Having Difficulties Keeping Lucy
I posted quite a while back about the Bull Terrier that came in our home & after not finding anyone to claim her we named her Lucy.
I need advice. Both of us have nerve damage, my SO is looking to have a full disk replacement surgery soon. Lucy is rough, tough, & a odd combination of skiddish & spazzy.
We are having trouble keeping up with her. It's literally hurting my back to deal with her everyday. At the moment I'm a stay at home parent, so I'm here all day. She can't be trusted to stay outside alone at all. I was too watch when we let her out the back door to potty. She will EAT EVERYTHING. I do mean everything. Dirt, rocks, wood, bricks, glass, plastic, & grass, tumbleweeds, any crispy plant that crunches... It's a constant issue because if she is left alone anything she can get a hold of she will chew. Anything she chews she will swallow. Luckily at far things she swallowed are manageable & were able to get up/out.
To make the behavior just a tad worse, she will test every boundary she can. I step out of the room she will immediately go mess with anything she has been told not too. She knows, because she will correct herself soon as she realizes I'm back. Otherwise, she is my constant shadow. So I know she is wanting to mess with things the moment she stops following me throughout the house. She is stubborn to a fault!
I'm at my wits end with her behavior on this. I can't stop her from eating everything!
We tried adjusting her diet, but we are restricted by money. I know kibble isn't the best but we do everything we can.
While we do get her treats that she enjoys, I only give them when working on basic training routines. (Sit, lat down, stay, etc... Which she will learn but gets very stubborn with. She would rather just snatch the treat from you if she finds the opportunity.
I have to restrict how much she gets in treats. I can't let her have ANYTHING else. I'm having to keep my kitchen floor clean & cat-food up & away. If she gets anything she will refuse to eat.. For days! Everything I looked up is pointing to it being behavior/stubborness. We can't afford the raw diet or even canned dog food.
We really are trying & doing the best we can.
She was very very rough & spazzy in the beginning, & now she is much better & calmer. But still has spazzy moments that worry me. She will literally RUN in random directions in the back yard... Full on collide with my hot-tub & act like it jumped out in front of her. It's like she doesn't FEEL things & doesn't care. I'm worried she is going to give herself brain damage.
She goes out plenty, either in the back yard being watched or on the leash for a walk. (She loves walks) Occasionally she goes for rides, either to pickup my kid from school or we go to the park.
Sadly, she is strong. I'm only being weaker, my right side note only hurts but also has occasional numbness, I'm sure I'll be next to look at surgery. I can't keep up with her all the time & it's only getting worse.
We thought about putting her up for adoption, but out here it's risky. There is dog fighting around here really bad & she is a prime breed for such nonsense. The thought scares me. Plus, after everything we have our into we would have to charge a re-homing fee to recoup some of the expense.
She is also not fixed, we plan to soon as we can afford. I certainly don't feel right re-homing her not fixed. I can't stand the idea of her being a puppy-mill even tho she is not papered.
If we did re-home her, the best plan we can up with is to ask a fee that will weed out scams & help us recoup our coats, & to have them agree to us dropping her off to be fixed, they can play the cost at the vet & pick her up, then she won't be at risk of being bred until she dies. But I'm still worried. This is not a good area for dogs like her. Drugs & fights are a very real problem.
The shelter is also not safe. They are limited & constantly overstocked. She deserves better than a shelter too!
I'm not sure what to do, she is a sweet & spazzy girl. I'm just afraid we are not doing right by her & giving her what she needs due to limitations. I just can't in good heart hand her over to just anyone without being sure she is safe & will be cared for.
I feel she will be the best dog once she is a little older & mature. But she is over a year old, so still young more time before calms & learns stop eating things just because it fits in her mouth lol
I'm hoping some fellow fur-baby lovers will give me some insight & advice. I'm feeling a bit lost, but it's getting hard & I just don't know what do to.
The picture is her ringing her out/potty bells! She's can be so smart! (If only she wouldn't eat non-foods & run into things lol)
I need advice. Both of us have nerve damage, my SO is looking to have a full disk replacement surgery soon. Lucy is rough, tough, & a odd combination of skiddish & spazzy.
We are having trouble keeping up with her. It's literally hurting my back to deal with her everyday. At the moment I'm a stay at home parent, so I'm here all day. She can't be trusted to stay outside alone at all. I was too watch when we let her out the back door to potty. She will EAT EVERYTHING. I do mean everything. Dirt, rocks, wood, bricks, glass, plastic, & grass, tumbleweeds, any crispy plant that crunches... It's a constant issue because if she is left alone anything she can get a hold of she will chew. Anything she chews she will swallow. Luckily at far things she swallowed are manageable & were able to get up/out.
To make the behavior just a tad worse, she will test every boundary she can. I step out of the room she will immediately go mess with anything she has been told not too. She knows, because she will correct herself soon as she realizes I'm back. Otherwise, she is my constant shadow. So I know she is wanting to mess with things the moment she stops following me throughout the house. She is stubborn to a fault!
I'm at my wits end with her behavior on this. I can't stop her from eating everything!
We tried adjusting her diet, but we are restricted by money. I know kibble isn't the best but we do everything we can.
While we do get her treats that she enjoys, I only give them when working on basic training routines. (Sit, lat down, stay, etc... Which she will learn but gets very stubborn with. She would rather just snatch the treat from you if she finds the opportunity.
I have to restrict how much she gets in treats. I can't let her have ANYTHING else. I'm having to keep my kitchen floor clean & cat-food up & away. If she gets anything she will refuse to eat.. For days! Everything I looked up is pointing to it being behavior/stubborness. We can't afford the raw diet or even canned dog food.
