Most Recent Q&As

We have a 18 month old gsd that we have had since a pup. She has had training in puppy preschool and basic obedience since she was 5 month old. Our trainer follows the styles of Michael Ellis, Robert cabrel and Nino. Lots of movement and play, treats and timed corrections. My gsd struggles to focus when out of the house, at formal training she will not eat or play. Every noise or movement distracts her from focusing on me. At home I can get her to follow instruction, and she looks...

We are working on hold. I like the size of the dumbbell I got from you & it is the hard plastic one. Is the wooden one better for teaching this? And the plastic is better for when she has it down solid. and it’s not possibly clanking against her teeth? It seems harder to grip. Gets slippery. Not that’s it’s an excuse for mouthing it! I just wanna be fair to her and she’s learning. She can when she wants to though.

If I have two dogs and separately they know their names and respond to commands, how do I get them to respond to commands when together depending on whose name I called out? For example, if they're in a sit and I say "Lexi, come" I only want Lexi to come and Roxy to stay seated. They're getting confused when I attempt this. I want to keep the motivation high and not use "no" every time the wrong dog responds.

Do you have a recommendation for protective boots THAT STAY ON the dog. I have a 78 lb, 12 year old GSD female who is "toeing under" and needs protection for her right back foot. I know several other owners that have had this problem and have had trouble finding a comfortable boot that will reliably stay on the dog. Any help you can give will be much appreciated. (I own a boarding and grooming operation and would love to be able to recommend a product you may carry that works...preferably ava...

Cindy, I've made great strides with my dog, thanks to your advice. She displays only brief, calm interest or indifference towards the chicken coop and defers to the cats in the home if they growl, hiss, or run away - no chasing, fixating, etc. Thank you! A new issue has cropped up: yesterday she began to guard high value treats from me (bison or beef bones), growling if I approach, and even snapping to deter me. These treats are new, but 1 week ago I could approach or pet her when she wa...

Hi Cindy, Which puppy harness is recommended in Leerburg's puppy training videos, and which size should be purchased for an 8 week old German Shepherd puppy?

Hi! We adopted a shelter dog around a year ago estimated to be around 4 years old, a female Shepherd mix. She doesn't seem to know how to play with toys, even though she will show some interest in small stuffed toys I toss, she quickly loses any motivation she has. If try to trade or toss her another toy to get her to play with me, she would drop the toy very easily and refuse to get it again. She likes and chooses to play With me, punching and running, play bowing. I just can't get her to ho...

Hi Cindy, I often see your husband refer to the use of a raised bed in the home, training, etc. on your videos. Comfort being considered, none of my dogs ever choose the raised bed over their memory foam bed if given an option when we are just hanging out for example in the garage watching television. My question is, what is your reason for the use of a raised bed specifically? Is it mainly for training purposes for the ability to attach a leash easier, will you transition off the raised bed...

Hi Cindy! I have a 7 year old female fixed lab mix who is balanced, social, and all around great dog. I also have a 3 year old male hound mix (fixed) who has struggled with reactivity. I am very proud of our training with him - he is now neutral to dogs, people, and other previous triggers and his obedience is very strong. In this training, we did a lot of groundwork to provide structure and leadership in our home. However, infrequently (once a month or so), my younger dog will correct my ...

Our puppy has developed the habit of not coming when lose in the yard (fenced) at home. He is especially bad if he has a ball. In Obedience and agility, he has a pretty good recall - actually listens quite well in class... Then when he is out with a ball he has no interest in treats. Our trainer/breeder did suggest giving him his daily food only by hand as a reward. If he does not do enough to get rewarded with his normal food portion - do we feed him the rest at the end of the day?? Do...

Good morning Cindy, I am currently working with a Dachshund puppy 5-month-old in regard to potty training. So far I was able to work with the client to establish a potty schedule and while client at home with puppy to have the puppy on a drag lead. He does no longer use a diaper as well the potty pads that he was trained on by the breeder are no longer spread out throughout the house. The only place that he frequents now are 2 spots in the kitchen. He lives with 2 other dogs therefore I mark...

Hi Cindy, I have a 9-month-old GSD and I cannot get him to stop eating rocks. I have bought a muzzle from you and I was wondering if you have a plastic muzzle that I can feed food rewards through to him?

I have recently purchased a replacement Large Guardian Dog puppy as our others are starting to age out of guarding the sheep. This new puppy is half English Mastiff and half imported Gumpr. He is 3 months old now. He is usually good about coming back to me when we are out feeding the livestock (he lives in 1/3 of our small barn 24/7, the sheep are in the other 2/3), but he is getting to that playful/chasing age. If the sheep don't run, everything is fine, but I had one incident where the ...

Hi Cindy. I hope this question makes sense. I am looking for a little guidance on how to use what I've learned in Michael Ellis's e-collar course. I think I understand his process of introducing it: verbal command, followed by stim+leash pressure, escape upon compliance. However, I haven't really used leash pressure to teach any of the behaviors ME suggests using leash+e-collar for: foot targets, down, back. We taught those with luring and shaping only. I do use a prong and leash pressure for...

Hello Cindy, I have been following your training advice with my 18-month-old English Lab, gently starting when he was 8 weeks old. He is doing pretty well and we continue to work on commands and manners daily. I don't like for visiting, screaming, small children to have access to my dog, and definitely don't leave him unattended should family members bring kids. In fact, I remove him from the chaos when the kids enter the house. Friends with bratty kids believe there is nothing wrong with ...

Hi, our Border Collie is a 10-month-old male. We were doing well with him, reliable recall, etc. until the last month or two. Now off leash, while playing with other dogs he will not return. He is super interested in other dogs. Likes to play, but if the other dogs are not so interested, he will do some "herding" behaviors. Previously he did. Also, now while walking him he "loses it" if near a playground, seeing a rabbit etc. He really needs the off-leash to get his running and exercise in. ...

Hi Cindy! I have a 1 y/o Belgian Malinois. He has had a history of aggressive behavior, specifically biting, and has bitten me, my wife, and my trainer. I had him evaluated by Tarheel Canine Center, in Sanford NC. They are well familiar with working with Belgian Malinois and other shepherd breeds. To address the biting they recommended: 1 Plenty of exercise. He gets exercised 2 hours a day and 2. Obedience Training. He attended in-board basic obedience training for 5 weeks and advanced ob...

Hello Cindy, I really need your help! I own a 2-year-old GSD with a great pedigree and I'm not able to get his attention on the club field only. He works for me perfectly anywhere in public. I also purchased Forrest Micke's Engagement Skills foundation which he mastered just fine and I still continue on a daily routine. What worked in the past was only a deflated big ball, but a workshop trainer from Finland by name of Marko told me to put it away and get back to engagement, which I di...

Hi Cindy, I saw an article recently on the subject of marker training, specifically the use of a no reward marker or negative marker. The article argues that the use of NRM’s while it may not seem like it, is actually “aversive” to the dog and that it does not help to tell the dog that they did not succeed or that they did something wrong. They said that dogs learn faster if just encouraged through what they do correctly. This is the first I had ever heard of this idea and I know you...

Dear Cindy, This might have been obvious to some, but I missed it watching the "8 Week" stream. The way to teach a dog their name and "charging the mark" seems to be the exact same process. If they differ, how do they differ? Should you do one before the other? Can it be done around the same time? Do they get combined at some point? Hopefully, you can provide a little clarity. Thank you