Training a Doberman mix. Need some help.

[Ilovemychicks08]

Let me ask one more question. What about a remote shock collar for training?

We were thinking about putting it on Jack while we socialize him, then gently shock him when he does something he shouldn’t.

Is it a good idea?

He needs proper socializing to that to. If not done right he will be scared of it and it will be no good. You cant just put it on he wont know what he means.

 

[jnicholes]

I have a follow-up question. I think one of you mentioned muzzle training him. Would it be advisable to put a muzzle on him whenever company comes over to make sure he doesn’t hurt anybody when people come over during socialization?

I’m not against having a professional train him, but I want to do that as a last resort. My budget is very tight.

 

[Ilovemychicks08]

I have a follow-up question. I think one of you mentioned muzzle training him. Would it be advisable to put a muzzle on him whenever company comes over to make sure he doesn’t hurt anybody when people come over during socialization?

I’m not against having a professional train him, but I want to do that as a last resort. My budget is very tight.

If you properly muzzle train him yes. This is a process.
My Golden is reactive and nipped at a child. I immediately started muzzle training. I love the baskerville for training but its not bite proof. He has never nipped someone again. But i am very cautious. I dont make him meet anyone. He has feelings and i learned to handle then.
If he is muzzle trained properly then muzzling him is ok when people come over.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Jared, you need a professional trainer, period. If you don't know what you're doing with an e-collar, you can make him worse. Again, you need the advice of a professional before using a muzzle or he will learn to resist it and you could get bit. Quite frankly, although I hate to say it, in all honesty this is not the dog for you. Please take him back to the shelter and tell them what's going on. Hopefully they will work with him before placing him. They need to know he's a biter, and you need a dog without these issues.

 

[jnicholes]

Jared, you need a professional trainer, period. If you don't know what you're doing with an e-collar, you can make him worse. Again, you need the advice of a professional before using a muzzle or he will learn to resist it and you could get bit. Quite frankly, although I hate to say it, in all honesty this is not the dog for you. Please take him back to the shelter and tell them what's going on. Hopefully they will work with him before placing him. They need to know he's a biter, and you need a dog without these issues.

I’m not going to give up on this dog. If he learned to trust my family, he can learn to trust other people.

Getting a professional is not an option, unfortunately. I just got off the phone with one, and they said “if the dog is showing aggression towards people, we can’t train him.”

Maybe I just need to find the right professional.

 

[Ilovemychicks08]

I’m not going to give up on this dog. If he learned to trust my family, he can learn to trust other people.

Getting a professional is not an option, unfortunately. I just got off the phone with one, and they said “if the dog is showing aggression towards people, we can’t train him.”

Maybe I just need to find the right professional.

A lot of trainers wont take a dog with aggressive behaviors but there are some that will.

 

[DobieLover]

I bet that’s the Doberman instinct

I bet not.
I've owned Dobermans for over a quarter of a century and I have never had one that was aggressive towards people. Dobermans were bred to protect people. Not be aggressive towards people. The only reason they would be aggressive towards a person if that person was threatening their person.

Maybe I just need to find the right professional.

Yes. There are so many things that can go wrong here and if you don't have years of experience dealing with a strong breed like a Doberman this is going to end badly. There are many reasons why this dog may be acting aggressively. It could be out of fear, resource guarding, or sheer dominance.
You need to know the difference.
You need to know how to handle it.
And using a shock collar is not going to be the answer either. I have used remote control gun dog collars to train my dogs to run off leash. Every single dog I've had has been trained to one. But it's only for them to run off leash. That is the extent of its use as a training aid.
I think you should keep calling professional trainers until you find one that can help you with this dog or relinquish it to somebody who has the resources to train the dog themselves.
I wish you the best of luck.

 

[jnicholes]

I appreciate everyone’s advice. I will figure out how to train him.

 

[Pampered chicken girl]

I completely agree with @BigBlueHen53 this dog needs professional help, with all due respect you really don't know how to train and work with an aggressive dog. Many trainers won't take on aggressive dogs, call around I'm sure you'll find one. It's not as easy as "it'll learn to trust strangers if it can trust my family"