[gumenimedo]

hello everyone i just joined this forum . i had Astra since january, she turns 1 year this month
i have a few questions

1. She stops eating for 3-4 days, she is perfectly healthy, her vet did her worm test, she was good there, blood work was good, she is very hyper, playing and running. (she is around 70 Lbs nicely shaped)

can she get bored with her food? i tried different types. she eats for about 2 weeks then stops (i emailed the breeder about this and apparently Astra's father 95Lbs is "food moody" but perfectly healthy)
some people told me to start mixing chicken broth into the food to make it softer

2. i know this is weird but she sometimes eats her poop, before was really bad, now she knows that i get upset when she does this
what is the proper way to make her stop from doing this further?

3. How can i make her ignore my moms cat, i feel bad for the cat, she is scared of Astra and literally living in one room for about a year now, its a furry cat and i am sure that Astra sees her as a fast running toy

4. I know this is socialization problem but she absolutely goes crazy when she sees other dogs, almost to the embarrassing point , she is obedient, she sits, but she just acts psycho
also when people come over, she is jumping, barking, and i really tried every technique. Especially my aunt who is absolutely terrified of the german shepherds.
Also she listens to me most, she ignores my mom about 50% of time unless she has treats

any good info would help me out

 

[onyx'girl]

Welcome to the site! Astra is gorgeous :wub:
1/2. What are you feeding her?
Sometimes the food that isn't digested properly will taste good when it comes out, I would get her on a really good diet that is all absorbed, and rotate the proteins so she doesn't get bored.
(Wellness, Orijen, are two of the best, IMO) Pick up her poo before she eats it, than means following her when she is outside to do her thing!
3. Practicing NILIF is a good way to manage dogs that think they control their world. My dogs will chase my cat too. If the cat would just stop running and stand up to them it would stop it! One of my cats doesn't run, the dogs don't feel the need to mess w/her.
I have safe spots for the cats to go, and one does live in the spare bedroom
4. Do you have her in obedience classes? That would be a good place to start, or at least work with a good behaviorist on her reactivity. There are excellent books on this, too. I recommend Control Unleashed by Leslie McDevitt.
Do you have a crate for her when people come over?

 

[gumenimedo]

right now i am feeding her Royal Canine chicken /rice mix
i tried wellness, precise, chicken soup, can she just get bored?
she eats for about 2 weeks then stops

2. cat is hissing at her so i guess that is fun for Astra, how to stop cat from doing it? or cat is just going to deal with it?

3. She took obedience classes, once she gets worn out she calms down, my trainer said that she is the of the most hyper GSD's she ever had chance working with and Astra would require extra work

4. i do have have a crate but she really hates it to be honest, my mom made a mistake when Astra was a puppy, she used 2-3 times a crate as a punishment...
is it possible to make that crate "Astra friendly" again?

 

[onyx'girl]

She is now done with her growth spurts, maybe you are feeding her too much?
Does she have runny poo when you switch her diet? If not, then rotate her proteins.

I would get her use to the crate, give her a nice raw meaty soupbone in it. A crate to most dogs is a safe haven and they know it is theirs alone.
Keep up with the classes, they are so important for this age. Maybe get her into agility, herding or tracking(tracking is mental work for a dog) Obedience classes get a bit boring, but the others are much fun-especially for a dog with higher drives.
If your whole family stays consistant with the NILIF Astra will be much easier to live with!

 

[ShenzisMom]

How are her poops? Don't need excessive detail but are they diarrhea/watery,too hard, etc?

If she hates the crate fill a kong with peanut butter, raw chicken(small pieces) and other safe food for her that she loves and put her in the crate with it. Ignore her crying, just leave her to it.

 

[ZAYDA]

No offense but it seems you need to learn some more training techniques. First off if the dog will not harm the cats I would just let them do their thing and in time I think the cats and the dog will set their own boundaries and coincide. I also feel the cat that runs can always find a safe spot from the dog but will gradually understand that the dog will not harm her but keeping the dog under control will help speed up the process. You can even try to bring the two together so they can understand their is no threat eaither way.

As far as feeding goes thats something you will have to play with but with one of my girls I just put a little water in her bowl and she never skipped again. You might also add a little yogurt or cottage cheese to the food and water then stir it up.

The other problems I feel are just proper training such as jumping on people. You must not let your dog great people until you say so and make sure you claim the door and anything else in your house and let her know who is boss. Tell others to ignore your dog until she calms down. Your dog could be barking @ other dogs because she feels the need to be the alpha again proper training to show her you are the alpha and you have everything under control.

Tough love and repetition in your training is the fix in my opinion.

 

[gumenimedo]

No offense but it seems you need to learn some more training techniques. First off if the dog will not harm the cats I would just let them do their thing and in time I think the cats and the dog will set their own boundaries and coincide. I also feel the cat that runs can always find a safe spot from the dog but will gradually understand that the dog will not harm her but keeping the dog under control will help speed up the process. You can even try to bring the two together so they can understand their is no threat eaither way.

As far as feeding goes thats something you will have to play with but with one of my girls I just put a little water in her bowl and she never skipped again. You might also add a little yogurt or cottage cheese to the food and water then stir it up.

The other problems I feel are just proper training such as jumping on people. You must not let your dog great people until you say so and make sure you claim the door and anything else in your house and let her know who is boss. Tell others to ignore your dog until she calms down. Your dog could be barking @ other dogs because she feels the need to be the alpha again proper training to show her you are the alpha and you have everything under control.

Tough love and repetition in your training is the fix in my opinion.

i am not offended at all, i figured i need to fix my training technique

cat literally poops her self from the fear,


her poop is not wattery, no diarrhea, its normal, i just mixed her food with some water and she ate everything! i am excited

 

[ZAYDA]

i am not offended at all, i figured i need to fix my training technique

cat literally poops her self from the fear,


her poop is not wattery, no diarrhea, its normal, i just mixed her food with some water and she ate everything! i am excited

GREAT!! Hope it helps..
Cats take a long time to warm up but many do after several months even.