Few questions, advice pls..

[GSD84]

Isis is now 9 1/2 weeks old, she has gotten a lot better on the leash when we are walking. My main issue is actually trying to get her to leave our block. I will only take her out after a nap and when she is energetic...as I don't want to be dragging her out when she is tired. She will come to me and has no problem putting on her leash and collar. Then we head outside and she has no problem staying on our front lawn and driveway.....BUT as soon as I try to start the walk and head to the sidewalk she freezes. I have been trying to make it as positive as I can....by bringing toys, treats, praising her.... but she plants her butt on the sidewalk and will whine and whine and try to head back to the door. Nothing seems to work. So what I did the other day is carried her to the corner of the block (which is about 15 ft from our house) and from there she will start to walk....Today she got a bit further, from our house to the front of our neighbours house....then she planted her butt down again and wouldn't move. So again i picked her up and brought her to the corner. Once at the corner she will walk. So how do I get her to actually leave the house? Also when we are heading home and on our street again she runs and pulls as fast as she can to get back home....She was the smallest of the litter and least self confident if that has anything to do with it. In regards to walks, when it comes to the end of every block I usually just quickly look both ways and walk across, but I was wondering if I should be getting her to sit before crossing. And lastly we went to a training session with our breeder the other day and her brothers from her litter were there with us. The 3 of them played so nicely together, but Isis just attacked all of them, and was growling and barking at them. I had to pull her away and let her watch from the sidelines....But there were also bigger gsd's there and she had no problems with them. Few days ago we went on a walk in an area with trails and three large dogs (husky, and two others) approached her and she was perfect, no barking, she just sat, let them smell her and watched them. Then today on our night walk a yappy pomeranian was a few feet away, spotted isis and started running (on leash with owner) towards us barking and barking away. I'm not familiar with the barks yet but it seemed like she wanted to attack isis and the owner was definately nervous of her own dog attacking mine by the way she was reacting. Of course isis is bigger than her but she backed up and tried to run the other way. How can I boost her confidence in this case?
Any advice is much appreciated!

[chelle]

You know what, she is so young,,, so little,,, I wouldn't worry about trying to walk at all.! Slooooooow down! At this point, you're better off staying in your own yard, running around, letting her build some confidence in her surroundings.

Oh and btw, once she's a bit older, walking on leash is usually MUCH better when they're nice and tired.

Maybe go to the local park and sit there, away from the major action. Let her watch, listen. Expose her to the world, but don't "force" her to exist in it just yet. Too early! Easy, slow, daily exposure to different things, but none of it overwhelming to her.

She's just a baby still, she's not quite ready for the big time yet.

[Stosh]

Good advice

[PaddyD]

Like chelle says, she is young. Lower your expectations for a while. Remember that ankle biters( small dogs) are also ankle biters to a GSD and they don't like getting their ankles bitten any more than humans do. Some GSDs (mine forinstance) don't have a fighting bone in their body and will avoid any altercation. That may be disappointing but we have to accept them as they are. Since your pup is a baby it is normal for her to try to get away from an aggressive dog, no matter the size. That may or may not change.
Follow chelle's advice.

[GSD84]

Originally Posted by chelle

You know what, she is so young,,, so little,,, I wouldn't worry about trying to walk at all.! Slooooooow down! At this point, you're better off staying in your own yard, running around, letting her build some confidence in her surroundings.

Oh and btw, once she's a bit older, walking on leash is usually MUCH better when they're nice and tired.

Maybe go to the local park and sit there, away from the major action. Let her watch, listen. Expose her to the world, but don't "force" her to exist in it just yet. Too early! Easy, slow, daily exposure to different things, but none of it overwhelming to her.

She's just a baby still, she's not quite ready for the big time yet.

Thanks....I just hear so many other ppl saying their pups are/were walking no problem by this time....And since this is my first ever dog, I'm not quite sure when they should be doing certain things. So around what age will they start walking easily and enjoying a walk? And thanks for the advice on taking her for a walk when she already is tired....I always thought it was the opposite way around. I think I'm going to start taking it a lot easier on her. I'm just really afraid of having a dog that is aggressive or opposite being completely scared on everything.

