Puppy Training Q&As

October 29, 2014

Recommended My 6 month old puppy gets very excited and lunges at other dogs when I go to our local pet store. I want him to not be so wild when he sees other dogs, I would appreciate advice.

Hello, Ed and Cindy. I have a question about my 6 months old GSD puppy and his behavior around other dogs. I watched several of your DVDs, also your basic obedience and engagement online classes, but still have a problem with my pup. He gets very excited when he sees other dogs. I guess he feels insecure around them. I do not let him interact with them at all. All I do is go to our local pet store and just let him be in sight of them. He engages fine at home but no matter the distance from...
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October 13, 2014

My puppy pees in the crate when we leave for errands even though he knows to sit by the door when he needs to go potty.

I have a puppy that is 15 weeks old. I got him a month ago, and was able to housebreak him in about 3 weeks...at least I think so because he now sits by the outside door when he needs to go potty. I can even leave him outside of his crate during the night. He sleeps in the bathroom, and has never pottied there. He waits until the morning when I go outside with him. When my wife and I leave the house to do typical errands, we put him in his crate because we still don't trust him to be u...
91% (10 out of 11)
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October 6, 2014

Recommended My 10 month old puppy is clean in the crate overnight but when I crate him during the day he pees in there about 50% of the time. He's been checked for a bladder infection and he's fine. Do you have any suggestions?

Dear Cindy (and you too Ed), I have a 10 month old Bulldog/boxer puppy who I got at 8 weeks. I have been home day and night with him for the last 6 months and I am returning to full time work in the next few weeks. He is never allowed to roam freely unattended as he is the equivalent of a drunk toddler; as I have always been home usually its a drag line or ex-pen. He sleeps like the righteous in his crate all night - no accidents. However when I do crate him for a few hours during the day ...
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September 22, 2014

Recommended I live in an apartment and my new puppy is obsessed with my cat, can you help?

I am writing to you rather spur of the moment here. I have not looked too much at your website as I don't have a ton of time to do much more research on this matter. I've read a lot of Cesar Milan books/online articles and I've watched some of his DVDs. I know the basics on how to be a pack leader but I am finding it harder to put into practice with a 3 month old puppy than I thought... I got my dog at 12 weeks of age, he is a small shepard/husky mix (13 lbs at 3.5 months). This is the fir...
100% (18 out of 18)
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September 19, 2014

Recommended I found a GSD breeder that looked good on the internet & I put a deposit on a pup. After visiting the puppies I have some reservations, can you give me your opinion?

Dear Ed & Cindy, Today I went to choose the puppy we want out of a litter that I put a deposit on (GSDs). The website was detailed, reviews and references were all good. After my visit, I am not sure about them. 1) They live in a trailer in the middle of nowhere with the dogs in outside kennels (We live in SC). 2) I asked to go see the puppies and she said she would bring them to me because I would upset the moms and other dogs. 3) She said I would have second pick out of a litter of ...
100% (10 out of 10)
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August 1, 2014

Recommended My 4 year old dog is going to the bathroom in the house. We lived with my parents and their dog urinated in the house so my dog would mark his territory wherever the other dog went. He also used to go on pads at night based on our vet recommending this. Friends have said this is his way of getting back at me for moving to a new home. I'm getting frustrated and now I have a baby on the way so I don't want him doing this anymore. Please help me!

I have a Cocker Spaniel who is 4 years old, I was previously living with my parents who had other animals and another dog that used to urinate in the house. So of course my dog would go and "mark his territory" where the other dog went. My dog is trained to go outside and also use pads, our vet recommended the pads because Cocker Spaniels drink a lot of water and if they need to go at night, they can. When living with my parents he used the pad at night when he had to until my boyfriend came,...
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July 23, 2014

Recommended My puppy growls at me when I put my hand in his food bowl while he's eating. Should I interrupt his meal and give the food back when he stops growling?

Cindy, I always feed my puppy who is 18 weeks old now, from my hand during his training sessions. I use kibbles. Once in a while I pour wet food (high value food to him) to his bowl but he growls at me when I stick my hand in it. He does not do that when I pour kibbles to his bowl. Should I interrupt his wet food meal and feed him again after he stops growling?
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July 17, 2014

Recommended Would it be alright for my 4 month old German Shepherd to walk quickly next to my bike while I ride it short distances?

Somewhere in your DVDs or written word, I read that one should not jog with a dog younger than 12 months of age. My German Shepherd is 4 months of age and I was wondering if it would be alright to have him walk quickly alongside my bicycle as I ride at a slow speed for short distances? My thought was that it would be good to have him get used to this at a young age so as not to pull me off my bike as he gets older and stronger. I have thoroughly enjoyed your tapes and your written training ma...
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July 17, 2014

Recommended We are getting 2 Border Collie puppies and will be training them separately (we've read Ed's article) Should we put a screen between the two pups' pens to keep them from being too doggy?

We are getting 2 BC litter mates. I've read Ed's cautions on doing so. We are both experienced dog trainers/handlers and will be training the pups separately, one for each of us, etc. Question: We have outdoor pens for our present 3 BC's and also for the two pups (the latter on our patio under cover as the summer temps here are 100+ daily). Should we put a screen up between the two pups' pens which are next to each other to discourage them from becoming "doggy" or is that taking it too far i...
100% (2 out of 2)
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July 11, 2014

Recommended My new 3 1/2 month old puppy goes beserk in the crate or ex-pen. Would an ecollar be warranted?

