Need help with this puppy.

[Redyre Rotties]

Caution is in order when using a head collar on a dog who is likely to pull on it. Serious neck injury can result from even MILD pulling by a dog wearing a head collar.

http://www.spiritdog.com/animalwellnessHeadGames.pdf

I would be more inclined to recommend a front clip harness.

 

[Lothiriel]

I'm reading all the replies with great interest. Thank you all!

And to clarify "Aussie," he's an Australian Shepherd. He has a lot of instinct because he's already taken up herding the cows -- we just have 2 -- and from that my thought is he would LOVE to get into a herding class. Because there's not much he can do with 2 cows who behave and don't do much of anything anyway...

As far as his food, we have him off grains. We were feeding him "Natural Balance," which is grain free and is a limited ingredient diet. We have been trying to stay away from all grains, chicken, and lamb (and their by-products). We've tried Taste of the Wild, which is also grain free. That's what he's on now. We haven't tried EVO yet, but that may be next on the list. Raw sounds wonderful though... Can you switch immediately from dry dog food to raw, or should it be done gradually? Since we started looking for a puppy we thought it would be great to try the raw diet. Our dog food search is also because he has really -- and I mean really -- bad gas. It could be from the treats (no idea what's in them, but definitely grain), it could be from the dog food, it could be something else, I don't know. The vet didn't have any pointers with that either.

I'm not sure what I think of head collars. We've been looking around for a harness but haven't found many that fit our need. But we'll look more, and hopefully get one soon. And a crate as well.

We are planning to neuter him within the next couple of months. The vet said that his broken tooth may come out on its own, or need to be dug out. So we are waiting to see if that happens soon, and if not he will be neutered and have his tooth taken care of at the same time, so he only gets the anesthesia once.

I am planning to take him out today and do some training -- find something new and interesting, maybe do the hide and seek. He's done that a couple times with my brother. Riley is awesome at the sit-stay -- we can tell him to do it and go in another room, and he will sit where we left him until he's called, unless he gets too excited about the whole thing and then we have to do it all over. But he is so smart and he knows it. And I really want to be in charge... My other Aussie is 10 and she's been my sidekick from the day we brought her home. The difference between the two of them is enormous. Ginger knows I'm in control. She does what I say. We didn't train her hardly at all, but she's just like that. With Riley, this is a whole new learning experiece for my whole family.

 

[Nimby Chickens]

Quote:
There is some training that goes into wearing the head collar but the idea is that the dog should not be pulling. From Best Paw Forward:

"There is a natural instinct to resist pressure (called opposition reflex) which
encourages a dog to pull against a tight lead. The pressure from the Gentle Leader
comes from behind the head so many dogs tend to slow down, and from gentle
pressure against the nose like a halter on a horse. It turns your dog’s head when he
starts to pull out in front of you. Where the head goes, the body will follow.
If your dog continues to pull into the head collar, then he should walk at your
side or slightly behind you, never in front of you until he accepts your confident
control of the walk."

And please don't misunderstand, don't yank on your dog's head or neck and don't do it from the side. Tug gently downward to correct behavior.

Here are some more resources for training, they may help. We hand these out to our students for homework at our dog training facility. http://www.bestpaw.com/id44.html

 

[pinkfoxfarm]

Lothiriel, i want to say thank you...
many people would have given up on this dog and you seem pretty dead set on the oposite. the fact that he is already good with sit stays speks volumes, this is a highly inteligent dog with alot going on.

my experience with raw is its best to switch cold turkey whenever possible...
you will get the upset tummy and even detox symptoms but kibble and raw digest at different rates so it seems from my research to be easier on the dogs sytem and quicker to just do a full out switch if thats the method you decide on.
im planning the switch to raw as soon as i can start raising my own meat rabbit and chickens (spring)

mabe instead of the head collar an easy walk harness might be a better choice...
the leash clips infront of the dog so a pull will automatically cross the leash (like a seat belt) over the chest of the dog pretty much turning him around...
no risk to the trechea or neck and ive had good experiences with them!