We really are trying & doing the best we can.
She was very very rough & spazzy in the beginning, & now she is much better & calmer. But still has spazzy moments that worry me. She will literally RUN in random directions in the back yard... Full on collide with my hot-tub & act like it jumped out in front of her. It's like she doesn't FEEL things & doesn't care. I'm worried she is going to give herself brain damage.
She goes out plenty, either in the back yard being watched or on the leash for a walk. (She loves walks) Occasionally she goes for rides, either to pickup my kid from school or we go to the park.
Sadly, she is strong. I'm only being weaker, my right side note only hurts but also has occasional numbness, I'm sure I'll be next to look at surgery. I can't keep up with her all the time & it's only getting worse.
We thought about putting her up for adoption, but out here it's risky. There is dog fighting around here really bad & she is a prime breed for such nonsense. The thought scares me. Plus, after everything we have our into we would have to charge a re-homing fee to recoup some of the expense.
She is also not fixed, we plan to soon as we can afford. I certainly don't feel right re-homing her not fixed. I can't stand the idea of her being a puppy-mill even tho she is not papered.
If we did re-home her, the best plan we can up with is to ask a fee that will weed out scams & help us recoup our coats, & to have them agree to us dropping her off to be fixed, they can play the cost at the vet & pick her up, then she won't be at risk of being bred until she dies. But I'm still worried. This is not a good area for dogs like her. Drugs & fights are a very real problem.
The shelter is also not safe. They are limited & constantly overstocked. She deserves better than a shelter too!
I'm not sure what to do, she is a sweet & spazzy girl. I'm just afraid we are not doing right by her & giving her what she needs due to limitations. I just can't in good heart hand her over to just anyone without being sure she is safe & will be cared for.
I feel she will be the best dog once she is a little older & mature. But she is over a year old, so still young more time before calms & learns stop eating things just because it fits in her mouth lol
I'm hoping some fellow fur-baby lovers will give me some insight & advice. I'm feeling a bit lost, but it's getting hard & I just don't know what do to.
The picture is her ringing her out/potty bells! She's can be so smart! (If only she wouldn't eat non-foods & run into things lol)
Comments
She does have a Kong Toy, one of the extreme chewer ones. But she doesn't show interest in fetch with it. Just the squeaky toy lol
Sure loves stuffies, but I have to watch her close or she will eat the stuffing. Then act super sad like she's lost stunting important lol
Right now she has a stuffed white kitty, AI far it's the only one she hasn't tried to eat. She lays by it & bathes it & nuzzles it like its her baby, it's super cute! But I still watch closely.
Sure loves running around, but without that one squeaky blue fire hydrant it's nothing but chaos lol
She'll likely stop chewing up everything as she matures but it will also take some discipline. It's best that you don't allow her to chew up squeaky toys and other things that can pose a serious risk to her own health. Buy her an elk antler that she can chew on. This will last her a long time and may curve the cravings to chew on other things.
"It's not just a Dog, it's a Bull Terrier!"
www.bulliesofnc.com
Sometimes she is extra stubborn when I'm working with her. But I've learned if I make a big show of putting the training-treats away & stop all together, wait a min or so, she will suddenly be more cooperative lol
I have thought about a trainer. There is a good program here, but it's not in the budget right now. I really want to get her in but it won't be for a while until we recover from recent medical expenses.
I think my biggest concern is that I feel like no matter how much I work with her, she still just can't be trusted for even a moment alone. I feel bad when I simply have to use the bathroom or do anything where I have to leave her unattended & have to put her in her kennel for no reason other than she eats any non-food that can fit in her mouth... I'm so so worried that she will eat soothing that will kill or hurt her badly. Wind can blow anything into the fenced yard & I might miss it walking through.
ALSO, when she decides that all her training goes out the window & she spazzes out making it difficult to trust her inside, especially right now when my SO just had surgery & isn't allowed to do anything (He isn't even allowed to lift over 5lbs or drive for the next several weeks!)...
ALSO, when she goes out to the fenced yard she can't be trusted to be alone & not eat dirt/rocks/metal/plastic/etc. Even if she didn't eat everything she could find while outside, it still dangerously hot/cold outside, there is hardly any Fall/Spring here. It can get very very hot outside. The winter isn't much better with her thin fur. I've seen people get over heated or to cold out here, I wouldn't wish that on any animal. Plus, fence or not, we have coyotes & they can get past a fence easily. (It is almost 5pm now & shows 105°, couple days ago it showed 122° outside.)
I'm sure I'm spoiling her & I do stay on top of her about behavior & try to give her plenty of play/learning time. It just gets tedious & frustrating at times... Maybe at some point it will stick & stay that way. For now, it's a coin toss to guess if she will behave sometimes. But again... She is a little over 1 year old. Still so young lol
Thank you again for the advice. I'm glad to know she sounds normal & that she should calm down before too long. She has improved a lot since the beginning, but IDK how much more my own nerve damage can take.
For hot days I would get her a portable dog swimming pool or just an extra large basin. My sister in law has one and her dogs love to spend hot days walking, playing or just laying it it.
The pools are not super expensive - chewy has them on sale now. And the large basin can be found at any Home Depot or Lowe's store.
https://www.chewy.com/kopeks-outdoor-portable-dog-swimming/dp/192120?utm_source=google-product&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=hg&utm_content=KOPEKS&utm_term=&gclid=CjwKCAjw8NfrBRA7EiwAfiVJpcZW-Jz0wPyaKJczrtr2G4rvWLtR8_3ZdPoQASvaOw6FZJ6sPtrH7xoCyoIQAvD_BwE