Good day, I searched the site and founds lots of interesting information. My question is about my new 3 1/2 month old Belgian Mal. Understanding that she is not in control of her bladder and bowels yet, I have trouble crating her overnight and leave her outside. If left in the crate she makes a huge mess and acts like she is being tortured. For whatever reason, she is happy going into the crate and sleeps in it outside. But, while in the house, if I place her in a crate or expen, even w...
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April 14, 2014

Recommended My 6 month old GSD doesn't have any interest in biting a tug or a towel. As an 8 week old puppy he was very good at biting. Should I forget about doing Schutzhund?

I have a 6 months old GSD Working Line puppy, at 8 weeks he was very good biting, but now he doesn't have any interest on biting tugs, a towel or something else, I have been using the techniques on The Power of Training Dogs with Food and he is chasing the food very nice and no issues with the food, tones of food drive, what should I do differently? Should I forget about him been a Sch Dog as the protection work might be an issue? I watched a video from Michael Ellis saying that some dogs sho...
100% (7 out of 7)
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March 28, 2014

Recommended We adopted a dog about 5 months ago and she's about 95% house trained. How do we fix this last 5%?

Hi Cindy, My husband and I have a spayed female mix, approx. 1 - 2 years old, we adopted 5 months ago. We have a dog door that gives our pooches 24/7 access to our fenced backyard, so they are able to go out to do their business as needed. Our two older dogs never defecate or urinate in the house, and this younger one does not about 95% of the time. It's that other 5% that I'm trying to figure out how to resolve. It would seem she knows she's supposed to do her business outdoors, as that'...
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March 20, 2014

Recommended My puppy is teething, is there a soft tug I can use for playing with her right now?

I recently started playing tug with my four month old BC. Outside of food it seems that's when I get the most focus out of her when training. It has helped me out tremendously in working on recalls, getting a solid out and building a retrieve (she does not like balls). The problem is now she is teething. Is there a soft enough tug that I can use if I lessen the intensity of the game or any other form of play that you think might be as useful? Thank You
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February 21, 2014

Recommended My 5 month old puppy was scared by my nephew when he rode his bike into her. Do you think my puppy will be permanently affected by this?

I have a 5-month-old Aussie. Until last week, her experiences with adults & children were all positive. Then, while we were visiting my parents, my 5-yr-old nephew tried to ride his bike into her. He was scolded but made no amends, & she understandably avoided him the rest of the night. As an "antidote," the next day I invited my two nieces, 5 & 3, who were great with the pup a few days earlier, over to play w/her. The puppy greeted them the first time, but now shied away. She never shied awa...
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February 10, 2014

Recommended We plan on getting a schnauzer puppy in April. One breeder told us to get a belly band for the puppy in the house while house training--even in the crate. I haven't seen you mention anything like this. Is this a good idea or something to disregard?

We plan on getting a schnauzer puppy in April. I have received 3 of your DVDs to help prepare myself for house training, etc. the puppy. One breeder told us to get a belly band for the puppy in the house while house training--even in the crate. I haven't seen you mention anything like this. Is this a good idea or something to disregard? Thanks.
100% (10 out of 10)
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February 3, 2014

Recommended My 10 week old puppy has noticed cars and wants to chase them. Can I use a prong collar to correct him?

My new border collie puppy is just 10 weeks old; I've had for 1 week. In the last 2 days he has noticed cars and wants to chase them. Is it safe to use a prong collar on such a tiny puppy? If not, what do you recommend as a correction for such a young puppy? I have tried to distract him/hold his attention with a treat as soon as I detect a car approaching, but that is not working - he still looks away toward thee car and/or tries to start after it. I want to nip this in the bud. Thanks
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February 3, 2014

Recommended My 6 month old pup is now in the correction phase of training behaviors. He often lays down when I ask for a sit after receiving a correction. Do you have any suggestions?

Hey Cindy, I am contacting you because I am a dog trainer and I have recently stumbled across something that I have not encountered before and I am not exactly sure how to correct it. I have a 6 month American pit bull terrier that I am using for a demonstration dog. He is very smart, and attentive. I have taken him through the learning phase for basic obedience (come, sit, down, down stay), so he knows the difference between sit and down. But when entering the correction phase I have f...
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December 27, 2013

Recommended Is my 6 month old Corgi puppy dominant or does she just lack training?

I'm afraid this may be kind of a stupid question to seasoned veterans such as yourselves, but I've seen "dominant"/independent behavior from my 6 month old puppy ever since she came home with me at 10 weeks. She is a corgi so by breeding she's very stubborn and smart. She attempts to jump onto furniture all the time (I tell her OFF and enforce with body block if I have to), blows off my commands even in the house (or complies very slowly), bullies other puppies (not adults), used to be extrem...
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December 26, 2013

Recommended I'm getting a new Black Russian Terrier pup and I've been told that a lot of your methods won't work for this breed of dog. Do you have any experience with this breed?

Leerburg, Brief history: A majority of my dog training experience through the years has been the "old way" of thinking - and it is frustrating to think of all the mistakes I've made with some wonderful dogs - and how things could have been different. With that said, I'm committed to continually learning so that my future canine relationships will gain the maximum benefit. I appreciate the wonderful accessibility to information your site provides. I've bought several of your videos and have...
94% (15 out of 16)
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December 18, 2013

Recommended We have 2 four month old puppies and the Golden Retriever is beating up on the Cavalier. Help!

I didn't read your article to not get 2 puppies at one time. Now that it is too late, we have a female golden retriever and a male cavalier both about 4 months. We have had them for 1 month and potty training is pretty good. We do have the occasional accident. Our big problem is the golden is beating up on the cavalier. We have tried putting her in her crate when she starts, we have tried loud noises and spraying water but to no avail. we can't let either one go as they both have physical pro...
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