Hi and welcome!

You may have answered your own question already He is just bored. GSDs are highly intelligent breed and playing fetch for hours just doesn't do it for them. You definitely need to invest time in him, and not having it might be part of the issue. Given their intelligence, if you don't make him "work", they will be finding ways to "entertain" themselves, and the further it gets untreated, the more issues you may be having - chewed up furniture, torn apart walls, and etc.
As far as jumping on you when you have a kid in your arms - it's expected. The same reason why it's not recommended to carry small dogs in the arms when in an off-leash park. Some dogs can be ok, while others (probably with higher pray drive) may jump after that something small just on instinct. For something like that you can either try and crate him while you are holding the baby, or teach him sit/stay or down/stay and turn it into a game: make him sit/stay, then walk away a few steps, pick up the baby. If he moves - correct, if he stays - reward with LOTS of praises.

I don't think smacking on the nose is a good idea. I would probably stop going to the vet who recommended to smack my fur baby. Here is an interesting article to read that may give you some ideas how to correct an unwanted behavior in a more pleasant way for both you and the pup: Leerburg | The Theory of Corrections in Dog Training

Also, in order for training to be successful, EVERY single person in the household who interacts with the dog (including visitors), must follow the same rules and be consistent. Otherwise it just confuses the pup and your training results are not what you would want them to be.

Another thing, when you mentioned that he know sit/down/relax and etc. - this is still all very new and fragile for him and you need to work on the same commands in variety of different settings. He may sit in the kitchen, but move him to the living room - it's already new and he may not respond (or respond well) to the command. Keep repeating the same commands everywhere and anywhere. Going out the door - make him sit/stay, walk out first and then OK for him to move out. Coming inside from the walk - same thing. Food time - make him lay down before you put the bowl down. Use every little opportunity to solidify his obedience and before you know - he will be a much calmer and confident young man. Most of them like rules and are happy when you tell them what to do. When you let them be, they don't know any better than to follow instincts and/or doing whatever in that beautiful mind of theirs

Good luck with the young fella!

 

Sounds like he may need a lot more exercise, mental stimulation, definitely consistency. You didn't mention walking him, or I missed it. How often, how far, how long?

Personally, I would quit with all the cesar millan stuff. If for no other reason than you said it only ramps him up more.
I have plenty of reasons not to cesar millan your dog but that is a good start on why

Does he get good chew toys?

 

What ever you do don't alpha roll a gsd. Once this dog starts maturing and developing a better awareness of dominance and submission he will bite you on the face after being pined like that. At 7 months he is still a puppy and is learning a lot. If you will correct him dont go by what a vet or a family member says find a working dog trainer and at least go for a free eval if you cant afford training most will point you in the right direction.

 

And yes, I agree with others who suggest against cesar's training approach. In addition to ancient misunderstood training methods, he is actually being investigated for animal abuse (look it up).

 

Please drop the Cesar methods. His training methods may work for some, but can seriously backfire with the wrong dog. His methods can actually invite more issues.

You have already received excellent advice regarding training. I will add to also squeeze the time out each week to spend time with a trainer. Yes, you can train him on your own, many do. That second set of eyes is a valuable resource along with the experience they have. Perhaps have the f/mil stay with the kids You avoid their influence on your pup, they get grandkid time - everyone wins.

When you can't avoid the f/mil influence, it would be better for the pup, you and the inlaws feelings to simply put the dog away - either in a sheltered outside kennel on nice days or a crate in another room. Have the pup wear a short lead in the house to give you better control in general.

