Why does Eric only do as I tell him?

[insanityscratching]

and completely ignore any of dh's commands .
Have begun to notice more and more how Eric only really takes me seriously. So he doesn't recall for dh even when he uses the same words and has a treat waiting. Embarrassingly in the park a woman whose dog Eric plays with had to be the one to call Eric back when dh had taken him out alone (he came back instantly to the woman)
This morning he'd found a lolly stick and dh wanted him to leave it again he completely ignored dh even with a treat to exchange. I walked downstairs called him to me told him to leave it and he dropped it at my feet.
How do we address this? I'd say that I have the attitude that I expect Eric to do as I ask whereas dh expects him not to and so I wonder whether Eric is just living up to expectations. Could it just be down to attitude?
I'd say dh treats Eric more than I do and for no discernible reason whereas I'm more of the attitude he needs to earn his treats.
I know it's dh that has to change but any suggestions as to how he needs to change please?

does dh participate in any of the training Eric Has? Also why are you telling my dog what to do?

My dog appears to respond to my commands much more readily than she does to my DH or DD' s commands. I think it is because i taught her the commands and i go over them time and time again whereas they don't. They just expect her to do what they say without putting in all the effort.

Well he does participate but only half heartedly if I'm honest. He loves him and walks him every day and plays with him but for dh so long as he walks on the lead nicely he's not too bothered about anything else. Whereas it's important to me that I feel confident that I can control Eric off lead and in all situations and tbf he is an incredibly well behaved little dog for me.
I'm chipping away at dh, the embarrassing recall incident helped because I said Eric would need to be on a long line if he couldn't be trusted to come back. Dh feels for him because he loves to play with other dogs and so he's been working on that one.I'll play on the lolly stick incident by suggesting that if he was out and had picked up something dangerous he needs to be able to get him to leave it.
I feel like I'm doing a better job of training Eric than I am dh if I'm honest.
Brilliant name for a dog isn't it? I thought he was unique but now I know of 3 Erics as dd's TA's dog has the same name.

What kind of dog is Eric?
I ask because there are some breeds who attach more to one person unless you are careful.
Who feeds Eric?
Treats are great but often a dog will bond to the person who is supplying main meals. Most dog trainers also don't advocate 'free feeding' (I.e. Random treats for doing nothing - what your partner is doing). Even a 'sit' or a 'paw' is better for the dog than just a random treat.
Who trained / trains Eric?
As littlewhite and dita say, if you did all the work, why should Eric respond to your dh? Your DH will prob need to go back to basics and work with Eric.

Not sure if attitude is the culprit, but I am sure that some intelligent people will be along to advise.

P.s. Eric is a super name for a dog

My dog is like this. He really only listens to me, then my daughter, then my DP last. I dunno why so no advice just interested!

Does your parenting work like that too?

Just wondering because I'm in charge of the dog (and previous dogs) but also the DC, DP is the one that waltzes in dispensing treats, doesn't do things like make them follow rules and then is shocked when he really does want to make one of them do something that he's ignored and had to get me in for back up.

T'is very irritating.

Yes parenting is exactly like that. "Mummy's the boss" is something that has been quoted regularly here. It's most obvious with my dc who have autism as all requests by dh are met with a glance to me to see if I'm going to back him up (which I do consistently)
Eric's a poodle shih tzu cross, he looks like a shih tzu but I'd say his temperament is pure poodle
I feed Eric so I could get dh to do that, I feed him because dh would overfeed him on the grounds that he'd like a bit extra/some ham with it etc etc. Whereas according to the vet he is exactly the right weight for his size so he gets enough and I want to keep him like that.
It feels like Eric is my dog but dh is great fun and that's how he treats us.

Aha - the worm has turned in our house.....up until recently big dog would only listen to me - I did all his training - then last weekend he had an adolescent moment - completely ignored me, but when my husband called came to him straight away - BASTARD!

I do think there's a degree of 'What Mum says goes, but Dad's a pushover.' but also think it's worth remembering how dogs learn.

If you're doing all the training, being consistent and proofing exercises in different locations/situations etc, Eric will have learned that whatever you say means the same thing whenever/wherever you are. On the other hand, if your dh has had a half-arsed go at training, is inconsistent and hasn't proofed cues/commands in every plausible situation, then Eric won't understand that your dh want's the same thing from him in every situation.

mrslaughan mine started being an adolescent over our summer holiday. He has always had a brilliant recall - is whistle trained and I used to get compliments all the time at his impressive halt and turn mid-flight to get back to me when I whistled him. Then, one day I whistled and I'd swear if he had fingers he'd have flicked a v-sign at me. Since then he's become hit-and-miss, so we're back to longlines and basic training. Not sure if he'd come back to dh. I doubt it though. I think he's forgotten who he is to be honest, as he's been working away so much recently that I can't remember the last time we walked them together.

I was going to ask who fed Eric too (do like that name :) ).

Our boxer would only listen to me, if DH told him to do something he'd get a look that basically said 'are you allowed to tell me what to do?'. I'm pretty sure it was because I usually dished up the dinners, and boxers are very food orientated, so he seemed to assume that as I was in charge of food I was some kind of supremely powerful being and DH was just a minion.

moosemama - I know that look well (the giving the fingers) or I get "I have heard you, but I am just going to pop over and say hi, then I will be right back".....so yes we have been long lining and walking off lead where I know he won't get far away from me, and also chances are any dogs we meet (unlikely are off lead too)....though just this week we seem to be getting somewhere, I called and he tired straight away and came back....could have knocked me over with a feather!

Fingers crossed it's a short-lived teenage phase for both of us!

(Apologies for the atrocious typos in my previous post by the way. )

Really simple - your DH does not reward enough or does not reward with something Eric really wants.

If your DH ups the rate or reinforcement - Eric will respond quicker.

Nutty Dh treats Eric more than I do tbh. This morning he had ham which is Eric's favourite but he wouldn't swap whereas I didn't have anything but Eric would know that I would fetch him ham and he did indeed follow me to the fridge.

To be fair...I think dogs are very much like children and if they think they can get the treat without really having to do what they're asked then they'll try that, well some dogs anyway.

If any of mine (dog or DC) are asked to do something by me, they know they're not getting the reward till it's done to my standard... They also know that DP is open to negotiation, so they'll try it on.

Then look at DH reinforcement rate and how clear his instructions are

Mine or insanity's?...mine is rubbish, waffles randomly and then goes, aw, but look how sweet they look

Fortunately training the dog is easier than training DP.

Tabulah my dh is just the same, one little cock of Eric's head and he's putty in his paws. Mind you I should have known he was exactly the same with his dm's dog when we were courting.

I like to believe my dog just LOVES me more