Street aggression in My 2 year old German Shepherd

[Jesskerz]

Hello everyone, this is my first time posting

I have a beautiful long coat 2 year old German Shepherd whom I love dearly.. I got him since he was 2 months old and i take him to the dog park everyday where he socialized with dogs and played. he's everything I love in a dog, except for a couple of "bad habits".. He is trained and he is a fun and caring character, until we start walking in the street! Once we step out of the building he starts panting and pulling and barking at anyone he sees in the street, and people startbfreaking out and giving him more reason to bark... He pulls and fussed about until we reach the car, then in the car he starts barking at anyone who is walking or at people in cars beside us when we are at a stop or parked. The only time this stopped is when I got his trainer to come work with us under my house and in the car! He was a silent angel in the car, he's a smart one!
The thing is, he knows the commands and the rules but he sometimes chooses to ignore them...any advice? I love my dog immensely and I just want him and me to enjoy the life we have..

Thanx for any feedback =)

[KZoppa]

what did your trainer tell you? What did you trainer show you on how to handle the issues? The ONLY way you can fix anything is by being 100% consistent. There's a lot going on here that needs work and wont be fixed easily or quickly. I would suggest contacting a trainer who is knowledgable about GSDs and problem solving (preferably positively!) and steadily work on each issue.

If your dog "knows" the rules but chooses to ignore them, the rules are not being consistently enforced and he's probably inadvertantly being rewarded for his bad behavior.

Also keep in mind, you may think your dog knows the rules, but he needs refresher course. This can often be the root problem as well is the rules werent taught well enough for him to connect the dots. In his mind, there may be some fuzzy points going on. They key is 100% consistency. If he knows the rules with the trainer but chooses not to follow them with you, you need to work on leadership exercises with your dog so he see's you as the boss and not the other way around.

[Salix]

Originally Posted by KZoppa

If your dog "knows" the rules but chooses to ignore them, the rules are not being consistently enforced and he's probably inadvertantly being rewarded for his bad behavior.

I agree with this.

It sounds like something isn't consistent in your handling of the dog. Training doesn't stop with the trainer and it continues with your living and handling and training your own dog every single day, every moment of the day that you are with your dog.

You've described what your dog does when he is on the street or around people. But what do you do to correct this? This is just a hypothetical question. You should be able to correct your dog in these instances.

By the way: There are many dog owners and GSD owners and dog lovers who don't take their dogs to the dog park. There are multiple threads on this forum going over again and again the warnings about taking your dog to the dog park and the bad behaviours they may be prone to as a result. Some are just fine with it and that's great. But there are a large number who refuse to take their dog to the dog park; I do not take Denver to the dog park anymore.

[Jesskerz]

I did continue training him after the trainer was done with the sessions, and I do attempt to correct home when he does something wrong, I'd say he listens and stops half the time... I'm planning on getting the trainer again to do a refreshment/obedience course.. Thnx for all ur feedback

[sharkey19]

I agree with what the others said. You must be consistent, always, no matter how hard it is.