Dog driving me crazy!!

[lambchops]

Hi I dont know if anyone can help here, but we took on about 2 yrs ago a Lhasa Apso doggie that had been living with an old lady relative of someone we know, lady had to go in a home so we now have the dog. She's about 12-14ish at most from what we can gather from guestimates from when she was bought etc. She's been fine the whole time shes been with us, very set in her ways but doesnt do much, just chills a lot, guess with her being an old lady doggie shes not interested! She doesnt play, she doesnt interact with toys teddies etc cos shes never had any, she doesnt beg for food, she has her meals at meal times only doesnt snack inbetween, she doesnt take treats, wont enertain them! doesnt really pay much attention, she just lays about and chills. Which is fine, shes an old lady but lately the last few weeks shes driving me crazy! She never 'goes' in the house always waits to go out, and hardly ever wants to go out to wee, if she ever did she'd go to the front door and wait, but lately the last few weeks shes taking herself to the front door, sitting, barking, over and over just yap....yap....yap till you let her out, then shes goes outside, doesnt wee, just sits there, chillin?! so then after a couple of minutes, its like get in! she strolls in, comes in, 5 mins later she's back at the door, yap....yap...yap again! im not keep letting her out im like get back to the living room, or i just leave her and after a bit she comes back into the room, looks at you as if to say 'hey, av been sat there barking at you!' then 5 mins later, back out she goes, sitting barking to go out. She doesnt NEED to go out, she just wants to go out for a sit, and its driving me potty!! any advice?

 

[tina_h75]

Have you got a garden ? Could you leave the back door open so she can come and go when she wants ?

 

[lambchops]

Thanks for your help, We have but our house is all knocked through so if we leave the back open it gets a bit chilly through the whole of downstairs, but mainly shes had slipped disc trouble last year so she's not really supposed to be jumping up and down steps, and we have a lil step only small but she has to jump out the door to get out, and then when shes in the garden she'll chill for a bit, but then if she hears a noise or if the neighbours are out she just barks over and over and over so we have to bring her in. She sounds like a right pain doesnt she haha xxx

 

[tina_h75]

She sounds like a character. Sorry, I have no other advice. x

 

[lambchops]

She sounds like a character. Sorry, I have no other advice. x

She is! haha shes a cutie but an annoying one at that! thanks for the help xx

 

[SophiasMummy]

Being an old girl there might actually be something wrong with her if this is a sudden change in behaviour, I would take her the vets if it carrys on to be honest as older dogs dont generally suddenly change there behaviour like that x

 

[deafgal]

install a doggie door?

 

[tina_h75]

Being an old girl there might actually be something wrong with her if this is a sudden change in behaviour, I would take her the vets if it carrys on to be honest as older dogs dont generally suddenly change there behaviour like that x

actually, this is a really good point. Maybe get her checked over to make sure that everything is working ok.

 

[KayBea]

i would take her to the vets. My old dog went like that at about 14-15 years old. Just get her checked out, xxx

 

[lambchops]

Thanks everyone i think i will take her down, someone else i spoke to said she could have something similar to our dementia kind of thing but doggie kind if her behaviours starting to go odd. Lil trip to the vets it is! Thanks xx

 

[midori1999]

I agree it's best to get the vet to check her out first.

However, she wants to go out, she barks, you let her out so she gets what she was after. She's not daft, she's trained you well. If you ignore her, the barking will stop. It will get worse first, because dogs have 'extinction bursts' when a behaviour is no longer rewarded, because it worked before, so they try even harder to get it to work again. Ignore means don't let the dog out, don't look at the dog, don't speak to the dog and don't touch the dog, even if you are doing any of these in a negative way, as all of these things are rewarding for dogs.