Dennis, I agree with Connie on this one, by the way you worded that it sounds as if they truly don't "mind" her. A dog that minds is not a dog that obeys a command once in a while or does it well some of the time. A dog that minds is one that obeys. Period.

The approach matters less than the results, except in terms of extremes, such as being overly aggressive or abusive, versus giving a dog a treat when it does not obey "just because you love them" or expecting respect and obedience from a dog in return for love and affection. All correction - bad. All affection - bad. Not confusing "all affection" with purely possitive type training, what I mean by all affection is a dog that has no structure.

It sounds like both you and your girlfriend need to do groundwork with these dogs and get the not listening/ignoring/breaking of commands nipped in the bud. Let her know that affection is great, but in moderation, and structure/discipline is still a needed part of a dog's life for the human-dog pack interaction to be a harmonius one.

This is all said with the assumption that the dogs know/were taught the commands they are currently ignoring/breaking. If not, all the more reason to start from the beginning.

 Quote: Connie Sutherland

 Quote: dennis keehn

She trys the more soft spoken approach and the dogs mind. I see it as a rank issue and that they walk all over her sometimes. Little things like breaking a down stay to move over to her area....

This doesn't sound like they mind her.

I agree with this, at the time I got together with my husband I owned a 3 1/2yr old male rott. My husband loved this dog and showered him with love and attention but no discipline. I had some of the same problems that you do with my dog trying to get away without obeying me by running over to my husband who would proceed to love on the dog.

Well one day a year or so down the road we were in the car coming home from someplace. Hubby was driving and Goliath was in the back seat. I didn't see what exactly happened but I think that Goliath put his head over the seat and my husband went to hug him and the dog bit him on the cheek. No warning, no nothing just a quick bite putting two nice holes in my husbands face. I will never know why my dog did that and thank god he never did it again. Knowing what I know now, I believe that it had everything to do with rank. Goliath loved my husband, he just didn't respect him.

I do not have experience in dog training but I am very experienced in life matters, maybe you should let her refocus all that attention by letting her babysit for the kids in your family... hopefully the dogs will not display jealous behaviour. And save those cute outfits, they may come in handy later when you have kids (mine love to play dressup)