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puppy advice

791 views 10 replies 5 participants last post by  Mishka&Milo 
#1 ·
hello, ive been trying to get advices for the past couple days now, all worked out gd i guess so far.
but i have a question, with ur first puppy did u trained ur self or u got a help from a trainer?
we started now to teach her her name.
and i just wanna be sure if all turns ok with just me training
her
thx for any comment/advice
 
#2 ·
We got help from a trainer. We knew that people in general have more fear towards black dogs (it's called "black dog syndrome"), coupled with the fear that a lot of people have towards shepherds, so we wanted to make sure we had a well behaved dog. The trainer gave us a lot of great tips and our girl is very well behaved. Well, aside from her extreme enthusiasm whenever someone comes to visit her (us really, but she figures they're all there to see her :D) which only lasts for about a minute now :).

Especially if this is your first puppy, or your first GSD, I'd get some help from a trainer to get a good foundation.
 
#4 ·
She's a character, that's for sure!

GSD's are a whole different game compared to most other types of dogs. They're extremely smart and many can be pretty strong-willed. If you're not careful the puppy will train you, instead of the other way around! If you put in the work (and it will probably be lots of work!) with a GSD puppy, you'll get great rewards as the dog gets older.
 
#6 ·
We've always taken obedience classes with our puppies. Even if you've raised many puppies and are very experienced with training and behavior it helps to have the guidance of a trainer. If that's not the case, it's even more important to have some help.

If you know what you're doing you can do a lot of foundation stuff yourself, since even in a class that's usually just one hour a week, and most of the training will be "homework" during the week that you're doing on your own. I've had anywhere from 3 to 6 weeks of training at home before my puppies have started their first classes.
 
#7 · (Edited)
Yeah, I grew up with GSDs but never had a hand in training. And Frankie was our fist puppy as adults on our own. And she was a handful from day one, which helped our decision to use a trainer. We're getting another puppy in two and a half weeks and we'll use the same trainer for this guy too, even though we're a little more confident in our abilities now.
 
#8 ·
How do you get her to redirect her focus onto you when another dog approaches?
It's the only issue I'm having with my boy right now. He's so pumped to see a new potential friend coming his way that he barks and carries on which is unfortunately extremely intimidating to the other dog/person walking towards us.
All he does when they get up to us (that's if they don't cross the street) is lick their faces.... Ya... Big scary dog! :p

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#9 ·
This worked for us: redirect with yummy treats/fun toy, reward the behavior you want, keep the focus on you. Right now he carries on and then gets to go visit the other dogs, which in his mind is a reward for his actions. He thinks barking and carrying on = a visit with the dog on the other side of the street. I had a hard time with this one too.
 
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