Rules for dogs

Cherry Blossom

What are your house rules for your dog? We basically don't have any The dog's are free to go anywhere in the house, on the sofa, in beds. They go up on the kitchen table for grooming. My approach has always been close supervision and confinement in puppyhood until they are housetrained, then gradually give them more freedom until they eventually have the run of the place. Only once did I have a chewing incident (lost a leg off a pair of trousers). Teddy gets the end of my dinner which he sits and waits patiently for, Poppy doesn't because if she gets anything out of the ordinary to eat she throws it back up. The dogs are allowed to play in any room and we sometimes have zoomies around the sofa.

Yeah the rules are pretty lax in this house! Just wondering if there are other houses the same?

Knine

Don't eat the Guinea Pig

Don't even look in the direction of the Parrotlet.

They must think they are called " Drop It" & "No"

They are great when you are watching them but as soon as your back is turned anything goes. Typical Terriers, great fun but always up to something.

tk123

Pretty much the same although we have a stair gate since Bailey went upstairs as a mucky puppy and had a roll around on my bed lol!! Then it was a case of him having bad legs so it was more a safety thing because he tried to turn around a couple of times and lost his footing ....and also for training him to be alone so he wasn't following us around all the time etc They both sleep upstairs - Bailey was downstairs but started coming up at night when we got Lucy...or maybe it was just that he liked the new carpet on the stairs that we got at the same time - they had been bare and slippy until then lol!
At mealtimes they'd both snooze in the kitchen while they wait for me to sit down for the evening and give them their evening treat!
Instead of zoomies we have tug of war or crush and play bite each other sessions in the sitting room...I usually end it with 'that's enough!!' once it gets too annoying or my secret weapon is calling the house phone - I have a ringtone on it for when I call which is usually to ask my dad to move his car back and let me in.... so they've associated that with my imminent arrival and run out to the hall - even if I'm already home lol!

borderlinemeath

No counter surfing is the only one really. They have the run of the house and they don't do anything too bold. Although I think when the baby starts solid feeding in a highchair she's going to have an audience who will be very willing to take her dinner so we'll have to see how that goes. We built a new extension and the only problem with the lovely cream kitchen tiles is cleaning the drool off them!

Cherry Blossom

My two aren't big enough to counter surf thankfully!

Both of mine have killed rodents outside so I've resigned myself to the fact that I won't have smallies again for as long as I have dogs.

faceman

Mine also has free fun but he's not a lot on tables, counters or any surfaces humans eat off.

I've actually witnessed him crawl into bed and pull the duvet over him like a human. Trying to get him out of that habit at the moment!

Drexel

Dog has free reign here! She is too small to get at counters or table tops but makes her presence known from the top of the couches to watch us while eating

Hooked

We used to have a strict no couches rule. Dogs have free run of downstairs - and are presently curled up at the fire.

We did call them up onto the couch a few times (for a laugh/coz it's cute) and now we let them up the odd time. But they'll only do it if instructed to.

Same with stairs. They're trained not to run up, unless we tell them. Usually on a Sat morning (as I'm up early) and I send them up to 'wake mammy'. It's like s fun treat for them. They go from room to room exploring.

They are crate trained - and never table or counter 'surf' - they're the best really. You could leave a full dinner on a table and walk out of the room for any time. I guess as they wait for both daily feeds in a similar fashion, they've just developed 'good manners'. They know it'll come.

They head for the crate as soon as we sit at the table - and know they'll get a few bits from me (I sit near them) if they stay put. It sounds like we're a tad mean, but really it's just a nice balance of manners and constant rewards.

It means guests can eat in peace (with dogs in the room), and kids can pass by the dogs' bowls without fear.

Cherry Blossom

Teddy goes outside to the dog run when one particular aunt visits. Luckily she doesn't visit too often and doesn't stay more than an hour. She says he's too affectionate and she can't cope with that in a dog, she also says if she goes home smelling of strange dog her own dog will bite her

Choc Chip

Our dog has free run of downstairs but isn't allowed on the couch. She blatantly ignores this rule and heads upstairs when we go out. Similarly, she waits in her bed while we're having dinner but she's a terror for counter-surfing when I'm out of the room. She actually stole a pot of creme fraiche off the kitchen counter this evening when I nipped into the utility room for a minute to get her dog food.

