Naughty Puppy

[kaceymegs]

Hey everyone,

I have a 20 wk old german shepherd pup. He was taken to puppy pre-school when he was 9 weeks old for 4 weeks and did really well sociallising there. He is now attending obedience classes and is terrible. He is very obedient at home and listens quite well to commands and as soon as there is another dog around he doesnt listen to anything i say and continuously barks at them. He has been well socialised with dogs and humans so why is he barking all the time. When i walk him around the block if a dog comes up he pulls to get towards them and barks and barks until they are no longer in sight. i have tried to distract him with treats but he isnt interested. Is this something he will grow out of? Is it because he is going through the frightening stage of life?

Any suggestions would be great!

[gareth]

How much socialising/interaction with other dogs does he get now? It is something that must be continued, not just done when he is little.

Can you arrange play dates with freinds dogs?

[Sam&Saki]

I don't know where you're based, but K9 Kompany run by Animal Aid runs specific classes for dogs like this, called Reactive Rovers, if you can get to Lilydale for dog classes.

ie, these classes are for dogs who aren't necessarily aggressive to other dogs, but are so distracted by them they lose interest in all else and pay no attention to their owner/handler.

Strangely, this is something that apparently does happen to even well socialised dogs, so I don't really understand what causes it either! So don't let people tell you that you haven't socialised your dog well enough (which is what I would have assumed prior to speaking to the woman who runs these classes too.)

However overcoming it does require socialisation - but of the, 'gradually getting your dog closer to other dogs while teaching it to remain focused on you' type of socialisation, rather than the 'let your dogs all run round together like maniacs' type of socialisation.

Good luck with it all

[kaceymegs]

yes he is still socialised with them. he plays with a golden retriever, jack russel, poodle, border collie, blue healer and lots of other dogs quite regularly. And i live at Wagga Wagga, so out in the country! I dont think he is being aggressive towards the dogs he is barking at i think he just wants to play with them and sniff them.

[sas]

Is it excitment barking?

What does his body language tell you?

In regards to obedience school, it's very normal that your puppy isn't doing fantastic there, there are heaps of distractions for such a young dog.

Edited July 28, 2008 by sas

[Flaves]

Good on you for taking him to obedience!

Have you asked the trainers there for some help?

They may have some suggestions of how you can overcome his distraction.

You could try at home and using a friend and their dog, practising your obedience with the other dog and handler at a 'safe' distance.

EG have them approach you until your pups begins to react, then get them to stop that far away and work with your pup.

When you have done a few minutes of training reward the pup with a short play, then repeat.

As the pup gets older and more trained and conditioned you should be able to bring the other dog closer and closer.

Good luck

[kaceymegs]

the teacher just says ohh hes a typical german shepherd and tells us to distract him with food which works some of the time in class but not out in the real world. im only 20 yrs old and am a uni student in wagga so i dont have any friends who actually own dogs. the ones he sees and plays with are from another town where i come from (even though we are there nearly every weekend). theres a fair few dogs and owners that walk by our place i am thinking of getting him out in the front yard a few times a day (all fenced in) and see how that goes at calming him down! he is getting so strong when he pulls i can hardly handle him! he is perfect when there isnt dogs around, very obedient!

[Kavik]

Have you done any focus exercises? You can teach him to watch you on command, and get the focus on you instead of other dogs.

You can do this with clicker training (you can search on this if you don't know what it is), or food spitting or you can use toys if he likes those. First get him to focus in a quiet area like the yard, then slowly move to where there are more distractions. It will probably take a while for him to focus in class - there is a lot going on there for a young dog!

[kaceymegs]

yeh we have him doing eye contact with us. I've moved to a more distracted area than in the backyard but no way would he look at me while there is a dog about. but persistance and patience may be the key to him improving!

[Flaves]

Does he have a fav toy that he just LOVES?

If so use that to help with focusing.

[Kelpie-i]

Some good suggestions and recommendations given here.

It is not uncommon for some dogs to suddently start reacting at other dogs around this age. The reasons for this can be many and varied so it is important that you are given a correct diagnosis for the problem.

Your dog will require more socialisation, albeit the type that is tailored to your dog and you will need to learn certain handling skills to assist you.

If the bark is high pitched, then it is possible that your dog is excited, but if the pitch is low and there is tension around his mouth then this tells a different story.

Good luck with your training.

[Dogsfevr]

You also need to consider yourself.Many handlers are boring & the dogs dont feel any need to respond.They here the same commands over & over with the same boring tone .

When training your voice is an amazing tool & make full use of it.When your quirpy & excited in your tomne it is amazing how dogs will respond to the eagerness you transmit

I also believe whilst dogs must socialize pups also need to learn the difference between a free for all,time for play & time for respect & often the dogs as pups get to play all they want but during this time there is no training done for when its finished or time to listen so the dog doesnt get the guidance or commands from the handler except doing what ever is normal & as they they older & stronger they still think that is normal

[rugerfly]

Have you been into the GSD forum in Breed section? Im sure they can throw around some Ideas and relate to what you are going through with your sheppy.

[Garloch]

One thing I was taught by an animal behaviourist is that they need to be taught the same commands in varied places.

I used to train the same commands in my back yard over and over, and my dogs would do brilliantly. Then in the park - ignore me. I started to train in the park, and on the beach, and at the shops, and anywhere else I could get my dogs. They learned that the command means the same thing regardless of where you are and what is around.

Edited July 29, 2008 by Garloch