Adrienne

I am glad to hear that the targeting exercise is starting to sink in! It may take a few trials with persistent biters. Yes, for dogs determined to biting on the leash, a chain leash can help as dogs do not like to chew on metal.

OK, so it sounds like the issue is mostly with the crate. It may therefore help for the time being at night to keep the crate enclosed in a small play pen or even better in an enclosed area nearby the door (in hopes he'll bark to be let out). Keep the crate door open and set pee pads just outside of it in hopes that your puppy will learn to step out of the crate to pee rather than just lie in it. I would see how that works out. At the same time, it may help to keep working on making the crate a great place to be. It may help to use a new type of crate such as a travel crate of the right size if you have been using a wire one. Once he learns to get up and pee out of the crate often, you can then progress to gradually closing him in the crate while you leave your pup with something valuable to chew on as shown in the "love the crate" video series. Gradually increase the time closed, mixing in briefer and longer absences. Then at night, watch/listen to your dog. Hopefully, your pup should learn to start whining or pawing in protest to be let out at some point and you can then escort him outside. The little spots of wee on the floor can be due to excitement. Find out what triggers it exactly in his interactions with you as some of our behaviors are the culprit. Try to avoid talking in hyper voices, praising and looming over. If you need to greet him after coming home, greet him outside. Have you noticed any changes (even little improvements( by using any of the tips provided earlier (like taking him out at night more often, removing water a couple or hours prior to bedtime, keeping the crate nearby you at night?)

Hello and welcome back! You are caught between a rock and a hard place here, because on one hand, you want to get your dogs used to objects that will be commonly around your new baby, on the other hand, you don't want to evoke fights. And with a new baby in the home, you'll certainly deal with a significant increase in novel items around the home on a high frequency basis as that's inevitable. Management is always a good option to implement, and it sounds like you are already doing a lot of that by keeping items that your dogs may fight over out of reach. Management is helpful because it prevents dogs from rehearsing problematic behaviors. While it's true that management doesn't treat behavior problems directly, it can prove beneficial on various fronts. In the case of dogs fighting over objects, management would therefore involve preventing access to such items. As the saying goes "out of sight, out of mind." With no novel items around, your dogs should have nothing to fight about. By doing this, you are preventing rehearsal of the problem behavior. Here's the thing, if one dog is guarding, say something like a baby's blanket, and growls/barks at another dog who comes near, the growling/barking behavior is reinforced (the guarder gets to keep his perceived possession and since his strategy often sends the other dog away, the dog will keep rehearsing this type of behavior over and over). When behaviors are rehearsed, they put more roots and happen more frequently. On top of this, management allows your dogs to relax and it keeps them safer. Resource guarders are often on edge and hypervigilant. You therefore won't have to worry excessively as you have lower chances to face the upsetting ordeal of breaking up a fight. Of course, adhering to strict management can be a very arduous task, and micromanaging can put a big toll. On top of this, many dog owners look for a direct solution to their dog's behavioral problems, rather than strict avoidance. A time may come after all when some item falls to the ground or is forgotten on a table or just can't be moved. With a new baby, new parents are often sleep-deprived and become distracted. In such cases, training dogs what we want them to do in presence of certain novel items can turn out being a good compromise. We often tell dogs what we don't want them to do, when dogs do best when instead we tell them what we actually expect from them. So you would have to think of a desirable behavior you would like your dogs to engage in when in presence of an object that may trigger fighting. *Please note: these exercises are risky. Have a dog behavior consultant guide your through for safety and correct behavior modification implementation. With a new baby arriving in the home, you can't play it safe enough. Consider that with a new baby there is more stress, and stress can lower a dog's threshold for acting aggressively-so if we already see problems now that we're ahead of time, they will likely get worse if we don't intervene. Therefore, these are just samples of behavior modification. Every case is different, and may warrant a different, individualized approach. For example, a baby's rattler drops on the ground? You can cue your dogs to go to their mats as soon as it drops to the floor. Once they are there, you can grab the object, stow it away and you can then release them from their mats. Initially though, you would have to train your dogs a strong response to going to their mats. You would therefore start training this without any of your novel items around. Here is a guide for this behavior that you would start practicing one dog at a time, and then involving both dogs having one mat for each dog place at a distance from each other. *Caution if they are food aggressive and too close to each other. Your behavior consultant can help you gauge distance. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/video-archive/train-dog-go-to-mat/ After you have obtained a strong response always with the help of a dog behavior professional, you can start adding the presence of some novel object. Place the belonging on the floor and ask your dogs to go to their mats. Practice this several times every now and then to keep the response fresh. Other behaviors that you can train when a baby's belongings is around is to have your dogs walk away from the item using a cue word such as "off!" or you can train them to come and get you to let you know. This is more advanced training that will require some time to master as the desire to guard from each other can be quite strong. If the items are very large and placed in the new baby's room, you can block off access to such room using a baby gate, but you can every now and then invite each dog individually to explore them as you praise them. Train them individually to disengage from the object at some point by asking them to come target your hand or just make a smacking sound with your mouth to tell your dogs to look at you and come to you If one of your dogs though starts guarding the room because he sees the novel object through the baby gate, close the door. For Breaking Up Fights Breaking up dog fights is a delicate situation. If one intervenes wrongly, it can lead to a re-directed bite. This implies, that owners should never get in between two dogs who are fighting and using their hands, arms or legs as that's the easiest way to get injured. Noise-making tools can come handy. Always keep handy a pocket sized marine air horn or even two pot lids to clash strongly together. Some dog owners have had success using compressed air. These can startle the dogs enough to stop the fight. Water can be helpful too. A bucket of water tossed over them, or a water hose directed in their direction may do the trick. Sometimes, tossing a blanket or towel over the dogs when they are biting each other may confuse them enough to detach and separate. Large and long objects can be used as well to place between dogs such as a folded chair, trash can. Spray Shield is a spray made with citronella which can be used to break up a mild dog fight. Aim towards the nose. It is always best practicing in spraying this outside randomly at things just so you get a hang of how to use it so when the need arises you know what to do. Importance of Consulting with a Professional It is worthy of emphasizing the importance of working directly with a dog behavior professional, especially when there are dogs with a history of fighting and new babies joining the household. Behavior modification is often needed more than actual training since resource guarding is a matter or emotional responses that need to be altered and defused. A lot of skill is needed to read the dog's body language carefully, while providing a systematic approach that aims to change the dog's emotions and increase coping skills with certain scenarios/situations. Behavior modification though comes with risks and requires one-on-one coaching in order to increase safety and allow its correct implementation. These experts in the field are board-certified veterinary behaviorists (DACVB) and Certified Applied Animal Behaviorists (CAAB). In some cases, medication may be needed so to help reduce some of the stress of novelty, particularly with a new baby, along with ongoing training. When dogs are stressed, dogs are often too over threshold and this lowers their ability to cognitively function so that they can learn new behaviors. I hope this helps! Here is a read for getting dogs used to the baby's first cries: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/get-dog-used-crying-baby/ And here are more threads on resource guarding, please note that these are specific tips and don't apply to each case scenario, every case is different and only a dog behavior professional assessing the individualized dogs can make specific, customized plans based on every situation. Feel free to post if you have any particular questions. Best, Adrienne Disclaimer: behavior modification comes with risks. If your dog is aggressive, please use caution and consult with a dog behavior professional for in-person coaching, safety and correct implementation.

