Strange behavior in 1 year old GSD - Page 1

 Hello everyone, again I need some help or advice or maybe both.  My GSD is now 1 year old and he is doing really good except for one thing.  When we play with him (frisbee, stick or ball) he will run to where the item is, then ran back and forth about 5 times sniffing the ground where he came from.  Then he picks up his toy and brings it.  He also does this when we have friends coming over. After he greets them he runs up and down the hallway, sniffing the ground.  At first this was funny, now it's just getting annoying as he doesn't quit.  We are outside just sitting around, he runs up and down the deck, sniffing. 

I know that his father was originally trained as a cadaver dog, but that can't have anything to do with the behavior he is showing.

I have always had good luck here when I had questions, so maybe someone has some advice for me this time too. 

His name is Tucker von der grossen Heide and he is listed here on this site.

Thanks again, Tucker's mom

Hi!  Without seeing the behaviour, it's kind of hit or miss with regards to advise.  If he is kind of malingering & not coming back as soon as you call, he's showing his age & maybe testing you a little.  I would always have a long line on the dog so that if I called him & he didn't come to me right away I could give him a good correction with the line and reinforce the command.   On the running around when you have company over bit, if it were my dog, I would put him up while company was over, it helps with discipline.

Is his ball drive very high and has it changed too?

without seeing it,I'm not too sure ,could he just be involved with the track?, I mean, like really into checking it? i don't know, just an idea.

Can you video it for us ??  Some dogs are just very involved with scents,may be a good thing. Hard to say without a video.

Any chance you can tape it for us?

A dog with lower ball drive is easily distracted.

Sounds kind of wierd!  Sometimes when a dog is in "avoidance", they will sniff the ground and act like they are not part of what is going on.  Some dogs if they get nervous, will do this.  I don't know if you put a lot of pressure on the dog's retrieve, or if he gets nervous around strangers as they enter your home.  I really don't know!  I can't understand why he would do this in a normal situation, where you are merely going out onto the deck.  Did you say this was a GSD or a Aardvark?

So far the replies are pretty good and something to think about.  He does get easily distracted, his attention span is that of a 2 year old child.  And yes, we found it funny when he did that for the first time but we just more or less ignored it, just when visitors mentioned it, we said that this is what he is doing.  I don't think we put a lot of pressure on him to retrieve something, he is doing it most the time without us telling him and if he doesn't we just ignore him. He is also not nervous around people, he thinks everyone is coming to see him.

I will try and make a video of him and then try and post it here. 

He is a GSD, with a very good background and I have to admit, I haven't been working with him like I should.  We have friends living with us right now and he gets so distracted and we both get frustrated, so that has to wait for a while.  He is very smart and learns quick, just doesn't always do what we tell him to and again, I have to admit, I let him get away with it sometimes.

Now a silly question, what do you mean with "ball drive"

Tucker's mom

When someone asks what kind of ball drive your dog has, they are wondering how your dog reacts to balls.  When you bring out the ball, does he get all fired up and try to get the ball?  Does he love to fetch it?  The thing is, if you haven't been working with the ball at all or if he has balls just laying around like other toys, lack of ball drive could be a result of incorrect conditioning for the ball.  For example, when I pull out a ball my dog goes nuts, it's his favorite game.  If  I'm doing obedience & pull out a ball it sends him into high drive, but I got there by only letting him play with balls on my terms and with me.  When he was a pup, I would legt him see me get all excited when I brought out a ball, plus I would make it a big party for him with the ball.  So now, it's a perfect reward for bringing up drive and I don't have to toss it, just show it to him.

" He is very smart and learns quick, just doesn't always do what we tell him to and again, I have to admit, I let him get away with it sometimes."

That's a big "no no" because a dog will always react negatively to inconsistency.  If you aren't prepared to do something the same way every time and to make the dog do it the same way every time, you are really better off never asking in the first place.  I'm thinking this may be the root cause of your original problem.  If he doesn't think he has to return to you immediately when you call him he may be saying to you "when and if I feel like it".

Thanks for explaining "ball drive".  His is very high.  May it a ball or a stick, or a frisbee.  He sees us picking it up and he is all tense and on alert.  He runs after it, sometimes catching it in the air, but then when he gets to where the ball or the frisbee is, that is when he starts running back and forth a dozen times, sniffing the ground as to make sure that is where he was walking.  If we call him, he comes back right away, so he is pretty good at that. 

When I said I haven't worked with him and let him get away with it, is when I tell him to "platz" it takes him a while to do it and he will not stay.  On occassion he will, but not all the time and I know this is the result of not working with him.  Like I said, after our friends move out, then we will start working with him intensely but right now it's hard as there are four people telling him what to do and all the commands are different, except for my husband and me.  I try to be consistent as I know the consequences, but if you have friends over it's sometimes difficult to do. 

I will also try to make a video and maybe then you can tell me what's wrong with him.

Again, thanks for all the advice and if there is more, I appreciate it.

Tucker's mom