digging in backyard

I have a 7 years old greyhound; a rescue dog who is really a great dog. he's
lovable, friendly and well mannered around the house.
When he goes to the backyard to do his business, he has his own private
area. An area about 300 square feet is all his own, but he has one problem I
can't figure out. there is one spot, near a tree, where is digs, as if there
is a bone buried there. There is absolutely nothing buried in this place,
but you would think, he is searching for dog food. Sometime, he will try to
eat the dirt and we have to call him back to the house. What would make him
dig in just this one spot? I'm really mystified about this problem. Any help
appreciated.
John

diddy...

Grubs? My dogs love them

John Payton...

WOW I didn't think about that. I put grubx on the rest of the backyard to
get rid of grubs but didn't put it on the dogs area because I was afraid it
might hurt him. His area is covered with mulch, since grass won't grown too
good in that area. Guess I will rake up the mulch and then put down grubx.
Then I'll spread the mulch over the area and maybe that will stop the

Rocky...

Dogs like to dig and it's great that yours has picked one
particular spot to dig in. I wouldn't discourage this
behaviour.

digging. Thanks.

starrkssd...

I have a poodle with 3 favored spots to dig, when my dog digs i praise
him and he stops. but my dog does it from pent up nervous energy,
especially after being inside all winter. if he keeps going at it even
while you praise you'll know its not nervousness energy. sometime to
try,

sighthounds & siberians...

So what do you do if you praise the dog and he keeps digging?

Rocky...

I think that I've finally figured these folks out - I really
don't think they're praising the bad behaviour, but the
cessation of bad behaviour after the dog has been successfully

TheSimplyAmazingPuppyWizard...

No, that's NOT what we're doin. It's ALL EXXXPLAINED in your own
FREE COPY of The Freakin Simply Amazing Puppy Wizard's 100%
CONSISTENTLY NEARLY INSTANTLY SUCCESSFUL FREE WWW
Wits' End Dog Training Method Manual <:{) ' ~ ) >

distracted.

starrkssd...

hi ,
just wanted to clarify, my dog is digging out of nervous energy, so by

Rocky...

What is nervous energy? Is it the type of energy which results
from underexercising and understimulating a dog? Anyway, that's
what it sounds like to me.

praising him when he digs i am relaxing him by telling him hes good
everything is ok and im refocusing his attention on me, and that's what
they really want , time and positive attention from their people! so he

Rocky...

Natch. But they also relax when their boundaries are well
understood. Dig there: "That'll do"; dig here: "Good boy!"

gets happy and leaves behind the digging which in his mind was going to
get him some relief from his poodle energy:-)

Rocky...

I thought that a dog was a dog.

crystal and starr and cj

shore...

I'm not sure. I've been under the impression that they're
using praise as distraction. Could be that they're

TheSimplyAmazingPuppyWizard...

From what I've read of Jerry's method it incorporates
a completely new model of learning, which is based (in
simplest terms) on the idea that all behavior is the result
of finding a way to relieve emotional tension.

This is true not just for dogs but all animals.

You don't believe in the validity of this particular model of
learning?

You don't think it makes sense?

Fine, I guess.

But it makes total sense to me.

And it made sense to Pavlov, too, though not many people know
this:

"Postitive emotions arising in connection with the
perfection
of a skill, irrespective of its pragmatic significance
at a given
moment, serve as the reinforcement." IOW, emotions, not
outside rewards, are what reinforces any behavior."

combining the two, inadvertently or not - the odds of people

TheSimplyAmazingPuppyWizard...

No, the BRIEF, VARIABLY ALTERNATING NON PHYSICAL DISTRACTION
is a DISTRACTION and MUST BE INSTANTLY followed with PROLONGED
NON PHYSICAL PRAISE. This is a PRECISE SCIENTIFIC 100% CONSISTENTLY
NEARLY INSTANTLY SUCCESSFUL METHOD.

