Adrienne Farricelli

Ouch, I always cringe when there are setbacks especially those involving bites. It sounds like this happened around food and the trigger was the chest scratch. Perhaps he misinterpreted your outstretched hand as an attempt to access his food, perhaps it's a regression due to not generalizing the food bowl exercises to the outdoors. Perhaps it was frustration. In any case, for sake of safety and to prevent rehearsals of problematic behaviors, I would suggest not adding any elements that are out of the behavior modification protocol provided to you by the behavior professional who is following you. I know how tempting it is to raise criteria and see how things go or to feel more comfortable (and confident) to do certain things once there is improvement, but at times going a bit off track can cause problems. Of course, report this happening to your behavior professional. It looks like more work is needed in getting that strong conditioned emotional response to proximity to the bowl and hands near the bowl and then generalizing this in different contexts. In the meanwhile, play it safe. I'm glad to hear Mo has exhibited great restraint in his biting and that you didn't get hurt. Kudos to you for also remaining calm. Thanks as always for sharing your updates. I am sure they are very helpful to others. Adrienne

You are very welcome! Keep us posted. So sorry I thought you meant she barked from the garden! Eating bark can be problematic as it has the potential to cause quite a bit of irritation to the stomach and esophagus. So I would suggest focusing on practicing leave its, distracting with interactive toys when in the yard or games, and possibly fencing off areas where the bark is (if feasible) if she is very quick in eating it. It might be worthy also mentioning to the vet the grass and bark eating if it's something that she's obsessed about as it can be indicative at times of digestive issues or nutritional deficiencies (as it happens with pica). Best, Adrienne

Hello Jbcovell, Jennifer provided you with excellent tips there (I just need to cover an important tidbit about recalls in another post coming shortly). To answer your question, I am so sorry to say that, yes, the game may be causing *some* of the issues are seeing. Formally, the game is called "keep away" and although it may look like a rather innocent game, it has several negative implications. Let's take a closer look why. The keep away game is a game that dogs love to play because it comes natural to them, no learning is required. You'll see puppies and dogs play it without ever being taught it. Requirements involve an owner willing to run a bit (or at least willing to try to) and a dog loving to be chased. Game after game though, there are risks that dogs by default will engage in keep away behavior, even when you are not intentionally playing. It can therefore happen that, at the most inconvenient times such as when you really need to get a hold of your dog, your dog will think you are playing, and the moment you're moving towards your dog, she swerves away. That' exactly what it sounds like when you mention "if we try to go get her she runs around.'' On top of this, keep away may also have negative implications on training your dog to relinquish something that she shouldn't have. Many dogs generalize the game by moving from grabbing their own toys to grabbing items they shouldn't have (just for the sake of the game) or that can even be downright dangerous (think batteries or a piece of dark chocolate). Most likely, in such cases, the moment you see your dog grabbing these dangerous items, you will "activate" (look at your dog, talk to your dog, move towards your dog) and your dog will sense this interest as the start of the game. She may therefore run off with the dangerous item, and if she really wants to keep the item out of your reach, she may even decide to gulp it down faster than you can retrieve it (which can lead to toxicity or blockages requiring expensive surgeries) or even resource guard (if she is prone to that) which can be problematic to resolve. If you have played keep away with your dog for quite some time, it may be more challenging training your dog a strong recall, collar grabs and training the "leave it" and "drop it" cues which are life saving cues because they can prevent your dog from accessing harmful things and ingesting them. Rather than playing keep away, I would suggest incorporating training and some other great games that pave the path for a stronger bonding experience, provide mental stimulation and even add some foundational training elements. What are some of these games? For starters, I rather have dog owners being chased by their dogs rather than owners chasing them. Why? Because in many cases, with a dog who doesn't reliably come when called and is in a delicate situation where she can put herself into peril, the dog can be enticed to chase the owner. This strategy has helped many dog owners get their dogs out of a sticky situation. In this case, it's beneficial to therefore do some role reversal. From now on, don't give in to your dog's invitations to chase her, rather, have her chase you! And when she reaches you, praise and reward with some tasty treats. You can even put the game on cue. I liked to say "Come and get me!" in an excited tone of voice and have dogs come running trying to catch me. When your dog catches up on you (most dogs do very quickly, so give yourself a head start with some distance) give your dog a treat, toss a toy or play a game of tug with her. Alway make great things happen so that it becomes irresistible chasing you. Other great training exercises and games are round-robin recalls, making great things happen when the collar is touched, and hide-and-seek (most of these are covered in the Obedience 101 recall section and Brain Training section of the course). Start all games and training indoors at first and practice, practice, practice. Always make great things happen when you call your dog. In your specific circumstance, since moving towards her seems to evoke running away with the toy, you can work on some trading games such as the two-toy game. How do you play this game? You get two toys that are fun to toss and that your dog finds equally appealing. So you grab one toy and toss it. Your dog will likely grab it in her mouth. Now, usually, when she has a toy in her mouth, she would run away with it, but we want to extinguish this habit. So instead of chasing her, when she has a toy in her mouth, try to stimulate her predatory drive by wiggling or bouncing the other toy around until she's eager to have it. At this point, toss it and she should drop the toy she already had in his mouth to get the other toy. Then rinse and repeat this exercise over and over. What is she learning in this case? Well, first off, she is no longer rehearsing the catch-me behavior which is good. On top of that, she's learning that good things happen when she drops the toy in her mouth. If she ever happens to get a hold of something she shouldn't have, make sure to trade it for things higher in value rather than chasing her around. Alternatively, if you have built a strong behavior of having her chase you, you can entice her to chase you "come and get me!" and take her in another room to reward her as you close the door and grab the unlegit to have item or while somebody else grasps the item. For the grass eating, you may have to find out why she is so attracted to it. Some dogs eat grass when they have digestion problems, so this is something to rule out, but some others are just grazers. Usually dogs with digestive issues are more prone to eating the grass frantically with a purpose (to vomit) versus the leisurely grass-eating of grazers who seek the most tender tips. The frantic grass eating of a dog with digestive issues can make dogs too focused on the grass to be able to listen to a recall as they would in normal circumstances. If the grass is treated or sprayed with chemicals, of course the practice of leisurely grass eating should be avoided at best. A well-trained leave-it cue can interrupt her in the tracks (before she gets to eat) and should be followed by distracting her with a fun game (how about a treasure hunt game!) or a goodie like a stuffed Kong eaten by the deck for longer-lasting results (so that she doesn't just eat a treat and go straight back to grass eating). As a general rule of thumb: if you want to call your dog to stop her from an activity your dog enjoys (like eating grass) you must make sure to give a high enough reward that surpasses the value of what your dog is leaving. The goal is to minimize the association of being called and the pleasant activity stopping. Generally, dogs who have been trained a strong recall with high rewards starting first in low-distraction areas and then building up gradually to higher distractions, will have attained such a strong conditioned emotional response to the recall cue that it becomes almost a no-brainer choosing to come especially when there are not many competing stimuli around. I need to precise: when I say "you must make sure to give a high enough reward that surpasses the value of what your dog is leaving" consider it from your dog's perspective. In other words, the value your dog gives to such or such item. So if for instance, you must call your dog or tell "him leave it" when he is consuming rabbit poop, you must be almighty sure to give something high value like some tripe or freeze-dried liver to have an impact as for some dogs rabbit poop is a treasured finding when to us, it's just waste. I have found it best to allow dogs to explore a bit their yard, sniffing, marking, exploring, getting rid of their excess energy before working on recalls. This paves the path to a better response as the novelty of being in the yard fades away a bit and things start getting a bit boring. One important caveat to keep in mind: many dogs like to play the keep away game, but some dogs aren't really playing or some dogs may be playing until they get ahold of something really valuable and things then turn serious. These dogs have a serious intent to grab the stolen item and keep it out of your reach. Keep-away may start as an innocent game but some dogs may become more and more protective especially if you manage to remove the item from them over and over without trading with a higher value item. One day, a dog may just run off with the item, the next he may be growling and baring his teeth to tell you off because the item is perceived as highly valuable and he doesn't want you to take it away. Please be careful! Trying to grab the item back by stretching the hand may be dangerous and things tend to get worse when aversive methods such as scolding your dog and grabbing her mouth to remove the item are employed. For barking in the garden, I would need more info about that. In what context does it happen? Is she trying to get you to chase her? Or is she barking at stimuli across the fence? There are so many potential reasons for barking. Disclaimer: Behavior modification comes with risks. If your dog ever shows or has ever shown aggressive displays towards you in the past, please report to a dog behavior professional using force-free methods for an in-person evaluation and coaching.

