Here are today’s ask me anything questions… Hope to see you all tomorrow in the LIVE(s)
Josh M
I have 2 pups, my 13 month old GSD is calm, cool & only barks by alerting us to someone at our door. Our 5 mo old, barks, nonstop, ANYTIME I say “No” or when I try to discipline him. He gives me direct eye contact & barks the most awful, loudest & annoying bark. It was cute at first but now I swear he is cussing me out. I don’t want to take his communication away, what do you think about a bark collar? If so, I noticed you have 2 different bark collars on your “Shop” area of your page. Thank you!
Matthew
I have a 8 month old Mal growls who barks at someone or some dog who comes near us or with my other dog. Yesterday I tried to separate the 2 by only going to the dog park with my Mal, and he is friendly/neutral to other dogs and humans in the park, but when I walk them together with my Maltese and with my whole family, he is more protective and he seems uneasy/pulls on the leash or barks at other dogs. Especially when a dog comes near my Maltese. How can he be calm while we walking together?
Anna S
I have had German Shepherds all of my life. We now have a new 9 week old puppy. My gardener saw her and he said to make sure we do not touch her ears or they won’t stand up later. I used to think this was an old wives tale. Is there any truth to it as I have always rubbed behind their ears when playing with them. Thanks in advance.
Sonya
we used positive reinforcement only until 6 months, introduced correction with choke collar on leash walks. Local trainer suggest I am not consistent in my message and dog is confused and becoming defiant. Using leash pops to demand her attention and focus on me. She is becoming aggressive now. This was triggered because she attacked one of our 12 year old yorkies- they are separated and she accidentally had access. I am concerned we are taking a confused dog and making her aggressive.
Dotty
My 5 month old pup often mirrors other dogs’ responses when passing by them on walks. What would be the best approach when he gets excited and starts to pull on the leash to meet the other dog? I currently do a 180 and go the other direction, then “yo-yo” back and forth until he is more compliant and we can pass by the other dog with a looser leash. The problem is the other dogs usually continue to lunge and that keeps my pup excited for longer. Thank you, sir!
Scott
Hi Robert. Thanks for taking as much time as you do to help all of us. My 5 year old Catahoula male goes crazy when we get deliveries or other strangers on the porch. I want him to bark and alert but when he is in drive he jumps at the window and will ignore the recall or hesitate before complying. I used your (Janet’s?) aluminum can on the windowsill trick but it lost its effect after a week or so. Is it ok to use the e-collar in the house, for corrections as needed? Thanks again.
Jean B
Hi! This is Marc and Jean and we have a 10 year old cat named Lola and a 6 month old GSD named Heidi. We have been utilizing your training information and have been using an e collar with Heidi. Heidi is quite reactive towards Lola. At this point, Lola has a baby gate that separates her from Heidi due to her becoming super excited and reactive at the sight of her. Do you have any suggestions as to how to introduce them to each other? Should we use the ecollar as a correction tool? Thank you!\
Arko G
Hi Robert, I love German Shepherds…(Working Line). But I don’t know which working line to get….& is it really difficult to keep Working line German Shepherds even if I give him structure, & solid Obedience?? And do I need to use E-Collars to train them, or only Prong Collar will do….and what traits does Working line gsd’s have….there is no one in my city to guide me in this matter…please help….THANK YOU.
Lennart
My 7,5 month old Groenendaeler has food aggression. We have been following your advice as good as we can for about a month now but with little improvements. When we give high value food we even see a clear increase in aggression. From growling, showing teeth to snapping at the food. I must admit we do not react calmly when he reacts like this. We strive to follow a more regular schedule with feeding as I have read this can help. We switched to feeding twice a day. Do you have other advice to give?
Paige T
I stumbled into owning a mal through taking On a rehome. My dog came to me at 4 months and is now 1 year. We do private lessons and group classes every week with a balanced trainer. My dog Goose has had great success and really responded to training. It’s been so much fun jumping in with both feet. This dog is a riot. I don’t know any other mals though. How do I get more exposure to know if I love the breed or just my dog? I’ve only owned working border collies before.
Jamie S
With having 2 GSD, one is 13 mo, female (Allie) & our 5 mo, male (Echo). When walking them by myself, are they supposed to both “Heal” on my left side? Should it be with 2 separate leashes or 1 leash with a 2 dog attachment? I’m sure you’ve touched on the subject or maybe you can direct me to the correct videos on your site? I’m still working on luring, leash pressure & manners. Leash manners is extremely important, I take them walking myself. They’re doing amazing but we still a lot to learn.
Ana
Hi Robert, I’m having the weirdest issue with my 5-month old puppy. We live on a third floor. When we use the stairs to go down, she has absolutely no issues. But when we’re going up, she looks worried and doesn’t wanna go. I pull her leash and she eventually sprints up the stairs. Even with the head halter, she doesn’t care, she just wants to go up as fast as possible like something’s chasing her. She doesn’t have any issues with other staircases. This issue started this week. What should I do?
