The adventures of ninja/huoudini Akita

Comments

• MommyofNiko

  August 2008 edited November -1

  He is so cute! What about making a pen? Romi and Brad should be able to give you advice. Darn the smart dogs!
  Where is MN are you? Chad and I are hoping to move back in the next year. I am from Minneapolis and Chad is from Cottage Grove (stp suburb).
• j_nestingen

  August 2008 edited November -1

  We live in Woodbury, just north of Cottage grove, we are trying to get him crate trained he is really resistant, dosent like it now because its too close to the humane society condidtions we are going to have to take it slow and make sure we proceed slowly and try to recondition him to us leaving and reduce his anxiety, good luck with the move back MN is almost as cool as WI almost
• tsukitsune

  August 2008 edited November -1

  a pen might be super easy to knock over without really good heavy attached flooring, but it gives the dog more space options than a crate.
  we had a foster basset that would howl and howl and mess and chew the metal crate, but he also tipped the pen over by slamming into it to get free while ripping a hole in our couch and knocking over 3 plants. faaaantastic.
  
  have you read this yet?:
  http://www.hsus.org/pets/pet_care/our_pets_for_life_program/dog_behavior_tip_sheets/separation_anxiety.html
• Sangmort

  August 2008 edited November -1

  Awww, poor babe! I feel bad for him. [ that he's lonely, but what a clever boy! ] Have you tried seriously tiring him out with good long walks & physical activities? Maybe then he'll be too tired to try & escape
  
  Sorry I can't offer more advice then that. I hope you figure out a way to keep him at bay & occupied! ~
• MommyofNiko

  August 2008 edited November -1

  We would love to move to Woodbury...if it wasnt so close to the in-laws!!!!
  I went to UW-RF...MN is way better...I just remember the smell of manuer all the time!
  Our mix had separation anxiety, but fortunately LOVES her kennel. And your baby has got to be a monster strong creature!
• j_nestingen

  August 2008 edited November -1

  we take him for long looooooooong walks at night to try and tucker him out and it works till we leave the room, then he is bright eyed and curly tailed wide awake no matter how long the walk, and he is huge, his nickname is "the monster" he is crazy strong, but such a sweetie when we are around, i am sure we will figure this out, we just need to put the time into training him I went to UW-Platteville loved it i spent the first three years of life in RF i have a cheese head size soft spot for WI Woodbury is wonderfull
• brandon_w

  August 2008 edited November -1

  WI > MN
  
  Sorry to hear of the continued troubles of Kayden. I have no doubt that things can get solved eventually but Kayden might make it costly along the way. I really wish I had more advice for you, but I don't have any experience with separation anxiety. Have you looked into a behaviorist in your area yet?
  
  How much would it cost to line the mud room with 1/4" sheet metal?
• j_nestingen

  August 2008 edited November -1

  Step ahead of ya, i thought about trimming the door out in light guage stainless, it would be fun, neat looking and totally impervious to doggies, but we are going to try the crate route for now, we will see how it goes and yes WI much much > than MN
• dlroberts

  August 2008 edited November -1

  I don't have much experience with separation anxiety. Joey will whimper quietly for up to five minutes when he knows I'm around but in another room. My roomate tells me he does the same when I leave. The most destructive he gets is chewing the bedding in his crate, so his case is super mild. It sounds like you guys are dealing with a pretty serious case that might require some professional assistance.
  
  Have you tried conditioning training at all? Like leaving him for 30 seconds and then coming back with a treat and slowly building that up over time? I think that's the standard approach. Also, you might try to shift your schedules to give him that looooooong walk in the morning so he's tired during the day when you aren't around. I am NOT a morning person at all, but I've trained myself to be out of bed no later then 7:30 so I can walk my dogs for at least 45 minutes (but preferably an hour or more) every morning. If I skimp on the morning walk for a few days in a row, I can see the results in their behavior.
  
