PLEASE HELP - MASON

HI
THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I HAVE JOINED ANY FORUM WHATSO EVER SO PLEASE HELP..
I HAVE THE MOST LOVING,LOYAL,WELL BEHAVED STAFFIE I COULD ASK FOR EXCEPT WHEN IT COMES TO HAVING MY GRANDSON AGED 10MTHS VISIT OUR HOME WHICH IS VERY OFTEN.
WE HAVE TRIED INTERACTING HIM WITH THE BABY, PRAISE, DISCIPLINE, EVERYTHING BUT NOTHING SEEMS TO BE WORKING.
MASON CONSTANTLY PANTS, SHAKES, CRIES,BARKS UP TO 10HRS AT A TIME. THIS HAS NOW BEEN GOING ON FOR OVER 7MTHS NOW AND IS VERY UPSETTING FOR MYSELF AND ESPECIALLY MASON.
WE NOW HAVE TO PUT HIM BEHIND THE CHILD GATE TO STOP HIM JUMPING UP AND LICKING THE BABY CONSTANTLY. HE WOULD NEVER HURT THE BABY BUT ITS SO STRESSFULL ALL ROUND.
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE ANY ADVICE WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED.

MANDY

Hi &

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It does sound like he gets very over exited, have you tried giving a long run before your grandson arrives,maybe the exercise will help keep mason calmer, as is often said a tired dog is a happy better behaved dog

THANKS STEVE. THE WEBSITE HERE IS BRILLIANT AND VERY USEFUL INFORMATION ALL ROUND...
I HAVE TRIED WALKING MASON FOR LONG WALKS BEFORE THE GRANDSON COMES BUT THIS DOES NOT WORK.
I THINK MASON GETS VERY JEALOUS OF THE ATTENTION OUR GRANDSON GETS, BUT I HAVE TRIED INTERACTING MASON INTO THIS BUT AS HE IS SUCH A STRONG, EXCITABLE DOG, HE PUSHES THE BABY OVER ....

Firstly, hello & welcome to the forum!

Secondly, please take your caps lock off - it looks like you're shouting at us!

Could you tell me exactly what the routine is when your grandson comes to see you? Also, what is Mason's normal routine during the day, what walks & feed times etc. What food does he have?

I know some of those questions might sound silly, but they could all have a bearing on how this is dealt with!

Oooops sorry for keeping the caps on
My grandson gets dropped off around 8.15 am, by now mason is panting like mad and continues to do this until 6.30pm when the grandson leaves.
He has total use of the garden kitchen area where he can see us at all times. If my husband is around then he takes mason out for a long walk which does not make any difference is masons's behaviour when he gets back. I can not take mason out with the pram as he is too strong and would pull us over.
He only eats Baker's Choice meaty balls with his healthy chewy snacks now and then..He has lots of toys to play with. He is not a greedy dog and does not have junk food, he doesnt eat it anyway.
Again, I will stress he is the most loving, loyal dog you could ask for, fantastic with older children and people. its just seems to be having our grandchild he has these symptons.
When we put mason in the room with us every hr again he licks the grandson to death and jumps on him which pushes him to the ground.

OK. Firstly, can I respectfully sugest you ditch the Bakers? It's an awful food, full of additives that cause hyperactivity in dogs. I'm not saying that Bakers is the cause of your dog's behaviour, but it certainly won't be helping! Any food that has different coloured bits in it is very bad for your dog - it's a bit like feeding a child on McDonalds & cheap fizzy drinks 100% of the time.

Obviously your grandson is toddling around by now? So keeping them seperate isn't really an option.

It sounds as though Mason is just thoroughly over excited by toddlers (same as my boy, Dempsey!) and probably doesn't really understand a small child's vulnerability. What you could try is putting him on a lead when your grandson is with you so that you always have full control & accidents can't happen (dogs really do like to push children over!).

Whenever Mason ignores the child, treat him with a really tasty treat (dried liver or tripe is a good one!). If he starts to pant etc, then tie his lead to a table leg (or something solid) preferably with a harness rather than a collar & just ignore him. If you 'sympathise' with his anxiety it will reinforce the fact that there's something to be anxious about.

I take it your grandson has a nap at some point? At that time, calmly walk Mason over to him & let him sniff the boy, but not touch. Praise him (quietly & calmly) and give him a treat then walk him slowly away again. You'll have to do this quite a few times before you start to see any improvement, but hopefully it will begin to calm him down.

Caryll's advice of keeping him on lead is very good. When dogs are on the same level with people, such as both on the floor, they look at them as playmates.

You could also try keeping an article of clothing with your grandson's scent on it around your dog. This will help him become used to the smell and could help the behaviour

I was going to suggest more or less what Caryll said about keeping him on a lead and then praising him when he's well-behaved, so you still have control of him. But she said it better than I could, so I agree with that

Ledger will pant cry/bark if I talk to anyone for too long and he isn't the centre of my attention when we are out for a walk at agility/obedience training, it isn't easy because then by getting his focus to be quiet I think I have encouraged the behaviour but its a work in progress

Hi and welcome to the forum from Rocky and me.

Not too much more to add really, only try to keep your voice and your jestures calm when around Mason as he will be picking up on any nervousness from you too.

Absolutely no expert on this, however had the same type of behaviour from Enya, she loves children to an extreme extent! Her behaviour was very much similar to Masons around small children. I found that holding the child in my arms and giving commands to Enya, such as sit, down, twist etc then rewarding helped her to shift her focus, this I repeated everytime there was a child in the house, had really good results, however got to say she now expects the routine!!! Good luck!!

Hello and welcome to the forum from me and the kids can't give you any more advice but please try what Caryll suggests , hope you see some improvements soon but you must be patient and persever , it's not something that will change over night