Most Popular Q&As

Hi Ed and Cindy. Thank you for all the help. I have a question about engagement. I wish I could just buy the DVD: The Power of Training Dogs with Food, but I just cannot afford it right now. My question is: what am I looking for in my dog when he is engaged? Will he be focused on me and me only even in new environments? Or does engagement mean that he will cooperate just enough so that I can teach him a new position even though he may be a little distracted? And also ...

Hi Ed, My name is Michelle and I want to thank you for providing your knowledge to help people be better dog owners and to have happier dogs. I respect you highly and love how you "tell it like it is" without sugar coating anything. I ordered one of your video tapes 12 years ago when I got my first German Shepherd to train him. Sadly, I had to have him put down last week. He was the best dog I ever had - with the help of your training methods. I'm still grieving and am not ...

Cindy: It is remarkable what you are doing with marker training and your horse. Unbelievable. I really never saw the advantage or reason for marker training or touching something but through your videos and articles, I learned that my biggest limitation is my own mind and understanding! In regards to not getting shots for puppies, does that mean you recommend that puppies don't get any of their vaccines (usually there are around 5 shots they get)? If so, can that be detrimen...

Hello Cindy, I would also like to ask you another question about vaccinations.Here in UK most vets insist on it, so I have vaccinated Tyson as a pup for DhPPi. Now I don't want to vaccinate him again no more, but the vet said a have to. I found another vets practice which said they wont vaccinate him, if I don't want to. However the vet advised me to run a titer test, and depends on the results, he decides if to vaccinate. I just wonder if I should listen to him,and if the t...

Hello, I recently purchased some of your DVDs; Building Drive and Focus, Bite Training for Puppies, and The First Steps of Bite Training. I plan to follow up with the first steps of defense and training personal protection dogs. I find them very informative and very well done. I have a couple of questions that I would like your insight on. The first is I have a GSD that is 20 weeks old. He is very smart, obeys commands sit, stay, retrieve, leads well sits in the kennel while I go out fir...

Hi, my name is Jose and am very active in all the training products and information on the forum. I have a problem that I cannot seem to get the answer for. I have a four month GS and have been introducing the sit. My problem is that my puppy seems to sit away from me. I try not to reach out to feed him and have tried putting his rear up against a wall as well, but he begins to role his hip when up against the wall. I have also tried a short leash in an upward position to try to ge...

Interesting that the AKC has developed a working dog title. Didn't they previously have a policy that they would not permit any dog sport that 'allowed a dog to bite a human being'? I'm paraphrasing of course. I'm all for working dog titles and as soon as my breeder in Canada can produce a good working Black Russian Terrier male, I will be starting my dog down the Schutzhund trail. I might even take a look at AKC working title. Just finished your video on pups 8 weeks to 8 mon...

How can I divide obedience training in a puppy of 8 weeks and prey drive development using your DVD bite training puppies. What I am really asking is how can I do both things at the same time? Can you give me certain times in a day I can do obedience training and prey drive development?

Hello, I have a 13 month old female GSD and I belong to a local Schutzhund club, recently they started obedience class with the younger dogs. I have your video on Basic Obedience and Building Drive and Focus and many more, my problem is she is distracted in the obedience class by other dogs, at home and alone her drive and focus is great. In your video Basic Obedience you say you don't care for these classes because they are crank and pull, should I discontinue these classes and work more...

Hi Cindy or Ed, First I want to thank you for all the great info and products available via your website and secondly thank you for taking the time to answer the numerous emails I am sure you get. I am pretty sure I have answered my own? but want to run it by you before moving on. I have raised quite a few young dogs, conformation, herding, and more recently a great group of sighthounds. I have only had one dog that I had wished to pursue sch. work with but I had made the de...

I purchased "How to raise a working puppy." I want to build their drive; I'm concerned that the "Drive & Focus" video won't help. The pups are ~6mos. I've started to seperate them over the past few weeks (especially in the yard), they do alot of whinning. What am I not doing? Or what should I be doing? One is food motivated the other isn't. I take them to the local bus/subway station and playground to expose them I even have them watch schutzhund bitework. Can you help? Thank you, ...

Dear Mr. Frawley, I have combed through and searched information on my specific question over your website, and I have not found one that deals with this question, I even looked up some that may go over a similar scenario and answer this, but I haven't found it. I apologize if you have encountered this before. I have a year old german shepherd that i purchased naively from a so-called "breeder." I was new to the GSD world, and it is as much my fault for not being more inform...

I read your pages about dealing with an aggressive dog and what to ask you about my situation. I have a three year old Lab/German Shepherd mix dog. She is a very loving dog to my roommate and me. She does a have very bad dependency problem which has cost me a lot of money. Most of the time when I leave her, she tries to break out of the house. She will chew on the fence, chew on the front door or anything else that could possible get her out. I have tried giving her a lot of exerci...

I have a 1 year old Springer spaniel with severe separation anxiety. Every time he is put in his kennel he will defecate, urinate, hyper-salivate (puddles of saliva), howl and bark (non-stop) and he digs at the cage like he is trying to escape (he has destroyed a metal cage). We always come home to a poopy wet mess. He has never liked being in the kennel, even as a new pup; but has always stayed in it when we are gone. We have tried the kennel in every room in the hou...

I volunteer at a shelter. Three weeks ago, I brought a semi feral pup into my home. Two weeks ago I brought home her brother because he was going to be euthanized. They are about 5 to 7 months old. The female at this point lets me pet her, takes food from my hand, I got a collar on her, she even lets me rub her belly if I am on the floor or bed with her. If I pick her up ( I have to sneak this) she will let me, but is very stiff. If I try to crate her, she will put her mouth on...

I have attended 2 different schools to become a dog trainer. Basic Obedience, behavior and scent work. Somehow I got involved in schutzhund and I like it a lot. I like challenge. So not knowing anything about the sport, my husband decided that we should buy a green dog from Slovakia and he would be my challenge and my project to achieve. My husband is from Slovakia. He found this gorgeous dog Donnie with an incredible pedigree. It cost me money. The entire time I knew I did not want a gre...

Ed, I got your name from a woman Cynthia from Trinity Croft. She recommended you to me because I have an aggressive dog, who seems to be getting worse. When she was about 3 mos old I took her to a place called K-9 Guardian and we were asked to leave because she was so aggressive. For a long time I thought I could handle her but she got worse. Last March I hired a dog trainer from ?Who?s The Boss? and he worked with us until just recently and is still consulting over the phone. She...

Hi there, I am writing this to you in a state of high distress. My doberman who is 2, we have had him 6 months, just bit my 5 year old son requiring many stitches. This is the 2nd incident and I believe it is a dominance pack issue thing as it only happens if he is alone with my kids, something I try desperately to not have happen. I don't know what my son may have done to provoke it but it would likely have been trying to hug the dog he said he had rolled onto his back and he went to pet his...

I read your comment about not having time for people who did not read the information provided already on your web site So I read many postings before sending you this request for information but perhaps being both hopeful and confused I think I need a straight forward answer. We had one female spayed doberman we have had since 10 weeks old who we have taken through beginning obedience training at 16 weeks old. Several months later we rescued her litter mate, also female. Due to her agg...

Great Site. Began buying equipment from you just recently. Thanks. 1 year old male GSD. Very good. Very obedient. Somewhat dog aggressive; but, we are working on that. My partner plays "chase" with Kipp. She tosses a toy. He runs after it. Waits. She chases him. (I searched your site for answers to this one and wasn't successful yet ... so I'm writing). Seems to me that this is a back-asswards game. Yes/NO? Should I allow her to continue (and things are OK)? Or, should I...