Too Structured?

[meggels]

My mom and Step dad drive me crazy with this. They try to stick as closely as possible to feeding the dogs at 5pm. They act like the dogs are suffering if they eat at 7pm instead of 5. My dogs eat dinner anywhere between 5-9...whatever happens that day. 7 is the norm though.


They also put the two dogs to bed each night between 7-7:30. Even though they stay awake for another few hours???

[emric]

Very well said!! I agree 100%.

Absolutely.

Too much structure can cause serious behavior problems for some dogs. Not to mention it sets some dogs up for failure if/when their schedule ever changes.

Just think if every day your life was the same, you did things in a specific order, at a specific time, etc. Then one day....nope. You can imagine how that would cause some serious anxiety and stress for a dog. They don't understand things like change as we do. Most dogs are quick to adapt but others aren't.

In my experience with behavior modification, a lot of times people will have zero issues with their dogs UNTIL they move, have a baby, one dog-parent changes jobs, they get a new dog, divorce, etc. While you can prepare dogs for every curve ball in life, you can create a healthy balance of structure and randomness.

I don't advocate feeding dogs at the same time every day (prevents dogs from telling time based on when they eat LOL), or in the same spot (resource guarding over an area).

I recommend taking dogs for walks and exercise at different places at different times. NOT the same route day in and day out.

Nap times are awesome as it can break up the day and decrease arousal...but switch it up from day to day.

Just try and be as random as possible, but keeping an orderly approximate structure.

For dogs that are already in a set schedule....you'll have to take things slowly. Gradually make their lives less structured, as I said above abrupt changes can cause behavior problems.

For puppies...be as spontaneous as possible while still being a good leader.

[Liz]

I had Abi's pups over the holidays and about 2 hours into being here all three were at home. They adapted easily, displayed no stress and ate well. They followed the pack's structure and behavior and integrated as if they always came over. Great job Abi! They are always welcome. To be honest most all of the dogs I pet sit for integrate well and I think some of it is that we (my kids and I) expect good behavior and dogs tend to go with the flow. The nutsy dogs we have had have very structured lives in that every meal is exactly at a certain time, every walk is the same route, same time, play time is the same, etc. They do not do well in new situations and seem very stressed for at least a couple of days. I feel sorry for them.

[Caty M]

My mom and Step dad drive me crazy with this. They try to stick as closely as possible to feeding the dogs at 5pm. They act like the dogs are suffering if they eat at 7pm instead of 5. My dogs eat dinner anywhere between 5-9...whatever happens that day. 7 is the norm though.


They also put the two dogs to bed each night between 7-7:30. Even though they stay awake for another few hours???

That's kinda weird.. I feed my dogs.. sometime during the day LOL anywhere from 10AM to 8PM.. but I only feed once per day usually. They go to bed when I go to bed, though if we are up late they usually go to sleep earlier than us.. Why put your dogs to bed earlier.. if I did that Tess would be jumping on me at 6am lol