Training help please!

Status
Not open for further replies.

zoogrl

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jul 7, 2010
Messages
367
Location (City and/or State)
Missouri
I am asking help today with my german shepherd, Alexus. She is a 2yr old very active girl who my fiance got as a puppy. She has gone to daycare 5 days a week since she was completely vaccinated & we also did puppy class & a basic home manners class. She has a TON of energy, an understatement really, and I'm always trying to keep her busy & occupied doing good things. The trouble is, we moved at the first of January to a new & bigger house. The yard is 3x the size of the other yard we had, problem is we don't have a fence. My future father in law has dug holes & is going to put up a fence but here it is 2 months later & no fence. We are outside city limits and so no animal control & everyone's dogs run loose out here. I did not know that when we moved in, mysteriously no dogs were loose when we came & looked at the place and moved our stuff in. We keep our dogs in our yard with a zip line type tie out. My dogs ( I have a lab mix too) bark at these other dogs all day long. So I took some of their toys outside, we play ball, frisbee, the dogs wrestle to keep them occupied with something else instead of barking. Now the neighborhood dogs are stealing my dogs toys & treats & even the water bowl for outside is missing. I've tried to talk to the neighbors but that didn't work. I stay outside with them when they are out, if I'm not playing with them I'm on the patio watching them. I can't keep Alexus inside & still wear her out the way she needs to be. Is there anyone out there with suggestions on what I can do? We signed a year lease here & paid a pet fee to live here, it's hard to find places to rent that will let you have pets. But I'm constantly having to get onto her to stop barking, get out of the trash, get out of the litterbox. I hate that I'm not able to enjoy her. I'm thinking here lately am I in over my head? Is she too much dog for me? Should I find her another home where she isn't getting onto all the time?
 

JourneyTort

Member
10 Year Member!
5 Year Member
Joined
Sep 17, 2008
Messages
139
Location (City and/or State)
Ontario, Canada
zoogrl said:
I am asking help today with my german shepherd, Alexus. She is a 2yr old very active girl who my fiance got as a puppy. She has gone to daycare 5 days a week since she was completely vaccinated & we also did puppy class & a basic home manners class. I hate that I'm not able to enjoy her. I'm thinking here lately am I in over my head? Is she too much dog for me? Should I find her another home where she isn't getting onto all the time?

You never said, does she still go to daycare??

What is your routine with her? You can't tie her up outside and expect her to amuse herself, it won't work, she will find things to amuse herself and it won't be good, lol. She needs a job to do. You need to tire her out to stop her from getting into mishief. A tired dog is a happy dog.

Dogs like routines. If you work everyday then plan on doing some off leash work with her prior to you leaving for the day, leave her inside so she won't be barking all day at everything that stops by for a visit.

If she is still doing daycare and it is after daycare that she is doing all this then you need to get into a routine and set some boundaries with her. Young dogs can be a lot of work initially but once they have a routine and you give them what they require as far as burning her energy and satisfying them that way, you will have a happy pet.
 

zoogrl

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jul 7, 2010
Messages
367
Location (City and/or State)
Missouri
Our routine is breakfast at 8am, daycare from 9am to 6pm. Dinner at 7pm and then outside to play from 8-10pm. Anytime she is outside I am out there with her, throwing a ball or frisbee or watching her & Jake wrestle. That is Mon thru Fri. On the weekends, we go for walks/hikes at area trails when the weather is decent. We used to take her to friend's houses with dogs to play but she is so unruly we are not invited anymore. She jumps all over everyone, she knows to sit & I've tried to get her to sit before getting petted but it does not matter to her. She's gonna jump & run circles around you & knock you down no matter what command she knows. If it's raining or too cold she is inside and constantly getting into mischief. I have tried Kongs with peanut butter, other busy buddy toys where she has to work to get food rewards out of it but she finishes that in 2 minutes & is looking for something else. Jake, my lab will settle down after daycare or a walk and relax. Lexi will not! No matter what activity we've done, she is constantly on the go. I've done everything our vet recommends & the trainer we did classes with recommends but nothing wears her out. The kids ride their bikes outside on the weekends & I'll run with her behind the kids and I can't keep up with her. We've tried long hikes & I'm talking 2-4 hours of non stop exercise & after a drink she's ready to go again. I can't believe it, I'm ready to collapse after a hike or a 2 mile walk & she's looking for what's next.
 