Hi Fabiola, Is your puppy neutered by any chance? What does he do right away, first thing as soon as he's let out?

Great questions! Firstly, here's a big fact: From the day you bring your puppy home, your puppy will be constantly learning, and that includes both good behaviors and bad. If you keep your mind focused on this very important fact, you will be more likely to provide guidance so that your puppy will often make good choices. Puppies are therefore learning with every interaction so they are perpetually in "training." Play is training. Resting is training. Walking is training and even learning to be away from you is training. Now, I am not too much a fan of giving exact set timeframes for how long a puppy should be trained due to the fact that every puppy is different. With more than 200 dog breeds out there, they all develop differently and even within a litter of the same breed, there are variances, so I mostly pay attention to the individual puppy. just like us (think students who can sit in class concentrating on lessons while others are glancing out of the window daydreaming), some dogs can tolerate more training than others. You can generally train your pup as many times as you like as long as you pup is enjoying it and isn't getting bored. Nothing is worse for a puppy than a tedious training session that is getting boring or too difficult. So you can start with 1 minute training and see how it goes. Does your puppy seem focused and eager to learn? Then we can extend to it minute more and so forth. As a general, very general guideline, a young puppy under the age of 12 weeks may do well with 5 to 6 brief sessions a day lasting about 2-3 mins each session. The aim should be doing about 10-15 minutes of training every day in brief sessions spread throughout the day. This would be a good place to start, making sure you end the session on a positive note and always when the pup is still interested. This builds a strong desire to learn. In regards to the sequence: you can follow the whole sequence of obedience 101 as it's displayed (therefore starting with sit and following through) but if you have something you need to work on urgently (for example, in the case of a puppy who grabs everything and swallows them down like there is no tomorrow, you may start with leave its and drop its). Since your pup knows already sit and down (make sure it's fluent enough so that you have faded the food lure, added a verbal cue/ simplified the hand gesture into something more convenient and increased the challenge) you can certainly move on to the leash training since it sounds like that's what he needs the most work on. The pulling or sitting down when on leash is due to him perceiving it as a foreign item and it feels weird which triggers the "opposition reflex" in other words, the more you tug, the more he'll pull back or give up trying and fall into learned helplessness. You will need to be patient on this and work on baby steps with lots of praise and encouragement. Pups can sense if we get frustrated and this can make them stall. Start indoors practicing in a hallway. If he is jumping when you are trying to make him follow you, this often happen when you are holding the treat too high. Try holding it low next to you knee or as soon as he's catching up and is close to your knee, drop the treat/kibble before he even has a chance to jump up.

The non-absorbent bedding can help some pups, but generally once they have gotten used to sleeping in their pee and being wet over a long course of time, they sort of get used it and it becomes the norm 😞. I don't think they grow out of it once they are older and it becomes a habit (the peeing in the crate), unless we take steps to prevent it from happening in the first place as much as possible. I still find it odd that he doesn't have accidents during the day. Where is he kept during the day that you are always aware of when he needs to be taken out? Is he crated? How often do you take him out during the day? They do tend to outgrow the excitement peeing if we take steps to prevent it from happening too often. As always we want to prevent rehearsal of the problematic behavior which can become habit-forming. Have you noticed when it happens exactly? Like when you come home? When you talk to your puppy in a certain tone of voice? When you bend down to pet him? What have you been doing when you catch him having an accident where he's not supposed to go?

Hi Cheryl, You are very welcome, I am glad you saw this, I was worried you missed it. Shiloh is lucky to have all that space to be playing in and adventuring! When training sit, make sure to keep the treat low so he doesn't feel to jump up. You can try practicing at home when you're sitting on the couch and have him nearby. Make sure to not give the treat when he' actively jumping otherwise you'll be reinforcing jumping and not sitting. Here is the section for training sit: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/sit/ Are you asking him to sit prior to putting on the leash or were just working on sitting on its own? I would work mostly on firstly creating positive associations with this action of clipping/unclipping and giving in to the leash pressure though desensitization and counterconditioning and then once he does better on that (no more nipping), only then, add the sit. Wear thick garden gloves if he's nipping hard. Work on this a lot at home before trying it outdoors. Sometimes when pups feel uncomfortable with being pulled with the leash, they'll freeze and go into a learned helplessness mode. If he stops, I would not pull (pulling makes them freeze more) but try to get him moving by calling him or tossing a treat. In regards to your question: "Would it be possible to train him off leash first without too much confusion?" What are you trying to train him exactly? For sits, down, recalls, leave it and drops , stay, you don't need a leash if you're practicing indoors initially and then in a safe yard. Hand targeting is also a great exercise to train a pup to not nip on hands but interact in another way: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/preschool/targeting/ And here are some bite inhibition games: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/bite-inhibition-games/

