Dog Harder Than Baby

[Rowlie]

We have a 9m DS and a 2yo Miniature Dachshund. The MD was bought a month before the first major lockdown in March 2020 (didn’t intend for him to be a lockdown puppy but he ended up being one).

Fast-forward to now and my husband and I are really struggling with the MD. He has bad anxiety and behavioural issues. Can’t be left home alone (used to be able to but lockdown meant he grew out of the habit). He is reactive to other dogs. It is very stressful going out as a family. Our 9mo DS is a delight and an ‘easy’ baby as far as they go, but the MD is affecting everything as we are so stressed with him.

He is fine with the baby but such hard work. I know ppl will say we made our bed so we need to lie in it, I guess just looking for some support/advice/solidarity. We can’t bear the thought of rehoming. My husband trains with him everyday and we have attempted to train him since we’ve had him. We aren’t lazy. But he is just very very hard and it’s really getting us down.

Dachshunds are not easy dogs at the best of times - they need excellent socialisation and can be very territorial and protective of their "people". They also generally don't like being left alone so while his behaviour is stressful for you, it's fairly common for the breed as a whole.

Unfortunately (and I'm not saying this was you) lots of people get them because they're small and cute, and forget that they're hunting dogs who were bred to flush badgers! They're feisty little things with big personalities.

I would speak to your vet and ask them to recommend an accredited behaviourist who can come to your house and help you. You may even find it's covered by your insurance so you won't have to worry too much about cost.

Good luck!

The daschund was bred for hunting so is a working dog. It can’t be expected to sit around all day, it needs to be mentally and physically tired.
I often find that the miniaturisation of dogs leads to anxiety, my own is the same.
Are there any MD meet ups in your area ? It might be an idea for him to get some pals, and for you to discuss their ways with others.
Do you use anything to help his anxiety like the plug in Adaptil, or some Skullcap and Valerian tablets ?

Thanks for your responses. We have worked with a few behaviourists but nothing has fundamentally worked to improve things.

@KangarooKenny he has 1-2 long walks a day, plenty of mental stimulation every day and goes to doggy daycare 3x times a week. One of those days is at a special Dachshund club so just other sausage dogs.

Perhaps the Dachshund club will help you rehome him. If you've tried training with little success maybe someone else who doesn't have a baby will be better able to deal with him.

You have enough to contend with. I have adopted a dog in the past because of a change of circumstances resulted in an unhappy and stressed dog. Dog now happy as anything. It was a win situation for everyone, DD in particular.

We got a puppy during COVID but after strict lockdowns were lifted and we found the leaving him really hard even though we started the gradual approach (seconds, minutes etc) right from the start. When you said your dog could be left and grew out of the habit, were there any tactics you employed that you could re-try?

What eventually worked for us (took a year to be able to leave him), was to consistently at the same time each day (after a run around in the garden after lunch) to put him where we wanted him to be left (utility room in our case) with his bed and a long chew treat and go off into another part of the house (and work quietly). We had a camera in the room so if he did bark/cry, we would speak to him and tell him quiet and to go back on his bed. The time he was settled gradually built up and now we just leave him in the same place when we go out and keep checking on him on the camera but he’s always fine. When we are working at home, we still continue the same technique each day so that being left alone is a normal part of his daily routine

Not sure if that will help you but thought I’d share in case it does

Were the behaviourists properly accredited with organisations like APTC or APBC?

Unfortunately anyone can claim to be a dog trainer/behaviourist - however without the relevant qualifications they can do more harm than good.

Behavioural training also takes months and months of hard work - so you need to find someone reputable and stick with it. There are no quick fixes and for many dogs it's a case of management for life, not a cure. Unfortunately many TV "trainers" make it look like there's a really quick fix for almost any behavioural problem and that's just not the case at all.

All the behaviour you describe is normal, if undesirable, for dachshunds though. They're bred to live and work in packs and don't like being alone.