Old dogs, new house - adjustment and training
June 8, 2018 9:05 AM Subscribe
We are moving soon and I need tips for helping our 2 large adult dogs adjust. I'm also pondering some new opportunities for training that a new house gives us.
I have several questions, so I'll try to just bullet:
1. We currently live in a very small house where the exterior doors are visible & easily accessible from every spot in the house. The new house is bigger and laid out so that the path to the backyard is more complicated. Will we need to teach them how to get outside, or will they just figure it out after we go out with them a few times? Both dogs were rescues who came to us already house trained and it was just never an issue in such a small house.
2. The previous owners had cats. One of our dogs has an extremely high prey drive for cats and has even killed one (that came into our fenced backyard) in the past; therefore, he has never been in a home with cats. Is the smell of cats likely to cause marking issues, and if so, what could we do about it? Most of the house has hard surface floors.
3. We also have a baby coming in the fall, and we'd like to take the opportunity to teach the dogs to stay out of the bedrooms. One of our dogs currently sleeps in our bedroom (not on our bed) and we'd like to change this, but don't want to cause anxiety or abandonment feelings in what will already be a stressful situation for the dogs. Is it cruel to not let her sleep in our room anymore in a situation where everything will be new to her? And how can we train both dogs to stay out of the bedrooms?
4. We are also interested in finally training the dogs to stay off the furniture. Technically they aren't allowed on it now, but will get on the couch and chairs when we aren't in the room. The dog that doesn't sleep in our bedroom makes himself comfy on the couch most nights despite having a nice bed. We have "scat mats" that keep them off but they are smart enough to know when the mats aren't there and then climb right up. It seems like the transition to a new home might be an opportunity to actually reinforce that they aren't allowed on furniture - but is it really possible to train them in a way that sticks when we aren't in the room or aren't home?
5. Finally, speaking of not being home, should we reintroduce crates? Both dogs have been crate trained at past points in their lives, but we haven't used crates in probably 4 years. We separate the dogs when we leave by closing one in a bedroom and the other gets free rein of the house. We do this because a) they get into mischief when left out together and b) the dog who stays in the bedroom has a minor chewing problem that only surfaces 2-3 times a year. Even if she has a rubber bone, kong, chew toy, every so often something triggers her and she will chew shoes, her bed, or furniture, so we limit the damage to one bedroom. I'm wondering if it's a good idea to re-crate-train both of them, but is 2 weeks before a move too late to do this? The new house has a laundry room with backyard access that will probably become "their" room whether we put crates in there or not. I think this is where we would like them to sleep at night too. It has backyard access and is adjacent to the bedrooms.
I have several questions, so I'll try to just bullet:
1. We currently live in a very small house where the exterior doors are visible & easily accessible from every spot in the house. The new house is bigger and laid out so that the path to the backyard is more complicated. Will we need to teach them how to get outside, or will they just figure it out after we go out with them a few times? Both dogs were rescues who came to us already house trained and it was just never an issue in such a small house.
2. The previous owners had cats. One of our dogs has an extremely high prey drive for cats and has even killed one (that came into our fenced backyard) in the past; therefore, he has never been in a home with cats. Is the smell of cats likely to cause marking issues, and if so, what could we do about it? Most of the house has hard surface floors.
3. We also have a baby coming in the fall, and we'd like to take the opportunity to teach the dogs to stay out of the bedrooms. One of our dogs currently sleeps in our bedroom (not on our bed) and we'd like to change this, but don't want to cause anxiety or abandonment feelings in what will already be a stressful situation for the dogs. Is it cruel to not let her sleep in our room anymore in a situation where everything will be new to her? And how can we train both dogs to stay out of the bedrooms?
4. We are also interested in finally training the dogs to stay off the furniture. Technically they aren't allowed on it now, but will get on the couch and chairs when we aren't in the room. The dog that doesn't sleep in our bedroom makes himself comfy on the couch most nights despite having a nice bed. We have "scat mats" that keep them off but they are smart enough to know when the mats aren't there and then climb right up. It seems like the transition to a new home might be an opportunity to actually reinforce that they aren't allowed on furniture - but is it really possible to train them in a way that sticks when we aren't in the room or aren't home?
5. Finally, speaking of not being home, should we reintroduce crates? Both dogs have been crate trained at past points in their lives, but we haven't used crates in probably 4 years. We separate the dogs when we leave by closing one in a bedroom and the other gets free rein of the house. We do this because a) they get into mischief when left out together and b) the dog who stays in the bedroom has a minor chewing problem that only surfaces 2-3 times a year. Even if she has a rubber bone, kong, chew toy, every so often something triggers her and she will chew shoes, her bed, or furniture, so we limit the damage to one bedroom. I'm wondering if it's a good idea to re-crate-train both of them, but is 2 weeks before a move too late to do this? The new house has a laundry room with backyard access that will probably become "their" room whether we put crates in there or not. I think this is where we would like them to sleep at night too. It has backyard access and is adjacent to the bedrooms.
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