Living with Barney
By Mrs Thomas
Barney is a large Landseer (i.e. over 10 stone in weight). He
has a dominant attitude and is certainly aware of his size and
uses his strength to get his own way. He constantly seeks attention
and will steal anything to achieve his aim, but he doesn’t
destroy or rip up the objects – merely covers them in slobber!
If Barney is thwarted, then he can become aggressive and he will
grab clothing or arms and will growl whilst he hangs on. Up to
date, his teeth have never penetrated skin, but clothing has been
ripped. Barney is a very intelligent dog that learns quickly which
means that he can not be tricked more than once.
He spends his nights downstairs in the house. At first he wandered
from room to room and slept in various places on the floor. We
then found that the settee was covered in hair in the morning – so
we placed obstacles on it i.e. chairs. He quickly learnt to push
the chairs off and lie on the settee again! He also tried to get
on to a wide shelf, where our hi-fi sat resulting in him knocking
of the hi-fi and damaging it. We then shut the door to the living
room when we went to bed.
Barney then proceeded to sleep in the dining room where he attempted
to get on to the sideboard, resulting in the smashing of an antique
plate. We also found him lying on the dining room table when we
got downstairs in the morning.
So, we decided that he better sleep in the living room on the
settee from now on! The settee is covered in old blankets and bedspreads
which protects it from slobber and hair.
Barney, since a puppy has never been allowed on the furniture
and he doesn’t go to bed (settee) until we have gone upstairs.
When we are out, the living room door is shut and Barney divides
his time between the kitchen and the dining room. Occasionally,
he has been found on the dining table on our return home!
A few months ago, Barney decided that he wanted to come upstairs
with us at night. We have always had a baby gate on at the foot
of the stairs to prevent this. Unfortunately, Barney’s need
became paramount and he started pushing himself over the gate and
then bounding upstairs to take comfort on whichever bed he could
gain access to! We then increased the height of the gate by attaching
part of a fire-guard. This stopped him pushing his way over and
piece reigned for a while….until he found that if he stood
on his back legs he could manage to push the baby gate and the
fireguard over with his front legs. Again, Barney had access to
upstairs.
We then moved the baby gate to the top of the stairs thinking
that he would have difficulty climbing over the gate whilst standing
on a stair. It took Barney a couple of weeks to work out a solution;
to bound up the stairs and jump over the gate. So, we have replaced
the fireguard to increase the height again. At the moment – we
win!
Barney stands at the top of the stairs and gazes at us through
the bars whilst we get ready for bed. He finally goes downstairs
and to bed on the prepared settee in the living room. Fortunately,
Barney does not bark from the other side of the gate since he previously
learnt that barking gets him nowhere.
Another problem with Barney is stopping him accompanying us when
we go out. He doesn’t like being left behind. At first a
simple ‘sit’ and ‘stay’ was sufficient,
but as he grew older and larger, problems arose! Although I train
Barney everyday and constantly make him sit, down and stay he ignores all of
this when we leave the house. Barney would use his size and strength
to push past us and out of the door. We slammed the door shut on
his head on a couple of occasions and this stopped him for a while.
Being Barney, though he soon overcame this by being faster through
the door so that we could not shut it. Hence; another baby gate
which is now placed halfway along the hall. This worked for a while,
until again; he learnt to push his way through the gate.
We then developed a method of distracting Barney with a treat.
This is given to Barney as we walk towards the gate. As Barney
stops to eat the treat, we go through the gate quickly and out.
Sometimes, Barney will ignore the treat and will barge through
the gate. If he does this, we then have to put two kitchen chairs
on either side of the gate and climb over!
When only one of us is leaving (the other having already gone)
Barney is much calmer. He accepts the treat and calmly allows you
through the gate. If both of us are leaving Barney tends to be
more frantic and the chairs have to be used to get out.
If one of us is leaving, and the other is remaining at home then
Barney will jump at you and grab clothing, handbag etc; in an attempt
to stop you (I think).
However, Barney really enjoys a confrontation and does this to
amuse himself and have fun. We stop him by the other person holding
him or by using an ultrasound trainer.
At present, these problems with Barney are managed, but we are
aware that he will in all probability find a way of overcoming
our strategies. It is in fact a contest of willpower and brains
which we intend to win – being a superior species to the
wolf!
Ps; Barney has just recently decided that he would like to stay
outside all night. He will not respond when called and will turn
away when approached. Consequently he has stayed out all night
on several occasions. This is not ideal because he could bark at
cats etc and has no shelter.
At present, we prevent Barney having access to the main garden
after 9pm by closing a gate on him. In the New Year we are
planning to buy a shed and will arrange for a stable door to be
fitted so that the bottom and top can be closed independently.