Hi Cheryl, I posted a behavior modification plan for the biting when connecting the leash in your other thread. Posting it here in case you missed it:

You are very welcome! I hear you about the dogs who engage in rude behaviors. We have dealt with this issue many times and had to decide to frequent different areas just to avoid the problems. Occasionally, such encounters still occurred every now and then (like dogs escaping their properties) and tossing them treats to detour them often helped. I also carried "Spray Shield' with me just in case of aggressive encounters. If he is selective and you know there are some dogs he certainly gets well along with, with no particular problems whatsoever, I would suggest sticking to socializing with them. This should be enough for now to upkeep his social skills while also ensuring things stay positive and happy. We often think that play should be the way dogs mingle with other dogs, but walking with other dogs can also be productive (and put less stress on us worrying about things happening when dogs mingle off leash). If you have friends with dogs your Rottie does fine with, organizing some group walks/hikes (once the COVID19 situation is better under control) can also be a form of socialization, a more structured form giving a sense of "togetherness", but socialization nonetheless. For the sniffing, we can find a compromise on walks so that we both get to enjoy the perks that come along with all the stimuli associated with the great outdoors. Since dogs benefit from sniffing from time to time,(sniffing is a tiring activity too, win-win!) we can therefore work on putting it on cue. Every now and then, when your dog is walking nicely by your side, walk towards an area that you'll be using for your dog's sniffing pleasure. Practice walking to this area on a loose leash. Make it a habit to say "go sniff" as you point to the area, so that your dog understands that you are giving him permission to go on a sniffing adventure. This is one of the easiest training cues you will ever train as most dogs know what to do when you let them approach a "pee-mail" area. Make sure you give him a bit time and when he seems to be losing interest, say “let’s go!” praise, and continue on your walk. Or even better, if you have access to a fenced area where your dog can safely stay off leash and sniff to his heart's content, walk towards this area, and when that leash is dangling in a nice slack "U," snap off the leash and say "go sniff." Most dogs at some point get tired of sniffing, so once the novelty is gone, this is a good time to call your dog and reward him. Keep me posted! I am always here if you have any questions, Best, Adrienne

Hi Judy, Great to hear you are starting to see improvement already, you're doing an excellent job! Training dogs to go potty on cue has been the best return in investment in potty training dogs for me. It takes some time to teach, but if we're out with them anyhow, why not? When there are accidents, keep track of them and evaluate whether you may need to tweak up a bit potty times (like next time try taking your pup out a little earlier). Thanks for the update! Best, Adrienne

Skye is so pretty! And so smart! Thanks for posting the pictures, I love to see how she develops along the way. She sure has a lot of coat and looks so fluffy. She also looks very happy! You're doing a great job. Thanks for the updates! Happy training! Adrienne

Hi Russ! I am glad to hear that you have found toys that are withstanding Skyes' powerful chewing! In regards to the Nina Ottoson Puzzles, they have a good reputation among dog trainers. I have used them in the past, but realize many dog owners may find them expensive, but they can be great additions for all the Einstein pups out there. I have reviewed the puzzles here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/adriennes-picks/top-5-dog-feeding-toys/

Hello, and welcome to the forums, We want our pups to be enthusiastic and run over to us, so that's good! It should feel like a fun game. Gobbling down the treat goes to show that you have chosen treats that your puppy likes and that can be successfully used as reinforcement. So I see no problems with this. Are you trying to find ways for your pup to ingest the treat slower? Are you showing the treat? It's ideal at some point to hide the treat out of view in your closed hand, treat bag or pocket. What is your exact goal? Do you want to add some additional behavior when he comes to you, such as a sit? I know some dog owners like to train recalls with a frontal sit upon reaching them. Let me know. Thanks for the extra details.