Sounds like you have a great project there! Glad to hear your dogs are improving. I recorded Einstein the other day curious to see if he still howled when we left the home. Before, Petra used to be the initiator of howling and he would follow through and I could hear them all the way down the road. Since her passing, because I hear nothing upon closing the gate and driving away, I assumed he just didn't like to sing solo. However, my recording revealed that he does still howl, only very softly. Poor baby! The rest of the recording fortunately showed him napping in between and getting up every now and then to whine at the airplanes (we have C130s flying low doing military briefing exercises) as this has become a new pet peeve of him. I hope Gordo had no tummy upset after eating so many tortillas! Smart dog.

Thank you so much for the kind words. It's so true dogs are so loving and give so much to us. Hmm... it would be interesting finding out in such a case if her reaction was contingent upon the movement of the chair (with him) on its own or him moving next to you (in which case may be suggestive of resource guarding you) and whether her more relaxed state was contingent upon him stopping from moving with the chair or moving away from you. In case of dogs resource guarding owners, dogs usually like to stick by the owner's side (or place themselves in between) rather than at a distance, but with her arthritis, she may not exhibit the full spectrum of tell-tale signs one would expect. Glad to hear the insurance issue has settled for you. Best, Adrienne

Hmmmm.. interesting behavior. If I was there, I would have likely instructed you to hand feed her a tasty treat (or possibly tossing it behind her in a treat-retreat fashion) every time I moved the chair and moved towards the monitor. First moving the chair a bit lightly, then a tad bit more and then some more with the hierarchy of value of the treats becoming higher (and given at a more frequent rate) the closer I came to the monitor. Then, when back away from the computer, the treat fest would have been closed. This could have been done in one session or several depending on how over threshold she was. These cases can be tricky figuring out what can be evoking the behavior because there are several possibilities: -It could be a distance-increasing behavior simply of her not likely this stranger moving around in her home if getting closer to the monitor meant getting closer to her space -It could be she is not used to seeing the chair moved, or a stranger moving the chair -It could be she was guarding you (a way to exclude this would have been you moving away and seeing if she still reacted) -It could be she was guarding her "safe spot" -Sometimes we have a combination of factors Several possibilities there. As dogs get older (and their senses decline) or they have crippling conditions such as arthritis where they can't move away as needed, unfortunately they feel more vulnerable at times and this can make them more reactive. I am seeing this with Einstein too (unfortunately we lost Petra to a very aggressive cancer last August). Last time the vet got close to his face to check his eyes with her ophthalmoscope he emitted a soft growl. He never did this in all his years of seeing the vet and he loves this vet (she's always doling out treats and depending on the weather also does outdoor vet visits in a nice grassy area in the back). She said he has the beginning of lenticular sclerosis in his eyes and also that Rotties are prone to myopia and he might have a bit of that too. I am chalking it up to him not seeing too well at times, because he sometimes startles (moves his head away like horses do) when being petted on the face lately, but then again the vet episode, could also have been just plain old age-related grumpiness. By next visit, I will practice some counterconditioning exercises with some object that looks like an opthalmoscope to get him prepped and hopefully will get a nice conditioned emotional response! Hope things go smoothly with your taxes. Best, Adrienne

Welcome to the forums, Congrats on your new puppy! For walking properly on the leash, you can try some leash-conditioning exercises first as outlined in the below link. You can start indoors and then progress to walks outdoors once your vet claims it's safe venturing in the great outdoors. Generally, pups finish their boosters at 16 weeks or in some cases up to 20 weeks. Infectious diseases are always a risk to young puppies. Leash-conditioning exercises: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/forum/showthread.php?101-Leash-training After these basics, you can then follow with the steps in training a dog to heel as outlined in the obedience 101 section

"Every article I read answers the question, "how long does it take to train recall" with "forever." Excellent points Jennifer. Yup, the recall is one of those things you have to maintain and reward generously. It's an investment that will provide coverage that day you are caught off guard and you really need your dog to come back to you ASAP, no questions asked.

