Most Recent Q&As

Hello! My 15-week-old Dutch Shepherd pup is very hesitant with people and seems nervous. I really try and socialize her a lot. She never barks or shows aggression, just retreats and backs away from people. Wondering if this is normal and how much to push her with socialization. I try and give lots of treats while socializing to make it a positive experience but is there any risk of pushing them too much and overdoing socializing? Also, what are some recommendations for the best places to soci...

Hi Cindy I just have a question about when you should start training your puppy with the sit and down etc. Do you start straight at the 8 weeks or do you start with engagement at 8 weeks and after a few weeks of engagement, play and bonding you start training the real things like sit, down , stay etc. love to hear from you ! Greetings from The Netherlands

I have a 5.5-month-old male GSD puppy who lunges & bites at people holding a leash (or standing nearby). We manage his life with NILIF (Nothing in Life is Free). He's either in a crate or on a leash in the house, he's asked to sit and wait at doors and before coming out of crate. We completed 14 wks of puppy preschool and basic obed., we have your basic and inter. obed., and puppy pack structure videos, which we have found very helpful. He is not our first GSD and not our first pup, but he's ...

Is there an age at which you would not recommend introducing the puppy to leash pressure (i.e. is there a floor in age for training). What is the youngest age you have started leash pressure training?

Hi. Will the information in the Puppy bitework dvd apply to non-protection breed/sport puppies? I just want to learn how to properly start playing tug with puppies.

Hi. Me and my mom and dad have a 3 year old miniature poodle. He has epilepsy and is on potassium Bromide. He has been VERY aggressive since his first and only seizure. When I take him outside, he literally attacks me! Last week my dad was bringing him back from a walk and he lunged at my dad and bit him and to get him off, my dad had to kick him! Is this apart of the epilepsy or just aggression?! What should we do?! People are scared to pet him when this happens!

Good morning. I have a situation that I need help with please! I have 2 female dogs. The dominant one is Spanky (lab and Dalmatian mix) who is 12 years old. She has osteoarthritis in her hips and does have pain. She isn't aggressive at all to people but she has increasingly become grumpy and jealous with my other dog and the cats (just growls at the cats and they walk off). Sophie who is 4 years old (Great Pyranees & Australian Sheppard). She is a big baby and just loves everyone. She has alw...

I have just found your webpage and have been reading a lot of the articles and I find it very interesting. My problem is, I got 2 female pups about 6 weeks apart. They are now 10 and 11 months old. Before I got the dogs, I asked my vet for advice about getting 2 dogs and what age would be best to get them. She told me to get them as pups and let them grow up together. They are both crossbreeds and I got them from a rescue center. They were both getting on great. When the first one had her...

Hi Cindy, I hope you are well. I cannot find anything that specifically addresses this question, so I am reaching out. Puppy socialization classes: specifically, a local trainer has classes where puppies, grouped roughly by age, are placed together to "socialize." Do you/Leerburg recommend this sort of class? Thank you!

Hi Cindy. I received the New Style Leerburg agitation harness. What a beautiful harness. Thanks. Which that said….do you have an article on how to properly “fit” the harness?

Hi, I have the following problem. My dog (2yr old Malinois) loves playing tug, biting wedges and arms and bites perfectly center but as soon as I let go she starts munching her way to one side and biting the handle or the corners of the wedge. How can I train her to keep it center and stop biting into the handles or corners or in case of the arm sticking her muzzle into it and biting the grab handle? Thank you for your time and all the best!

I have an 18-month-old malinois/pyrenees mix. How much physical exercise is a good goal each day? We also do training a couple of times a day and mental stimulation. Thank you.

I have a 2.25 Herm Sprenger on my 17-month-old Golden Retriever. We just started using it for walks and it is helping greatly. He seemed to automatically adjust. I have put a lot of work in training wise since day one - he has a couple of tricks titles, we are taking agility classes (he loves!), we've trained for basic obedience regularly on our own and in classes, and we are working on heeling for novice rally. He does well, but pulls toward other dogs (over aroused/friendly) on walks. I don...

Hello Cindy, I have a German Shephard cross labrador his ears was up within 2 months old but one has dropped and sometimes comes up he is 7 months old and his left ear is down could you advise what I should do to make it stand back up please. Thank you

Hi, I purchased the Power of Playing Tug DVD and it has helped me a lot especially on the out as I didn’t have one prior to watching. My dog has a high drive for the tug, bites well in any position, outs ( most of the time !! ), will do obedience and heel work for it, brings it straight back when I throw it but if I let him have it from tugging without throwing he gets possessive….. any suggestions/advice greatly appreciated. Thank you

Hi Cindy, my puppy (4 months Rottweiler) is having some problems eating his meals (2/day). During our training he eats easily his kibble from my hands but when it's time to eat from the bowl he eats something and go away. It looks like he want to be feed by hands. Our meal routine is easy: - I prepare the food (kibble) - he waits in a sit position for a few seconds - I release him and he eats Am I doing something wrong? I can't understand the reason. He's eating less than he sh...

Hi Cindy, Our trainer recommended we use a prong collar on our 4-month-old German Shepherd puppy. In her assessment, she said the puppy did not respond to leash pressure with neither a flat collar or a martingale collar. So a prong collar will make sure we get her attention during our walk outside. We are concerned that it might be too early to introduce it to her that it would shut her down in her decision-making. We tried walking our puppy with a flat collar with some success when the...

Hey Cindy, hope you are doing well. I have a (almost) 11 week old GSD pup and wanted to know when to implement the recall training in Michael Ellis's "Raising Your Puppy" videos. We have house and crate training taken care of and I am playing tug with her, that she enjoys. I just wanted to get an idea of when we should start the recall training. Thanks Cindy!

Why is it that my pup will follow me willingly without a leash or long line? Once I attached a line or leash he’ll stop in his tracks. I’ve owned many dogs over the years, and this seems to be the case with all. At least until formal training begins Thank you in advance for your response.

I have a new puppy. She is approximately 3 months old, HavaPoo. I have noticed in the last few days, she is showing some food aggression tendencies. I have a 15-year-old Yorkie/Poo and both are fed separately. Puppy fed in expen on the opposite side of the ex-pen from where the older dog is fed, which is outside of the expen. I want to thwart this immediately.