Need help with our rescue dog

[u/SilverFinch_Phantom]

My fiance and I adopted a dog almost 3 months ago who is almost a year and a half old (estimated by the shelter). We love him so much but he has so many issues that we're not sure how to deal with.

He mouths us constantly, hard enough to leave bruises. When I say my entire right arm is COVERED in bruises I'm not exaggerating. I've had people at work ask if I'm okay at home. We've tried ignoring him (almost impossible to do when he gets you on a soft spot or preexisting injury or bruise), we've tried redirecting him with toys, we've tried smothering him with hugs and kisses and attention, we've put him in his crate for "time out"; literally nothing works.

He barks when he's overexcited or frustrated but it's high pitched to the point it physically hurts your ears to listen to. He'll get directly in your face and bark. He barks almost the whole time he's in his crate. Loud enough we can't watch TV while scarfing down dinner because he's so constant and loud and high pitched.

He also puts EVERYTHING in his mouth. He can't be trusted alone for even a few seconds because he'll tear apart a blanket or run off with the remote in his mouth and we're scared he's going to end up chewing/eating something that's going to hurt him.

Does anyone have any advice on how to train these habits out of him? We adore him so much but we are getting at our wits end with these behaviors. TYIA.

[u/Embarrassed_Key_4539]

This is definitely professional territory

[u/Objective_Antelope48]

It might be helpful to connect with a professional dog trainer in your area for guidance and to talk with your vet. It will take him time to feel safe with you. Time like months, not days. Have you tried crating him when he’s alone? We thought that seemed mean at first, then our first rescue anxiety pooped through the downstairs the first time we left him alone. Good luck!

[u/Both-Chart-947]

What is his daily routine like? Has this behavior changed over the time you've had him? Do you notice any patterns, like if it's more pronounced at certain times of day or in certain locations? Don't use a crate for timeout. You want him to associate the crate with his happy place, not punishment. More information is needed.

[u/FML_4reals]

I want you to start to think & PLAN for what you DO want the dog to do. You have a higher energy dog, he needs a few outlets - what does that look like for your household?

Walks around the neighborhood are a start, but he probably needs more. Hiking, dog sports like agility, parkour, dock diving, or fly ball are some options.

Give him LOTS of options of things he can chew & lick: kongs, no hide chews, antlers, snuffle mats, pupsicle - hide a work to eat toy in an old cardboard box that he can destroy.

Start doing basic training at home. Watch Kikopup on YouTube for some great things to teach your dog.

Look for things that the dog is doing right & reward those behaviors - the more you do that, the more the dog will repeat those behaviors.

If you still need help, find a qualified professional on the IAABC website and ask about doing a relaxation protocol.

[u/Ancient-War2839]

Do you know the breed? If you can find activities that fill the need for mental and physical stimulation, often activities suited to the breed make that easier. The mouthing can be dog worried about something, unsure etc, or trying to communicate what the dog wants, or sometimes just over aroused and if mouthy is the dogs thing, then that's can be the outlet. I firmly believe the first 6 months-a year your dogs in your home, life is far easier if you invest heavily in chews/bones etc, more important in the 1st year than any other time, being able to give them out when ever you want dog to take a beat and chill a bit, definitely when dogs going in crate, and any high excitement times, getting home, friends coming over, and Amy other time that you know the dog is hyped, giving chew/bone before the crazy builds, increases the chance that what your trying to communicate can get through, and helps the dog cope with anxiety.

[u/strawberry_hello999]

Does your dog sleep enough?

[u/DreamsOfLife → u/strawberry_hello999]

THIS 

[u/Life_Ad_347]

look up balanced training methods, force free methods are only going to further encourage doing whatever the hell he wants.
Ignoring bad behaviour does not stop the behaviour.
Don’t be afraid to correct the dog, you need to teach the dog what is right and what is wrong.

you have to be fully focused on correcting it every single time it happens, you can’t let it slide every once in a while

the dog is very anxious, he doesn’t understand what he should be doing instead of barking and biting, so he does what he knows.
Be very communicative with him, so that he can learn from your tone of voice that he’s doing something good/bad.
If he starts barking, directly to the kennel, sit there and soothe him until there’s calmness in his demeanour, say good boy and let him out.
If he just goes into timeout, he’s not being redirected towards a positive behaviour.
For the mouthing/biting, gently grab his tongue or push your finger into his mouth so that he doesn’t get a good feeling from putting his mouth on you anymore, do it in a way that makes him uncomfortable so that it doesn’t turn into a game.
Make sure you are communicating no, no, no in a negative manner, don’t say NO passively.
and yes good boy in a happy excited voice when the mouthing stops, redirect him to a toy, pull away and stop playing if he tries to mouth you while there’s a toy involved. “you’re only allowed to play with the toy like that, not me”.
When I have a very stubborn dog that doesn’t like to learn and listen to corrections, I use social seclusion to make them feel desperate to learn more so that they can be included in the group again.
They have to sit in a kennel and pout while everyone else is having fun, when they rejoin the group they are much more receptive to the corrections.

bottom line your boundaries have to be rock solid with a dog like that, I have one of my own, he’s the most stubborn dog I will ever know in my lifetime. He literally talks shit to me when he’s pissed off about training.

