The point of the exercise here isn’t simply to keep your dog off the furniture at all times.
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with your pal being on the couch if you invite him. If he jumps up without an invite make him get down right away.
The problem is that dogs tend to take ownership of anything they can freely use. The first time he jumps up or picks up a something he hasn’t played with before, he’ll probably be quite nervous.
However, if he doesn’t get into trouble for the behaviour the new object gets added to the inventory of things that belong to the dog. Guess what, dogs tend to protect their stuff and that opens a whole can of worms.
He may not defend it from everybody and especially not from you, if you have established yourself as alpha. It will start with defending it from other animals or small children and escalate from there.
Of course, another issue is that couches and such are pricey pieces of gear and dogs are hard on them. Their claws do real damage even if they aren’t rampaging around.
Some dogs are worse for this than others. Westies especially like to bounce up on the back of the couch or leap from chair to chair. Not good.
One thing that can really cause damage in short order is letting a dog take cookies or toys up with them. The next thing that happens is that he stashes a treasure in between the cushions so he can find it later.
Then when he comes back for it he has to dig it out. That can cause real damage in short order and it can be a real heart-breaker when you buy a new piece.
If you want him to be able to join you, designate a single chair or sofa and put a blanket on it.
After a couple of repetitions of being chased off everything except his chair he’ll have gotten the idea, and the blanket will pick up his scent which will add to his comfort.
Apart from that his place should be on the floor. Get a nice cushion or a good dog bed so he’ll be comfortable.
The point isn’t to be mean and there’s no reason why the dog has to be on a hard floor, especially when he gets older.
The purpose of all this is to keep you in a dominant role where the dog is concerned.
Dogs need clear boundaries on their behavior. They look to the Alpha to supply those boundaries.
Things that seem arbitrary to us are just normal for the dog. If you don’t establish clear expectations the dog will feel insecure and start establishing his own rules.
So, if you value your sanity and your furniture, keep the dog on the floor. It makes a real difference.
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