Most Popular Q&As

My puppy is very mouthy. It grabs my kids, my arms, my pants. What should I do to stop this?

Hi Cindy, We are house training our G.S. pup (13 weeks old) and he is doing quite well. Now, while in the house, he is either on a leash with me or in his crate. He has not had an accident since we began this practice but I'm not sure how to correct him if/when he does. In the past when I have caught him in the act, I would sternly say 'No - Outside' and take him out to his potty spot. Should my correction be more firm than this or this appropriate? Thank you, Adam

We have a 3 1/2 month old rat terrier mix. While it seems we have broken her of her "mouthing" biting she is aggressively biting more frequently. When she has been aggressive with me (growling, etc) I have taken her by the scruff and told her "No" or "Settle down" in a very stern voice. We have 4 kids ages 4-11 and she has bitten each of them several times and in an aggressive way at least once. Sometimes they have "deserved it" because they were bothering her at inappropriate times but j...

Hello Ed: I have a 50 lb English terrier mix (6 yrs), very sweet and loving when around people/strangers while in my house, backyard or on leash. Off leash, he chases anything that moves, typically ankles of people that are running, biking, skateboarding, etc. He is aggressive with other dogs. The most nerve racking is he goes after children. I picked him up from an unknown family handing out puppies when he was 8 weeks old. He was shy as a puppy. I've had dogs all my life, and if ...

Hi Ed, Is there a specific training video of yours that addresses how to train a dog to stay in his own yard (not to jump a fence)? I have a 1 year old (neutered) Lab-Mix, that loves to visit the neighbor dogs, chase squirrels, turkey, deer, etc. Our 3 acre back yard is fenced in by 4 foot fence - He leaps over it as if it's not there. We've installed an electric fence and he's not fazed by it. Currently he is on a leash and/or lead run. But I'd love to find a way to correct...

I have a German Shorthaired Pointer that is extremely well behaved. He is very submissive with the family. As a pup and even now he submits to family members readily. He was never dominant. I have never known him to fight viciously. I am defiantly a dominant owner and am a strict disciplinarian. I make him wait to eat, walk through doors, etc. He is extremely well behaved and obedient. At home, he barks when strangers and dogs go by. He growls at the door. He does not like when too many s...

I have just perused your web site for the article on dog aggression and have a few questions that I wonder if you could answer. Some of the previously answered questions were close to mine, but they just did not seem to fit the situation exactly. I have a one year old female Germ. Shepherd. She appears perfectly calm around my girlfriend and myself. However, she raises her hair and growls at almost any dog she sees no matter the size. Other dogs cause her to tear into a frenzy. Also, she ...

Ed: First off I'd like to say that I am writing this on behalf of the dog's owner because she does not care enough to handle this matter herself. I will first describe the situation: The household consists of a human (sorry I felt I had to make the distinction) mother and a daughter (the daughter is an adult) and a 3 yr old Australian Cattle Dog male and a 2 yr old Border Collie female. I am the boyfriend of the daughter. Anyhow, on to the question. The male Cattle Dog is out of co...

Ed, I have a 10 week old American Pitbull Terrier (APBT). He is very aggressive toward strangers already. What I mean by this is that whenever someone walks by he will charge at them and start barking. If that person was to advance toward him he would start to back up, though. I like the initial aggression, but why does he back up and what type of temperament is he showing? Would he make a good dog for protection training?

Hello, Cindy. I came under ownership of a (now) 4 month old Australian Cattle Dog puppy a month ago. I've been having some major issues that I really hope you can help me with. The breed is known to be velcro, but this is getting a bit over board. If she is seperated from me, she whines. So long as she is with someone else, it will only be that. If left truly alone, she screams, howls, pees, and poops. If left in a room, she will destroy it - I assume trying to get out. I'm not sure how t...

Hi there Cindy/Ed. Big fan of your work. I know you do not advocate dog parks. I will admit I do frequent them from time to time. Anyways I was witness to what I believed was another horror story. An individual at the dog park was trying to water his dog. A 3 month old husky puppy belonging to another owner took over his water bowl. He kept trying to push it away, and when the puppy nipped at him he lost his cool and gripped the pup by the scruff of the neck, lifted it, shook it and to...

Ed, I recently tried to break up a dog fight between my 4 year old golden retriever and 5 year old yellow lab (both neutered males). The fight occurred in the middle of our large yard. I was alone but still tried to break up the fight by grabbing the back legs of the dog that was wining and lifting and pulling back. As soon as that dog would let go, the other dog would attack. This went back and forth several times. Each time I was able to get one dog to let go, the other would attack. Th...

Hi! I recently purchased the leash reactivity self study course from your online classes. After watching all the videos I noticed that the trainer only talks about dogs that are reactive because they aren't comfortable with a social interaction/want more space from a another dog ect... I could be wrong, but I believe that my dog has the exact opposite issue in that he desperately wants to interact with the other dog. He's a 2 year old dutch shepherd and LOVES playing with other dogs but can b...

Hi Mr. Frawley: We are preparing to bring home our 9 week old male Doberman pup. In preparation for our new arrival, we have extensively studied your website and your DVDs. We have had experience with smaller female terrier breeds but this will be our first large-breed male. Our goal is a highly trained, obedient, non-aggressive pet. We are planning on fixing the dog at 6 months. We have very carefully chosen the breeder for good lines and temperament. My question is this: On y...

How long will the remote collar hold a charge?

Cindy, My GSD is now 1 year old and we had a very serious incident occur last week. She developed a severe case of bloody diarrhea and vomiting which resulted in a day long clinic visit and subsequent hospital treatment for two days. During this ordeal, she lost 10 lbs (from 68 to 58) and the Vet claims she came very close to death. Had we not sent her to the clinic and received treatment immediately to address the problems, she may not have survived. Our GSD has started eating again ...

Mr. Frawley, I am a five year K-9 handler and just started working my second police k-9. I received my first K-9 when he was three years old and he never had an outing problem. I received my second K-9 when he was 18 months old. He is now two and I am having an outing problem with him. Sometimes he will out clean and quickly, and sometimes he will not. I have tried to stay on top of this problem and not let him get away with it. During training when I see that he is being difficult...

My dog insists on walking in front. Not necessarily pulling but taking every bit of leash to where it’s not really loose leash walking. We use a martingale or slip chain collar for walking. I stop and change directions when she moves ahead. Most of the time she notices that I have stopped before the leash gets tight and she stops and turns with me then She will follow until a treat is given then usually moves ahead again. She does pretty well if we are working in an area like around cones. ...

I am re-watching the heelers toolbox and at the section about "head position" I notice it when I work with my dog and feed him with his head up high in the heel position, he eats the treat head down in order to swallow which breaks up our momentum. What am I doing wrong? Or how is that fixed? Or can it be fixed? I am using the Happy Howie's food reward.

Hi Ed, I am a professional dog trainer of over 20 years here in Morrison, Colorado. I specialize in behavior issues, mostly aggression rehabilitation and training owners. I have read every page and every article regarding dog aggression on your site and I am so happy to read that you are also a 'reality' trainer. No fluff, no clickers, no treats, etc., just real training/behavior modification. I also send many of my clients to your site, since I just haven't taken the time that you...