I'm applying what I read in the Newsletter to my own dog.

Cindy,

Thanks for doing this Q&A in the newsletter, it's a great adjunct to the web site, where I've learned a lot. There's always more to learn about working with dogs.

We have a pack, consisting of my husband Brian and me and four dogs: Golden Retriever Spenser (9, neutered M); and three European show-line GSDs: Bonnie (9, F spayed at 7), Kaja (19 months, F intact so far), and 'Pollo (19 weeks, M intact). Brian and I were already doing most of your 'pack structure' program even before we got the dvd (which was before the Kaja-'Pollo incident below); both of us are experienced with dogs, with working dogs, and with GSDs, and neither of us has trouble figuring out who is in charge, us or the dogs. (I say: there's only *one* alpha bitch in this pack, and she doesn't have four feet.)

The problem dog is Kaja: highly excitable, and somewhat insecure around other dogs. These traits are a bad combination. Around dogs not in her pack, her natural tendency is to try to dominate through lunge-snarl-snap, which worked when she last got to try it at 3 months old (she is not let to do this anymore) -- she dominated like 20 dogs in one day at a local fair, and leash corrections were ineffective. Even then she was quite 'hard.'

If allowed to get overexcited, Kaja escalates to inappropriate dog aggression. In our own pack it's not fear or insecurity, it doesn't even seem to be dominance, I think it's excitability. It doesn't have to be excitement about dogs -- when we had guests over the holidays, she loved the people but whenever they arrived and came into the house, if allowed to she would trot laps around the house at top speed, vocalize (we call her "Shriekie"), and sometimes, the excitement spilled out as aggressive rushes and snarls toward the other dogs. Never has she shown aggression toward people. Kept on a leash and not allowed to escalate, she's no problem.

The older dogs will still put her down from time to time, and she still does submission displays to the older GSD (lead dog, under us). Kaja and the pup *love* to play together, and it was mostly gentle and fun even if the puppy does sound like a snarl-machine. But after weeks of appropriate play, Kaja got carried away one night and went after the pup and drew blood (small slash on the snout) on the then-4-month-old pup.

WELL. Back to pack structure basics! The crate and the leash, one or the other, and never loose together unsupervised. Kaja *is* obedient -- I can call her out of a play session, and she comes right away. We do not let Kaja and 'Pollo play with each other so much anymore as let them play near each other. I am teaching both dogs the new command "settle"-- that is: disengage, separate, and lay down.

Too bad I don't need a protection dog; Kaja would do well, since she is very hard, has strong prey and defense drives (if she feels threatened by, say, a lawn mower on the other side of a gate, where the other dogs all retreat and bark, she moves forward and tries to attack and bite the threat), is very smart and loves to play.

What made me write is the question in the last newsletter from the person with a dog-aggressive Lab. Like Kaja, he's well trained obedience-wise and no problem with people. We had already embarked on the enhanced-control-and-pack-structure regimen when I saw this person's question, and wanted say how well your answer has been working for us. Like the Lab, the key for our dog is that we must not let her control her own excitement - she must know that she has to look to us first. I wanted to thank you for so clearly laying out the issues and solutions. It's working for us.

Sara