 

Thank you all for all your advice! After the first couple times I did the Cesar Millan stuff I stopped and I'm not going to that vet anymore. We have invisible fence and live on a farm so he has plenty of outdoor time and an acre at least if not an acre and a half to run around with. But that's him running around by himself and not me going with him. If he doesn't come back inside with me after we are done playing, I leave them outside by himself for 10 mintues to explore and do his business. Then he runs around to the back door and rips off the door frame to let me know he wants back in lol I've been thinking about walking him all over the farm just to get some of that energy out. I want to take him to a trainer but living on one income we don't have the money for it. He has so many toys and balls and Bones to chew on and play with. BUT! He would rather tear up the flower beds and rip up the grass. ? We just got a new set of 12 walkway lights and he has destroyed every single one of them. There is another dog here to play with him but my sister in law is nervous Wyatt will hurt him because he is a mini aussie and is a tiny 8 pounds compared to my 60+ pound behemoth lol. So he doesn't have a lot of play time other than when I play with him. It's funny one of you mentioned tearing up the walls because he has ripped a huge hole through the sheet rock down to the stud in our halfway twice now. He also has bad seperation anxiety from me and if we do put him away in a room when the in-laws come over,he rips up the carpet and chews off the door frame until I come back to him or unless I stay in the room with him....I hope the walk will help?

 

The little (not so much anymore lol) rascal

 

Oh and what would you all say his coloring is? He's got such a good mix of a couple of them I can't figure it out lol he's got a peppered stripe down his back but is pretty much so black everywhere else other than his legs and the small parts of his face and chest.

 

I think structured exercise is extremely important. I don't leave my puppy in the yard alone because he digs, finds garbage to play with (no idea where he finds this stuff-old landscape plant pots and the like). Eats daffodils which are poisonous. Ect ect ect.

We walk daily, usually offleash. This week he had a sore paw and I was trying to restrict his exercise. He was a different dog.

Introducing structured exercise will be a really good start because otherwise you are trying to train or discipline away all this frustrated energy and you just can't. Now unfortunately your dog has practiced a lot of bad destructive habits that you will have to deal with whether you exercise him or not. But trust me, if you don't, it will be twice as hard.

Training your dog to walk on a leash is a good mental exercise, but assuming he doesn't know how you have some work to do before you can enjoy a brisk 2 mile walk and then enjoy your tired (er) dog.

Also the structured exercise starts to introduce him to a new mental state, calm travel....ball chasing is a high octane adrenaline thing. This dog sounds like he needs to learn that he is capable of being a calm thoughtful animal, also hard when brimming with frustrated energy.

Exercise, mental stimulation (can you teach him to play hide and seek with his ball, have him search the whole acre for it....that is less the high octane and more a working/thinking endeavor). I would start acclimating him to a crate or kennel, should be plenty of threads on that on here. Don't bother with chain link go straight to welded wire, he sounds like the type that would chew right out of a chain link kennel

 

The dog is bored and frustrated. Dogs will view the yard as a large pen. They need to leave the property and explore and exercise. Go to a local park or field,most are empty during the school year days. He'll need about 2 hours a day,away from home, exercising.

 

I would carry a tug in my back pocket at all times. Whenever he lunges at you or nips at anybody else redirect him to the tug and when he starts playing with it praise him. This will show him that he should redirect his energy toward a toy instead of your hands. That's what I did with my boy when he got nippy and it stopped him right on the spot. If this cycle continues a few times I think it may be time for a timeout. Just keep him secluded in an area where he cant see anybody (preferably not his crate) and let him calm down for a few minutes.

As far as when family is over, I would keep him tethered to you at all times. If he jumps on you while holding the baby you can step on the leash so he cant lift his front paws off the ground. Eventually he will get the clue that he is not suppose to be jumping on you when you have a baby in your arms. How about when you have the baby in your arms and he starts approaching you you put him in a down? If he breaks that down you can get a family member to correct the down or if you can do it somehow you can re-enforce the down.

Plus like everybody else is saying structured exercise. Tug is a great way to have some structured exercise and going for walks. You can mix obedience in with both activities and it will really tire him out. My boy can run and run for hours and not be tired but a 30 minute walk were he is purely focusing on me and following commands that I am issuing will tire him out for hours. Playing fetch doesn't really teach engagement that much in my opinion.

Hope this helps!

