September 21, 2020
I have a very protective dog and I want him to turn off his protective behavior when we show him a visitor is welcome. Do you offer any videos on this subject?
Full Question:
Hi Cindy, I have purchased two videos from Leerburg and I am very satisfied with them. I purchased the Power of Training with Food By Michael Ellis and The power of playing Tug By Michael Ellis. Now, I would like to learn if Michael has any videos on how to teach control my dog when I have visitors to my house. My dog is very protective of my house which I like but I want to be able to let him know when someone is welcome and to turn off his protective behavior once the visitor is clearly welcome. What are the best or highest rated programs that you guys offer on this subject? 
Cindy's Answer:
I get different versions of this question a lot.
If you have a dog that shows real protective instincts then your options are to either put the dog away when people come over or to beef up your obedience training so the dog can be under control 100% of the time when people are present but to expect a dog like this to be friendly and allow just anyone to mingle with him may or may not be possible. This depends on the temperament of the dog, the behavior of guests and your skill as a trainer. For me, the risk isn't worth it especially in this age of people suing others over anything. If your dog actually bites someone it can be devastating.
For me, the people are the biggest reason this can be tricky. The average person has NO idea how to properly interact with a dog and if you get a strong dog with some protective feelings it can go badly in a moment. So in this case you need to be able to control the dog and control the visitors. I have raised working bloodline Malinois and German Shepherds for over 25 years and Ed has raised German Shepherds for over 35 years and there are a great many of our past dogs that we simply put away when visitors arrived.
It's possible to train a dog to be obedient in the face of distractions but it's not really possible to "turn off" instincts.
If you have a dog that shows real protective instincts then your options are to either put the dog away when people come over or to beef up your obedience training so the dog can be under control 100% of the time when people are present but to expect a dog like this to be friendly and allow just anyone to mingle with him may or may not be possible. This depends on the temperament of the dog, the behavior of guests and your skill as a trainer. For me, the risk isn't worth it especially in this age of people suing others over anything. If your dog actually bites someone it can be devastating.
For me, the people are the biggest reason this can be tricky. The average person has NO idea how to properly interact with a dog and if you get a strong dog with some protective feelings it can go badly in a moment. So in this case you need to be able to control the dog and control the visitors. I have raised working bloodline Malinois and German Shepherds for over 25 years and Ed has raised German Shepherds for over 35 years and there are a great many of our past dogs that we simply put away when visitors arrived.
It's possible to train a dog to be obedient in the face of distractions but it's not really possible to "turn off" instincts.
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