Dogs and Lawn -

[slingshot]

Howdy,

I posted a while back regarding 'Robbie' (the dog) that we rescued from a rental property.

You'll all be glad to know that Robbie is alive, happy and very well indeed. I wish I could say the same for my lawn.

Any tips or tricks to stop Robbie taking a dump on every possible square inch of lawn and possibly using the garden beds instead?

I googled it and the best one I could come up with was tomato juice every week. The problem is not the colour. To coin that ole' RE phrase, the problem is location location location......

Love him dearly but I need help.

Thanks
Sling 'poop' shot

 

[Pushka]

Can you feed him while on the lawn? Dogs dont usually want to poop where they eat.

 

[Mooze]

Is he kept inside at any point in time? If so take him out on the leash when you think he may be ready to do his business and restrict him to a certain area. It will take a couple of weeks, but they do pick up on it.

 

[slingshot]

Hi Pushka,

I will try that. Sounds like quite a good idea. My neighbor suggested something similar by actually throwing scraps 'leftovers' onto the lawn, same principle I guess.

I'll give it a crack for Robert's brekkie.

This is probably not a tea time sort of thread but I appreciate the input.

Thanks
Slingshot

 

[slingshot]

Sorry Mooze, didn't see yours in time.

In answer to your question, no he's an outside dog. White porcelain tiles and Robbie don't seem to mix! Having said that, he does have his own bedroom, due to fact that I've knocked a whopping hole through the side of the house but thats another story.

I'm liking the food idea. Did think about a taiser (no idea how to spell taiser) but it'll probably just make his fur frizzy.

Sling

 

[rugrat]

let me know if you find something that works. We have a lab and haven't managed to stop this behaviour yet Of course it is made worse in our case because my darling son (1.5yrs old) likes to go out and play with it - YUCK! So far I have had to resort to picking it up and chucking it inthe wheelie bin.

 

[wylie]

This thread reminds me of my neighbours, who we don't see any more, but back when we did, they took a shortcut through our house one day to take their big dog for a walk (they called and asked first). On the way through our house, said BIG dog did a BIG Mr Whippy shaped, steaming poo on our very expensive carpet square.

Were they too bothered ?

Their toddler daughter was swimming in our pool one day and needed a "wee". Mother lifted her from the pool, asked me if I minded if she did a "bush wee" which was fine with me. However, instead of moving off the coping, she stood right on the edge and let it go. Mother let her finish, slipped off her swimmer bottoms and rinsed them IN THE POOL before putting them back on said child.

I was so gobsmacked I could not utter a word.

 

[our obsession]

Slingshot, Mooze is spot on the news...

Is he kept inside at any point in time? If so take him out on the leash when you think he may be ready to do his business and restrict him to a certain area. It will take a couple of weeks, but they do pick up on it.

It is possible to train a dog, or several dogs to empty out on designated dog poo sites. DDPS.

My dogs have been taught commands, come, sit, stay, wee wee, poo...etc You do not need to have the animal housed inside to teach it to go with you (initially) to the area you have selected as DDPA.

Perserverence and postive reinforcement, catching the animal to empty out, go for both wee and poo.

I take my dogs, which can be anywhere b/w 5 and 15 to Poo Hill, every morning/evening or anytime I want them to empty out...it generally takes my dogs, I have bred and trained just a few hours, because I have commands on them, I am experienced with canines...if I have another person's dog here with me, it may take 1 to 2 days just to catch on...then they are sent off, "Rover go pee"...and they do.

Take them to the area, (you may?) need to have Robbie on your leash to begin with, and take him to DDPA many times until you catch the wee and/or poo. Saying calmly, normal to firm tone..."wee wee Robbie....poo poo Robbie"..

When he passes it, instantly praise him with tone of voice like he has just won you tattslotto...millions and millions of tax free dollars.

Lift your voice if you are male, so it is raised, I am after high pitched, praising, exciting, goooooood doooooog Robbie. Goooood booooooy.

Leave the site after praising and patting and making a fuss of him..

Take him back after food, every few hours until Robbie gets the drift. Perserverence and praise, once it's done. He will learn that is the designated area.