 

Ok update......I have stopped alpha rolling him, exercised him more, and started making him work on downtime with commands this past week. It worked for the first couple days but yesterday and today a switch flipped and he has turned full on aggressive......he almost bit my brother in law multiple times and he had to run inside and lock himself in. Tonight, even though I was calmly and assertively standing right there next to my dad, Wyatt almost bit my dad 3 times and was snarling, spit was flying out of his mouth, barking nonstop, and lunging at him. He almost got my dad's hand and if my dad didn't move his hand away he would have gotten seriously hurt because Wyatt's teeth snapped together so hard the noise echoed in the woods surrounding our house.....I had to actually shield my dad so he could escape into the car......my dad is not scared of any dog but he told me he was scared of Wyatt......yesterday I had to shield the flower delivery man because Wyatt almost bit him twice. It's like with other people now he's seeing red. We run a company out of our house and if he actually bites someone they can sue me and the company......he is not aggressive with me, my husband, or the babies that live in this house but he did get mouthy and nipped at my baby in the walker today even after I corrected him......I'm worried that he will bite her now...I am going to suck it up and credit card training classes for him but in all honesty do you all think that will help? I'm scared he will bite and from the looks of how things are going it will be a really bad bite......I really am at my wits end now......HELP!

 

this is the kind of thing that cant really be helped over the internet. With out someone experience and with a good understanding of dog behavior there to see it when it happens you could very easily be given bad advice.
Was there anything that set him off on your father or your brother in law? as for the baby i would make sure to definitely not leave them alone together! Either him on a leash or the baby in your arms. If he does bite a customer you could have serious legal issues and god forbid if he bites your child he could really hurt her. I would suggest yo go get him evaluated by a trainer and plan out what you will do with him and if you will be able to manage him. Better for a dog to be re-homed then to maim your child or bite a customer and end up having to get put down. GSD were breed to be working dogs and even in pet lines these serious temperament can show up and need a serious handler to manage them

 

Another update. I tried to do the keeping him on a leash to correct if needed. I am more comfortable putting him in a harness because when he was even more if a puppy he almost snapped his neck once getting his leash stuck in the porch stairs and trying to get free. Today, even since I put the harness and leash on him, he has been PERFECT! Seriously he is a completely different dog! He hasn't jumped once or tried to play bite at all! This is making me think his acting out is due to fear/anxiety because the harness is similar to a thunder shirt. I guess it makes it seem like he's "working" constantly now? Did I really just find the solution to keeping him happy and non fear aggressive by simply putting his harness on?

 

It seems rather absurd to abandon a collar and leash because of one incident in which you apparently left the dog unmonitored with a leash and collar on. I don't know how you would train a dog without using a collar. With the GSD I wouldn't even consider it using a harness. A harness is fine when you are going on a hike or practicing scent work or tracking. But a steel choke chain is essential with the behaviors you've mentioned. Or a prong collar. Many (uninformed) people might consider it to be cruel, but I believe it is much more cruel to allow a dog to fall into anti-social behavioral patterns that will ultimately result in his abandonment and great distress for everyone involved. Corrections are also important and a proper collar allows you do implement them. If you yank on a harness, you communicate nothing to the dog, and even risk stimulating him more. It sounds like your dog is a high-octane GSD that needs a firm hand, especially now in the adolescent stage, where they WILL test you, hang in there and DEDICATE AS MUCH TIME AS YOU CAN to your dog, trust me on this one, if you are a stay-at-home parent you CAN make the time, as JUST A FEW MONTHS of dedicated attention, training, and work will produce a dog that will be GOOD FOR LIFE, and all the benefits that entails for your family. If you let it slip now, you are asking for a future filled with troubles. Good luck.

 

Maybe you did find "it". What I would complement you on is continuing to look. Dogs are different and respond to different things. My experience with dogs is that there usually is something you find to get that light to come on. In training, some dogs respond to food, some to physical praise, some want "the" toy. Discipline can be similar. Some dogs need very little and some need a stronger show from you to prove that you are the alpha. Like some others, I don't recommend smacking on the face. Sometimes a light smack to side of hips works. The idea is to "break" their concentration on what they are doing and focus on you, even if it's just for second. It's the same idea behind training collars.

