Not sure I`ve done the right thing...

As a lot of you know I rescued Elwood from kennels a few weeks ago. I`m trying hard with the training and in many respects he is doing well. BUT the thing that I can`t stop him doing is nipping. He was playing with his toys by himself earlier and making a hell of a noise. I went to see what he was doing and said to him "what are you doing?" as you would normally do, and he nipped me hard. I said "NO! and he bit my leg. I have teeth marks on my calf My OH has had problems with Elwood doing this and I thought it was because he wasn`t firm enough with him. I`m beginning to think quite differently now. I honestly don`t know if I have made the right decision in having him. Elwood`s behaviour is beginning to effect my relationship with my OH and I think I want to take him back to the kennels.

And just give up!! This poor sweet lad needs consistant traing, it can be hard work but your just ready to give up.

Sorry to say this but that just makes me so angry. There dogs, trainable, so train him.

Have you worked with a professional trainer? Also, what attention and excercise is he already getting. I find the nipping much less when they have lots of excercise. Also, you must be consistant and totally ignore them after telling them NO when he nips. This is normal behavior that must be corrected. You are at an admittedly difficult age with Elwood. If you can make it a couple more months things should start to click and slow down. Hang in there, it is so worth it!

Please please dont give up on him he needs you to be consistent. You say that he is doing well, in what ways?

How often is he walked and for how long?

Have you tried any training classes with him, this may help you to see what areas of his training need more work/time?

have you tried distracting him with a higher value treat/item ??

I know positive reward training works when they behave, but I found with Taz, to stop some nipping etc - distraction with anything of higher value than what she was possessing over worked wonders, but she usuually mouths gently as 'OUCH' worked wonders with her - calm, persistent and repetitive training

If everyone gave up during this part of the training then nobody would ever own dogs.
The dog needs to be taught its not right and it wont happen over night, he was clearly still in hyper play mode when he nipped you? so you need to get his attention and calm him down then remove toys when he is distracted you could reward him for been calm with one of his toys if thats how he will learn, if his issue is hyperactivity.
His 11months old therefore still only young and already having a not very good start in life as he has already needed to be rescued the poor lad needs training and needs it constant and firmly so he knows.
My skye turned One yesterday and she is still clearly a puppy in behaviour, she has had many hurdles to overcome she has had to be trained for her hyperness, her food possession and her jelousy but if id never of given up on her with firm training and putting her in her place she is becoming Very well behaved! and looking at her now i can say I DID THAT with pride! .. Vinnie also was hyper in his puppy stage as all pups are and again constant training he is amazing.

you could look into things such as how much exercise is he getting? what diet is he on? etc etc

you have to remember he cant learn by himself, he needs the training and he needs it firm and constant these are said to be the crucial years for learning, however that saying "you can never teach an old dog new tricks" is a load of dog poop

janey wrote:

And just give up!! This poor sweet lad needs consistant traing, it can be hard work but your just ready to give up.

Sorry to say this but that just makes me so angry. There dogs, trainable, so train him.

must agree with janey on this with a bit of training you will pull him into line in no time just dont be a quitter like the last owner a dogs for life not just until the first hurdle

Ok so we all have bad days, my life would have been much easier without Kassidy but i'm glad i kept going.So you need to really work together and be consistent , scream if he nips, turn your back with your arms crossed, ignore him.People on here will help (and sometime give you a telling off) and you will get through it.Who ever had him before must have not bothered to train him but he's young enough to learn if you stick to his training, give him a couple of months training and he will be a different dog.?.

Ok, Elwood goes to traing classes every week. He has 2 hours exercise every morning, walking and running in the field. 2 hours in the evening doing the same and another little walk in the evening about 9pm. He gets lots of stimulation during the day with his toys,me and OH when we are not at work. He has training with me in the house and OH is getting involved with that as well. He is getting better with things like, sitting, staying, laying down etc and is even getting a bit better with the cats. I have tried the "NO" the yelping and making a big noise when he nips and ignoring him. But it doesnt stop him doing it. My dog trainer says i`m doing everything right and she did suggest trying to get him focused on a higher reward kind of thing such as his favourite treat when he is getting hyper and removing his toys so he plays when I want him too. Believe me I AM trying and I dont want to give up on him. I don`t want to be the kind of person to give up and send him back to jail. He really shocked me when he bit me and I suppose it was a knee jerk reaction. I am doing my best with him and will cary on, but to day he just got to me

I had the same issue with Monty. In fact, I still do ! He is always nipping, although not to the point he leaves teeth marks in my skin. The best and only time I get to have some affection with Monty is when he is tired, or has just woken up. Otherwise, I can kiss any affection time good bye, any chance of me stroking him he will nip and bite, but he is a puppy, and he knows I will not tolerate it and will get the firm NO and no attention from me. It comes ... just keep going.

I know its hard sometimes but you have to be strong for Elwood. You can do it and my bet is that within the month if you carry on the constant training, tough traing, you will reep the rewards.

Sorry to sound harsh in my initial post but far too many people just give up when the going gets tough.

