Our Eurasier puppy is getting aggressive in the evenings

Constanze2108
Constanze2108 Icon representing the flag French
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Hi everyone,

We’ve had our male Eurasier puppy for 12 days now, so he’s 10 weeks old, and we’ve been really struggling with him every evening for the last few days.

I should mention that at the start, the breeder told us to keep him in a 3ft crate at night and for 2 hours after his meals. But since he was barking his head off every night, and I was worried about whether he could actually hold it in all night, I eventually started taking him out every 3 hours or so. I figured he just couldn't hold his bladder. But as soon as I put him back in the crate, it was the same thing again—barking for at least 10 minutes. We finally reached breaking point with the crate when he started barking every 2 hours. We couldn't just ignore him like the breeder suggested, especially since he was covered in pee by the morning. I called a dog trainer who told me to ditch the crate (she’s not a fan, I should add) as it seemed to be stressing him out. She suggested starting from scratch: letting him sleep in the living room (he prefers the floor tiles to his bed) and sleeping in the room with him for a week to reassure him. We’ve done that and he’s lovely; he doesn't even wake up during the night and manages to hold it from 11pm until 6am.

But here’s the problem: for several evenings now, after his dinner and a quick toilet walk, Cosmo gets really hyper once we’re back inside. He jumps on us, on the sofa, and bites us quite hard. Nothing works: not saying ‘no’ (which I don't think he understands anyway), not trying to redirect him with a toy, nor ignoring him (which is hard because he goes for your feet and calves). Even leaving the room doesn't work, as he just starts again the moment we come back. We’ve tried putting him in the downstairs loo (since we’re not using the crate anymore), but he just goes right back to it as soon as he’s out. We’re at our wits' end, and my husband and daughter are actually starting to get scared of him because he’s so persistent with the biting. We read that we should tire him out, but since these ‘episodes’ happen right after his meal, we’re worried about the risk of bloat. Other than that, we take him out regularly during the day for toilet breaks, plus two longer walks in the morning and late afternoon around the block (about 20 minutes each time, at his own pace).

So, that’s the situation. We really need your advice because we’re struggling to cope. This is our first dog so we’re not used to this, and with the lockdown, there are no puppy classes or home visits from trainers available...

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    • ?
    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    It’s also worth remembering that your puppy will learn an awful lot from being around other dogs. Your role as a human is important, but it’s only one part of what he needs to develop.

    Take a look at some videos of puppies the same age in a pack; you’ll see it’s far from gentle 😁

    He’s simply acting the only way he knows how...

    At 10 weeks old, a puppy spends his whole day having all sorts of social interactions (basically that, eating, and sleeping); it’s the very heart of his existence. So, finding himself without any other dogs in sight, combined with the lockdown restrictions, is pretty tough on his little system – and understandably so.

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    Emla
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    If he’s a dominant dog, he’ll need very clear boundaries for his entire life. It’s nothing to panic about, but you’ll have to be really consistent with what he is and isn't allowed to do, as he’ll look for any loophole or inconsistency to try and take charge.

    A dog training club is a great idea; it’ll also let him meet plenty of other dogs, which will be brilliant for his socialisation.

    Personally, I’m not a fan of your vet’s methods. They’re the kind of solutions people used ten years ago rather than now... Once he’s fully grown, you won’t be able to pin him on his back anymore...

    You really need to establish psychological authority, because if it comes down to physical strength, he’s the one who’ll win in the long run...

    Your attitude and mindset will influence your dog; always keep in mind that you’re the boss.

    Throughout the day, the dog needs to feel that the "two-legged ones" are the bosses. No sofas, no being up on furniture, his dinner after you’ve had yours and only when he's calm (sit, then "okay" on command), his bed in a corner without a view of the doors or the main living space, going through doors after you, and staying behind you whenever you meet other people or dogs...

    This doesn’t stop you from playing with him at all—on the contrary—but it must always be by your rules. If he gets overexcited, starts jumping up, or nipping, pack everything away and that’s it. You’ll also need to teach your daughter how to earn the dog’s respect, using these same principles.

