? about behavior - Page 1

ok here's the deal... we bought a male GSD when he was 2 yrs. old, Super pedigree for what we wanted and needed for our lines. He previous to our purchase had never been inside a home, was not very well leash broke, had basically grown up in a 2 acre pasture raised by folks who did not seem to know a whole lot about bonding, training, socialization and so on. When he got here he was a wreck, Of course I drug him out of an airline kennel and into a spare bedroom in our home, He was not happy at first, I thought I might have made a mistake, However my husband bless his heart bravely entered the room and the dog came to him and seemed to warm up. Larrie went to work I stayed at home worked with the dog, well he started to shadow me and bonded really hard with me, has always preffered me to my husband, He's great with the kids too. But my husband being quite the novice and can't read body language for shit, continues to Challenge this dog, like when the dog is in my lap and my husband tries to drag the dog off of me so that he make take a seat next to me it's always a stand off between the two, No dog has never bitten don't really think he would, But he vocalizes his distention LOUDLY. We have bred this dog to our females and pups are super super temperament, passed temperamet tests with flying colors, will approach anyone including complete strangers by jumping all over them, they are confident progeny. I am convinced that this dogs rather shady start in life contributes to his quirky if you will behavior. I also attribute much of it to my husbands horse play and ill timed "challenges" (which by the way he does not recognize as a challenge) My ? is how do I break these two of these challenges ? I don't even know where to start I'm sure I need to just bonk the husband with a cast iron skillet but geez I hate to resort to that. This dog allows our children to maul him while he's on the couch with me, but always sees hubby as a challenge when he approaches if dog is in my lap. I don't handle this dog in training, hubby does, but dog continually looks for me when he's on the field I have to hide behind trees and vehicles so that he will pay attention to hubby, Should we change this do you think ? ok dog was 2 when purchased, we've had him almost a year. he's good with anyone in my home will give complete strangers loves, kisses, cuddles, jump in they're lap and so on. I don't beleive this is a Temperament issue, I beleive it to be a perceived Challenge "dominant male thing" Am I thinking correctly in your opinions ?

Your husband should be able to approach you anytime he wishes with out a 'stand off' from this dog. It sounds to me like you are making excuses for this dog’s dominant behavior. I'm not trying to be harsh here, but you did ask for opinions. Haven't you ever stepped in to correct the dog? After all, he seems to view you as a possession and maybe that is the issue. Maybe it's not so much your husbands problem but between you and the dog? No matter what the past was or wasn't for your dog, the fact that he is fine with everyone else seems to go against your assessment of the issue. I think if he were truly scarred physiologically then you would be seeing the signs elsewhere. If this were my home and dog I would start by having my husband take over as the dog's primary person and not me. Stop all extra activities with this dog and allow your husband to bond with him. I would also start by teaching this dog a solid "off" command and keep a training collar and leash on him. Set this scenario up and work thru this problem until the dog learns that your husband approaching is his cue to move off you and the furniture. I think this situation deserves some tough love on your part and your husbands.

If your husband is going to be the one working the dog then he needs to be the one feeding and caring for him... and you need to both be on the same page with this for the dogs sake.. I don't see where your husband challenged the dog, I do see why the dog thinks he did.... YOU are the issue in this little scenario.... Your dog need more Ruff Love and needs to learn who owns EVERYTHING and who controls EVERYTHING!! In the most kind benevolent dictator way possible!

totally agree with DKiah and Educanine, you have some really sound, good advice there to work on Echomeadows, go for it. Good luck. Mo - Mascani

EchoMeadows, while many, including me could see this as a jealousy issue, I would take the approach that this is really a dominance issue where the dog sees you as his sole Alpha character, and is not allowing your husband to be the other Alpha. The dog has bonded with you; not at all unusual for a male dog and a human female. The dog tested your husband more than once, and your husband has failed to impress upon the dog that he, the husband, has the same rank as you. EduCanine and Dkiah have provided some excellent advice to work towards a resolution in a positive, rather than negative way, and I would certainly try this approach first before applying a negative type of reinforcement, i.e. structured and progressive correction. It's always better if you can determine what to do to cause the dog to WANT, not NEED to change his behaviour. Bob-O

