LGD issues

[dainerra]

Positive training by itself gives the dog the option to disobey. I have seen my dog be submissive with a wagging tail and I have seen him happy with a wagging tail. Not everyone can see the difference, I agree. My dog gets positive reinforcement in the form of petting and praise for when he listens and a collar correction when he doesn't.
I ask what proof you have that barking at every passing harmless stranger and pulling on the leash are not dominant behaviors. And what proof do you have that positive training does not mean the dog learns that people are submissive? Now, I know that if you use treats sparingly enough and you also use correction properly, the dog may not be dominant over the people. But, correction is important. That's how the dog learns he is not allowed to disobey. I don't want to use treats at all; I use praise instead and punish the dog when he disobeys. I show him what I want before he is corrected for not doing what I asked.
I know the dog needs to have a trusting relationship with the owner and I'm not sure you completely understand me.
Lack of exercise can be a cause of some disobedience, but the dog must learn to control itself (assuming the owner is responsible and will sufficiently exercise the dog every day.)
Dogs are smart, They know the difference between evildoers and harmless people, and a dog trained using Sullivan's method does not lose its ability to growl. He himself said his dogs growled at someone who was looking into the back of his truck, although they (the dogs) usually didn't. This person was out to no good.
Again, used properly, Sullivan's method does work. Not that there can't be flaws, but if you understand your dog and use the command collar the right way, you shouldn't run into any problems.

Because 99% of the time the dog pulls on the leash simply because he has learned "This will get me there faster" because when the dog pulls, the owner starts walking faster to try to take some of the tension off the leash. Thus rewarding the dog for pulling and making it more likely that the dog will pull even harder the next time.
Barking at passersby is also a self-rewarding behavior. Many times, dogs bark out of fear. They bark and the strange people go away. Or they are barking "hey, this is my yard" and, again, the people walking by go away. Or they are bored. BARK BARK BARK the owner comes out and yells at them to shut up or the neighbor yells at them. etc etc. Again, they are rewarded for barking because even negative attention is better than no attention.

Treats don't make the dog think that people are submissive because the person is the one who controls everything. The dog doesn't get treats for simply being alive. For being a dog and cute and fluffy. They get rewarded for doing assigned tasks at the request of the human. They learn "if I am obedient, I will get something in return"
Whether you use praise or treats, you are still rewarding the dog for correct behavior. Some dogs won't work for food or even toys but will work for praise. So, even if you don't like what another person uses as reward, you are doing the same thing.
Once the dog knows what a command means, you start using corrections to enforce immediate obedience. Then you slowly phase out the treats until the dog is working 99% for praise with an occasional other reward.

No matter what method you use, there is no excuse for a dog barking at every random stranger. Again, dogs quickly learn who they can or cannot bark at. We have a rental property next door. It generally takes 1-2 arrivals of the new tenants for my dogs to learn "ok these people belong" Strangers in my property get the full GSD attitude. Visitors at the front door I get an alert bark and the dogs go to their places to wait to be released. My dogs all know that "enough" means "shut up right now"
They don't bark when I'm not at home. IF my dogs are barking, my neighbor's call me or the police because they know that something is wrong. A dog that barks at everything passing by is a worthless guard dog.

I think the point is that none of us are talking about "positive only" training. There are very very few trainers that actually do that. Most are what I call "balanced trainers" good behavior is rewarded, bad behavior is corrected. However, corrections aren't given until the dog knows what is expected for a given command. IE you don't correct a dog for not sitting until you have taught him "sit = put your butt on the floor" Once that is understood, you use corrections to enforce immediate obedience

 

[DuckGirl77]

Because 99% of the time the dog pulls on the leash simply because he has learned "This will get me there faster" because when the dog pulls, the owner starts walking faster to try to take some of the tension off the leash. Thus rewarding the dog for pulling and making it more likely that the dog will pull even harder the next time.
Barking at passersby is also a self-rewarding behavior. Many times, dogs bark out of fear. They bark and the strange people go away. Or they are barking "hey, this is my yard" and, again, the people walking by go away. Or they are bored. BARK BARK BARK the owner comes out and yells at them to shut up or the neighbor yells at them. etc etc. Again, they are rewarded for barking because even negative attention is better than no attention.

