I am new to the message board and would appreciate advice from anybody. I have an 8 month old German Shepherd puppy. He is fear agressive towards other dogs. I am looking to address that thru training. He is from German working lines and he desperately needs a job. We had a hula hoop for our other dog to jump thru. Krieger uses it to smooth all the snow in the back yard, he tries to herd our other dog, and approaches each task he gives himself with great focus. My intention when I bought him was to do obedience and agility. His aggression towards dogs in motion make that impossible right now. I'm looking for activities that can challenge him without running into alot of other dogs. I appreciate any ideas you can give me.

P. Diller sounds like you need to get organized, if you want to train the dog in obedience you need to isolate him in a area so that its you and him. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

He needs to be focus on you, place the dog on a leash find out what motivates him, is it a ball, his favorite toy or food. This will help keep him focus, you want to use the command, and praise approach. Start by teaching the basic three command come, sit and down. With the come let him stray a little then kneel down and tell him to "Come", entice with the treat or toy. Praise him like crazy when he comes. Show him the ball throw a short distance let him retreive it and praise him. Then take it let him stray and call him again. Repeat this process. Use this same approach with the other commands.

Don't have the other dogs around right now, they are a distraction to him and he is not ready for that, yet. Build on these Ob excirses and you will eventually be able to control him under distraction.

There are more Ob commands some dogs have a understanding of 10-50 commands. This make their world a little closer to ours. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

Good Luck in training. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Don,

Thanks for responding. At this point Krieger knows Come, Sit, Swing, Lay and Stay. We are starting to use hand signals for sit, come and lay. He is motivated by toys, food and to a lesser degree praise. He's getting bored working in the back yard and in the house. His response to other dogs makes walking him in public something to dread. I have had the first meeting with a behaviorist and am encouraged at the progress we made. Hopefully we can get back on track in the next few weeks with plans for obedience and agility.