A theoretical problem... 'cause it's not my dog.

An online friend has a 3 YO female Great Pyrenees, rescue. Sounds either previously abused or soft temperament (fear of sticks, loud voices). Learning some basic obedience now (at least in theory). A multi-dog household.

The dog paws the owner's leg for attention when the owner is sitting. OUCH!

So... what would you do?

I'd recommend this person sign onto LB so that we can speak with her directly. Any chance of this?

Extraordinarily unlikely. I think she's going the spray nasty things at it route.

I'm just trying to broaden my knowledge.

Another bit of info... she says the dog is not food motivated, tho' didn't answer when I asked if she'd tried real meat. Says she has difficulty getting the dog to eat at all, but then I've seen pictures of her other dogs & let's just say a few missed meals would do them good.

I hesitate giving any advice to someone we don't know all the details about... except that she is willing to spray nasty things at the dog. I'm not comfortable that she would follow any ideas you were given - as they were meant to be followed - does that make sense?

Marker training is always a wonderful "go to" tool... she could train the dog to DO something positive ie: down or sit or go to it's place... Send her info on marker training and suggest she try something POSITIVE and pro-active instead of something negative and re-active.

I'm not going to pass the advice along. This is purely a "what if" for my own edification. =0)

I suggested positive training, but she seems to prefer other suggestions, like spraying bitter apple at the dog. Thankfully, she didn't seem to be interested in the e-collar suggestion.

Found out a little more about the behavior... the dog is pawing at the DH's arm & neck when he's sleeping on the couch. Ouch!

Are you willing to work w/a what if? What if you had adopted a dog like this? And your husband napped on the couch? What would you do?

Crate the dog while he was napping. End of problem.

Dogs paw for attention because it gets them attention. If she's looking for attention in that manner it's because she either doesn't have enough to do, she hasn't been trained or the pawing has been reinforced by the owner. I suspect it's a combination of all three.

So the answer is simple - train the dog, reinforce correct behavior, exercise the dog. I pretty much see it as a non-issue - I mean the dog doesn't have any real issues, she's just acting like a million other untrained dogs. She just happens to be big so the pawing is more annoying to the owners.

 Quote: jane jasper

I'm not going to pass the advice along. This is purely a "what if" for my own edification. =0)

I suggested positive training, but she seems to prefer other suggestions, like spraying bitter apple at the dog. Thankfully, she didn't seem to be interested in the e-collar suggestion.

Found out a little more about the behavior... the dog is pawing at the DH's arm & neck when he's sleeping on the couch. Ouch!

Are you willing to work w/a what if? What if you had adopted a dog like this? And your husband napped on the couch? What would you do?

I DID adopt a dog with a similar habit. If she was sitting next to me on the couch or lying next to me on the bed, she had a habit of pawing at me for attention. What I tried first was ignoring the behavior, with the idea that she would learn it didn't get her what she wanted and so she would stop doing it. But she was persistent, oh, so persistent, and each subsequent pawing would be firmer and firmer....darn, those toenails hurt! So I couldn't ignore her.

What I did was, when she would start to paw me, I would gently hold her foot down, away from me and say "No." If I took my hand away and she came at me with that paw again, I would repeat the holding her away and saying "No." When I could take my hand away and have her not pawing me, I would reward her with petting, which is what she was trying to get in the first place. But NO petting for pawing. It took a long time, but she is much better about it now. Not saying she never tries it, but now all it takes is a brief reminder once in a great while.

As far as the dog pawing at someone who is sleeping, how about just removing the dog from the room where the person is sleeping?

Fwiw, I have a huge ten stone boy who I took on as a rehomer over a year ago, he was pretty much crated 24/7 by his previous owners and craved attention - still does! He does the pawing thing and it does damn well hurt, I tried putting his paw down but he just kept coming back for more, so now if he does it, I either ignore, which usually works, or if he persists I get up and walk away, tell him 'down' and 9 times out of 10 he sighs deeply and goes and lays down, often with a 'big meany!' look on his face!

I imagine your friend will get fed up with the regular pattern of dotted bruises on her arms and legs and do something about it eventually.

Regards
Tracey

I don’t know, I guess I have a bit of a different take on pawing. To me, it means they want my attention: they need to go pee, they need exercise, maybe one is still a little hungry, the water dish is empty. They’re uncomfortable about something and I do my best to figure out what it is.

I have a bunch of tattle tales too. One may lead me to a bed they want and another one has taken, a toy that’s made its way under a couch or show me that dad’s on the porch having a break instead of working, etc, etc. etc.

If I’m sitting and get pawed, I’ll generally stand up and stay still. I leave the next step up to the dog. If I get a play bow and can’t go out at that moment, it’s out with the bully sticks or treat toys. If they head off, I follow and see what’s up.

Another thing I find really interesting, should a conversation get a little heated, or say a passionate topic is being discussed, where the energy has kicked up a notch, I’ll often get a soft paw from one of them and I always know it’s time to tone things down a bit.

If someone’s afternoon nap was being disturbed, I’d probably wonder why they were sleeping away the best part of the day. If we fall asleep on the couches, the dogs are out like lights too. If one wakes us up, it’s usually for a pretty good reason. New dogs in the house are always crated.

It’s often simple things and they don’t want for much but it is one of their ways of communicating. If their pawing hurts me, I know it’s time for a nail trimming.

If I was to perceive pawing to be a bad thing, yeah, I suppose it could get irritating but I own dogs because I enjoy them. When I ask for their attention, I expect it immediately, if they're in a position to ask for mine, I do my best to figure out what it is they are seeking. It’s a two-way street around here.

Thanks! I've never had a dog w/this problem, so beyond the training it to sit & stare at me for attention, which progresses to a nose bump if I'm sleeping, I had no actual experience. I also tend to try & figure out what's up, 'cause indeed, if I'm napping, they usually are too (as well as when I'm working... bunch a bums! )

I particularly like the suggestion DH get up!

What do you do if a dog isn't food motivated?
Another twist I've had no experience with... (did God make any pits that aren't chow hounds?) Another person on that thread said her Anatolians weren't food motivated... a 48-hour fast, steak & hot dog treats made no difference in drive.

Frankly, I think that belongs in Ripley's...