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M y dogs hate the side yard.


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Hi There

I'm at a loss as to what is going on with my new dog we rescued.

I have a side yard with a ramp coming out of my dinning room for my dogs to use to go potty

in. But my new boy who is around three years old has a problem with this part of my yard.

My last boy got very sick and i spent the last two months doing everything I could to help him but we had to put him down about three weeks ago. 

I never planed on getting a new this soon but this cute little guy really needed a new home. Hi is so sweet and He makes me laugh all day long with his antics.

He wouldn't even go through the yard to the back yard unless i carried him. Today I thought that i would throw his ball to him in this part of the yard to try and get him comfortable with it.

But after two throw's he wouldn't even touch the ball till I washed it off. So I wondering .Does anyone one here think that the poop and pee from my sick dog could be freaking him out.

and if so any ideas how to get rid of the smell. I always keep the yard picked up and with all the rain I would think it would ok. I need to try and solve this before holidays.  

He doesn't potty in the house but hes have to take him out.

 Any ideas.

Thanks for reading this wordy post.

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Crinkly

Hi and welcome!

im sorry about your previous dog.  These things break our hearts.

it COULD be the smell of your previous dog putting your new one off .  What's their name, by the way? And do we get pics? :)

i have seen it recommended to use Jeyes fluid (if you can get it), but then I think you would need to rinse it really well with a hosepipe to get rid of the chemical. 

My only other suggestion is that you have some sort of monster infestation.  I'm only half joking.  Shih Tzu are very good at monster-detection, and they often see them in places where our puny human senses fail to spot them.

we had a Monster Incident in our side yard this year.  Cato was on high alert. Barking and very wary.  Refused to go down there.  Turned out to be a threatening spider plant, looming with menace from the interior windowsill.  I kid you not.

good job we sorted it, cos it was v real and v strewing for him!

maybe that is what happens for your new shih tzu?

if so, look on the bright side, you will never have to live with any monster ever again! I'm sure you will find that almost as reassuring as we do ;)

Im on my mobile phone at the moment, but I will come back later when I'm on the PC and post some links to the photographic record of the Monster Hunt so you can see how um... mundane it was! Haha!

Edited to add: Here are those links.

This is finding the monster

Exorcising it

And another (unrelated) monster encounter

 

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Jo-Anne
11 hours ago, Splatoid said:

Hi There

I'm at a loss as to what is going on with my new dog we rescued.

I have a side yard with a ramp coming out of my dinning room for my dogs to use to go potty

in. But my new boy who is around three years old has a problem with this part of my yard.

My last boy got very sick and i spent the last two months doing everything I could to help him but we had to put him down about three weeks ago. 

He wouldn't even go through the yard to the back yard unless i carried him. 

Hi again :D loved the pics in your other posts..

So sorry for your loss of your last boy..

Is your yard tiled? or is it soil, grassy?

Dogs and so Shih-Tzu`s really are great sniffers, he might be able to sense the sadness what happened to your other boy..

But there are several options here why it can go wrong..maybe just maybe a pic from the yard might help us see..

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PipsMom

I can only speak for my little girl in her instances...she's a rescue also. 

We don't know what garbage they endured before they come to our loving homes and it's something we as mommies have to figure out and work with them to build up their security's of safety. Perhaps yours had a earlier in life experience outdoors and the back yard reminds him of that.....maybe attacked by a big dog or menaced by one...Frankly it could be anything that scared him. Their memories never go away and resurface at anytime

Slow steady baby steps building trust and security will get him over that in time...be patient and loving and he will learn it's a safe place to play and have fun.

Thank you for adopting him also and giving him a second chance at happiness :dede:

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Sophie's Haven

I think you just need to give this guy a bit more time........sometimes I think we expect to much of our paws when it comes to their behavior..........being that he is around 3 years of age he is already set in his ways......being a rescue you really have no idea what is going thru their little minds. In my experience with rescues it takes them time to know THIS IS HOME..........We were the 5th home for our Winnie and it took her almost 3 years to realize she was not going anywhere and THIS WAS HOME......as far as the ball playing.......none of my 7 play ball and only 4 will play fetch with other toys so I would not let that be of any concern. As far as the yard goes......you may try and spray it with some of the yard chemicals out there that are pet friendly but again it could be something in your little guys mind that triggers something from the past.......My Bailey(began his life being abused) would totally freak out if he heard a sound of a truck with a bad muffler or a loud motorcycle when we were outside or if we started up our tractor but after A LOT of time a patience he no longer reacts that way anymore........with a rescue your just don't know what is going to trigger them to behave the way they do. My 6 little guys do really well for a long period of time but a noise  or certain people (men mostly) or how they are approached  will set them off......... I don't know your situation but can you take him to another section of your yard to do his business and slowly work your way back to that area over time......TIME and  PATIENCE....