You can teach a dog anything by positive reinforcement, I do not use food reward, it is genuine communication with the animal.

Also, you may like to take yourself, AND all the family and Robbie to obedience school... one that has a good reputation. You need to learn how to operate and train yourself around dogs...when you have learnt what to do then you can train Robbie. Apologies if you have done this, I just see a lot of folk that get the vehicle but never had a driving lesson.

It's fun, dogs are willing learners...people are notso....

 

[wylie]

Neighbours three doors up used to walk their ageing dog down to our footpath, wait while it did its poo, and then walk it home. Hubby (who is not confrontational AT ALL) once caught the high school daughter doing it and suggested that it is now law that she clean up the poo. Nothing changed .

One day I was reversing out of the drive and the mother was standing on her footpath watching the daughter stand on my footpath waiting for the dog to do its poo. I stared at the mother, waiting to see if she would do anything.

I then drove my son to school, and in the five minutes I was gone, the poo also was gone from the footpath. I took a closer look and the mother or daughter had walked down and flicked the poo onto the grass.

And people wonder why others get annoyed. Another person may have dropped said poo in their letterbox, but I refrained.

 

[skater]

This thread reminds me of my neighbours, who we don't see any more, but back when we did, they took a shortcut through our house one day to take their big dog for a walk (they called and asked first). On the way through our house, said BIG dog did a BIG Mr Whippy shaped, steaming poo on our very expensive carpet square.

Were they too bothered ?

Their toddler daughter was swimming in our pool one day and needed a "wee". Mother lifted her from the pool, asked me if I minded if she did a "bush wee" which was fine with me. However, instead of moving off the coping, she stood right on the edge and let it go. Mother let her finish, slipped off her swimmer bottoms and rinsed them IN THE POOL before putting them back on said child.

I was so gobsmacked I could not utter a word.

LOL! This reminded me of an incident I witnessed at a beach some years ago.

I was near the local rock pool and the tide was quite high, which meant that the waves were going over the sides of the pool. Anyway, a toddler needed to do their business and dad got the tot to squat at the side of the pool. Toddler emptied his bowels and Dad then picked it up in his hand and tossed it into the oncomming waves, to be swept straight into the pool, which had quite a few people in it, as it was a warm day. They then left. The father didn't even wash his hands. YUCK!!!

 

[csc]

Neighbours three doors up used to walk their ageing dog down to our footpath, wait while it did its poo, and then walk it home. Hubby (who is not confrontational AT ALL) once caught the high school daughter doing it and suggested that it is now law that she clean up the poo. Nothing changed .

we had something similar a few years ago actually at home.....i asked the people up the road not to let thier dog crap on my lawn, went ignored time after time so next time it did i lovingly picked up the poo with a plastic bag and emptied it inside their letterbox.............works wonders i tell ya but not after a bun fight with the police who came around trying to chastise me over it.....i kindly referred them to the local council bylaws and that it isnt a police matter...last i heard of it...

try it, it will work if it happens again..some people you just cant get through to unfortunately.....

good luck

 

[slingshot]

Thanks for all the positive feedback. One sort of needs to choose their words carefully on this topic.

I've decided at this point to try the food thing.

Fed Roberto this morning at 630am on the lawn and his look of absolute indignation was encouraging. He was obviously outraged beyond belief.

Ive had dogs for a large part of my life, just not for the last 7 years or so. Robbie was a bit of a SURPRISE arrival. Im all for the communication/ positive affirmation and he's a brilliant little fella overall.

Rugrat, (not sure how to do the proper ss "quote thing")

with regards to "let me know if you find something that works. We have a lab and haven't managed to stop this behaviour yet" are you referring to a laboratory that deals with these cases or a Labrador? If the former I could amybe drop by some time

And Our Obsession,

I totally agree with your methodology. One on one time is the problem right now mainly due to the fact that I had to get a bloody job cos the "global financial crisis affecting Australian working families".
By the time I get home in the evening its a minefield out back. I'm talking 3 to 5 land mines (maybe more) strategically placed in a different location every day, my nerves can't take it. Downright dangerous place to be. You just never know...............But I have to brave it to get to the vegis, scary way to live your life but I have no choice.

