Adrienne

You are very welcome! Best, Adrienne

Hi Christina, I hear you! I just recently went through something similar with two 8 week-old puppies who were waking up early around 5 AM, then once back inside the crate, they didn't want to go back to sleep. Things got better once I took them out very late for their last potty break (their last trip was at midnight) and I got them to sleep up until 8AM. Here are some other tips: -Make sure your puppy doesn't have unmet needs. Make sure he has eaten well, has had an opportunity to drink before bed time (some owners restrict water 3 hours prior to bed time, ask your vet if OK), has peed and pooped before going to bed, and has been offered one or more opportunities to go potty in the night. Also, make sure your puppy is not too hot or cold. -Trick his circadian rhythm. Many puppies awaken due to bright lights. Room darkening may help with some early risers. Make sure you pull the curtains and close the blinds so that the morning bright sun doesn't awaken your puppy. If the room is bright and no way to make it dark, you may find it helpful to cover the crate with a blanket. -Provide companionship. For lonely puppies, keeping the crate in the bedroom beside the bed may help reduce barking from feeling lonely. Pups who waken up will often go back to sleep once they realize they are not alone. For many pups just hearing the owner's breathing (or even let's say snoring!) is reassuring enough to make them go back to sleep. This can be a temporary measure, and the pup's crate can be moved slowly out of the room bit by bit over several days. -Keep some white noise on. White noise (TV or radio on) can help so the puppy doesn't feel lonely or wakes up to external noises. The white noise sounds may keep the pup from hearing birds, the heating coming on or neighbors driving which may act as a wake-up call. -Give a little snack. A later evening snack may help quench early morning hunger pangs. -Postpone puppy breakfast if you give a bedtime snack. Try feeding morning breakfast a bit later if possible. Puppies may learn to wake up because they associate getting up with eating. Delaying breakfast for a bit may break this association and trigger the puppy to sleep in more rather than barking. -Evening games. Make sure your puppy is exercised enough and mentally stimulated (brain games!) during the day. Prevent your puppy from sleeping too much during the day, especially in the evening. Spend time with your pup in the evening, ensuring he is really tired. --Train to respond to the alarm. This is a bit exhausting but may be worth a try. If you plan on waking up around 6:00 am and your puppy is barking at 5:30am, you can try for one week to set your alarm at 5:20. When the alarm rings, immediately get up and let the puppy out (if he is not barking of course, unless you want to use your puppy as a back-up alarm!). Then, each week move the alarm forward five more minutes, until you reach 6:00. This may teach your puppy to wake up when the alarm goes off. -Patience pays. Dog behavior is governed by learned behaviors and instincts. It's important to be patient and understand that the longer a behavior has been rehearsed, the longer it will take to extinguish. With guidance and consistency though, patience ultimately pays. Hope this helps, Happy training! Best, Adrienne

If your dog spends already a lot of his time outside during the day, he should already be getting a lot of fresh air, so unless he's hot and panting at night and he seems unhappy, there's no harm to let him stay safe in the crate at night. Also, since you mention he may chew on the furniture, he may get in trouble when he wakes up early morning. I know you mentioned that your yard is fenced, but some dogs left outside long enough may get bored and try to dig out or jump over or other party tricks. Huskies are known for being escape artists, so he may have or may not have that in his blood. In any case, it's important to consider the risks and make a decision considering that, if you leave him out sometimes at night, he may come to resent being crated if he finds being outside more rewarding than being crated in the home.

Dogs like routines, so I feel that if you pick a time you should stick to it. You can certainly postpone crate time if 11-11:30 will be the regular bedtime, (and I'm sure he'll appreciate that), but if you decide to make it earlier, your dog may struggle with that once he got a taste of how nice it is to just enjoy "family time" while you watch TV. Being crated later also offers the advantage of taking him out to potty one last time before being crated which is a plus so your dog won't have to hold it for too long. On top of this, if you all go to bed at that time (11-11:30) and lights are out, he may settle better versus if you are all awake watching TV and he may want to be a part of that.

For extra safety if he is a strong biter, I would suggest still wearing heavy duty leather gloves if you'll be trying the lickety stick just in case he misses or tries to grasp the whole thing. Another interesting option that comes to mind is the Manner's Minder which allows to deliver treats when you want it to from a distance using a remote. For the first walk in the morning perhaps you can try using a long line (those long leashes used for horses and often sold in tack stores, but now for dogs also online).This way your dog has more freedom to walk about and he'll associate that particular leash with going outside to potty and explore rather than the regular leash for polite leash walking. The fence idea for potty breaks sounds great! When you get to the run, make sure then to reward with something tasty once in it if being in the run isn't something he looks forward to.

Your former huskies were stunning dogs and I am so sorry to hear you have lost them. They sure leave a deep emptiness behind. I am sure though that your teenager husky keeps you busy and on your toes! I am reading through all the toys you have been trying which just shows how much dedication and care you provide your rescues. Chewing is surely a big factor at this age and it's often difficult to find a balance between toys that are sturdy enough but not that hard to harm teeth. Kongs are always popular, with the Kong Estreme (the black version) being built for powerful chewers. Other toys that come to mind are Goughnuts (which I think come with some sort of guarantee for being indestructible or they'll replace it) and I think West Paw still makes some sturdy line of indestructible toys too. I am wondering whether your husky may be less likely to accidentally paw if you would use a flirt pole. I see some models end with rope rather than furry toys which she may be more likely to readily destroy. Another option that comes to mind is a very long tug toy such as the Mammoth Flossy Chew 5 knot rope toy. I think it's super long measuring about 72'' long, however, it may or may not work. I can see some dogs "acting like it’s 2 feet and ignoring the other 4 feet when they play." So something to consider. Looking forward to your update on her training! Best, Adrienne

