I need some advice. My 7month old boxer gets aggressive whenever i say no. for example, i will say "no!" if he jumps on the counter. whenever i do this he will either jump on the counter again or bark and growl at me. (if he barks, he will nip at my feet or bow and bark). I've been using positive motivation for his obedience and that part is working out great but his manners around the house suck. is there any way to correct him without physical force?
No, there is no way to correct him without using force and you shouldn't be concerned with that.
Your dog is barking and growling at you, get a clue and a prong collar.
I don't use compulsion if at all possible for as long as possible for obedience with my dogs, but you better believe that I use compulsion for certain behaviors around the house and for certain issues. . .one would be a dog that showed me any sign of aggression if I told him to get off the damn counter. For a house pet that has a certain kind of temperament (your dog) there really isn't any way around using force to eliminate some bad behaviors.
Just wait till this dog is physically mature and then imagine what he'll be like if you don't get a handle on it now.
I agree wth Robert. Keep in mind that from your description the dog may not be being aggressive. He may be "play bowing" and attempting to get you involved with him. The nipping could be part of this. At 7 months I would think this is more likely than the dog being aggressive with you. Only you can establish what the dogs motivation may be. Go on how you feel about the dogs intentions and trust your gut. In any case it can't be tolerated, or when he does mature you will have a more serious dominance issue. The other thing you can, and should, do is move to obedience commands as soon as you tell him no. In addition to letting him know you will not accept the counter surfing, you want to provide a positive method for the dog to get attention. I would also attempt to prevent the dog from ever begining the counter surfing. If you see him having an interest in what is on the counter, put him in a sit so he can't get on the counter. The other option would be to put him on a down if he comes in the kitchen with you. Teach him the proper manners you want when he is in the kitchen with you.
If you can't be a Good Example,then You'll just have to Serve as a Horrible Warning. Catherine Aird.
Originally posted by Joseph Stephenson: i will say "no!" if he jumps on the counter. whenever i do this he will either jump on the counter again or he will nip at my feet or bow and bark. I've been using positive motivation for his obedience and that part is working out great but his manners around the house suck.
I may be taking this too literally, but if you are using positive motivation ONLY in all your interactions with this pup, then my take on it is that the pup simply has no clue what a loud "NO" is supposed to mean to him. Think about it - did he understand the word "sit" when you first said it to him, or did it take many pairings of "sit" with luring or shaping the sit and then rewarding for it? It's no different for "no". They learn our verbal commands ONLY when they are paired with consequences. The verbal cue 'no' is only a SECONDARY punisher; until it is paired with a primary punisher, it has no meaning (unless you have a very sound sensitive dog who recoils simply from the volume). You have to pair "no" with an actual primary punisher a few times so that the dog relates the command to the punishment, then you usually don't have to use the actual punishment again cuz "no" now has a meaning and a consequence. Your dog is hearing a loud "XX" that carries no meaning to him, but he is also reading a change in your body language and your loud tone that excites and arouses him, thus the play bow, barking and nipping. I don't see him as aggressive, just confused on your intentions.
I'm not much into managing the environment so my dogs can't make mistakes. I want mine to be well mannered without me having to keep an eye on them all the time or having to restrict them. So I prefer to set up a scenario where the dog will offer the behavior I want to extinguish so that I am prepared to apply the punisher exactly on time. I'll put the roast right on the edge of the counter and step aside, knowing full well the pup will try to get it, but I'm able to apply a well timed punishment (paired with "no" of course), and it only takes a couple repetitions and they won't touch the counters any more. It doesn't make them afraid of me or afraid of being in the house - they just don't think getting on the counters is a good place to be anymore.
thanks for the replies. i think i might have to start off by word association. he needs to know that NO means a pop on the prong. one more quick question: does this mean i should have him dragging a leash around the house in case i need to correct him? of course i would only leave on the prong collar while he is supervised. thanks again.
Everybody has answerd it already. You have never giving your dog a reason to understand what it means when you say no. Using a No and a correction for breaking sit stays and down stays during distractions will be the fast way to teach your dog. You can use a tab or a chewed off leash or a short rope,like 6", to leave on your dog around the house instead of the leash.
Stop making excuses for your dog and start training it!
BTW, I only used the term aggresive because that was the term offered.
It doesn't matter if the dog is barking and offering play (being a punk) or is snarling and nipping at you (being a real punk). The answer is the same, with most dogs you need to apply some level of force to achieve the end goal of good manners around the house.
I do like Lee does, my dogs have to learn to live in my house the way anyone else does. I limit the opportunities for disaster to a certain extent, especially with young dogs learning the ropes, but I don't create a totally free zone where there isn't any chance for trouble. . .how do they learn like that?
For people raising working dogs, who are also housepets, you have to find a happy medium between not squishing drive with heavy handling and not letting the dog run buck wild in your home.
again thanks for all the help. right now i'm using an old leash that i cut to about 12inches and he drags that around the house. i've read some old posts and discovered that shaping his manners won't hurt his drives on the field so that's good to know. It doesn't matter if the dog is barking and offering play (being a punk) or is snarling and nipping at you (being a real punk). The answer is the same, with most dogs you need to apply some level of force to achieve the end goal of good manners around the house. PUNK describes these behaviors perfectly.
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