Thank you for the extra details, they are very helpful! Hopefully those kennels specializing in personal protection/guard dogs were ran by very experienced people, I am always suspicious about what methods they use. There is a very, very thin line between getting a dog who is constantly suspicious of everyone and one blessed with a super stable temperament, confidence and the uncanny ability to discern friend from foe. In any case, he sounds like he turned out to be a lovely boy who is just in need of guidance. In general with Rotties, they tend to be friendly with other dogs as puppies and youngsters, but as they mature things tend to change somewhat and some may unfortunately no longer be tolerant of other dogs. This is even mentioned in their breed standard. The American Kennel Club standard for the Rottweiler breed describes Rottweilers as being "calm, confident and courageous dogs with a self-assured aloofness that does not lend itself to immediate and indiscriminate friendships. Their "attitude" towards other dogs is also alluded to where it states: "An aggressive or belligerent attitude towards other dogs should not be faulted." Often, to be more precise, we see changes in behaviors towards other dogs once they reach social maturity, which in this breed takes place at 2 to 3 years of age. During this time, Rottweilers may turn out being more selective over what dogs they wish to befriend. The may therefore start restricting their circle of friends and some may come to no longer tolerate certain dogs/interactions. In general, if a Rottie gets along with a few specific type of dogs, organizing play dates with these specific dogs will be much safer than going to a dog park with different dogs. Several Rottweilers also during this time start no longer tolerating "rude" behaviors from other dogs. They may growl when a young Labrador gets in their face, they may snarl if a dog dares placing a leg on their shoulder or chin, they may no longer appreciate meeting and greeting other dogs on walks, especially if these encounters last longer than they would like (like 3 seconds max!) Some may attempt to place their chin on other dogs' shoulders or mount which can be a trigger for fights if the other dog objects. With my own Rotties, my neutered male (Einstein) remained over all fine with other dogs for most of his life , although he wouldn't hesitate to correct with a growl if a dog engaged in rude behaviors. He made a good teacher dog. The worst thing that happened was one day a dog was trying to attack him over some food I had, and he must have felt this dog was endangering me or what not, so he quickly pinned this dog to ground, and held him down holding him by the neck. I told him to detach, and when he did, I was afraid to find a bloody mess needing stitches, instead all I found was wet fur, soaked with his saliva no teeth marks of scratches. Thankfully he had great bite inhibition and apparently didn't want to truly harm this dog! With my female, things were more problematic. She went through a phase where she would lunge and bark at dogs on walks around the age of 2. We worked on this by doing several trips to the city and feeding high-value treats (baked liver) every time a dog crossed our path. However, although I gained great control this way, when I kept her off leash with a group of dogs, she wanted to be in control, playing the role of the "fun police." In other words, any dogs who were playing rough aroused her and she would get a really intense look on her face and try to intervene to stop them. With well mannered dogs, she did just fine, but with the rude ones or dogs who provoked her, she would flip. It's as if she wanted to have the last word: "What did you just say?" I was able to work on this to a good extent, yet I never trusted her 100 percent around hyper dogs so carefully screened the dogs she could be exposed to which were usually the best behaved ones. Here's the thing: when Rottweilers are provided with guidance, they can often be successfully persuaded from acting out their instincts. Now this doesn't mean you'll need to force your Rottweiler to accept things he doesn't like from other dogs, it just means, you'll have to prevent putting him certain situations, while aiming to change his underlying emotional state and train him alternative behaviors you'll like him engage in instead of going into attack mode. This is a breed of dog that will do anything you want him to, but if you give him full reign of certain situations, he'll do everything you allow him to do. Certainly, training your Rottweiler to ignore other dogs isn't the easiest task, but with patience, consistency and hopefully guidance from the right professional, you can potentially make progress (although nobody can ever make guarantees on the outcome). It goes without saying that every dog is different. I have known some Rotties who did perfectly fine with other dogs, some not too much, and some who would kill them given the opportunity. Rottweilers, just like people, are similar to snowflakes, meaning they all come with their individual personalities. Even among puppies of the same litter, there maybe lots of differences, so it all boils down to personality traits that can be part inherited, part learned. From your description over all, it sounds like Rottweiler mostly struggles with males. This is not surprising. Firstly, he's intact and many neutered male dogs tend to act defensively towards intact males because they give off a specific smell, so he may be picking up on this. On top of this, same-sex aggression is not at all uncommon in this breed. It sounds like you have never had the opportunity to expose him to male dogs off leash, but the risks as stake may be too high for now. Generally, to play it safe, I recommend off-leash adventures only to highly-trained dogs under excellent voice control and with non-aggressive tendencies. Being off leash is a privilege and it should be warranted only when the dog has proven himself to not get into trouble when there are people or other dogs around. Ideally, a dog trained to be walked off leash should be not interested in meeting other dogs and would rather stick to the owner's side. It takes lots of practice and a strong bond to reach this level of training. On top of this, we need to consider that being intact, any possible female dogs in heat in the area may act as a major distraction. Compromising with a Long Line For dogs who haven't reached that almost perfect level of voice control, but whose owners wish to have them have a bit more freedom on walks to sniff around, explore and be a dog, I suggest for safety to have the dog walk on a long line, (never while texting or talking on the phone!) while always carefully scanning for approaching people and dogs. A long line should not be confused for a retractable leash, which is something I don't recommend using. A long-line is a long, light rope or cord that may range anywhere between 10 and 50 feet long. You can often find these in horse and tack stores as the one for horses may also work well for dogs, but nowadays more and more companies are crafting long lines specifically for canines especially for tracking purposes. Generally, I start with the shorter ones and increase length as the dog proves himself worthy of more impulse control. When using a long line, you will always need to be scanning for triggers ahead so that you can quickly reel your dog in closer to you for better control. I like to wear gloves to protect my skin from rope burn, but it's nice to see that lately some companies are making some in leather which are much more gentle on the hands. However, the rope ones offer the advantage that you can tie knots every few feet that you can use to gain traction and hold on to have a better grip in case your dog takes off running. You will also have to keep a close eye that the line doesn't get wrapped between your legs or your dog's legs. Ideally, the line should stay to your dog’s side so to not interfere with movement. Unlike a retractable leash, a long line encourages engagement with your dog and provides you with a "life line" for emergency situations. A long-line as well can help in modifying a dog's behavior because it prevents him from rehearsing troublesome behaviors that may lead to a bite one day. Yes, he might still growl at a distance but at least him and the other dogs walking by are safer. Now, if you are taking him to an area where other off leash dogs approach him, I would avoid those as these encounters could deeply interfere with your training. I can't emphasize this enough: I don't know how many dogs' training are ruined each year by negative encounters. I can tell you that there are stories of nicely trained service dogs who becomes fearful of other dogs because of an encounter gone wrong with an off-leash dog. When on a long line, I always prefer to have dog owners train a cue that tells the dog to come closer rather than reeling the dog in. You can read on how to train a strong recall using a long line here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/recall/ This because equipment should not be a substitute for training. Equipment is more like a "crutch". We also want to have good voice control in the case something unexpected happens (he bolts out your door, a collar comes off, the dog breaks through a fence). The long line again can be also used to your advantage in obtaining a "feel" on his level of training. Tips/Ideas for Walks It sounds like your biggest struggle on walks is passing by another dog. Here are a few tips in regards to his behavior on walks: -Provide more exercise and mental stimulation (brain games!). Rottweilers, especially when young and under the age of 5, are very energetic dogs. I hear that you have already been doing several brain games. Although this doesn't help directly with your issue, it accomplishes many things at deeper level. Exercise and mental stimulation helps tire dogs out and when their pent-up energy is diffused, they take training better and tolerate things more easily. It also provides outlets for instinctive behaviors. - I would suggest also training better impulse control and frustration tolerance: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/impulse-control-frustration-tolerance/ -Keep distance from other dogs on walks, at least initially. Being too close to other dogs will make your Rottweiler react with more intensity and you won't be able to ask him to engage in an alternate behavior. Work on keeping your Rottweiler under threshold by constantly scanning your environment, looking out for other dogs. Here is how to monitor threshold levels: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/ -Create positive associations with dogs. The Look at that method can turn helpful. You can start this exercise indoors by having him watch other dogs passing by your home before progressing to walks. Make sure to use super-high value treats. Here is a guide: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/university/look-at-that/ -At home, you can also try to desensitize him to the sound of barking dogs (using a recording first) using the "hear that" method. Both look at that and hear that are based on behavior modification techniques using desensitization and counterconditioning. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/pre-lat-look-behavior-modification/ -Train your dog an emergency u-turn. This will turn helpful if you ever cross another dog in your path that's too close for comfort. Here's how: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/emergency-u-turn/ -Invest in a front-attachment harness (where the leash attaches to a front ring by the dog's chest) or a head halter (this requires a conditioning period) for better control on walks. Rottweilers are very strong and we may feel nervous if we can't keep them under control. Our nervousness can then travel all the way down the leash and your dog may therefore pick up on your emotions. -Train your dog to do several steps of attention heeling. This can come handy to distract him when passing dogs. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/heeling-attention-heeling/ -Have a plan in place if an off-leash dog approaches your dog. For instance, you toss this dog a few treats to gain some distance as you do an emergency u-turn. If you're too late and he's already nose-to-nose with your Rottweiler, you can try to happy talk and encourage your Rottweiler to move on with you without pulling (see next tip). -You can actually pre-train some helpful behaviors to rely on in such above circumstances. This is advanced training once you have a good level of control around other dogs at closer distances. For instance, you can train your dog to go behind you when there's another dog approaching or you can train him some cue such as "that'll do" where he detaches from the encounter and follows you without the need to pull him away (which brings to the next tip). -Careful on that leash pull when your Rottie is meeting another dog. Many dog trainers suggest to try to keep the leash loose (easier said than done as our brains are flashing danger warnings all about) since tight leashes tend to amp dogs up. This video has been popular among dog training circles to show the effect pulling a dog away may have on the dog. Watch it in slow motion. Youtube under settings allows you to control the playback speed. I like to put it on 0.25 when watching dog interactions. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxS27ieAiLI -Keep things brief. If not matter what, your dog happens to meet other dogs on walks, try to keep it under 3 seconds. Give your dog a cue to detach from the interaction. Longer interactions are often the ones that stir trouble. Several dogs don't like to be sniffed too long. -I don't know what methods your current trainer is using. I hope they are force-free. If he or she has a good, rather bomb-proof teacher dog, it would help doing several set-ups with this dog, working on distance work. Ideally though, it would be best enlisting the help of a dog behavior consultant such as a board-certified veterinary behaviorist (DACVB) or a Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist (CAAB) for safety and correct implementation of behavior modification. These are the big experts in the field. Reactivity/dog aggression/fear/ frustration/anxiety fall under behavior modification more than training. The goal is to change the dog's emotional response initially though desensitization and counterconditioning. Once we attain this, it is much easier to train them to respond to our cues. Overall by providing more exercise and mental stimulation, teaching better impulse control, preventing your Rottie from rehearsing problem behaviors (taking off, trying to mount, snarling), creating positive associations with barking/seeing dogs from a distance, training alternate behaviors and having a back-up plan in case of a close encounter, we may start to see a steadily yet gradual reduction in the problem behavior. I hope this helps. Let me know if you have any questions! Best, Adrienne Disclaimer: behavior modification comes with risks. If your dog shows signs of potential aggression (lunging, barking, growling, snapping) for safety, please consult with a dog behavior professional who uses force-free behavior modification techniques for direct in-person guidance.