JourneyTort

Member
10 Year Member!
5 Year Member
Joined
Sep 17, 2008
Messages
139
Location (City and/or State)
Ontario, Canada
zoogrl said:
Our routine is breakfast at 8am, daycare from 9am to 6pm. Dinner at 7pm and then outside to play from 8-10pm. Anytime she is outside I am out there with her, throwing a ball or frisbee or watching her & Jake wrestle. That is Mon thru Fri. On the weekends, we go for walks/hikes at area trails when the weather is decent. We used to take her to friend's houses with dogs to play but she is so unruly we are not invited anymore. She jumps all over everyone, she knows to sit & I've tried to get her to sit before getting petted but it does not matter to her. She's gonna jump & run circles around you & knock you down no matter what command she knows. If it's raining or too cold she is inside and constantly getting into mischief. I have tried Kongs with peanut butter, other busy buddy toys where she has to work to get food rewards out of it but she finishes that in 2 minutes & is looking for something else. Jake, my lab will settle down after daycare or a walk and relax. Lexi will not! No matter what activity we've done, she is constantly on the go. I've done everything our vet recommends & the trainer we did classes with recommends but nothing wears her out. The kids ride their bikes outside on the weekends & I'll run with her behind the kids and I can't keep up with her. We've tried long hikes & I'm talking 2-4 hours of non stop exercise & after a drink she's ready to go again. I can't believe it, I'm ready to collapse after a hike or a 2 mile walk & she's looking for what's next.


Okay if you are saying she is at daycare all day and then she comes home and gets into mischief then you need to set some boundaries. She comes home, has quiet time, maybe take her outside for 30 mins and play chuck-it just before bed come back in and she has to learn to settle down. Do you crate her at all? Put her in her crate for time-out. You know after daycare and after 30 mins of vigorous chuck-it she is physically tired. Crate her for quiet time, period. She needs routine and quiet time should be part of that.

During the weekend tire her out. Buy a 'Springer' attachment and take her for a ride (be careful and keep your eyes on her pads when you first take her out, she may burn them if you go too fast or on concrete, etc.). Also, enroll in agility, flyball or obedience. Doing 1/2 an hour of obedience also wears them down mentally. Take a clicker training class, that will mentally wear her down.

When you say you have tried to get her to sit before getting petted. Don't try, do it. Do not reward her for not giving you the behaviour that you asked. Instead of pats, try treats and/or toys as a reward. See if she is more willing to work for a treat/toy. If you ask her to sit, she should sit for you or basically you are saying 'sit ........ if you want' she chooses not to and she gets what she wants anyway or she wears you down with not sitting. You may have to go back to square one with training as the word 'sit' is not working try using hand signals. Take her back to beginner obedience.

These are some thoughts off the top of my head without really seeing what is going on.
 

Tom

The Dog Trainer
10 Year Member!
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jan 9, 2010
Messages
63,269
Location (City and/or State)
Southern California
You've got two problems as I see it. Problem#1: Your dog needs a job. A real job. Exercise and play is good too, but its not a substitute for a job. Look into Schutzhund or agility or search and rescue. You've got a working breed with working drive and she needs to work. None of these problems will go away until she has a job, once she gets a job, and you start working toward a training goal in earnest, all of these little problems will start to fade into oblivion.

Problem #2: The neighbors dogs. There are a million ways to go about this. Each way will have its good and bad points. You will have to pick which way works best for you and your situation. Either you tolerate the intrusion and make the best of it somehow, or you keep them out of your space one way or another.
 

zoogrl

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jul 7, 2010
Messages
367
Location (City and/or State)
Missouri
I will do a crate quiet time for her and see how it goes. She is crate trained, all of our dogs are. I don't have a trainer who does the advanced classes on the weekends & I have to do weekend classes. I work until about 7pm or 8pm every evening. But weekends are completely free, is there a book or some way to for me to learn how to teach her search & rescue on my own? My fiance wants to take her to his mom, she's offered to take her but I don't like that idea at all. But if I can't give her what she needs & someone else can I will do whats best for her, but just thinking about it makes me sad.
 

Wirewehear

Active Member
10 Year Member!
Joined
Aug 15, 2010
Messages
239
Location (City and/or State)
So. Cal desert
Its not a bad thing to re-home if it benefits the dog and you know she will do well. If your Mom can give her what she needs, great. Frankly I admire you having such a high energy dog. I love GSDs but dont have the lifestyle for them. Yours sounds like her drive is right up there with the Malinois'. Good luck with that .. lol.
I was going to suggest Obed and/or Schutz training as well. (now I think I'll go hug my older lower energy dogs)
 

Tom

The Dog Trainer
10 Year Member!
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jan 9, 2010
Messages
63,269
Location (City and/or State)
Southern California
Look around your area for a club that does any sort of protection training. Your dog was bred to bite people. You can develop, channel and control that drive or just wait until the dog chooses when to engage her man-made instincts. Protection training does NOT make a dog more aggressive or more likely to bite, in fact it makes them less likely to. Mainly its fun and good exercise. NOTHING will settle a shepard down like some properly done bite work a couple time a week. You could also look for some sheep to herd on the weekends. That will usually do it too.

I know of no book that will help your situation.
 

