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My new puppy! Pic and a few questions.

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#22 ·
here is some other stuff for you to start doing now. NILIF (Nothing in life is free at www.k9deb.com) make the dog EARN everything, pets, food, walks, everything.. he wants something, he has to do something for you. he doesnt do it, he doesnt get it, for example, start teaching him SIT.. he should learn this pretty quick. once he knows sit, when its time to eat, say Fido SIT. ONCE.. if he doesnt sit, put food away till next feeding. period.. dont give in. next feeding comes around, FIDO sit.. he doesnt sit, he doesnt eat. period. he should get it by the 3rd time or 12 hours later. it wont hurt him trust me. no furniture, no beds, no chairs, NOTHING at all for now since he has issues.. dogs with fear or other issues need more structure then normal.. every dog needs structur, but dogs with issues need it even more.. he barks in his crate, turn your back and walk away, dont say a word.. he quiets down, come back, he starts to bark walk away.. he will learn quick being quiet = out of crate. he will learn that he must do stuff for you to get stuff he wants... by setting him up with tons of structure you will help him more. also, he is NOT to be allowed free reign for now. he is to be either in his crate or tied to you with his leash, where you go he goes, if you cant take him, crate him. he must EARN his freedom...
 
Discussion starter · #25 ·
I've just been taking him everywhere I go, taking him to malls, taking him on walks in public places, taking him to friends' houses with lots of people. He's really friendly with ANYONE, but he does still bark at someone of he get's started. LIke if I'm at a friends and he doesn't hear someone come in the house and all of a sudden there is someone popping out from the stairwell. I'll get that person to come over and pet him and he's fine with that. He's really loving though, he'll let mostly anyone cuddle with him. Soon I'll start training, he just got neutered last night so I had to hold off on starting this weeks puppy classes.
 
#26 ·
ShaneN. said:
I've just been taking him everywhere I go, taking him to malls, taking him on walks in public places, taking him to friends' houses with lots of people. He's really friendly with ANYONE, but he does still bark at someone of he get's started. LIke if I'm at a friends and he doesn't hear someone come in the house and all of a sudden there is someone popping out from the stairwell. I'll get that person to come over and pet him and he's fine with that. He's really loving though, he'll let mostly anyone cuddle with him. Soon I'll start training, he just got neutered last night so I had to hold off on starting this weeks puppy classes.
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I don't want to worry you, but this is how my fearful female pit bull started out when she was about 6 months old, and I always made excuses for her like "Oh, the person came out of nowhere and startled her." Well, it went from people "coming out of nowhere" to people "just existing." She was always very nervous around people in public, and I never allowed small children to approach her. It's one thing to have a small startle at a sudden change in environment, but it's another thing to bark and growl and that perceived threat. (Do his hackles ever raise?) Just keep working with him and introducing him to new environments and people, and don't make any excuses for his behavior. It will cause you less heartbreak if you accept his temperament for what it is and aren't always looking for an explanation or something you did wrong.
 
Discussion starter · #28 ·
Well he hasn't growled or barked in weeks. He gets out everyday, meets all sorts of kids, dogs, people. The only thing I can mention is that maybe 1 out of every 7 or 8 people that come up he'll be kind of unsure of them. Just being more cautious about them touching him. Like today my dry cleaning lady was very nervous of him but I said she should meet him so when she put her hand out he didn't quite step back, but was kind of unsure of her. This kind partially be him feeling her being very nervous of him, but I won't make excuses. So I'd say he's getting much better. He's very confident in public. And for the most part, when he meets people he just wants to jump up on them happily, which is a whole new problem, but at least not as severe as one.
 
#29 ·
How old is he? What worries me is that he is just a puppy and already showing signs of aggression. Have you started any formal training with him yet? Don't allow him on your bed or couch. And when he's in the car, he should be in a crate. Growling is a red sign, don't shrug your shoulders at it. If you hear ANY more growling, take action and by action I mean seek a professional.
 
#30 ·
ShaneN. said:
Like today my dry cleaning lady was very nervous of him but I said she should meet him so when she put her hand out he didn't quite step back, but was kind of unsure of her. This kind partially be him feeling her being very nervous of him, but I won't make excuses. So I'd say he's getting much better. He's very confident in public. And for the most part, when he meets people he just wants to jump up on them happily, which is a whole new problem, but at least not as severe as one.
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Here's the problem,

you have a lady that is unsure of your dog, so she is giving off nervous energy (body language)

your unsure because your dog is feeding off the lady's energy.

stay cool, always be assertive and be sure of your dog's behaviour. tell people to relax or they can't say hi to your dog because it will only make matters worse. keep treats in your pocket, go up to people and ask them to give your pup one. this assosciated a positive reward for meeting new people.

best of luck.
 
