dog training books?

[momz]

We got a new dog from the shelter a few months ago. He is about a year old now and he has come a long way in regards to his behavior. He was literally a wild animal when we got him.

We have him to where he barks less and walks on a leash without tearing my arm off or pulling me down. So, he's better.

But he still has a long way to go! He seems to be a very smart dog. He is house trained, knows a few commands (sit, shake, lay down, up).

We need to figure out where to go from here. He gets so excited when we get home that he just can't control himself. When we come home, he will jump on us, not at other times though. Also, he is overly protective of us and will bark and lunge at other people if they get within 2 feet of us. That too is an improvement as it used to be 10 feet.

I would like to be able to have people over without feeling like my dog might harm them. I have looked for a socialization class, but can't find one. The only thing I'm finding other than the Pet-co classes are very expensive personal dog trainers that will come to house. But, I'm not willing to spend the $1600 dollars for this.

Any advice on books any other resources for us to learn about the next steps in training the beast?

I feel like we are breaking a horse with this one. I love this dog, he is sweet and smart, but can be wild!

 

[King Schultz]

I found this: https://www.dogwise.com/Features/SubCatList.cfm?SubCat=BKPET


Might be a place to start.

Good luck and thank you for adopting!

 

[Clifton Tesh]

https://www.amazon.com/Schutzhund-Training-Methods-Susan-Barwig/dp/1630260401

Best training there is for a dog. It's how they train working dogs (police/military).

The name translates to "protection dog" but the training is very universal. It instills a lot of bearing and discipline in the dog.

 

[gottaluvPluto]

Clicker training is the best training!!!! Find a clicker training book that you like and get it. This type of
training is very easy to do.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

My favorite

Good Owners, Great Dogs

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/good-owners-great-dogs-brian-kilcommons/1101967632

Common sense and easy to read. Good to keep on hand as a reference.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

We got a new dog from the shelter a few months ago. He is about a year old now and he has come a long way in regards to his behavior. He was literally a wild animal when we got him.

We have him to where he barks less and walks on a leash without tearing my arm off or pulling me down. So, he's better.

But he still has a long way to go! He seems to be a very smart dog. He is house trained, knows a few commands (sit, shake, lay down, up).

We need to figure out where to go from here. He gets so excited when we get home that he just can't control himself. When we come home, he will jump on us, not at other times though. Also, he is overly protective of us and will bark and lunge at other people if they get within 2 feet of us. That too is an improvement as it used to be 10 feet.

I would like to be able to have people over without feeling like my dog might harm them. I have looked for a socialization class, but can't find one. The only thing I'm finding other than the Pet-co classes are very expensive personal dog trainers that will come to house. But, I'm not willing to spend the $1600 dollars for this.

Any advice on books any other resources for us to learn about the next steps in training the beast?

I feel like we are breaking a horse with this one. I love this dog, he is sweet and smart, but can be wild!

What breed or mix of dog is he?

Just from what you've said here, greetings should be low key. Don't do things that get him more excited.

You need to do some work with "doorway etiquette". ideally, he should be sitting and staying when someone comes to the door. (Yeah, I know, easier said than done, right?) You need to keep him on leash and practice with one of you knocking on door while the other keeps working with him. Don't open door till he's in a sit/stay. Then he has to stay that way till you say it's ok for him to get up. I hate to say it but it can be a dangerous situation having a dog lunge at guests entering your home. If he continues to get away with this, he'll think it's ok, and it can get worse. Always make sure you have him on leash and in your control if he's not reliable. Or keep him outside or in another area of the house during your training. Not to discourage you, because it can be done. But it will be a lot of work and if you aren't sure how to work with it, it could be difficult. This is where a trainer might come in handy. (And worth the money.) Group classes are good as the dog will learn to behave around distractions. Petco will be better than not doing training at all. It's relatively affordable. A dog bite could wind up costing lots more than training would.

