[Gene]

I’m not sure what videos you watched for tug. The ones with Rio and Goofy may not apply in your case. These guys already have a high drive. There is one with Ziggy, a Mal with not too much of a drive for tug so he had to be “taught” how to play. Also one with Duane how the drive was put into him from about 10 weeks old. So make sure you watch those. So it appears you may have to start from scratch. Maybe you are “feeding” him the tug.

As far as biting the hand I would give an AAEEH! and turn my back and playtime is over for a few minutes (no correction) then resume. I seem to remember that Robert doesn’t like the yelling part but it has worked for me so I use it and do 10 push-ups as punishment.

As far as the resource guarding tether him to say the kitchen table put his bowl down and go stand next to it see how he reacts, lower your hand.

I’m forgetting where I am at. Maybe he just has bad manners with other dogs. See if you can find someone with a balanced dog and see how he does. He may need some leash reactivity work.

[Gene]

At 6 mo and 45lb I am thinking large breed. For many large breed dogs their growth plates don’t close for over a year to a year and a half. What is bad for them is the constant pounding on the joints on a jog/run. I am certain Robert says at least a year. What you are doing now appears fine to me. You can wrestle with him a little, a little tug. You want to avoid a continuous pressure on the joints.

[Gene]

Congratulations!

[Gene]

Use the crate for now as Ed mentioned. As for the Place she is too young to be expected to remain there for an extended period of time. However, you can work on the command so she knows where her Place is. Watch the Place Video. Get her in her Place with treats. After a few seconds approach and give her a treat while in her place, then release her. The treat is given while in her Place not after you release her. She is being rewarded for remaining in place. When you release her it is no big deal the reward is her freedom.

I would definitely have your son interact with the puppy every day. Have your son feed her, hand feed if he is comfortable with that. Give her treats, go on walks along with you. By keeping her away from him and she is trying to play or show affection it can frustrate the dog as she doesn’t understand. Have her sit between you and your son on the couch or have her sit at his feet while he is sitting down. Have him be around the dog as much as possible under your supervision. The dog may even calm down when around your son as they can sense that something is different. I have seen dogs that can see play with a blind dog and they can sense something is different and play in a much gentler way.

[Gene]

Robert has the perfect video for this when you first start working with a dog and you want him to follow you. He is at the shelter and working a black pit bull.

1) start by giving the dog a couple of treats, you want him to know that you have something he wants 2) give him more leash 12/15ft you can shorten later 3) do not correct him while looking at him. 4) when the dog starts to check out make an abrupt turn in the opposite direction (no talking) when he catches up Good Boy, treat 5) Also when he starts to check out Heh! when he turns to look show him treat 6) Sometimes you can stop, if the dog sits next to you and looks at you Good Boy, treat.

These are just the basics, the video is more detailed. We are conveying to the dog that being close to you is a very good place to be away not so much. In this exercise the dog is correcting himself. Also watch the leash position. The way you are holding the leash Robert would make you do 20 push-ups. You are doing very well, keep it up.

[Gene]

What I would try is get one of the dogs that she plays with and you know is a balanced dog and start from there. I would have your dog at a distance but close enough to observe and have your kids show affection towards the other dog then return to your dog then back again. (the other dog is on a leash) When they go back I would decrease the distance. Watch a vid on leash reactivity on how to begin to decrease the distance. She will probably do better with just one dog. Type in leash reactivity. There is one with I think is a GS Dakota, which is very good.

[Gene]

RELAX. First day everything is new and mysterious including you. She may not be comfortable with the leash. I would start leaving the leash on around the house under supervision. When taking her out for now, I would carry her outside then set her down so she isn’t already upset by the time she gets outside.

I never had this experience with a puppy but with older dogs that were spooky. They would go almost a whole day before relieving themselves. After a long walk they didn’t go then when back in the house they would go. I caught on the dog was so worked up he didn’t go, then when I brought her in it was like thank God that’s over and go on the floor.

So I would have them in for just about 5 minutes let them relax then back out and they would go. Took a while but they came around. You probably can’t do that with the elevator. I would bring her back and put her on those puppy pads if necessary. However, give it a few more days to get used to the surroundings. Also go to Costco and stock up on paper towels.

[Gene]

So when she starts to nip I would grab her by the back of her neck and also the collar and just stand there. No interaction/correction do not move. It takes a while especially the first few times but she will become bored and look for something else that interests her on the walk. Sometimes they will give a warning that they are about to get rowdy. She may turn and look at you while on the walk and turn away then turn back again. This to me means get ready for a go around. I always have a treat bag with me, when they look at me especially the second time it’s “Heh” and I have a treat ready to give when they come back to me. I try and catch before they get stupid. I do not give a treat to release.

Another option might be to dip some cotton balls in vinegar and dab your shoes, pants I never tried this but I know they hate the smell and people have used cotton balls dipped in vinegar to spread around their flower gardens to deter digging.

[Gene]

Hi, go to the lesson section, go into lesson categories, scroll down to leash training, 12 vids will pop up, the one you want is on page 2, Building Leash Skills.

[Gene]

Robert has a video on puppy biting. It contains an informative lecture and about 5/7 minutes working with the DwaynoMeter when he was a small puppy. To alleviate puppy biting the basics are the same. With a malinois it will probably take longer due to the high drive in the dog. There is also a vid with Robert working with Dwayno for about 15/20 minutes when he was a small puppy, probably in the puppy section. There are also a couple of videos on tug.

For now I would have the 5yr old interact with the puppy on walks, give treats, petting, throw a ball in the yard. NO rough housing. I want the puppy to know that he must be calm in the presence of the 5yr old. It is too easy for the dog to jump up and nip in the face because of his size. He may be starting to teeth now so wet dish rag frozen, slice a banana down the middle and freeze it. Give him stuff to chew on. When he gets too worked up just take him to his crate, no corrections, no talking, as he wants to engage in play. He will catch on that the crate is a place to do nothing except chew on something and sleep.