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Behavior Q & A

Here are some frequently asked questions based on some we have received on our Behavior Helpline, 650/340-7022, ext. 783.

We recently adopted a beautiful young bunny. What is the best way to bond with him and play with him?

Any good relationship takes time and patience. Set aside a period each day for you and your rabbit to get to know each other. Start by sitting on the floor in a small room, and wait for him come to you on his own terms. Let him sit in your lap and gently stroke and talk to him. Soon you will develop a deep and lasting bond with your bunny. Rabbits generally become aggressive when they reach sexual maturity. Be sure to have your rabbit spayed or neutered at four to six months of age. Because rabbits are naturally curious, you have many options for keeping yours happy and entertained. Here are some rabbit-tested favorites. Be sure to hold the play session in a small room that has been well rabbit proofed, meaning that all valuable books, magazines and potted plants have been moved to higher shelves and that you've covered or hidden all electrical cords and outlets. If you have good carpeting or rugs that you'd like to keep that way, cover them with seagrass mats during bunny's playtime.

• set out cardboard boxes that you have cut an entrance or exit in
• set up a row of empty toilet paper rolls. See if your bunny will nudge them down.
• give him a towel to bunch up
• favorite toys include slinkys, hard plastic baby toys and baskets that are not treated with finishes or chemicals.

I survived puppyhood and thought the worse was over. Boy, was I wrong. Now I have a seven-month-old dog who is 70 pounds of boundless energy and seems to be reverting back to many of his puppy misbehaviors.

The technical term is adolescence. Think back to when you were 12 or 13. Pretty scary isn't it?! Well, that's what your dog is going through right now. Hopefully you have already neutered your dog. This age is hard enough without having raging hormones. Exercise is also very important for the adolescent dog: give your dog plenty of aerobic exercise on a daily basis. He needs to get his heart rate up so he can burn off excess calories and get rid of some of that boundless energy. Try throwing a ball and having him retrieve it. Speed walking and running are also good, although you need to vary the surfaces you walk/run on so you don't put too much stress on growing bones.

An obedience class is always a good idea during adolescence. Even if your dog has already been in a class, a little brush-up couldn't hurt. The class will also give you both the support of the instructor and the compassion of people in class who are going through the same thing that you are.

You weren't specific about your dog's misbehaviors, but you might want to consider bringing out the crate if you've stored it in the attic. (Be sure the crate is large enough for your now grown dog.) If you never crate-trained your dog, now may be the time. Many adolescent dogs have destructive behaviors, and it's impossible to watch a dog all of the time. If you have a crate, you can put the dog in it for short periods of time when he can't be supervised. If the dog is destructive during the day when you are at work, you can use the crate for up to four or five hours at a time. To give your dog a mid-day break, arrange to come home from work or hire a professional dog walker to let the dog out of his crate.

Finally, be patient. Adolescence doesn't last forever -- just until your dog is four to six years old!

What do you recommend for a 10-month-old male cat who stays awake most of the night running around the house playing with his toys or jumping on my head to wake me?

Cats are naturally nocturnal but most seem to adapt to our schedule pretty nicely. If you work all day, your cat probably sleeps most of the time you are gone. You need to keep your cat active when you get home. No naps. An hour or two before you go to bed, plan an aerobic activity to get his heart rate up and burn off some excess energy. Try placing some golf balls on a non-carpeted floor and let your cat chase them around. Place a ping pong ball in an empty bathtub and let your cat chase it. Or tie a feather to the end of a string and drag it around the house; your cat will love to chase it.

One other thing to consider: If you let your cat have access to food all of the time, try taking it away from him around 7 pm. This way he has a chance to digest all of his food before his aerobic workout. Eating activates the metabolism, which may be helping to keep him up at night.

How do we go about getting our recently adopted cat -- who is not used to being around dogs -- used to our dog who has never lived with a cat?

