can do to train a dog, but they are stubborn and challenging. Doing the same thing every day is key to a well trained dog. This is much easier said than done.
Link to my favorite dog behaviorist/trainer, Patricia McConnells blog. Lots of gems on this site:
https://www.patriciamcconnell.com/theotherendoftheleash/
Ty!!! I really want to read more about it. We do have a crate but it’s too small for him and we need to get a new one. I’ll prioritize that.
I also don’t like the shock collar, we have a huge sunk cost but it does seem to make him more aggressive for instance when we shock him as he’s jumping on guests. Thank you for your feedback.
One thing about those collars is that they are best used as kind of an extension of your zone of influence, not a punishment. So they can replace a long lead for training dogs who will come when called, but only when you are close enough that they think you might make them -- but zapping the dog everytime it barks/jumps up will probably have undesired side effects.
If you want to use the collar for that, I'd train the dog to sit (or something) using the collar, and then ask him to sit when it looks like he's getting ready to jump on somebody. You should be able to get him to do this based on the beep/rumble alone pretty fast, and eventually just the voice command will be solid.
I've got a new dog too, and have had interesting results using the clicker + treats to encourage desired behaviour, which is not something I'd thought of in the past. (I think this comes from Karen Pryor, who has some really interesting books on clicker training in general, although the one I have is light on step-by-step instructions)
So when the dog is minding it's own business, not jumping up or chewing anyone's ankles -- click and treat. As he gets ready to do something bad, distract him by asking for something he might do instead (sit, or chew on a toy or something) -- click and treat. It's not like, magic fast results, but it seems to be working a lot better than I'd have thought so far.
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