Thank You All Very much, Excellent responses !! Bob-O I think you understoood the situation a little better maybe... EduCanine & Dkiah You make some excellent observations of the situation and here's a little more for you to go on with, and please respond I appreciate your evaluations as well, Very very Much. I do not spend time with this dog, I do not handle him at training, in fact I'm not even allowed to touch him at training fields. (per trainers) I don't let him in to spend time with me alone, have not done so ever since we started his training 6 mos. or so now. Only time this happens is when he comes in to spend family time, he hooks to me and that's it. I do correct him for his verbal complaints to hubby's approach, and often will get up and leave the room, that way there is no possative reinforcement by allowing him to "keep" me. I see it more the way Bob got it, But it may kinda be both ways too, He may looking at me as a posession. Oh another thing, this dog will jump on the couch and put his head in my lap, (lower than my head) When he jumps on the couch when hubby is on other end of couch, and hubby calls him over he will stand on hubby's lap towering his head over hubby's head, does not like to lay down in his lap, will now and then but rarely, which is again why I tend toward the dominance thing.

Hello, echo you received the best advice possible, hope it works out for you. Just one think to add...... i always thought i have a rough marriage...... darn, luckily my wife has not pulled the iron cast pan on me ....just yet !!!:-) Regards Ulli Dresbach

EchoMeadows, Tough Love, NILIF, might help you with this dog.

I'm no expert, but why is the dog allowed on the couch at all? I've always trained my dogs that couches are for people, floors are for dogs, and laps are strictly forbidden. In fact, I'm going through it right now with the 7 month old pup, who tries to get into my lap wherever I'm sitting. He's being taught that if he wants affection, he has to approach calmly and sit, and that if he hops up all he will get is a correction. I expect a certain amount of "cheating" will happen when I'm not home and dogs are free in the house, and my old dog often naps on the bed when I'm out and he's in. But he hops right off when he hears me approach - he knows full well he doesn't "belong" there, and at his age I'm not going to bust his chops for it so long as he isn't blatantly doing it right in front of me. As for leaving the room when your husband comes in and the dog refuses to "surrender" you, I wonder if the dog is interpreting this as "If I can't have her then you're not getting her either" - if so, then he may not be "winning" but he's not "losing" either, and thus is maintaining what he thinks his status is.

Dkiah and Educanine I like your suggestions and I think I'll have one of our trainers come into our home and help us, meaning have the trainer tell hubby what and when to do what is needed to begin a correction to this "stand off" Dog needs to know that hubby is not going to take me away, but momentarilly may move him to take "his" place in the order. I guess I tribute the "rough start" because it only took this dog like 4 days to become completely "hooked up" with me, But I will tell you too that all of our dogs see me as a dominant and view hubby as a subordinate. No dog on this place recognizes him as an alpha. And I am not mean to my dogs, I command respect, I do alot of work with them, and I think too the way I just walk into the pack the way I do, honestly I don't know what it is that I do I don't do it on purpose but something about the way I present myself to dogs gives the "alpha" impression. Apparently hubby does not, The dogs all play with him like he's a sibling. But never come to me for play, they will come to me for security and acceptance, come in and lean on me for attention, ask to be petted and loved, but never come to me to initiate play. When I say Phooey the entire pack lowers heads and scatters to portions of the property, Noone else in my family can effect this. Ohhh and in the house, when we are all watching a Movie with all the dogs in (anywhere from 7 to 11 at one time) Anyone in the family can get up and go say to the bathroom, all dogs remain down and calm, but when I get up all hell breaks loose and all dogs follow me it's quite the enteragge. And noone else can put them outside, anyone else goes to the door and says outside, they all just look up like "ya right" if I get up and head for the backdoor, they all come running HAPPY to comply.. How weird is all this ? Am I doing something wrong ?