# behavior issues with a 7 month old



## liferebooted (Dec 25, 2013)

I got my girl when she was 10 weeks old, she just turned 7 months old and is spayed. I'm having some annoying issues with her. First off, I did take her to obedience training and she passed just fine but at home she behaves a lot worse. She'll listen to her commands to sit/stay/free/down but thats its. At 7 months shes is still mouthing\biting. I managed to get her to stop biting everyone else in my family when she wants to be petted by them but she bites me all day long.

I just want to mention that I'm with her almost all the time, since the day I got on her X-mas eve I dropped my work hours to twice a week and only 5 hours each day. I have no life so I'm home all the time with her. I've had her on a leash in the house since day 1, I have 4 older dogs, small breeds 5-12 years old. None of them want anything to do with her. she is nice to them but they'll attack or growl at her if she gets within a few feet. 

Besides the fact that she won't quit trying to eat me I'm also annoyed that I still have to keep her on a leash all day, when I drop it she goes bat **** insane running around, trying to jump on top of the other dogs and chewing anything she can. Is this normal at 7 months for a GSD? I had a GSD\Rottie mix for 15 years but he was the laziest most laid back dog ever made. 

Oh, I also want to make it clear that while at 7 months her mouthing and biting really, really hurts she NEVER had broken skin so I think that she just might not realize what she's doing. =\ She is such a sweetie but has some problems. 

I walk her 4 times a day for 20 minutes each, I also take her out back a few times a day to toss sticks for her to chase since she loves them. The problem with this is I have to keep her on a 15 foot leash, my yard is fenced in but if she really wants to I'm sure she could climb\jump it. 2 months ago when she was much smaller she was just standing next to the kitchen table and jumped right on top of it without even needing a running start.


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## liferebooted (Dec 25, 2013)

My little monster.


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## llombardo (Dec 11, 2011)

Obedience for life. It doesn't stop once they finish a class. Continue to take her to class. Of course she is going to run all over the place acting crazy because she is on a leash all day. Do you own a crate? You can't have her on a leash for the next 12 years. If she is living in a house with other dogs, your going to have to work with all of them do they can co-exist. It's not fair to her.


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## liferebooted (Dec 25, 2013)

Yes she has a crate and she loves it. I do not use the crate to punish her ever, she sleeps in it at night and during the day when I have to go to the store or mow the lawn. Last time I let her off leash in the house she was trying to play with my 10 year old 40lb mix, put her pawn down hard between her shoulder blades causing a pinched nerve =\ That doggy was in so much pain for days. The leash has mainly been to protect the other dogs and her since she tries to eat power cords still. 

And yes I'm going to try to get her into more training classes. I'm looking for a different trainer who is more custom to GSDs. My last trainer kept telling me to spray her with lemon juice which I found cruel. She also would hang her by the prong collar while she cried and told me it was just "her acting and trying to manipulate me." While I love Cesar Millan she was trying to copy him in all her training no matter the breed or the problem.


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## llombardo (Dec 11, 2011)

liferebooted said:


> Yes she has a crate and she loves it. I do not use the crate to punish her ever, she sleeps in it at night and during the day when I have to go to the store or mow the lawn. Last time I let her off leash in the house she was trying to play with my 10 year old 40lb mix, put her pawn down hard between her shoulder blades causing a pinched nerve =\ That doggy was in so much pain for days. The leash has mainly been to protect the other dogs and her since she tries to eat power cords still.
> 
> And yes I'm going to try to get her into more training classes. I'm looking for a different trainer who is more custom to GSDs. My last trainer kept telling me to spray her with lemon juice which I found cruel. She also would hang her by the prong collar while she cried and told me it was just "her acting and trying to manipulate me." While I love Cesar Millan she was trying to copy him in all her training no matter the breed or the problem.


Yes find a new trainer. There is nothing wrong with her being in a crate for short periods while you are home. Is there an area in the house where you can put up a gate and let her have free reign while you are there and watching her? She is a puppy and wants to play, I'm sure she didn't mean to hurt the other dog. Do you keep her on a leash and the other dogs are around or in the same room?


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## gsdsar (May 21, 2002)

What are you doing when she bites you?


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## liferebooted (Dec 25, 2013)

Sometimes when I just try to pet her she'll put my arm in her mouth, I don't know if its mouthing or biting, she never comes close to breaking the skin but I have eczema so I have cuts all over already so it really hurts. The only time it really feels like she is biting is when she brings me something to throw outside, she won't let go and when I grab it she bites my hand because she knows I'll let go, but then she wonders why I can't through it.

I really am making her sound terrible but she really is sweet most of the time, she just has a few kinks.


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## gsdsar (May 21, 2002)

She doesn't sound horrible. She sounds like a puppy with no boundaries!! 