Couple of suggestions- for more audacious wrongs by your pup, you might try a light "pop" under their chin. Again, the idea is to get their attention and focus on you. If you continue to have a jumping up problem, I've found that a spray bottle of water can work if you can juice them with it the moment they jump up (means carrying the bottle around). Not squirting them in the eye or anything, it's just another example of doing something they probably don't much like to get them to focus on you and establish control.

Lastly, the in-law issue is probably difficult because who wants to make them upset with you, but as someone mentioned, they are providing your young dog with mixed signals and that is VERY BAD for the development of your dog. It's confusing. Not sure how you work that one out, but hope you find a way.

I've heard this repeated many times and agree with it- "A tired dog is a happy dog". Exercise, exercise, exercise. Your dog is at the age when you may want to limit jumping around to protect joint development, but trust me, thirty minutes of exercise a day, or even an hour, is just breaking even (maybe) on his energy level. These dogs can go at it and they want to go at. Walking is a good choice because it not only physically exercises them, but it can also mentally exercise them if they get to walk in a "new" area with new smells, sights, etc.

Hang in there!

 

I suggest you get some baby gates, and a crate. You and your children need a break from this dog, and your company does too.

Yes, classes and regular training will help you be more consistent and give clear signals to the dog. But, I would stop hitting him. The problem with physically disciplining a dog is that their level of pain tolerance is such that, you cannot give him a correction that he will remember out of fear/avoidance without abusing the dog. You cannot physically control this dog through strength of body only. Sorry. The little love taps -- of course the wind him up. It is like patting someone on the back or butt. It isn't hurting the dog. He might even think it is part of a game.

And then what do you have left when he does something really bad, snapping at your father? Love taps. How about a real hit on the dog. The dog that already thinks you're a push-over? I don't suggest it.

You need to outwit this dog. You want this dog to do what you want because doing what you want is better than chopped liver. You have the goodies. You have the thumbs. You can go out for play time. You can give him goodies. You can give him pets and loves. You can give him attention. You want for him to hear approval in your voice and get excited and happy. You want for disapproval in your voice to stop him cold, and make him all the keener to get your approval voice going.

I think you need to adjust your leadership style. Lots of people have success with NILIF (Nothing In Life Is Free). Google is your friend. A good trainer is invaluable because they can see what you can't. They can see how your dog is responding to your body language. They can give you suggestions to tweak things and to overhaul things.

I don't think your dog is hopeless. Not a fan of harnesses, but every dog is different, if it works... I think that because of the people involved, your pup needs to see a trainer and work with someone hands on with him, not just books and vids and internet chat rooms.

Good luck and keep us posted on his progress.

 

Not a fan of training collars. But a harness is less likely to net the result you want. I do not know if it is more likely to cause structural damage on the dog.

The prong collar will be the least likely to cause damage to an untrained, high energy dog, who lacks proper leadership.

The choke chain, can cause serious damage to the dog.

Halti-collars and Gentle Leaders are more likely than choke chains to injure your dog.

Consider the husky. the dog at 60-65 pounds can easily pull 600 pounds through the use of a harness. German Shepherds could pull any of us down the street. Tougher to do with a collar and lead, than with a harness, but if we are relying on brut strength to control, an untrained dog with behavioral issues, then you will want the edge that the prong collar gives you.

It isn't cruel. It is just a different training philosophy. You would be training your dog to avoid the discomfort of the collar when pulling or being corrected, rather than trying to motivate the dog to do what it is you are wanting. Both methods build a bond if the trainer is reasonably consistent, has appropriate expectations, and has good timing.

Again, for an energetic, out of control dog, the prong will be the least likely to cause injury to the dog. The length of time where pulling, fighting, jerking happens, makes injury more common. The prong will stop the foolishness quicker. Also, for an inexperienced handler, the prong collar will eliminate the impression of fighting with the dog. When we struggle with a dog for control or compliance to a command, we lose stature in the mind of the dog, and the dog is rewarded for bad behavior.

Use the prong collar.