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Thanks I know what your saying He is my 6th rescue dog. That is all i get. And the reason I tried the ball is he loves to play ball. the first one I've had that loves it so much. 

So far he is  one of the most well rounded guys Iv'e gotten,  He walks real easy and is quite confidant.My last Lassa that i had for years was one of the toughest dogs I ever had to get used to us.

He bit me two times and drew blood but it was out of fear.Once  i learned how to approach him slowly  he was fine and turned out to be one of the sweetest dogs i ever had.This guy goes everywhere with me he doesn't  even like me to go into the bathroom without him. I am looking for something to spray on the yard today.

Thanks for the reply.

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Missysmom

welcome and i hope your pup is doing better with the side yard now. i just wanted to add that we too have a rescue, she's been with us over 2 years now and Still won't go on a section of the yard if another dog has gone on it, at least for a long time.... so hopefully with time and lots of rain etc things will get better for him and he'll go there. Bless you for rescuing and helping so many little ones finally have a furever home! please keep us posted on how your pup does.

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I found a spray that is safe for pets I got it a pet smart. Kind of spendy but you hook it up to the hose and spray the yard to get rid of orders. 

But it was so cute two days ago they started going all the way to the back yard together and it was so cool.It almost looked like my older Pippin was teaching him what to do.

They have done this multiple times now and they  are starting to gel nicely now. Pippin has always been afraid of Ralphie cause he so hyper and Pippin is the most passive dog I have ever seen.

Almost painfully so.If your petting him and he wants to go lay down he wont go till you tell him its alright. Its nice to see him getting more used to Ralphie. Not the best quality pic but still cute.

2016-11-13 17.08.48.jpg

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Vespertine
On 07/11/2016 at 4:40 AM, Crinkly said:

 Shih Tzu are very good at monster-detection, and they often see them in places where our puny human senses fail to spot them.

This post and your blogs about the monster situation are amazing.

I think you're so right! My last shih tzu was afraid of a room in our basement. She preferred to be carried through it (you had to go through it to reach the rest of the basement). I joked that it must be haunted - at times it was actually pretty spooky when she would bark or stare down at, apparently, nothing. 

She was also afraid of a painting. That was after sniffing it, so maybe it was something about the smell? Who knows what they're observing. 

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Missysmom

So glad the yard problem got fixed, would love to know the name of the product you got. love the picture, they are so precious!

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It is by Top Paw called Yard odor eliminator. there is just the spray bottle that is cheaper than the concentrated which i got. This 32 oz bottle cost about $24.00 Kind of spendy. Must have gold in it.

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  • 4 weeks later...

I thought I would update my progress with my little stinker. He is using the dog door and using the side yard also. He is such a pill he follows me everywhere he even tried to jump in the shower with me which is a no go.

My other boy is slowly starting to warm up to him but he is so timid and Ralphie is so wired it's slow going. My Pippin has his bed under the end table between two recliners and likes to hide there.

Ralphie will run up to him 90 MPH and stop right in his face and it freaks Pippin out. I think Ralphie thinks its fun.I'm always hollering at him to stop when I see him ready to do this but cant catch him every time.

But they sleep next to each other a lot now but that is Ralphie's  doing. I just hope Pippin gets used to him. The vet guessed his age at around 5 but I'm thinking hes more like 2. Pippin has some real issues with fear and pleasing us.

He is so sensitive that if you say i think its bed time to my wife he will jump down and start heading to the dog door. Which isn't real bad except its almost in a frantic way. He will never get under your feet and Is just so over top with anxiety.

 

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PipsMom

Glad to hear Raphie is starting to warm up to him :) They will sort themselves out eventually and all the awkwardness and fright will turn into playing

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Crinkly

Thank you for the update!

That is good progress for 5 weeks or so :)

poor little love being so anxious.  Is he improving with that?  If Pippin is two, hopefully he will be more adaptable than if he were 5...

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Sophie's Haven

Eventually Pippin and Ralphie will meet in the middle......it may take some time but it will happen when you least expect it. Having a house full of rescues there is not a day that goes by that my husband and I don't see what we call "coming to a full bloom" happen...........

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  • 6 months later...
Splatoid

So A few months have passed since I posted about Ralphie and his  problems with the yard. 

He still doesn't like the side yard much but will use it if I shut the gate to the back yard . But I take both my boys down the the creek most every day and they act like it;s the most fun thing ever. They run through the grass and I swear they are smiling. I really don't think he was ever outside before. He has turned into my guy he followes me everywhere and I mean everywhere. He even is outside my shower door licking the glass the whole time. I have never had that makes me laugh this mush. 
I have had a lot of fun with all of them but this guy is a trip. Everything he does is funny. And he loves to bite me and play rough. But he never does that with anyone else just me.

 

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PipsMom

What a great update and to hear....Made me smile big time the way he follows you around

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Missysmom

Super news! Ralphie sounds like such a fun pup, love your description of all that he does!:D

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