Hi Lori, Have you tried using leather gloves? The wooden spoon is used mostly for dogs who are small or puppies when it's hard for owners to bend down to give treats. Sometimes, we use it too for dogs who tend to nip feet as something to target to distract them. You can technically use it, but it may be unpractical smearing peanut butter or cream cheese on it repeatedly (especially when training heeling). Another option may be tossing the treats rather than hand feeding. You can try starting with no leash in a hallway at home (and then outside on leash) doing the smacking sound with your treat at eye level and rewarding by tossing the treat every time your dog is besides you and looking at you, as I am doing in the first part of the video below (please excuse the low quality as this was an amatorial video for a client). This is just prep work (but notice how if we had a leash it would be mostly loose), we then add the leash and do the same in different areas with more distractions. If the dog is too distracted, that often means he's not ready for that level of distraction and we need to practice more, perhaps take some baby steps or increase the value of the treats. Other options: Some dog trainers even spit treats (I am not a big fan of that and can't stomach mouthing dog treats, but maybe can be done with people foods that can be used as treats). I would worry though about certain dogs jumping near the face. Some dog owners have success using just plain kibble. Some dogs are less nippy with something that doesn't make them too enthusiastic and that they see every day. I know some of my colleagues using Kraft's Easy Cheese or other branded “squeeze cheese” spread. Used in moderation, it can help as you just have to release a bit from the nozzle for your dog to lick. Use with caution if your dog is sensitive to dairy or fatty meals (ask your vet to play it safe). I have used in nippy pup classes a product known as Petsafe Lickety Stik which is sort of a lollipop for dogs. It's a low-calorie option so it may work well. For the walks to the run, I would use the Premack Principle. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/premack-principle/ Basically, move forward only when your dog is next to you and the leash is loose. It may feel like just going there will take forever initially, but hold on. Use high reinforcement ratio, in other words, keep dropping treats (or whatever other treat delivery method you use) when he's by your side and looking at you to help keep that leash loose. If he pulls, stop and lure him back to your side and encourage once again to stick to your side while looking up at you. Please consider that when working on behaviors that have been rehearsed for years, it's all about baby steps. Results take some time to occur, but if we are persistent and patient, we will start seeing small glimpses of results that start gradually becoming more and more evident and then all the hard works will pay off. Hang in there. I know it may be difficult to work on these issues if you have many other dogs to care for, but if you can dedicate a few minutes every day on working on the most pressing issues, you will be able to start seeing results. Keep me posted! Best, Adrienne

Hi there! Welcome to the forums! Bear is a cutie! A front-attachment harness works best when accompanied by training. As a tool on its own, it won't help much although works better than a regular buckle collar. Make sure to take baby steps and if possible, don't move to the yard until he has demonstrated understanding the exercise in the home practicing in the hallway. Initially it may feel like it takes forever to just go a few feet ahead, but as you progress, you should start seeing more and more stretches of walking with less pulling. For taking treats more gently, you can try the tips in this article. If your dog has an alligator mouth though, for the sake of safety wear gloves for this exercise until he develops a softer mouth! https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/train-dog-take-treats-gently/ With dogs with a softer mouth or as your dog gets better, you can then evolve to this exercise: Hod a treat between your thumb and index finger allowing it to protrude a bit. Insert it into your dog's mouth (he'll be surely opening his mouth as a god Lab he is) as you remind him to be "gentle" and release it only when he's barely pressing down on your hands. Of course, avoid this if he's still rough with his mouth or use gloves to protect yourself (in other words, use caution and don't make me responsible if he chomps off your hand!). WARNING: DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME. Funny side note: With Einstein, when he was younger, I used to insert my fingers in his mouth while he was yawning just to test his inhibition. I survived that to tell the story and be able to type this, lol! As a side note, if you notice your dog taking treats roughly on walks, that's often an indication that he's over threshold so you will need to take some steps to set him up to be calmer by increasing distance from triggers or exercising him prior to walks (lots of brain games, play in the yard, training) Here's a read on threshold levels in dogs. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/ Please let me know if you have any further questions! Best, Adrienne

Hi there, Welcome to the forums! Puppies at this age do have very short attention spans, but the good news is that things improve as they start maturing. They also have very little bladder and bowl control so accidents are very likely to happen. The good news here is also that as puppies mature they can holder it for longer and longer. Please find my replies under your questions (which are in bold). We have begun the house training process and she goes almost everytime we take her outside. Lots of praise and treats along with clicker. She still goes in the house if we don't take her out enough but trying to not let that happen. How do we get her to let us know when she needs to go? It's good that you she is going almost every time you take her outside and that you are offering praise and treats when she goes. The goal here is to make the outside her preferred potty place because it's associated with pleasant consequences 1) the self-reinforcing sense of relief derived from the simple act of emptying the bladder/bowels and 2) reinforcement from you. Behaviors that are reinforced tend to strengthen and repeat, so we are establishing a strong pattern here. Getting a dog to inform us when they need to go comes with practice and the dog learning to hold it. A dog who cannot hold it yet, won't be able to inform us because the moment they acknowledge the urge, they are already going potty. So as dogs get more and more better at holding it, they can learn to go towards the door to tell us they need to potty if they are not crate or they may start moving around the crate or maybe scratch or whine if they're crated. In the meantime, it is up to use to learn to recognize early pre-potty signs (signs the puppy needs to potty) by watching them very carefully. Watch your puppy for getting distracted when playing (one second she is playing, the next she is leaving the area), sniffing, circling or moving away from where she's sleeping or eating. As we seen these signs, we need to distract them and get them to follow us outside and go potty there. Even better though, let's take them out before they show these signs as sometimes if we're too late recognizing them, they'll have an accident. It helps to keep track of accidents so that we mark the time in a journal and take steps to taking them out al little earlier. The more trips outside, the less accidents. It also helps training dogs to go potty on cue. Here's a guide: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/potty-on-command/ Make sure to clean all accidents in the home with an enzyme-based cleaner. When she has gone potty outside, play with her in the yard and then have some fun in the home with her and you can then relax for a little bit, but as time gets closer to her next potty trip (every half hour? every hour?), watch her carefully and take her out as needed. Other basic obedience commands like sit or down are proving to be more challenging. Does this just take an extraordinary long time or am doing this all wrong? I'm still trying to find a good high value treat but following all the guidelines provided in the course. It's only been a week but I guess I was hoping for more progress. The sit should be fairly easy to train, downs can take a bit longer for some pups or small dogs. I would aim to just start with sit for now and move to down only once she knows sit. It sounds like perhaps you haven't found a treat she is interested enough to follow? Here is a little demo with a Pom named Chanel that I had the pleasure to recently work with on the process of training sit using the food lure: I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any other questions! Best, Adrienne

