Hi, Kass is just over five months and sometimes she seems nothing but trouble!!!! LOL. Most of the time she is a pleasant little madam, bundle of joy and happiness but we have yet another problem!!!
Kass has become quite aggressive at times, barking and has apparently gone to bite my partner and his dad. I thought it was just them at first until this evening when I took her to the vets and she has been really aggressive barking at the nurse and the vet!! To the point that the nurse suggested wearing a muzzle!
I really don't like the idea of it, the thought upsets me quite a bit.

We do go to puppy classes but all they tell me is "we are going to have to work on her", and "there very re-active GSD's, very re-active", without actually helping. I already understand that they are scaredy cats!!!!lol

We are going to see one our vets on Tuesday, who is very interested in canine behaviour so hopefully she will be some help!

The other problem is my other half, he believes that he should hit her to combat the aggression, I don't believe we should, he has hit her once (but not hard - more to shock her) and I played hell with him for it, and what i say goesas far as she is concerned. Although now he keeps saying she's not under control, - I am really starting to lose it with him!!!!

Should I look for another class, (some one has suggested wirral atc to me but it's a bit too far) one that has more experience with GSD's / problem dogs?
Is she a problem dog, or is it normal behaviour for a fivemonth old GSD?

I really want to succeed in training her to be a wonderful companion, but once again i am wondering if I have bitten off more than I can chew!!!

Please help Kass and me, we are lovely really! Once were not scared of you!!!

P.S. I forgot to mention we live in warrington!!!

Hi, I sympathise because I have an aggressive dog although not a GSD. Mine is older so the problem is further gone it would seem. A pup should be able to be trained out of it. I'm not an expert on this. The reason for my reply is to emphasise you should not smack your dog for bad behaviour, it does no good whatsoever. You are using aggression on the dog which is the very thing you are trying to tell him/her not to do. So they are confused.

I have found if my dog misbehaves by aggression while out, straight on the muzzle (which he hates) and then he knows he's done wrong because he becomes the model dog. Then no treats when he gets home (which he does get if he's been good, i.e. hasn't fought with any other dogs). It's a slow process but I've been consistent and persistent and I think he's slowly learning that by being aggressive he gets nothing from me, which is not what he wants.

I think your dog is just being a pup and you should definitely persist with the training because it will not resolve itself. I'm sure it will all work out in the end. You really don't want to have an older dog with these problems and you should sort it all out now. Good luck!!

CG

Hi Kayleya1
I cant give you any real advice but I can tell you my experiance with my 13 month old GSD bitch.
When she was younger I was worried about her puppy biting sometimes she was quite agressive and I used to worry that she would be an agressive dog! It went on for far longer than I thought it should of, I tried all sorts of different training, nothing seemed to work, one trainer told me she was a problem dog etc.
I had problems at the vets aswell, still do abit but I do have an understanding vet and we wait out on the car park and she comes out to meet us outside then we take Saffy inside once shes met the vet outside she's alot better in the treatment room, so thats how we solved that problem.
As for the biting that only stoped about 7 or 8 weeks ago I had bruises on my arms all the time it was very embrassing although she never broke my skin, but she just stoped, she does still try it on when shes on the sofa and I tell her to get off if she doesn't I go to pull her off and she will act as if she is going to bite me I just say no in a firm voice and now she stops, but she never used to, I thought it would never end and now after having her for nearly a year I have a near perfect dog she is always wanting cuddles something we could never do before without getting nipped and she has turned out to be a lovely dog, which to be honest at times I thought she never would, I would not be without her now.
so all I can say is keep on saying no and all the other things I'm sure you are doing but dont hit her as tempting as it is sometimes (I know !! mine used to drive me mad at times) hopefully you will end up with a lovely dog like I have. Good luck let me know how it goes!
They do learn in the end, I'm sure it's just part of being a puppy. and if I remember rightly mine got worse at about 5 months.
K
I would like to add that she was only ever like this with me never my daughter and only sometimes with my husband, she always barks at anyone coming into my house but is fine with them once she has had sniff, and she has always been ok outside.
K

When you say she has gone to bite your partner and your dad, exactly what was happening at these times? And are you sure it was not a sort of mad 5 minutes where some herding dogs can get very nippy and race round, then rush in and "bite"? Just asking as it is SO important to know exactly what is happening.

She may have been afraid at the vets - how did they handle her, and did they speak to her? is she used to being handled and petted by strangers, and rewarded at the vets - for instance, even when sitting in the waiting room, you can give her food treats and praise and she will soon get to like the vets through association. Maybe get the nurses to give her treats and stroke her - try to get people to approach her sideways on rather than head on, as that will give out a more reassuring signal.