#31 ·
I've referenced it in some other threads but this is an awesome article that you might want to check out. It is a discussion of temperament and while it can be harsh, it is honest and you need to understand where your dog falls in these categories.

http://www.vanerp.net/ilse/GSDINFO/Elements of Temperament.htm

Happy reading!
 
Discussion starter · #32 ·
ambulldogpup said:
How old is he? What worries me is that he is just a puppy and already showing signs of aggression. Have you started any formal training with him yet? Don't allow him on your bed or couch. And when he's in the car, he should be in a crate. Growling is a red sign, don't shrug your shoulders at it. If you hear ANY more growling, take action and by action I mean seek a professional.
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Like I said, this has stopped for the most part. The only "oddity" that I can really see is him being a little weary about petting him, which is pretty rare. He mostly has no problem with anyone. But he has NEVER growled or barked after the initial period of me getting him. I wasn't allowing him in bed with me until I made a thread on here and nearly everyone on all of the pages said it was fine, go figure. If he ever tried to stop me from getting him off the bed, that would stop right away.

On a side note, he was only growing when people showed up out of no where, he would let those same people approach him after he initial shock. Not that it's any better, but at least he wasn't tryhing to intimidate people as they approached him.
 
#33 ·
Like Leeanne said, it could be initially people coming out of no where and then eventually just existing. Making up exuses for it, is not going to solve the problem.

Who said it was okay for the dog to be on the bed? Every person's dog is different, and their dog, it might be alright. But if you came to me and I was a trainer, do you think the trainer would let a puppy that's been growling at all on a bed? No way.

Just my two cents. There's nothing wrong with waiting until you have completed training and the neccasary measures to show that you ARE the leader and not him.
 
#34 ·
My Homer would growl when we fisrt got him too. It was when he would have a bone and thought someone was going to try to take it. i started giving them to him in a controlled area, praising him and then giving it back right away when he would drop it for me and the growling stopped within two weeks. I actually think it was because the new house/people/situation. he now shares his bones with the other dog and will happily drop it for anyone who asks
 
Discussion starter · #35 ·
Just as an update, Nova is now 1.5 years old and has never had an issue. Loves all kinds of people and dogs. He lives with to other dogs easily and has never made an advance at a person. He does bark at people he hasn't met before when they show up in the house but when he sees I'm fine with them beeing there he quickly approaches for a lick and wags his tail. He's seriously the most happy and affectionate dog I've ever met. He turned into a great dog. I guess what they say is true, raise them in a good home and treat them like family and they'll be just fine. I seriously ask myself weekly what the big fuss about bully breed dogs are! If you search my name you can see a thread where I posted pics every few weeks. And thanks for the help prior guys!
 
Discussion starter · #37 ·
no more growling, skiddishnes/nervous behavour, nothing. I believe my breeder wasn't 100% honest with me and have some evidence he was between at least 3-4 houses in the first 4 months of his life. I spent the last year treating him the way he should be treated and he has turned into an angel! The only negative attribute I could see is he barks at people we doesn't know that show up inside my house upon first seeing them. I don't know many dogs who aren't startled by strangers in the house though.
 
#38 ·
Be very cautious with believing your dog is an "angel". I would hope that we all treat our dogs "as they deserve to be treated" but part of that is sticking on top of the obedience and not giving up.

We made the mistake of not getting our dog the proper OB and believing that by treating him like a king we were doing the right thing. WRONG. Then in instances where he began barking at strangers inside and outside of the house we didn't know what to do. We are still paying for those mistakes and learning how to correct our wrongs.
 
Discussion starter · #39 ·
I appreciate the advice but after a bunch of people told me to euthenize the dog or return him to the breeder because he was apparently ruined by the age of 4 months, I now take everything with a grain of salt now. He IS an angel, period. Thats not to say he isn't capable of bad things, he is an animal after all and I don't forget that.
 
#40 ·
Just read this....some advice.... dont let nervous people pet your dog. You mentioned your cleaning lady was hesitant.
Dont make people pet him whether they are nervous or not. This is not how dogs greet each other it's how we greet each other. We use our hands - dogs use their nose.

The Dog Whisperer is right when he says - no talk, no touch, no eye contact.

Be selective in who and how people meet your dog. I personally keep a few specific people away from Omi. They are all dog lovers - but they are kookie and do not know dog behavior and I am NOT willing to have something bad happen and risk the chance of losing my dog.

You're dog is BEAUTIFUL - so keep working with him.
 
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