Hello and welcome to the forums! Your husky is stunning and it's so wonderful you were able to rescue her from a very critical situation. Bless your heart for opening your home to such a wonderful companion! At this age, your husky in the full adolescent stage, when dogs have lots of energy and need lots of mental stimulation. It looks like you are providing lots of exercise which is good, but don't forget mental stimulation which has been found to be particularly energy draining too. So provide Skye with brain games, training, food puzzles and don't forget yo put your dog's nose to work. Here's a read about the adolescent stage in dogs and what to expect: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/survive-dogs-adolescent-stage/ We may also want to instill some more impulse control games so to channel all the excitement into calmer behaviors. So sits before attaching the leash, sits before opening the door, sits before putting the food bowl down or giving some long-lasting treat. Here are several impulse control exercises that may benefit her: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/impulse-control-frustration-tolerance/ You need to teach her that when she nips, you get only slower, not faster. So if you are going to put a leash on her and she nips, turn away and leave. Then, try approaching again going slowly, she nips again? Once again, turn away and leave. Rinse and repeat until you can walk towards her, ask for a sit and attach the leash. If at any time she nips, be ready to turn and move away. Be patient: at first, you may need to repeat this several times until she gets the idea that nipping and acting impatient makes you slow down and even leave, while not nipping and waiting patiently makes you advance. Do this with almost anything; putting the food bowl down, tossing a ball, taking her out the door. Calmness pays, impatience loses. Here's an example of training a dog to sit calmly before opening the door: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/college/open-sesame/ For the pawing when playing tug of war, this can be a bit of a challenge because she may be just naturally inclined to play this way. Some dogs are just more "pawsy" than others. Here are some ideas: -When does she scratch exactly? When she jumps up trying to grasp it and misses? When you stop the game and she wants to continue? Identify when the pawing happens. Sometimes making a little video and then watching it in slow motion can show you the exact dynamics. -If the scratching happens when you are getting her to tug and she misses, you can try with a longer tug toy so that her body is a little more distant from you and her missing won't catch your legs/arms hopefully. -If she scratches when you stop playing tug by intently pawing at you, I would prevent this behavior next time by having her drop the tug toy and then tossing several kibble I was hiding in my pocket as I put the toy away as she goes on her treasure hunt. Here's a guide on training dogs to drop: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/drop-it/ "Today she would go after a rolled ball but turn and want to jump on me excitedly. " This is interesting, because usually, we use tossing a ball to redirect a dog from wanting to bite and jump. From your description it sounds like she jumped after you tossed a rolled ball, almost as if she was attracted to the movement of the ball, but once she saw what you tossed she lost interest. What was this ball made of? Since you mention "rolled" was it made of paper? Perhaps she's not too fond of it and prefers more rough play with you than anything else. Maybe you can try a ball made of a different, more appealing material or try one of my favorite games, the "toss kibble game." It goes like this: your dog is walking towards you (maybe with the intent of jumping?) ask your dog to sit or hand target, and toss a kibble. Once she's done, rinse and repeat several times. This is a fun game for the dog to burn off energy, it puts her nose and eyes to work, and prevents her from rehearsing troublesome behaviors. Here's how to train sit and hand targeting: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/sit/ https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/preschool/targeting/ Finally, while you train your dog, it is possible still for some scratching to occur. Hopefully, this is short-lived, but better be prepared! Here are some ways to reduce any potential damage. -Trim your dog's nails in a way that they aren't sharp.Normal clippers generally will leave sharp edges. Make sure to file them down or use a nail grinder (or Dremel) to remove any sharp edges. Ask a groomer for help. -Try Soft Claws. These are nail covers that can be place on your dog's nails and that can reduce the effects of scratching. -Have your family and guests wear old clothing with long sleeves and long pants. I hope I have accurately grasped what's happening and that this helps your lovely dog! If I misunderstood or if you have any further questions, feel free to post. Happy Training, Adrienne Disclaimer: behavior modification comes with risks. if your dog is showing aggressive behavior, please consult with a dog behavior professional for safety and correct implementation of behavior modification.

