I have a St Bernard bitch who I took on about a month ago. She is 3 years this October. I got her from her breeder after she was returned when her original owners emigrated abroad. She is a delightful bitch, and we love her to bits.
She had a few "training issues" when we first got her. We where told by the breeder that it would appear she had got her own way a bit , and although not by nature an opportunist of a bitch, she can be very stubborn .

Her issues all stemmed down to one key thing, that being that she had learnt to use her weight as a means of getting her own way. She knows that if she parks her lump down when met with something she is not keen on; there is little you can do about it.
This can be anything from moving out of your way, to being out on walks when if she sees something she wants to sniff she will just bowl you out of the way totally oblivious to you being there. When she first came to me it was evident that although she had been socialised to an extent, her lead walking skills where pretty much  non existent. Used to just wandering round land at home, if a lead was used she would just be again totally oblivious to you on the end of it. I am pleased to say that she is now a lot better on the lead, I have managed to get her responding to voice commands and even though it would appear she is ignoring you, she is listening as she does respond to the commands. I make her sit at every road and wait, sometimes even if there are no cars. Her recall is a lot better than it was, although she does still have her selective hearing, she is not one to run off after other dogs or people, just loves to smell nature and is very excited by new smells and scents. She spends most of her walk with her head fixed to the floor sniffing. She used to try and get her own why, by running towards you and making you almost have to move out of her way, not in an aggressive way, but in a way that mean she used her bulk to push you aside, I have again managed to stop this and now she realizes that good things happen if she comes and sits quietly next to me, I am good at ignoring her bad habits and she is fast learning that these old ways are not working. Things are coming on very well, she no longer tries to grab every bit of food, and has learnt that she is not to come near us when we are eating (she drools with anticipation then will happily shake the drool all over us food and all!) so she has learnt to sit away from us and is rewarded with a treat when we are finished.
You can not loose your patience with this bitch, or loose your cool, I think this has happened in the past. Because as soon as she can sense a hint of frustration in your voice or body language she shuts down , and you have lost her.

The one problem I am left with , witch I am having trouble with trying to sort is that, although she is a lovely bitch, she seems to have a problem with personal space.
She will think nothing of parking her self right in front of me nose almost touching mine with a big panting grin staring at me. She loves to be with me and at every opportunity would have her chin parked on my leg or arm gazing into my eyes. The thing is that sometimes she parks her self so close to me I cant get up, and she leans into me as well. If I push her away and tell her to move, she applies more pressure, I have managed to get a bit of leverage with a single finger in her ribs and a loud "move" and she does respond, however she is so laid back and docile that she tends to just park her self back down and I end up having to roll her away from me and move her manually. I don't feel this is an aggressive thing, but I would like to try and get her to respect my personal space more. Part of it is she is so big and clumsy and slow , however I cant help feel that another part of it, is because she was let to get away with this behavior. Any advice?

It sounds like you have done well with her so far. :-)

I think it will help if you stop thinking of her as stubborn and start to realise that if she isn't doing something you want her to, it is either because she doesn't understand what you are asking, or because you aren't motivating her enough. Dogs are pretty much in it for themselves, so you have to make sure they understand the request and also that they think it is worth them doing it.

With regard to the 'personal space'thing, it is probably that she has found it a good way of attention previously, and it still is really, after all, if she sits next to you you probably talk to her as well as prodding, pushing and poking. Attention is attention, negative or not. First I would teach her placement cues, so to go where you say. Use a treat to lure her onto her bed, and when she is getting on it, just before you give her the treat, say 'on your bed' and then give the treat when she is on it. Reapeat a lot over a week or so and she should start to recognise what the cue means, so when you say 'on your bed' she will get on her bed for the treat. You can also give her attention her she is on her bed. Eventually you can reduce the frequency she gets a treat for getting on her bed. Repeat with several locations.

Secondly, if she invades your space, totally ignore her, regardless of what she does. It will be hard, especially as at first she is likely to try harder to get your attention, but it is vital you don't give her any. Then, start giving her attention when she is laying down about the house or garden minding her own business, so she learns the ay to get attention is actually to be away from you. You can also then use the placement cues to send her away if she comes into your space when you don't want her to.

I hope that makes sense?

You've done brilliant with her allready :)

I can relate to alot of what you're saying, I have a 10 month old Mastiff. Stubborn is definately something that is hard to deal with in a large heavy dog and they certainly know what an advantage thier weight is. My pup has just discovered that if he lays on the front lawn after a walk I can't get him back in the house :(  Motivating a giant stubborn breed is not very easy to do (my pup is food motivated, but the most tasty of treats will not get him to shift off the lawn), I think the key is just persistance, until they learn that you are more stubborn than them and thier stubbornness is a waste of thier time.

> Part of it is she is so big and clumsy and slow , however I cant help feel that another part of it, is because she was let to get away with this behavior.

It could well be that she has been let get away with this behaviour before, or it could be she is finding out what she can get away with with you. My pup knows the rules, but will still try & push his luck with my sister, he'll jump on top of her a soon as she sits on the sofa even though he knows he's not allowed.

My mastiff pup is my first giant breed, so the only experience i have is the 7 months I've had him, hopefully somebody with experience of giant breeds can give you some better advice, but it sounds like you're doing great anyway.

I understand the whole motivation thing and I think this is key to getting her to realize that if she does what is asked she will be rewarded. However motivating her in the first place is the problem. She is totally not motivated by toys in any shape or form, and although she loves her food she is very picky and will only take food on her terms. So even having a treat handy a very special treat will not make a difference. She does like please though, I have read that this breed naturally do like to please there people, they are very people orientated and she is sensitive and is easily upset. I think part of it is her learning what it is I mean. She will listen to commands like "bed", "sit", "stay", "leave".

She has to be a fair distance away from me for it to work though, once she has stepped into my little "zone" she totally ignores the commands, because she is then close enough to use her body weight, and then she will roll on her back and stare up at me all silly.

Hi Wolfwoman.
I have no experience of giant breeds, so can't be of much help there. But reading your post makes me think of a young bitch, on the verge of maturity, being replaced into a new family. In my breed, which is also eager to please and very owner-orientated, this would provoke more or less the behaviour you describe. The need to get constant attention,and for being close and even accompanying the new owner to the bathroom. The constant need of reassurance, to know it's "you and me". The diffrence is my breed is not as heavy, having a RR leaning on you isn't uncomfortable.
Maybe she'll, as time passes, grow more confident in you keeping her, and need less attention.
She seems like a lovely dog, and you have come a long way with her already!
Good luck,
Karen

Yes that really does make sense!