You are very welcome! It sounds like his behavior occurs mostly upon walking out of the bedroom and coming down the stairs, and then, once you are at the computer (after one final nip!) he calms down and the behavior stops for good. Is this correct? If this behavior would be triggered by him not wanting you to leave the house, it would be important knowing what happens exactly when you are closer to leaving (like grabbing your keys or purse and you walking towards the exit door) and then when you actually leave the house for good. If once you have left he remains with your husband, does your hubby by any chance notice any anxious behaviors? Pacing by the door? Looking for you? Restlessness? Recording his behavior when he remains alone or when he is separated from you would be important to determine whether there is an element of anxiety. Some dogs suffer from anxiety towards being separated from one particular person, and once that person leaves, they feel vulnerable and in distress. This hyperarousal may sometimes lead to biting often geared towards the hands and feet. The biting in this case, as outlined under the "other potential causes' may be a way to stop a person from walking and therefore from leaving the home. If this would truly be caused by him not wanting you to leave the home, then this would likely require a much more involved behavior modification program, encouraging sit/stays and down/stays versus following you around the home, desensitizing him to pre-departure cues and building your time away from home in gradual elements as outlined here in this thread featuring a sample of a separation anxiety protocol: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/forum/showthread.php?130-Thundershirt&highlight=separation+anxiety And then, sometimes, you may just have a more purposeful intent (lacking for a good part the element of distress as seen in separation anxiety), which sometimes can be seen in breeds with a history of being selectively bred to herd which simply entails biting to "herd" a family member away or towards a certain place. In such cases, or in cases where the behavior intent may not be too clear it may be helpful s mentioned to just jump straight into behavior modification and train the dog alternate behaviors and highly reinforce them, so that it becomes a no-brainer for the dog to pick to engage in such behaviors as outlined in section 5. I hope this helps, best of luck! Let me know if I can be of any further assistance! Disclaimer: dog behavior modification may come with risks. If your dog is aggressive or exhibiting worrisome behaviors, please consult with a behavior professional using humane, force-free behavior modification.

Hello Diane Komorowski, Welcome to the forums, This needs tackled because every time a puppy or dog doesn't come when called and gains reinforcement from something in the environment, the recall weakens while ignoring the recall reinforces. It sounds like though your puppy is coming to you, but rather slowly. You still want to reinforce those slower recalls just that the faster ones may get paid better. You can keep in your treat pouch regular treats and super high value treats for those fast and enthusiastic great recalls. However, every time you notice a slow recall you will want make a mental note to self that she needs more practice in those specific circumstances where this happens. She may not be ready for that level of distractions yet. Make sure you start at home, then in low distraction areas and then around more distractions gradually. I usually allow dogs to sniff around and explore for several few minutes outside until they grow a bit bored of their environment before practicing recalls. This helps increase your saliency while reducing the power of competing stimuli in the environment. If you ever notice she is a bit slow, once you notice her orienting towards you, you can make a quick turn and run away from her to help her come faster to you. Once she catches up, lavishly praise and reward. It's important to not fall into the trap of repeating commands, especially the recall. If a dog is not responsive, again, this is often sign that the dog is not ready for responding under that level of distractions yet. Since it sounds like you are working in an open area, with the opportunity to bolt away, I would keep her on a long line (not a leash, but a long line as those used for horses) so that she can explore safely and not bolt away. Instructions on how to train a recall with a long line can be found here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/recall/

14: "Also, also, as I said she is from the humane society, and she is very anxious and seems like she might have been abused (she cowers back when you lift your foot up or hand up like she has been kicked or hit before). She also might not have had proper socialization as a young puppy." So sorry to hear this. At 16 weeks, the socialization window is closed or about to close and this is very important especially for a puppy of this breed. I would highly suggest puppy classes. Puppy classes are a good way to allow puppies to interact with other pups, refine their bite inhibition and social skills further, while also continuing their socialization. Look for puppy classes that require proof of vaccinations and that put great emphasis in preventing infectious diseases. Here is an important read about socialization: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/socializing-your-puppy/ For hand shyness here is a read: the same exercises with hands can be done with feet. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/fear-of-hands/ Pheeww.. that was quite a lot of info! I hope you are not overwhelmed, but it sounds like a whole lot is going on. Fortunately, this pup is still very young and a lot can be done to pave the path for a well-trained dog. Also, this is a new puppy, so some things may get better as she adjusts and becomes more confident, especially if several of her behaviors are triggered by anxiety. A DAP diffuser may help her adjust. I highly suggest puppy classes run by a knowledgeable dog trainer using positive reinforcement methods so he or she can also asses her behavior. Also, if there is aggression seeking a behavior professional may be important to ensure safety and correct behavior modification. Disclaimer: behavior modification comes with risks, if your dog bites or is showing signs of aggression, please consult with a behavior professional for safety and correct behavior modification implementation.

