Quote: Keith Kaplan

.... But what advice can you offer on correcting a growl towards a person so as not to escalate him more.

Thanks.

For now:

Not allowing the situation to occur (not correcting the growl).

He is not ready for the stressful situations you have described, and he was set up for failure, as Alyssa said so succinctly. The stim was an unfair correction.

This can all be fixed. JMO!

 Quote: alyssa myracle

A crate will be your saving grace with this dog.

I WOULD NOT correct growling.
That growl is your warning that he is close to the edge. It lets you know to be wary of him and avoid getting bitten. ...

A HUGE ditto. CRATES! And: he is saying "I am stressed and anxious" and then he is told not to say it!

There are growls and there are growls, but for trying to impart info (just like the growls that mean "I am in pain and you are touching the bad spot"), you do not want to eliminate this kind of warning.

Have you tried a really hungry and well-exercised dog with a bit of deliciously marinated steak??

Usually it simply requires the right combo to get a dog into a kennel the first couple of times ... when he finally does go in, get really excited with him and feed him even more steak/chicken teriyaki/pepperoni/etc for as long as he stays in the kennel on his own accord. Build from there!

Yes, and even leaving the door open as he goes in and out for the high-value treats reinforces the perception of the crate as his good safe place.


What a lot of good posts!

 Quote: keith kaplan

... He also barks .... when he wants to play and will not let up. .... Other things too like coming to get petted, which i will admit I gave into in the beginning. He came to me with these issues when I rescued him from his previous family.

These are not so much "issues" as they are training. He has been trained that this is how to get what he would like to have.

He can now be trained that they do not work. He will escalate, perceiving that "upping the behavior has worked before," but if you reward when he escalates, then you have trained a new thing: "Ah! Now I must do it louder and pushier! OKAY!"

Feed him in his crate.
Forever.

Since he has shown that he is a bit cranky when it comes to high value items, that means there is the potential for food aggression.

Feeding him in his crate will pay off two-fold.
First, under no circumstances can someone accidentally be bitten by getting too close while he eats.
Second, he can associate his crate with something very good- his meal time.

In the beginning, try taking him for a nice long jog, getting him good and tired.
Follow that up with some nice, positive OB work (work at a level where he is still obedient, don't take it to the point where he becomes uncooperative. End on a very positive note.)

Once he is pottied, bring him inside, place his bowl at the back of the crate and let him go in to eat.
In the beginning, leave the door open.

He may refuse a few meals until he realizes that the only way to eat is to cooperate with going into the crate.

Any time he sniffs the crate, walks near the crate, sticks his head in or ventures into the crate on his own, make a big show of praise. Reward him with treats and TONS of love and affection.

Don't trick him by luring him in and then slamming the door before he can turn around and get back out.

I would focus on crate training first and foremost. Having a crate trained dog will be absolutely key to fixing the other problems you are having.

BTW, I would crate train BOTH dogs, to their own crates.

I cannot impress upon you how much more enjoyable life is with crate-trained dogs. When he gets obnoxious with the barking, all you have to do is send him to his crate.
It isn't a punishment, just an inducement to being calm.

When friends or family come over, the dogs can go into their crates on a word.

Once crate training is in place, the other issues can be addressed, but not really before.

 Quote: Keith Kaplan

He is enrolled with a dog trainer who ive interviewed many and she has been in it for 45 years using the methods ed describes.

Thanks.

May I ask who is that trainer?

Another perk to the crate?

Makes a nice end-table.
The airline-style crates have built in cupholders, too!




Just thought a little levity couldn't hurt.

Thank you for all the advice. I definitely need to redo the groundwork with all three of the dogs. I think like Connie said I need to start from the beginning with marker training. I have been working on loading the marker, but I need to do this individually with him rather than have my other dog with us.

Anytime the dominant female walks near him and is eyeing his bone, I separate them before it escalates. This is something I have been more perceptive to lately. I really need to get him crate trained so I can get both of them into a crate and not just her. I will begin doing as you all suggest to get this accomplished.

He was obedience trained with his previous family at a mega pet store. I then worked on him myself, but as of late have not been as serious as I need to be. If you were to recommend one video of Eds to start where would that be? Basic Obedience, E Collar, Marker training, establishing pack structure... And then where should I go after that?

The trainers name is Donna Anderson. She has been training for 45 years and uses a lot of the theories I have seen on here. She trains different levels of obedience as well as therapy dogs. They actually started a PhD program at ASU (Arizona State University) on therapy dogs and teaching them to read, spell count and be therapy dogs in schools. I wouldn't have believed a dog could rwead except the woman she worked with who got the first PhD as well as her dog got a PhD had another one of her dogs there reading and counting. Last night was the information class without dogs and having spoken to her on the phone last week, she stayed after class with us and spoke to myself and her gf, who also has her dog in this class. She gave us some good info on siberian huskies and their nature of always trying to dominate and be pack leader and talked with us about our issues. My gf got really emotional as she is afraid of my dog some times, all arising after the incident of him growling at her when she walked past him. Some things I didnt agree with were here telling me to do a scruff grab and shake if he growls at us or shows teeth. That is an easy way to get bit. She never really answered my question about what to do it he does lash out towards someone, other than say grab his scruff and shake him. But everything else she said seemed good.

Also, we discussed the possibility of him having hip dysplasia or another ailment with his legs and this possibly causing him to be "grumpy." Ever since I got him at 8 months he has needed assistance getting in my car. When I invite him onto the couch he either crawls up or just sits like a person with his butt on the couch. After our discussion last night which was raised by another thread on here that I read, I was seriously considering this. Maybe his putting butt on couch is comfortable for his hips. I know I need to do the groundwork and that should fix his behavior, but I am also wondering if this is a possibility as well. Does anyone have advice on hip dysplasia or any vets in AZ that know how to do good hip x-rays.

Thanks again for all of your help!!

I don't know this trainer, but some of the advice seems a bit open-ended.

Here is a rule of thumb with selecting trainers and training methods that I recommend you apply- if it doesn't feel good in your guy, don't do it.

If you don't fully understand it, don't do it.

If you have concerns for your safety or the dog's well-being, don't do it.

You mentioned what to do if he does "lash out" at someone. I assume you mean if he attacks.
If that is truly a concern you have, my recommendation is to ALWAYS have a drag line on this guy.

I would leave the prong collars, E-collars, etc until later.
Before you can correct a dog in OB training, you have to be sure he truly understands. To be fair to the dog, go back to the very beginning, and start over.

Flat collar or nylon choke and a dragline is all he needs right now. Work on pack structure. If you can truly implement the pack structure, it will have a dramatic effect on his cooperation and biddability during obedience.


In a different world, without solid pack structure and the intense bond that my dog and I have, she'd be the sort to become handler aggressive during obedience training.
BECAUSE of the bonding we've done, and because pack structure and respect have been a part of her life from day one, we have a good understanding of one another.