Hi Sharon, Welcome to the forums! If you have 3 dogs, you will need to train them individually at first. Training a dog requires giving the dog lots of individual attention, especially initially. You will need to pay attention to what the dog does, concentrate on his/her progress and possibly carry several items in your hands (treats for luring and then rewarding, a clicker if you use it). On top of this, you need to focus on the dog's body language for signs of motivation, eagerness or tiring or stress. While there are many training methods nowadays, a popular one that yields fast results is luring (which is what is mostly used throughout the course), where a treat is used as a guide to get the dog perform a desired behavior and is then quickly faded to primarily being used as reinforcement. It would be close to impossible using two hands to lure two untrained dogs side-by-side without creating confusion. Additionally, it would become confusing using the clicker/verbal marker since both dogs will likely perform the desired behavior at different times. Another consideration is that in the initial stages of training, it is important to start training in an area free of distractions. To one dog, the presence of another dog or more dogs, is a strong distraction. If for example, you are training in one room and one dog is reactive to a noise and takes off, the other dog will likely leave and go check things out with his buddy too. Soon, you are left with no dogs to train as these distractions have won over you. Not to mention, dogs may also tend to compete for attention. In a dog training scenario, competition may involve a dog owner's attention with the added bonus of the presence of an odoriferous treat bag clipped to a belt. Intrusions are almost a certainty with these dogs, with them getting in between repeatedly if no measures are taken to keep these dogs under control and out of the way. It is therefore important that, in the initial stages of training, each dog is provided with attention until he or she grasps the concept, and then, only then, other dogs can be brought into the picture. The more dogs in a household, the more crucial it is that all dogs are well-trained and well-behaved. You would therefore first select one dog to work with. In the meanwhile, you will have to find a way to keep the other dogs out of the way. You can keep your other dogs in another room, behind a baby gate, in their crates, tethered, or in the yard. If you choose to crate them, you can provide the non-working dogs with a safe chew toy or food-dispensing toy to keep them busy. They'll soon look forward to this training routine without getting frustrated waiting their turn to be trained. If you choose to use a see-through baby gate, from where your dogs can watch you train, consider that they may get frustrated and impatient and this may lead to barking which can be a major distraction. If your dogs though are able to stay calm, reap the benefit of having them observe your training. Studies have shown that dogs learn faster if they watch other dogs being trained. On top of this, by watching, the motivation for the other n0n-working dogs will increase by the time it's their turn. If your dogs have had some basic training and know how to hold a solid down stay on a mat, you can teach them to patiently wait their turns, laying on the mat, as you train each dog individually. In the midst of training, can pause and drop a treat on the non-working dogs' mats every now and then to reward them for being chill. The order in which you train is important. While it's good to vary, watch how your dogs are behaving and choose accordingly. If you have one dog who shows signs of frustration or impatience more than the others (whining, pacing, barking, scratching himself often which is a displacement activity) make sure you ignore him (tune him out completely) and go get him as soon as he is calmer. He should soon grasp the concept that patience pays off. Alternatively to training each dog individually yourself, if it's an option, you can enlist the help of other family members to help train each dog individually and even in the same room mimicking the group classes dog trainers hold. In such a case, make sure that all members are on the same page as to training methods and verbal cues used. Once you have trained each dog individually and they all have shown signs of grasping the concept and each dog has demonstrated the proficiency of being able to respond in the training room, but also in other areas of the home and the yard, it is time to add another dog. Which dog should you add though? You may be far better off picking as a combo your most proficient dog, and then adding in your next proficient one and so forth. Once you are done mixing up the dogs in combos of two, further raise criteria, and add a further dog until you have your dogs in a group. At that point, you can use an attention grabbing cue such as "dogs" (a cue that will come to signify that all dogs must collectively respond) followed by your verbal cue such as "sit" or "down" etc. You can then reward the fastest dogs to comply working down to the slowest ones. Group training works wonderfully for important cues such as all dogs waiting before you open a door, responding to a smacking sound when the postal carrier approaches, having your dogs all lie down politely on their mats during your meal times, asking your dogs to do a group sit/stay or down/stay and then releasing them and calling your dogs (watch them competing rushing towards you!) and even holding sit-stays for great group pictures. One a side note: I noticed you mentioned being afraid of being tangled on leashes. Since you'll be working with them indoors initially and individually, you may not need a lead at all. The nice thing about positive reinforcement training is that it's so rewarding to dogs, they tend to be willing participants. I hope this helps, let me know if you need any further clarifications. Happy training! Best, Adrienne