10: "We try to leave the room, but she follows us and bites us more. Or, then when we leave she goes and chews on the curtains or something, even if we're gone 10 seconds." Sounds like other signs of frustration intolerance. She loses access to you and your activities and vents off by performing a displacement activity (chewing curtains). She needs to learn to settle. Place her in a crate when left alone even fr a few minutes or behind a baby gate with a safe chew toy. It is also for safety as she may chew things that may be problematic and cause bowel obstructions. Puppies need to learn to cope and stay away from their owners without engaging in problematic behaviors. Practice brief absences and make sure to create positive associations with the crate: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/video-archive/love-the-crate/ 11: "She has many toys she is allowed to bite and play with, but they just wind her up." It is normal for toys to cause puppies to play wildly with. I don't see this as problematic and it's a good outlet for her if she's biting a lot. I would encourage play with toys that keep her mentally stimulated like Kongs, puzzle toys (if she can stay focused on these) and if play with toys involve you, use the toys to reward calm behaviors. Let her sit before tossing a ball, sit before giving any toy. A great game to train her would be a beginner version of the sport of Treibball. Treibball is a new doggy sport where the dog must “herd” several large inflatable exercise balls into a soccer-like net. Start by training (with the use of a clicker) your puppy to hand target first, then to target a sticky note placed on an opened cabinet, then to target the sticky note on the cabinet with enough force to close the opened cabinet, then place the sticky note on a large ball. Take care in not letting puppies bite the ball but rather encourage your pup to push the ball with her nose, gradually adding distance. The sticky note can be removed once your puppy grasps the concept. Now a word of caution is needed in overexercising puppies. While exercise and mental stimulation is helpful, puppies should not be overly exercised until their growth plates have closed. This means very long hikes, repetitive jumping, jogging, the sport of agility etc. should be avoided at least until a veterinarian has provided approval for these activities. 12: "I also wanted to add that we have given her treats and praise whenever she is NOT biting us or when she STOPS biting us. But that winds her up and then she just bites us more to get more treats (again, she's very smart)." Heelers are very smart indeed, and sounds like you pup has quickly learned a chained behavior. So if your puppy bites and then stops and you reward her for stopping her biting with a treat, there are chances she has learned that biting and stopping earns her the reward, so soon you are stuck with this vicious cycle of chained behaviors. There are several ways to tackle this. Inserting some behaviors can help distract your smart pup from the chain, but a better approach may be preventing the biting from occurring in the first place. For instance, your puppy bites and then stops biting and you want to reward that? Promptly praise and reward that by tossing a handful of kibble on the floor, and then as your puppy is busy consuming those, take steps to prevent more biting to occur. For example, call your puppy to join you in the yard for a treasure hunt of more kibble scattered around the yard to keep her mind busy and away from your hands. This should help break the chain. Even better, catch your puppy before she even has the chance to bite in the first place and redirect her to another behavior such as targeting your hand several times in a row.

8: We have also tried the "yelp", stand still, and ignore her when she bites us hard. She used to stop biting and stare at us, but now she just ignores the yelp and bites more even when we stop moving and ignore her. When playing, it is easy for puppies to nip because that is what they have done with their littermates up until they are welcomed into their new homes. One popular strategy for correcting nipping is, yelping (or saying ouch!) and turning around (and even leaving the room if the puppy persists) stopping any interaction with the puppy to give puppies the idea that, when they bite too hard, they lose their playmate. This strategy is based on what littermate puppies do; however, I hear you, for some easily aroused dogs or dogs particularly attracted to movement, it may not work too well as it does with milder puppies. Movement triggers more biting, and the more we resist by moving upon feeling those sharp teeth, the more a puppy will latch on and treat humans as giant tug toys. For some dogs, yelping can be perceived as a hurt animal and increase arousal (the owner is perceived as a fun tug toy that now also squeaks!) and for some movement oriented pups, just turning the back and walking to leave the room may encourage further engagement with the pup chasing and latching on. Now, it is possible that the pup may get the the idea that she has lost her favorite playmate once the owner leaves the room, but she might have had a blast of fun in the meanwhile by latching on and being transported around, so there is no guarantee whether the withdrawal association is made or not. With puppies as such, if walking away becomes impracticable and leads to having a land shark attached to a leg, then it may be best to try another different method altogether such as teaching some constructive replacement behaviors as described in the previous paragraphs (sit, target) or in the meanwhile, just toss kibble around as you walk. 9: "We try to ignore her and remove ourself from the situation whenever she bites us, but she just bites harder and harder." This sounds like an extinction burst when you ignore her, so the options are two: either remain total immobile and wait it out until she loses interest and leaves, finding something better to do. If the biting is not tolerable maybe wear tall boots for this exercise or horse back riding chaps) or catch her before she has a chance to bite and redirect to an interactive toy, tug toy, flirt pole. Please note: Trying to remove yourself with your pup latched on will only reinforce the biting because you have become a fun tug toy and the behavior will persist if not corrected. Again, prevention of rehearsal of the problem behavior is important.

4) "She bites a lot after walks" Something to consider is that young puppies sleep a lot and it's important for their development that they receive enough sleep. Sometimes when puppies are acting out by nipping, they are just cranky and need some rest or they just need to chill out a bit. Putting these pups in a crate or behind a baby gate to enjoy a safe chew toy in a quiet room can allow them to relax and after chewing, most likely they will fall asleep and catch some z's. 5) "She bites our legs and feet when we walk around the house." When your puppy is moving towards you and you know she's coming for nipping ask for a replacement behavior as suggested below. You will have to have trained these replacement behaviors prior using positive reinforcement methods (as outlined in the obedience 101 section of the course) to the point of fluency before applying it to a nipping scenario when a puppy is excited by people walking around. Replacement behaviors provide the puppy the opportunity to perform a behavior that is incompatible with biting. Asking these replacement behaviors requires you to carry a treat bag on you during the day when you are home (you can fill it with a portion of you pup's allotment of kibble in lieu of treats if you are concerned about extra calories or digestive upset.) so that you are a ready to redirect at a moment's notice when you walk around. For example, you can ask your puppy to target your hands (or a long target stick) and then upon targeting, praise and reward by tossing a kibble across the room (which also gives a workout to burn excess energy). Hand targeting is a great game to play because the goal is to get the puppy to touch hands with her nose rather than nip them. With enough training, rather than coming to nip, your pup should return to target again. You can find how to train targeting here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/preschool/targeting/ Other examples of replacement behaviors include asking as your puppy approaches to "sit" and then reward by tossing the kibble/treat the opposite way as you walk away or asking your puppy to do some steps of attention heeling (dog walking next to you looking into your eyes) inside the home. Every time she makes eye contact with you, you praise and toss a treat across the room. Here is how to train attention heeling: (please note: don't expect lots of steps of this with a pup's low attention span (just one or maybe two steps) but if your pup can focus on nipping, she has the potential to learn how to focus on eyes: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/heeling-attention-heeling/ But what should you do in the meanwhile, prior to your puppy learning to perform the replacement behavior well to the point of fluency? As you work on training a replacement behavior to the point of fluency, you may wish to redirect your puppy when she approaches (if you are walking, stop walking as movement encourages nipping) to some food dispensing toy or an interactive game such as tug (played by the rules) or play with a toy attached to string. Keep these toys in your pocket so they are ready to use at a moment's notice. 6: "She also jumps up and bites our clothes when we get home, even if we ignored her." I would need some more specifics on this. Is she crated and when you open the crate she jumps and bites? Do you need to take her immediately out to potty upon your return, or is there somebody at home taking her out every now and then? What kind of crate does she have? Wire heavy crate, travel crate? 7: "She is very smart. She knows "leave it" but will only leave it if there is a treat for her. She will also just go back to biting the second she gets the treat." You may need to skip the treat and try with some longer lasting activity, an interactive toy, a game of tug played by the rules or a game of jazz up and settle down once your puppy knows a solid sit. Here's a link to the game: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/high-school/jazz-up-and-settle-down/ Also remember: if your puppy knows there is a treat for her, you need to find a way of not letting her know. Keep the treat hidden behind your back or in a pocket. Don't keep the treat in plain view or she'll come to perform the behavior only contingent upon the sight of the treat.