 

I have an update for this post.... After reading and taking all of your suggestions and working with him on his behavior, we started making headway. He was not as aggressive as before. He started calming down and behaving more politely. (minus the jumping and play biting which we were still working on.) about a month ago, my husband let him outside for a minute and came into our bedroom to grab his jacket. Then we heard a low mournful howl coming from outside. My husband ran out to see what was happening but our sweet boy had already passed by time he got to him... We do not know what officially happened, but the vet and we highly suspect he choked on something or that he did indeed have a heart problem and suddenly went into arrest...I want to thank you all for your suggestions and helpful words of advice. He was starting to turn around and become the smart sweet boy I always knew he was. We were in the process of getting him a brother who will be coming home late June. Thank you all again for your encouragement and helpful advice. I will be sure to implement them on Rusty when he gets here.

 

He's black and tan. The peppering down the back is called a bitch stripe. And with that much black on him, he's what's known as a bicolor black and tan, meaning his body is black and the legs are tan.

I would be sooo pissed off at the in-laws! They would get SUCH a piece of my mind that they would never again let the dog up on the bed or furniture!

Sounds like maybe you need to crate him when you can't supervise him. My 10 year old female loves to get up on the couch, but she makes it stink, and I just can't have that. So, the living room is off-limits to her when I'm away from the house. These dogs are smart - you teach them not to do something, and like naughty kids, they will wait until you're out of sight, and do it anyway!

I don't like Cesar's correction methods, but DO like two things he stresses:

1) EXERCISE! A tired dog is a good dog!
2) Rules, boundaries and limitations - sounds like you are working on those with your dog. Others have given you good advice about that in the above posts, so I'll leave it at that. But if you want a well-trained dog, CONSISTENCY is VERY important! That's why I'd be so mad at the in-laws! You can't let the dog get away with something one time, then get mad at them for doing it the next time.

 

I am so confused by this thread, according to he OP @ 4 this morning her dog has been dead for a month. But at 2 this am she was asking for advice? Am I crazy or did I miss something?

 

We saw the need for more excercise and general engagement increase at 6.5 to 7 months as well. It helps tremendously to get him out doing more. Even on leash walks to new places helped us.

 

Oops, just saw the year...?

 

I walk with my dogs at least an hour a day, rain, sun, snow, doesn't matter. No offense but why would you get this young dog if you expected him to play by himself all day or only throw his ball for "at least 10 minutes"? I care for my kids at home as a stay at home parent and work part time from home. I take my kids on walks with the dog.

Of course he's bored, playing in the house will often not relieve much. These dogs are very energetic working breeds. We removed them from their herding/ other work when we take them as pets and its your responsibility to give him mental simulation. How would you feel without any real mental stimulation sitting inside the house all day? You need to take him places, go on hikes, the backyard with the electric fence is will not suffice and won't relieve much anxiety, stress, or energy, the same as a dog which only has access to a backyard

Drop all the ceasar nonsense. His techniques work on his TV shows because the dogs are scared of him. Dogs are not wolfs, they were domesticated with humans and do not live in "wolf packs" or have the same hierarchy. Most people do not do his techniques correctly anyways.

"or a light smack with a rolled up newspaper or my hand on his nose as suggested by the vet "

PLEASE DO NOT DO THIS.... Honestly your vet does not know what they are suggesting...




Edit: I see that your dog "mysteriously" died. Please do not get another GSD OP.

I'm sorry, I have been lurking this site for some time but these types of posts make me upset......... Some people have no business owning dogs.

