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wstensrud

Newbie

04/13/2007 9:36 AM
A few days ago, my wife and I rescued a Rat Terrier from a back yard breeder: here’s how/why. I called an add for Rat Terrier puppies. The man told me he thought he had the last one sold, but he had a 2 year old he would like to get rid of. He told me a little about the dog and it sounded just like the dog we have (probably because I had just told him about our Mazie Mae). So we went out to see him and maybe take him home. Well, when we got there we found the place to be a back yard breeding nightmare. The 3 dogs he had were in a 10’ x 10’ pen. They were never out of that pen, so that means that the dogs lived in their own waste…and there was plenty of it. Also the only shelter were plastic barrels that were cut out for the dogs to climb into. 24-7-365 this is how the dogs lived. When the owner’s brother showed me the dog went out to see, Seymour by the way, he was nothing like he was described to me. Seymour was more than twice the size of Mazie…dirty, very dirty, serious skin issues, and nails that never were cut so they curled under like fish hooks. That was what we could see with our eyes. Also he was so timid it was obvious there was at least some level of abuse. We took Seymour only because I could not leave him there. He defiantly was not the dog we were intending on getting. We took Seymour to our vet the next day. He checked out pretty well for the conditions he lived in. The major issue was bone density (not sure if that is the exact word the vet used). The problem was that Seymour was never fed properly and thus was under weight and his bones seriously lacked calcium & that was becoming evident in his legs/feet. After the bath…actually 3 baths in a row, and a nail trim Seymour looked like a different dog. He actually had a proud look about him. Stunningly handsome, completely different than the dog we had brought in just an hour ago. So here’s my dilemma. Since Seymour has been outside every day of his life he has some habits that we just can not take. We either need help in breaking his marking habit…he pees on everything, or we need someone that can fix that in him to take him. Can anyone out there help me? I’m in north central Illinois. Email is world_wide_wayne@hotmail.com and I check it religiously. Thanks! Wayne

mario07

Bratty Ratty

04/13/2007 9:40 AM
Wow! Bless you for rescuing Seymour! I don't know what to tell you about the marking issue. We have some incredible people on here that are sure to offer some advice. Good luck with everything and posts some picts! :)

~~Shannon, Mario and Pepper's mom!~~

PamWh

Rattitude Problem

04/13/2007 9:44 AM
You are a saint to rescue poor Seymour! Is he neutered? Sometimes that helps with the marking issues. There are also some good quality cleaners that will get rid of the urine odor so that he won't mark there again, hopefully. It may just take time and patience to housetrain him. Using a crate or kennel helps during this process.

PamWh aka Bob's Mom If your rattie ain't happy, ain't nobody happy!

DaisysMom

Moderator
<b>Moderator</b>

04/13/2007 9:49 AM
First: God Bless you for rescuing Seymour !!!!! How kind of you to get him out of that hellish place. I don't have any experience with male dogs and marking. I'm sure, as you know, Seymour situation is even more dire because of his history - are there any professional trainers in your area that you might be able to get help from? If he isn't neutered, I would second that recommendation, but at his age and background, I don't know if it will make a huge difference. There are definitely some others here (NORA) with much more experience and good advice for things like this, so please keep checking in for updates. We would love to see pics of Seymour and Mazie Mae)

