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August 12, 2023

Recommended What size Kuranda bed do I get for a 10 week old German Shepherd puppy?

Hi Cindy - I am a new student of Michael's videos for my puppy I pick up on Monday. He is a 10 week old German Shepherd. Should I buy him a Kuranda bed he will grow into or start small?
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August 12, 2023

Recommended My recently adopted 8 month old Husky is frantic if I kennel her and leave. What is the best way to retrain this?

Good morning, I've just recently adopted a 8 month old female husky. Her precious owners were Hobbie breeders, and she was kept in her kennel constantly. I have no other behavior issues with her beside when she is kenneled and I'm not home she becomes frantic and will try to destroy the kennel. What is the best way to recreate train a puppy that panics in their kennel? If I am in her eye sight she will lay in her kennel with the door open or closed with no issues. She will engage in relax...
100% (4 out of 4)
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August 11, 2023

Recommended My German Shepherd puppy is confused. I'm trying to use spatial pressure to teach her to back up and she lays down instead.

My 15 wk GSD is confused and I know I caused it. She takes the down as I am trying to use spatial pressure to push her into ‘back up’. I don’t name it til I love it, so I have successfully Named/marked ‘Down’ with her . It’s just the movement toward her that I think confuses her. What or where should I ‘Go back’ and focus on to truly distinguish this for Her.
100% (6 out of 6)
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August 7, 2023

Recommended My German Shepherd gets whiny when he sees people or goes to a new place with us. Can you help?

Hi! I love your website and refer to it often. I have a 15 month fully intact male GSD. He is our first GSD so we are learning
100% (6 out of 6)
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August 7, 2023

Recommended How do we tell what kind of aggression our 2 dogs are showing when we have guests over? Is it fear, frustration or prey drive?

Dear Cindy, we have 2 dogs (a 5-year old Beagle/GSD mix and a 4-year old Australian SD/Lab/Black retriever mix, both males) which have been exhibiting increasing aggressive behavior issues over the last 3 months. I am not sure how to identify what type of aggression it is (fear, frustration, or simple prey drive) and therefore what type of training/counter conditioning would be the most suitable one. Indeed, I suspected fear aggression. However, I learnt in one of Michael Ellis' videos that ...
100% (4 out of 4)
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August 5, 2023

Recommended I'm getting a puppy soon and the breeder told me that he has an umbilical hernia, would you still consider getting that pup or not?

Hi Cindy, I‘m about to get a male puppy in 2 weeks and the breeder told me now that the pup has a small umbilical hernia which is not congenital. Would you still consider getting the puppy or not?
100% (6 out of 6)
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August 2, 2023

Recommended I have been watching your videos and working on tug with my adopted shepherd mix. I'm having trouble getting play with my dog, I've watched the videos over and over and I think my presentations are good. Do you have any ideas?

I am watching your tug videos. Michael Ellis says that letting your dog carry and keep the toy will build possessiveness. Mark Keating seems to say the opposite. I have a 3.5 year old shepherd mix we adopted. He seems mostly motivated to take whatever toy we tug with to keep and chew. If I give him wins, he keeps walking away and when I bring him back, he gradually loses interest. The other day I thought I would try just tugging and outing, never giving the tug to him completely. Now h...
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August 2, 2023

Recommended When I take the leash off of my 6 month old Rottweiler she forgets all of her training and we are having an issue with mouthing. Someone suggested a muzzle or ecollar , will this help my situation?

Hi, I've been watching your videos and they really helped me to realize what is normal with puppies. We have a 6 month old female Rottweiler we also have 5 children ages 15 to 6. We did puppy kindergarten at 8 weeks and then at 16 weeks we did a 4 week training class where we dropped her off 4 days a week and brought her home every night at 4pm. We still go back for training 2 times a week together for a half hour. My problem is when her leash and prong are off she forgets all her training...
100% (15 out of 15)
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August 2, 2023

Recommended Can a dog bite through a cloth muzzle enough to draw blood?

Hi, we have an 13 year old terrier who is diabetic and blind. Recently we visited a family member with her. Also living there is a sister who has 2 large rescue dogs, both with bite histories. Their owner trains them daily. They are mostly leashed when outside, except when she is out with them. When we arrived for the visit, both of these dogs were off leash but I didn't see their owner (she was around the corner at her car). The female dog was wearing a cloth muzzle. I walked to the hous...
100% (3 out of 3)
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August 2, 2023

Recommended I got a 6 inch training tab for my friend's new puppy and she's never used one before, can you explain how to use it?

I got a friend of mine the 6 inch training tab for her new Standard Poodle puppy. She’s never used one before. How would you describe how to use the tab and why/what it’s used for?
100% (5 out of 5)
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August 1, 2023

Recommended I have a 6 year old rescue Pit bull that I have had for 2 years. When I play tug with her, she shakes it aggressively and wants to run off with it. How do I teach her to play nicely?

My dog tugs/shakes aggressively and wants to run off with the tug and "kill" it. How do I get my dog to calm down a little around the tug and play nicely?
100% (1 out of 1)
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August 1, 2023

Recommended My puppy stared at me when I pushed her off the couch, is this a sign of dominance and if so, how should I handle it?

