I’m scared to let my 3 big dogs out

[christian1488]

Hi, so I have 3 Australian Shepherds and every time I try to be responsible and let them out, 2 of the lunge at the door and it’s always scaring me and making me anxious. My body always starts to shake when I try to let them out and I’m always very hesitant to let them out. My parents always say “they’re just dogs and you just need to yell at them and they’ll listen.” I tried that and it doesn’t do crap, and when I’m tired I don’t always have the energy to yell. They don’t want to train their dogs with treats so yeah.

 

[beekind]

@christian1488 My suggestion is to not interact with them. The dogs belong to your parents. Let them handle the problems.

 

[christian1488]

@beekind Ok they work for most of the day tho and my brother doesn’t do shit to help me with the dogs so I’m pretty much left to be the parent of the 3 dogs.

 

[beekind]

@christian1488 Nah its not your responsibility. You didn’t buy them, your parents did. If your brother does not have to do any work with the dogs then neither do you. One of them needs to step up. What happens if you get bit? Your parents will blame you. But if they get bit its on them.

That said if you EVER get a dog bite that breaks please please go to ER no matter how little. Your parents will be held liable for the damage and the clinic will report the bite. Sometimes it is the only way to get people to listen.

 

[christian1488]

@beekind Well I know that if I did get bit they will be in big trouble.

 

[francisfrancisco]

@christian1488 Teach them “wait”. Have them sit and don’t let them out until they have calmed down. Then use a release word

 

[christian1488]

@francisfrancisco Ok

 

[seekinanswrs]

@christian1488 Start one by one and once they get it try with them together. if they are food motivated you can use their own kibble for this

 

[christian1488]

@seekinanswrs I mean that could work, but my parents don’t like to train them with treats and like to treat it with affection.

 

[monk58]

@christian1488 If your parents aren't around and you are in charge you can train them any way you want to. Use their dried food and mix some cheese cubes from the fridge into it

Train them a place sit by the door and only release when they are seated and calm. I would initially do it with one dog at a time then work up to all three. Don't yell be very calm and quiet and don't repeat commands too often

It shouldn't take too long but practice practice

There are any number of videos on variations of this

Teach a good sit stay... you could try the relaxation protocol with them... build up their self control

As I said your parents can do it there way but when you are doing it so its your way. Once they get it the treats are just random and extra incentive not all the time

THe dogs just sound excited and while you get anxious over that the best way is to calmly plan ahead and work with them long before you have to let them out. Quiet sits and stays and look at me's for anything

Best way to think things through for yourself and not get over whelmed... and it is quite fun and good for the dogs

Short little sessions around the house. Can do this anywhere.. best to do it lots before trying the door so the dogs are listening to you

Be patient though and wait the dogs out

 

[hillsongfan77]

@christian1488 Sounds like parent training time. Tell them you want to help with the dogs but they are out of control at the door (true).

Therefore they can either 1) train the dogs their way 2) allow you to train the dogs your way 3) train your brother or 4) deal with high energy dogs that haven't been let our all day.

Nevermind, apparently #4 is ok with them. Sorry you have to deal with this, the dogs obviously want to go out and are excited. Do they have any other rewards you can use? One of mine would rather have a ball thrown than a treat. if so, you can incorporate that into training without disregarding your parents wishes.

Honestly, if I were in your shoes I'd just pretend I forgot about the treat thing.

 

[laurenf1]

@christian1488 Do you feed them their breakfast? If so, only feed half and use the other half to train. It’s not “treats” as in extra food, it’s just their regular meal but if they’re food motivated it’ll work like treats do.

 

[christian1488]

@laurenf1 My parents feed them in the morning and then if they’re unavailable to feed them dinner I do it.

