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Desperate for help!! GSD has bitten neighbor and stepson

22K views 116 replies 51 participants last post by  jmoney 
#1 ·
My GSD rescue Sam has been with us for 7 mos. He is now 15 mos. I have tried EVERYTHING. 2 trainers, active use of the NILIF protocol. Sam is getting better with other dogs and does listen to me as I have had to use alpha training. He has now bitten 2 of my neighbors and today my stepson! I had to keep him on leash when he entered house, tried moving him over slowly, calm voice and praise. finally he sniffed him and seemed fine, nex t minute lunged and bit his leg!! What am I doing wrong. I train him constantly, very consistent. He has come a LONG way and learned a lot of obedience but aggression getting worse, should i keep muzzle on him around people in the house. I love him and do not want to give him up. PLEASE HELP!
 
#107 ·
It helps if you know something of the dogs past, how it was raised etc.I rescued a GSD about 6-7 months old. She was never socialized, and kept in a dark garage her entire life to that point. She took to our family, pets and all, like she was grateful to be rescued and with us. All that said, she would bite any one who got near us and I think it was out of fear. We hired a professional trainer at the house twice a week and put her in obedience school for a week, to try and socialize her. She never would accept any one but us. To protect her and ourselves, and much to my dismay, we gave her to a lady who had 10 acres of land and 5 of that was fenced in. I never saw Sasha again, but we kept in touch with her new owner over the next several months. She did well in that situation, and I was glad for her sake. This may be a solution for your dog. It's always hard to let them go, but what must be done is what is best for the dog. I hope it all works out for the both of you. Just my thoughts.....Logan
 
#110 ·
Got weary reading, but IMHO, no one who hasn't seen and interacted with this dog can truly help you evaluate the problem, much less advise you on a step as radicle as euthanasia.

Find qualified local help if you can.

Best of luck
 
#111 ·
this is not an easy thing to deal with, and it can consume your life with worry and frustration.......

i agree you need to get a Qualified trainer/behviorist to help you come up with a plan of action. Even if there is a medical issue the dog has learned behavior now and you still will need guidence on how to work it.

you need to understand the dogs triggers and thresholds, this takes alot of carefully set up situations and learning to read the dog. Most people are not equipted to deal with a dog with these issues. when you get a dog you expect to go through normal training and handling and you have a nice family pet who can be trusted in all situations. these types of dogs takes careful evaluation and trouble shooting the right training plan.........its black and white with these dogs, all aspects of life are totally controlled, the dog makes none of his own decisions, the owner controls everything........Some dogs can come to the point of progressing to a 99% trustworthy point, some can't.........its up to the owner to learn how to best handle the dog, and most people cannot do this without professional help. someone who is knowledgeable, objective and honest.

its not an easy road, and its constant throughout the dogs life, a huge commitment which alot of people cannot dedicate themselves to........

a dog is supposed to enhance our lives, be a trusted part of the family, one that can share in our every day lives., unfortunately there are special needs dogs that come our way who need special handling and we have to learn from them and keep them safe.....

best of luck to you, i've been there and totally understand...........
 
#113 ·
The problem with that is if a dog bites, it bites. There are really no grey areas. It either happens or it doesn't. The dog doesn't think to itself "I'm only going to bite Roger a little bit today and hopefully it doesn't draw blood." If a dog bites, it is intended to do harm.
Dog bites are not simply B&W. Dogs use mouth & teeth to communicate as well as to aggress & defend. A dog with good bite inhibition does temper its bite. There are warning snaps that don't actually connect to flesh. People often claim 'the dog tried to bite me'. Noooo, the dog was issuing a 'carefully worded' warning. Dogs rarely TRY to bite. They're usually exceptionally good at putting their teeth exactly where they intend to. There are also nips which are intended as a warning. Inappropriate to be sure, but a nipping dog isn't attempting an all out attack. As a young pup, Pluto, my muttchkin, would use his teeth to 'pinch' when he wanted someone's attention. He wasn't angry, fearful or threatened. It was simply his way of trying to get someone's attention until we convinced him differently. Frequently biting dogs bite & promptly retreat. Again inappropriate, & these bites can be both hard & injurious, but the dog is not in 'kill mode'. Most unusual & most dangerous are those bites with follow through & extended attack which would be the situation with LaRen's poor nephew.

I agree with many others that the dog/pup needs a thorough physical & mental evaluation. I'm glad the owner isn't giving up easily on this guy. Frankly, easy love & commitment is cheap love & not really worthy to be considered as such.

IF they elect to manage the dog they should muzzle him whenever he has access to others, especially young children, including the family's children. He can be loved & managed but it will require ongoing serious diligence b/c even one slip up could result in tragedy. Even when it seems he's been oh-so-good for oh-so-long they shouldn't relax their guard. He's simply not predictable & can't be trusted.

Selzer, Ruthie, Sagelfn, Onyxgirl excellent posts! And Selzer, I agree that this guy isn't fully matured. He's not a 'baby' but he's not yet a true adult. He's at that difficult, sometimes risky half grown stage.
 
#114 ·
This is not unusual behaviour for a 15 month old a bit short on nerve and a low threshold to reactivity which appears as stranger aggression. What I would use on a dog like this is a slip collar and if he goes to lunge at someone aggressively, lift his front legs off the ground with a NO command and choke him out until he submits and settles, then slowly let him down to catch his breath. The dog has to learn that lunging is innapropriate behaviour with a severe aversive consequence.

A choke out is the only remedy to remove drive from the dog and rarely will this method not rehabilitate a young aggressive lunger and given that the behaviour is a dangerous one to manifest, it must be stopped forthwith. The method is a bit extreme and requires probably the assistance of a good K9 trainer with aggression experience. The dog also needs some obedience where in the presence of strangers the dog is made to down and relax and in time the dog will learn that the presence of strangers isn't anything to worry about or any need to bite them.

I would NOT euthanase this dog, it's fixable with the right training regime.
 
#117 ·
I don't get why people are saying to put this dog down without knowing the full situation. From reading it sounds like your dog is not trained. It may sit come or do other fun things when you tell it some times, but if your dog is going after neighbors, or nippy/biting other people but not severely then it should be around them yet. Find a really really good trainer, one that maybe trains just german shepherds, if you hear from two or three of those people that your dog needs to be put down...then I would probably consider it.
 
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