Problems with the new dog?

Yesterday I got a cocker spaniel from a free to good home ad at the vet's office. She's a very sweet dog who is good with my daughter and my house cat. The lady who gave her to me said she was house broken. I found out that the woman had left her dog outside all winter without grooming her, she never bathed her resulting in massively swollen ticks some of which have fallen off from being full, she is NOT house broken, she doesn't know how to walk on a leash or eat from a bowl. How do I train her? I've had to house break before but never have I had to start from scratch like this. Luckily she's a good dog and sweet dispite her neglect.

Problems with the new dog?
Thank God she gave up the dog. Call your vet and ask if the dog will need any treatment because of the ticks draining her severely of blood. You may need to take the dog to the groomer and get her cleaned and dematted and trimmed relatively short so you can treat the skin which may have problems due to the tick infestation.





She'll need a lot of detangler.


Don't let her in rooms with rugs till she's house trained.


Take her out first thing every morning and last thing every night.


Take her out 15 min after meals to a spot you choose and tell her to go pee, or go poop.





If you wish to let her be in other parts of the house, keep her attached to you by leash. If she starts to squat or circle (to poop) then say NO NO firmly and quickly and take her to the door and outside to the poop/pee area.





google house training, cocker spaniels - because these are really sensitive dogs and there may be some special things you'll need to do to house train her. I believe there are websites specifically geared to training of this breed.





If you leave her in a room with a vinyl floor, put down puppy pads so she has them available in case she needs them. -!-
Reply:each time she pulls you say heel in a stern voice and keep her on the left hand side of you with not to longer lead u will need to keep this up,,,,,,take her to the vets and you should be able to get some special tick shampoo i can imagine her coat is in pretty bad condition,,,, get her a large bowl then fill it up with treats eg. biscuits dog meat and dog nibbles.she will instinctivley go for the food thats in the bowl..good luck if all else fails ? Dog Training Classes?
Reply:well as an advice i think you should use shampoo that can prevent ticks. And to keep your dog clean. i have 2 dogs and after this summer vacation a friend of mine will give me a half duchan half ****-zu dog...... well im just a 11 year old girl but still i can manage to train 2 dogs that this summer will be 3 .... good luck !! and ask someone to train your dog for you!!!!!!!!!!
Reply:First do you still have the number to call? if so try to get the address and then go to her place and see if their are any more dogs like that... if so call you local RSPCA





that person is really mean!!! your going to have to do it as if she were a pup!
Reply:Well thats horible to hear that somebody would do that to an animal... How old is she (the dog)??? you will have to act as if she is a puppy and start from scratch
Reply:if you dont mind spending money, take her to a place that has experience in training dogs.
Reply:You will have to start at square one with her....I am hoping by now you have taken her to a groomer and have the matted hair taken off and have her treated for tics. Also, make sure she does not have an ear infection...this breed is very succeptible to them and if she was outside all winter, may have one. This just breaks my heart to hear this of a cocker spaniel...it is my absolute favorite breed! They are such smart and loyal dogs. Make sure you use a LOT of praise with her and give her extra attention whenever you can to reassure her that her new home is safe and loving and that you'll take good care of her. She will respond pretty much immediately. You may also want to enroll her in a basic obedience class to not only teach both you how to walk together, but it will also socialize her with other dogs. Many blessings to you for saving this poor little dog...I can pretty much guarantee she is definitely worth saving! You'll be amazed at how special these little dogs truly are!!
Reply:Deal with the ticks, first and foremost. If it is really that bad, then have the vet take a look and help you to get her cleaned up.





Next, sign up for obedience classes. It will help you to teach the dog basic commands, and will help the two of you to develop a strong bond. It will be *well* worth your money. You'll have her "heeling" on the leash in a matter of weeks, if you are consistent and practice regularly. The training will also do wonders for your dog's confidence.





Start potty training just as you would with a puppy. Keep a close eye on her, take her out frequently, and give her *lots* of praise when she "goes" in the right spot. If you supervise her closely, she'll never have the opportunity to have an "accident". Be consistent and she'll learn quickly. Consider crate training, to help you with this. Other than that, you've just got to watch her like a hawk, and recognize the "gotta go!" signs (sniffing, spinning, pacing).