2) "She bites when you try to take her toy." You puppy must be taught how to trade. Left untreated, this can lead to serious resource guarding in the future. Here is a read about trading: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/overprotective-of-toys/ 3) "She bites after a cuddle session when you stop petting her." I tend to see far more puppies who bite as they are being pet rather than after the petting has stopped. However, it sounds again, like in the case of her biting after tossing a toy, that she is seeking more engagement and doesn't seem to come to terms about things stopping. She bites when she grows bored of a toy, she bites after chasing a tossed toy. It appears that she goes into frustration mode when activities or movements stop and goes on to biting to seek re-engagement. It's important to break this chain and find ways to prevent this biting. There are several ways to accomplish this: -When done petting, cross your arms and make a point of not moving one inch. This may be possible with puppies who do not bite hard. Now, with a determined puppy like a heeler, there is a chance the heeler will bite persistently just to get you moving or to provoke any reaction. Now, if your puppy was used to you or any other family member playing or interacting with her despite her rough biting and now you suddenly decide to stop moving, this inconsistency may pave the path to a phenomenon known as an extinction burst. An extinction burst is not really a bad thing, actually, it's a good thing, but you really need to know what to do about it to prevent the biting from getting worse. Here's a closer insight into what happens: When puppies play with our hands, and they bite hard and we keep playing, their biting is reinforced because they associate it with continued attention (puppies may enjoy even attention of the negative type) and play. What happens the day though when we suddenly stop playing and ignore the behavior? The puppy may feel compelled to bite stronger and with more intensity just to get us to play or interact with them again (extinction burst). The phenomenon is similar to what happens when you always buy candy to a toddler when he cries for candy and then one day you decide to become strict and refuse to buy it (let's say a dentist reported too many cavities). Next, watch the toddler cry even more, and possibly, progress to the worst temper tantrum you have ever witnessed on earth. Now, what happens next is very critical: if you give up and buy the candy, you will have just rewarded persistence. The toddler has learned that crying longer and louder will gain the candy and will keep using this strategy at full intensity. But what happens if you don't give in? Chances are high that if you stick to your plan, you may witness perhaps a couple more extinction bursts, but then the behavior will eventually extinguish, pufffff... just like a fire without oxygen to fuel it. Therefore, it's important that you stick to your plan when training your puppy to stop nipping when you stop petting her. Crossed arms, no talking, no looking at her, no scolding, become the human personification of a lamppost. Perhaps some planning in advance wearing extra layers of clothing and gloves to withstand any harder nipping may turn helpful if possible hard biting is an issue. Your objective is getting her to give up and understand that when you stop, you stop. You want her to lose interest and move away or find something else better to do. Several of these "lamppost sessions" should be held, and at some point, it is possible to even add a "that's enough" cue to inform your puppy when you are done, cross your arms and zero interaction. If there are chances for rough bites or it becomes too difficult to implement this consistently with all other family members on board doing the same, alternatively, you can try a different training strategy altogether. Please note: if you have small children or your puppy ever exhibits or has exhibited aggression consult with a behavior professional for guidance. An alternate option is trying this: When you are petting, give a signal that it is ending. Say something like "that's enough" remove your hand and simultaneously with your other hand toss an interactive toy from your pocket before your puppy has a chance to realize you have stopped petting . Anything to break this "stop petting and biting" cycle from repeating and prevent building a strong rehearsal of the problematic behavior (the more the dog practices certain behaviors, the more they become habit-forming and ingrained). With a working breed, I find it important to to instill a strict "say please" or "learn to earn" program from early puppy hood. So have your pup sit before petting, sit before placing the food bowl on the floor, sit before opening the door, sit before tossing a ball.

OK, I am back, sorry busy day :) In direct response to your queries: (please read all this info thoroughly before attempting anything to get a better grasp of what these exercises entail, their goals and some important warnings and disclaimers) 1)"Triggers for her biting: when we are playing fetch with a toy she stops with the toy and bites our whole body, when playing by herself with toys she'll stop after a minute or two and bites us all over." It sounds like she is seeking engagement with you, and your movements are more reinforcing than a toy which is static. Most likely the toy is a boring one from your pup's perspective if it is one that the pup has seen over and over and is lacking an important element that many heeler pups seek: continuous, unpredictable movement. Back to this pup's ancestry, if the heeler portion of her genetic mix is dominant, consider that heelers seek movement, and when stubborn cattle stop moving, heelers are nipping their heels to get them moving. Even though this is a puppy, play involves often re-enactments of activities dogs were selectively bred to do or that are instinctive. In such cases, it helps to provide nipping pups the best of both worlds, a toy that involves movement and engagement, and on top of that, reinforcement too! So next time your pup nips, skip redirection by giving her a static toy or feeding a tiny treat, and give her instead a food-dispensing toy that will keep her mentally stimulated and occupied for some time. Good choices are the Kong Wobbler, Buster Cube, or any IQ treat ball (previously stuffed with kibble or treats) that you can easily keep in your pocket and use for redirection as needed. Providing interactive toys is important because they, not only provide a mental workout and an outlet for instinctive behaviors, but also because pups gain positive associations with these toys so playing with humans by nipping eventually becomes boring (especially if you freeze like a lamppost when your pup approaches and redirect to these super appealing toys instead). Most puppies fortunately at some point outgrow nipping just as they outgrow biting and chasing their tails because they find more reinforcement from other activities in their environment. Failure to provide these other activities, may lead though to problematic behaviors persisting because the puppy has nothing better to do and there are no outlets for pent-up energy and lack of mental stimulation.

