Need Some Help With Jazzie

[jazzie]

Well i am having a few problems with Jazz at the moment and would like to know other peoples opinions on what i should be doing

We did go through a stage of food aggression but i thought we were over that until last night. We had some friends over for a BBq and after everyone had finished eating i gave Jazzie some bits of sausage as a treat. I went through all of what she normally does before she eats (sit Shake gentle) then as i was feeding her our friends 3yo walked up and stood beside me and Jazzie leaped up and niped her face. There was no growl her body language did not change so i dont know if it was food aggression still or something else.

I dont know if Jazz is going through this stage yet but she really seems to have a new found coffidence and trying to push the dominance

• Rank & shaping (14-18 Weeks)

Puppies teethe at this point, this makes them chew & people are good chew toys. They begin to realise the power of their jaw & should be taught bite inhibition (for pets) at this age.

They can also start to show signs of dominance, good pack leadership should be exercised now, a large breed dog let go at this point can be quite a handful, yes at 18 weeks.. They can learn the skills they need to dominate you & excercise these skills when they get big & strong enough, it may be funny to watch a 16 week old pup growling at you, not so funny at 16 months & 40 plus kgs..

Keep up with positive training at this point; learning a new behaviour at this stage is easier than breaking a bad habit later. I really train often in this period, putting formality to the work the puppy can do, asking for more focus etc.

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She has started to jump on people alot more and also she use to be great on the lead but today she pulled all the way to the beach and back and then also when at the beach When i grabbed my 2yo arm to take her out of the water Jazz jumped up and nipped me

So what do other people think is this a sign of agression or is she just going through a stage of being a nipper

Thankyou in advance

[tdierikx]

Have you thought about starting obedience training with Jazzie? Just you and her go down to your local dog training club and have some fun learning things together?

Sounds like Jazzie needs to have her boundaries reinforced... and I'm sure one of our wonderful DOL trainers will give you plenty of tips on how that could be done...

T.

[Dogsfevr]

I think given the age you got her & most likely the lack of interaction & learning with mum pup is most likely becoming more confident & has no clue.

For you its a problem & rightly so but one the pup doesnt understand & she is making up for lost time.

Be patient,consistent & maybe not the food risks around children especially strangers.

If it was me with the beach if my dog was being & turd whilst walking there i would have turned around & gone home.

The pup got to be naughty but rewarded by getting "fun".

Pay attention to when she nips the most ,sometimes there can be something that sets them off that you can then understand & be ready for

[jazzie]

Thanks for your reply I wanted to take Jazzie to obedience, But i have been told to stay clear of our local club and i can't find one anywhere near hear.

I did take into consideration into the fact she left her mum early and didnt know if that has added to her issue She has been well socilised since we got her, but all my friends dogs wont put her in her place (so to speak) She has been a bit funny around them as in Last week a swf dog barked she bolted ( i thought this was just her fear period) then this week a German shephers barked at her and she growled at him

I normally dont take risks with the kids i didnt know she came out. I had been giving her all her meals in her creat and working on the agression with hand feeding and tasy treats thrown in her bowl while eating.

The way i had been lead training her was. We walk, if she pulls she sits, then we start again. I took a while the first few times to get around the block but then learnt if she walked nicly she got treats and we could keep walking. It was just today i think it was also the excitment of going there with 5 kids that i had with me, she just didnt want to focus. She goes for a walk to the school and back everyday morning and arvo to drop the kids off so she is use to being around heaps of kids

Edited August 29, 2009 by jazzie

[luvsdogs]

Back in 2000 my son brought home a puppy that was 5 weeks 5 days old. A work collegue brought the whole litter to his work & they were all given away. I was told that the parents were mother & son with pit bull mixes.

She has been a delight to live with & I don't remember any trouble with nipping as a pup. I wasn't allowed to take her to my obedience club until she was about 6-8 mths old. I feel I could have done a lot more with her because she learned things easily. I stopped taking her after she had a run in with a doberman of the same age. She was ok up until then with other dogs so I stopped taking her. The only dog she had anything to do with after that was my bc April & now Tilba.

She has also had a dislike of children because they tease her going to & from school so have been aware of this & taken precautions with our own grandchildren. My youngest son was 14 when she came to live with us.

I got Tilba at 11 weeks 5 days old, about the age of Jazzie now, & as she was with a couple of her litter mates up until then she has never had a problem with nipping. I did have to teach her that it was ok for me to be around when she has raw bones because the 1st time I gave her one she snatched it & ran off to eat it. With help from the net we soon overcame this problem. by me holding on to the bone while she nibbled on the end of it.

At my obedience club we teach members to stay with their dogs at least 3-4 times a week while they eat. Once they are comfortable with you standing there it's time to add some tastier treats to the bowl while they are eating. It's not a good idea to take the food bowl away. Dogs don't generalise so you have to train them be it obedience or food bowl manners in all situations not only the one way in the one place.

This will help with bite inhibition.

And Socialisation. "

If things don't improve soon I would find a good positive behaviourist. You can't take chances with puppy nipping children. She needs to learn manners & the rules of the house.

Edited August 30, 2009 by luvsdogs

[jazzie]

Thanks for your reply

Today Jazzie was a pefect angle We had some friends come over with their two dogs and two kids and we had no problems with Jazzie at all She played great with the other dogs and kids, Shared the water with the other two dogs and even sat and had treats with the other dogs. Our friends dogs are 3yo male and a female pup a couple of days older than Jazz. We all went to the beach and had a great day.

I hadnt been taking her bowl off her, Thats just what our vet suggested. I have been doing what you did holding them and saying gentle while she nibbled it out of my hand

The problem where we live for obedience is we have one club and the only so called behavioust down here is bark bustersso i dont know what to do their.

Thanks again for your advice

[Dogsfevr]

Use the kids as part of training & distractions.

I wouldnt panic too much ,atleast you are honest with yourself so it will make progression way easier.