Good luck :D
Reply:every thing take time... its just like tranning a puppy. try create tranning. when you gone. when your home and shes out of the create watch her like a hawk. Feed her 2 or 3 times a day. leave it down for an hour than pick the bowls up and dont feed her again till its time. Then shell learn that she only gets food out of this bowl and only for an hour. Watch her after she eats and drinks take her out side about half an hour after she eats or when ever she first wakes up. if she doesnt go wait 10 mins and take her again. if she doesnt do bring her back in side. that way she learns out side is for usen the rest room not playing. walkin on a leash is a big deal if shes on it and dosent want to walk you just need to be patient put her on it and have some one call her and give her a little tug and hopefully after a while shell start walkin over there. if she pulls you while on the leash stop walkin and tell her to sit till she stops pulling. when she stops start goin again repeat over and over. it will take a while but shell catch on. if shes not happy when on the leash when other dogs are around and she pulls to towards them. Stop walking grab her by the collar and pull her faceing the other way once the dog passes start walkin again. like i said b4 she will slowly begain to catch on. it all takes him. and try haven her in controled contact with another dog while on the leash. I hope you care for her and give her tones of love. Good luck.
Reply:That is absolutely horrible - shame on her but at least now the dog has a chance at having a good home.





Well first I would take her to the vet to get a check-up, shots and a detailed grooming. Have them de-flea her, shave her down and remove the matts, cut her nails and express (if you agree or thinks she needs it or if they think she needs it), all of the regular things, deworming, rabies, vaccinations, etc.





See if they recommend heart guard or frontline as well for prevention against future instances.





When you get her home, continue to show her love and if she is going to be an inside dog you will just have to start the process of training her. Either start with a crate or puppy pads until she gets the understanding of not going in the house. I know some people don't like to crate train but it is effective and as long as its not an inside jail it will help to make sure she goes out side. When you let her out of the crate, take her right outside. When you see her using the potty outside say her name and potty and good girl. She naturally will want to please you and associate the word potty with what she's doing and take it from there.





If you have house broken before I am sure you know what to do and will be successful.





Good luck and I am glad she found a good home.
Reply:That's sad. But lucky for her you are kind adn caring and willing to see this through. Many would have considered themselves dooped and dropped the dog off at the shelter. Just be patient. She'll get it down. Consistancy and crate training are key. Try to take her out very often, like evry 30 minutes. I know it seems like a lot given her age, but as yousaid you're starting from scratch so treat it as you would a new puppy. Once you have her "routine" down then you can start to spread the time out a bit inbetween breaks. My dog is a little odd when it comes to poop. He will finish off a bowl of food like nothing and then just lay around. he'll go out to pee in the mean time but won't poop until it's time for his next meal. As soon as he smells the food in his bowl, he has to go. He goes out poops and comes in to eat. It's the strangest thing, but that's him. Treats always go far and will probably do wonders with your dog seens how she probably hasn't had many til now.
Reply:As far as eating from a bowl, our shih tzu doesn't like to eat from a bowl so I place her food on a plate and she eats fine from that. Not sure what it is about a bowl because she drinks her water from a bowl, but anyway, a plate did the trick for our dog. As far as housetraining, make a potty schedule and stick to it. Take her out every 2-3 hours (depending on her age and how much she's drinking and how long you think she can hold it). Take her out at the same door each time, so she'll get used to going to that one door. Keep an eye on her during potty breaks and if you see her sniffing around or walking in circles looking for a spot, distract her immediately and tell her, "Let's go potty!" then take her out. When she goes outside, make sure you give her lots of praise and maybe even a treat. If there are times when you can't keep your eye on her, then I would crate her. I would crate her at night and/or when you can't be at home. Our shih tzu loves hers and will frequently just disappear and I'll find her in there taking a nap!





Good luck on your new family member!
Reply:Well, depending on how old she is, it might be very difficult to trian her...if she is still a pup it wont be near as hard.If she isnt, then it will take alot more time to train her because as they get older they get a little more stubborn and they dont really like to be trained new things.The best thing that you could do though is to just work with her as if she was a brand new puppy that just came into this world. To stop her from peeing in the house they have this stuff at petsmart that will prevent your animals from peeing where ever you spray it.Good Luck, hope I helped!!