Treats don't make the dog think that people are submissive because the person is the one who controls everything. The dog doesn't get treats for simply being alive. For being a dog and cute and fluffy. They get rewarded for doing assigned tasks at the request of the human. They learn "if I am obedient, I will get something in return"
Whether you use praise or treats, you are still rewarding the dog for correct behavior. Some dogs won't work for food or even toys but will work for praise. So, even if you don't like what another person uses as reward, you are doing the same thing.
Once the dog knows what a command means, you start using corrections to enforce immediate obedience. Then you slowly phase out the treats until the dog is working 99% for praise with an occasional other reward.

No matter what method you use, there is no excuse for a dog barking at every random stranger. Again, dogs quickly learn who they can or cannot bark at. We have a rental property next door. It generally takes 1-2 arrivals of the new tenants for my dogs to learn "ok these people belong" Strangers in my property get the full GSD attitude. Visitors at the front door I get an alert bark and the dogs go to their places to wait to be released. My dogs all know that "enough" means "shut up right now"
They don't bark when I'm not at home. IF my dogs are barking, my neighbor's call me or the police because they know that something is wrong. A dog that barks at everything passing by is a worthless guard dog.

I think the point is that none of us are talking about "positive only" training. There are very very few trainers that actually do that. Most are what I call "balanced trainers" good behavior is rewarded, bad behavior is corrected. However, corrections aren't given until the dog knows what is expected for a given command. IE you don't correct a dog for not sitting until you have taught him "sit = put your butt on the floor" Once that is understood, you use corrections to enforce immediate obedience

I think I understand you a bit better now. I thought you were a positive trainer, if you catch my meaning. My mistake!
That may be the case in some situations, but not always. Some of the things you said are based on the assumption that a person is not able to be dominant and a dog does not have behavior problems because of domination. I believe humans can be pack leaders, but for the purposes of the OP's problem, that is not important.

@mirandaleecon one of your problems is the choke chain; I was reading a good dog training book recently in which the author explained that a training collar is much more effective, and possibly more safe, when it is positioned right behind the dog's ears, i.e., higher up on the neck than a choke collar can go. I would recommend a prong collar, or Don Sullivan's command collar, a milder version of a prong collar. Prong collars and command collars can be positioned up higher on the dog's neck, which allows you to make less fewer, less harsh corrections, with the same effect. I tried this today with my dog, and it works, but I'm not quite sure why. Maybe someone else can shed some light on that.

 

[mirandaleecon]

@mirandaleecon one of your problems is the choke chain; I was reading a good dog training book recently in which the author explained that a training collar is much more effective, and possibly more safe, when it is positioned right behind the dog's ears, i.e., higher up on the neck than a choke collar can go. I would recommend a prong collar, or Don Sullivan's command collar, a milder version of a prong collar. Prong collars and command collars can be positioned up higher on the dog's neck, which allows you to make less fewer, less harsh corrections, with the same effect. I tried this today with my dog, and it works, but I'm not quite sure why. Maybe someone else can shed some light on that.

Maybe choke chain isn't the right description, it is actually a prong collar, I thought they were interchangeable. He is actually the most well behaved while it is on. The problem now is when I take it off. And there is no way I can give him enough exercise AND keep him on the leash always. Only way I could do that is if I took him for runs. I can't do that now as it's too hot in the afternoon and I have to go to work too early in the morning. He can't even swim now due to a double ear infection (vet says from the food sensitivity).