ALDABRAMAN

KEEPER AT HEART
10 Year Member!
Joined
Nov 5, 2010
Messages
28,446
Location (City and/or State)
SW Forida
I agree with Tom! Your dog needs more! Makes me sad also. :(

34j29t2.jpg
 

Laura

Well-Known Member
10 Year Member!
5 Year Member
Joined
Sep 5, 2007
Messages
7,502
Location (City and/or State)
Foothills above Sacramento CA
BUILD THE FENCE!
and I agree. she needs a job.. or more training..
I hope she is spayed.. or the neighborhood dogs will never stay away and
you will have a unwanted litter. :-(
 

zoogrl

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jul 7, 2010
Messages
367
Location (City and/or State)
Missouri
She is definately spayed!!! We had that done on all of our pets as soon as they are old enough. I will never have an unaltered dog or cat. But I'll get off that soap box now lol. I will call around to see if I can find someone who does protection training, I'd like to do bite work on the weekends, that does sound fun! Thank you! She does have an insane amount of drive, I've had other high energy dogs. I had a doberman for 8 years & he was extremely high energy but settled down after daycare and after about a year or so of age. We did classes with him to & always said that they are well worth the money & time put in. He would still be ready to play anytime, but would also calm down in the house. I will definately look into the protection training, I've got a few people I know thru the vet clinic that may be able to point me in the right direction there. Thank You for all of your help!
 

Laura

Well-Known Member
10 Year Member!
5 Year Member
Joined
Sep 5, 2007
Messages
7,502
Location (City and/or State)
Foothills above Sacramento CA
Shelters are full of 2 year old dogs.. people who just couldnt bother or gave up or .. or...???
If you cant find a Protection trainer near you. look into Agility. It gives them confidence and something for thier mind to do.. you can also build some of the equip for your yard.
Depending on her type of drive.. you can also look into search and rescue in your area..
 

Edna

New Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Sep 12, 2010
Messages
1,536
Location (City and/or State)
Rawlins, Wyoming
My 3 year old Aussie is also high energy/high drive. We started out with some obedience classes and have moved on to Agility. It's pretty informal, but she LOVES have tasks to do. Between classes we just play with a tennis ball because to her, that's another important task. Luckily, she also verywell socialized, so a lot of our agility sessions begin with a wild off leash romp with another dog, not always as well socialized, but Po can handle it. Her focus is amazing after even a 5 minute romp.
 

Wirewehear

Active Member
10 Year Member!
Joined
Aug 15, 2010
Messages
239
Location (City and/or State)
So. Cal desert
Laura said:
Shelters are full of 2 year old dogs.. people who just couldnt bother or gave up or .. or...???

Yes ... I mostly adopt those 2 yr olds and older. When I wrote rehoming isnt a bad thing it was with her rehoming to another family member, in mind. Not taking her dog to a shelter or rescue. But thats a moot point since she is one of the good ones and is willing to do whatever her GSD needs to be a happy dog.
 

zoogrl

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jul 7, 2010
Messages
367
Location (City and/or State)
Missouri
I talked to a client at work who works for the sherrifs department, he has a shepherd that he does protection training with for work. He said that he wouldn't recommend protection training first, but would recommend agility training for her. My boss at work is going to let me order some agility equipment from a company that we order from so I may get a special price. There's an empty field at the end of our cul de sac so I'm going to set it up there on the weekends for her. In the mean time I thought I could work up a temporary course, having her jump over stuff I already have in the garage,( the cooler or whatever) jumping in & out of the truck and then working her thru her down stays & sit stays. I'm going to look at the equipment and see what we have around that could work until the real stuff comes in. And Chad talked to his dad today & he said he should be over next week to get the posts concreted in for the fence. It's supposed to rain so I'm hoping it's not too bad & he can still work. I also thought about getting a sandbox in the backyard for her & burying toys in the sand for her to work at getting out. But that will have to wait until the fence is up. I don't want stray cats in the sandbox. Thank you everyone for all of your suggestions & encouragement! Alexus is the reason my fiance & I met, there's no way I could give up on her. Unless I know that there's no way we can give her what she needs.
 

zoogrl

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jul 7, 2010
Messages
367
Location (City and/or State)
Missouri
Update on Alexus, she is doing better with the extra training everyday! She will settle down more when she is inside at night. We are still waiting for a fence : ( I'm so upset about that but there's nothing I can do about it except to be quiet. Patience has gone out the window at this point. Our new issue is that when we are working outside the neighborhood dogs are quite a distraction. She wants to bark & play with them instead of pay attention to me. I really think she has ADHD. But a client at the clinic works for a neighboring city police dept & they have an empty lot that belongs to the city so he said I am welcome to use it anytime. Only about ten minutes away too. So when our agility equipment comes in (should be sometime next week) we can set it up out there on the weekends :) I also started hiding treats in the house for her to use her nose to find, and fixing peanut butter filled kongs and hiding them. I freeze them overnight so the peanut butter is hard & lasts longer when she licks it out. The last week has been much better on all of us with the extra training and the kids are getting involved with hiding the treats inside & then "helping" her find them.
 

Edna

New Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Sep 12, 2010
Messages
1,536
Location (City and/or State)
Rawlins, Wyoming
zoogrl said:
Our new issue is that when we are working outside the neighborhood dogs are quite a distraction. She wants to bark & play with them instead of pay attention to me. I really think she has ADHD.

Use those neighborhood distractions as an attention training opportunity. Put a baggie of her favorite treats in your treat pouch and take her favorite toy along, too. Make yourself the most interesting thing out there and reward her when she chooses you! (My Aussie Ponette can tune out anything for cut up hot dogs and her tennis ball)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top