Hi all first i want to say hello and thank you for the admission to your forums. My name is chris and recently have brought 4 GSD's into my family and started to look into training, and WOW i found schutzhund. after weeks of searching and reading i found leerburg (and glad i did) i have watched so far 4 of his videos. a few times and have been slowly doing some training.

Out of the 4 pups i have 3 males and 1 female 2 are 5 months old (males) and 2 10 week old now the 10 wk female has incredible prey drive goes crazy when i bring out a ball, now even though the ball is bigger then her mouth she only wants to play with the tennis ball and doesnt show much interest in any smaller balls. she loves to play and fight with me and bites me a lot and often not that i mind it but tonight she was playing and actually bit me so hard she drew blood. So my question is, is this normal as they develop their grip or should i refrain from playing with her unless its with a rag or ball?

Back up the truck....

...You have FOUR pups? Like at the same time? In the same house? Like four german shepherd puppies to raise all simultaneously?

The thought just made me incredibly tired.

What kind of training background do you have?

 Quote: Jessica Pedicord

Back up the truck....

...You have FOUR pups? Like at the same time? In the same house? Like four german shepherd puppies to raise all simultaneously?

The thought just made me incredibly tired.

Hahaha

That was my reaction, too. Especially if they are drivey enough to consider doing Schutzhund, it must be a mountain of work and a heck of an adventure.

My second thought was "boy this guy is going to be in for a real treat when all four hit adolescence!"

That would be my own personal hell. 3 adolescent males at the same time? Yeahhhh...... no thanks.

A tough cookie of a female isn't much easier at adolescence. I swear if Tasha hadn't been spayed young she would be lifting her leg by now.

Back to the OP.

What videos do you have?

Wow and welcome.
I reallllly hope you stick around as you are going to need all the help you can get.
Yes, what vids do you have?
Not to be rude....I really hope you don't take this the wrong way as I truly hope you stay and become an often posting member ....but the very question you asked makes me quite a bit concerned about your ability to train 4 high drive pups at the same time.
It can be done, but wow...it will take over your life for sure.
I am so very glad that you came looking for help!!!!!
Do you have these two videos?
Your pup 8 wks to 8 months
http://leerburg.com/120.htm
How to raise a working puppy
http://leerburg.com/117.htm

They are must haves in your situation and will answer most of your questions.

you will also find the basic obedience vid helpful and the marker training one as well.
Go to the main site and check out all the awesome Ebooks Ed has for free.

The simple answer is that you need to redirect her prey drive onto an appropriate toy.
Have fun living with your 4 land sharks!!!!!
We are glad you came!


Oh BTW: tennis balls are a BIG no-no as the glue in them dissolves the enamel on your dog's teeth....but then that might help with the biting.....lol...

I have two young dogs and that can be too many sometimes. Nothing personal, but I can't imagine 4 being anything but a mess. Good Luck.

So what's the story on these pups? Where'd they come from?

Willie is right that you should redirect her behavior to bite something more appropriate. If you want a working puppy, you don't want to "no" them to death. Do you have any puppy tugs? I think they'd work well for you.

I would look into a Schutzhund club in your area. They will be a lot of help even if your dogs aren't right for the sport.

PS. Jessica, I absolutely love that photo!!

 Quote: Chris Boudreau

My name is chris and recently have brought 4 GSD's into my family and started to look into training

Welcome Chris!

Oi! Four pups at one time? You have certainly come to the right place for help, but man are you gonna' need a lot of it!

Post pics - I'd love to see your little rug rats!

 Quote: steve strom

I have two young dogs and that can be too many sometimes. Nothing personal, but I can't imagine 4 being anything but a mess. Good Luck.

Welcome. Agree. Oh man. How many dog handlers do you have?