 

[dainerra]

Quote:
When last I checked, lunging/snapping at a two year old child wouldn't be considered normal puppy or herd dog behavior. Biting or mouthing in play is normal puppy behavior. Nipping at livestock's heels is normal herd dog behavior.

I've never had any of my Labs growl, snap, or lunge aggressively at any human being~ puppy or adult age~so I doubt that ANY dog brought into a family situation would have those EXACT same problems. That's pretty specific wording.

it is "normal" in that the dog probably has never been taught differently. He is now a teenager and much bigger than he was at 6 weeks. Sure, some dogs are just so naturally mellow that they will just go with the flow and never make a problem no matter how little training they have. They really aren't the norm though.

The pup is now a teenager and the behavior isn't "cute" anymore. But the dog says "Hey, why should I suddenly start listening to you? You're not the boss of me" Just like a human teen throwing a fit because Dad says she can't borrow the car. A dog that isn't taught how to interact appropriately with humans is going to communicate just like they would with another dog. How does a dog tell another dog "leave me alone"? They snap and bark and growl. At 5 months old, you would be having a need for stitches not just some broken skin if the pup was actually acting aggressive. To a pup, kids aren't "people" they are other puppies. They attack and bully them just like littermates.

Also, the post said that they tried "teaching" the dog by having the kids wake the dog out of a sound sleep and then correcting him for his behavior. That is setting up for failure. What the dog learns is that he has to be on constant guard, even when asleep, because someone might come along and mess with him, followed by punishment. I wouldn't want you near me either. My sis-in-law created a similar problem with a rabbit. They were told to spritz her with a water bottle if she bit them when they tried to take her out of her cage. Instead, they "trained" her by spraying her with water every time they approached. Within 2 days, this rabbit was like Cujo, jumping and attacking the cage if anyone even walked by.

 

[Stephanie739]

Quote:
I have never used clickers, but these are the general methods I would be using too - crate training, full control, and let him know where his meals come from (rewards for good behavior). He is trying to dominate YOU. It is absolutely necessary to control this issue now. Dog bites even from the littlest dogs can cause huge liability issues. He will have to be muzzled if you can't figure out how to correct this.

 

[DelcoChix]

I think you are on the right track--keep up the search to learn what works best for your specific situation. Just like people, each Aussie has an individual temperament, some reserved, some outgoing, some laid back, some high energy-you were blessed with the eager to learn, 'easy' one the first time. It did make me chuckle when I read what you wrote:

We are planning to neuter him within the next couple of months. The vet said that his broken tooth may come out on its own, or need to be dug out. So we are waiting to see if that happens soon, and if not he will be neutered and have his tooth taken care of at the same time, so he only gets the anesthesia once.

Poor guy...goes in to the vets office, clueless...comes out a short time later missing not only some 'hardware' but a tooth! Reminds me of the time I took a stray cat in to have him neutered only to pick him up later that day and talk to a very sheepish vet--they too 'assumed' he was intact, and it wasn't until they put him out and began the surgery they discovered he'd already been neutered, just appeared as if he was still 'fully loaded.' Poor Rex...he probably wished he hadn't stopped at our house, that may have been why he ran off from his first home?
Anyways--neutering asap would be a very wise idea. And as others have said, find him a 'job' to do in addition to basic (and advanced) obedience training--it could be formal, such as agility, flyball, work with a herd dog trainer...or just grab a tennis ball and a baseball bat every day--whack that ball, or frisbee, or jollyball, whiffleball...hide-n-seek...a busy mind is a good thing for a smart Aussie, or any breed. I hate to hear folks stereotyping Aussies in a single category as aggressive, very sad that that is the only experience they have had with them.

 

[Stephanie739]

Good luck. I hope you can figure it out.

 

[dainerra]

I wouldn't leave him out to "herd" the cows. I would teach him a job to do. Too often play herding can turn into a real problem because the dog doesn't know what it is doing and can lead to chasing the animals. All fun until you have a cow with a broken leg.

Do you free range your birds? My GSD who is 8 herds them in for me. I point which direction I want him to go and then he comes back to me, the birds walking along in front of him.

Again, it takes training to do that and the first step is not letting him make up his own rules.

 

[sunny & the 5 egg layers]

I think he needs to do some dog carting as his job!