Most Popular Q&As

Hello: Thank you for delivering this valuable information about vaccinations. My question is two part: 1. If you live in a state like we do, N. Carolina, that requires rabies vaccinations, how do you get around that so that you can still take your dog to the vet for other needed services? 2. Do dogs have to be vaccinated to protect from worms and parasites or does that over the counter stuff at Pet Smart work? Thank you, Linda and Brad

Dear Cindy, Our Keeshond has been crate trained for 2 1/2 years, he caught on right after we got him; he is now 3. Recently, he will not enter the crate for my wife- he will run away and try to hide if possible, and if she grabs him by the collar and puts him in, he screams as he enters the crate. He seems afraid and acts flaky, as if he is conflicted. He will not go in for a treat. However, I still have no problem with him, he crates fine for me. Once he is in the crate, he behave...

I have 9 week old GSD who chews on all leashes. I need short one for her drag in house. Any recommendations??

Hi, Can you give me some advice on how to get a faster 'down'? When I ask my dog to down, he is willing but always goes down really slowly. Do you have any tips to make it a bit snappier? He is a 16 month old Malinois with low/medium drive for the breed. Thanks

I have been a dog trainer since 1984 in law enforcement environments in SA. Why do some dogs show all the potential to become working dogs, go through training and pass the evaluation for working dogs (patrol and/ or sniffer), but when you deploy the handler and dog, some (a very small%) will report back that the dog doesn't want to work during operational deployment? Is this a mystery of dog training?

Dear Ed and Cindy, I have a problem occurring between my 8 MO. GSD, and my 1 YO. Siberian Husky. This problem only occurs when I'm at the off leash dog park with them. The problem is when my husky starts getting ahead of my GSD, my GSD will chase her down and sack her. By the time my GSD catches up to the husky, they are traveling pretty fast. This is not a mutual, back and forth game that they play. It seems as if my GSD is preying, or maybe she just wants to be in control. Either way, I...

If I am feeding a raw diet, how much bone should I be feeding my female during pregnancy and after she has her litter?

Hi, I have a 14 week old Rottweiler puppy. She has a bone and when I went to pick it up, she went after me. I thought she was kind of young to do that. What would be the best plan to handle this?

I have a GSD who can be quite reactive when on-leash and who tends to 'check out' on walks. I've used a number of Michael Ellis DVDs for training so far and off-leash, he has good engagement, recall, and is not particularly reactive around other dogs. It feels like I lose all engagement once he is on the leash. I am currently using a check chain, which is helping to a degree with his pulling but nothing I do (pop the leash, walk another direction, ask him to 'watch') helps when it comes to...

I have a puppy that is 15 weeks old. I got him a month ago, and was able to housebreak him in about 3 weeks...at least I think so because he now sits by the outside door when he needs to go potty. I can even leave him outside of his crate during the night. He sleeps in the bathroom, and has never pottied there. He waits until the morning when I go outside with him. When my wife and I leave the house to do typical errands, we put him in his crate because we still don't trust him to be u...

Hey guys, I am feeding my two German Shepherds a raw meat-only diet. I would just like to check this is healthy. Should I be varying their diet more is it ok to only feed them raw beef? Any help would be great. Thanks Ed and Cindy, and keep up the great work you are doing at Leerburg.

We are at the end of our rope, I am hoping you can help with your extensive knowledge of German Shepherds. We had a beautiful GSD 3 years ago and was not able to keep her because of a move and we were heartbroken. (We had her for a year). Well, about 4 weeks ago we decided to go and get another one and I will admit to you right off the bat we did everything wrong. We found someone in the paper and went and fell in love with the last puppy of a litter of 14. I think our minds were made up ...

So glad I found Leerburg.com! I thought I knew how to raise a pup, had done so successfully but with (in hindsight) luckily pretty soft dogs. Husband decided "it was time" to get a pound puppy, so an 8 week old lab/hound/shep/pit mix came home with us from the downtown Detroit Humane Society last March. Of course I knew I would raise it but boy did I get more than I bargained for. I have 4 kids and a husband in denial. No one in his family "trains" their dogs but they always have huge lab...

I take my 8-month dog to a professional trainer. He is very rough on her, (flanking her), to get her to show aggression. Is this OK for the dog?

We live in a small town and I can't find anyone to train us, mostly my husband and I. Laney (1 year old part chow part Shepherd) has many annoying habits: constant licking or jumping up on us. She can never just sit or lay by us while we watch TV or talk. She also play bites my husband, but never me because I have been firmer in the past with her. Last, she is too smart for us, we can never get her to come or leave the room, go to bed, go outside... When we try she always lays down, rolls on ...

We have an 11 week old puppy. He appears to be very dominant. We think we are having problems establishing our pack structure with him- we have watched all your videos but can't seem to find a solution. We are crate training him and he seems to have picked up on housebreaking pretty quickly. The problem is that he has a mind of his own. One of the problems is when he is biting something. We will tell him to stop- and he will stop. But then he will wait a few seconds and try t...

I have an 8 month old rottie. He is a good dog, however, I have some problems making him give me something (anything) he has stolen from me. He just looks up at me and curls his upper lip. I don't think he wants to bite or harm me, he is usually a very gentle dog. I can put my fingers in his food bowl, and even put my hands in his mouth, however, when he takes something he will not give it back. What do I do?

If you have time I would appreciate your opinion on the following. This was about 15 years ago. Our son, Derek, was nine. We had a GSD I had trained in basic AKC obedience. I would have trusted her with the boy anywhere, anytime. When people came to the house she would stand between them and the rest of the house for about 30 seconds. When she walked away it was OK for the people to come into the house. If anyone tried to walk past her before she moved away the dog would act very u...

Hi there... Love your website and everything you do and also as a customer please keep it up... I have a problem with my 11 months German shepherd, he is embarrassing me by humping on my leg or jump and hump on me or even sometimes with other family members especially while we are out for a walk in the beach or other places. Please let me know the correct direction on how to deal with it :(

I have an 8 week old puppy & have been crating her since day 1. Although it's only been 4 days. She still gets pretty frantic after putting her into the crate. She sreams, howls & barks exsesivly. It can last from 1 solid hour to 3 hours off & on. We ignore her while in crate. I have tried placing the crate both in site of us (day time) & out of site (night time) with no change. I do put an everlasting toy/treat along with another chew in the crate with her. Also at night I place a blanket ov...