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Need Help Figuring Out My Pup

1333 Views 13 Replies 9 Participants Last post by  Buckyball, 
Buckyball
I had posted a few months back about how Buck doesn't like hanging out with us on the second floor of my three story townhouse. I figured since my second floor (the main floor) has hardwood he doesnt like it. It was also during warmer months and it is cooler down in the first floor. Well I got more area rugs and such and he'd come up and hang out and stuff.

He also would bolt up to the third floor where the bedrooms are when it was time to go to bed. Take over my bed and everything.

In the last month or so he has begun going down stairs again when we aren't eating. He will be on the second floor with me when I am the only one home. If my bf is around he goes back downstairs. The bottom floor is where the front door is.

And in the last 2 weeks he has started going all the way downstairs and sleeping on the landign. He refuses to come upstairs to my room. I was able to coax him up there a couple times with cookies and then shut the door. He slept on the bed just fine. However, this week he wont come upstairs even for the cookies. My bf has to carry him up there. Once in the room he jumps into bed and goes to sleep. If he doesn't get carried up he just sleeps on the bottom floor near the front door.

I have no idea why his behaviour suddenly changed like this. It just breaks my heart. I feel like he doesn't like me anymore or something. Or maybe I did something wrong. Or maybe somethign is wrong with him and I can't figure out what to help him :(
He is eating and drinking fine. Pooping fine. He plays with me and my bf just fine. No signs of being afraid of us or anything (Not that he has any reason to be). He hasn't shown any change in behaviour at daycare.

I am just not understanding the change from being such a glued to my hips pup to he wants to be on his own unless there's some kind of food related activity going on. He just goes down there and snoozes in the dark by himself.

He just turned 4 years old january 1st.

I dont know what i am doing wrong or did wrong. Does he need more attention? or less attention? I don't know. Our daily routine consists of me coming home around 5-5:30pm and immediately dropping my bags and playing with him and then going on a mile walk. We come back and he gets fed and gets soem belly rubs. Around 6:45-7pm I start cooking our dinner and do stuff around the house. By 8:30-9pm I am winding down. Watching tv, sewing a little whatever. 10pm he goes out to pee and then it's bed time.
Before, he was there by my side through all this. Now he just wants to be on the first floor alone...except when I am eating dinner or open the fridge (crazy food hound)

He is due to see the vet in a couple weeks. HOpefully, he is OK health wise.

If anyone has any insight I would really appreciate it :(
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justine
Hmm.. I remember your post a while back. That's hard, I don't know what it could be. But sometimes when dogs aren't feeling 100%, they will go off on their own... well animals in general are known to do that, not just dogs.

I would definitely mention it to the vet, if not maybe move up the appointment since this has just worsened in the last couple of weeks. They might want to run some bloodwork to see how the liver/kidney/etc values are.

Did he always act like this around your BF?
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oakley
It seems like something about the stairs has him spooked.
I'm afraid I'm not much help. Have you tried to block off the stairs so he has to stay on the same floor as you?
I use a baby gate to keep Oakley downstairs with me at night (she would come up and sleep on the couch lol).
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Buckyball
Not always. He has always been in both our faces so to speak.

Buck has gained some weight recently (I just thought of this) but that's because I upped his cups of food a day. He was going to daycare a lot more and we were out and about alot more during warmer months. I have started cutting him back again. You can't tell the weight gain by looking at him. But if you put him on the scale you can tell. He is about 70lbs now. Vet recommended to keep him around 65lbs which is where he usually is.

Yeah I was thinking of calling the vet tomorrow and try to get an appointment sooner.

I am trying to think of anything that has changed in his life...the months of october, nov and dec I have had to travel a lot more than usual for work. He either stayed with my parents (who he knows very well and loves) or has stayed with my bf who he also knows very well and loves. His walk and daycare routine didn't change during all that...just I wasn't around.

I just have a nagging feeling something isn't right :(

I am just beginning to not like my house :( uugghhh Call me crazy but I cried hysterically the other night about all this.

Oh also, when no one is home the first floor is where I gate him in.
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Buckyball
oakley said:
It seems like something about the stairs has him spooked.
I'm afraid I'm not much help. Have you tried to block off the stairs so he has to stay on the same floor as you?
I use a baby gate to keep Oakley downstairs with me at night (she would come up and sleep on the couch lol).
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Yeah I have him gated in the second floor right now. He sat on the couch with me for a bit and now is sitting near the gate whinning to go downstairs.

He doesn't protest when I keep him in my bedroom while we go to sleep.

hmm nevermind now he is just sniffing around the living room...
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B
I had a dog who always had to sleep within view of the door. She actually had a spot where she could see both the front and back doorways and she'd patrol all night. My Labs are certainly not anything like that!

I would try not to take this so personally. He may just likes sleeping there. It is not anything personal. Maybe you or bf move around too much at night for him. Maybe he likes the coolness of the floor near the door. Maybe he is a more of a watchdog than my Labs and he is taking care of business.
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Buckyball
BigBrownDog said:
I had a dog who always had to sleep within view of the door. She actually had a spot where she could see both the front and back doorways and she'd patrol all night. My Labs are certainly not anything like that!