You need to find out why she is doing this and tackle it by understanding her behaviour and then teaching her what is acceptable, and you may need someone to help, do make sure the vet knows what she is talking about and isnt just "playing" at being a behavourist. It's not enough to just read the theory, one needs practical hands on as well :) Hopefully she will be helpful for you all :)

At 5 months the youngster is at an age where she can almost certianly be helped, as long as her breeding is reasonable. Have you got "The Perfect Puppy"? It is very helpful and you may also find it helpful in the future :)

OK now i show my lack of geographical knowledge, where is Warrington?!
Best wishes

Lindsay

GSD's can be surprisingly sensitive and physical training methods (even if non agressive) often don't work with them - and agressive techniques may well result in a dog who resorts to agression when confronted - however I will not give any other advice on the net as aggression can result from many causes, and your first port of call should be to a vet to get any medical reason ruled out - then ask for a referral to an approved behaviourist (APBC, APDT or UKRCB registered)

Did you buy her from a private breeder or a kennels near Warrington, I only ask because I too live in Warrington and there was a kennels there that was reknowned for breeding aggressive GSD's.
If it was a private breeder, ring them up and ask their advice and see if any of the litter was also experiencing aggression.
Other than that she needs a firm but kind hand, don't let her get away with anything, expose her to lots of men if thats what she objects to, but make sure its a pleasant experience for her by asking the men to give her treats perhaps.

Good luck
Lynne

Hi every one thanks for your words,
The snapping at of my partner and his dad was apparently aggressive as apposed to those "loony moments", when they were stood next to her passing something between them,she snapped at his dad, and she snapped at my other half when she was being told off and brought inside for barking at the lawn mower!
We are seeing the vet on Tuesday, she has recently been on courses, we can only try and see what she has to say about the situation, I am wondering if the snap at the vets could have been because we took her at the weekend(urine infection, the first time she has been in pain there? (she has been fine every other time with her jabs and chipping etc,) may be she has decided to put 2 +2 together and come up with vets = not nice?
She was bought from a private breeder in Leigh, she was from the first litter and I was assured she was bred for temperament, and her mother was a lovely dog (the main reason we picked from that litter!)
Lindsay, Warrington is in Cheshire roughly halfway between Manchester and Liverpool, hope that helps!

Kayl, thanks for your words of encouragement, I guess you know exactly what I'm going through!

I do really appreciate all your help, any more advice or encouragement will be gratefully recieved!!!!

Lots of love Kayley and Kass
xxxxxxx

Hi Kayley, Please can you ask your family to investigate positive training technique - this does not mean telling a dog off for barking at the lawn mower, she was probably concerned about it and was trying to defend herself from it - and being told off for it is not going to help her to look on it as something not to worry about - a dog taken by the collar (as we so often do when we need them to do something quickly) is restricted and feels it can't defend itself - so how was she supposed to defend herself (in her view) against he lawnmower should it attack - she was probably trying to free herself. A good solution would be to put a short rope onto her collar so you can grab that rather than holding her collar to manhandle her. At her age she may also be going through the second fear impact stage - when things she's seen and heard before suddenly seem scarey again - this is natures way of keeping the young adolescent dog safe as it begins to leave it's family, but can produce a dog who is fearful of all kinds of things if it's not handled properly during this stage - she needs to learn that these scarey things aren't dangerous by only having good experiences around them - food rewards when she's being good, and encouraging her (not reassuring her) to do something that takes her mind off it when she's being daft........

thanks for that digger! Problem is he seems to think that she should be fully trained by now, I think its due to her size (she already towers over his parents staffie and springers!) I had thought it was best to actually re-introduce her to it, but will take your advice of distracton - makes more sense, funny how obvious they are once you hear them!

At least I know where Warrington is now LOL :D

If you can get the book i mentioned, it does go into this sort of thing and guides the owner into adolescence too, which is THE most difficult time for all new dog owners

I have often noticed that dogs do snap at people when being told off - i am convinced it is because they are afraid, because when owners change their body language etc and are firm rather than threatening, the "aggression" often stops. I know that if anyone had had my bitch and been at all "scarey", she would have been a very different dog to the one she is today.

I see you are going to visit the vet regarding her behaviour and it will be interesting to hear what they think.

It may be helpful too to invest in the excellent "Why Does My Dog...?" by John Fisher, this book too is very helpful in showing how to understand why a dog may do something that we don'tfind acceptable. It was one of the books i read some years ago which switched a lightbulb on in my brain ;) LOL

Best wishes
Lindsay

I also have a 5 month old GSD puppy female who is getting spade as we speak. She also loves to play nip all the time... I lost my temper a few times and actually tried the rolled up newspaper method which made it twice as bad. Her permanent teeth have came in nicely so she nips much less but ive found just ignoring her when she gets too rough has worked the best.. i ve been doing this consistately for the last 2 wks and her nipping has decreased by half.. Good Luck (i feel ur pain hah)

I had a few similar problems with my dog. Although he has never bitten, he felt it was appropriate to growl and bark at visitors, being a nuisance. This continued outside the home if we passed anyone else in the street when out for a walk.
We contacted a behaviour specialist who advised we began in the home. When he displayed any undesirable behaviour we should calmly and quietly take him by the collar and take him to a room in the house where he could hear what was going on but could not join the company. 20 minutes later we were to invite him back into the lounge giving him a second chance. This was to continue each time he was bad. He soon learned that if he wanted to be part of the action he must behave sociably, not aggressively.
When he learned to behave indoors we took the training outdoors. Using a choke chain we took him to quieter areas where he could see other people but was not over powered by the number of them. Each time he growled or barked we gave the leash a tug, not to choke him but to make the chain rattle. Hating the sound as it was close to his head he stopped what he was doing, turning his attention to the noise we made.
Now he is a pleasure to take out and can be the host with the most when we have visitors without us having to worry.
As far as the biting goes i would use a muzzle. I know it looks awful and makes you as the owner feel terrible but you have the safety of the public and your family to consider.
Hope i have helped.