HELP...i have created a "mini monster"

[nickerbokker]

well.  long story short.  my dogs aren't allowed on the couch. they get the apartment, and the bed, but the couch is mine for my guests and stuff.....

well, today i forgot to take my meds or something because i couldn't sit still and i was running around chasing the dogs and gettin them all crazy, and well....i jumped off the bed and ran into the family room and onto the couch with both feet and meant to get right off, but before i could...angus took a lead from the master and jumped up with me, and i jumped off right away and confused as to what to do i yelled NO and yelled OFF....but he just leaned against the back of the couch and looked at me with those "it's okay mommy, you did it first, and even if you didnt, you cant see me because i am blenind into the back of the couch" eyes....and i started laughing.  i tried to turn away so he wouldnt see me, but i couldnt help myself and i was laughing right at him and he started waggin his tail.  THEN, i said off again and his eyes went droopy and he laid down and slide his little head under the pillow.  I KNOW I SAY HE IS UGLY...AND YES, HE IS UGLY FOR A "MINI BERNARD"...BUT HE IS A REALLY CUTE PUPPY......and i melted.  so then i started to pull him off the couch which he didn't like and his lungs started to rumble a little and i said NO and pulled him off and that was the end of it. 

well....i just got out of the shower....and i walked out of the bathroom and looked on the bed where both dogs usually are when i get out of the shower, and neither of them were in there, so i walked into the living room and cody was under the foosball table, but ANGUS IS ALL SPREAD OUT ON MY SOFA!  GRANTED, ITS A UGLY SOFA, BUT IT IS THE ONLY DROOL FREE PEE FREE HAIR FREE KINDA SMELL GOOD PLACE IN MY HOUSE AND NOW HE IS LAYING ON IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WHAT IN GODS NAME DO I DO ABOUT HIM!  i cant be havin him on the sofa!  thats just that!

any ideas?

[jules]

Nicker your going have to face the facts like most of us on here,there is no safe place anymore,just like when you have kids theres no place to hide anymore.Spotak iss doesnt hang out on the couch he just jumps on it when hes running around.I have a leather sofa so no hair,just drool, so I just wipe it off daily.

[coonie1970]

LOL He is getting you back. Judge goes on his couch ( Love seat) but I kick him off of the big couch.
Jules is right there is no were safe anymore. HEHEHEHEHEEEEE E!!!
Here is a picture of Judge trying to sleep in a chair. He is such a dork sometimes. LOL
Coonie

[greek4]

Like you, nicker, the couch is mine.  The dogs have their own couch in their room.  But showertime must translate to 'do what we want because mom is naked and wet, and can't see us time'.  About once a week I will get out of the shower as Rocco is slowly crawling off the couch.  Maia only gets up there everyone great once in a while but when she does I have to pull her off.  Good luck reclaiming your couch.

[GYPSY JAZMINE]

First off...FOOSBALL ROCKS!...Back in "the day" my hubby & I ruled the table!...We were so in tune with each other that we really kicked some serious booty!...2nd...Samso n wasn't allowed on the couch at first either...There wasn't a problem untill we went o my sister's & her dog was on their couch...Samson was amazed that a DOG could get right on the couch!...That was pretty much it...I do boot him off when I want to sit down though...I have a formal living room that he's not allowed into so we have that couch for guests...right after I get the cat hair off of it...lol!

[Leah-n-boy-os]

Nikker, Face the facts baby, your couch is now his. "Mi Casa" and all that.

Suggestion, take a sheet that you no longer care abount, and tuck that onto the couch. It's not fool-proof, but it *will* preserve your couch for the most part, and you can just whisk it off when company arrives and viola, a somewhat hair-free couch.

[GrumpyBunny]

Nikker, you have two options.  If you just simply want the couch to be the one clean island in an ocean of pee, hair and drool, do what is is suggested and cover the couch with a sheet or something and let them hang out there.  

If you just really don't want them to actually physically get on the couch at all, then you will have to manage that situation.  When you are in the shower, or out of the house or whatever, put your dining room chairs up on the couch, or put something else up there so they can't get on.  You can even buy special mats from a pet supply catalog that give them a little "shock" of static electricity when they hop up there.  Expensive though...  You can also use those mats that you put under office chairs up there upside down so that the pointy parts stick up and poke any doggy that jumps up...

All that being said, we let our dogs on the couch.  If you don't want to deal with hair or drool, you probably don't want to come in our house in the first place, anyway...  

[moonlitcroatia]

Nicker,

I also think, in addition, my main concern is the way in which Angus is "challenging" you.  If he is growling when you attempt to tug him off the couch, I see that as a situation that I would want to have control of as soon as possible.  Perhaps, then he will stay off the couch when you order him to do so, which is definitely favorable with all dogs.

Back in puppy kindergarten with Greta and Lou the instructors showed us a video about pack order and dominance.  In the video there was an eldely woman with a toy breed who was dominant over her.  Each time she walked away from "her" chair the little rascal would sneak into her place and be darned if he would move.  He snarled and snapped ferociously instead.

Then, they reiterated how important it is to not allow our large breeds to decide the bed belongs to them, the couch belongs to them, their food bowl belongs to them, etc.

 

[stryder]

Nic.
You have to be the Alpha. If it were a child you would set the rules and stick to them so why not with Angus??
A short story - My daughter was about year old and was crawling up the stairs when my wife told her to get down - once, Twice, THREE times; then went to get her - that little girl turned and growled at her! ! ! She is 34 now and I embarrass her with that story every once in awhile.
THoM

[GrumpyBunny]

Stryder, that is too funny!

Ya know, Moonlit is right - there is a whole other issue here and that is Angus beginning to challenge  you.  He is probably at that normal "teen-age" stage where he is trying on different behaviors to see if they work for him.  If bad behavior gets him what he wants, then he will continue the bad behavior.  

