lived in dog run

hi im new here.

i have a bitch she is called lexi and is my first staffy.
my brother has had staffs for over 25 years and this was one of his he bred himself.
i knew the lexi parents well and went over every week until she was ready to go.
she is what i call original size and it took my brother a while and a long drive to find her mum.
she has 26 chanpions in the 5 generation blood line which sounds pretty good allthough it doesnt mean much to me
as i didnt buy her for that,basically my brother told me to start with a bitch.so i did and she is great.
ive allways wanted a boy but took his advice,she loves everyone and all dogs,ive hardly ever used a leed only when shes in season and live 10 yards from a massive field,i take her for a walk and she doesnt leave my side.if theres another dog she waits until i give her permission which i look for of the other owner!.

anyway my problem started with her not wanting to run around and get exercise,if i run she runs with me but i cant run for long and i mean a couple mins max! i throw a ball stick or what ever and she looks at it and looks at me?
the only time she gets what i call good exercise is playing with another dog,so i decided to get another staffy.

i wanted one but didnt have the budget,i didnt ask my brother because i know he would have given me the right advice. so i found one and couldnt walk away without buying it.it was a little under 5 months old but had been living with the mum and dad in a run in the back garden all the time,so had missed the important human bonding part,he coward from me and the wife but was following his small 3-4 year old boy around the garden and thought i could bring out of his shell.
well that was 3 days ago,we cant approach him direct as he runs away,if i hold my hand out he will not come forward and even sniff it,his back end is very low and head down and tail tucked right underneath him,hes slightly better this morning and will approach you if you get low down,like sit on the floor.but hes very scared.i give treats to everyone who enters are house so they can give him one which he greedily takes! he loves food !

ive talked to a few people some that work with dogs and they have said that the important human bonding time has passed but he could pull out of it but may still be a little timid at times.

my problem is that he hasnt been in a house before and im trying to toillete train him,i take him in the back garden as hes only had one jab 3 days ago and has to wait 2 weeks,he wees like every hour??? im feeding him a set times now so the pooing is working better but he will wee or number 2 anywhere !! i put paper down near the door and he will use it as he had it in his dog run,i have a large cage for him as well and put paper in there again he uses it.

ok example yesterday i stayed with him all day and made sure every hour or so back garden for toillet.his last meal was 9pm,he went out side number 2 and wee,midnight befor i slept i let him out he done a wee,5am hes up moaning his head off,i go down hes done 2 wees! i clean up but this time take the paper away thinking he might not do anything if the paper isnt there,i go back to bed 530am then im up again 730 hes moaning again as he does when he done toillette stuff and hes done number 2,of cause hes walked in it and really doesnt care if he sits in his own wee either as he does that as well. he does smell but vet told me not to fresh him up until hes settled with us lol.

so my very long drawn out question is what do you think the best way to proceed with toilette training?? also has anyone else had a staffy from a older age like 5 months and had not had human contact??
i darent ask my brother but i really felt sorry for the dog,he will definatley get a better life here.

i saw the mum and dad ,mum was black and brindle and dad a red staff. they were huge,the female was the biggest staff ive ever seen??

ive named the new dog samson as he looks strong and when vet askem me his name its the first name that came in my head but hes only 3 days old to me so i could change it if my wife came up with a better name lol.
so hes a few days under 5 months and weight 16 kilo.hes allready nearly the same size as my 2year old bitch .


any help and advise appreciated and sorry i went on so much i just tried to give some background.

dave

never had a dog thats had no human contact , to me what your doing sounds spot on , just patience needed imho , there will be people on sometine today maybe better placed to give advise , just keep an eye on your post

Wow, you've taken on quite a challenge. As for toilet training, you need to go right back to basics. Feed at the same time every day, and his last meal shouldnt be any later than 6.30-7pm. Let him out after he's eaten or drunk or if and when he's had a play session and after a sleep. Also let him out every hour. When he does his business, mega exuberant praise and a high value treat if he'll take it. I have a 15 week old male that pooed and peed every night in his crate, I've only just solved that issue by letting him sleep on his cushion in my room, maybe something you could consider? As for the human contact, I think as hard at is, you need to let him come to you. Dont initiate contact. Just be there. If you walk past him, maybe give him a little pat. If he comes near you, softly and encouragingly say good boy, but dont be tempted to do too much too soon. He's gone from having no contact to having you and your wife reaching out to him, he's prob very confused. Its only been 3 days. Good luck, let us know how you get on.

