Southern California German Shepherd Rescue

Dear Mirna:

I have a three year old German Shepherd and she is continually biting on my other dogs, especially around the neck when they all go outside.  I tried to let the other two go out before her, but she has to go potty like the rest of them.  How can I get her to go out and leave them alone?  If she goes out without them, she just stands at the door and barks.  Please help, this has been going on for a year.  She has not had training, but she does listen to me.  Just not outside.

Kimberly

Hi Kimberly,

Thank you for writing.  Is the dog you have this problem with the alpha female in your home?  Shepherds love to herd and with her nipping on the other dogs’ legs, herding is what she is doing, telling them where to go and what to do.  The fact that she is not listening to you when she’s outside tells me that she needs some more obedience training, preferably around a lot of distractions.  Right now she does not see you as her pack leader.  She is in charge.  You should try putting her on the leash and taking her outside with the other dogs, so that you have control over her actions.  Make sure all the dogs sit/stay at the door and calmly go out one by one.  It is very important what state of mind your dog is in when she exits the house.  If she is excited and barking, she needs to wait.  Only when she’s calm should she be allowed to go out, and you need to go there with her and supervise until she learns.  Practice the same thing with the other two dogs.  Make them sit/stay for food, for their leash, and make sure they all get enough exercise and that they know their proper place in your home. Humans first!!  If she barks, walk her away from the door and try again in a minute or two.  You need to be consistent and calm, and she needs to realize who the boss is and what the conditions are to being let outside!  Make your dogs work for everything, that is what dogs like to do, and what they are bred for.  I would love to know more about your dogs’ every day routines, how much socializing, exercise, and walking they get, and how much mental and physical training are you doing with them.

 Mirna

Dear Mirna,

My dog is obsessed by reflections, light and movement.  He falls in the trance and starts drooling, licking the doors, kitchen cabinets.  I’ve tried to distract him by giving him treats, yelling, ignoring him, nothing helps.  I don’t know what else I can do, please help!Thank you,Shannon

Dear Shannon,

It is hard for me to give you my professional opinion without seeing your dog’s behavior, but it sounds like he has compulsive disorder.  Just like people, some of whom wash their hands hundreds of times a day and never feel clean enough, dogs develop habit too. Boston Terriers love to chase their tails, and King Charles Spaniels are always up in the air trying to catch invisible flies.  What is really important is to not give attention to him when he is acting obsessed.  Even negative attention is still reinforcing the behavior. Try not to do certain things when he is in trance, like opening certain doors that may trigger him even more, or don’t play with the light, don’t laugh, don’t yell.  When he goes for the door, lets say, make a loud sound or clap your hands, you can also tell him loudly “ENOUGH” and walk away!  If he stops and follows you, reward him.  You need to redirect his attention toward something else each time he starts to stare at the light. You can also step in between him and the reflections and say loudly “bup!”  The second he backs off or looks at you give him reward.  This will take some time, also plenty of exercise, both mental and physical will help.

Best wishes!

Mirna

Hi Mirna,

We adopted a dog few months ago and noticed that he was not drinking water for couple of days out of his bowl on the floor.  We took him to the vet, he was fine.  In the evening I was doing the dishes and he jumped up, pushed me out of the way and start drinking water out of a faucet. Weird!  Since that time he will only drink water running from a faucet.  Any suggestions?  Sometimes we are gone for hours and I would love for him to have water available to drink.

 Hi there,

When you adopt a ne dog you really can’t tell right away about his habits and behavior, what he is used to doing and how ;).  Some dogs love to drink from a bowl with the running water, you can purchase those at pet stores.  See if he will drink water if it is circulating and fresh at all times.  Let me know if this is working for him!

Mirna

Hi Shana, I have a few suggestions for you.  First of all, we need to consider how old your dog is.  Herding and using their mouths to guide you is normal behavior for puppies, and Shepherds love to herd. That’s what they’re bred to do.  Also how much socializing does your dog get with other puppies?  Socialization at an early age (between 6 weeks to 6 months) is very important because as puppies play, the bite each other, it hurts, they yelp and they learn not to do use their mouths when playing.  Puppies left with their mothers until 8-10 weeks are also taught by their moms that biting hurts and learn to restrain their impulse.  If a dog doesn’t have her mom to teach her, during play time other dogs will.

