Major problem with a puppy - Page 1

My daughter and son-in-law have a 9 month old puppy that they are having major problems with.

She has top-notch bloodlines with the sire being Leido Vom Kuckucksland. The dam is from the same kennel though I cannot recall her name.

She has always been a rather hyper puppy and behaving like a little tornado as she dashed around rapidly. More recently she has become a major problem because she has literally destroyed several pieces of furniture through chewing them. She is generally supervised or crated and these incidents have happened during brief periods when she was not under the constant watch of someone.

They have a young baby and part of their concern is with her frantic behaviour she just might unintentionally hurt the baby especially when she becomes a toddler. They have been at their wits end and so I told them I would keep her for a month or two and see if I can help get her under control. I am particularly hoping that her contact with my male GSD might help calm her down. My dog is a just wonderful, calm, well behaved animal.

My son-in-law has owned dogs and has experience with GSDs - so we are not dealing with a novice owner. She has been received basic obedience training and was acquired as a house pet. She really is a very sweet dog and if some of her errant behaviour could be resolved she would be a great pet.

I have owned dogs but am by no means an expert in training them. But I do have the time to put into exercising and trying to train her.

I am looking for specific suggestions/advice as to what I can do to correct some of the issues with this puppy.

Does she gets a proper amount of exercise? It sounds like she dose not that's where the extra energy get used on destroying things. hyper=healthy=more likely getting in trouble. :)

Keep her on a leash when she is unsupervised by you for continual supervision.  Use the crate when she cannot be supervised.   Be consistent with the handling.  Don't expect her to figure it out for you.  Stay one step ahead of her.  

leash should not be off during few first months if you aming for good obediance, it bothers them now because she i getting bigger = more dameges :)

what is she eating?  a high protein, high fat diet will make her act like this too.  just like feeding a child sugar.

plus, you may just have a high energy, high drive girl! they get tired of her, send her my way

Wild, unruly pups are just the sort who end up in a crate for many hours.

And that is exactly the opposite of what they and you need.

This pup needs a lot more exercise.  Did you say she retrieves?  30-45 minutes of throwing the ball 2-3X a day is not too much.  Can his owner bike if not run?  45 minutes of SLOW pace on a mountain bike on grass and trails (variable speed) can also help.

When loose at home, she should act relaxed and tired -- or go out again.

When loose at home, she should have huge beef bones to gnaw on for an hour at a time.

When unsupervised, she should be in a pen outside or, if absolutely necessary, in a crate.  But remember that for every two hours in the crate she needs to run for half an hour.

We use a soft cotton horse-type lead for inside the house. (We call it the goat lead for some reason, it's a family thing.) You can tie it to a doorknob, or  step on it quick to gain control, otherwise, and especially with the kids-- it becomes a game of catchme. Or To Catch a Thief: (Now we use it only when we need too, which is less and less; (my dog is 2... but he still has lots of puppy in his head....just don't say the word , "Squirrel" so he can hear it!) 

To get attention, and to correct behaviors, on a dog trainers advice we also have used the shaking can filled with pennies. Though I know someone on here was real against that technique, and I don't know why. Worked for us!

Definitely use  a crate when not around. Also, have you tried Apple Bitters on the furniture as a deterrent? Some hate it, some seem to not mind. Definitely the more exercise the better. Keep a huge supply of bully sticks on hand.

Tired dogs don't destroy things as a rule. She needs a family who can exercise her alot more, bike her,hike her, whatever. Pent up energy and frustration, plain and simple. Von Leistung GSD

Puppies and Babies need your time and attention and a lot of it. Why in the world would anyone want a set of twins is beyond me, because that is what they have!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That little girl needs a job! they need to get her to training, teach her discipline, focus, the mechanics of learning and working to please her people. I agree on leashing her 110%, in fact, I have a 5 month squirt leashed to me as I write this. I do disagree about the can of pennies, unless you wan tyour dog to think they are in trouble everytime they hear a loud noise. If she's anything like my dogs (and she sounds like she is)  she may just pick up that can and run with it.  If they cannot make time for her, they need to be realistic and place her while she is still young. A baby AND a puppy, yikes!