  Good luck and keep us updated!
  
  P.S. Jens, I love the stainless idea. Better document that process and post pics if you do it. :-)
• Harlow

  August 2008 edited November -1

  When we lost our male Malamute, our female Mal, Diva suffered major separation anxiety. When left at home alone, she worked herself into a frenzy of activity and crying and did major damage to things in the house. We ended up taking her to day care everyday until we could find her a new sibling. This was challenging since she was dog aggressive. We ended up with a Shiba Inu male. It took about a month for them to bond. During that time, we took them both to day care everyday. It was obvious to us that Diva could not exist at home alone.
  You might want to work with a behaviorist. Just doing more physical confinement might never solve the problem.
  Good luck.
• sujewel

  August 2008 edited November -1

  Separation Anxiety is a difficult behavior to address. It requires ALOT of training, exercise and patience. Our girl Mika has a fairly severe case of SA, which we thwarted, to some degree, by getting her a mate. However, what Kayden should get is training. He really needs to learn that when you leave, you are going to come back. To do that, you really need some repetition. Leaving for a minute (the whole routine, shoes, coat, etc) then coming back. Once he gets the hang of it, leave for 5 minutes, 10 minutes, etc. Mika, as a pup, would get upset the minute we left the house. Once, I left the house for 20 minutes and she cried and whined the entire time - according to our very upset landlords!
  
  Crate training will also take time and energy. You have to coax Kayden into a crate - perhaps one that is open and not so enclosed. Kayden has to enter the crate willingly and be a very positive experience. Since Kayden is so in love with humans, maybe clicker training would be a good thing for him. Mika isn't an eager to please kind of dog, so it's lost on her, but it could be beneficial to Kayden's training since he's not food motivated.
  
  I'm also going to echo what everyone has already said. A behaviorist is a great option! As is taking Kayden for a long, tiring walk in the morning. Try a pack with some water bottles for added weight.
• MommyofNiko

  August 2008 edited November -1

  I wish I could help more...It is going to continue to be trial and error unfortunatly.
  Will you send me some cheesecurds?? People here think that sounds like the most disgusting thing ever. DONT get me started on how bummed I am that I missed the state fair!
• j_nestingen

  August 2008 edited November -1

  I would love to send cheese curds ,dont know what the USPS does to protect the integritiy of milk products. Where do you live that cheese curds are a "disgusting" food stuff? What ignorance, cheese curds are the most delictable of delicacies we are currently doing the crate training w/kayden, we are now on 5 min in the crate and increasing, wish us luck
• MommyofNiko

  August 2008 edited November -1

  That is awesome! Cheese curds will convince me to stay in a crate too! String cheese is great too.
  People cant get past the name...I think it is the "curd" part of it. We are in Atlanta, but we lived in Indiana too and they thought the same thing.
  Are you able to leave the room yet when he is in the crate?
• j_nestingen

  August 2008 edited November -1

  Yeah i can see curd being off putting unless you are familiar, we made it to 15 min alone in the crate, then he escaped he does ok not great, it would seem that he has quite a bit of cage fear and seperation anxiety, not an ideal combo we are going to keep working on it this weekend, he was in the crate for a grand total of two hours he but no more than 15 min by himself, we did the whole routine the clothes the keyes the doors this is just going to take work
• dlroberts

  August 2008 edited November -1

  That's great. 15 minutes a big progress! Keep up the good work.
• Leonberger

  August 2008 edited November -1

  What you could also do is mix it up a bit. Sometimes get ready to leave but instead of doing that go in the kitchen or somewhere in the house and close you self in there for a while. Or go out without doing the whole ritual (shoes, keys, wallet). Keep increasing the time you separate from him.
• brandon_w

  August 2008 edited November -1

  I ate fried Cheese Curds at the taste of Madison today. From the Old Fashioned, they are the best. I also had wan-ton butterfingers and a cookie dough eggroll. There was a lot of good food to be had up there.
  
