Can't barely handle my GSD - Page 2

Lenny · 01-22-2012, 05:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DexterAbby

Hey guys,
I am new to this thread thing so bare with me! I have a 2 year old german shepherd male, Dexter. He can be the sweetest dog in the entire world, really affectionate and cuddly. However, he is the most vocal dog I have ever met ( which I know is typical of GSD) but it is driving me insane. He whines throughout the day constantly, and it is really high pitched. When he doesn't get what he wants, it turns into a high pitched yapping bark, which can last several minutes. This also happens every morning before we go out for a walk. I have tried ignoring him COMPLETELY, no eye contact, nothing. He is very persistent though, and will continue to stare at me and whine for upwards of an hour. Eventually I lose my patience and sternly tell him "NO!" and to lie down. This never works.

Well, Lenny has been like this for ... well, 10 years now. She's better than she was. Some due to training, and some due to her getting more mature I think. So, to some degree get use to it.

DexterAbby · 01-22-2012, 09:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lenny

Well, Lenny has been like this for ... well, 10 years now. She's better than she was. Some due to training, and some due to her getting more mature I think. So, to some degree get use to it.

Oh my gosh.. that's a terrifying thought. Maybe it's just the breed, I have never had a GSD before. I have a black lab / chow mix who is the easiest going dog ever!! Never had a problem with her. Having a baby with the way my shep is right now sounds like possibly the worst idea ever. UGH!

LoveEcho · 01-22-2012, 10:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DexterAbby

Oh my gosh.. that's a terrifying thought. Maybe it's just the breed, I have never had a GSD before. I have a black lab / chow mix who is the easiest going dog ever!! Never had a problem with her. Having a baby with the way my shep is right now sounds like possibly the worst idea ever. UGH!

Aggressive tendencies are never "just the breed", and it's people saying things like that that give the breed the bad rep that they have. Don't "get used to it". Be proactive and work for a solution, because there's always a root to the problem. Comparing Dexter to your other dog is pointless, it's apples and oranges. If you want to say it's just the breed, then it's that you don't feel like putting the work in that this breed requires.

KentuckyGSDLover · 01-22-2012, 11:39 PM

I believe LoveEcho is on target. I'd really incorporate NILIF VERY CONSISTENTLY. I never had to work so hard with my first two shepherds, but this 18-month-old gal I got brought home in early December is keeping me on my toes and everything is a new learning experience for me now. I give her commands JUST BECAUSE I CAN. She has to sit to get her food and the bowl doesn't hit the floor until she does. She has to sit before I open the door to go out and we don't go out until she does and quits leaping. Same for coming back in. She has to "wait" going up and down stairs. Sometimes I feel stupid making her sit before I open the door to come back in, but hey- it's working. Every night for about 15 minutes we do "tricks for treats" and it has bonded us and focused her. Overall the consistency of it is starting to pay off. And this dog is WILD. I was calling her "Taz" for Tasmanian Devil for awhile there, and I wasn't completely kidding. She's still wild but has graduated to being off-leash in the house for long periods of time now (versus used to pull my curtains off the wall for fun, nip me, run and then play tug-o-war with the tablecloth! - oh yay).

I actually had to figure out why Rey nipped/chewed on me. For me, that was an absolute that I had to stop. From what you describe, he does this when he doesn't get his way and directs his hyper frustration back to you. It's brattiness and he knows he can do it. If it's always around the ball, then quit taking the ball or take it away when he does it, reinforce his good behavior when he doesn't. Honestly, I think a bunch of dogs competing for toys in a dog park is bad news waiting to happen anyway.

The whining sounds like impatience, too. Focus him. Make him perform something to go out. If it's sheer boredom while waiting, give him something to keep him busy as incentive for calm. I take Rey out first, then she has to go back in the crate for a short period while I attend to a few things, and she's bored. So she gets a chew toy to keep her busy in between. She's learned if she quietly chews, she gets out sooner. It's a kind of trade-off. At night when she goes to bed, the crate whining stopped when I started giving her a frozen Kong stuffed with plain yogurt at the same time every night as she entered the crate. She associates that time with the frozen Kong now as time to settle down and I think it comforts her to have this kind of routine schedule. There's a lot of options to condition your dog. As you start practicing consistent obedience/NILIF, you'll start picking up on what triggers your dog and take it from there.

If it is unmanageable, get the help of a professional trainer or check and see if they offer obedience at your local humane society (they use NILIF). I can't wait until the end of this month when I have the funds to get my dog to a trainer, but we have come a long way just doing what I'm doing.

Lenny · 01-23-2012, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DexterAbby

Oh my gosh.. that's a terrifying thought. Maybe it's just the breed, I have never had a GSD before. I have a black lab / chow mix who is the easiest going dog ever!! Never had a problem with her. Having a baby with the way my shep is right now sounds like possibly the worst idea ever. UGH!

For the record Lenny is a talker and doesn't have aggression issues.

01-22-2012, 11:39 PM	#14 (permalink)
KentuckyGSDLover Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Kentucky, of course Posts: 404	I believe LoveEcho is on target. I'd really incorporate NILIF VERY CONSISTENTLY. I never had to work so hard with my first two shepherds, but this 18-month-old gal I got brought home in early December is keeping me on my toes and everything is a new learning experience for me now. I give her commands JUST BECAUSE I CAN. She has to sit to get her food and the bowl doesn't hit the floor until she does. She has to sit before I open the door to go out and we don't go out until she does and quits leaping. Same for coming back in. She has to "wait" going up and down stairs. Sometimes I feel stupid making her sit before I open the door to come back in, but hey- it's working. Every night for about 15 minutes we do "tricks for treats" and it has bonded us and focused her. Overall the consistency of it is starting to pay off. And this dog is WILD. I was calling her "Taz" for Tasmanian Devil for awhile there, and I wasn't completely kidding. She's still wild but has graduated to being off-leash in the house for long periods of time now (versus used to pull my curtains off the wall for fun, nip me, run and then play tug-o-war with the tablecloth! - oh yay). I actually had to figure out why Rey nipped/chewed on me. For me, that was an absolute that I had to stop. From what you describe, he does this when he doesn't get his way and directs his hyper frustration back to you. It's brattiness and he knows he can do it. If it's always around the ball, then quit taking the ball or take it away when he does it, reinforce his good behavior when he doesn't. Honestly, I think a bunch of dogs competing for toys in a dog park is bad news waiting to happen anyway. The whining sounds like impatience, too. Focus him. Make him perform something to go out. If it's sheer boredom while waiting, give him something to keep him busy as incentive for calm. I take Rey out first, then she has to go back in the crate for a short period while I attend to a few things, and she's bored. So she gets a chew toy to keep her busy in between. She's learned if she quietly chews, she gets out sooner. It's a kind of trade-off. At night when she goes to bed, the crate whining stopped when I started giving her a frozen Kong stuffed with plain yogurt at the same time every night as she entered the crate. She associates that time with the frozen Kong now as time to settle down and I think it comforts her to have this kind of routine schedule. There's a lot of options to condition your dog. As you start practicing consistent obedience/NILIF, you'll start picking up on what triggers your dog and take it from there. If it is unmanageable, get the help of a professional trainer or check and see if they offer obedience at your local humane society (they use NILIF). I can't wait until the end of this month when I have the funds to get my dog to a trainer, but we have come a long way just doing what I'm doing.

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