Dog Walkers/Owners

If I had realised how hard work a GSD is, I may have had second thoughts about having mine. I love her to bits now, but the mess, the personality issues, ie. currently with other dogs, are just so hard work, I sometimes wonder how much more I can cope with. The house...arrghh!! especially with all this rain! We've just about made it with the 'shake' outside training. Something you should think about Kazzie. I can also get her to 'stay' on a towel as she comes in the door, so I can clean her feet, if I don't get that done outside.

I like the different training ideas redstar has mentioned and will definitely try the naming game and I definitely agree with how quick they learn, sometimes I am so surprised by her...she knows my routines better than me. I've had 3 dogs in the past and she is just so different...i'm sure i'll get used to her ways in time, she is such a loving dog, but give her an inch...

 

That is right Pixie, its the give them an inch. Got to keep them on the straight and narrow line. So smart they are.

 

Simbad... we'll be interested to know when a puppy arrives in your home again .

Redstar... in a way it seems a great waste that you don't have a dog to benefit from your knowledge and experience. They do have a big impact on travel plans... I've had to knock a few holidays on the head because of Abi.

Pixie... I am in the same boat as you... if only I had known that GSDs were such hard work, I would never have taken her on. I always feel that we are working on some issue or other! Although I often have a house full, it is usually with people Abi knows... let a stranger in and all hell breaks loose! This causes me loads of stress and it is hard to find strangers to volunteer so I can teach Abi how to behave!

 

Kazzie, how much outside of the house are you socializing her? The more she is out and about off her property meeting and sniffing lots of people the easier she will be with strangers. Have you tried, letting her meet the stranger outside the house first?
What does she do with strangers?


Ahh, the vacation, lucky for me I did find a perfect kennel for them. I did search around the county first. And took them when young to spend several hours so the shock later would not be so terrible. GSD are really pack oriented and love their families so kenneling can be trying. It was so cute when I 'd pick them up, they had to talk to me all the way home as if to tell me everything that happened to them that week.

Although, we would travel with them (separetly) to bed and breakfasts and hotels, and they were very good. Have to be careful in the hot weather, if stopping at a resturant for a bit to eat. We always tried to find one with a deck outside so they could come with us and down at our table while we ate. I would never leave them in the hotel or B&B alone when we toured the area, you never know, a maid open the door and he is out looking for us. Always finding a shaded spot under a tree. And ice cubes in their pan.
I remember we went to this conference up in New York City one weekend, husband had to go, I just went along. We are in the elevator, GSD is sitting still on my left and we ride up to our room, people coming on the elevator, at first not noticing the 130lb GSD next to me, then someone looks down and says, oh my. My GSD just sat there.
Only bad part of the city, hard to find a place for him to go, central park close about 4 blocks. He had never gone on concrete before so held until grass was found.
And the whole time he was there, he made not one sound. My sweetie, Thompson.
Perfect gentleman he was.

 

She's out every day, but we are talking rural walks. 4 days a week she is on group walks with 5 other dogs. A local dog friendly pub has told me that they would help out a bit if we visit during their quieter times... this would give Abi the opportunity to 'watch' comings and goings of people and they have an old lab to act as a role model for her.

What was Thompson like during the terrible teens stage?

 

Both Thompson (the first one) Kirby (the second one) did give me a few moments here and there of not listening quickly to a command, about 3 years old. You could see it in their expression they were testing the waters. As a believer in quick discipline and longer praises. (never hit) What I would do, is approach them and say, "Your not that cute" and grab the fur around their neck sternly give them a shake and then giving them again the command. I think "the phrase your not that cute" was for me to suck back my nurturing mode and not be weak, cause I loved them so, I knew they had to obey. In most cases my voice was sufficient and the deep throat "No" which later turned into a non word sound. It was never a yell, or a scream, more of a tone opposite of the nice lovey one uses for praise. They have good hearing so that is why you can move to a low throat noise which checks their mistakes without surrounding people knowing even what happened.
They do say in nature the mother dog does reprimand her pups with the neck grab and shake, it seems to work in correction. It is all about communication.
But, in training to learn a new routine, never discipline, just start again and reward as they get closer to what your asking for.

Discipline for me was measured, the worse the action was that could bring harm to them, the tougher I would be on making sure they listened without hesitation. For the cutsy things it was just spirts of correction.
Like harm to them was, if I place you at stay, you are to stay, and if I call you with recall you are to come NOW. There could be in the future situations where those commands are important for their safety. Heel is also important, your at better control when she is next to you, she also shows you by her action that she is the follower, you are the leader.

And in general, you should think of this, what is more important for her to learn perfect to keep her safe. The other stuff is fun and yes stimuli for her.

 

Maybe I'm a bit soft on her... the only real punishment I have used is isolation for up to 5 minutes. If she gets too excited on a walk she goes back on the lead. Mostly all I have to do is point a finger at her and give 'the look'. Saying that, I'm not always alert enough to spot her body language in order to quickly prevent her going into the 'zone' e.g. if she spots someone coming through the garden gate she is already barking like crazy and it is hard to get her out of this frenzy.

 

That is great, she is watching your face, a good thing.

It is hard to watch them all the time. And I know the frenzy, it is hard to stop. It takes that experience over and over of grabing their thick neck fur and bringing them down into a stern sit (verbal command) several times before they get it. Unfortunately like all training it is the actually experience they need in that moment to learn. They can't read it in a book.

 

Thanks for the tips and interest Redstar... it's work in progress here (sigh).

 

Lol! They are all the same. I can only laugh now, that I see that, otherwise it is so stressful. I've just had an experience with mine, she got through a hole in the hedge,as we were walking along, what we thought, a safe road, and ran 2 fields to get into the horses field (6 horses). We ran like mad to get there, I was thinking the worst, but got there to find her 'herding' the horses! It was like 'one man and his dog', as she brought one horse back to the herd, yapping with excitement, but without the man. We got her back through the fence and all the horses came and looked over the fence to see what was going on. She was ignored for an hour after that and now she is being kept on her lead for a lot longer. I find that difficult as she needs so much exercise. We are doing a lot more of the rewarding when she is good, with 'good girl' and ignoring when bad, and the bad is a lot less now. Trouble is we live a rural area, with lots of lovely smells and animals, which are just too tempting for her.

 

Ahh, Pixie, reminds me of an event Kirby did. We also live out in the country. Couple of deer happened to be passing through the back woods and off he ran. Thank goodness he will have to run really far before he would get into trouble (cars). As there are acres and acres of woods and open fields. So, but anyway, I run up the street down to the 10 acre field (the direction he took) hoping he comes out at that side. Saying to myself, hope you loose their scent and they are faster than you are, and you realize your far from your pack. So there I was at one end of the field, sure enough way at the other end about thumb size I could see him. I jumped up and down at my end yelling. And thank goodness the insecurity of being without his pack leader (me) was intact, he made the fastest beline toward me. And so glad to see me again. No reprimand here, would not have clicked to him.

 

Oh no Pixie... my heart would have been in my mouth! (but still a funny story) x