He probably just got caught up in the excitement of the moment and got carried away when he first jumped up, but it quickly turned into "Get down!"  "Well, make me!".  As I mentioned, our dogs are allowed on the couch, without asking, but we have had no issues of them challenging us.  They also get down immediately when asked.  

If you do decide that you want to cover the couch and let them on there, make sure that they understand that they are getting up there with your permission only.  Tell them "up" or "on" or whatever before you allow them up.  Then you can also teach "off".  If you need to bribe Angus with food or a toy at first to get him off, that is fine.  Tell him "off", bribe him and reward him for doing a good job when he does  it.  Don't worry about the bribe, he is doing what YOU want either way, and that is your end goal!  

OK, I will stop now.  I do tend to ramble...  

[moonlitcroatia]

Just as grumpybunny says, they can still get up on the bed, couch, etc., but you have to be the leader and they must obey your commands.  I remember in puppy classes they kept saying over and over, "Don't let dominant breeds like rottweilers sleep in YOUR bed!"  We ignored what they said and allowed both of our dogs on the bed, but we were quite strict with them in regards to who is the real boss.  It is since they "feel" that respect for us that we are even able to walk them.  I believe taking a patient, but firm approach will cause the dogs to respect you more and, in turn, your relationship with them will be much more enjoyable.  There is nothing worse than that horrible feeling one has when one is unsure whether one's own dog will bite.  For the first couple of years I felt that way toward Greta, until I really understood her thoroughly and made sure I was the boss.  I can remove her food bowl and hug her while she eats...same with Lou...because they trust me and know that I will not take their food.  If I tell them to get down, they get down...except, of course, sometimes I may leave the room to find they've climbed back up...but not often.

[moonlitcroatia]

LOL     My dogs, too, are all over the furniture and the bed.  The nice thing, though, is that they immediately get up and remove themselves when I ask.  Sometimes I will say, "Lou, get up and let Greta lie on the couch!" and he will get up and amble off to the bed.  They are so considerate! 

[mastiffmommy]

Nicker,

I also think, in addition, my main concern is the way in which Angus is "challenging" you.  If he is growling when you attempt to tug him off the couch, I see that as a situation that I would want to have control of as soon as possible.  Perhaps, then he will stay off the couch when you order him to do so, which is definitely favorable with all dogs.

Back in puppy kindergarten with Greta and Lou the instructors showed us a video about pack order and dominance.  In the video there was an eldely woman with a toy breed who was dominant over her.  Each time she walked away from "her" chair the little rascal would sneak into her place and be darned if he would move.  He snarled and snapped ferociously instead.

Then, they reiterated how important it is to not allow our large breeds to decide the bed belongs to them, the couch belongs to them, their food bowl belongs to them, etc.

 

From what I understood it, he made a little attempt to be a macho guy, but Nicki ignored him and took him by the collar and made him get down, that in my book is pretty much to tell a dog that "you didnt get one bit where you thought youd get by making a fuss" A lot of teenage dogs have a tendancy to "test the land" and had she backed off and let him sit there it would have been her loosing the battle. But that was not the case. With puppies you take one battle at the time and for each battle you win, you are one step closer to win the war.

Nicki, it sounds like you were playing and oops, all of a sudden the game went on the couch, I go with all the others here. Either give in, put a sheet on the couch and live with the fact that the couch now belongs to the dogs hehe, or put chairs on it when you cant supervise them. If you do that, they may even give in and just forget about the whole thing after awhile (if you are real real lucky that is)

All my dogs are on the couch, but with the leather ones it isnt so bad, you wipe them off and voila you have a clean (or semi-clean) couch again.

Marit

[nickerbokker]

i went a step beyong the chairs.....i put down my scat mat. 

i have three of them from when i lived at home and my mom didn't want cody to leave the kitchen...we had to block off the 20ft enterence to the family room lol...and block off the foyer, AND block off the the dining room....so i need scat mats as well as baby gates.  i havent used them since ive been here....but now i have one spread across my couch.  call me sick, but im kinda lookin forward to angus's face when he gets shocked LOL...

and please....dont think its too bad.....i shocked myself all the time back home when i was drinking choice beverages.  sometimes, even sober.  AND, all the little neighborhood kids used to come over and sit in the kitchen and shock themselves.  its kinda funny. 

one shock, and i dont think i will ever have to worry about him on the couch. 

he was on it again today.....him and cody were running around and he ran all the way uup onto the couch....i was across the room and yelled OFF....AND HE GOT OFF!  HE GOT CARROTS GALORE!LOL

THANKS FOR ALL THE ADVICE EVERYONE!  I APPRECIATE IT TONS!  BUT NICKI WILL NOT GIVE UP THE COUCH!  I'VE GONE 4 YEARS WITHOUT A DOG ON THE COUCH....ANGUS ISN'T GOING TO BREAK ME!  HECK NO LOL!  I WILL WIN!

thanks marit!  haha

[mastiffmommy]

you know it nicki hehe. I am sooooo proud of you...... I wish I had such determination, I gave up the bed, the couch, the dining room chairs (to cat), the toilet (for drinking) all my pillows and blankets and only because I pamper my dogs do I get to still live in their house hehe

I have never used them mats myself but have heard they work real well, both for dogs and cats. And the chock, nope I dont think you are bad at all. I am a bit crazy, but I have had horses since I was 6 years old, and I guess I didnt have too much fun as a kid because one of my favorit things to do was to go to the horse fence and hold it (it was an electrical fence) and if we were more kids we held eachothers hands and the chock kinds "rolled" through all of us, then the one who was last in line went up and held the fence. Okay now you all know where I have the not so slight head injury from 

Marit