

Quirky, unusual, and otherwise out-of-the-ordinary dogs

In all of my years of dog training, I have encountered just about every breed and nearly every behavioral problem possible in the canine world.

Some dogs have behaviors – mostly learned – that are a bit outside the norm. Their owners are often resigned to managing their dogs’ so-called quirks rather than trying to change them. Sometimes they don’t think the anomaly can be fixed. If the quirk is just a pattern of behavior, changing the pattern is often the most expedient solution.

Take Stewart, an 8 year old West Highland Terrier who has no problem getting up the stairs when alone, but will not come down them when his owners are present. Instead, he waits to be carried up the steps. Stewart’s owners have tried cajoling him, pleading with him, putting treats on the stairs, squeaking his favorite toy at the top of the stairs – all to no avail.  Stewart, of course, had this all figured out. He knew if he held out long enough, the humans would give in, pick him up, and bring him up the stairs.

There are actually two solutions to this problem. One way is to take Stewart out of and back into the house through a different doorway. Yes, there are steps in the garage as well as at the back door, but somehow a complete switch to something new and untried can break the logjam in Stewart’s brain.

A second solution is to bring him outside just before his dinner, then put dish of food at the top of the stairs. His owners did not disappear but kept busy within his line of sight. Eventually, hunger won out and Stewart scurried up the stairs.

Another example of a quirky behavior is Annabelle, a 2 year old Havanese who would attack her owners arm when the cell phone rang. Seriously! This was a very easy fix. We could have spent some time desensitizing Annabelle to the sound by praising and treating her for being quiet while we rang the phone over and over. But…the simplest thing to do was to just change the ring tone itself. Once we went from Stargaze to By the Seaside, Annabelle barely lifted her head when the phone rang.


And finally there is Fitzwilliam, a Chihuaha mix, who won’t drink water from his dish unless it is fresh. If he has had a drink from the dish, he will not drink from it again until the bowl is rinsed out and filled with clean water. I know…can you spell S.P.O.I.L.E.D? No, Fitzy’s owners are not relegated to being his waiter. Instead, they purchased an automatic dog fountain, which satisfied Fitzwilliam’s need for fresh water and enabled his owners to have a life away from the sink.

Sometimes the most obvious solutions are the best ones.



Rachel Baum