[vb3]

We've been crate training Rosco since he came home with us at 8 weeks, but have recently been letting him stay out of the crate while we are gone for short trips (4 hours or less). I'm glad to say that we have had no accidents and nothing destroyed, so he seems to be doing pretty well with his house breaking. He comes and lets me know when he needs to go out (he's pretty insistent and vocal too so I can't exactly mistake it for anything else), and he has learned some good tricks too. All in all I have a great pup.

My wife seems to think I have spoiled him somehow though...

 

[Yogi's Mom]

Isn't that a wonderful feeling when they finally get out of the crate! I still remember how excited I was when Yogi was able to come upstairs to sleep in the bed with us and have full run of the house.
Oh, I love that photo. He's adorable and looks quite spoiled!

 

[Basset Momma]

LOL! We would say you can't spoil a basset... but as owners who get up at 6:00am to feed the dogs, give them their bowl of milk... then the milkbone in that order cause otherwise they complain... I'm not sure what to say! Congratulations on being free of the crate!

 

[lvnMattie]

We can't say we spoil our basset hounds, they are just well maintain.

And Basset Momma: Mattie eats at night, but I have to have two milk bones out for her after she eats or she is mad and trys to tear the milkbone box up. But she is not spoiled at all..LOL

 

[vb3]

Wow, I guess I have some catching up to do for Rosco. I would say his most spoiled behavior is getting really insistent that he gets to spend at least a half hour a day sleeping in my lap. But I would agree, he is well-maintained, not spoiled (and he would also).

 

[Lightning&Stomps]

Last night someone on t.v. said to treat your animals as YOU would want to be treated. Please...Lightning wouldn't tolerate the downgrade!

 

[lvnMattie]

Last night someone on t.v. said to treat your animals as YOU would want to be treated. Please...Lightning wouldn't tolerate the downgrade!

Mattie could not tolerate that either. But it is a good way of looking at it. Treating your animals as YOU would want to be treated, I would love to be treated like Mattie.

 

[k2626]

First off, what a cute picture of his belly being rubbed! Ralph use to sit in my lap the same way, now he is 70 pds and lays in his bed on his back...belly up. haha....

Sounds like you are a lucky one! Ralph was difficult to train, his main trick is "sitting", and he still chews things when left home for 4 hrs which is the longest we can leave him inside alone...he is 1 yr 4 months. We love him to pieces though and will get another one when we move outside of the city

 

[vb3]

Well it figures that shortly after posting this Rosco has an accident (on my bed no less)! It's my own fault, I left him alone for about 5 and a half hours and let him get up on my bed if he wanted to. I crated him yesterday and am trying him out again today with shorter periods of time alone (3-4 hours).

As for training he does pretty well, but he only sits and shakes without having treats. All the other tricks he needs some appetizing motivation. Right now I am trying to get him to learn the trick where he balances food on his nose and waits until I tell him to eat it (I hold his snout and keep saying 'wait for it' until I release him). After about 2 weeks of this he has gotten to the point where he will let his nose rest in my palm, all the while me saying that, before I say 'get it', at which point the treat vanishes. The trouble is I still have to set him up because whenever I offer a treat his nose is pointed straight up in the air, so nothing can rest on it. I guess it is all about repetition.

 

[vb3]

I forgot to add if you guys get the chance watch the show SuperFetch! The tricks they train their dogs for on that show are pretty amazing. I need to train Rosco to do the laundry.

 

[Mikey T]

The trouble is I still have to set him up because whenever I offer a treat his nose is pointed straight up in the air, so nothing can rest on it. I guess it is all about repetition.

The thing is you are skipping teps that would make progression faster in the long run. You want to teach first that he can only have food when you say so. Using food and training this is a wonderfyull way of teaching impulse control. It has a carrier over into other aspects of training as well, ie bolting out the door as soon as it opens etc,

it will also help in the only performing when food is present.

note the have a variation of the biscuit on the nose which is to place them on the feet.