Hello, and welcome to the forums, Sounds like you have a handful! Not surprising though considering the cattle dog portion of this pup's ancestry, considering that these dogs have been selectively bred to herd cattle and nip at their heels. These behaviors can be quite ingrained and these dogs are attracted by movement and nipping is their second name. Hang in there, I will be posting some tips based on your descriptions shortly. You are on the right track in rewarding when she is not biting or when she stops, but we need to be careful with some smart dogs in not creating a behavior chain (the dog resumes biting, to then stop to get a treat, resume biting, then stop to get a treat etc.)

Hello Michael Sobieski, Welcome to the forums, When you state you have tried almost everything, does that include seeing a behavior professional for an in-person assessment and behavior modification protocol? With children in the home and your dog being a safety hazard around house guests and your children, you are right to be concerned about safety. In cases as such, a board-certified veterinary behaviorist (DACVB) or a behavior professional using humane behavior modification (generally, not the average dog trainer) should be consulted for safety and correct behavior modification implementation. It is important to identify the antecedents (what triggers cause the aggressive displays). Dogs aren't typically in a bad mood but are rather asking for distance because they are either highly stressed, are guarding possessions (people, toys, sleeping areas, food bowls) or feel threatened by something in their environment. It is also possible sometimes that aggression is medically-induced. This is why a veterinary behaviorist is the best option, considering that they can rule out medically-induced forms of aggression and then, based on the findings, work on the problem. They also can prescribe medications when dogs are highly stressed as dogs who are highly stressed can be non-responsive to behavior modification and training due to high levels of stress hormones interfering with their cognitive functions. Training and mental stimulation still has also its place in behavior modification. So your dog should learn to be responsive to sit, downs, stays and recalls because these behaviors when taught fluently enough can be part of behavior modification at some point and used as part of a differential reinforcement of alternate behavior plans. Brain training can help dogs relax and lower stress. Preventing rehearsal of the problematic behavior is fundamental (not putting the dog into the position of exhibiting aggression) and this is done through management. In other words, if he attacks guests, when guests are over he should be in another room, behind a baby gate or in a crate. If he is aggressive towards the kids, he should not be kept around them in the circumstances that evoke the aggression until a behavior modification program is in place. Once the antecedents are identified, behavior modification often entails implementation of desensitization and counterconditioning. Gradual exposure, with the dog under threshold and creating positive associations with the possible triggers (presence of guests, kids walking by). I will be providing shortly some reading material about behavior modification, but again, behavior modification for aggression should be done under the strict guidance of a behavior professional for safety and correct implementation.

Hello Manida, Sounds like your dog likes to chase balls, but doesn't know the returning to you part. Being a breed that was selectively bred for herding rather than retrieving, it's not unusual to face some hurdles. Some dogs find joy from simply chasing things while others get a lot of joy from retrieving (chasing and bringing back). Just like us, they all have their little areas of specialty and weaknesses :) This needs some troubleshooting and the addition of incentives if returning the ball isn't something that comes natural. What is your goal? Are you training a formal retrieve for obedience? Or is this just for fun or to release pent-up energy? Have you already tried the methods outlined in the previous reply above? If so, which methods did you try and what were the results? Have you tried closer retrieves, splitting the exercise in smaller steps, two-ball games or backchaining? What items are you using to play fetch? Are you talking to your dog as he's returning to you? Sometimes, it helps starting training it all over using a different method and backchaining can be helpful for that. It helps to start inside the home at first with close retrieves and then gradually moving to the yard or larger spaces only once the dog grasps the concept. If things are getting frustrating, dogs often sense our frustration and shut down and this can put a dent in the training as the activity assumes negative connotations. It helps to take breaks before reaching that point and asking the dog a behavior he knows well so to end the session on a positive note.