BTW OO love the stream of photos, very envious right now but please keep them coming.

Let me try the food thing, Ive got a feeling it may just work.

Slung

PS - Any one got a second hand taiser?

 

[our obsession]

SS, can u get your hands on a dog walker (recc'd?) one where u live?

Someone that can come and take Robbie for a walk in the day?

Also, it's slipped my mind how old R is, how often are u feeding him? and what do u feed him? What is the consistency of his faeces? As in, is it formed or loose..

-There are some sneaky dog feed things, not sure of their name, they remind me of the puzzle blocks kids play with-u can put dog cubes in them and the dog has to "work" to get them out, can keep the dog entertained for ages, 1. it will mean you will have some of these to put his food in, so you don't go spreading/giving him too much "extra" food, over the lawn area, (he ends up with weight/health probs)...his ordinary food rations for the day are just entertainment and work for him now..
2. If u guys are busy during day, it is "entertainment" for his brain..

3. Big raw beef bone....is another thing to entertain a dog for a good few hours, plus excellent for his teeth, that on the lawn, that are some thinking options.

I am a little surprised at so many excretments over the lawn for a 24 hr period, my adult dogs get fed at night, a dry dog cube food, good quality.

In the morning they go to the dog toilet, empty out..

They (usually) may go again before settling for bed...so that is twice a day. I feed my adult dogs once a day, in the evenings. Once is sufficient for an adult dog. Do the raw bone thing too, but it is strictly bone, little to no fat or meat on it.

 

[slingshot]

Hi OO,

The vet n I reckon approx 2yo.

Re diet: He's the perfect kid. He loved his Thai fich curry over the past few nights and he loves his octopus as long as its marinated. Not much tinned dog 'food'. Some dry doggy food thru the day. A bowl of milk for brekky and he adores bananas.
He'll eat anything really and seems to love chilli which is a good match around here. His fav is chicken soup, thankfully I dont think he's met a live chicken yet.
So basically he's a guts like me. I am aware of his piggish ways and really dont feed him too much, also like me. Smallish bits often and organic mostly.

Found a walker for him. Me!

Whilst I was moaning away on SS about 7pm'ish tonight I thought "take him for a walk". I take him out loads on the weekends but not thru the week cos I'm always feeling sorry for myself. Decided tonight thats gunna change both for Robbie and for myself.

We're back from our walk, fed him in the backyard again (he wasn't impressed once more). At least he didn't look was tempted to eat me like last time.
The good news is that he must have done 200+ wee's and thankfully it was dark so who knows about the rest.
I think we'll get it sorted.

Thanks again, I'll update you all as to our progress.

Slingy

 

[slingshot]

Hi OO,

The vet n I reckon approx 2yo.

Re diet: He's the perfect kid. He loved his Thai fich curry over the past few nights and he loves his octopus as long as its marinated. Not much tinned dog 'food'. Some dry doggy food thru the day. A bowl of milk for brekky and he adores bananas.
He'll eat anything really and seems to love chilli which is a good match around here. His fav is chicken soup, thankfully I dont think he's met a live chicken yet.
So basically he's a guts like me. I am aware of his piggish ways and really dont feed him too much, also like me. Smallish bits often and organic mostly.

Found a walker for him. Me!

Whilst I was moaning away on SS about 7pm'ish tonight I thought "take him for a walk". I take him out loads on the weekends but not thru the week cos I'm always feeling sorry for myself. Decided tonight thats gunna change both for Robbie and for myself.

We're back from our walk, fed him in the backyard again (he wasn't impressed once more). At least he didn't look was tempted to eat me like last time.
The good news is that he must have done 200+ wee's and thankfully it was dark so who knows about the rest.
I think we'll get it sorted.

Thanks again, I'll update you all as to our progress.

Slingy

 

[our obsession]

An adult dog only needs to be fed once a day, a good quality dry/cubed food is quite adequate, along with big raw bones...if you were able to feed him his allocated cube feed at evening, whip out first thing in am and lead him to a place to empty out---bingo!

