Ok I'm gonna tell on myself. I over corrected my bitch as a pup. There is no GOOD reason for this but let me tell you why to make me feel better LOL <img src="http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif" alt="" /> It was something going on in my life that I was angry over and she did not respond as quickly as most other dogs I have had and I took the anger of what was going on in my life out on her. Yes I should be beaten for it because it happened twice with a long gap in between. She may have perceived it as training and imprinted it on her. I should not have been working with her at all during those times because I was holding in this anger. I honestly didn't think I would do something like that and the reason for the anger in my life was definitely warranted but not against her. OK nuff said about that. It's my fault NO QUESTIONS about it and I feel terrible about it. She loves me so much and I her. So how, if possible, can I fix it. I truely believe it is the reason her drives are inhibited. The second part of the question is how can I make sure of this being the reason her drives are inhibited. I know she has fear of being corrected by me because she will keep changing between sitting, downing, and all the things she knows to do to make me happy then shut down. She is low pack drive or at least made that way by me because of this attrosity I committed. Can I take her somewhere and let another trainer of a SchH club work with her and assess her that way, or will she do the same thing with them as she does with me? If it is confirmed as handler error is it fixable?

Just a little push. Does anyone out there have an opinion on this matter? Could this be inhibiting her drives and if so can it be resolved?

Rick,

I had similar issues with my cute, stupid, pet, stunt dog (gotta love her). She was a rescue dog slated for euthanasia at 4 - 6 months old because of behavior problems. She got a lot of unfair corrections - OTOH they saved her life. Anyway, it has taken 2 years to build up the confidence and drives which were inhibited (in 2 weeks).

You need to have excellent self-control to end sessions before she shuts down. You also need to develop more patience and learn about your dog (what does she like?) so that when she shuts down, you can work her through it.

Come-chase-me games, and gentle (she wins) tug games are helpful. FUN commands are good, the more the better so you can keep a training session lively and fun (for her). Whatever she loves best - train it.

My dog loves to run and jump, and figure out new stuff. So we played chase-me and come-to-me. We climbed and jumped all over creation together and tried to learn a new trick every day. Her prey drive was a miserable nervous wreck and clicker training and whip work / springpole brought it back. She's not going to be a great OB or SchH dog (she never had potential for these, IMO), but she's completely confident, willing in obedience, over-the-top-having-a-blast in tricks.

OTOH - I had a dog that was very damaged from poor training and was euthanized.

I can't tell you if your dog is that badly damaged, I can tell you that the solution is in your handling and patience. It will not be a quick fix.

My only suggestion from a fellow dog owner (by no means a pro) is to start working with her and keep EVERYTHING motivational. At least related to Schutzhund work or any other "work" you're doing. Right now she's scared to try new things. It sounds like she's showing you all the things that have made you happy before, and then when those don't work, she's getting scared that you're gonna punish her because you didn't like anything you saw.

So maybe teach her something new, and reward her every tiny tiny step of the way for trying anything (with lots of food and tons of praise). Always end on a happy note. From what I've read situations like these might take a while to bring her drives back out, if they ever come out to the full extent that they could have. Seems to me other types of confidence building excersises with her might be good too, just to build her self esteem and trust in you. (Activities like going over weird surfaces and such)

In the end, just make sure none of your work is stressful too her. Make it light and fun. Praise her the entire time like she just saved your life. Even reward for every day "things" she does correctly. Basically marker training.

As always Ed's videos would prolly help. Perhaps Building Drive and Focus or something like that. Dunno if any of that sounds helpfull but it's what I would do in your situation. Props to you for recognizing your mistakes, admitting them, and trying to move on. I'm sure your girl thanks you. Good luck.

Thanks all
I have also been trying to connect seeing me with a reward.I'll wamk out saying yes and with a real good meat treat like a cooked hamberger or hotdog. I will then ask her to do one thing mainly chase a ball and reward her with more meat and praise and end it there. It will take time as puppy mishaps can take a while to overcome because they are imprinted so deeply. One of the main things is I don't want this anxiety to transfer to her pups that will be born in around 4 weeks. Again thanks for all the help one and all.
Rick

Since at least part of the problem seems to be a lack of confidence on her part you might consider adding agility lessons to build confidence. They're a lot of fun and definitely build canine confidence and would probably help rebuild the teamwork between you as well. Another thing that helps is to let her win games such as tug.

 Quote:

..... One of the main things is I don't want this anxiety to transfer to her pups that will be born in around 4 weeks. Again thanks for all the help one and all.....Rick

Editing to delete question.

Also to add. I have always heard hastling (breathing hard) for no reason as stated in the first part of the post is anxieity. That is true right? She will not be doing that and when I come over to her she starts and when I leave she quits and I return and she starts back. She tries to get as close as possible to me even up in my arms if she can. She feels more comfortable close to me as I have never showed anything but love close to her. Will this anxieity be transfered to the pups.

Rick, First of all, I don't understand why you would want to breed a bitch with weak nerves. Secondly, being pregnant could cause her anxiety to be worse and yes it can be transfered to the pups, genetically and through learned behavior. How old is your bitch?

Panting can be indicative of anxiety.

At any rate, keep all training positive only. Even need to be aware of your body language. Don't even sigh as though you are irritated with her.

Debbie

As I said I am 99% sure the anxiety part is from the handler error not genetics. I have also been told that some females in the DDR lines take a while to mature in drive. My friend had a female that didn't turn on drive wise till after 24 months. That is too old I know but she is a good medium drive now