Hello Fabiola, Welcome to the forums. It would be important to provide at this point your puppy with a quiet place to eat so to start establishing a history of trust. Dogs who guard food are stressed dogs who only want one thing: to eat their meal in peace. So make sure the area is quiet and without loud noises and that it's as stress-free as possible, so that your pup can learn to relax. No other pets around him, no children around, just a quiet place where he can eat in peace without feeling stressed. If your pup has been resource guarding for some time, it may take time for him to learn to relax because growling and threatening to bite is a behavior that gets reinforced every time the person backs away (which one should always do, considering that growling is a behavior one should treasure). If you have children in your home and your puppy appears aggressive, ensure your child will not approach him, or even better, crate your puppy during meal time or let him eat in a separated room, always ensuring he has a quiet, safe place to dine. This is called management and the goal is to allow your pup to relax, release a good portion of stress hormones, while also preventing him from rehearsing the problematic behavior. The more dogs rehearse behaviors, the more they tend to put roots and become difficult to eradicate. Management would also entail not letting your child approach your dog when there are treats on the floor or anything your puppy finds valuable. While management can help keep everybody safe up to a certain level, a more direct approach on tackling this issue would require behavior modification. For resource guarding, a good behavior modification program would entail desensitization and counterconditioning. In desensitization, the goal is exposing dogs to situations that have made them reactive in the past in such a way that they are no longer feeling much stressed. You can read about desensitization here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/desensitization/ Counterconditioning instead entails changing a dog's emotional response. From dreading something, through positive associations, we make dogs look forward to things because we have made the activity so rewarding. You can read about counterconditioning here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/counterconditioning/ The whole goal is to ensure the pup is put into a stress-free environment as possible, through very gradual and pleasant exposures, always ensuring that the puppy is under threshold. Here is a read about threshold levels in dogs: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/ In order for behavior modification to be effective, it is crucial that we monitor a dog's body language carefully, always ensuring he's not put into stressful situations and at the same time we need to make the process as successful and safe as possible. This requires a certain level of skill considering that we can make behaviors worse if we allow too much stress to seep through the process and fail to progress at the pup's pace and level of comfort. As we go through the process, we need to gradually insert new parameters always ensuring to not raise the bar too high, too quickly. This takes several judgement calls. I will provide here just an example of behavior modification for a light case of food guarding, but please work along with a behavior professional to play it safe, also considering the fact that it sounds like you have a young child in the home and your puppy has a history of biting. Your puppy is young and at a delicate stage of development so we want to do everything right. Example of behavior modification for light food guarding: After about one week of your puppy getting to eat in a quiet place, every now and then, make it a habit of walking by your puppy as he's eating from his bowl, at a distance where your puppy is under threshold, tossing some goodies as you walk by. Make it clear that the treats occur contingent upon you walking by. Once you pass your puppy, no more treats. Rinse and repeat several times until you start noticing what's known as a conditioned emotional response. In other words, repetition after repetition, your puppy starts looking forward to you approaching rather than dreading it. One clear signal is your puppy stopping to eat to look at you with a happy, calm face in anticipation (not the hard stare and freezing of a dog who is resource guarding).Some pups will even demonstrate a tail wag! As you progress, approach from different angles and decrease distance gradually always making sure your puppy stays under threshold. Also, have other family members practice, but always under the guidance of a professional for safety. Another option is to fill your puppy's bowl with a small portion of food. Once done, go grab a handful of more food and fill the bowl up. Then add a little more, until you're done with your pup's ratio. End the session by tossing a treat at a distance as you pick up the food bowl. The goal here is once again, to teach your pup that when you come near his food bowl, it's not your intent to remove food, by actually add. Setbacks and Successes In the best case scenarios, behavior modification goes smoothly with an upward trend, but setbacks are not uncommon. Perhaps you got too close and got a growl or you came from an unexpected angle and your dog got stressed. In such cases, its important knowing what to do. In general, when we go back some steps, it's sign that we have worked at a level our dog wasn't ready yet for. This means it's time to evaluate the situation that created the setback, go back some steps and try splitting the exercise into smaller steps and sometimes even get a bit creative. For example, if your puppy did fine with you tossing treats, but regressed when your husband tossed treats, it's sign your dog wasn't ready to progress to that level. Your would therefore need to think what to do in this case. Perhaps, you can walk by your dog with your husband on the farthest side and practice with him next to you until you get that CER and then let him gradually do more and more, or perhaps you can have your husband deliver higher value treats, or you can start him from a farther distance. Your dog behavior professional can guide you through the best options to overcome any hurdles through careful in-person observations and tips based on your dog's individual case. The Importance of Trading Every time your puppy has an item in his mouth that he shouldn't have, avoid chasing (which may encourage a mean version of the "keep away" game) but rather trade it with something that you are absolutely sure your puppy finds it higher in value. For example, if he got a hang of a sandwich wrapper, trade it offering in exchange some high-value treats such as as dog cookie or a bully stick. Toss the cookie or bully stick the opposite way, so you can safely retrieve the sandwich wrapper. The goal of this is to convince your puppy that when you approach him and he has something in his mouth, you aren't planning to snatch it away, but rather you are trading for something far better! Once your puppy learns this valuable lesson, you can introduce the verbal cue "drop it" and even pronounce it from a distance even before showing what you are trading it for. The behavior when well trained can become almost reflexive! Here's a drop it guide: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/drop-it/ You may find these threads on resource guarding interesting, but please consider that every dog is different and may therefore need a different protocol: Please note: Accidents can always happen when doing behavior modification. Your behavior professional can help you find the safest ways to work with your pup. Disclaimer: behavior modification comes with risks. If your puppy or dog is showing aggressive behaviors, please play it safe and consult with a force-free dog behavior professional for safety and correct implementation.

However, during the day, he drinks water regularly (water bowl kept outside the crate) and pees in the crate without much warning. We have a large crate but we've created a separation that makes it small enough to move around but not walk around the crate. The ideal size of the crate should be snug enough so the pup is not comfortable soiling in a corner, but large enough to allow him to comfortably stretch, stand up, and turn around. If your crate doesn't allow him to walk around, I am afraid it may be a little too small so when he needs to pee, there may be chances he's just peeing on himself and you have no signs to rely on (such getting up and walking around). I hope your puppy hasn't had too many accidents in the crate so far, because if it happens a whole lot, pups may start making the crate their new official bathroom and they can get desensitized to feeling wet, not to mention they may stop trying to hold it. So what can we do in cases as such? Here are a few tips that come to mind: Make it a habit to give your dog a long lasting edible chew or stuffed Kong when told to "crate" so that he associates the crate with a place to eat and sleep (and therefore trying to inculcate some denning instinct). Avoid keeping your dog crated for longer that he or she may keep it. Make sure that when your puppy is crated he is "empty." In other words, he has peed and pooped before being closed in. After some time, keep an "eye and ear" on your puppy. If he's sleeping and then you hear him moving around (make the crate less snug and see if that helps), this can be a sign he needs to be taken out to potty. Provide ample of opportunities to pee outside if your goal is outdoor elimination. Young puppies may need to go as often as every 30 minutes to an hour when awake. They more they go outside, the more you help establish correct habits so that they can make the connection that outside is the place to go. Make sure to praise and reward with a tasty treat when he goes outside. Familiarize yourself with signs your puppy needs to go potty (sniffing, moving around, stopping from playing, circling) and readily accompany your dog out as soon as you recognize them. Praise and reward for successfully eliminating outside. With young puppies, make sure to take them out right after eating, upon waking up from a nap, after playing vigorously, once or twice a night and right before bed time. Clean the accidents in the crate with an enzyme-based product that helps remove traces of any residual smells. Keep a journal of your dog's accidents in the crate/play pen and at what time they happen so that you can aim to taking him outside earlier to prevent such accidents. 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 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. Avoid getting upset when you catch your dog eliminating in the crate or elsewhere.This will only teach your dog to hide too pee or poop out of your sight. Always praise and reward your dog when he goes potty outside. With time and persistence, you can also train your new puppy to go potty on command.