[PaddyD]

Originally Posted by GSD84

Thanks....I just hear so many other ppl saying their pups are/were walking no problem by this time....And since this is my first ever dog, I'm not quite sure when they should be doing certain things. So around what age will they start walking easily and enjoying a walk? And thanks for the advice on taking her for a walk when she already is tired....I always thought it was the opposite way around. I think I'm going to start taking it a lot easier on her. I'm just really afraid of having a dog that is aggressive or opposite being completely scared on everything.

My pup didn't like walking and at 2 still doesn't like it but tolerates it. It takes a while to get her involved but it eventually happens. She seems to know when we are half way and gets more enthusiastic about it, knowing we are returning home. One thing that helps is jogging. The trotting motion seems to get her in a groove.
Also, at 2, she is still shy of other dogs but will be playful with them when they have proven to be non-aggressive.

[zyppi]

She's fine. Just a baby.

Let her "attack" the littermates.... it's not "attack" at her age, just play and feeling her oats.

Right now just let her be a puppy and encourage..

[chelle]

Originally Posted by GSD84

Thanks....I just hear so many other ppl saying their pups are/were walking no problem by this time....And since this is my first ever dog, I'm not quite sure when they should be doing certain things. So around what age will they start walking easily and enjoying a walk? And thanks for the advice on taking her for a walk when she already is tired....I always thought it was the opposite way around. I think I'm going to start taking it a lot easier on her. I'm just really afraid of having a dog that is aggressive or opposite being completely scared on everything.

Well, the world is so new to her! And hey, don't spend a second worrying about what "other" people say they have their dogs doing. Pups don't want to take a walk. They wanna run, sniff, explore! A stinkin WALK? That's just no good to a pup.

Do you have an area -- a trail -- a wide open field -- a wooded area - something off the beaten path -- where you can take your pup? Even a deserted baseball/soccer field... think hard... there are places like this. You want to start with one of the above where no one is around. Start there. Your pup will love to follow you and it's a great bonding thing. Let her drag a leash, just in case. Just walk, she'll follow. She'll explore, she'll run and she'll gain confidence slowly.

She's much, much too young to worry about aggressiveness setting in. Actually, my worry here would be that exposure to aggressive dogs or dogs that are not well-balanced may cause harm. Keep her far away from anything other than very well-balanced dogs.

I guess I'd focus more on her fear issues for now. Show her the world is FUN and there are so many things to explore.!

She's not even ten weeks,,, my pup was still with his mama at ten weeks. He wasn't even close to walking on leash or anything else yet. Don't hurry her. You have time here.

[Anthony8858]

I had my first obedience class tonight, and it was a great experience.

I'm gonna suggest you absolutely take classes from beginner ... UP. You're a first time owner, and you would greatly benefit from controlled classes.

As far as the walk, ... how about mini steps? A treat and a few steps, and again....

[Salix]

Too young. Try walking her on leash in your house from room to room, sniff things out, then progress slowly in a few days/next week to the perimeter of your property. Then the next week, onto the sidewalk, back into the house. Then slowly bit by bit explore your street. Have her vaccinations in order too.

Everything is new. The leash and collar might even feel strange to her, the concept of walking on a leash is new. The time is now to start walking her nicely and you're on the right track. Don't put it off. But slow down.

Beginner classes are excellent for socialization. Make sure your trainer knows what he/she's doing, that they require min. vaccinations, and that they care that the dogs placed in classes make for a smooth but varied training. Where I went, the trainers were careful for example, not to place toy breeds with larger dogs like GSDs, pitbulls, rotties and boxers. I also did beginner classes and they were invaluable. Ask and confirm that there is supervised play time at the end (usually 10 to 15 minutes or longer depending on how long others wish to stay). Your trainer will teach you how to read puppy cues, and you will observe and gain more insight into the world of dog! You'll also have the added benefit of making friends yourself (with other owners) and exchanging different experiences and ask questions.

I felt that exposing Denver for a few weeks first on my own slowly was more logical. Only after at least 3 weeks of settling into a new place, new crate, new living area and new family did I sign up for beginner classes which resumed the following week.