  Just a little update from Wisconsin. Now I have to edit some of the 400 pictures I have taken this weekend.
• MommyofNiko

  August 2008 edited November -1

  Evil Brandon...Just EVIL! This is the hardest time to be away from home...State fair, fall, apple orchards everywhere...
  : (
  Fried cheese curds with ranch!! You are torturing a pregnant woman!
  Im gonna go make fresh popped popcorn and sulk.
  BTW cant wait to see the pics and here about the shiba event!
• sujewel

  August 2008 edited November -1

  Cheese Curds? I dunno.Doesn't sound so bad, but I love cheese, so anything with that word in it is ok in my book!!!!
  
  As for Kayden, did you write that he escaped from the crate? How on earth did he do that? As I mentioned, it's a process. BUT, any little bit of progress is AMAZING!!!
• j_nestingen

  September 2008 edited November -1

  Brandon your dietary choices made my heart slow down, wow, butter finger wontons, really thats crazy. I cant wait to see the pics. Yes kayden escaped from his crate, he undid the top latch and then squeezed his entire body out of a very small gap, hes amazing
• MommyofNiko

  September 2008 edited November -1

  My dogs dont have enough guts for that. Niko just started to be brave enough to push a door open, and she is 3 in 12 days! Sorry that just hit me. My baby is growing up!!
  I would of pay great money to watch the stealth Akita.
• Romi

  September 2008 edited November -1

  I too would pay money to see the stealth akita!!! he really sounds amazing!
• BradA1878

  September 2008 edited November -1

  I'm super late to this thread, so if I repeat something someone has written already just ignore me.
  
  ----
  
  I want to go back to the pen idea. The beauty of the pens we created for our "Ninja", named Ahi, is that [when they are attached to a floor] the walls of the pen are not rigid enough to support her weight, yet they are strong enough to stop her from getting out. Granted Ahi is less that half the size of your Akita, but I still think a pen would work really well.
  
  See the pen moves when a dog put its paws on it, it kinda flexes, but since its attached to the floor it can't be just knocked over. So the dog doesn't feel comfortable enough with the structure to put their weight on it in the way they would need to climb out.
  
  Here is a post where Romi documented her pen, there are notes on how my wife and I attached ours to temp. floor as well.
  
  ----
  
  Another option might be a tether in your house or garage:
  
  www.pettethers.com
  
  *I'm not a fan of keep a dog on leash all day while you are not home, but in this case if it prevents him from getting out and being hit by a car or something then I am all for it. You could use a very long tether in the garage so he has space to walk around and play.
  
  ----
  
  He really sounds like an amazing dog - he is lucky to have you guys... but you are lucky to have such an amazing friend to share your life with too.
  
  That pic is super cute!
  
  ----
• j_nestingen

  September 2008 edited November -1

  we penned him today for the first trip out, he did great. We had to zip tie the structure together and then padlock the door; twice. That seemed to thwart him, we did have to remove his utility belt and cape and lucky for us no one needed a superhero dog while we were out otherwise we would have been in trouble. He did really well, i like the soft sided cage idea, lets see how he does with his current set up. Thanks all for the ideas sorry to spam so heavily but here is one of him in his favorite (only) hat
• Sangmort

  September 2008 edited November -1

  Yay! Houdini has been out-magicked!
  
  Let's hope he continues to do well.~
• MommyofNiko

  September 2008 edited November -1

  Sounds like YOU got a work out!
  YAY for outsmarting the Nihon ken!!!
• dlroberts

  September 2008 edited November -1

  Great to hear you have a solution that may work for him. And he looks ADORABLE in that hat. :-)
• j_nestingen

  September 2008 edited November -1

  well today has gone well he made it all day in his crate, we will continue with this course as long as he responds well, thanks all
• dlroberts

  September 2008 edited November -1

  Awesome! That's great news. :-)