The dog MUST be allHOWED to try to resume the BAD BEHAVIOR *(THAT'S
HOWE COME we DON'T GIVE A PHYSICAL DISTRACTION or REMOVE the
dog from the ENVIRONMENT) so the DISTRACTION and PRAISE can be REPEATED
untill the THOUGHT of the behavior is sufficiently INTERRPUTED
till EXXXTINCTION occurs, usually in three or four consecutive
repetitions and
in severe cases, REPEATED in FOUR DIFFERENT environments <{) : ~ ) >

TheSimplyAmazingPuppyWizard...

t=2E

RIGHT. THAT'S HOWE COME using ONLY PURE POSITIVELY PLEASUREABLE
METHODS doesn't cause dogs EXXXTREME anXXXIHOWESNESS which causes
them to furiHOWESLY DIG, FIGHT and DESTROY YOUR HOWES, REMEMBER
malinda?:

From: Jerry Howe
Date: Fri, Nov 23 2001

Subject: dig tremendous holes! + $20.00 REWARD
For Digging Solution - Change That. I got
$100.00 Says NOBODY'S Got Any Solution
Except Jerry Howe In His FREE Wits' End Dog
Training Method Manual...

TheSimplyAmazingPuppyWizard...

Research Laboratory

Subject: HELP!!!! Digging issues - Now you go back and ask
our expert trainers HOWE to stop dogs from digging holes.

This is not a particularly mysterious problem. Your
dogs are bored and underexercised. Of course they're
destructive.

this inexperienced having good timing aren't that great.

sighthounds & siberians...

There was a discussion not too long ago where some normals were trying
to pin down some Jerryites as to exactly what they were praising, and
I thought someone said too that the praise was the distraction. I
don't think they really know for sure.

shore...

Best summary yet!

Mustang Sally

starrkssd...

in the case of the dog doing something wrong or i should say
"undesired" we are praising to alleviate stress or hypertension, get
his attention, and make him feel happy and loved in our attention.
in the case of using distraction and praise to teach come the sound is
used to enforce the word come and wipe out other thoughts the dog has
for that moment, the praise is used to grab his attention and encourage
him to come. (of course the body language also will encourage or
discourage the dog from coming.
who of you here have read the wits end method? maybe you have to tryit
before you will start to understand it??

sighthounds & siberians...

Hypertension is high blood pressure. Using incorrect terminology is
extremely confusing and adversely affects credibility.

I've read the Wits' End 'manual', for lack of a better term. It is so
poorly written that it is nearly incomprehensible. I have no need to
try the methods Jerry claims as his own, assuming I could decipher
them, because the methods I use work. I use distraction and praise
all the time, as I suspect most people here do.

Mustang Sally

crystal

Y'know - the same thing everyone here has done forever.

sighthounds & siberians...

Yep, that's what I'd figured too. The reason I asked Crystal is
because some of her other posts seemed to indicate that she praised
the bad behaivor and if it was 'stress-related' (nervous energy) the
behavior would stop. If it wasn't stress-related, she'd distract and
then praise. I don't recall if that's what The Witless One tells
people to do or not; I thought he said praise bad behavior, period.
But in any event, sure, who doesn't distract and then praise the dog
after it's been distracted and has stopped doing whatever it was
doing?

Mustang Sally

Mustang Sally

starrkssd...

for my own dogs i dont want them to dig in the yard so if he digs and
digs after i have already praised him (5 to 20 seconds) ill make a
distraction and praise him again. if he still digs ill make another
distraction coming from another direction so that it still gets his
attention and praise him again, and so on. sometimes , i have found
with my dogs and others i have handled, adjusting my possition or
giving a calming signal works as a very nice distraction. i find it
pretty easy to "erase" most "problem" behaviors once i get my dogs
minds off whatever it is i dont want them to think about with
distraction and praise and back on me.
but thats me and my dogs,
crystal

crystal