They are hard work at that age and if youve only had him a few weeks he may be trying to push the bounderies as he may have had no rules before you had him
Keep going and remember you are doing right he just will take time to settle down and follow the rules

janey wrote:oing to

I know its hard sometimes but you have to be strong for Elwood. You can do it and my bet is that within the month if you carry on the constant training, tough traing, you will reep the rewards.

Sorry to sound harsh in my initial post but far too many people just give up when the going gets tough.

Ahh it`s ok! He is just such a big dog, think he weighs around the 25kg mark atm and the size of his gob isn`t something I want wrapped around my leg or any other part of me lol. I`m going to keep at it and hopefully he`ll turn into a soft mouthed pooch and not the little git he is atm!

whenever you feel like that just come on here off load, get shouted at by Janey and then go have a sit down and re-focus and back to it.

we have all been there and we know what them bad days are like, they will get fewer and fewer and as said above you will know you have done that for him. its not a quick fix - if he is as stubborn/demanding as my Woody was then it may be a while but dont give up.

I did say sorry

janey wrote:

I did say sorry

haha I know - sometimes we all need shouting at and you are very good at it!

Thanks, I think!!

Don't know if it will help but as a suggestion, maby occupy his mind with treat training, I do it everyday with Diesel, to the point now where whenever I get the 'tub' out of the fridge she's right there tail wagging knowing what she needs to do.

We spend a good 30 mins doing basics, and a few tricks

I can now get her to lay down , hold a paw out, place a treat on her paw and she will leave it till I tell her. She loves to please.

Please dont give up Kathie. Elwood will soon learn. We have Pixee from the blue cross. She was found a stray. We got her in Jan, and have had her just over 2 months now. And I can say this, from that time to now, the improvement in her is amazing. She use to mouth alot. At one point when she was over excited, she did bite my arm on the walk, lucky for me, I had a thick coat on, cos I think it would have broke the skin otherwise, I had bad teeth marks and a horrible brusie. What I do now is, when she gets over excited, I turn my back on her as does my hubby and son, and so far it has done the trick. We also say if she starts nipping, no biting, and now we can put our hands in her mouth, and she wont bite. Its been a long journey but well worth it. Her recall is not 100% when something gets her attention, but it is getting better all the time if somewhat slowly. I can now walk her across the canal lock off the lead to our house sometimes so long as its quiet. We were told to keep her on the lead for 12 months cos she follows her nose being a stray, and I will say this, the first time we let her off the lead, we were so nervous, but boy she was good as gold. Its only when something gets her attention, we need to be one step ahead, if we feel its ok, we keep her off the lead, other wise she is back on, and it does not bother her one bit. Training is the key. I do 5 mins a day. Her heel is getting heaps better too. You should have seen her the first time we took her to town, bloody awful, but now its better if not perfect, but one day will be. She is approx 15/16 months, no one knows her true age. Elwood is a very cute boy and seem head strong to me from his picture. What we do now cos Pixee is head strong, is we walk out first, her last. Same when we home, we walk in first, her last. So she knows her place. Keep us posted on how you are doing, we all here for you.

you pretty much sound like your doing all the right things tbh. do you know much of his past? sounds like he hasnt ever been taught that teath on human flesh is wrong, he may well have been subject to some rough play with his last owners and associate it with fun even. which could explain why the yipping and ignoring isnt working so quick. the fact that you even posted on here says to me you want to work through this but just need support and assurance that your doing the right thing. for what its worth I think come a few months down the line you'll have a great dog there with your attitude, just dont get despondant and remember we all have had clumps of hair missing at some point

I think you have been given some fantastic advice by all of the above and I cannot add any more to that.
I would just like to say that I understand your frustration totally and I remember having 'off days' like that (quite a few!)when Roxy was a pup and going thru this stage. I would just like to urge you to not give up as it is soo worth all the tough times when you start to get payback from your dog when it does just 'click' the rewards are amazing!

nicolalouises wrote:whenever you feel like that just come on here off load, get shouted at by Janey and then go have a sit down and re-focus and back to it.

Seriously, it will take time & patience. Obviously he hasn't been taught that nipping is wrong in his last home & so it's that little bit harder with an older dog to get them to understand. But it will click in his head sooner rather than later. Just keep on doing what you're doing. If he still nips after you've told him "no", and turned away from him, then you can always take him out of the room until he's calmed down a bit. That will often work.

i always value janeys opinion...i feel we share the same values when it comes to dogs...just look at moo in her sig, 100% perfect girl... fantastic... if i didnt think it would break her heart into a million peices id be formulating a theft plan right now

It can take a little for a rescue dog to come around. You are doing the right things just stay patient and be consistant

axam102 wrote:i always value janeys opinion...i feel we share the same values when it comes to dogs...just look at moo in her sig, 100% perfect girl... fantastic... if i didnt think it would break her heart into a million peices id be formulating a theft plan right now

thanks!

Just takes time and patience Xx

is he getting proper walks i mean hour plus each time, a bad dog are the ones who dont get enough walks a good dog are the tired ones

Just an idea...

I'm in no way an expert, but it sounds as though he is getting a lot of exercise and training. Maybe it is too much?

Is he getting snappy because he is over-tired? Maybe he is too on the go all the time needs to learn to switch off a bit.

Do you have a crate for him? You could try forcing him to rest a bit.

You may do this already in which case please ignore me.