Essentially, we have an understanding that she'll abide by my rules when I'm in the room. When I leave, all bets are off!

VonVix

Don't herd/harass the cats.

Don't steal.

Don't run out the front door or attempt to do so whenever someone is leaving/coming home/answering the door.

Don't stare at me while I'm eating something, I know I'm reinforcing it by giving them a bit of ham or whatever, but could you like... please not. I will starve.

ShaShaBear

Shadow had absolutely no rules in place. He had full run of the house whether we were home or not, he slept either at the foot of the bed or under the duvet between myself and my partner with a head on the pillow
He got fed from the table and every Christmas day, he would get a full plate of dinner just like everyone else (minus dog-unfriendly ingredients, of course). He was the definition of spoilt!

Opie has a lot more rules in place, but we plan to lift many of them as time goes on. He is only allowed upstairs when someone is with him (he'll come up for supervised play-time with my daughter while she is having her bath) and if you are... uh... having an extended visit to the toilet :P he loves you to throw his ball down the stairs so he can throw himself down and fetch it! He sleeps downstairs at the bottom of the hall and isn't allowed in bed, but that's because he never settled in our bed and was always too excited. He has calmed now, but I'm about to give birth and wouldn't completely trust him to stay in bed at night with a newborn in the cot beside us. He's also not allowed to sleep at the top of the stairs as we have to leave our toddler's door open and I know he would wake her the first chance he got.
He's not allowed in the same room as us when we are eating because he does, and will steal food right off your plate while you watch (and because of the food aggression, we can't risk it with our wee one) but we always give him a toy/treat/feed to coincide with this and he accepts it just fine.

Really most of the rules for Opie are to prevent any opportunities for negative behaviour rather than actual rules!

ACD

We don't really have rules, just normal stuff like no counter surfing, stealing food etc., guess we just want the dogs to have good manners. The only thing is they're not allowed into our bed when we're not there. And even that rule is not a 100%- when Amy is in season, the bedroom becomes her residence and I always put extra cover over the bed, cause I know she'll get up there. She knows she shouldn't be there, so when she hears me coming up, she jumps down and pretends she's never been there. I pretend I didn't hear her jumping down and everyone's happy

Other than that, they can pretty much do as they please.

Capercaillie

Don't jump on kitchen table. Can't because too old now:(.
Don't jump out of car, because of artiritis in front legs.

Latatian

Those of you who think your dog doesn't have rules- you haven't seen a house where the dogs actually don't have rules. You don't think "Hey, dogs actually have to be taught not to take food out of your hands, barge into you etc" until you see a dog that isn't!

Mine seem to be pretty much the same as everyone else's here!

honerbright

We're fairly ruleless here too. Only major one is probably that Poppy goes in her crate at human dinner time, she goes there without us asking now. She's just far too beggy at dinner time to be able to eat a meal without her hitting you with a paw and giving the sadest face imaginable.
Other than that it's mostly no going on kitchen table/bench and to only chew doggy toys.
They've all the run of the house, except during work they only have the downstairs living room/kitchen area. They used to have the entry way too, but Roisin used to attack every bit of mail coming through our door and rip it to sheds :P

mymo

Ours are pretty well behaved, don't raid the peddle bin is one (one pushes peddle down the other steals from it), wait while people come in/go out the door, excited sitting on them while wagging tails, is only allowed if visitors let them. No getting up to the table/counter surfing.
Other rules are for us, like don't take your eyes off your food/leave food where Oliver can get it (livingroom tea and biscuits or movie time snacks), food shopping goes on the table until put away, cupboard doors stay closed, because after 7 years he still thinks if he can see it and reach it, it must be for him.

chanelfreak

faceman wrote: »

Mine also has free fun but he's not a lot on tables, counters or any surfaces humans eat off.

I've actually witnessed him crawl into bed and pull the duvet over him like a human. Trying to get him out of that habit at the moment!

If you find out how to stop that, let me know I don't mind it, but the other half most definitely does NOT approve!

eviltwin

Not allowed in bedroom, not allowed steal food, must pee outside, my clothes are not blankets, no jumping on guests, bath every week

sillysmiles

Before we got the dog the rules were long, and extensive.

Now the rule is toilet outside. And even then when the dog has an accident, it's fine because it's normally our fault anyway.

