I just feel awful!  We got a complaint from our association today about the dog barking   Since he's been home from the pet sitters, a little over a week now, we've noticed most of the training we've been doing has completely gone out the door.  So, we're starting all over again.  Only this time we're trying new things that we should have done when he was a puppy.  The thing that is causing him to bark is that we are not letting him on the bed at night because he was starting to get aggressive if we would turn over and move him, or get up to go to the bathroom... basically anything that would make him move, he got upset.  Plus he was getting really possessive over me at night, sleeping litterally on me so I couldn't even sleep!

Soooo, no more bed privaleges until he learns to behave.  We've done this only 2 nights so far.... so he's not used to it yet.  The first night he whined and cried all night.  But last night at about 3am he started barking like a maniac!  We put one of his doggie beds and a comfy blankie right next to the bed for him.  We tried putting him in his kennel.  He won't have it at night!  During the day, no problem with either.  We can't lock him our of the room either because then he just scratches at the door and barks.

I'm thinking this is a behavior he picked up at the sitters because she had him sleep in her bed and also had another dog in bed with them.  He's not socialized so maybe it messed him up somehow.  I don't know.  All I know is he can't sleep on our bed tonight.  And he can't bark.  Any suggestions on how to make this transition easier?

Posted By kimrose on 01/09/2008 11:32 PM
his kennel is in our room, and its pretty dark in there... we also have a blanket draped over it (a tip I picked up from this site )

his eyes will always be bad... but yeah, they've gotten a ton better since the sitters.

We're definitely going to stick to this, but its just the transition that I'm worried about... I can't get another complaint or we get fined. I can handle the whining though... I had him in his kennel the first night and he was really bad, like freaking out and I worried about his safety so I took him out and had him sleep on the floor in his bed, last night he was in his own bed again. Tonight... I don't know, I guess his own bed again. Maybe when he gets better I can put him in his kennel again, its just he's so weird about going in it at night for some reason.

Sorry to get off topic, but do you give Mic fish oil? His eye problem is inflammation is it not?  Maybe a couple of fish oil caps would do him some good since omega 3's are an anti-inflammatory. Just a thought.  I hope he adjusts well to his own bed.

Posted By kimrose on 01/10/2008 12:34 AM
fish oil huh? I didn't know that may be helpful! He has keratitis, its an inflammation of the cornea.

So where do you get fish oil? I think I will try that! thank you!

You can give him the human kind.  Nature Made was recommended as a good brand.  One of the drug stores around here usually has a buy one get one free deal for a bottle of 100  1200mg capsules for about 6 or 7 dollars.  I pin prick the capsule and squirt it on the food and leave the empty capsule in the kibble.  Lucky would eat it but Oscar would spit it out.  I was reading some old dogfoodproject forum posts and she recommends 1000mg per 10 lbs as a therapeutic dose.  You could start with one capsule a day to start and work up to 2 a day.  She recommends giving vitamin E also when giving the fish oil.  The brand she recommended was this one.  http://www.houseofnutrition.com/733739009104.html  The dose of E is about 100 IU per 25 pounds.  The liquid is about 15 IU per drop so you can easily control the amount he gets.  It's a lot more convenient than using vitamin E gel caps.

Kim just a thought but I don't know on this one, at the end of our bed we have an armchair for Fred, it's not part of the bed but it is level with it but it is HIS bed, he still feels by us but prefers that over actually being in bed with us. What if you got Mic something like a chair? where he would be even with the bed but not actually in it?? Just a thought. ..............

I know when I take them I usually have a fish burp or two.  I put a capsule in each of their supper today and never smelled fish on their breath.  Lately I've been using the Seapet fish oil with vitamin E already in it and it has no smell at all.  I may go back to the regular Seapet fish oil and add my own E since Oscar is so small.  He probably shouldn't get 50 IU everyday (which is in a quarter teaspoon) but I believe it's too important not to give him the supplement everyday.   Grizzly Salmon oil is another brand thats good quality made for dogs.  I just make sure that the stuff I buy is omega 3 only, no omega 6, or added vitamin A or D.  I'm not sure a drug store will have the correct liquid vitamin E.  It should contain no lemon oil, as I think that one is mainly for external use.