Dutch Shepherd Forum

Haven't been on much (i started a small business painting signs and canvases and oh my goodness i never dreamed i'd be so busy ) Any way.... Stella continued to show aggression here and there with my kid's friends.... she killed a squirrel in the yard.... she was getting worse about charging at the fence when the neighbor's little dogs were out side... and I'll be honest I was really starting to worry. I felt like as time was going on Stella's aggression was getting worse.

I contacted the lady from the GSD rescue and she put me in touch with a local trainer and fellow DS owner!!! He came yesterday and assessed Stella in our home and for the first time in a long time I feel like we are heading in the right direction!

Remember me telling y'all that Stella wouldn't bark for the other trainer or us... we tried and tried for the aggressive alert command.... well after "knowing" my dog for about an hour he took her out in the backyard had my husband hold her on a leash and came out around the corner with the whip and stick thingies (don't laugh at my lack of proper terms) and she was barking and pulling to get at him... tail wagging.... and finally it clicked.... that is what this dog was bred to do... that is what she needs to be doing.... and because of her responding to german commands he thinks she's probably done this type of work before... SO...... we are doing in home sessions with the trainer so WE can learn how to properly handle this dog... and joining a Shutzhund club so Stella can start doing protection work.... as much as I'm sure she LOVES (sarcasm) getting her nails painted and being forced to platz for tea parties with Vivian she's going to get to do what dutch shepherds do once a week..... I was VERY hesitant to do any type of protection work with her because it just couldn't be safe for a family pet... well right now we have an unpredictable dog that will randomly be aggressive and we can't turn it off or on.... and hopefully soon we'll have an obediant well trained dog that we can be in control of....

the knew trainer said a lot of the same things y'all have said.... oh and many of the things the other trainer was doing was actually making Stella's OCD crap even worse.... it was a total waste of money.... what a journey this has been! One of you (I think Lisa) told me to stock my liquor cabinet when I asked about any advise before we adopted a dutch shepherd..... NOW I know why.... but we love every crazy minute of it!

wow that is so exciting! I'm so happy for you and I'm so glad you found a trainer you are happy with and have that sense that things are moving in the right direction! When done properly, protection training as a sport should be fun for the dog and the owner and it should very much put you in control and give her an appropriate outlet for some of her drives. Thanks for sharing this update!

What a great story. I am so happy that you found a trainer that really gets your Dutchie!

It's really good to hear that you're getting another trainer. From your old posts, I wasn't a fan of the old one. Shutzhund is a great sport to get into, especially if you can find a club that's happy to accept a DS.

Also great news about your small business! It's so nice having something like that where you can earn money on the side to pay for things. My husband and I run a small agility equipment business and it helps pay for all of Odin's activities.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0evoH_RI58


It's funny the last "trainer" tried several times just to her to bark and couldn't.... This is the first time we've ever done anything like this with Stella and look at her reaction! Don't mind my yard.... she shredded a box that blew over the fence.... another issue we were having was her destroying the yard so no more going out unattended.... we can't aren't leaving her unattended at all even in the house.... this guy had such great insight..... and yes lol having a small business on the side (doing something I love) helps pay for Stella's training and stuff although the shutzhund club is only $350 a year which I don't think is bad at all! and they have several dutchies!

oh congratulations!
now does anyone know such a savior of a DS trainer on long island in ny?

[quote="johninny"]oh congratulations!
now does anyone know such a savior of a DS trainer on long island in ny?[/quote

Or anywhere in northeastern NY---

that is soooooo great !!!! If its a cut bamaboo stick , thats the stick the decoys use to rile up the dogs, then when they are biting and brush/tap the dog with the stick so they learn to bite while there is something being done to them. Doing this work will not make her any less of a pet, it will make her a better pet now that she has someplace to work and get her aggression and energy out.

There are a few Ring people I have found around me but I never looked into it. I may give some a call and check them out. I would still like to do something with Sadie.

He had a whip type thing and a big stick not sure what it was made out of.... I wish y'all could of seen what a nervous wreck I was before he came..... Stella always has a "meltdown" when new ppl come over and when he walked in and asked me to let go of her I was like OMG she's going to eat him.... Ummmm no lol pretty sure Stella picks up on my anxiousness (I am really high strung... lol Stella and I are a lot alike)

He took control of her immediately and we're already learning how! He also said that she see's herself as higher up in the pack than the kids and that is why she always puts herself between other people (even other kids) and them..... he said we'll always have to be cautious with other people but that she will probably never be aggressive to my kids because she considers it her job to protect them..... oh and she doesn't "love" them she "tolerates" them lol

We have been sending this poor dog so many mixed signals... from now on our goal is to make things simple and clear to her so she's not always guessing when to do what

katm4110 wrote:He took control of her immediately and we're already learning how!

And that's exactly what a good trainer should do...I'm so glad you found one!

It really sounds like you're on the right track, and with clear goals in mind and help with knowing how to get there, you will.

yay!

Applauds enthusiastically!