Hi Karthik, You will find your questions in bold and my answers below: "I read that puppies do not like to potty where they sleep. However, my pup does not seem to care! He pees and simply lies in the pee around him, sometimes even making him soaking wet (that I have to wash him with water to ensure he does not smell of his pee). Is this normal behaviour? With this behaviour, we've not kept any clothing or bedding inside the crate as we might have to wash one every 3 hours or so. His crate is simply the base plastic that it came with." Yes, you are referring to the so called "denning instinct." Ideally, we want to see this instinct inculcated in our pups, but things don't always go this way. Ideally, good dog breeders will start their pups on the right paw when they are still in their care. Once puppies become more mobile, good breeders will usually set up a specific area (just a few steps away from where they nurse and sleep all piled up with their mom) where pups can eliminate. Once again, this takes advantage of a puppy's natural instinct to not want to soil where they eat and sleep. As the puppies mature further in a reputable breeder's care, they may also be introduced to a crate, so that, when they go home to their new owners, the crate will be a comfortable and familiar place rather than a novelty to fear. Of course, this is an ideal situation. Problems often start when puppies are raised by careless breeders, or worse puppy mills and pet stores, where pups are kept in cages most of the time and therefore are forced to eliminate there and walk and sleep in their own waste. These pups therefore develop preferences for the surfaces of these cages as their potty areas and never get to learn to hold it. Sometimes, we also see problems when pups are crated for longer than they can hold it and if their crates are too small. When he finishes pooping and peeing, I leave him in a playpen with some toys. However, he would pee in the playpen when we miss looking at him for even a few seconds. This behaviour is completely baffling me! When puppies are active, they tend to drink a lot and this leads to frequent messes. I have had puppies who needed taken out as often as every half hour to an hour when awake. It could be he may be peeing when you're not looking if you have gotten upset about his messes in the past (for some sensitive pups even us remarking "oh no! What a mess!" is enough for them to want to hide so to secretly pee out of our sight. The good thing is he warns me with yelping if he wants to poop or drink water. I regularly take him out around every two hours and after his meal times. How could I possibly teach him to warn me before peeing? Would teaching him to ring a bell to potty help here? That's good! In general, pups learn faster to control their poop rather than their pee. I find the use of a bell useful, but only once a puppy has shown the ability to hold it long enough to walk towards the door and wait for the owner to open it even when walking from a distance (like a farther room). I will be providing some tips for dogs peeing in the crate in my next post shortly.

Sounds like a plan, Happy training!

Awww, look at that face, your pup is adorable. In the last picture, he even looks proud about wearing his collar! Positive associations with treats can have a very powerful impact. Once you obtain that CER, you can even note a change in their face. Maintenance sessions are always important to keep things positive. Keep up the great works and keep me posted on his progress. Best, Adrienne

Aww... look at that face! I am all for redirecting the nipping to alternate behaviors, especially if we can catch our pups before they even latch on (it's more difficult to redirect once they're attached and tugging at our clothes). I am not too much a fan of a plain "no" because I feel dogs do better when we tell them what we want them to do and provide alternate outlets for their instinctive behaviors. So lots of brain games to keep these workaholic dogs's brain occupied, puzzle toys and training. Here you can find some bite inhibition games for puppies: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/bite-inhibition-games/ Here are tips for training a softer mouth: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/train-dog-take-treats-gently/ Here are some threads about nipping pups with more tips: Hope this helps! Best, Adrienne

You are very welcome! Brenin is very lucky to have found such a dedicated family like yours. I am sure he loves the training, these working dogs thrive so much when we give them a "job" to do and their brains are kept active. My father-in-law too had a failed sheepdog. In this case, he was a little too harsh in giving him directions with his booming voice and I feel this sensitive dog just shut down and gave up trying. I got to do some training with this dog and you could see how life again had some meaning to him. It's like a switch turned back on and life was all good again. These work-in-progress dogs can provide a lot of satisfaction as we watch them bloom. To tell whether he is over or under threshold it helps to keep an eye on him and establish a "baseline" so to say of what he looks like when he's relaxed. Watch him carefully when he's home and in a calm state. Then, watch him when he becomes alert of something. Then watch him when he starts getting more worried about something. Video captures of these different emotional states can help identify his emotional states and it also helps watching such recordings in slow motion. This may help identify some signs of stress: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/signs-fear-stress-dogs/ Feel free to post anytime you have questions. Best, Adrienne

You are very welcome, sounds like a plan! Keep me updated on how things go. Best, Adrienne

Hi Marlene, Just to be certain, when you say outside do you mean sleeping in your yard or indoors giving him the full run of your home? Is there a reason why you would like him to sleep outside? Does your puppy seem to prefer to sleep outside or does he stick by the door when outside in hopes of being re-united with you/his family? Does he tend to chew inappropriate things, bark non-stop, dig areas, scratch at doors or try to escape the yard when left outside alone? Thanks

Hi there, Welcome to the forums! It sounds like you are doing a good job in giving these pups a break when things start getting a bit rough. I would suggest if possible interrupting before your little guy goes into full attack mode if this is done because he's feeling defensive. Play should be fun and engaging and not something that your pup has to feel the need to defend himself. However, sometimes things can be tricky... In some pups, going into full attack mode may be still part of play. I have known of some pups who just seem to have fun turning into Cujo during play, and although it looked fierce, they were just playing and enjoying it. So we need to assess whether your pup is truly trying to attack to defend himself because he truly feels threatened, or whether it's all part of play. One good way to assess this is by looking at your pup's body language. Are the ears back? Is the tail between the legs? Is he trying to hide? Does he seem uncomfortable when cornered or when the other pup is in his face? If so, chances are good he isn't enjoying the interaction so best to step in (possibly before he starts to go into attack mode-so identify what may be some triggers), and prevent things from escalating Yet, sometimes, things aren't cut and dried as desired, we may not be reading the dogs correctly or the dogs are giving ambivalent signs, but we have some other strategies to determine whether things are going sour or both parties are enjoying the interaction. So another way to find out whether the "victim dog" is feeling intimidated and not comfortable in a specific play session is getting a hold of the "instigator" (in this case the bigger wolfhound mix pup) for a few seconds and observing your pup's reaction. Does he seem relieved and try to leave, or is he looking for his playmate? Does he try to re-engage him play? If the latter takes place, most likely he enjoys this type of play and is just coming back for more. However, we may still want to do some timeouts, especially if the bigger pup is playing too rough and your pup is showing signs of being emotionally impacted. This is a good way for the bigger pup to learn to calm down and play a little more gently and at the same time, to prevent your pup from feeling overwhelmed. Self-handicapping is a skill that pups can learn from a young age. This term simply refers to the ability for larger dogs to learn to fine-tune their playing styles and make several adjustments so not to hurt a playmate that is disadvantaged in some way (smaller, more delicate, slower etc).

