Most Popular Q&As

Hi Cindy, I have used some of your videos and they are great. I have a 3 year old Shiba Inu and I am having problems with putting flea treatment on him. I know that you are not advocates of flea treatment, but I haven't been able to control the fleas through other methods. Last time I put frontline on his neck he was very distressed, snapping and crying. I think its fear rather than aggression. Overall, he is a well trained dog, very polite, and a pleasure to live with. He was stubb...

What DVD would you recommend to help me learn how to deal with a dog that has crazy resource guarding habits? Everything I've read says it's one of the hardest behavior issues to correct and most dogs will never be corrected. (?!) I have two Australian Shepherds, an unaltered male and an altered female. The female is the one with the problem. They're always crated separately for feeding so that has never been an issue and thankfully, she doesn't guard people or show aggression towards people ...

Hi, My name is Lisa and I have been training dogs for about 40 years, I'm 48. This is an issue I can't figure out and of course it's my own dog. We bought our Mal 2 1/2 years ago. Great dog. very high drive, sweet temperament. Great at obedience and agility. Here is the crazy part. We bought new furniture 2 weeks ago, the day after I got home from the hospital having surgery (I was in hosp. for a week). We got a couch and 2 recliners. Dirk (our dog) is terrified of the noise the recliners...

Ed, We have a 7 year old Beagle and a 14 year old Cocker Spaniel at home. We've had both since they were puppies, but we got the cocker first. They have gotten along up until about this past year. Lately, the Beagle has been attacking the Cocker Spaniel. She's a hunting dog, so she's fast and gets a good grip on the other dog. Out of the blue, she'll lunge at the other one and attack her, without ever letting go. When we try to drag her off, she takes the other one with her. It doesn...

Hello, I have recently rescued a 7 year old Staffordshire Bull terrior/Jack Russell, her name is Penny. She is well behaved and has understood from the off that I am master. I was told she was dog aggressive and I am confident enough and usually able to distract her we she sees other dogs whilst out on the leash. However, yesterday as I walked round a blind corner another domesticated dog came with it's owner, Penny instantly lunged and bit the dog around the snout before I could react, th...

Hi, I've been watching your basic dog training videos with my 4 and 5 year old papillons. They've quit pulling on the leashes on walks, but only as long as they are on prong collars. They still pull continually on flat collars. How do I transition between the prong collar and the flat collar for walks? Thanks! Rebecca

Hi, I have a 4 month old GS puppy that since 8 weeks, has been eating his poop. We follow him and clean up, but sometimes he gets some we didnt find. I feed him Blue Buffalo, and give him GNC brand No Poop pills. He seems to have a sensitive stomach, as I changed high value treats to your red barn and he gets diarrhea. For this reason, I am hesitant to change food. Thanks, Melissa

Hi, I have a nearly 4 year old female spayed GS. She seems very high drive, as explained by the breeder. Bloodlines from Europe. She aims to please and is very good and trainable. We want her to bark at cars and people coming to yard. She barks at the night critters but never people or cars. I once saw her bark at my Dad that was unexpectedly in the trees one day. She is always loose on property, never runs away, and has a beaten trail around the house that she seems to be protecting. Whi...

Two weeks ago we adopted a 3 1/2 yr. Golden Labrador dog for free, from a reputable kennel. Before deciding on the dog, we asked: - Is he well behaved around people, other animals? Since we have 2 children, 2 birds & a cat, the dog had to have an excellent temperament around other animals and children. - Knowledge of commands, what? - Name, Address & Number of previous owner. - Medical History, shots, neutered, dates shots were last administered. - Exact breed lineage. - V...

What is the best way to teach a puppy the "stay" command?

I have a 7 mos old giant schnauzer female, my third giant -- so I'm familiar with the breed. My problem is that she has suddenly started barking and growling at people (who aren't accompanied by dogs). But it's unpredictable. In a large crowd, she accepts strangers and tolerates the attention. It's typically when only one person approaches, or passes by even at some distance, that she will bark or growl. Also, it is unpredictable: first she'll let three people pet her, and then suddenly ...

Hello, and thanks for your wonderful website and training materials! You have already made a huge difference for us in dealing with our 3.5-month-old GS/Rottie mix. Sorry if you have answered this question elsewhere but I couldn't find anything on it. Our problem is that our puppy happily poops and pees on our property, but she will not do anything away from our property! We live in a pretty rural area and there are lots of places along our walking route where she could relieve herself, but s...

Hello, I have an 8 month old 80 pound labradoodle. He is intended to become my service dog, but for 4 of his 8 months I have pretty much been unable to train him in any manner that requires physical interaction on my part. Yes, he can be out of control, but in general he prefers the attention I give him and behaves himself. He is very energetic and hunts out all possible items he can chew, then literally eats whatever he may find. This includes his harness!! Simon has chewed through 3 h...

I have a 2 year old black lab mix that chases any thing that moves and will take off and not come back until he is ready. I do not want to use a prong collar. I think it is cruel. He doesn't pay attention when he sees a bird or anything else. HE listens to come when leashed but when unleashed he doesn't. What can I do.

I have an extremely aggressive 2 year old Brazilian Fila male and a shy female of the same breed. The problem is the male. He is very sweet to the family, you can take his food when he eats, he wants attention like a puppy but when seeing strangers he becomes wild and dangerous, almost out of control from anger. I physically stopped him a couple of times in the past in the middle of an attack. I worked with him when he was younger on the basic commands, 'sit', 'come', 'down', but not enou...

Hi, I searched your site and couldn't find an article that pertained to my problem so I thought I'd just e-mail you. I have a 4 y/o border collie/gsd mix and a 9 year old chow mix (both rescued at 9 mo). I made the mistake of introducing Wicca (BC) to Tuesday (chow, who was 6 at the time) the old fashioned way (muzzle the both of them and let them go at it). But what is done is done. Now, they have lived pretty happily together for 4 years, but they do have a lot of dominance issue...

Hello, My name is Deanna and I have a question about the dog my fiance and I have. He is a two year old mix breed, possibly has Lab and Springer Spaniel along with something else in him. He weighs about 80 pounds and for the most part is well behaved when we are home. We got him when he was approximately 11 weeks old from the Humane Society in Menomonie. We made the mistake of not kenneling him while we are gone. We close off a back porch where he stays and put his kennel back ther...

Cindy, I talked w/ Donna today and she requested that I write you for advice on which e-collar to purchase for my dog. Charley is a 15 month old miniature poodle, about 12 pounds. Charley is a an extremely active, athletic dog. We do a 3 or 4 mile run most days. He?s not aggressive, very social, a poodle, but a ?soft? dog, mild and loving most of the time. He?s probably the best dog I?ve ever had. I am working w/ Charley steadily on obedience training, aiming for trials for CD ti...

I have a 2 year old non neutered belgian malinois. He is 95 pounds and is very over aggressive. He is 75% narcotic trained. He just bit a child, not a sight I would ever want to have seen. Luckily he didn't break any skin, however he has become aggressive to a maximum. I don't want to get rid of him, but I have no choice. The only other option I have is to send him to some doggy boot camp. He follows my commands all the time, except we he is aggressive. The only way I would keep him is if...

Hi Cindy, I've purchased all of the Ellis DVDs and the Basic Dog Obedience DVD and the Marker Training DVD but still am unsure how to train the basic "stay" command - whether in a sit or down. All of the DVDs seem to assume the "stay" command has already been taught to the dog. Anyway, can you assist in how to teach the "stay" command so that I can move on to some of the more skilled obedience commands in the DVDs with my Dutch Shepherd? Thank you!