Toileting and a young adult dog

[ruralliving19]

So we've rehomed a collie who is 16 months old and very reactive to strangers and other dogs, so we're working with a behaviourist with her, muzzle training and crate training and walking her in a secure field.

She goes to a dog day care two days a week where she feels very safe and shows no signs of reactivity/anxiety at all around the 'pack' of about 8 dogs and 3 adults but walks where she might meet an unknown dog or person or someone coming to the house is another matter and our very sweet, affectionate dog becomes a snarling, lunging, growling monster. So for now, she isn't put in those situations till we can train her to wear a muzzle and be shut in her crate for short periods of time and while we're working with the behaviourist.

She actually loves her crate, as long as the door's open, but I don't know how long it'll be before we can close the door more than 5 minutes without her getting distressed. However, she chooses to go in there to sleep, rest or to get away from the bustle of downstairs, which is positive progress.

Anyway, the most stressful problem for me at the moment, now that I feel much calmer about potential aggression being managed, is that when she is left, either at night or during the day, she chews anything she can find (even if we leave her a chew toy, kong, bone etc) and she poos all over the landing.

The behaviourist thinks the pooing is behavioural and the chewing/pooing are because she's anxious. We're working towards shutting her in her crate when we're out eventually and we shut anything chewable in another room but what can I do to help with the pooing? She knows she's meant to go outside but when I take her out, she won't go, she just sniffs around, eats the grass and then lies down and looks at me!

I should add she isn't left longer than 3 hours during the day and she's always been exercised, played with, fed and taken out to toilet before we leave and she's left with water, toys, a kong and a bone. I won't let her in our bedrooms at night as she would chew everything.

[OverFedStanley]

You need more help from the behaviourist on this. They can see the problems in rl unfortunately the advice you will get from a forum will be a lot of anecdotal examples which could make things worse for your dog.

Absolutely go back to your behaviourist and they should be able to draw up a behavioural plan to work on.