# 11 wk pup barking at other dogs



## vtgsd (Apr 17, 2011)

hello. my wife and i recently brought home our new german shepherd pup. he's 11 weeks old and wonderful little guy. we're doing everything we can to learn about the breed and get started on training. he's signed up for a puppy class that begins the end of the month.

one issue i've noticed is that he barks at other dogs upon seeing them and meeting them. it's rather hit or miss. yesterday a woman walked by about 10 ft away with a pit mix. her dog seemed interested but she kept moving, and my pup started barking at the dog. i tried to distract him but it didn't work well as he was fixated on the dog. then today we met another little 12 week old pup and just after greeting each other mine started barking at the other pup. it didn't seem like a playful bark, it was more of "i don't like you, why are near me". he kept it up for 2 or 3 minutes and then they started playing and chasing each other. later this afternoon we were at the pet food place, where he met a well behaved pit whom he didn't bark at, but 15 minutes later he met an older shepherd (1.5-2 yrs) whom he greeted and then barked a couple times at. 

any ideas on what is causing this? i can't tell if it's just a puppy thing until he's socialized with more dogs, or if there's something else going on. your thoughts? any suggestions on training that i can start at home to nip this behavior in the bud?

thanks, much appreciated.


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## wilbanks17 (Feb 11, 2011)

Sounds like just a puppy being a puppy. Plenty of time to train him, for now just enjoy the bonding period together.


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## Emoore (Oct 9, 2002)

He definitely needs to be socialized. Puppy class will help a lot with that.


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## vtgsd (Apr 17, 2011)

we're looking forward to the puppy class, but with it being 10 days away i was hoping there was something i could do with him in the meantime. 

any suggestions on the proper way to respond to him barking at other dogs? up to this point i just try to not make a big deal out of it and distract him. i could try an introduce him to other dogs with our older rescue. she doesn't bark, but she get's really excited and pulls to play with them. i was trying to avoid this because i didn't want him to pick up this excited/hyper behaviour.


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## Stosh (Jun 26, 2010)

He just wants to play- which is good! The classes will definitely help.


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## JakodaCD OA (May 14, 2000)

Have you got some friends with other calm dogs/puppies ? I would bring your other dog, because even tho puppies usually pick up on behaviors of existing dogs,,and your other one gets excited, sounds like it's a HAPPY excited,,so your puppy may pick up on this to vs the barking/unsure of other dogs.

Make sense? LOL Ignoring the behavior is good..I usually, make NO big deal out of it as you are doing..


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## HeidiW (Apr 9, 2009)

Is your puppy a working line dog ? Did you get him from NH ? Is he treat motivated? When he does not bark you could give him a treat with a Good boy comment.


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## vtgsd (Apr 17, 2011)

thanks jakoda, we'll try to introduce him with out other dog and see how it goes. it definitely seems to me to be an "unsure" bark. 

he's not from new hampshire, we got him here in vt. he doesn't seem to be very treat motivated just yet, but i'm still trying to find something that he really likes.


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## JakodaCD OA (May 14, 2000)

actually I meant take the other dog,,it sounds like the other dog is dog friendly and happy, THAT could show your puppy it's no big deal to interact with other dogs (friendly ones that is) and the puppy may follow in your other dogs footsteps


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## vtgsd (Apr 17, 2011)

i got what you meant, jakoda. my response may not have been clear. 

we took both out for a walk in a local field today and came across a nice blue heeler. our rescue mutt LOVES to greet every dog she meets so naturally she ran right up to him. our pup followed suit and never barked or showed any signs of insecurity. he licked the heeler in the chin a couple times all three were playing nicely in no time.

maybe having her along is a good idea after all just to show him it's fun to meet other dogs. he may not pick up her hyper habits in greeting being that already at 11 weeks he seems much more confident in almost everything than she was/is. walking on new surfaces, different sounds, loud noises, people, bikes, etc....he takes it all in stride.

thanks for the replies. i'm just a bit nervous because i want the best for him and want him to be socialized as much as possible. our rescue girl had parvo as a pup and was quarantined which really hampered our attemps at socializing her during those critical weeks.


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