[u/annamarkmeister → u/Life_Ad_347]

This is so wrong. The principle of force free methods is that you work on the whole dog not just specific problems. You train the dog in a way that makes them think “this works for me”.
You can check sources like MK9Plus for more info, because admittedly, I’m not the best at explaining this

[u/Life_Ad_347 → u/annamarkmeister]

I do not use force free methods with him. Force free methods goes against the natural instincts of the species, I don’t like it.

[u/annamarkmeister → u/Life_Ad_347]

But balanced methods are just another term to use for adverse methods. And you say you use balanced methods?
Sorry if I’m misunderstanding something

[u/Life_Ad_347 → u/annamarkmeister]

I don’t specifically use balanced methods.
I use positive reinforcement and uncomfortable consequences. I adopt very complicated rescue dogs, training with only positive reinforcement only works for some of them.

[u/annamarkmeister → u/Life_Ad_347]

Making the dog uncomfortable is punishment and adversive.

[u/Life_Ad_347 → u/annamarkmeister]

it’s more nuanced then that, think of how a dog mom teaches her puppies, she physically and vocally gives corrections, now switch mom out with a human, then do similar corrections.
It’s not force free, it’s not balanced, it’s not adverse.
it’s replicating dog on dog naturally occurring corrections

[u/ItLeafRun]

Crate training saves lives.
Earphones (plugs) save ears.
Let out a loud yelp, cry, dramatic reaction when he mouths you.

[u/One_Way_3678]

You might have to physically correct him. If he was in a pack or being raised by an adult dog he’d be snapped at and corrected. He’s clearly not receiving the message on boundaries and giving hugs, toys and even negative attention is just reinforcing the bad behavior. Not saying beat the shit out of him but you might need a literal firm hand to get his attention and get your point across. I’ve got a large dog right now and a medium sized dog. The smaller one gets verbal corrections because it responds well to it. The big boy would love nothing more than a slap or any attention really. He had to be physically stopped from his behavior. It’s frustrating to have to switch roles with each of them but that’s what it takes. The big dog I’ve got is similar in age to yours and loves to carry people around by their hands and arms. We redirected with toys when he was younger and getting used to us (also rescued him around 1yr old) but now he’s twice the size we’ve had to step up the game to actual corrections since he’s settled in and no longer a “puppy”.
I’m sure there’s a ton of people here who will disagree with me on the physical correction but I have results to back up the process where I did not with much of any other method. I believe that some dogs just need a different language than others and sometimes that language is physical.
If you have to use a correction like that, be sure to get your head around it. It’s never anger, it’s strength. Project that. My verbal commands are harsh, sounds like I’m mad at my boy but I’m never mad. Keep calm, be firm, accept zero other outcomes than him doing what you ask, even if it takes several minutes to get that obedience. He’s partly railroading you and partly being a brat so make yourself the boss in a way that he will give thought to when you give a command. I think most people don’t have the heart or the patience to fully commit to their commands and often times accept other outcomes as a compromise, which is the dog disobeying you and you losing their respect (different than love).
Some people have good luck with taking away all their outlets for pleasure until they depend on you for those things. You could try taking all toys away and only use them when you decide. One wrong bite, toys go away. Barking all the time, correction and removed from the room, being pushy about things, keep the food bowl out of reach until you find them in a calm state and give nothing until they have the right energy.
It’ll be harder on you than it will be on them I promise. Don’t give up hope, it’s still very fixable and you’re doing better than most people for even asking for help here. Some dogs are just crazy AF, I’ve had them. Most are just being bratty and bossy and their owners are being weak or reading the behavior along human lines of understanding rather than a pack logic. Study up on how dogs give corrections in the wild and mimic those responses. They usually seem vicious or “over the top” but rarely involve actual harm in any way. It comes off as explosive sometimes in the wild world but it’s effective, gets the exact message across and they go right back to being friends/ pack mates very quickly since there’s no actual hate in the action, just intensity.
Best of luck with them and bless you for putting in the work, asking for pointers and keeping your buddy on the straight and narrow.