I have a 5-month old malinois mix as a house pet. I want a calm submissive dog in the house. I use your streaming service to build trust and engagement. She loves games, waits patiently at all doors, makes eye contact, and is crate trained, and has learned the “place” command. I also let her jump on the furniture at her own discretion. I watched your video on Pack Structure and I’ve decided I only want her on the couch if I allow it. She jumped on the couch (and on me) and I told her ...
100% (7 out of 7)
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July 30, 2023

Recommended My new adopted dog is aggressive to my 4 year old dog when I let them run loose in open spaces, she's good on structured walks but free time in the back yard is the problem. What can I do?

I recently adopeted/rescued husky mix female dog from its owner in February of this year. She was I year old at the time. She is now 16 months and the one thing I havent been able to retrain this lady out of is her agressive attitude in open spaces with my 4 year old siberian husky. Everyone keeps telling me she is a puppy and thats how dogs figure out who is top dog, yet watching her pounce and attack from behind, chace and nip his hind quarters AND watching my 4 year olds reaction to th...
100% (8 out of 8)
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July 24, 2023

Recommended My young Golden Retriever lunges and jumps all over people and other dogs. He is not at all aggressive but he never calms down. Which of your courses would best help me learn to train him?

I have a 10 month old golden who has not been properly socialized. He is very reactive to people and other dogs. He lunges at them and jumps all over them wanting attention. He never calms down. High energy level no matter how much exercise he's had. He is not at all aggressive. I don't know how to teach him to be calm and not jump and lunge at people / other dogs. He knows basic commands, although he considers commands to be temporary and thinks its ok, for instance, to only sit or stay for ...
100% (5 out of 5)
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July 23, 2023

Recommended I'm using touch pads to teach the send away and jumps for Mondioring. Is it better to train those exercises separately or can you work on both at the same time?

Hello! I'm training my older dog for Mondio, and am wondering about the order of training the send away and the jump pattern with touch pads. I'm not sure if this is mentioned at all in the DVDs, as I do have the Jumps DVD and Send Away DVD, and am still working through watching the Send Away DVD. My dog has a decent understanding of touch pads, but I haven't taught either of these exercises before. Since both use the touch pad as a target, is it better to train one exercise first, then move ...
100% (4 out of 4)
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July 9, 2023

Recommended I'm working on leash pressure for future heeling work with my dog but when I pull straight back he sits or drops into a down instead of backing up. What can I do to help him learn what I'm asking?

Hello, I’m working my way through Michael Ellis’ focused heeling video and I’ve gotten to the part where I work on leash pressure with my mal. He’s awesome with the forward leash pressure and immediately gives. When I pull straight back to attempt to get him to give backwards he constantly drops into a sit. If I keep applying pressure backwards he drops into a down. What can I do to help him learn what I’m asking? Should I just keep applying steady pressure backwards? I’m using a...
100% (3 out of 3)
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July 9, 2023

Recommended My young Rottweiler attacked the vet and the animal hospital staff when I took him in to be neutered, is he going to turn on me one day?

My 80 year old aunt adopted a baby Rottweiler. When he got to be about five months she couldn’t handle him anymore (Da). I thought I was doing her a favor and I took him in but he had already developed bad habits and I think he is dominant. I’ve taken him to two trainers and finished basic obedience. Things are going pretty well. The other day I took him to the vet to get neutered and he attacked the vet and all the staff. I’m sure he was just scared and they were trying to tell them w...
86% (12 out of 14)
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July 8, 2023

Recommended My 3 year old adopted dog is very anxious and fearful when hearing any type of gunfire. Any suggestions on how to help her?

I have a 3yr old Dutch Shepherd that I adopted a year ago. No background info given. She is very anxious/fearful when hearing gunfire (large or small) from the neighborhood. She is non reactive in almost all other situations including trips to the military base at Ft. Bragg, NC. There the background range noise is 24/7 heavy artillery to smaller arms fire. No problem at all.. Have tried to desensitize with background noise online at home in calm settings, no reaction. Only reacts to live nea...
100% (2 out of 2)
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July 7, 2023

Recommended How to you manage the quantity of food rewards for a growing puppy?

Hi Cindy, I'm a veterinary technician and have a solid foundation of canine behavior but I happen to be out of town right now and have a puppy coming in ~3 weeks. I would consider myself skilled in Fear Free and balanced approaches to training...but my question is regarding the quantity of food rewards for a puppy. The back of my brain says their metabolism is so high at that age that you can use treats without discretion (for the most part) and it is only when they reach adulthood that you m...
100% (3 out of 3)
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July 7, 2023

Recommended I read that it takes 4-6 weeks for a puppy to master loose leash walking, can I still take my Golden Retriever pup for walks in the park or neighborhood now even though she's pulling?

Hi Cindy, I have an almost 5 month old female golden retriever puppy. We got her 3 weeks ago. She pulls on the leash when we walk outside and I just started training her to walk on a loose leash this week. We started in doors and progressed to the backyard. She’s making some progress. My question is, at this stage can I still take her for longer walks before she masters loose leash walking? E.g. a walk in the park or in the neighborhood? If she can’t manage to walk properly with the di...
100% (8 out of 8)
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