I read that we will need to teach our German Shepherd that he is last in rank, omega, and we are ahead of him, rank wise. How do we teach him to understand that he is last in rank? Thanks.
Answers:
With the first answer, I would add, never feed him table scraps, don;t let him eat while you are eating, when he gets a little out of hand when you are playing, grab him Firmly but gently at the loose skin of his neck and push him down to the floor and look him in the eye while you do it. Be calm, animals read body signals, make Him lie down on his side and look him in the eye until he looks away. That looking away means he knows you are the boss dog. I am glad you are training your puppy, you will both be happy for it. A dog likes to know his position in the household.
Let him know his fun time though, within reason, lots of walks are great. When I trained my 7 year old to heel, I had to wear him out a little at first with lots of running around.
Please don't indulge your dog in any cute habits that seem fun when is a puppy, excessive barking, begging for food, or paws on you or others, when he grows up and gets heavier, nobody wants a full grown German Sheppard jumping up on them with muddy paws. That is my dogs worst trait. I wish somebody gave this advice when I got my puppy. One more then I will stop. For no reason, no matter how cute, let your dog on the furniture. Give him a comfortable blanket or dog bed where he sleeps the most.
Most of all, be firm but patient and have fun, puppies are cute but a well trained dog is admirable. I never heard of the biting a dogs lip thing, I heard from a friend that if he jumps and tries to mount anyone, you have to stand over the dog with your foot on either side of the dog and look down on him. Make the dog lie down with a firm push of the hands and say NO in a firm low voice. Keep saying No like that whenever you catch him doing something wrong. When you want to praise, speak in a normal tone and when you want to get him worked up during play time talk a little loud and excited. It is all about body signals and tone of voice. I am glad my older dog is a well trained healthy dog, it was worth the time spent.
Basically, always show your authority and make him go last for everything. Never let him go through a door first. Always make him wait to eat until after the people have eaten.
A good lesson (and reminder) is this: NILIF - Nothing In Life Is Free. He wants to play with you? Do it when you command him to. He wants dinner? Make him sit/lie down/shake paw/etc. for it. Ditto with water.
Give a dog an inch, they'll take a foot, and so forth. You have to be there to discipline right away and make clear what YOUR boundaries are, not his. He doesn't call the shots; YOU do.
He has to respect you, while you prove to be a trustworthy -master-. Yes, you must be the master. You tell him and show him how to live. Then he will respect you AND follow your every word.
Any command you give him, tell him once. If he doesn't obey, do it; you tell him to sit and he doesn't sit, go over and tuck his hind legs in so he sits.
You are in control, not him. Yes, it's sort of like boot camp, but these are hierarchial pack animals. That's how and why they establish the pecking order. Make sure you are the top!
**EDIT * How else can you establish that you are alpha, and dog is omega? If people and dogs simply co-existed and co-habited, then that's it. But people and dogs can NOT just co-exist and co-habit.you'd have a cat, not a dog. As I've stated, it is well noted that dogs are HIERARCHIAL PACK animals. We, as humans, apply such terms as 'family member', but what do they know? Why else would they need to establish and respond to who's top dog, and who's below them?
A German Shepherd would probably respond quite excellently to this. They are smart; the police train and use them. All dogs feel safer knowing their place in the pack, knowing who to depend on and who depends on them.
As the alpha and the master, it is up to you to provide them that stability. It's a win-win situation. You get the respect you want, and he feels comfortable knowing he can depend on you, and will follow you obediently to the ends of the earth. :)
And I do keep a dog, and constantly remind her what her boundaries are. I reward her when she obeys, and I lower my voice at her and stare her down or tell her to 'go to her room' (crate) when she doesn't. Dogs need to learn 'tough love'.
don't keep a dog. You should keep a military. You don't rank a dog at home! its also a family member!
we have a 5 month old shephard and we have had problems with our dog. if u mean business. look him in the eye, speak in a stern voice to let him know who's boss but dont forget to praise him when he does the right thing. i found that it works. they are very intelegent dogs and they are not stupid.
we where playing fetch we him the other day, i couldnt beleive my eyes. he ran up to the toy, looked at it, started to run back. i pointed at the toy and said go back and get it. so he did and brough it back 2 me.
I LOVE MY SHEPHARD, HIS NAME IS SPOCK
You must assert dominance.
Make him submissive, if he gets out of control ever, you put him to the ground and hold him there, hand over the throat area. No not choking, just firm so the dog knows YOU control him.
When you feed him make him WAIT until you give permission for him to eat it. Even if its a dog biscut 2 inches from his nose, don't allow him to eat it till you give permission. When you serve his food put your hand in the bowl if dry food, or between dog and the food. Make him respect your hand and that its only his food because you give it to him.
Watch the Dog Whisperer. I don't currently have dogs because our family doesn't have the time or space needed to give a dog a good life. But I have had many dogs and the Dog Whisperes advice and methods just work.
Well you may not like this answer but we too have a most excellent and obedient German Shepherd. My husband demonstrates rank by actually "biting" her lip. I know it sounds weird and when i first saw him do this i freaked out. But we had a very very stubborn German shepherd/mix that he would bite the side of his muzzle and the dog would submit. MY husband told me that is how dogs establish hierarchy and it in a way made HIM alpha. Now we have a great female GS.and he has used this discipline on her. Mind you he only bites to the extent that they are not liking it, We are true dog lovers and our dogs are very spoiled. Not much need for discipline, by the way we have 3 dogs and 4 kids any advice for the kids?? Can't bite them!
Here is a link specifically for training german shephard puppies.
http://germanshepherddog.ca/training.htm.
Another link you might find helpful says this:
"A one-year-old German Shepard Dog howls and screams when it meets another person and appears more aggressive on the lead than off. The high pitch of the bark indicates that the dog is in the wrong situation as a leader and for which it is not competent to perform. To reduce the howls and screams try to meet up with a friend and talk without showing any interest in your dog. Stand sideways on to your dog and totally ignore it. If it is very noisy, take some cotton wool for your ears. Wait for your dog to stop howling for a few moments and then give praise and a titbit. If it starts howling again just ignore the dog. You are encouraging your dog to do nothing when you meet people, as you should control the meeting not the dog. It is also useful to teach speak on command exercise as this includes a cease command. If your dog will hold things in its mouth you could give, your dog the lead to hold and that should keep it quiet."
More to that article, and here's the link:
http://www.dogbehaviouradvice.com/dba/re.
When we had a Rottweiler (RIP Roxie) we had this problem at first. The vet gave me a few pointers. Big dogs think they can push you around. It is inbreed in them. When you are playing with the dog, pick the dog up, and actually put it on its back. (Don't slam it to hurt it.) Hold it there for a few seconds. In a dog pack, that is a symbol of authority. The alpha dog is alway on top. It may take a couple of times. It really worked for our rottie and she became the sweetest most lovable dog. She realized that two legged people were the boss.
We currently have a boxer and did the same thing when it was a puppy before the behavior ever started and never had a problem of "dog bossiness"
Hope this helps!
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