My New Puppy ( J.R.T.)

Question
Hello,
I have a new puppy, a JRT, and the issue I have is his crying & barking most of the night when we should be sleeping. During the day he is fine, I keep a light on for him, have a radio on for him, I have his toys for him, and water & food. I do not want him to always be with me, and I do not want him to be in my bed with me. ANy ideas on what I can try to do? Thank you in advance.
Frankie

Answer
This is a very common problem in terriors. They seem to suffer seperation anxiety more so then any other class of dog. Here are things you need to start doing in order to nip the problem in the butt, and make sure to be consistant.

1)  Through out the day as you leave and go, when you see him, refrain from giving him a big hello. pretend he isnt there until he calms down, then say hello. A big hello, and entrance only makes him more excited and feeds into his anxitey. If you act like he isnt there and let him run around  with out much attention, he will start to realize that his tantrims and fits for attention arnt working.

2) when you leave him, keep him in a covered, dark room or cage. The dark light will keep his mind relaxed and un stimulated. Or only leave a small night light on. This is especially important at night time. Dont leave him toys when you want him to be asleep. The less interaction when its bed time, the more likely you will get him to sleep.

3) Start re-warding him for good behavers. Wether its a treat or a hearty 'good boy' and a kiss.. start rewarding him for good deeds. This will put him on a track that will make him want to do good things only, and will start behaving better. YOu can get 'clickers' at the pet store which is a great training device. YOu  click the clicker a few times immediately when a good thing is done and reward him. The clicker points out WHAT it is he did correctly, the treat prooves you see what he is doing, and he can then be consistant in being a good boy. this also needs to be done for a long time. Most dogs pick it up right away, other it may take a few weeks. Never  hit or repremand him for bad things tho. its hard for dogs to differentiate between good and bad attention. When he is bad. simply say bad dog, remove him from the 'bad' area, and leave him be. dont point fingers, or go show him what he did that was wrong. the respond much better to positive reinforcement. this training can then lead to barking. When he barks, dont give him any attention, when he is silent, click the clicker and give him a treat. do it repeatedly until he realizes that he is getting rewarded for being quiet. when he is quiet in the room then, make sure to give him a handful of treats and good boys when he is let out... but only after he is settled down

the last alternative is to get chill pills. they are an all natural medicine available at pets tores and grocery stores that have a high dose of tryptopan in it. just makes them a little sleepy so that at night time it is harder for him to stay awake  and bark. At night, put him in a dark area, again without toys, only water and dry food, and when he barks, just let him bark. Dotn make noises or scream for him to be quiet.  no attention what so ever. the best thing is to just start keeping him in the area when you leave throughout the day. he will soon realize that he has to learn to be without his owner. as time goes on and he gets better, you can start putting toys in his room and leaving lights on.  Let me know how things go!


<Miss Petxpert