Our (almost) 9 month female GSD is obsessed with wrists... specifically mine! She has always bitten at other's wrists, and we have without fail always reprimanded her.
For instance, I kept her with me this morning to make sure she did not eat or drink before taking her to the vet to get spayed. What ensued was 30 minutes of constant wrist biting and me in near tears from frustration. As soon as my husband opened the door, she stopped.
She will jump up to bite my wrists no matter if they are above my head, behind my back, or under my arms while crossed. The only way she will stop is if I leave or if my husband comes in. She will bite at my husband's wrists only when she is insanely hyper, but he can get on to her once and she stops. Ciri will never bite at the wrist of a stranger, only those whom she is familiar with. She especially bites females she is familiar with. She won't hardly ever bite at the men.
So how can I can get this under control? We have talked to trainers and tried their suggestions, but none have worked. We tried the reward system, but Ciri is smart enough to know when we have a treat or ball in our hand. She won't give me the time of day when I give her a command unless I have something in it for her. Early on we tried to wean her off treats so our praise would be her treat, but that has failed.
A military trainer told us to use a shock collar ONLY when she bites our wrists. However, at the highest shock setting, she was not phased. Our invisible fence (stubborn dog) is at the highest shock setting (numbed my husband's arm when he tested it on himself), and she will run right through it. We shave a spot on her neck so we knew it was touching her skin. As she crosses the line, we know it is hitting her because her ears twitch and go back. So she has a pain tolerance.
The only method that worked (and it only worked for my husband and his dad) was the alpha/ progressive method. She will do whatever they say. With that being said, she is a stubborn dog and will 'talk back' when they command her to do something and she doesn't want to do it. She snaps her teeth at them, but does do what they say.
When she does bite, it isn't that hard (leaves red streaks where her teeth move across the skin). But when either of us make her do something she doesn't want, it can get painful. She escaped the fence once, and I took her by the collar to lead her back... 20 feet later my arm was covered in red streaks from her teeth.
So, I'm at a loss for what to do. The trainers don't know what to tell us to do. This needs to stop soon because she is almost 90 already. The vet estimates she will get up to 120 pounds (my weight!). I can't have a dog that big biting on me and not stopping.
I work from home and want to be with the dog during the day, but I can't due to her being stubborn and biting constantly. I go out and try to play with her, but she wants to play keep away with herself. If I turn to leave, she jumps up and fits my whole bicep in her mouth and bites.
Any ideas??
PS. The picture below is from a month ago. She is about 75 lbs here.
For instance, I kept her with me this morning to make sure she did not eat or drink before taking her to the vet to get spayed. What ensued was 30 minutes of constant wrist biting and me in near tears from frustration. As soon as my husband opened the door, she stopped.
She will jump up to bite my wrists no matter if they are above my head, behind my back, or under my arms while crossed. The only way she will stop is if I leave or if my husband comes in. She will bite at my husband's wrists only when she is insanely hyper, but he can get on to her once and she stops. Ciri will never bite at the wrist of a stranger, only those whom she is familiar with. She especially bites females she is familiar with. She won't hardly ever bite at the men.
So how can I can get this under control? We have talked to trainers and tried their suggestions, but none have worked. We tried the reward system, but Ciri is smart enough to know when we have a treat or ball in our hand. She won't give me the time of day when I give her a command unless I have something in it for her. Early on we tried to wean her off treats so our praise would be her treat, but that has failed.
A military trainer told us to use a shock collar ONLY when she bites our wrists. However, at the highest shock setting, she was not phased. Our invisible fence (stubborn dog) is at the highest shock setting (numbed my husband's arm when he tested it on himself), and she will run right through it. We shave a spot on her neck so we knew it was touching her skin. As she crosses the line, we know it is hitting her because her ears twitch and go back. So she has a pain tolerance.
The only method that worked (and it only worked for my husband and his dad) was the alpha/ progressive method. She will do whatever they say. With that being said, she is a stubborn dog and will 'talk back' when they command her to do something and she doesn't want to do it. She snaps her teeth at them, but does do what they say.
When she does bite, it isn't that hard (leaves red streaks where her teeth move across the skin). But when either of us make her do something she doesn't want, it can get painful. She escaped the fence once, and I took her by the collar to lead her back... 20 feet later my arm was covered in red streaks from her teeth.
So, I'm at a loss for what to do. The trainers don't know what to tell us to do. This needs to stop soon because she is almost 90 already. The vet estimates she will get up to 120 pounds (my weight!). I can't have a dog that big biting on me and not stopping.
I work from home and want to be with the dog during the day, but I can't due to her being stubborn and biting constantly. I go out and try to play with her, but she wants to play keep away with herself. If I turn to leave, she jumps up and fits my whole bicep in her mouth and bites.
Any ideas??
PS. The picture below is from a month ago. She is about 75 lbs here.