 

Would you care to elaborate on why I shouldn't own another GSD or dog in general? I took very good care of all my fur babies I have ever had, especially my Wyatt as he was my first dog I actually owned myself and wasn't a family dog. As I had stated previously, I had stopped going to that vet, never gave him more than a love tap and NEVER on his nose only his hips, and even then I had stopped that practice altogether. Are you insinuating that I killed my own dog?! How rude and inconsiderate of you! My dog choked on a stick. He had gotten a hold of a stick and was chewing on it and gotten a chunk stuck in his throat. When my husband came outside the stick was in his front paws and there were wood chips all in his mouth. The reason I said we aren't 100% sure what happened to him is because we never took him for an autopsy so all we can do is look at the evidence and make an educated guess. You have no right telling someone that they shouldn't ever own a dog unless there is a clear case of abuse or neglect which clearly in my case, was not! Don't make assumptions and spew insults at people who have recently lost their beloved family member and are still grieving! I do not understand how my post made you upset when I was looking for help to enhance my baby's life and not hinder it or end it! The apology was not needed with the insult you threw in after it. I had taken the suggestions of the other people on here and was actually seeing improvement in his behavior through positive training. I went from owning black labs, beagles and shiba inus to owning my gsd so I had no experience with the energy level or exercise level before as I had only had laid back dogs before. Next time you want to say some people have no business owning a dog, you might want to keep that to yourself instead of posting it on a thread where an owner is trying her hardest to help her fur baby become the best dog he could be! Especially if she just lost her furbaby and was doing everything in her power to help them! Good day!

 

On a public site, there are thousands of potential posters, with a variety of experience and unlimited personalities. One person said, "don't get another GSD." That is their opinion and they are entitled to it regardless to how closely they read your posts. The site cannot force people to be right or not to be wrong, they can just smack people's hands when they call people dunderheads.

It isn't the general feeling here by what you posted. It sounds like you had some trouble, took suggestions, were progressing with improvement in the dog, and then a terrible accident occurred. I am also very sorry for your loss.

 

On a public site, there are thousands of potential posters, with a variety of experience and unlimited personalities. One person said, "don't get another GSD." That is their opinion and they are entitled to it regardless to how closely they read your posts. The site cannot force people to be right or not to be wrong, they can just smack people's hands when they call people dunderheads.

It isn't the general feeling here by what you posted. It sounds like you had some trouble, took suggestions, were progressing with improvement in the dog, and then a terrible accident occurred. I am also very sorry for your loss.

Thank you so much! Sorry I flipped I just felt like I needed to defend myself because it seemed like they were accusing me of killing my baby boy.... Thank you for your condolences ?

 

Old thread

 

I also don't like to tell people they shouldn't have a certain type of dog. I do think it's good to be aware going in that owning a GSD is a different ballgame than owning a lot of other dogs. I know from my own experience, I'd done my research, met dogs, met dogs related to my future puppy, and was still caught off guard by the energy level and a lot of other things. We made it, but it was very different from my past experiences with dogs! Now I know. And now you know. Maybe another GSD is the right dog for you, maybe not.

I'm sorry to hear that Wyatt choked. We all take calculated risks with our dogs every day, and there but for the grace of God go I, so many times.

I can also see why "mysteriously died" is a phrasing that triggers people. I think when they see that without context, they think the dog was deemed too much work and put down. To be honest, that's the very first place my mind went when I saw the post containing the phrasing "mysteriously died" referring to a dog that had presented multiple challenges to its owner. I found it a little disturbing; for people who do a lot of work in rescue and witness this happening daily, it could be a very real emotional trigger, not to be discounted as meanness or an insult. I'm glad you came back and gave a little more context.

 

Thank you. I guess I was triggered because I felt they they were saying exactly what you explained that I "put him down" because he was too much trouble. When that was not the case at all. I was trying everything I could to help him and train him into the dog I knew he could have been. That's why when i saw there was a forum dedicated to GSD owners I thought there was no better place than to get help from experienced owners. Thank you for your kind words and explaining the other side of why people might have thought what they did. I was and still am devastated over his passing and cry over him every single day. That thought of putting him down never has and never will be in my mind because he was my baby and I loved him more than words could ever say :'( It litereally makes me sick to my stomach to think that there are people out there that do put their dogs down because they are too much work! His death was sudden, way too soon(he was a year and a half), and heartbreaking. I miss him so much and wish I could go back and burn all the sitcks in the yard to keep him safer. But I didn't even realise that was a threat because all my other dogs chewed on sticks and that never happened to him. Thank you again for you condolences....I miss him so much :''(