Hi there, Welcome to the forums! Your pup is exhibiting normal doggy behavior, although it may seem inappropriate to us. Most likely, when your daughter walks downstairs, your dog just wants to check on her, but more in a "detective way" than inappropriate considering that when dogs meet each other they don't shake hands like we do, but rather sniff their private areas to learn more about each other. It could be that because perhaps he doesn't see her around too much, he is more eager to learn about her and sometimes there may be too a little anxiety component and sniffing her reassures him that she's a member of the household-so to say and so it's all good. We can address this behavior by redirecting to another activity which can also help form some positive associations with your daughter in case he's a bit alarmed by her returning to "homebase" when she's upstairs. So here are some ideas: -Since your dog has learned hand targeting, your daughter can try to ask him to target by presenting her hand in front of him so he can be helped to make a good choice, and then a treat can be tossed at a distance to reward the hand target so that she can walk away. If he walks back to her after eating the treat, she can keep on asking for hand targets until she gets to where she needs to be. You may need to have your daughter practice hand targets with him if she hasn't participated much in training him perhaps starting with asking it when she's sitting on the couch and then standing, and then nearby the stairs, and then after going up the stairs and walking down a few steps, and then graduating to coming down all the steps, and then coming down the stairs randomly during the day. -Alternatively, your daughter may do the same exercise but instead of hand targeting she may ask him to sit as she's walking down the last step and he approaches her and then praise and reward tossing a treat at a distance from her. Rinse and repeat. -You can also train to go to his mat when your daughter comes downstairs, although I feel that he may do better with hand targets and sits for now until he seems more relaxed with her coming down the stairs. Since he is a recent addition it may take some time for him to adjust to your home and household members until he can be fully relaxed and feel entirely "at home." It sounds like you are doing a good job desensitizing him to things and make sure to use counterconditioning too (giving treats to create positive associations and change the emotional response) so to boost the process https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/?s=counterconditioning When your dog offers sits and downs, as long as he's leaving whatever you arre working with that's fine. Take baby steps. Here's a little demo on leave it:

Thanks for the details, they are very helpful! At 6 months, more than territoriality in the sense of a confident dog barking to send intruders away, it may be more an issue of fear, in the sense of feeling intimidated by something/startling and simply reacting. Regardless of the intent, I can see how this behavior can turn annoying in the long run, especially if he's very focused and difficult to distract. Hopefully, in the country you don't have many neighbors who can complain! If you are planning to ever keep your dog outdoors alone for periods of time, consider that left to his own devices, he may revert to barking considering that many dogs may feel more "responsible" or insecure, if you will, when alone and allowing this behavior to happen sometimes yes and sometimes no, puts it on a variable schedule, plus the lack of consistency makes it difficult to curb as we may like. If he will be mostly indoors, and when outdoors he'll be for the most part under your supervision, I may suggest it would be worthy of investing in some training. If so, I would start indoors doing the look at that exercises described below and working on it to a fluent level. Make sure to use high-value treats. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/university/look-at-that/ Then, I would move outdoors with him on a long line (long leash) and practice the same exercise to a fluent level, making sure to keep him at a good distance so that's he under threshold. Here's a read on how to read your dog's threshold levels. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/ When a dog is over threshold he is less likely to respond. Once he gets better at this, to the point where he's responding to you reliably, you can then practice off leash. If at any time he isn't responsive, consider this as a sign that he's not ready yet for exposure to that level of distraction. Make a note of it and see if you can have him on leash next time to work on that trigger in a more systematic way (like creating setups and giving more distance). If barking is important to you, (I know many in the country want a dog who alerts to things) make your smacking sound after he barks 2-3 times. This tells your dog," OK, that's enough, now come to me and get your reward for stopping to bark" (while also creating positive associations with the trigger). This gives you some level of control over the barking, while allowing your dog to perform a natural behavior he was selectively bred for for thousands of year. Often, we may assume dogs bark at nothing, but often it's because they sense some triggers we may not sense. Here's a read on dogs who seemingly bark at nothing: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/behavior-training/barking/nothing/ I hope this helps, Let me know if you need any further help or have more questions! Best, Adrienne

Hi Ron, Welcome back! I am glad to hear Penny is doing so much better with recalls and that her tennis ball "obsession" is lessening! Make sure to protect and maintain your hard work, so avoid if possible putting her into situations where she may feel the need to resource guard, and if she does gets into a situation where in the past she would have behaved otherwise but she behaves well, make sure to mark it and reward generously to leave a positive impact on her. Sometimes, all it takes is something a bit negative to undo all the hard work. The reflection of light she's chasing sounds like predatory drive, so just like chasing balls, but in this case, she's after the light. However, a ball she can catch and carry in her mouth, while light is something you really don't get to catch, so it can lead to frustration and sometimes dogs can get even a bit obsessed about it. Many dog trainers have started in the last few years discouraging dog owners from playing with dogs using light beams from flashlights or laser pointers. While fun to watch, some dogs turn this from a habit to an obsession that is difficult to eradicate. Of course, not all dogs become addicted. Some dogs may have a little fun and may soon grow bored of the game. Others instead may be hooked. It takes a certain type of personality and environment for this, just as it happens with people. Dogs who are under-stimulated and under the age of one are likely more susceptible to becoming addicted to lights if exposed at a formative time of their lives. I would therefore discourage allowing her to rehearse this behavior through management and providing more productive activities where she actually gets to get a hold of something rather playing with something that she never really gets to catch. So here are some tips that come to mind: Avoid taking her out in this area at critical times when your dog is more likely to play with play with reflections. If you have reflections in the home, draw the curtains so she can't play with them. Make sure to provide daily mental stimulation. Feed food in puzzle toys, provide brain games, organize sniffing adventures (canine nosework) and fun play sessions and don't forget about training! Meet your dog's exercise needs. Take her on walks, engage her in a doggy sport, play with her. Allow her to engage in activities where she gets the reward of chasing and catching (fetch, play with flirt poles, etc) Establish a new, highly rewarding routine that surpasses the value of light chasing. Hide kibble in the yard so that she gets in the habit of looking for that once out in the yard, place a muffin game on the deck, put a liki-mat to enjoy on the grass. Keep these items away from the area where she plays with lights so its easy for her to make good choices. Consult with a dog behavior professional if your dog cannot be distracted from light chasing, has rehearsed the behavior for some time and it's impacting her life in a negative way (like starts looking for light to chase in other places and can't get her mind off of it) Hope this helps, Best, Adrienne