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## warpwr (Jan 13, 2011)

liferebooted said:


> I'm looking for a different trainer who is more custom to GSDs.
> My last trainer kept telling me to spray her with lemon juice which I found cruel. She also would hang her by the prong collar while she cried and told me it was just "her acting and trying to manipulate me."
> While I love Cesar Millan she was trying to copy him in all her training no matter the breed or the problem.


Cesar Milan doesn't train dogs.

You really do need a new trainer though, negative stuff like hanging and spraying with lemon are about 1/10th as affective as positive reinforcement, if that.

7 month olds can be a problem. I know, we have one. They like to test all the boundaries both newly discovered and all the things they already learned just to see if you really mean it.

As I'm typing this, I can hear my wife saying NO!, release, Ow, etc in the other room, haha.

We're lucky I guess, we go to a GSD trainer and right now ours is in puppy or first level obedience.
_Zazzle, in purple collar._









It seems like your girl really needs to burn off some steam at dog social get togethers (lots of socializing) or ball chasing or the like too.

Hey, good luck. These dogs invariably turn out to be the best there are after they mature.


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## llombardo (Dec 11, 2011)

liferebooted said:


> Sometimes when I just try to pet her she'll put my arm in her mouth, I don't know if its mouthing or biting, she never comes close to breaking the skin but I have eczema so I have cuts all over already so it really hurts. The only time it really feels like she is biting is when she brings me something to throw outside, she won't let go and when I grab it she bites my hand because she knows I'll let go, but then she wonders why I can't through it.
> 
> I really am making her sound terrible but she really is sweet most of the time, she just has a few kinks.


You can work on commands at home with her. Teach her to drop it when she has a toy that way she doesn't bite your hand. Now that she knows she can get that toy if she bites you, she will do it. She doesn't sound terrible, she is a young energetic dog. It sounds like she is mouthing you. I got my male when he was about 8 months old and he was still mouthing. It took about a week to stop it. Whenever he put his mouth on me I would say no and walk away. He eventually learned and rather quickly that he wasn't getting any petting until he stopped. You can also play tug with her. If she starts mouthing you, give her the tug and play with her, let her win and make a big deal about it.


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## blackshep (Aug 3, 2012)

She sounds like she's got a ton of energy that she needs to expend.

Try doing more obedience work, or try out a scent detection class. Those two things tire my dog out more than anything.


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## liferebooted (Dec 25, 2013)

Hi, I just wanted to post that we didn't stop the training at home. I use treats and other positive reinforcment here at home all day long working on training her, she is a lot better than she used to be by far. She's been working a lot on "leave it" since it loves to pick up stuff on walks and around the house. I've been using "don't bite" and whimpering noises when she does.


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## Juliem24 (Jan 4, 2014)

I've found it very effective to say NO and turn my back, no eye contact, no talking until the dog settles. She wants your full attention, and not giving attention will make her think about it. And, sometimes when they get too wound up, a little time out in the crate or behind the gate will help them calm themselves.


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## lalachka (Aug 13, 2013)

liferebooted said:


> Sometimes when I just try to pet her she'll put my arm in her mouth, I don't know if its mouthing or biting, she never comes close to breaking the skin but I have eczema so I have cuts all over already so it really hurts. The only time it really feels like she is biting is when she brings me something to throw outside, she won't let go and when I grab it she bites my hand because she knows I'll let go, but then she wonders why I can't through it.
> 
> I really am making her sound terrible but she really is sweet most of the time, she just has a few kinks.






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## liferebooted (Dec 25, 2013)

Hi guys, I still take her on a few 30 minute walks and even though she pants it doesn't really kill her energy. I take her out back now on the 16 foot leash and since it isn't really anywhere near long enough for a GSD I toss her ball against the part of the house without siding so that it bounces and she really has to chase it around this seems to really tire her out after 30 minutes of it, we do it a few times a day.

Instead of yelling at her when she bites me I've been praising her when she lets go\grabs what I offer her instead and it really seems to be working, she is mouthing much less already.

PS. Its strange having a dog who knows how to play fetch and bring the ball back to me without even having to train her to do so. Shes 7 months old and smarter than my 10-13 year old dogs of other breeds.


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## Kiitsu (Apr 20, 2014)

I think letting her off leash more inside is your best bet. Just do your best to manage it...the problem will pass. She is not used to freedom, so when she gets it, she will freak out. Try only allowing her to be off leash in a room with a closed door first.
To stop the crazies, ignore her until she stops. Do not do anything at all, don't even look at her. It may take her awhile to catch on, but she will improve.


