[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]

You can also try the vids on “loose leash walking” of and I think there are a couple of “follow me”.

[Gene]

So this situation has come up in conversations before. It is sometimes hard to find a person with a balanced dog to work with and perform the exercise as done in the videos. You can do your part of the video it’s just that you are working with a moving target. Keep working on obedience at home.

When you are out you have to read him and catch him before he goes off. They go into what I call “LaLa” land and there isn’t much you can do until he calms down. Have him sit as the other dog approaches, you will be able to tell if he is going to break. Ears will go up, chest will stick out, you can see/just feel the tension mounting. Then “Lets go” turn in the opposite direction maybe 5/7 steps and return “Sit”. Also you can approach dogs that are behind a fence and perform the same exercise and get closer each time. We use this at the shelter for some of our more exuberant tenants.

You didn’t say how old. If he is past the puppy stage it will take longer. You have a lot of dog and he might have a high prey drive. This is where the obedience comes in, “Down,” “Stay,” and if a couple little walk by he might not like it but he remains obedient. Also with the fence work when I get close enough I will give both treats.

[Gene]

You have to go back and watch the lesson again, I would think you would know better.

That is really great for 15 weeks.

[Gene]

Yeah, I think you are right, I would have to go back and go thru the lessons. My thoughts are with the e collar you are say 15/20 ft away on a long line and when he lunges at man, woman or child he doesn’t know YOU are correcting him. The dog will start to associate these people with a painful/negative experience every time he encounters them. I think you want to use a prong collar if necessary. When the distractions approach the dog gets a “Sit” for example. If you think he is going to break the sit you can move him to relieve the pressure (movement relieves pressure that’s from the Big Guy, not me.) After you have moved him he gets a “Sit” if he doesn’t sit he gets corrected. You want the dog to feel he is being corrected for not obeying the “sit” command, he is being corrected by you. He doesn’t associate the correction with the people or another dog for that matter.

[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.

[Gene]

Usually I think the females are a bit more subdued especially if the male is not fixed. I don’t know what your planning to do with the dog as far as activities go. When the time comes to get the pup if he/she is just to be a family dog you want to make sure you are getting a lower drive pup as compared to a working line dog, or a working line that you are sure has a lower drive. Stay with the site as there are many people here that have more experience than me with the breed. The 3 basic commands are 1) Stay 2) Come 3) Leave It. These are life savers for the dog. The commands will come after a couple months of luring and shaping. I would also submit this question to the Ask Me Anything segment and get Robert’s opinion.