5) Training alternate, incompatible behaviors. Differential reinforcement of incompatible behaviors is a helpful method to stop a dog from mouthing and jumping because it tells dogs what we want them to do, and at the same time, it allows the opportunity to create positive associations. In other words, with differential reinforcement of incompatible behavior, the dog is rewarded for performing behaviors that are incompatible with jumping and mouthing. For instance, a dog who is sitting cannot be jumping up and mouthing at the same time. If it is possible to identify what the dog is trying to achieve by engaging in the mouthing and jumping behaviour, it offers an advantage as those motivators can be used to reinforce the behavior. For instance, does the dog want attention? Then, the attention can be provided contingent upon sitting behavior. Does the dog want to play? Then sitting gets the owner to toss him a ball. Does the dog want food? Then, only sitting unlocks meal preparation; whereas, getting up from sitting and mouthing and jumping, causes the owner to freeze and stop meal preparation. Alternatively, the dog can be provided with other forms of reinforcement such as high-value treats, games or anything else the dog finds highly reinforcing. It's fundamental to commit time for this training, and when no time can be dedicated to training, then the dog should be managed (placed behind a barrier) to prevent rehearsal of the troublesome behavior. In your case, you can try different approaches (with the help of a professional) and see what works best or mix them up. If your GSD already knows well some obedience exercises you can use them to your advantage if they are fluent. If not, you can find how to train these exercises in the obedience 101 section. You may have to train these exercises to the point of fluency (in non-morning settings) before using them upon getting up in the morning to get a response. In the meanwhile, you may have to manage or redirect the behavior using toys as suggested a few paragraphs down. 1) You can train a very solid heel and then ask for attention heeling as you are walking down the hallway. Use high value treats. Then at the stairs, you can ask for a sit stay, and then at the bottom of the stairs, you can call your dog (avoid this if he is clumsy doing the stairs and risks falling), ask him to sit again and provide him an interactive toy (stuffed with a portion of his kibble and kept in a handy place at the bottom of the stairs) which should occupy him and tire him out while you are sitting. 2) You can keep 2-3 balls in your pocket. You can exit the bedroom and ask your dog to sit and then toss a ball across the hallway. Once you catch up, you can ask for him to down/stay and toss the ball again and then when he comes back, give him an interactive toy (stuffed with a portion of his kibble) which should occupy him and give him a mental workout out while you are sitting. 4) You can use high treats or kibble and ask your GSD to repeatedly target your hand. Each target, grants a kibble tossed across the hallway. When he comes back, ask for more targets and toss the kibble. At the bottom of the stairs, provide him with an interactive toy to keep him busy. 5) If he's closed in the other room, expect him to be overly excited once opening him and him finding you in the room. Be ready to redirect him with an interactive toy you prepared in advance, ask him for a behavior (if he's too over threshold to respond for now just roll the interactive toy low so that he's not encouraged to jump). This should help diffuse his exuberance and help establish a new routine that doesn't involve mouthing and jumping. 6) Sometimes I have had success with exuberant greeters who are very eager to start the day by moving very slowly in the morning as I watch them very carefully. If the dog is coming towards me fast, I walk back towards the bedroom and even close myself behind the door. I only open and attempt to come out again when the dog is showing signs of being calmer. If the dog seems excited, I start closing the door. Then, I slowly try opening again. I let my leg out very slowly, if the dog starts getting excited, I retract the leg back, if calm, I advance. I keep on progressing if the dog is calm, regressing and retracting if the dog is excited accordingly. The first days may take me forever to come out and walk, but the dogs eventually learn that only when they are calm I come out and walk. A little note for using toys for redirection: giving the dog toys that are commonly found laying around the house, or that don't allow much interaction (motionless), may fail to redirect the dog. The dog often prefers the interaction with the owner than the toy. Using toys that contain treats or kibble or redirecting with a more engaging toys that allows more interaction (flirt pole to chase, ball to chase, tug-toy to play with owner) can help the dog make good choices. 6) Tackling Underlying Causes Dogs often mouth and jump when overstimulated by certain situations or when they overly exuberant or seeking attention or soliciting play. These dogs require daily doses of exercise, training (visit the main course, obedience 101 section for this) and loads of mental stimulation (brain games). Using a dog's dinner to work on this is helpful as every piece of kibble can be used to reinforce behaviors and food can also be used to stuff interactive toys. GSD are working dogs and can be a handful when they do not know what to do with their excess energy. Dogs who are mouthing and jumping for attention, should have at least two sessions of 15 minutes a day (morning and evening) dedicated to some form of interaction with their owners. These sessions should include some aerobic forms of play such as tossing a ball or Frisbee (after the dog sits to reinforce calm behaviors) on top of a daily walks, and training. Attention-seeking dogs should also be rewarded for acting calm and exhibiting appropriate, desirable behaviors. It seems like just too often dogs get attention only when they are misbehaving. As seen, stopping a dog from mouthing and jumping can occur for several reasons and each reason may require a specific approach. Only general guidelines can be provided. The only way to obtain accurate assessments and custom-tailored programs are by observing the behavior directly in first person and providing in person-coaching based on observations. Hope this helps, Best, Adrienne Disclaimer: dog behavior modification may come with risks. If your dog is aggressive or exhibiting worrisome behaviors, please consult with a behavior professional using humane, force-free behavior modification.