Then, before you go to work, toss the RAW beef bone out on the back lawn..that will keep him a busy, happy, Robbie...

Do not be concerned with "looks" or manipulation attempts, you SS are top dog--repeat after me..."I am Slingshot, I am the pack leader, top dog, and will act accordingly"

We can easily slip into treating them as little people, however much we may love them they are still dogs..careful about overfeeding and any scraps you hand out. Stay firm! Stay resolved!

Here is a list for you on recc'd do not feed to dogs:

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=2+1659&aid=1030

Alcoholic beverages Can cause intoxication, coma, and death.

Baby food Can contain onion powder, which can be toxic to dogs. (Please see onion below.) Can also result in nutritional deficiencies, if fed in large amounts.

Bones from fish, poultry, or other meat sources Can cause obstruction or laceration of the digestive system.

Cat food Generally too high in protein and fats.

Chocolate, coffee, tea, and other caffeine Contain caffeine, theobromine, or theophylline, which can be toxic and affect the heart and nervous systems.

Citrus oil extracts Can cause vomiting.

Fat trimmings Can cause pancreatitis.

Grapes and raisins Contain an unknown toxin, which can damage the kidneys.

There have been no problems associated with grape seed extract.

Hops Unknown compound causes panting, increased heart rate, elevated temperature, seizures, and death.

Human vitamin supplements containing iron Can damage the lining of the digestive system and be toxic to the other organs including the liver and kidneys.

Large amounts of liver Can cause Vitamin A toxicity, which affects muscles and bones.

Macadamia nuts Contain an unknown toxin, which can affect the digestive and nervous systems and muscle.

Marijuana Can depress the nervous system, cause vomiting, and changes in the heart rate.

Milk and other dairy products Some adult dogs and cats do not have sufficient amounts of the enzyme lactase, which breaks down the lactose in milk. This can result in diarrhea. Lactose-free milk products are available for pets.

Moldy or spoiled food, garbage Can contain multiple toxins causing vomiting and diarrhea and can also affect other organs.

Mushrooms Can contain toxins, which may affect multiple systems in the body, cause shock, and result in death.

Onions and garlic (raw, cooked, or powder) Contain sulfoxides and disulfides, which can damage red blood cells and cause anemia.
Cats are more susceptible than dogs. Garlic is less toxic than onions.

Persimmons Seeds can cause intestinal obstruction and enteritis.

Pits from peaches and plums Can cause obstruction of the digestive tract.

Potato, rhubarb, and tomato leaves; potato and tomato stems Contain oxalates, which can affect the digestive, nervous, and urinary systems. This is more of a problem in livestock.

Raw eggs Contain an enzyme called avidin, which decreases the absorption of biotin (a B vitamin). This can lead to skin and hair coat problems. Raw eggs may also contain Salmonella.

Raw fish Can result in a thiamine (a B vitamin) deficiency leading to loss of appetite, seizures, and in severe cases, death. More common if raw fish is fed regularly.

Salt If eaten in large quantities it may lead to electrolyte imbalances.

String Can become trapped in the digestive system; called a "string foreign body."

Sugary foods Can lead to obesity, dental problems, and possibly diabetes mellitus.

Table scraps (in large amounts) Table scraps are not nutritionally balanced. They should never be more than 10% of the diet. Fat should be trimmed from meat; bones should not be fed.

Tobacco Contains nicotine, which affects the digestive and nervous systems. Can result in rapid heart beat, collapse, coma, and death.

Yeast dough Can expand and produce gas in the digestive system, causing pain and possible rupture of the stomach or intestines.

 

[Spectre]

That list for dogs or people?

I used to have a rottie who'd try to drink the beer you were holding. He loved the stuff...

Re the neighbours dog - we had that problem till we 'accidentally' let our dog out the front door while the neighbours dog was roaming our front yard. Staffy vs chiwawa or one of those little weenie dogs people get for some unknown reason. Staffies are good with people, not so good with other dogs a lot of the time.

Might be easier to get a shovel and do a bi-weekly scrape.