I would try not to take this so personally. He may just likes sleeping there. It is not anything personal. Maybe you or bf move around too much at night for him. Maybe he likes the coolness of the floor near the door. Maybe he is a more of a watchdog than my Labs and he is taking care of business.
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Trying not to take it personally...hehe My bf thinks the same thing you do. He thinks maybe Buck just doesnt like being crammed in a bed.

I guess I am concerned because the not wanting to sleep in the room with me happened suddenly. My bf is going to be gone for a week next month. We'll see if he comes up with me then.

Maybe, you are right. Since he is maturing maybe he has taken on the role of protector and likes to be near the front door...from where he can also see the back door. When it is just BUck and I home I guess he is around me to keep an eye on me perhaps? I really hope you are right and it is not health related. I can deal with that better.
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A
I think not trying to take it personally is good advice.

Dogs are so different in their levels of...velcro-ness.

Crash (our first dog) was very independent. He didn't have to be in the same room as you. If he'd had enough of your petting him, he would get up and go in the other room. Sometimes I would feel like, "Hey...thanks a lot!" But it was just his personality.

Angus is velcro in almost all situations, but in the last year or so he won't come to the bedroom with us at night. I believe this has to do with Simon being a jacka$$ :p I think Simon has "claimed" all beds in the house as his own, and Angus has to wait a magical length of time until he's sure Simon is on that particular bed for the night before he can come down. He's always in our bedroom when we wake up.

Simon, OTOH, is not particularly velcro. When he wants attention he demands it (pretty rudely, actually), but if you turn your head or make an ignore gesture (when you have finally had enough of his face being two inches from your face), he will stalk off on his own and you can go the entire night with no idea where he might be.
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J
My first thought was that maybe there was something wrong and it was painful for him to go up the stairs. But in that case he wouldn't be whining to go down them either. I'd think he'd want to stay where he was. I'd definately ask the vet what he thinks. Maybe he's just growing up and has claimed that spot by the front door as his.
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Buckyball
Got him in with the vet for noon today.

I hope he is just growing up and has decided the first floor is his.

This morning I was getting ready and walked out of my bathroom and there he was sitting right outside of the door! Scared the crap out of me! I figured he'd still be downstairs. But nope, there he was on the third floor sitting and watching me. He came up to me rubbed up sniffed around and then started wagging his tail like...hey! mom! time to take me out so i can eat!!!!! Then he walked downstairs and just waited for me at the bottom of the stairs of the second floor. What a strange pup...he will do anything for food.

I called my bf to ask him if he brought him up to the bedroom. He told me that he did not. That Buck run upstairs on his own.


Will let you guys know what the vet thinks!
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Jefferson'n'Ted
Buckyball said:
Oh also, when no one is home the first floor is where I gate him in.
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This tells me that he considers the first floor "his" space. Just as other dogs consider their crate their spaces. Teddy will go lay in his crate sometimes if I am busy doing other things. Jefferson will go into the guest room and lay on the bed--"his" space.
As far as sleeping goes, Teddy is almost always on the floor. He may start the night on my bed or on a dog bed, but unless it is very, very cold he prefers the bare floor.
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T
it coudl be alot of things, other than keep making the second floor positive, I wouldn't push too much if he is happy where he is. I agree with the above, the first floor sounds like teh place he see as his (his den).

Rocky, my dog, is not a velcro lab. Once he got used to things at my parents place (he was not allowed upstairs where the kitchen/living room is) he would go all the way downstairs into my bedroom to sleep. Or the year I slept upstairs (he did too, but was just allowed in my room upstairs) he would sneak up and go sleep in my room. Some dogs do prefer having their "quiet place" to rest once they know things are in order.

Even when I have company over he will be very happy and greet them/ask for pets for the first say, 20 minutes. But then he goes off to another room or his dog bed or crate to rest.

If the pup is healthy and happy I would not stress or take it personally. All dogs are different. Would I prefer a dog that was more velcro and cuddly? Sure, but Rocky is who he is and I'm happy with that.
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M
I agree with the above posts. Maybe he is just too independent :)
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Buckyball
So I took him to the vet and she looked him over.

Her conclusion...just like you guys said...he just considers it his space or is doing his "job" watching the front door. She was like labs "grow up" later in life than a lot of breeds and he is probably just getting there. I'd just do positive reinforcement training with him. Reward him when he does hang out around you. Continue keeping an eye on him see if anything else changes. She thinks he is just a reserved quiet dog and since he is maturing he is just doing his thing chilling out and snoozing...she said he is alot like me lol. Physically he is healthy and there's nothing to worry about there.

He was of course super excited to be at the vets! Didn't act like anything was wrong (which is very good). Got lots of treats and loving from the staff who thinks he has the most handsome face ever. :p

I guess I worried and stressed over nothing and took it a little too personally :eek:
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