GSD and Cats - Page 1

OK here goes. I just got a e-mail from a puppy buyer . I have not talked to her for about 4 months. All was great then.

I e-mailed her to check up as the pups are 8 months old now..  She said that this pup will not stop chasing the cats and corrnering them.  She also had the dog with her moms cats and one drew blood and the dog did not notice.  She said that she can not get the pup to make any eye contact but the pup chalenges her for learship all the time . she stays in a crate a lot becasue she takes toys from the 3 year old baby and will not stop chasing the cats..

She has ahd 3 other GSD's and is not new to the breed,.

A profectional behavorist told her that she will just not have to alow her to be around the baby or the cats and to keep them all seperated.

I am looking for Sugestions to give her. It is hard as i am not close to her. We have cats and the pups were raised around them. The only pup who showed bad cats habits stayed with me and we have worked through the problems. and she watched but wont chase them anymore.. She got a butt kicken for it and we dont do it anymore. I would like to be able to send her some ideas from other who have worked through this.

the pups father was never arouns cats before he got here. we have trained his not to mess with them eather.. but it was hard work. but i made it very clear from day one that i was going to get him bad for it..

Any ideas would be great ...

Bottom line is you sold a pup to someone who does not have a clue about how to manage a family containing a dog, cat and baby. I would strongly suggest you find someone that is a REALLY competent trainer and suggest that the woman enroll in some private lessons. This must be someone who really understands GSDs, prey drive, how to set limits and how to teach this woman how to deal with the situation. If she does not get some help, I can guarantee you that you are going to get asked to take the pup back, or worse, the dog will end up killing the cat, hurting the baby (whether aggressively or just in taking the toy) and she will dump it in a shelter.

This is the kind of situation I get calls about all the time with people wanting to dump the dog in a rescue. Only this happens normally after some sort of tragedy, such as a few weeks ago when a woman called me to tell me her GSD of 7 years, left alone with an 18 month old child outside, was found pinning the child to the ground and had bitten the child. I told her she was lucky the dog did not kill the baby. People are idiots about how to manage dogs and children and other pets. This is why one must be VERY stringent in to whom they sell. I personally would NOT have sold a dog into this situation. 

I hope you can get this resolved before it becomes a lot worse.

It is a mother who doesnt know how to discipline the kids or the pup...She needs discipline on the pup  . And I  mean strict discipline...SHe also needs to teach pup not to take toys ,DOGs have to be trained. Kids need training. ANd she can use the kennel for sometime relief but my guess , is she is afraid to raise a hand to either.

Discipline often means getting the switch out and using swift and harsh rules in place.

I dont think cats belong with german shepherds anyway for various reasons.

What Hodie said.

Obedience Obedience Obedience Obedience......

Did I mention Obedience Training?

Preferably with a balanced trainer. 

First you  better tell her what one is...Obvious she doesnt know that or the breeder wouldnt be here.

Sounds like a m ess to me. ANyone that talks to a dog behaviourist is off to the looney bin.

Pups have not even known what they are to do in the first place..Whose fault is that. The person who bought the dog.

A behavourist is an overpain Dr Spock who doesnt believe in anything short of    Oh No poopy , dont do that / Nautty nautty, now dont do that.

Get my drift.

This pup ought to be already sitting, downing and tracking . Why is it chasing cats.? Does she not know a ball on a rope is an attention getter . If the pup was in her control she ought to be focused by this time. I believe the breeder ought to buy this pup back and run the other way.

I will take the pup back if that is what needs to happen. She has been working with a profetional trainer since the pup was 3 months old doing Obed training. I dont know know what methods of obed they are using and the dog is crated any time she can not watch the pup. I would like to be albe to give her some advice that has worked for other people becasue not keeping the dog is out of the question at this point .though i have offered to take her back.

 If she has been working with a "professional trainer" then I suggest that either the trainer does not know what he/she is doing or the woman is plain and simple unable to manage. Either way, this is a disaster ready to happen. Suggest she find a different trainer. Let us know where she is and perhaps someone here or on another list can help find someone who can deal with this. I have cats and dogs together. NO CHASING or CORNERING is allowed. The woman may not be a strong enough person to deal with the situation, may be unable to be consistent or set limits and enforce and give consequences. How much exercise does the pup get besides being in the house and then perhaps outside now and then to eliminate? 

The real issue here is whether either the woman or the trainer can deal with this situation. I suggest you be very straightforward with her and let her know that this is a potentially dangerous situation should it continue and escalate. It must be stopped now. One cannot fix a problem if one does not acknowledge it exists.

I would be more worried about the dog hurting the child than not chasing the cats....although neither should be happening. As Hodie said, I don't believe that homes with small children are good puppy candidates.You probably should offer to take the puppy back, I think this is a recipe for disaster. I love cats, too, but if the puppy gets overly assertive with a 3 year old, it could easily do major damage to the child without even trying. One swipe of a toenail/paw near a little one's face could leave a scar that the child would have forever, and if the woman is so irresponcible that the puppy has enough access to the child that it can take the child's toys away, then it is only a matter of time before an accident happens. You'd not only be saving the puppy & the child, but maybe your butt as well! Good luck! jackie harris 

Sounds more like the woman just doesn't manage her dogs correctly, not that the pup is not trained well enough. 8 months is still young and at that age I would not have a pup anywhere near my kid on the floor or loose with cats. Traning isn't the issue...yet. The pup needs a kennel or crate and that's the owners job to make that call.

LOL..."professional behaviorist"   aka "quack!"  Locking the puppy up will never teach it good manners!  She needs to stop making excuses fo rthe fact that she has not trained that puppy. How sad that she sticks it in the crate all the time.  Her trainer either sucks, or she doesn't listen to her trainer at all. She is obviously not the boss in that household and needs to take control. If she lives near Chicago/MIlwaukee you can send her my way, I'll give her a reality check.