I did have an AHA moment yesterday. I was reading the 'Click for Calm' book and one of the things she said was that dogs will get aggressive from overstimulation. Most of the times Archer gets aggressive are when he is let run free, he runs like a nut for a couple minutes then directs his energy towards me.
It's like a vicious circle right now. I can't let him run around because he starts getting aggressive but he's getting aggressive because he needs more exercise. I do have a gated area I could close him in by himself though. I am going to start trying that. I can't leave him in there unsupervised because it's not dog-proof but I could let him run for some time without access to me, then once he's gotten some of it out of his system I will go in and start training him to behave.
I did start clicker training him yesterday. I spent about 20-30 minutes on it and he definitely seems to respond to it. I'm working on teaching him that he will be ignored until he sits and acts polite (instead of biting my butt for attention). He even sat down without being told when I went out this morning. Small steps...

 

[DuckGirl77]

Maybe choke chain isn't the right description, it is actually a prong collar, I thought they were interchangeable. He is actually the most well behaved while it is on. The problem now is when I take it off. And there is no way I can give him enough exercise AND keep him on the leash always. Only way I could do that is if I took him for runs. I can't do that now as it's too hot in the afternoon and I have to go to work too early in the morning. He can't even swim now due to a double ear infection (vet says from the food sensitivity).

I did have an AHA moment yesterday. I was reading the 'Click for Calm' book and one of the things she said was that dogs will get aggressive from overstimulation. Most of the times Archer gets aggressive are when he is let run free, he runs like a nut for a couple minutes then directs his energy towards me.
It's like a vicious circle right now. I can't let him run around because he starts getting aggressive but he's getting aggressive because he needs more exercise. I do have a gated area I could close him in by himself though. I am going to start trying that. I can't leave him in there unsupervised because it's not dog-proof but I could let him run for some time without access to me, then once he's gotten some of it out of his system I will go in and start training him to behave.
I did start clicker training him yesterday. I spent about 20-30 minutes on it and he definitely seems to respond to it. I'm working on teaching him that he will be ignored until he sits and acts polite (instead of biting my butt for attention). He even sat down without being told when I went out this morning. Small steps...

Oh, ok. If you can leave the prong collar on more often, the dog will not become "collar-smart." Also, if you can raise the collar to behind his ears (you may have to take a link or two out) the collar will be even more effective. Also, tell your BF to use the prong collar only to correct the dog, instead of hitting the dog. If the dog does the bad behavior again after he's been corrected, you need to make the correction a little more firm so it's actually correcting the dog and not just nagging him.

 

[dainerra]

actually, no type of correction collar, be it prong or choke chain, should be left on when not actively working the dog. Now, for some of us the dog is being worked even at home with a short leash or with a tab. But the dog is never out of your sight.

A good strong correction is worth 10,000 light nagging corrections. The latter actually teaches the dog to ignore you.

A choke chain should be used in the exact same position as the choke chain. The problem with both is that most people have them too low on the neck.

I would start over with the behaviors you are having an issue with and use a new command. Start at step 1 with rewards and positive training to teach the new command and then correct to shape the exact response and immediate reaction. I would actually limit boyfriend's access to the dog while in training. I don't let my husband "train" the dogs because he doesn't have the patience for it.
I would have the boyfriend take the dog to training classes. We all tend to listen to a stranger's advice better than our spouse/significant other, especially if we are paying for that advice. They can show him how to effectively correct the dog. No matter if it is a bag of treats, a prong collar, or yelling at a dog they can all be used incorrectly and make training a million times more difficult. That means more frustration for both the humans and the dog.

 

[dainerra]

mental stimulation really tires a dog out. look into buying a cheap treadmill and training him to use that in the hot summer months. Right now, our daily walks are taking place at 430am because of the heat and humidity.
I don't have a treadmill anymore or I'd be using that. Play 2 ball and intersperse obedience into the game. I use balls but you can use any toy your dog likes. Take 2 identical toys. (if the dog doesn't play fetch and bring back the toy, start with short throws of only 1-2 feet.) When the dog grabs the first toy, show him the second and call him to you. Tease a bit to get him to drop the first toy and add the command "drop it" or whatever as soon as he starts to open his mouth and throw the second toy. repeat until the dog is tired.

Also, a flirt pole works great for getting out energy in a confined back yard space