Tracey - Darlin' Daisy's Mom

rattytatty

Newbie

04/13/2007 10:00 AM
First of all... bless you for taking this dog into your hearts and home! I so wish more people would do what you did. About the marking... I would recommend keeping him crated if you cannot be with him to supervise. When he is not crated and he is with you... confine him to the room where you are at all times. Do not give him free run of the house. Shut the bedroom doors... get a gate for the kitchen area if you can.... keep him with you at all times. (is the dog neutered? If not... get him neutered asap). What you are dealing with is a behavior that is normal for male dogs.. he has obviously gotten in the habit of doing it, so the behavior will have to be corrected. You can do this, but it will take consistent and constant effort on your part. Part of the key is to not allow him the opportunity to do it... prevention versus "cure" so to speak. Catch him in the act! DOGS LEARN QUICKLY FROM THIS! This can only be done with close supervision. You must be dedicated to stop the marking behavior of your dog and you must be consistent. A couple of weeks or often much less time of intense supervision and correction can save you a lifetime of tearing your hair out trying to find a quick fix for the problem. I know people who have said that it has only taken a day or two using the intense supervision method. Make yourself a shake can, which is simply an empty cola can with a several coins inside it. The opening is taped over to prevent the coins flying out. It makes a lot of noise when you shake it up and down. Watch your dog for any signs (such as sniffing and circling) that he is even thinking about marking. The moment he begins to lift his leg shake the can once only to get his attention. The loud noise should startle him and interrupt what he is doing. As he looks towards where the noise has come from. Give him the command 'NO PEE' followed by 'GOOD BOY - NO PEE'. By doing this you are giving him a positive message that because he didn't pee he is a good boy. Give him a small reward treat too! If he then turns around and resumes what he was doing, repeat the process. Try to divert his attention with something fun like a game or throw him a ball. You have to be consistent and diligent and continue with the behavior modification each and every time you see him attempt to mark urine. Keep in mind that you are not punishing him for peeing, you are rewarding him with kind words for NOT peeing. Do not rant, rave or smack your dog at any time. Trust me... punishment will make an your dog more insecure than he probably already is, coming from the situation he came from. Don't forget to praise your dog when he marks in an appropriate place. If you are outside and he marks on a tree or other acceptable object or area tell him what a good boy he is. Tell him, 'Pee here, good boy' in a happy voice. Dogs learn quickly from positive responses to their behavior. The message you are trying to get across to him is that urine marking isn't bad, but that marking inside the house isn't such a good idea. Please remember that your dog is not peeing out of spite.. dogs simply don't think this way. Urine marking is a totally natural behavior for them! Also, unfortunately, if the behavior is totally engrained and has been going on uncorrected for a long period of time, confinement is the only answer. Some dogs will never be able to be trusted with the run of the house. Although inconvenient to you it may be necessary to always close doors to certain rooms and only allow freedom in the rooms he can be trusted. Another alternative is to use Belly Bands. You can research these on the internet.. I won't go into them here. Scat Mats can also be used to deter pets from entering a certain area. The Scat Mat is a touch-sensitive training pad that quickly conditions pets to avoid prohibited areas with harmless, low-power electronic pulses similar to static electricity. Also.... and this is important! - You must thoroughly clean areas where your dog has peed in the past to discourage your dog from re-offending in the same place. Use a 50/50 solution of vinegar and water and wash the soiled areas well. Do NOT use ammonia or ammonia-based products to clean dog urine. One of the ingredients of dog urine is ammonia and he may well be encouraged to re-offend in the same area. Remember, your dog's sense of smell is a hundred times better than yours. Sorry this is so long... but hopefully something here will help you! I wish you all the luck in the world with this little guy!

Mitzy's Mom

PAWesome

04/13/2007 10:00 AM
Bless you for rescuing Seymour!! As for the marking issues, Nora gave me some excellent advice on that last week when I got my first male from a shelter. I would definitely get Seymour neutered asap (if he isn't). Is he housebroken? (Probably not given his living conditions.) I would start crate training for that. Hopefully, Nora will see this soon and respond. If not, pm me your email address and I will forward to you what she sent me in the way of advice. I would love to post it here in the Training forum but not sure I should do that without her permission!

Mary Beth, mom to the Lollipop Kids Georgia Foster Mom, www.newrattitude.org Pics of my current fosters: http://imageevent.com/newrattitude/caradoc http://imageevent.com/newrattitude/fiona

Russ' Pal

Rat-A-Tat-Tat

04/13/2007 10:41 AM
Bless you for taking Seymour in. It sounds like he has no experience being indoors, so he needs to be shown how to behave inside a house. It's not that peeing inside is a habit, he is just not able to distinguish between indoors and outdoors yet. Also, it may take time to build up his bladder muscles as he's not used to holding it in. If you have the time and inclination to train him, he can probably be taught, these dogs are quite intelligent.

-Sarah, pal to Russ & Peca

firulai

Newbie

04/13/2007 10:45 AM
[quote]Posted By wstensrud on 04/13/2007 9:36 AM So here’s my dilemma. Since Seymour has been outside every day of his life he has some habits that we just can not take. We either need help in breaking his marking habit…he pees on everything, or we need someone that can fix that in him to take him. Can anyone out there help me? I’m in north central Illinois. Email is world_wide_wayne@hotmail.com and I check it religiously. Thanks! Wayne [/quote] I think he is looking for some one to take the dog.

rattytatty

Newbie

04/13/2007 10:47 AM
I can't take the dog, but I spent a good amount of time trying to give him suggestions as to how he can correct the behavior. Surely he will give these suggestions a try before trying to give the dog away.

Sassy'sMama

Feisty

04/14/2007 5:04 AM
OMG for the umteenth time BLESS YOU FOR SAVING SEYMORE!!! I am about to move into my first home and soon as I get settled I am gonna rescue a Rattie... its been my dream for a while now... I hope it all works out for you... Bless YOU....

~~Jan~~ Mama to Sassy www.marykay.com/janetkimberlin (free shipping)

Trixie

Rattie

04/14/2007 7:00 AM
Belly bands are designed to stop male dogs from marking in the house. http://www.dog-breeds.net/dog_diaper_belly_band.htm

Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not. --Dr. Seuss

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