Hello and welcome to the forums, Congrats on having your Rottie highly trained, it is always a pleasure to see well-trained Rottweilers, this breed needs it! In regards to his behavior, I would like to have more information. Based on his past behavior (please don't try to let him off leash purposely to provide me with an answer), when he sees another dog and bolts away ignoring you, what happens next? Does he actually go greet the dog? Or do things look rather tense? Has he ever started a fight? Has the place you have adopted him from 7 months ago provided any info or history of how he does with other dogs? I am asking this to differentiate possible barrier frustration from true "reactivity." Dogs with barrier frustration do fine and are even friendly with other dogs when off leash, but struggle when they are on leash or behind a barrier because such barriers frustrate them as it prevents them from meeting and playing with other dogs. Hence, why this type of behavior is referred to as "barrier frustration." Based on my experience though, with Rotties (especially those over the age of 2-3 years old) I tend to see more *true* reactivity- the type where the dog reacts more as a distance-increasing behavior (the dog desires distance/dislikes other dogs) rather than a distance-decreasing one (the dog desires meeting the dog/likes dogs). There is quite a large gap between going from barking, growling at other dogs on walks to having our dogs socializing/mingling with other dogs to the point where we can feel comfortable and safe having them off leash (unless it's truly barrier frustration) as the risks at stake are too high. We can find though some middle grounds where we can attain a better level of control over their behaviors on walks. I can provide some guidance on that.

Sounds like a plan! Some pups also benefit from non-absorbent bedding so they end up feeling wet, versus bedding that is highly absorbent and doesn't impact them. It can also help to remove access to water for a couple of hours prior to bedtime if your pup is 100 percent healthy-always best to ask the vet. Let me know how things work out for you. We can always do more troubleshooting. Best, Adrienne

Aww, cute pups, love the pictures! It's so nice to see them relaxing together. Vaccines can sometimes make pups a little drowsy, but hopefully it's mostly because he's getting used to the novelty of your new pup and has drained up his energy. Marlu is a very smart pup and your new pup will learn from him. He can also help train her showing her where she needs to potty. If he's struggling a bit with the leash, here is a little guide to create positive associations with it: Attaching the Leash Start by creating positive associations with the leash. Just as with the collar, hide behind your back and then present it, feeding your puppy treats when he looks at it and sniffs it and then once he's done inspecting it, place it behind your back and no more treats. Next, start getting your pup used to the sound of the clasp. Keep the leash behind your back, then make the snapping sound of the clasp and feed a treat. Clasp sound/treat, clasp sound/ treat, clasp sound/treat. Next, proceed to attaching the leash, give a treat, then unclip it and feed another one. Rinse and repeat. The leash snapped/unsnapped to the collar should become a cue that a treat is coming! Walking with the Leash on Next, have a helper snap the leash on feed a treat and then you call your dog to you with him dragging it and give a treat. Unclip the leash and give a treat. Rinse and repeat. Teaching to Give into Pressure Next, further raise criteria. Snap the leash on and hold it, walk a few steps ahead and call your dog to you, give treats when he reaches you. Try to avoid pulling your dog harshly on the leash considering that this will create negative associations with its use. Teach your pup to give into the leash pressure rather than resist it. Sit on the couch and if he moves away, gently put pressure on the leash and show him a treat so that he learns to give in to the pressure. Praise and reward. Start walking your pup on leash. If your pup lags behind or pulls in another direction, coax him to catch up and keep walking by showing a treat. The moment the leash becomes loose when he catches up, praise and reward with the treat. More on leash training here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/heeling-attention-heeling/ Best, Adrienne