At 18 months, your GSD is still at the adolescent stage. Just like Rottweilers, GSD adolescence is quite long, lasting up until they are 3 years old. In general, large youngster dogs as such tend to lack to exhibit that level of maturity, restraint and impulse control seen in older dogs. This can be a trying time, but with exercise, training, lost of mental stimulation (brain games!) things tend to smoothen out as these dogs mature. It is not unusual to encounter some odd behaviors during these times, but it's good to nip them in the bud. You can read more about the adolescent stage here: (you will have to be logged into the course to read the links) https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/survive-dogs-adolescent-stage/ Tackling jumping and mouthing behaviors requires a multifaceted approach. Following are some guidelines: 1) Preventing Rehearsal of Undesirable Behaviors When dogs perform undesirable behaviors (such as mouthing and jumping), these behaviors become more and more ingrained the more they rehearse them, making them more difficult to overcome. Soon, these behaviors risk becoming default behaviors that dogs perform because they have such a strong history of rehearsal. If this is a new behavior and it's happening every morning, there are chances it is already a behavior that is establishing. Preventing rehearsal of undesirable behaviors is therefore important and this is done through management. The goal of management is to prevent rehearsal at least until the dog has been given the opportunity to learn alternate, more appropriate ways to behave. Management often takes place through mechanical measures such as through the use of barriers. It sounds like you are on the right track by keeping him downstairs in a room, but it sounds like you are missing some important elements on what should be done when you come down from downstairs. I will tackle some options in the next paragraphs. 2) No attention when behaving inappropriately Mouthing and jumping behavior in dogs are often fueled by attention of the positive and negative type, but also other more subtle forms of attention that are often perceived by dogs who are very sensitive to movements and slight bodily cues. Positive, active attention involves interacting in a pleasant manner with the dog when the dog is actively jumping or mouthing. These forms of interactions involves talking to the dog in friendly tones of voice (Hi pup, good morning!), touching the dog or even playing with the dog as the dog is mouthing and jumping. It doesn't sound like something you may be doing, so let's scrape this off the list, but I thought to just bring it up in case attention has been provided in the past this way or for other members reading this and with a similar problem. Negative attention involves interacting with the dog in ways that we may perceives as negative, but that the dog finds still reinforcing, as negative attention is better than no attention. Ever seen a toddler throwing a tantrum while mom is one phone, just for the sake of being yelled at and gaining some attention? Scolding the dog (bad dog!) or shouting (no! stop it! or other things that dogs don't understand) or physical interventions such as pushing the dog off, may still be perceived as reinforcing to dogs in need of attention and explains why these behaviors often don't work to stop the behavior. If your dog is overly excited in the morning and happy to see you or in a playful mood, then he may be eager to receive any form of attention, or he may be too over threshold to care about it. Read about threshold here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/ And then, there may be more subtle forms of attention at play. Dog owners may feel as if they are not reinforcing the behavior, when they are, but in subtle ways that the dog still perceives as reinforcing. A classic example is dog owners turning away giving the back to a dog who is jumping. Often, this turns into a game of turning, with the owner turning some more when the dog jumps again, and then facing the dog, then turning again when the dog jumps again, then turning some more, etc. To a dog particularly eager for attention or play and who finds movement entertaining, this may turn out being an engaging game of "getting my owner to move everytime I mouth or jump." Indeed, the biggest proof of engagement is the fact that the dog is still sticking by the owner after several reps when he could do so many other things. If the dog is truly seeking attention, it helps to turn the back only once and stay completely immobile like a lamppost, while ignoring any mouthing, jumping or barking. Dogs are naturally inclined to lose interest in lampposts and eventually leave. While an owner can never become as neutral as a lamppost, the dog should eventually grow bored and disengage by losing interest and moving away or engaging in another behavior (like sitting, which should be reinforced with food or attention.) 3) A Word About Extinction Bursts A word of caution is needed in regards to extinction bursts when attempting to ignore attention-seeking behaviors. What are exactly extinction bursts? Extinction bursts are dog behaviors escalating before dwindling, and then, eventually extinguishing. Ignoring the extinction burst is fundamental, otherwise the behavior has a comeback and it becomes even more established than before since it's put on a variable schedule. Back to mouthing and jumping in dogs. When dogs have a history of being reinforced for mouthing or jumping (either purposely or inadvertently), the moment the owner ignores them, they will feel compelled to escalate those behaviors. This means, they may mouth harder, jump with more intensity and possibly even try new behaviors such as barking for the purpose of getting their owners to interact. This is somewhat similar to what people do that day the vending machine fails to deliver that favorite snack they look forward to consuming every day. They will push the release button repeatedly, and perhaps even punch or kick the machine in hopes of it dropping the snack. Caution is therefore needed during extinction bursts in not giving in with any attention or movements, and dealing with rougher or more intense behaviors. A little planning ahead may go a long way. If dogs mouth a lot, they may mouth harder, so it may help to wear extra layers of clothing and gloves if the mouthing is often directed towards hands, fingers and legs (horseback riding chaps, tall boots). For rough mouthing dogs or dogs who jump very vigorously or engage in aggression when frustrated, dog owners should enlist the help of a behavior professional to play it safe and for correct implementation of behavior modification. 4) Other Potential Causes Now, it's important to emphasize here the importance of knowing why a dog is mouthing and jumping in the first place. Sure, many dogs jump and mouth in hopes of getting attention or getting their dog owners to interact with them and in these cases, not providing attention as described above is the way to go, but what if a dog is mouthing and jumping to stop a person from walking? If so, stopping could be reinforcing the behavior. Hence, why it's important identifying what's the function of the dog's behavior with accuracy which can only be done through careful behavior history taking and observing the behavior take place with an in-person assessment. Is the dog jumping and mouthing for attention? Is the dog jumping and mouthing because he wants the owner to stop doing what he is doing? Is the dog jumping and mouthing because he feels anxious or overly stimulated by something? Is the dog mouthing and jumping because he has too much energy or perhaps he wants to play? Sometimes, it is not possible to identify the exact underlying cause and only assumptions can be made. In such cases, it may be helpful to just jump straight into behavior modification and train the dog alternate behaviors and highly reinforcing them, so that it becomes a no-brainer for the dog to pick to engage in such behaviors. I will provide the beefy part of behavior modification in the next post.

Thank you for the additional information, it is very helpful. There are chances that you may be seeing some overly rambunctious greeting/playing behavior perhaps intermixed with some "herding instinct" to have you come downstairs and join the rest of the family and the main living area. The lowering of the front part of his body and wagging tail sounds like a play bow, which is form of metacommunication often used in dogs. A play bow is often seen in play and it's meant to inform that anything that follows is pure play. The growl may be playful if accompanied by this body language, but of course, I can only make assumptions. There are some dogs who may sometimes engage in ambivalent behaviors mixing in a serious growl along with some play bows and these cases warrant caution for safety. There are several ways this behavior can be tackled. Due to the complexity of the behavior and the fact that he has hurt you in the past, it would be important to seek help from a behavior professional using humane behavior modification to help you for safety and correct behavior modification implementation. I will be posting shortly an example of a behavior modification protocol that that can be implemented with the help of a professional in such a situation.

Yay! Sounds like things are starting to improve after the initial hurdles. Thanks as always for providing updates. Don't forget to pat yourself on the back for being such a dedicated owner. Behavior mod can sometimes feel like watching paint dry, but when you start to see improvement, it feels amazing.

Hello Wrucker, Welcome to the forums! Stone sounds like quite a character! The word "no" doesn't provide dogs much info on what we want them to do. You can find several tips on puppy biting at legs, feet, pant legs etc in these threads: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/forum/showthread.php?17-Puppy-biting-feet-for-attention https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/forum/showthread.php?106-Excessive-puppy-biting The barking is likely your pup's way to protest for you stopping from interacting with him. When in the bathtub, although it may be annoying, it would help to come out only once your puppy is quiet. If you get out of the bathtub when your pup is actively barking, he may come to think that barking works in order to get you to come out. If the barking at times is continuous and doesn't seem to stop giving you the opportunity to get out, have a helper (like a family member or friend) redirect him to some other activity (some time in the yard, a brain game, access to an interactive toy) so that the barking doesn't obtain reinforcement.

Greetings Jerjhio, Welcome to the forums, This is certainly some interesting behavior. Until the day dogs can talk, we can only make assumptions as to why they sometimes behave in certain ways. However, sometimes it is possible to make some educated guesses by carefully reading the body language and the context in which the behavior occurs. Dog behaviors that tend to repeat are often composed by several puzzle pieces, and some important pieces involve things that happen just prior to the behavior and things that happen right afterward. An important piece of the puzzle in this case would therefore be knowing what happens next once downstairs. Do you feed your dog? Do you prepare to leave the house? Also, when he engages in this behavior, what do you do? Do you keep on walking towards downstairs, try to ignore him, do you interact with your dog in any way? Also, when he is doing the behavior downstairs as well now, what happens next? Thanks for the additional details.