8 week old male pup

Originally Posted By: Shawn M.Hi , I have an 8 week old male german shepherd. He already shows himself of being very dominant and stubborn. Is this normal of german shepherds? He gets even more aggressive when you try and correct him it seems. As well , he doesn't like to be held belly up in a submisive posture and will flip out . I was told to do this though and not to let him go until he quitens. Is this a good idea or is this going to give him more of mad on in the future?Any opinions and comments are very appreciated . Thanks.

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Shawn,

A few things...

1. 8 week old puppies are NOT dominant. Stubborn, maybe but most likely a normal little butthead that is full of energy and wants to have fun.

2. 8 week old puppies are NOT aggressive. They are naturally pushy and playful, but none of this is connected to aggression. He does not understand your method of "correction" and he thinks you are playing, so he is playing back.

3. The person that told you to pin your puppy this way is an idiot. Please avoid taking any advice when it comes to your dog from that person. Sorry to be blunt.

Spend some time reading all the posts in the puppy section, as well as the training and behavior sections. Get some help from a good trainer, and have fun with your puppy.

My first GSD was a mix of nice Old American lines and working K9 officier. He was one very tough little pup and very bully headed. I learned the best way to deal with him was to redirect. If I tried to scold, punish or restrain, he had some thing to fight against, LOL me. So if I didn't want him chewing on me, the furniture or the cat, I would always redirect him to what I wanted him to play with and beat up.

I am not a fan of pupping pups or dogs on their backs. I want to train my pup not break them. I was in horses for a while in my life and learned that there was a big difference in breaking a horse and training a horse. I also saw that down the line as they got a bit older, I had a gelding that someone broke, so at times when I asked him to move or back out of my way, he was ready to fight back, not what you want out of a 1100 lb. animal.

So I learned that there are ways to get animals to do things without pushing or forcing.

Val

Originally Posted By: ZeusGSD


1. 8 week old puppies are NOT dominant. Stubborn, maybe but most likely a normal little butthead that is full of energy and wants to have fun.

2. 8 week old puppies are NOT aggressive. They are naturally pushy and playful, but none of this is connected to aggression. He does not understand your method of "correction" and he thinks you are playing, so he is playing back.

3. The person that told you to pin your puppy this way is an idiot. Please avoid taking any advice when it comes to your dog from that person. Sorry to be blunt.

Spend some time reading all the posts in the puppy section, as well as the training and behavior sections. Get some help from a good trainer, and have fun with your puppy.

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100% correct.

Find a good trainer in your area, and get into some classes. These will teach you how to train, live with and interact with your puppy in the right way, building a life long relationship based upon trust and respect. And will also help you learn about canine behavior and psychology, and properly interpret your pup's behavior so you don't make mistakes based upon false assumptions about your puppy that will possibly screw up your relationship with the dog.

There is a "Finding a Trainer" section of the board that you may find useful. You can post your location and ask for recommendations of trainers in your area. Preferably you can find one to work with who has experience with GSDs or other working breeds. They are not Golden Retrievers or Labs and should not be treated and trained as such.

Thanks a bunch you guys , I appreciate your thoughts . I wasn't in agreeance with the pinning him on his back and I agree with your thoughts of training and not breaking your dog .
I didn't agree it was right to do this excercise with him and I will tend to go with what I know and with the help of you guys . I have had other dogs before and they all turned out well with my way of teaching . I will stop listening to this persons advice that told me to make it submit by pinning . I appreciate all your comments and bluntness . Thanks alot , much appreciated.
It is great to be able to come here for help.