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Question
I have ten year-old male shih-tzu that developed full blown cataracts in both eyes this past year and last month he scratched the corneas of both eyes. The end result is that we had to have both of his eyes removed to prevent any infections. When he first got home from the vet I let him come inside the house for a half hour to an hour once in a while because he was still recuperating. I stopped doing this a couple of weeks ago because he was completely healed, but he started to act out. Now he wakes up early in the morning, about 5 or 6 am, and starts to beat on the backyard sliding glass door as if he were a boxer on a speed bag. he also barks like crazy and he became very destructive and tore apart the screen door that covered the glass door because i didn't let him in. He never used to act like this and i really don't know what to do. I don't think that he does it out of loneliness because he lives outside with 2 shih-tzu girls. It's like he became a helpless puppy again and my schedule doesn't allow me to take care of him like a puppy all over again. I really hope you can help me with him because my parents are really fed up with him and I'm beginning to think about giving him up. please help!
Hi, Rebecca,
Thanks for the question.
I don't think he's acting out of loneliness. I think that because he's blind now, he feels extremely vulnerable and frightened when he's outside. And he's desperate to get inside the house where it's safe. I think you're right, that in some ways he IS a helpless puppy again, and he should probably have a place of his own inside the house.
I hope this helps,
LCK
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Answers by Expert:
Lee Charles Kelley
Expertise
I've been training dogs in New York City for nearly 20 years. My training approach and philosophy are based on the way police dogs, search-and-rescue dogs, and detection dogs are trained--through the prey drive, inherited from the wolf. It's true that there's been a shift away from using the "wolf model" in dog training recently, and to some extent, there's a good reason. That's because trainers have been using the wrong model, the one that says you have to be the "alpha" or the pack leader in order to control your dog's behavior. This simply isn't true. In wild wolves there is no dominance hierarchy, no "alpha" wolf, and no pack leader (not in the traditional sense). The pack instinct only exists to enable wolves to hunt large prey by working in harmony. (Wolves who live near garbage dumps, for example, and who don't hunt together, don't form packs.) So if wolves don't have an instinct to "follow the pack leader" or "obey the alpha wolf," how could dogs have inherited it from them?
Years ago, before I became a dog trainer, I noticed that the happiest, most obedient, and best-behaved dogs I met weren't the ones who'd been to a dog trainer or behaviorist; they were the dogs whose owners always had Frisbees and tennis balls on hand. And while it might seem that my approach would only be relevant to high-drive dogs who love fetch and tug-of-war, it isn't. Even something as seemingly unrelated as a housebreaking issue or greeting behavior are often the direct result of a dog's predatory energy not having an acceptable outlet.
All behavior is an expression of energy. So when a dog's energy isn't utilized in a way that feels satisfying to his or her instincts and emotions, that's when behavioral problems develop. Giving the dog an acceptable outlet for its energy will almost always bring the dog's behavior back into alignment with its instincts
Feel free to ask me questions about any training/behavioral issue.
LCK
Experience
20 years as a dog trainer. I'm also a bestselling author, writing a series of dog-related mystery novels for Avon.
Organizations
Dog Writers Association of America
Education/Credentials
Just a natural gift I have for understanding and training dogs
Past/Present Clients
Too numerous to mention.
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