Thank you for the additional details, they are very helpful. While it is true that traditionally, dominance has been believed to be the underlying cause for aggression directed towards dog owners, newer research has revealed that dogs aren't vying for a hierarchy as we previously thought. In reality, dogs' relationships with people are not established by dominant/submissive social signaling; but are rather the result of several other factors, explain veterinary behaviorists Dr. Gary Ladsberg and Sagi Denenberg. You can read more about this here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/dominance/ Relationships with humans are therefore established as a result of genetics, early handling and socialization, and through experiences, as a result of learning and consequences. Your dog therefore has learned that, by tensing up, growling or even biting, he can keep hands out of the way since hands (or anything on him such as collars and leashes) are perceived as something he's not very comfortable having around. This can happen for various reasons. Perhaps when he was younger he didn't like the vet touching him in a certain way, perhaps somebody hugged him or restrained him, perhaps his breeder corrected him physically giving out scruff shakes, it can be anything. It could also just be he missed out getting used to being handled and wearing a collar when he was with the breeder. Good breeders should start getting young pups in their care used to being touched all over and wearing a collar and leash before going to their new homes. Such breeders should then instruct new puppy owners on how to continue handling and collar/leash conditioning exercises once in their new homes. So in these cases, we would need to go back to basics and do lots of remedial work to get back on track. Due to the fact that your dog has shown in the past snarling, growling and bared teeth, the safest recommendation would be to seek a dog behavior professional to guide you through a behavior modification program. This because touch sensitive may engage in aggressive behaviors to escape restraint or avoid being touched. Because of the risk for bites, it's therefore important to practice the upmost caution and avoid the dog from going over threshold. The more a dog rehearses aggressive or stressed behaviors, the more they roots, the more the dog rehearses calm behaviors, the more these establish.So we want to up the chances for calm behaviors as much as possible. It sounds like you have been on the right track in creating positive associations with stroking. Generally, we like to work on these issues through behavior modification using desensitization and counterconditioning so to change a dog's emotional response. Here's a read on desensitization: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/desensitization/ And here's one on counterconditioning: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/counterconditioning/ Your dog behavior professional may therefore show you how to condition your dog to tolerate, and at some point, maybe even enjoy being touched through a desensitization and counterconditioning program. The goal is establishing a level of trust and making it clear that great things happen (high-value treats are fed!) contingent upon being touched. In other words, we want our dogs begging to being touched rather than dreading it. So in the case of his reluctance to being touched by the neck area, it may start with very brief touches in an area your dog seems to tolerate more with one hand, as you hand feed a tasty treat from your other hand. Being beside the dog rather than in front of him can feel less threatening to a dog, some dogs do better if we are sitting rather than standing. So it would go like this: Touch-treat, touch-treat, touch-treat.This would be repeated several times until a positive conditioned response (+CER) is noticed. In other words, the dog starts looking forward to the touch because it has started to become associated with the treat. Afterward, touch may become gradually more pronounced as the the exercise continues, touch-treat, touch -treat, touch treat. Again, repeated several times in hopes of getting again a positive CER. Afterward, duration may be added by touching for longer periods of time (instead than just a touch, a little stroke). Same exercise, stroke/treat, stroke, treat, stroke treat. Next, one can progress and work on more sensitive areas. Same exercise as usual, with the goal of reaching a positive CER. The whole process should go slowly and at the dog's pace, it is far better to go slow than fast. Slow and steady wins the race in behavior modification. The process can take anywhere from a few days to weeks. The reason why it's very important working with a professional is that he or she can tell you when you should progress or take a step or two back in the process because your dog risks going over threshold. This is for safety and to ensure the process progresses smoothly. The more a dog rehearses aggressive behaviors, the more they roots, the more the dog rehearses calm behaviors, the more these establish. The use of a muzzle may be necessary for safety and may be be used at least until the dog learns to recognize that it is safe to be touched or restrained and won't be hurt during the procedure. I imagine though that your dog may be reluctant to wear a muzzle, but your dog behavior professional may be able to walk you through a similar process as this video below portrays to gain a starting point. Consider though that you dog is not just getting used to wearing something he's not familiar with, but has to also learn to relax and act calmer. So your dog behavior professional may take extra steps for your safety and to prevent your dog from getting stressed. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/video-archive/train-your-dog-to-wear-a-muzzle/ Severe cases of touch aversion may require the use of a fake hand (like the Assess-a-hand) to start with for an extra layer of safety. Moving forward.... Once the dog accepts being touched by the neck area, the next is to gradually condition the dog to get used to wearing a collar or harness. This may be the part you are missing, since you mention he goes back to acting aggressive once you start putting these on. Dogs like yours need lots of baby steps to form positive associations. First we need them to get used to wearing walking gear, walking around with it, then we must also get them to learn to having a leash attached and give in to leash pressure rather than resisting it. If you are considering a harness the process is different than the collar as different parts are involved. A collar may be easier at the end considering that some harnesses can be a pain to put on, so you may want to find a type that your dog finds it easiest to adjust to and tolerate being put on better. Since he doesn't seem to like having his neck area touched, maybe he may tolerate more a model where he steps in (although you may have to handle his feet) and you just have to clip it on once (although it clips over the shoulder area) versus the models where you have to put it over the head, let him slip the head through and then adjust and clip? Or even worse, those that you must slip over the head, and then grab a paw to place through a hole and then adjust and clip. Her's an example of a step-in harness: And here's one where you have to place it over the head, but then it clips from under the chest: Whichever you decide, the process needs to be split in baby steps. If you would use one that he steps in, the process may look something like this: -Hide the harness behind your back, then present it and feed a treat. Then, hide the harness again behind your back once he's done eating. Then present it again and feed a treat, and hide again once he's done eating. The goal here is teaching your dog that every time the harness comes out, something good happens. When you then hide it, all good things end. -Next, place the harness on the floor. Feed a treat to your dog for looking at it, then for walking towards it, then for sniffing it. We are shaping behavior here, sort of like I am doing here with Einstein as I encourage him to approach the tap light. Avoid the clicker if your dog isn't used it to it or tends to be noise sensitive. We don't want to add more stress to his life, so maybe try sticking to a verbal marker instead. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/video-archive/train-your-dog-to-turn-on-a-light/ -Now raise criteria, place the harness on the floor and mark and reward for stepping nearby it and if he manages to step on it, mark it enthusiastically and give give a jackpot of treats (several small treats tossed his way). -Next, practice lifting his feet if in case he too struggles with this. Treats happen when feet are handled. Touch foot ,treat. Touch foot, treat. Look again for a nice CER. Then, lift one front foot, feed treat. Lift other foot, feed treat. Repeat several times until you notice CER. -Next, place the harness on the floor, making sure the leg insertion areas are wide. Insert on foot, treat, insert other foot, treat. Look for CER. Put harness away, no more treats. -Next, place the harness on the floor, making sure the leg insertion areas are wide. Insert on foot, treat, insert other foot, treat. Next, lift the harness slightly as if you are planning to buckle it, treat. Rinse and repeat. Look for CER. Then put harness away no more treats. -Aside from this, during the day, do several reps where you hold the harness in your hands and buckle it, treat. Unbuckle it, treat. Buckle it, treat, unbuckle it, treat. Of course without your dog wearing it yet! What you are doing here is creating positive association with the sound. -Next, place the harness on the floor, making sure the leg insertion areas are wide. Insert on foot, treat, insert other foot, treat. Look for CER. Next, lift the harness more and buckle it, feed a couple of treats in a row. Then unbuckle it, let it fall to the floor, toss a treat so that he steps out. Rinse and repeat. Look for CER. Then put harness away no more treats. -Next, place the harness on the floor, making sure the leg insertion areas are wide. Insert on foot, treat, insert other foot, treat. Next, buckle it, feed several treats in a row. Then unbuckle it, let it fall to the floor, toss a treat so that he steps out. Rinse and repeat. Look for CER. Then put harness away no more treats. -Next, place the harness on the floor, making sure the leg insertion areas are wide. Insert on foot, treat, insert other foot, treat. Next, buckle it and give him a longer-lasting chew like one cookie. Once he's done, unbuckle, let it floor to the floor, toss a treat so he steps out. Rinse and repeat. Look for CER. Then put harness away no more cookies. -Next, place the harness on the floor, making sure the leg insertion areas are wide. Insert on foot, treat, insert other foot, treat. Next, buckle it and give him a longer-lasting chew like a bully stick or Kong stuffed with something super good. Once he's done, unbuckle, let it floor to the floor, toss a treat so he steps out. Then put harness away. -Next, place the harness on the floor, making sure the leg insertion areas are wide. Insert on foot, treat, insert other foot, treat. Next, buckle it and start tossing him treats, so he gets used to walking around with. Keep treat tossing, then call him to you, unbuckle, let it floor to the floor, toss a treat so he steps out and no more treats. -Next, place the harness on the floor, making sure the leg insertion areas are wide. Insert on foot, treat, insert other foot, treat. Next, buckle it and invite him in the yard (even better if there's a doggy friend waiting to play with him outside!) and have fun playing or give him a long lasting chew. Then go back inside, unbuckle, let it floor to the floor, toss a treat so he steps out and no more treats or fun for some time. By now, hopefully he looks forward to wearing the harness. If at any point he seems uncomfortable, your behavior professional should tell you that he needs to go back some steps back to the point he was more comfortable and work up to the next level, maybe though making some further adjustments such as splitting the next step into smaller components. Next, comes getting used to the leash and leash pressure. You would put on the harness, then give treat for clipping on the leash. Clip it off and no more treats. Rinse and repeat looking for CER. Then comes getting used to giving into leash pressure. Sit on the couch while your dog is wearing her harness and leash. Gently tug a bit on the leash and at the same time show your dog a treat from your hand. The moment he gives in to the leash pressure moving in direction of the kibble, praise and give the treat. Rinse and repeat several times, until she gives signs of knowing that he should give in to the pressure rather than oppose to it. Look for CER. Then, try this same exercise standing up. Walk a bit away from him and gently tug a bit on the leash and show him the kibble from your hand. The moment he gives in to the leash pressure moving in direction of the kibble, praise and give him the kibble. Next raise criteria, and start showing the kibble in heel position next to your knee. Follow the instructions in this guide: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/heeling-attention-heeling/ If at any time during these exercises your pup appears uncomfortable, you will need to split the exercise into smaller steps or go back a step to find his comfort zone and restart from there. Some very social dogs may benefit having a doggy pal come with them on walks so they may forget about wearing a harness since they're so excited. I hope this helps you gain an idea about the process. This just an example. Notice that if you do something that overwhelms him ,he may go back several steps regressing so it 's very important to go slow and pay attention to his comfort level. With collars and other models of harnesses of course the process is different and once again, each dog is different so may require a different plan based on individual factors and therefore this is also why it's important having a behavior professional following through the process and making adjustments throughout. Let me know if you have any 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.

