Taming Ralph!

This is Ralph the challenging dalmatian that I'm currently looking after! He is a typical dalmatian from all that I've gleaned and not being funny but in dog terms, he is not the brightest star in the sky!

Ralph is only 15 months old and still very immature. This has been compounded with his owners allowing him to much freedom and not setting rules for him to follow. He is not a nasty dog and after encouragement from me the family have had him castrated which has helped massively with his behaviour! He has a number of very challenging issues which are stopping him from fulfilling his potential as a really good family pet!

On the plus side he is a loving, happy and non-aggressive dog who is a pleasure to walk and doesn't stray to far away which is great! He plays lovely with other dogs and in the video on the right, he met a Weimaraner who was a similar age and they had the time of their lives, like two land sharks so no worries there!

His issues are:

1.  Stealing food and any other items to hand including TV remote controls
2.  Jumping up and with his claws and size this is not a good habit to encourage!
3.  Chewing especially his bedding
4.  Whining continuously with an inability to relax
5.  Poor discipline and lack of knowledge of commands

So from day 1 he has been challenged with commands of sit and wait before going out or receiving his food and this has proved very challenging indeed for Ralph who will not sit and wait for longer than a few seconds before having to be corrected. He is not allowed into the kitchen when food is being prepared and this again has resulted in Ralph being challenged to the extreme as unlike other dogs, he doesn't relax and just watch from the door, but just waits and tries again and again to see if anything changes. The response to this has been to up the consequence for entering the kitchen and a short spray from a plant sprayer has the desired effect with Ralph reacting to its presence on most occasions and accepts his place.

The chewing is a work in progress as this bowl will testify!  and will need to be carried on by the family, with his being offered acceptable alternatives and challenged over any attempt to take anything that he is not allowed! This coupled with him being secured when they are not able to watch him should result in a more reliable response in the future and allow him to be given more freedom as he grows up and matures.



The commands and discipline need to be kept up from now on so that they become ingrained and "NO" means no and "SIT" means sit until you are released as does "WAIT" which means to stay but on a casual basis whereas "STAY" is a firm command to not move until specifically released! I would use "WAIT" before getting into a car and when offering food, that sort of thing whereas "STAY" is a more formal command for not entering somewhere or whilst doing something to the dog that he may not want!

The behaviour in the house needs to be permanently addressed, so that every whine is challenged (Unless as I found out it means I want to go to the toilet!!) and the dog is encouraged to sleep on the floor for the next 6 months at least, so it learns to be around the family without being on them and demanding attention constantly. Couple this with a good exercise regime and plenty of time in the garden by himself and the separation anxiety  issues that he has will go away!

Steve