Read Good Owners, Great Dogs. It's available in a lot of used book stores, even Savers. But it's a classic. And it will help you understand how to work with your dog more.

 

[momz]

Wonderful advice. Guess who's ordering from Amazon tomorrow! I love this dog and want him to be a "good dog". I want him to be able to be comfortable around people. He really has come a long way, but he has plateaued in behavior improvements and I have been at a loss as to how to move forward with him. Thank you for the suggestions.

 

[jevs]

Another vote for clicker training.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clicker_training

http://www.clickertraining.com/dog-training?source=navbar

 

[sonnyjane]

Don't Shoot the Dog (it's the name of the book lol)

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Wonderful advice. Guess who's ordering from Amazon tomorrow! I love this dog and want him to be a "good dog". I want him to be able to be comfortable around people. He really has come a long way, but he has plateaued in behavior improvements and I have been at a loss as to how to move forward with him. Thank you for the suggestions.

Well, loving the dog is a very good start. Once you train a dog and see how good results can be, you wonder how you ever lived with an untrained dog before! I've said it many times on many threads here, training is all about developing a system of communication between you and your dog. It's important you let the dog know when he's doing the things you want him to do, as well as when he's doing things you don't want him to do. Further, if he's doing something you don't want him to do, you have to show him what you do want. Talk to the dog. Good boy when he's doing the right thing. No, when he's not. And don't repeat commands, he heard you the first time. Once it clicks between you, you build on it, just by spending time together and working together. Eventually, it takes as little as an eye exchange for the dog to sense what you want, and most will try to please you and get the praise. I like using just my voice and maybe a pat as praise, because I want my dog to behave for me whether I have a treat in my hand or not. I might end our session with a treat, but I don't rely on anything but myself. I know others work differently, but that's worked for me. I also found that having young children around and a dog that's fixated on food (treats) can create problems, so I don't train with treats. (When I started to do it one time my dog at the time was jumping up and stealing food off my kids' plates. That was the end of that, and never, ever had that problem again.) One thing to watch for with your dog is high value items that he might be willing to fight for, such as a rawhide or bone, especially if he came from a neglect situation where he wasn't fed properly or had to fight for food. (But any dog can fight over high value items.) It's ok to give them to him if he enjoys them, but let him have them in his own space only, not near guests, especially children who might be visiting. If a dog *thinks* a child is going near his treat (and dogs and people can think very differently from eachother), he might be willing to bite over it. So keep those away when guests are over. Really watch the dog when people are around because sometimes a dog sends signals it's about to bite but people don't interpret them correctly, especially children. So know your dog and take preventative steps before something happens. It's ok to correct your dog when you know he's thinking about something. "Duke, no, sit down! Stay! Good boy." Prevention. In the book you'll learn about "doggy push ups" which are great. Use them. Brian also makes a good point in saying not to play tug of war games with a dog, either, as it pits human against dog, and that's not how you want your dog thinking, especially a dog whose behavior is wild to begin with. Ball or frisbee tosses will be great fun and exercise for him and it will be something you'll do as a "team". It might sound silly, but these are some of the things that help a dog be a welcome and stable member of the family. Feel free to PM if you have any specific issues you want to talk about. Would be happy to help if I can.

 

[hereyago]

Also, which ever training method you decide on, remember, get that pup nice and tired out before you do your training sessions.

 

[usnuzuloose]

I also look things like that up on you tube as well. You might find someone who may come to your home for issues as well.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Also, which ever training method you decide on, remember, get that pup nice and tired out before you do your training sessions.

Yes! #1 thing!

 

[iheartglaciers]

I like Positive Perspectives by Pat Miller (there are two editions) and The Thinking Dog - Crossover to Clicker Training by Gail Fisher. I'm also a huge proponent of clicker training! There is a lot of brain research to support it!

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Momz, to expand on what hereyago said about exercise, can you describe a typical day for your dog?