 

[looking4answers2]

@francisfrancisco This is so useful! Door manners are important for dog & human safety. I trained my parents’ dog to “wait” at doors, crosswalks, curbs, or on walks when I need to stop & get his poop/fix my shoe/etc. Fixed his bolting problem & his leash pulling problem for the most part!! (He still pulls in new exciting environments but can’t rly blame him for that) He’s v food motivated so getting him interested in waiting was easy.
Now he’ll pause and wait by the door vibrating until I say “ok”. I do this on car rides to. I say “Wait” in a firm loud tone (not yelling) as I open the door. I get a hand on his leash, I step back & open the door the rest, then I say “ok!” In a happy friendly voice He even waits by the front door at their house if I sometimes forget to give the “Wait” command now! Which is great bc his recall is crap lol. Once he’s out street side he’s GONE gone unless you have food or have him leashed

 

[plan2911]

@christian1488 Let them out where? To the backyard I’m assuming?

It’s a shame your parents aren’t interested in training these dogs properly. It shouldn’t be your responsibility if it’s their dogs. But if you do decide to work on it, they need to be taught to sit before any door opens, and that if they lunge/run/get up before you say they can go, the door will close & they don’t get to go out.

My dog wasn’t that bad, but he certainly loved to bolt through doors if he was super hyped up or wanted to run away. Occasionally he would face palm the door/glass from rushing too quickly. Every single time we go to leave the front door, he MUST sit (using treats is how you build this behaviour up). I go grab the doorknob, if he stands up, I close it and make him sit again. I slightly open the door, if he stands up I shut the door and make him sit again. Ultimately you should build up to your dog being able to sit with the door wide open and him not going through until you tell him “Go!”. If he goes before you say he can, you bring him back inside and start the process again. Usually this is something dogs pick up very quickly. From now on, never open the door if they’re lunging at it so they can unlearn that “lunging at the door = get to go outside quicker”. Now, I can even walk outside and my dog will wait indoors for me to tell him he can also walk calmly outside. Way less anxiety-inducing

But you mentioned you are anxious and shaking because of these dogs, which is a pretty severe toll on your well-being. Once again, I ultimately think your parents should be training these dogs. Is there any way to convince them (e.g. that canine behaviourists do not consider that behaviour normal, productive or obedient & can sometimes end up in dogs running away suddenly without warning because they believe they can lunge to leave any entry/exit, lower impulse control and increased reactivity)?

If not, can you give them an ultimatum? If they don’t train their dogs enough that they don’t give you literal anxiety, you simply will not be the one to let them out anymore? And that your brother isn’t helping enough considering that you are not an adult like they are and are not fully equipped to train and handle 3 dogs.

 

[christian1488]

@plan2911 Well I’m sort of a young adult, I just don’t handle high energy and conflict well and once things get rough I get anxious.

 

[plan2911]

@christian1488 Understandable. Training high energy dogs is not easy tbh. If you don’t want to engage with the dogs directly when they’re acting crazy like that, I recommend ignoring them until they calm down, and then begin the “sit and stay” training. Or let your parents know that they need to do that method before you can keep taking them out. Just because it doesn’t scare your parents, doesn’t mean it won’t scare you. My dogs behaviour doesn’t scare me, but it sure could scare other people 100% so don’t let them convince you you’re being sensitive/crazy. You’re not.

 

[christian1488]

@plan2911 Thx, my dad said that I don’t have to let them outside and that they’re fine. If anything with 3 dogs I just need a little bit of help taking care of them because they’re a lot.

 

[tke129]

@christian1488 Adults need to be responsible for their dogs and training is not a job you can do without them. Not sure how old you are but you sound pretty young. Aussies are really high energy dogs that can be a crazy handful if not properly trained and exercised. It’s so sad to me that you’re afraid of the dogs in your own home and that is not your fault. You can ask one of your parents to hire a trainer or get you into a group class and you can agree to go and help which might also give you confidence and skills but you shouldn’t be doing it alone - in fact the dog school we go to doesn’t allow kiddos under 16 without a parent and doesn’t allow kids under 12 to train at all without specific permission because it’s not a good kid job to train a dog before they’re ready and their brain gets more developed.

 

[christian1488]

@tke129 I’m actually over 16 and 18, but I just don’t really do well with high energy dogs. Like I’m not really afraid of the dog’s specifically, it’s just when they get rough and hyper I get anxious. I’m just a person who enjoys a quite environment and when an environment gets rough and loud and just chaotic I get nervous. So it’s more of the energy that gets to me rather than the dogs.