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    ?
    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    Evening Constanze, As you know, your puppy's settling in hasn't been ideal because of that whole cage thing. Here is how I see things: - On top of the shock of being separated (at exactly eight weeks old, I assume...), he’s had the added stress of being locked up alone in a tiny square metre every night at the same time, having accidents, and so on. - It seems the breeder didn't really do much in the way of socialisation or familiarisation (he’s grown up without seeing much of the world). - This is your first puppy and you’re feeling a lot of uncertainty; you’re learning as you go. - He’s an Eurasier, which is a breed with a communication style that's a bit different from the "typical dog" most people imagine (he’s not exactly a Cocker Spaniel, for instance). When you say he tends to "internalise" things, for example, that’s quite typical of the breed. All of this adds up to quite a lot of pressure for your puppy. You’re right that building his trust and making him feel safe should be the absolute priority, as he isn’t settled in the home yet and is still finding his feet. I feel the vet is giving advice "off the cuff"—I’m not sure they realise the repercussions of forced submission when it’s carried out by someone who can’t perfectly read a dog’s body language. Knowing when to apply pressure is all well and good, but the most important thing is knowing when to ease off. If your little Eurasier is sending out calming signals that you’re missing, it’ll just make him feel more insecure instead of calming him down. Until you can get some in-person support, I’d suggest looking into canine communication (the basics of ethology, etc.) and holding off on that kind of handling until you’ve built a bond of trust with your pup. You first need to develop a bit of a "feel" for it—being able to decode your dog properly is step one. At the moment, his behaviour is still leaving you a bit stumped, so it's far too early to try risky manoeuvres like the alpha roll.
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    ?
    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    I couldn't have put it better than kainate

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    Kainate
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    "She advised us to pin him on his back and hold him down until he yelps or goes limp."

    Oh my goodness... I know this is hard to hear when you've gone to a professional for advice, but I can only urge you not to follow what you've been told...

    The vet who gave you that advice clearly has no training in ethology or dog behaviour; they are simply repeating old myths from outdated books.

    What you’re doing makes no "canine" sense to your dog. Adult dogs very rarely behave like that towards a puppy—pinning them down until they yelp or surrender. They might give them a sharp correction, but never in that way.

    Above all, you risk breaking the bond of trust you’ve been trying to build until now. And that is certainly not how you’re going to reduce his anxiety.

    I'm appalled that vets still feel they can spread this kind of absolute rubbish :(

    Your puppy is probably mounting your legs as a way to redirect his excitement, and perhaps because his hormones are starting to kick in. He isn't trying to become the boss. He's just a baby.

    My advice is simply to keep doing what you’d intuitively started: leaving the room or putting him in a timeout when he gets too over-excited. You just need to be more methodical and consistent, and stick at it.

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    Constanze2108
    Constanze2108 Icon representing the flag French
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    Hi everyone, Just wanted to give you an update. Cosmo had his jabs this morning and we spoke to the vet about the nipping. Apparently, the evening "crazy hour" is typical, but the biting is less so. According to the vet, Cosmo is trying to become the "pack leader" because he also started mounting my daughter’s leg several times yesterday, and mine once... So, we need to set some boundaries. She advised us to pin him on his back and hold him there until he either yelps or submits. Alternatively, if that doesn't work, using a water pistol or holding his muzzle shut and blowing into his nostrils. To start with, we’ve opted for the "alpha roll". We had to repeat it a few times, but Cosmo finally gave up! Obviously, we’ll have to stick with it. As for the stress mentioned above, it seems that’s an issue too, along with him being stubborn. During the check-up, the vet could tell he was very anxious—much more so than other puppies—but it seems he internalises his worry. Since he was raised in the country, he’s hardly seen any people or cars, and now he’s been dropped into the city, so I imagine it’s a lot for him to take in... The vet recommends getting him out and about as much as possible to familiarise him with new situations. The strange thing is, he doesn’t give the impression of being anxious at all... But I suppose that awful experience with that bloody crate when he first arrived can't have helped, and we definitely need to win back his trust. Does anyone have any other ideas for lowering his anxiety levels? In any case, I’m going to bed tonight with a slightly lighter heart and feeling a bit less on edge. As soon as the local dog training club reopens after lockdown, I’ll be taking him there, as I think we need some extra help and more advice.
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    B
    Bangdji Icon representing the flag French
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    Lol, well then ^^

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    Franck9
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    Hi everyone,

    I also had some trouble a few years ago with a puppy I'd adopted, but I tried this simple method to train my pup naturally. Click this link to find out how you can train your dog in just 15 minutes a day: https://bit.ly/2xPCcdb

    Cheers, see you soon.

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    ?
    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    I think it’s a bit of that with the little Eurasier here too – biting them to get a little snack to keep for the night ^^^^
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    B
    Bangdji Icon representing the flag French
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    This might be a silly idea and isn't based on any personal experience, but if puppies tend to kick off at the same time every evening (not including the ones who do it right after their "big walk"), could it simply be that they realise it's evening? Maybe they see it’s the end of their "active and bonding time" with their owner—since everyone’s going to sleep, which isn’t the same thing. It could be a stress or frustration reaction, like you both mentioned, but triggered by the realisation that the day is drawing to a close and they’ll have to wait the whole night for their owner to be fresh and ready again.
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