September 24, 2013
My 10 month old GSD is biting my ankles and jumping up and grabbing the leash on walks. How do I correct this?
Full Question:
Question if you would be so kind, I have a ten month pure bred West German show line German Shepherd from German lines. She is starting to rebel and a little difficult to control. On her walks she likes to bite her leash, jump and go after my ankles. I recently have started to tell her no bite, give a little more lead, and ignore her and she stops. But now on the walks she does this two or three times. Not sure if this is just a rebellious stage, play, or if she is challenging my leadership.
I have tried to use some of the principles on your site and have recently purchased the Basic Dog Obedience DVD from your site. I have taught her to sit, down, and leave it commands. But the problem is with her jumping and biting the leash on her walks. She comes from a great kennel in Miami and strong genes. With her genes does she need stricter discipline and how would you recommend her corrections. Thanks for the assistance!
Cindy's Answer:
It sounds like she's trying to make things happen. Jumping, biting and grabbing the leash can either be corrected away OR you could channel that energy into appropriate play with rules.
My choice would be to channel her energy and enthusiasm into games you can play together, but with rules for when it's acceptable to play and clear verbal cues for when to begin and end the games. It's easier to start this type of training when puppies are very small, just because they are a more manageable size.
If you haven't used marker training before I would suggest you read our article on training dogs with markers.
I'd recommend the videos:
The Power of Training Dogs with Markers
The Power of Training Dogs with Food
The Power of Playing Tug with Your Dog
You could always resort to corrections later, but in order to preserve the relationship I always feel that it's best to work WITH their natural drives and tendencies.
I hope this helps.
Cindy Rhodes
My choice would be to channel her energy and enthusiasm into games you can play together, but with rules for when it's acceptable to play and clear verbal cues for when to begin and end the games. It's easier to start this type of training when puppies are very small, just because they are a more manageable size.
If you haven't used marker training before I would suggest you read our article on training dogs with markers.
I'd recommend the videos:
The Power of Training Dogs with Markers
The Power of Training Dogs with Food
The Power of Playing Tug with Your Dog
You could always resort to corrections later, but in order to preserve the relationship I always feel that it's best to work WITH their natural drives and tendencies.
I hope this helps.
Cindy Rhodes
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