Ideally the cat and the dog sleep in the kitchen and the rest of the house is predominantly pet free. In reality, the cat sleeps on our bed and the dog sleeps on his bed at the door of our room. But if we don't move the dogs bed from the kitchen to outside of the bedroom he will sleep on whatever clothes are on the ground in our room.

Yes they are spoiled. But they are chilled and happy and easy to be around.

sdp

After our beloved two boys passed away, we said we would take a break from any dogs.
four weeks later we found a litter of pups throw behind bins in plastic bag, sadly only one was alive, so after vet visit, we said we'd foster as he was so young needing feeding every few hours,
so rules were, he would sleep in kitchen, not allowed on any sofas in any of rooms, would stay at home alone when needed, would not rule our lifes
Reality
beds in sitting room, bedroom, van, throws on all sofas, so he can see out windows, and cuddle up throw on bed,so he can crawl under, if he can't see us, then we can't see him!
comes to work with me every day, have to be walked at 5.00am even in winter for to get ready for work, beach walk after work, rain hail or snow. home cooked food, :rolleyes:
would we have it any other way? no, he's part of our family as any of your humans are,

Qualitymark

No dogs upstairs or on chairs or couch. No begging at table. No jumping up on visitors. Works well, plenty of love and walks and petting and play.

Bandana boy

Mine has the run of the house which ever room he feels comfortable in he is welcome to be in.
Only rules are
Not allowed up on any furniture , which was easy , has never shown an inclination for it.
He has to leave the kitchen or goes to his bed when we are eating ,absolutely no begging.
He has to be second out the door when going for a walk, this one took years for him to follow.
He has to come to heel when a person is visting , even at 12 he still is full of nervous energy when we have a visitor.

Qualitymark

Main reasons for our rules is that I want our dog to be loved by all, and good manners make that more likely - and indeed everyone who knows her is fond of her. Friends had dogs that used to BARK and BARK and BARK repeatedly while the family cursed and cursed at table - and threw them treats to shut them up :eek:

Latatian

Qualitymark- exactly. I got given out to one day for asking my little dog to walk by the open dog food bins without struggling and trying to get at them- which she did, so we walked by them a couple of times and practised. I'm a terrible dog trainer but I make the effort.

Someone stopped me to tell me I was being too strict on the little dog (bear in mind, all I was doing was telling the dog 'no' or 'who's a good dog, yes good dog!' depending on what she was doing). Of course their own dog was at home, 'you couldn't trust him in a place like this.' The more you teach a dog to behave, the more you train them- the more freedom you can actually let them have. They'll be happier, people around them will be happier, and you can bring them out on more outings and get them a more interesting life because you know they won't be a danger to themselves and a hinderance to others.

Mountainsandh

Not many rules for my little Gizmo (Shih tzu cross).
Really just stay off the kitchen table, although I do tolerate him there on the odd rainy day, if I'm sitting having a cup of tea, to look outside for a bit (he longs to be taller I think, to look out the window).

He's allowed on couches, beds, and anywhere in the house.

No going on the road. That's a big no no.
He rarely gets a chance to do it without someone spotting him and telling him off anyway. (I live in the middle of nowhere, so traffic is scarce thankfully)

No eating the cat's poo from the cat litter. It's very rare when he escapes our watch and manages it.

Trying to get him to understand that pulling the stuffing out of Froggy (his teddy) is not on, but that's impossible. I think Froggy will have to go to teddy heaven soon and a stronger successor found.


One thing I'm finding hard to achieve is to get him to follow the "no jumping" rule. He loves everybody and will jump to get them to say hello when they come in, and I know a lot of people don't like it, and I don't like it very much either.

I know I should ignore him when I come in, but I love the profuse greetings (as if he hadn't seen me in a year) as much as he does, just not the jumping.

Qualitymark

Mountainsandh wrote: »

One thing I'm finding hard to achieve is to get him to follow the "no jumping" rule. He loves everybody and will jump to get them to say hello when they come in, and I know a lot of people don't like it, and I don't like it very much either.

Teach and reward 'four paws on the floor'. Hard to break a behaviour that's been accepted up to now, but it is possible. Have a box of treats beside the door, walk in past him, keep your side turned to him and your face turned away until he calms and 'sits', and then treat-and-fuss time.