To help your dog learn not to use her mouth, never play with her with your hands.  Always play with toys!  As soon as she puts her mouth on you, scream OOUUUCH, loud and move away.  End of game.  Don’t pet her if she’s nippy, remember petting is a reward.  A strong “leave it” command will help, and if she’s herding you (nipping at your heels, moving to block you) stop moving, then once she’s stopped the behavior, reward her clam state of mind.  If she’s being persistent, you should also put her in down/stay, or use time out in the crate or outside.  Remember, take away the reward she’s getting for her unwanted behavior, and she’ll soon learn its not acceptable.  Obedience training will also help with many unwanted behaviors.  I offer group and private lessons if you need help.  Let me know how it goes, and have a great day

Mirna Pacheco

Certified Dog Trainer

(619)252-0286

Dear Mirna:

I rescued a Shepherd and they told me he loved to run away from his previous foster homes.  I would like to leave him in the back yard when we’re gone but I am afraid he’s going to run away again.  Can you help us?

Gene

Dear Gene:

When you bring a new adult dog into your home from a shelter or rescue, you don’t give him a lot of freedom right away.  Your new dog needs to learn the rules in your home and he needs to bond with you.  That takes time, usually up to 6 months, and sometimes more.  If your dog is house broken leave him in a smaller room when you’re not at home, if not crate him.  If you are gone many hours take him to doggie daycare or have a dog walker come and exercise him.  Dogs are pack animals and it is not fair to them to leave them home alone, without people being there for him.  In addition, make sure your fence is high enough, so that your dog isn’t able to jump over it.  You have to manage his environment.  Practice sit/stay, down/stay and calm behaviors in a yard.  Why do dogs want to jump over a fence and run away?  A lot of them lived on the streets, they don’t know any better.  Some were left on a short chain in a back yard for days, months, or years, not a good association for the dog.  Some jump because they’re lonely, some because they’re bored.  People passing by, other animals, dogs barking, all can be a reason for dog to jump out of your yard.

You can teach your dog not to jump on your fence.  To prevent him for jumping, put him on a leash and pull him down as a correction.  Until he learns how to behave, don’t leave your dog alone in the yard.  Train him by setting him up, with people and dogs passing by, to stay calm and be focused on you.  Reward him big time.  With the time, practicing obedience, exercise and socialization, your dog you will establish a relationship with you, and he will learn what is his territory .

Dear Mirna, I have a year old Labrador and he is almost 100 pounds. Our main problem is his jumping.  He gets very exited and nothing can stop him.  When he was little that was fun and we did let him do it but now we really regret doing so.  We have older people and children around and it became dangerous for him to behave that way.  Any advice is greatly appreciated!

Thank you,

Mandy

Dear Mandy,

I know exactly what are you going trough.  I have a Labrador too and even though we did a lot of training with him sometimes he gets so excited that is hard to control him.  A strong sit/stay will help.  Before he jumps ask him to sit and then give him a reward.  Now a reward is a lot of different things to different dogs.  Petting, looking at them, treats, praise, and attention can all be treats.  

Why do dogs jump?  They want to be in your face, and us looking at them, putting our hands down, talking all exited reward that behavior.  You need to turn around, avoid looking at your dog, have your hands folded at your chest.  Tell him OFF if he jumps, and then ask for alternate behavior, like SIT.  Then give him a praise.  Do this a lot, and be consistent.  Not only you but everyone that he meets will be happier.  Teach him how to greet at the door and on the street.  Practice this after a good ,long walk, he will be tired and that will help him focus better.  Put your dog on the leash when meeting people, \you will have more control over his reactions.

Serving needy animals since 1910, Dumb Friends League has collected many fine articles on living in harmony with your pets, including “Nothing in Life is Free” training for canines.  Nothing in Life is Free (or “NILF”) is a concept used by trainers and animal care workers everywhere and can help with the most difficult, out of control or controling dogs.  Its short, sweet and definitely worth a read, as are many other articles contained on the Dumb Friends League site.  Enjoy!

Visit Dumb Friends League. Find anwers to other training questions at Dumb Friends League.

