Most Recent Q&As

Hi Cindy, We have a GSD puppy, now 15 weeks, got her at 8 weeks. We bought an expen from you, and the video by Ed on raising puppies. We had a previous GSD male who we lost to a brain tumor at age 8 last year. However, we got him at 4 months so did not experience some of the challenges with a younger puppy. 1. She gets quite aggressive late in the afternoon, about 4 pm, and is all over my wife when they go out for potty, etc. she bites, grabs legs with both paws, etc. Dinner is about 5p...

Hi Cindi- what is the best food for puppy & adult malinois? Thank you

After many months of trying, my 14 lbs terrier mix is not consistently straight on a recall or being called front from heel. Do you have any advice? Thanks!!

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 wel...

Hi. Watching Power of Food. Watching Michael luring to a stand and then sit. I understand the lure and reward, but I don't hear him say sit, just the motions. Am I missing something or not hearing it? Thanks.

I have a 10 year old son who likes to play with our 4month GSD. The issues I’m having is the puppy wants to bite on him. Even with re direction and giving a bully stick or elk antler chew. I think the puppy views my son as a litter mate. She doesn’t really bite on me but I’m the one training and feeding her. She does it more so with my husband who likes to get on the floor with her and roll around. She does it constantly with my son who likes to play tug with her and he tends to move pr...

Hi Cindy, We’re watching a 1yr 4mo intact female pit bull. Shes very playful with other dogs, but when other dogs don’t want to play and snap at her, she attacks them. We purchased your aggressive dogs video, but we don’t see anything that pertains to this type of aggression. I’m trying to keep this brief, so if you would like more information about it, I’m happy to provide. Thank you again for all you do for the community!

I recently installed a doggie door and my german shepherd is afraid of it. I have been using luring to get her to go trough the door only when I'm holding the door up. Any thoughts on how I can get her to start using the door on her own.Thanks

I am trying to teach leash pressure and when I put pressure on the leash to guide my dog backwards, he always sits rather than move backward.Advice on how to change that?

Hello Cindy. In 3 months I'll be getting my 2nd Cane Corso (pup). Recently my 10 year old Cane Corso passed away. I stayed on top of his training from day one with the help of your DVD and online articles and the result was a dream of a dog and companion. My question is about teaching a pup that YOU own the food. I have read you say that you leave your pup alone with their food and once it's down, you do not touch it. So does it all have to do with age? I would have thought you'd want t...

I am a little frustrated with my DDR GSD. Out of no where he has become destructive. One pair of glasses, 5 pairs of shoes and vacuum parts. I understand he is entering adolescents. I expected he would become hard headed which he has like I haven't taught him a single thing lol. But the destruction was unexpected I never dealt with this with our lab or Mal. he is our first GSD. I guess my question would be is this normal or am I missing something. I have followed Michael Ellis' training as I ...

Id like to ask a couple training questions: Can you use the clicker and 'yes' together to mark? ie. Dog's butt hits the ground, you "click", then say "yes" pause and feed? Is this ok? Are there there certain commands where the clicker is better than 'yes'? Can I mix up training during day - start sit, then move on to down, move on to - stand. Mix in 'nose' or 'place'...then go back - all while being different timings of trainings and not confuse the dog? If no, then how long do you stay at...

Is there any videos, streaming or articles about how to phase out treats while Training? Long story short-- my dog has recently decided that she refuses to perform anything I ask if her unless I've got a treat for her... Even tasks she USED to perform perfectly with NO treats--- now I've got to lure her into correct position with a treat... If I refuse to give a treat she LITERALLY sat there making eye contact for nearly 10 minutes refusing to do a task unless I had a treat!!!!! I'm desperat...

I am interested in ordering the Michael Ellis puppy workshop course. I own a copy of Michael Ellis Raising Your Puppy course and am concerned the workshop may contain a bulk of information I already have. Is there a way for me to audit the course before purchasing it? Due to the price of the course, I want to make sure I am not paying a huge premium for content I already have.

I adopted a GSD about three months ago. He is about a year old, and arrived emaciated, and an anxiety disorder that left him chasing and yelping for his tail, and when caught, proceeded to bite it bloody. Your content, including media and prose, provided tools that perhaps saved this dog’s life. Thank you. I have gained a strong interest for protection sports, and would like to introduce my dog to it. I am unsure of the distance we will reach, but our determination is unwavering. I notic...

My 17 month old Dutch Shepherd has travel anxiety, she pants and won't relax in the 2nd seat of our SUV. She is in a safety harness and can lay down. I tried a name brand herbal calming product which did not seem to help, I'd like to avoid Benadryl or vet Rx. Chew toys or treats are ignored. Would it be o.k. to use the e-collar to break her thought process, say as part of saying down, (she ignores commands when so agitated) or would a tap or click make things worse? She didn't have any ...

I have the Training the Retrieve with Michael Ellis video and am working with my dog on the "Take it" part of the training. My dog shows no interest in taking the PVC pipe. I tried to move to a wooden dowel, still no luck. I have tried about 5 sessions and still no interest, not even a little interest to try and reward for shaping the behavior. I decided to move on to the hold part of the training which is going well, but I am afraid if I go out of order it may mess up my progress in the e...

Can an ex-pen be used successfully with an adult dog that has never been in one? Our GSD rescue 1 1/2 yr-old neutered male loves his Vari-kennel, sleeps in it at night, and goes in to rest. I rarely leave him unattended in the house and never with our other dogs, but would like to be able to use an ex-pen instead of or in addition to the VK if we travel or have guests.

Hi Cindy, Training question for the GSD puppy: I never ask her to do anything she cannot do, however, our trainer felt it would be good for her to do basic obedience in the class with 3 other puppies. We failed miserably. She was focused on the other puppies. I had a really hard time getting her attention with treats and tug. Am I wrong to think that we should stay away from group classes now or should we participate even if it means a whole lot of corrections with the prong? Also, at what...

Hi Cindy, I have a 15wk old Shepherd pup. He has decent possession and will chase a ball, rag, sleeve. He arrived at 10wks of age and would grip and carry toys/objects well. As he's developed he has become very chewy, especially on the jute puppy sleeve. This has transferred to the leather rag but not the softer squeak toys. I can pull the sleeve/rag out of his mouth with only minimal effort. Obviously I do not want him to learn he can't win or that the sleeve is always going to be ripped ...