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## Alice13 (Feb 21, 2014)

I had this problem with Alice too. I tried everything i could find on the net to stop her play biting but it didn't work. So i consulted a local dog trainer n he asked me to pull her collar away from my skin while giving her a firm 'no' whenever she bites. Her biting did reduce n for the past few weeks she hasn't been biting at all. She does do it accidentally once in a while or if I accidentally pull on her fur while trying to stop her from running out of her kennel when the door's open (she is an escape artist, used to climb the fence to get out when she was a pup). The moment she realises what she bit me she grabs her chewy toy and runs off. As long as she doesn't break your skin you don't have to worry. About the running around it is because your dog is excited. It is like if you had spent a whole week cooped up in your house and finally you get the chance to go out, wouldn't you be excited? They have high energy levels so they tend to show their excitement in a much more energetic way.

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## Alice13 (Feb 21, 2014)

U can try walking her around your home with the leash on first for maybe 5 minutes, loosening the leash from time to time and then remove it when you feel she is calm enough. 

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## Mishka&Milo (Jan 4, 2014)

My advice would be... On the biting, say "ouch" followed by a 30 second time out, or a few seconds of turning around and letting no fun occur. My girl was a rescue and only 5 weeks when we got her.... So she hadn't learned not to bite. We started by letting her bite and only saying ouch when it really hurt (to teach her how hard was too hard) after she learned that we said ouch if her teeth even touched us. This worked well. She is 7 months now and doesn't mouth at all. I'm sorry you had such a bad training experience! Those are the people who give prong collars a bad name. I use both positive and negative. The clear communication works wonders. Negative is only used when she clearly disobeys a command she KNOWS backward and forward. Let me know if there are any specific behaviors you need help with and I'd love to give some specifics. 


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## MoosesMama (Jan 3, 2014)

liferebooted - just wanted to let you know, I'm going through the same thing w/ my 7 month old male! I have no solutions for you - LOL, I need some myself. Just wanted you to know you are not alone. Maybe our dogs are not so "abnormal" after all eh? I'm taking mine to a new trainer too, so we shall see!


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## osito23 (Feb 17, 2014)

It sounds like your puppy is bored and under-exercised. Leashed walks aren't adequate exercise; is there a safe place you can take your dog to give her some real exercise? Long fetches, swimming, even just an off leash romp would do well to tire her out. I would also suggest enrolling in an obedience class, maybe even rally or nose work. Your dog needs to be mentally stimulated as well, and this will help her calm down. I would teach the puppy to be calm inside and that playing is for outside. You can look up threads on "sitting on the leash" to help teach this concept. Provide toys, chews, frozen kongs, etc inside. Tugs, fetch, chasing the water hose etc are for outside. 

I also have a 7 month old GSD with smaller/older dogs (3yr old/8lb chihuahua/dachshund mix, 7yr old/30lb Australian shepherd mix, 7yr old/38lb lab mix) and a cat. When we brought Bear home at 12 weeks, he was leashed inside the house and boundaries were set. With training and consistency he needed the leash less and less...it's been several months since he's had one on inside. The other dogs were also expected to accept Bear - I am not doing crate/rotate nor would I leash a dog inside indefinitely. I would unleash your puppy inside, but expect her to be wild at first because she is not used to freedom. You may need to separate her and your other dogs at first. I would work on getting her to behave in the house without a leash before adding the distraction of other dogs. Then slowly introduce them one at a time, setting boundaries with all of the dogs. Keep redirecting your puppy away from the other dogs and teach him to ignore them. You want them to be neutral with each other. 

It will take time and work to have them all coexist peacefully. 7 month old puppies are, well, annoying.  Older smaller dogs don't generally appreciate their antics, so you have to manage the situation. I know that my puppy needs a good dose of exercise to behave, so we start the morning off with off leash exercise (swimming, fetch, just a good off leash walk on the trails, etc). All 4 dogs go together, and it's a good way to bond. Afterwards everyone can relax at home together. I don't expect all my dogs to love each other all the time, but I do expect to be able to enjoy them together. You may need to separate them some times (baby gates, crates). You need to provide the older dogs with a safe place away from the puppy, and make sure to still give them one-on-one attention too. 

Good luck! It's a lot of work, but it's worth it.


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## TheDakotaShow (Mar 9, 2014)

Sounds like my 5 month old. Let me guess she doesny listen to commands either? 

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## shepherdmom (Dec 24, 2011)

liferebooted said:


> I got my girl when she was 10 weeks old, she just turned 7 months old and is spayed. I'm having some annoying issues with her. First off, I did take her to obedience training and she passed just fine but at home she behaves a lot worse. She'll listen to her commands to sit/stay/free/down but thats its. At 7 months shes is still mouthing\biting. I managed to get her to stop biting everyone else in my family when she wants to be petted by them but she bites me all day long.


Have you tried frozen marrow bones? When my puppy gets bitey usually in the evenings I take a frozen marrow bone or something similar and stick him in the crate with it for about 1/2 -45 mins. He gets his chewing in. After that we can go play and he is a lot less bitey.


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