Answer to Dog Question
I got a question on a GSD, 9 months old, whining like crazy in training class and struggling to get to his humans when separated from them. Here's my response:
ANSWER:
Anxiety and eagerness to get busy causes the whining, which is common in breeds such as the GSD and also the Labrador. Training can fix this, but it won't be training "not" to whine--it will be training to do a lot of stuff! He's just a baby in German Shepherd time.
This is a breed that needs a ton of training, and they do brilliantly at it. You need the right trainer, and I think it would be wise to get some private coaching along with classes. It has to be the right approach, because of course the wrong handling at this age can ruin a dog's temperament. He sounds like a soft dog for a GSD--right up my alley, since I am nuts for the Belgian Tervuren. They're like "GSD-lite"!
Your dog needs to be trained with plenty of practice, lots of reward, prevention from making mistakes without harsh corrections (definitely not an electronic collar), and a wide variety of commands. If he were mine, our daily sessions would be an hour outing--since his class is probably an hour, he needs practice maintaining control for an hour. As a herding breed, he needs to get out away from the house to a wide variety of safe settings in order to socialize him to the wide world.
I would be working on these things with him daily:
Stays, one sit, one down and one stand per day, every day, some days on-leash during the outing and some days off-leash in the house. On class days, I'd watch time carefully and return to my dog at his correct time, no matter what the class is doing. Arrange this with the instructor. Also keep him on leash even if other dogs are off leash. He's too young and too anxious to be off-leash for group stays in class yet. Practice success, not failure.
Walk on a loose leash. Never move forward with a dog on a taut leash. Always loose, loose, loose!
Focused attention everywhere, especially at class!
Retrieving--at this age I'd be doing "Hold It" for up to one minute very gently, and stimulating the "Take It" with exciting play
Come when called, on leash or long line on outings and off-leash at home
Fancy footing. I teach the dog to walk on my left, on my right, turn left and right, about turn to the right and to the left, zig-zag, doodles, negotiate through posts, take backward steps in heel position--everything I can find and think of, to help him learn to move with me.
There's more, but my brain is freezing up! This sounds like a long session, but it shouldn't be. Most of the time should be happy walking and talking to him, with stops along the way to do an exercise or two and move on. Keep it fun, fun, fun. He is a baby. His joints probably hurt, too.
Do NOT ask for fast sits or downs at this age. Gently ease his hiney into a "big boy" sit by tickling at his tummy if he does a puppy sit, but do not force a straight sit at this age. His hips are all over the place. He needs to be learning to LOVE working with you. There absolutely do need to be definite limits on his behavior, so he can take pride in himself and feel confident that he can do what you want. He needs praise and rewards that he EARNS. This breed is definitely capable of good self-esteem, and he needs that.
Ask your veterinarian about trainers in the area who have good results with soft dogs--such as Shelties. They're herding dogs, too, and someone who is really good with a breed like that can get on the right wavelength for a soft GSD. You don't want a heavy-handed trainer or someone who believes in training by tricking the dog.
You also do not want the trainer correcting your dog, AT ALL. This is the wrong breed for that. Any corrections need to come from his trusted humans, no one else. You keep the leash, other than the trainer holding it and just keeping your dog happy, such as for the supervised separation of the Canine Good Citizen Test.
The articles of mine listed below the following link will help you:
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=SRC&S=1&SourceID=47
Stress Whining
Loose Leash Training
Socializing to People, Places, Things (3 articles)
Stay Training
Retrieving in Play
Eye Contact
"Attention, Please!"
Training: What Does Your Dog Need?
Training Classes
Herding Dog Heritage
Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition published by www.dogwise.com; and the free Canine Behavior Series at www.veterinarypartner.com. Note: I am not a veterinarian.
ANSWER:
Anxiety and eagerness to get busy causes the whining, which is common in breeds such as the GSD and also the Labrador. Training can fix this, but it won't be training "not" to whine--it will be training to do a lot of stuff! He's just a baby in German Shepherd time.
This is a breed that needs a ton of training, and they do brilliantly at it. You need the right trainer, and I think it would be wise to get some private coaching along with classes. It has to be the right approach, because of course the wrong handling at this age can ruin a dog's temperament. He sounds like a soft dog for a GSD--right up my alley, since I am nuts for the Belgian Tervuren. They're like "GSD-lite"!
Your dog needs to be trained with plenty of practice, lots of reward, prevention from making mistakes without harsh corrections (definitely not an electronic collar), and a wide variety of commands. If he were mine, our daily sessions would be an hour outing--since his class is probably an hour, he needs practice maintaining control for an hour. As a herding breed, he needs to get out away from the house to a wide variety of safe settings in order to socialize him to the wide world.
I would be working on these things with him daily:
Stays, one sit, one down and one stand per day, every day, some days on-leash during the outing and some days off-leash in the house. On class days, I'd watch time carefully and return to my dog at his correct time, no matter what the class is doing. Arrange this with the instructor. Also keep him on leash even if other dogs are off leash. He's too young and too anxious to be off-leash for group stays in class yet. Practice success, not failure.
Walk on a loose leash. Never move forward with a dog on a taut leash. Always loose, loose, loose!
Focused attention everywhere, especially at class!
Retrieving--at this age I'd be doing "Hold It" for up to one minute very gently, and stimulating the "Take It" with exciting play
Come when called, on leash or long line on outings and off-leash at home
Fancy footing. I teach the dog to walk on my left, on my right, turn left and right, about turn to the right and to the left, zig-zag, doodles, negotiate through posts, take backward steps in heel position--everything I can find and think of, to help him learn to move with me.
There's more, but my brain is freezing up! This sounds like a long session, but it shouldn't be. Most of the time should be happy walking and talking to him, with stops along the way to do an exercise or two and move on. Keep it fun, fun, fun. He is a baby. His joints probably hurt, too.
Do NOT ask for fast sits or downs at this age. Gently ease his hiney into a "big boy" sit by tickling at his tummy if he does a puppy sit, but do not force a straight sit at this age. His hips are all over the place. He needs to be learning to LOVE working with you. There absolutely do need to be definite limits on his behavior, so he can take pride in himself and feel confident that he can do what you want. He needs praise and rewards that he EARNS. This breed is definitely capable of good self-esteem, and he needs that.
Ask your veterinarian about trainers in the area who have good results with soft dogs--such as Shelties. They're herding dogs, too, and someone who is really good with a breed like that can get on the right wavelength for a soft GSD. You don't want a heavy-handed trainer or someone who believes in training by tricking the dog.
You also do not want the trainer correcting your dog, AT ALL. This is the wrong breed for that. Any corrections need to come from his trusted humans, no one else. You keep the leash, other than the trainer holding it and just keeping your dog happy, such as for the supervised separation of the Canine Good Citizen Test.
The articles of mine listed below the following link will help you:
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=SRC&S=1&SourceID=47
Stress Whining
Loose Leash Training
Socializing to People, Places, Things (3 articles)
Stay Training
Retrieving in Play
Eye Contact
"Attention, Please!"
Training: What Does Your Dog Need?
Training Classes
Herding Dog Heritage
Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition published by www.dogwise.com; and the free Canine Behavior Series at www.veterinarypartner.com. Note: I am not a veterinarian.
posted by Kathy Diamond Davis | 4:28 PM
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