You have your work cut out for you. First, your dog's natural inclination will be to run around and play with or chase the cat. Your new kitty should be allowed to explore the house whenever the dog is outside. When the dog is inside the cat should be back in a separate room. When the kitty is feeling more comfortable with his new home, it is time for the dog and kitty to start their introductions. Because each dog and cat is unique, there is no set amount of time that this process will take. The key is to make sure that the dog is always on leash when you are having a session with the dog and cat together. If the dog starts to chase the kitty, give him a strong jerk and tell him, "No!" in a firm voice. If he does not try to chase the kitty, he should receive verbal praise, petting and treats. If the kitty should become aggressive, a squirt bottle with water aimed at the face is very effective. When the dog is more used to the kitty and doesn't seem to want to chase him, start having these sessions with the dog off leash -- but make sure to have a squirt bottle (or two) available just in case! Do not leave the dog and cat unsupervised until you they are comfortable with each other and seem to have a mutual understanding.

I came home from work today to find a notice on the door from my local police department. One of my neighbors had complained that my dog barks during the day while I am at work. How can I correct the behavior when I am not here when it occurs?

Open the lines of communication with your close neighbors. The police will not tell you who complained. Visit each neighbor and let them know that you have received a complaint about your dog's barking. Explain that you want to work on stopping the barking but until the other day you weren't even aware that the problem existed. Ask each neighbor if they have heard the dog barking, and if so: (1) When did it start? (2) How long did it last? (3) Was there an apparent stimulus for the barking, such as nearby construction, deliveries or children coming home from school?

Dogs bark for a number of reasons: boredom, separation anxiety, stress, panic, hearing things they can't see, seeing things they can't get at, and combinations of all of these. If you have neighbors who are home during the day you may be able to enlist their help in trying to change your dog's behavior. When the dog barks, ask the neighbors to say the dog's name and "Quiet!" or "No bark!" This might, at least, interrupt the barking. Squirting the dog in the face with a squirt bottle or shaking an empty can filled with rocks or pennies may also halt the barking. When your dog stops barking he should receive verbal praise, petting and a special treat that he gets only when he stops barking.

If neighbors are not an option for help, you will need to set up a situation that allows you to catch your dog in the act. Do your workday morning schedule on a Saturday. Leave the house and then come back to see if you can catch your dog barking. If you have a two-person household, one person could leave and the other could stay behind to observe the dog's behavior. Use the negative and positive reinforcements described above to correct and reward your dog.

Other possible solutions for a barking dog are increased aerobic activity to burn excess energy (speed walking and "fetch" are two good choices), more and different types of toys to occupy time alone, enrolling in an obedience class to increase your control over the dog, leaving a radio or TV on when leaving the dog alone, or hiring someone to walk and socialize with your dog.

My dog chases anything that moves. I have to be very careful with her on walks. If she sees a cat or other small animal she'll bolt, and if I'm not paying attention I'll end up face down on the sidewalk! How can I control this behavior?

Canines have an instinctive behavior called prey drive. This instinct allows wild dogs and wolves to chase and kill animals for food. Our domestic dogs do not have to kill their own food, but the instinct remains. Certain breeds seem to have higher prey drive: arctic breeds (malamutes, huskies, samoyeds), both sight and scent hounds (greyhounds, whippets, beagles, dachshunds) and terriers (Jack Russells, cairns, Scottish). Even though breed may contribute to the amount of prey drive in a dog, the instinct is present in all dogs. A standard poodle or a golden retriever could have very high prey drive.

Getting instinctive behaviors under control can be very difficult. Start by taking your dog to a basic obedience class to get some general control (and enhance your relationship with your dog). The more your dog pays attention to you, the less time she'll have to be distracted by other things. You also need to spend time finding out what kinds of things motivate your dog. Is it verbal praise or petting? For most dogs the best incentive is food. To turn around a difficult or instinctive behavior the food incentive needs to be special. For instance, if I wanted to keep my dog's attention on a walk so she wouldn't chase cats I would find a treat she couldn't resist like vegetarian hotdogs, cheese, freeze dried liver or cat treats. Then I would make sure that she only received that treat when she was good on a walk and didn't chase any cats.

Sometimes this strategy is not enough to change an instinctive behavior. You may need to have a private trainer evaluate your dog and then work with her over a period of time to get an instinctive behavior under control.