Woof! Bark! And also Whiiiiiiiiiine.

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Sharkie Nov 2012 2:33pm, 2 Nov 2012 2,349 posts	0 Sharkie Support thread for owners of puppies. Well, why not?
Sharkie Nov 2012 2:40pm, 2 Nov 2012 2,350 posts	0 Sharkie There were always dogs around when I was a kid, ours, other people's .... and those urban free range sort of dogs you see quite so much of these days (a bit the way playing in the streets has gone. Raffo's parents were both RSPCA inspectors - so it's not like he's not used to animals either. But neither of us has ever raised a puppy. Help! shows extreme age
Sharkie Nov 2012 2:50pm, 2 Nov 2012 2,351 posts	0 Sharkie Should learn to type too. 'Don't see quite so much of' I should have written. My initial question is this.... Has anyone any tried and tested none violent methods of curbing extreme nipposity. 12.5 kgs of GSD hanging off one's ankle or elbow ain't pretty. Pretend or otherwise cries of anguish only serve to intensify. Ignoring and isolation do work - but only if one can break the hold in the first place. The naughty step approach. Taps on the nose as advised by breeder don't work. They'd have to be ko blows for her to take seriously and that's not going to happen. Obv. Water boarding doesn't work either (hey it's a game!) She seems to love all bitter tasting substances. Tin of coins - also advised by breeder- worked really well for a while but we fear she's getting used to it. I know she'll grow out of it to a certain extent but you CANNOT have a large dog that nips. Any other suggestions?
lazydaisy Nov 2012 3:19pm, 2 Nov 2012 1,516 posts	0 lazydaisy OK we've only ever raised Labradors, which are maybe a different kettle of fish but here's something the breeder of our first Lab told us: puppies' mums will pick them up by the scruff of their neck to tick them off. She told us we could grab the folds of skin at the back of her head (not roughly or enough to actually hurt, obviously, but firmly) and shout (bark, really) NO!!. We've a 13 week old "nipper" at the mo and we've had to do this a couple of times. She squealed (though I know it wasn't through pain - no-one will ever get anywhere training a dog through hurting them, IMO) but mainly because she wasn't being allowed to do what she wanted. Dogs are pack animals and respond to the pack leader - us! I have been known to growl at our various dogs :-)- and OH, but that's another story Tone of voice/command is crucial when you are giving commands and once they accept that you are in charge, not them, you will make lots of progress with them. Another tip from Flossie's (current puppy) breeder re chewingon furniture or skirting boards - masking tape with tabasco sauce sprinkled liberally on it. It was working, but then this morning I came back from a shopping trip to find bits of the wicker sofa in the ktichen chewed into bite size pieces
Sharkie Nov 2012 3:29pm, 2 Nov 2012 2,352 posts	0 Sharkie Thanks Daisy - love Flossie by the way - especially the 'who me?' pond pic I had read about the scruff of the neck thing but forgotten it. Will try. I AM the boss- and am making progress with lots of other stuff - Jess is still not quite 12 weeks, so still a baby - but GSDs are second only to Border Collies in needing loads of mental and physical training/ stimulation. Not quite as food led as Labs - their legendary greediness is a mixed blessing training wise I expect. Lemon, bitter apple, puppy-off type product and vinegar all appear to be equally palatable to Jess. I have yet to try Tabasco. But as she is partial to a bit of rocket salad I have no doubt she'd love it....
Cyclops Nov 2012 9:33pm, 2 Nov 2012 317 posts	0 Cyclops My GSD is now 7 but she was a tinker when she was a puppy... Needed lots of training, lots of exercise and things to do but was not at all food motivated - liver cake was the solution to that. She never really chewed anything but there was someone with her almost 24/7. Took her to puppy classes and dog training sessions but she never got to tolerate other dogs very well at all. We tend to avoid them when out although she will walk to heel and leave she doesn't want to.
Sharkie Nov 2012 10:03pm, 2 Nov 2012 2,353 posts	0 Sharkie Thanks Cyclops. Jess is a real chewer but -as the breeders warned us - more interested in toys and play than food. We both work from home or wouldn't have got a GSD in the first place. I will try and find some liver cake. What IS it? Puppy playgroup has been invaluable for getting her to meet other dogs at a nice early age. The first week was Gulliver amongst the Lilliputians (or Godzilla if you like) as all the others were miniature breeds. Most of them older by a week or two and she was the only bitch - but we still felt somewhat fearful. However she is great with strange people and dogs already.
lazydaisy Nov 2012 10:11pm, 2 Nov 2012 1,531 posts	0 lazydaisy Is liver cake the stuff you bake yourself and looks like chocolate Brownies? I'd never heard of it until a FB friend posted a picture of the one she'd made for her cocker spaniel puppy - apparently it's working a treat. Flossie is surprisingly unmotivated , for a Labrador, by food - she often leaves more than half of her meals and I did wonder if this liver cake might be the answer.
Cyclops Nov 2012 10:46pm, 2 Nov 2012 318 posts	0 Cyclops Liver cake is about a pound of liver, 4 or more cloves of garlic, an egg & flour whizzed up in the food processor and baked. Smells vile & goes off quickly. I freeze it and take out small batches. Leah adored it & the smell overrides all other instincts!
Cyclops Nov 2012 10:48pm, 2 Nov 2012 319 posts	0 Cyclops It is easily found if you Google it. Made training our stubborn,, intelligent, determined gsd possible!