Dear Mirna:

We recently adopted a German Shepherd.  We have a cat and an older dog at home.  We have been slowly working with our new dog to leave the cat alone and to be gentle with our older dog.   Its seemed like we had things under control.  Then the other day I was pet sitting for a friend of mine, she has four puppies that she brought over.  Our Shepherd went after them, definitely not being friendly.  I tried putting him in a down, putting on a muzzle and even crating him.  He would not calm down.   What can I do to show him who is the boss and to make him behave?

Thanks for your help!
Grace

Dear Grace:

Your new dog is obviously becoming territorial, and you need to step in and claim your home.  With some dogs, putting them in a down/stay is just not enough.  You need to put him on his side, and hold him there until he calms down.   That can take from 10-15 seconds to 10-15 minutes, depending on the dog.  Once the dog becomes submissive you can then release him.  I suggest that you practice this first without the puppies being present, it will be easier for him.

Also, practice leadership exercises.  Make him sit/stay and wait for his food, don’t give your dog anything for free (See the NILF (Nothing in Life is Free) training on this site).  If your dog wants affection, he needs to sit first, if he wants to play fetch, he needs to sit or lay down, and then play.  You start the game, and you finish the game.  If you think there’s a chance you won’t win, don’t even play.  You need to be in charge at all times, otherwise your dog will take over.  Give him a lot of praise when he is being good, we tend to ignore our dogs when they are just being calm and laying by our feet, and that’s the time we should be rewarding them.  When going for a walk, you exit the door first.  Many people let their dogs charge out the door first - he thinks he’s your leader. If he is just being too much, put your dog outside and ignore him.  He needs to obey rules if he wants to live in your home.  Be consistent, firm and loving.  A strong “Leave it” command will be helpful.  Make sure your dog ever approaches puppies if not calm/submissive, you have to be aware of the safety of small animals and always be in control of your dog. 

Best wishes, 
Mirna

Hi Mirna,

My Shepherd is very vocal and barks a lot, especially when he plays with other dogs, when people are passing by, or when he wants something.  Sometimes I’m not sure if  he’s being friendly or not and what I should do?

Thanks,
Steve

Dear Steve:

When playing or excited a lot of Shepherds  can be vocal.  That doesn’t mean that they’re being aggressive.  You have to watch the dog’s body language.   Also, note if the bark deep or high pitched.  If it is a stutter bark, mid-range pitch, sounds like “arr-Ruff,” it means “let’s play.”  This bark is usually accompanied by a bow, the dog dashing to one side or another, and then coming again the play pose (bowing).  Does the dog growl or show his teeth?  If the growling is soft, coming from the chest, means ‘beware” or “back off.”  If it is noisy growl, medium or higher pitch, with teeth hidden from view, it means the dog is having fun!

If your dog is getting too exited while playing, you can always give him a time out, where he rests for few minuntes and calms down.   Barking can also be territorial, and with territorial barking, you need to step in and correct him.  Teach your dog to lay down and look at the people passing by from that position.

If your dog barks at you, IGNORE IT.  That is the best way to hand this.  Stand up and leave the room.  Never give your dog attention if he demands it.  After a while he will see this behavior is not paying off for him.  What I love to teach my dogs is to bark on command, and then be quiet on command.  I reward quiet big time, and as we know dogs are smart and they’d rather be rewarded.  When your dog is barking you can use a squirt bottle and spray him (this startles him but doesn’t hurt or challenge him), or as a last resort use a citronella spray.  With barking its very important to realize WHY the dog is barking.  Is it lack of exercise, boredom, excitement, aggression, or fear?  Once you know why your dog is barking, it is much easier to solve the problem.

I hope this helps!

Mirna

Sign up for Mirna’s training classes coming up soon!  Call Mirna today to sign up at  619-252-0286.

Puppy classes start on the February 12, 2008,Tuesday, from 6-7pm at Dunk N Dogs in Clairmont Mesa.

Beginner classes start on February 12, 2008, Tuesday, from 7-8 pm at Dunk N Dogs in Clairmont Mesa.

Advanced classes start March 1, 2008, from 10-11 am, on Fiesta Island.