 

[Tee it Up]

 

[Pea-n-Me]

View attachment 188593

 

[LindenTree]

I'd also remind you that your dog is in adolescence, and like all "teens" sometimes those brain connections just seems to go off in the wrong direction. Depending on the breed type, you've got another 6-12 months before he starts to be an adult dog. That doesn't mean you shouldn't train him (in fact, it means you should work all that much harder), but do know that adolescent exuberance does eventually go away.

You got some great advice above. I'd just reiterate the advice to give him a replacement behavior for the one that's problematic. It's not enough to say "no" if he doesn't know what else to do. (True with kids, too, by the way.) I'm trying to do that with our newish retriever mix who goes berserk when motorcycles pass. He's the world's calmest dog at all other times. Training him not to lunge at motorcycles is a little difficult because they're random, intermittent, and he can hear them before I can. I may have to ask my neighbor to drive around the block 25 times on his motorcycle so we can work on it an alternative behavior!

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I'd also remind you that your dog is in adolescence, and like all "teens" sometimes those brain connections just seems to go off in the wrong direction. Depending on the breed type, you've got another 6-12 months before he starts to be an adult dog. That doesn't mean you shouldn't train him (in fact, it means you should work all that much harder), but do know that adolescent exuberance does eventually go away.

You got some great advice above. I'd just reiterate the advice to give him a replacement behavior for the one that's problematic. It's not enough to say "no" if he doesn't know what else to do. (True with kids, too, by the way.) I'm trying to do that with our newish retriever mix who goes berserk when motorcycles pass. He's the world's calmest dog at all other times. Training him not to lunge at motorcycles is a little difficult because they're random, intermittent, and he can hear them before I can. I may have to ask my neighbor to drive around the block 25 times on his motorcycle so we can work on it an alternative behavior!

I had to do something similar with one of my dogs. Train him to look at you on command. When you hear a motorcycle coming, give the command and keep him looking at you till the motorcycle passes. (That was a direct tip from a training course I took with one of the authors of the book I recommended above!) Google "Look at me command for dogs". It's often used for reactivity towards other dogs, but I'm sure It could be used for reactivity toward motorcycles!

 

[goofy4tink]

'Look at me' is one of my favorites!!!! Everyone just rolls their eyes (obviously they don't have dogs!) when I tell my dog that. But, it works. Gets the attention on me.
Unlike pea-n-me, I do use treats. Riley is very food motivated!!! But praise motivation runs a pretty close second! When actively training, I always have treats in my pocket. At other times, the treats are there, but come out sporadically...Riley never knows when a treat is coming! After a bit of time, he's pretty happy to work for praise.

For that jumping on you when you come home? That's so hard because our dogs are so happy to see us. But, this is what we do. I come into the house, Riley tried jumping all over me, I just turned around, back to him. He would try to run around to my front and jump, and I turned again. I ignored him until he settles down at my side, sitting. Each morning, when he sees me for the first time, he gets all excited...but I just stand there. He quickly remembers that the only way he's getting any attention is if he is sitting, quietly, at my side.
Company coming is harder. You'll need two people for this one. When you know you have company coming, put the dog's leash on him. Then, when people come to the door, put him in a sit/stay. I tend to wrap the leash around and under my foot...that way he can't possibly jump up. If he sits there, quietly, he gets a treat and praise. If not, a sit, stay is in order. Company doesn't get to touch him until he is settled and under control. Sadly, we have good friends who think I'm a very mean person when it comes to Riley!!! They say they'll be fine, just let him loose!!! Yeah, everyone wants a 75 lb golden retriever in their lap, on the sofa!!!! Not!!!

It takes time and patience, but it is so wonderful to have a happy, well trained dog. But remember, it's a daily thing!!! I do something with Riley every single day that makes him work for something. When I feed him, he goes into a sit/stay until I release him. The drool on the floor is incredible, but he sits there!!!! I put in all sorts of fun (at least he thinks so) practices throughout the day. That way, he is always learning, or at least refreshing!!!