Hi there, Welcome to the forums! With puppies play fighting, they are often making all kinds of horrible noises and they'll often be a good amount of chasing, pinning and wrestling. There is a slight age gap between your pups and maybe some size differences too. On top of this, kelpies and kelpie mixes in general can surely be a handful on many aspects (the nipping, needing to be kept busy and mentally stimulated, independent streak) which can surely play a role in how he's behaving with this new pup. Since you own mixes though, we have a mixed bag genes, so it's not very easy to predict how certain breed tendencies may impact them. In general, with rough puppy playing, the most important factor is ensuring that everybody is having fun and that there are no injuries or hard feelings. We want to see play bows (where pups display their butt-in-the-air while the front-end stays down), bounciness (a rocking-chair gait) and several pauses throughout play to ensure the encounter remains a friendly one rather than an antagonist one. Things to watch for that are possibly suggestive of play getting out of hand are the following: -Your kelpie always being on top, focusing excessively on biting the head or neck area and a puppy always trying to evade the bully puppy. -Lack of taking turns. One dog is constantly mounting, chasing, pinning down and doing all the biting. Normal, healthy dog play should have puppies ideally taking turns in doing role reversals. -Lack of breaks. Playing pups should take little brief breaks every now and then. -Too many non-inhibited bites. An uninhibited bite can happen occasionally, but repeated offenses may signal that play has gotten out of hand and the pup's play style is too rough. -Relentless play up on hind legs can be indicative of problems -Growling is often normal during play, but pay attention should the growls get much louder and lower pitched. -Check your female pup's body language during play. Is she constantly trying to escape with her tail held between her legs? Is she trying to hide behind you or trying to hide behind furniture? In this case, play is getting overwhelming for her. As mentioned, a key sign of good and appropriate social play is that all parties are having fun and are willing participants. If you suspect one puppy is being bullied or is not enjoying the activity, gently separate the pups and see if the suspected bullied pup will go back for more. If your female pup does immediately go back to the "bully" for more play, most likely she's enjoying the interaction despite how rough it looks. If she is not interested or even seems to sneak away, most likely the other pup's play was truly too much for her. If you notice any signs of her having enough, interrupt play before she has to get serious about it and separate the pups. Your kelpie mix needs to learn when to stop and respect her body language for a break if she doesn't communicate that too effectively. With time though she may grow more confident and you may see her gaining more respect. Since you just got her yesterday, it could also be that your kelpie mix is super attracted to her because of the novelty factor and things may calm down a bit in the next few days. When we had new puppies at daycare, the resident pups were often obsessed with them the first few days as they just had this strong need for play with other pups unfulfilled and they engaged in exaggerated play the first days to compensate for that. It can also be that your new pup may also get drained much quicker due to a different energy level. It may therefore help to tire your Kelpie mix out (brain games, training, play with you) prior to allowing play time with her so that he is less boisterous. It can also help to provide a long tug toy that both can tug on during play so they engage in less physical play. To answer your question, play fighting among pups doesn't normally tend to lead to deteriorated interactions with us humans. Actually, play among pups helps refine both parties' bite inhibition, it can be a great outlet for pent-up energy, relieves stress or tension and helps create a better bond-as long as it remains play where both parties are enjoying the interaction. When play gets out of hand and it's too overwhelming and intense in form, the affected puppy may come to dread play and may engage into avoidance or turn defensive in the long run. So it's important being any victim pup's advocate and giving timeouts as often as needed until bully pup learns to play more gently. When things with humans risk deteriorating is when we get in between two dogs who are fighting (which may lead to a re-directed dog bite), when dogs start resource guarding things (food, bones, sleeping places) when they aren't socialized enough, when they are startled, awoke from sleep abruptly or they are in a too aroused state, when they aren't used to being handled, when they are startled/fearful, when they aren't feeling well, when they are particularly stressed, just to name a few circumstances. All interactions between dogs and children should always be closely monitored. Children shouldn't play roughly with the pups, no petting dogs while they are eating, chewing, resting or sleeping, no teasing of course. It goes without saying that training good bite inhibition is a must. Here are some guides on bite inhibition: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/bite-inhibition-games/ https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/train-dog-take-treats-gently/ With children, things are always more challenging when it comes to nipping because they move faster or scream or do other things that excite puppies. If the children are engaging in boisterous play among each other (running, screaming, playing with a ball) it is best to keep the puppy in another room to prevent him from getting too excited and engage in excessive biting and jumping. Best to avoid the children engaging in games that encourage the pup to chase and nip at them. Erecting baby gates in the home can help so kids and pups have separated areas to play/relax. Remember that all interactions are training opportunities, so best to involve the puppy when the kids are calm and there is space for good learning opportunities. Make sure you are all ready for the training and equipped (treat bags on you, toys handy). Teach games that encourage the pups to use their brain (hide and seek, hand targeting, obedience training). Make more and more room for interactions that do not get your pups into full biting mode. With young pups as such it's very important socializing them and providing ongoing socialization: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/socializing-your-puppy/ https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/socializing-puppy-children/ Being two pups close in age, it would be important ensuring they don't bond too much that they come to ignore us humans and fail to bloom individually. Try your best to train, socialize, play with your pups separately and individually so they have the opportunity to bloom to their potential and get to bond with their family. Here's a post of how we can accomplish that: In regards to how they will behave around other dogs in public this is based on several factors. Some dogs will do fine being around other dogs, others tolerate other dogs, some dogs become dog reactive. We can keep up their social skills through ongoing socialization, preventing negative interactions and training them good leash manners. Some dogs may get along well with other dogs as youngsters and then things change as they reach the adolescent stage, they may get pickier over who to be-friend and some may come to not like other dogs. Yours are certainly not silly questions! I have yet to hear a silly question about dogs. I hope this helps! Let me know if you have other questions, Happy training! Best, Adrienne

Thanks for the extra details, they are very helpful! If your puppy dreads being crated/confined or being separated from you, that can too trigger sometimes anxious peeing. It may help trying to keep the crate nearby your bed so that he feels reassured knowing that you are nearby and so you can hear him if he needs to potty at night. Many pups calm down considerably once we place the crate nearby us in the bedroom and we create a bedtime routine of giving them a treat once closed in the crate. We have a video series here on how to teach a puppy or dog to love the crate but he may need to start fresh using a different crate and working on creating positive associations with that. Feeding him treats in it can help create positive associations while also instilling the den instinct which is a dog's instinct to not pee where he eats and sleeps. Here is the video series: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/video-archive/love-the-crate/ Other tips/ideas that come to mind: -Make sure that when your puppy is crated he is "empty." In other words, he has peed and pooped before being closed in. -Clean the accidents in the crate with an enzyme-based product that helps remove traces of any residual smells. -If you wake up to a wet puppy, mark the time you suspect the accident may have happened and aim to set your alarm clock at leash half hour prior, in hopes of preventing it by taking your puppy out. If it doesn't work, set it up an hour earlier or more until you can prevent it from happening. -Make sure the crate is of the correct size for potty training. -For obstinate cases, you can try to keep the crate enclosed in a small play pen. Keep the crate door open and set pee pads just outside it in hopes that your puppy will learn to step out of the crate to pee rather than just lie in it. Once he learns to get up and pee out often, you can then progress to closing the crate. Watch/listen to your dog. Hopefully, your pup should learn to start whining or pawing in protest to be let out at some point and you can then escort him outside. -If your puppy keeps struggling holding his bladder overnight, mention it to your vet. Sometimes dogs may leak urine during sleep due to underlying medical issues. -Finally, make sure that it's actually pee and not saliva. Some dogs get anxious when they are crated or in another room away from owners to the point of drooling profusely. Often the puddles of saliva are confused for pee. I hope this helps, Keep me posted.