Hello Frances, Welcome to the forums, The fact other people keep distance with their dogs is a good thing considering that, usually when we have reactive dogs we struggle with the opposite problem: too many dog owners letting their dogs come too close to ours with the excuse "my dog is friendly!" How is your dog doing with such distances? Have you found so far a distance from which she is less likely to react? Are you having difficulty in keeping Shadow under threshold? From what I understand, you would like to work on behavior modification but in a way that your dog is not over threshold? If so, we can work on this on many levels and Jennifer has pointed several out. We call the "stand dog" a stimulus dog, and we use it to start behavior modification as a beginning point for complex cases or for evaluations. There is a bit of controversy to their use, but I think they can provide a good starting point. I used to have one big stuffed Rottweiler stimulus dog I exposed reactive dogs to before introducing them to my Rotties from a distance. If you have dogs passing by your home that your dog can see from a window or screen door, you can also practice "look at that"as outlined here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/university/look-at-that/ If you have some visual barriers you can use, you can also try open/bar closed/bar. I have used parked cars to my advantage for reactive dogs in doing this exercise. Here's a read on this method: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/open-bar-closed-bar/ On top of desensitization, which aims to present triggers in less intimidating forms, for reactive dogs it's important to also add counterconditioning, which aims to create positive associations. Same goes for getting your dog used to the head halter, if that is what you are planning to use (and your dog doesn't seem to struggle too much with). Baby steps to get her used to wearing it, while also creating positive associations, to the point of obtaining a positive conditioned emotional response. The process is similar to conditioning a dog to wear a muzzle: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/video-archive/train-your-dog-to-wear-a-muzzle/ Here is a case study on a reactive dog that uses desensitization and counterconditioning with Look at That. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/case-studies/03-homer-homers-reactivity/ Very important to to keep the dog as under threshold as possible. The more we allow a dog to rehearse a problem behavior, the more likely it is put roots and become entrenched. On top of this, we allow stress hormones to circulate through the body which can lead to dogs being more on edge. In some severe cases, dogs may not be taken on walks until the dog is more relaxed (e.g. cortisol vacation by Leslie McDevitt) ad then a solid response is obtained in the home through small, minimally stressful exposures. If you have a dog trainer friend who has a dog who is calm, knows how to give out the right calming signals and is resilient to any possible threatening body language your dog emits, you can also organize very systematic set-ups in an organized setting. I hope this helps, Please let me know if you have any other 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.