Thx for the reply and help

Il try what you said.

Should I keep the newspaper down?

He really good with my 6 year old son and approaches him straight away.

Thx again

Dave

Kids are alot less threatening which is why he likes your son, you could use that to your advantage. I'd leave the paper down for now because he's got so many changes to cope with at the mo, taking the paper away will just confuse him. Work on bonding with him for a mo, take him outside for the toilet but if he has accidents, dont make a big deal of it. Just clean it up and spray it with an enzyme cleaner to remove the smell. I think the priority at the mo should be bonding. Just dont rush it. Small steps. When your son is sitting with him or playing with him, tell him good boy and try to slowly get closer until you can get involved too.

Hi!

Some great advice so far. Your right he has missed out on human bonding at the time in his life when he will learn the most quickly. However that doesn't mean he won't learn, you CAN teach an old dog new tricks! You have to remember if he really has had no human contact then it must be frightening to him. He can't understand our body language and adults must be so big and scary in comparison to children.

You don't say how your other dog is reacting to him and him to her? If they can be around one another as much as possible when your trying to settle him in it will help him to gain confidence. He will start to realise that people are not that scary and that your bitch is happy to be around you and he should relax.

With very fearful dogs it helps to be as low to the ground and small as possible so the puppy isn't intimidated. Try sitting or even lying on the floor with some treats in your hand (sausage and chicken are good cuz they shouldn't upset stomachs). Encourage puppy to come over by extending your hand and offering a treat with it flat. if/when he comes over allow the dog to take the treat but dont try and touch him yet thats what he will expect.

Keep repeating this and try not to move atall or look strait at the puppy as this will intimidate him. After 4/5 times of doing this start to talk quietly to the puppy but still dont look at it and wait longer between each treat. With you almost ignoring him his curiosity and greed will probably take over and he might start nudging your hand or taking steps closer to your hand. (Be aware it could take about 40mins to get to this stage!).

Still don't try and grab or touch the puppy the first time. Finish off the treats and slowly get up (still not looking at the dog) praise him with your voice and walk away (he will probably run away).

Repeat this every day for about 3, then repeat it sitting up. After a week or so he should let you touch him. Remember just no fast movements, plenty of interaction with your other dog, and low calm voices! Good luck

Great advice Nosipho

I totally agree with Nosipho.
I have recently taken on a kenneled dog and it takes time and patience for them to totally trust you.
Toilet training, start with the basics. Crate train and keep the dog on a flex leash, taking him outside frequently. I wouldn't paper train.
Good luck.

How is he getting on?

hi everyone

i was meaning to leave a reply but my wireless keyboard was playing up and it took me ages to type anything!!

anyway back to the good old wired keyboard!!

ive had samson 10 days now and what a transformation!!

he actually wags his tail ! and approaches me! allthough its pretty obvious he sees me as is life line to food and water this morning he came over and first time ever put his paws on my lap and itched his neck for him an he lic me back lol
that might not sound alot as my bitch does that all the time,in fact once you start petting she doesnt let you stop and im pretty shaw all staffs are like that.
but for him it was mega!!
i got him a larger box to sleep in his cage and a nice furry blanket,this took up most of the large cage so he had nowhere to wee or poo so he holds it till i come down!
this friday is his last jab then i can take him out into the world rather than just the back garden,im looking forward to him meeting strangers and other dogs as i know this is important,he gets along with my 6 year old and my wife but more from me.its def helped letting my 2 year old bitch out with him allways as it made him much more confident.

he bounces around the house now like a puppy should and chews and i mean chews ANYTHING! the bed the bin the metal parts on the carpet,the doors the table the kids toys a exercise bike,the cage even the food bowl when hes finished,i think you get the idea.hes just ran down the stairs with the bath rug lol with wife chasing!.

il see how the outside treats him at the end of the week and report back.

thx for all the help and a very happy new staff puppy owner!


dave

Well done! See it just takes a bit of love and loads of patience

So pleased to hear he's settling down. Just shows what a bit of love & patience can do!

So glad for you all

this is all great to hear!! He will no doubt improve more through the week and you can tell us all about it later in the week!!