Hi Cheryl, Welcome to the forums! It is awesome that your pup has already learned sit and down! Keep those stay exercises brief and easy as he's very young and the attention span is short. Recalls should be fun games. If you are starting outdoor walks, please check with your vet to see if you have the green light. Your pup is very young and depending on where you live, your vet may suggest waiting until he has finished all his booster shots considering the risks for viral diseases such as distemper and parvo. The biting when you unclip the leash may be because he has associated removing the leash with the end of the fun outing or he may just pay more attention to it because things get a bit boring when you come back from the walk. For unclipping the leash, I would suggest creating positive associations with this action though desensitization and counterconditioning conducted under the guidance of a dog behavior professional. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/desensitization/ https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/counterconditioning I know you say he fairs well when connecting it, but I suggest also working on clipping it on since the action is the same and since you mention he hates the leash. Here's an example of a behavior modification exercise: Attaching the Leash Start by creating positive associations with the leash. Hide it behind your back and then present it, feeding your puppy treats when he looks at it and sniffs it and then once he's done inspecting it, place it behind your back and no more treats. Next, start getting your pup used to the sound of the clasp. Keep the leash behind your back, then make the snapping sound of the clasp and feed a treat. Clasp sound/treat, clasp sound/ treat, clasp sound/treat. Next, proceed to attaching the leash, give a treat as you attach it, then unclip it and at the same time give another treat. Rinse and repeat. The leash snapped/unsnapped to the collar should become a cue that a treat is coming. Next, further raise criteria. Snap the leash on, feed the treat, walk a few steps ahead and call your dog to you, give treats when he reaches you. Try to avoid pulling your dog harshly on the leash considering that this will create negative associations with its use. Teach your pup to give into the leash pressure rather than resist it. Sit on the couch and if he moves away, gently put pressure on the leash and show him a treat so that he learns to give in to the pressure. Praise and reward for giving in to pressure. Start walking your pup on leash. If your pup lags behind or pulls in another direction, coax him to catch up and keep walking by showing a treat. The moment the leash becomes loose when he catches up, praise and reward with the treat. More on leash training here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/heeling-attention-heeling/ When you come home from the outing, since the unclipping seems to become more salient, you can try offering him a high-value treat with one hand, have him nibble on it while with your other hand you unclip it and once unclipped praise and let go of the treat so he can have it and perhaps even toss another one his way. On top of this, it may also help to engage him in some sort of puzzle game/brain game or other rewarding activity after the walk so that you create a routine so he looks forward to coming back from a walk. It goes without saying that if you notice aggressive behavior, it would be important consulting with a dog behavior professional for in-person guidance, safety and correct implementation of behavior modification. I hope this helps, Best, Adrienne Disclaimer: behavior modification comes with risks. If your dog shows any signs of potential aggression (lunging, barking, growling, snapping) for safety, please consult with a dog behavior professional who uses force-free behavior modification techniques for direct in-person guidance.

That's interesting that he does it only at night and never during the day. Usually with potty training issues, they have accidents also during the day. So it may likely boil down to him not being able to hold for an extended amount of time (so this can be solved by taking him out at least once) or some underlying medical issue. Just to rule out other possibilities, some extra details may help. Are you training him to go potty outside in the yard? If outdoors, how often do you take him outside during the day? Is he neutered or intact? What breed is he? When you leave his cage door open at night, is he getting out and going potty? Are you making sure he is going potty before closing him in the crate in the evening? What size is the crate? Does he have room to stand, turn around and lie down yet snug enough for him to not pee in one corner and sleep comfortably in the other corner? Is the crate nearby you at night so that you can hear him move around or vocalize to alert you he needs to be taken out? Thank you for the extra details.

At 7 months, he should be old enough to be able to hold it overnight. It may be still worthy doing a late night/early morning trip outside, but it would be also important ruling out any possible medical problems especially if this is a new problem. Although more common in female puppies, males can too develop urinary incontinence due to urinary tract infections. You can also ask your vet as well whether removing access to water a couple of hours prior to bedtime may be worthy of a try. Here is a guide for excitement urination: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/urinating-when-excited/

You are very welcome! The fake grass trick can work if your pup has developed a particular substrate preference for grass. In general, puppies develop a preference around the age of 8 weeks/ 8 weeks and a half. If you notice he readily goes when you take him on grass, it may be worth a try! It would be good to know what the breeder was using, but they don't always share these details.

Hi Kenneth, Welcome to the forums! How old is your puppy? And where is your pup's place to go potty? ) Also, are you using the right size crate? It needs to be big enough that your pup can lie down and turn around, but not that large that he can comfortably lie down in one corner and go pee the opposite one. Young puppies need to be taken out at night for a minimum of 1 to 2 times if we are training them to go potty outdoors. So you'll likely have to set your alarm to take your pup out at set times during the night/early morning. Make sure that every evening before closing him in the crate he has a last potty trip and the opportunity to eliminate so he's "empty" when in the cage. Accidents in the crate are not unusual, but we want to minimize the amount of accidents happening in the crate as this can become habit-forming. More on potty training here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/7-secret-potty-training-strategies/