tad worried

Hi everyone. . Im new to this so just have a couple of things I wanted opinions on :-)
Our family got a staffy cross just over a month ago now and up until a couple of weeks ago he had been great but he had started nipping at my kids and myself a bit and jumping up ect. So we got in a dog helper to get the behavior under wraps before it got out of hand. . He gave us a lot of useful ttips that we are putting in place but still having a couple of issue. I called him and he said because of the cross (his mum has s bit of shar pei in her which I couldn't see in her and as far as I was told the dad was a staffy) the could be issues and it could be hard which had left me in a bit of a heart wrenching rut as to whether I made the right choice for my family with small children the last thing I want is an aggressive dog that may hurt mine or others children? ?

Hi there, please come and introduce yourself here...
https://staffy-bull-terrier.niceboard.com/f7-new-member-introductions
 

Firstly, please don't get hung up on what sort of cross he is. All breeds have good and bad points, and the chances of your dog picking up the bad poiunts from a 'bit of shar pei' are very small! Anyway, the majority of behavioural issues can be sorted out with consistent training, so there's every positive to look forward to.

What has your trainer told you to do?

With the nipping, what's usually recommended is that you give either a stern "No" or a high pitched yelp (works with puppies, but less so with adults) and then turn away & ignore for a few seconds - don't even look at him. Once he's calm, give quiet praise.

Jumping up is very similar - "No" or "Off", something like that, and then turn away, ignoring for a few seconds. Once calm, again quiet praise.

Both the above methods may take a few repeats, but have very good long term results!

Can I ask what you feed him and what his exercise routine is?

Firstly, I wouldn't worry about the shar pei comment! If having some shar pei in a dog meant that it would be aggressive, the breed would have been lynch mobbed by now! It's also very unlikely that a tiny bit of shar pei will overshadow the much larger staffy part of your dog.

Can I ask how old your dog is? Very often, age is a huge factor with nipping.

Bear in mind that, as your dog is a rescue, he may not have been trained not to nip by his previous owners, which means he doesn't actually realise that it's wrong. To him, it's probably just a normal way to play. For the first month after you got him, he may not have felt comfortable with playing until he settled in properly, which would explain the slight delay between his arrival and the behavioural problems.

I couldn't think of a better breed of dog to have with children that the Staffordshire Bull Terrier AKA The Nanny Dog. I have posted a couple of useful links below which I am sure will help with training:

http://staffy-bull-terrier.com/stop_your_staffy_puppy_biting

http://staffy-bull-terrier.com/staffie_pups_and_young_children

I wouldn't worry, just work on training    How old is he?

Fab advise!

Hes only 4 months old so I'm not expecting spectacular behavior don't get me wrong with wat I said before haha I no were are going to have issues Cox he is still such a pup. . He had been with us since he was 9 weeks old. At the Moment we are keeping the distance been him and the kids so we can work with him and his behavior and as he gets older start introducing behavior around the kids when he understands a bit more.. he is on puppy cow at the moment but we are looking at upgrading that after this pack is finished. We have seen results with us (parents) so we are working with that as he doesn't deal to well with the high energy of the kids. Thanks for all ur nice advise though it has put my mind at ease :-D I love him very much andjust want it to all work out and we have been doing our best with the advise we have been given

Whereabouts in the world are you? I don't recognise the food brand.

Haha new zealand

Woops puppy chow* I meant

To be quite honest, I'd change the food if you can. Have a look at this review...

http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/showproduct.php/product/1840

I'd always try and get a food that has meat listed as the first ingredient, and is free of grains (corn, wheat, rice etc). Grains are a major source of hyperactivity and allergies!