someone kindly told me they were what i referd to as a head collar, now i know the correct name i thought it would be proper to use it,

It is natural for a dog or puppy to pull irrespective of whether it is a pet/show or working dog bred because dogs walk faster than humans anyway and we can't keep pace with them . Your post seems to suggest that if a puppy pulls on a lead this means it has an unsuitable temperament for breeding . I don't think the OP has mentioned that she has any intention of breeding from her dog anyway but as most puppies pull this is a rather odd notion. .

Have you bothered to read the OPs other posts you would have learnt the person has only been in possession of the dog for a short time . As an 'experienced trainer' I would have thought you would know that when someone has only had a dog for a short time they are hardly likely to be responsible for a dogs unwanted behaviour, the dogs behavior it is most probably down to the previous owner/lack of socialisation/breeding.

And I thought putting little boys up chimneys and Barbara Woodhouse where things of the past. Yes of course you can train a dog using force but over the years some of us have learnt there are better ways to train dogs . We have learnt so much more about why dogs behave as they do and this has enabled some us to train them without making them fearful or destroying the bond of trust which many of us will have built up with our dogs.

experienced trainer you may be but that doesn't make you a good trainer. I have worked with many 'experienced trainers' over the years and I wouldn't let some of them within a hundred miles of any dog of mine.

experienced trainer you may be but that doesn't make you a good trainer. I have worked with many 'experienced trainers' over the years and I wouldn't let some of them within a hundred miles of any dog of mine.[/QUOTE]

that soup looks tasty minihaha

it's a good job i had advice from some very loving dog owners...if tinnls was the first peice of advice i had come across..i would have logged out never to have return....

once Avek and i are trained...i am going to take a corse in computer(grr hate them hate them) and Spelling *blush*

to anyone reading these threads for the first time with new puppies...please don't be put off by what may seem to be harsh and "not for you advice" advice...just wait a little while and someone will be along to help you very soon...Dogsey is a MUST site for anyone with a new dog. for the most part it is helpfull, friendly and a very comforting and reasuring support...and for the parts that aren't...they serve wonderfull Soups....lol...thankyou All at Dogsey

Hi Micheala yes the sitting on the doorstep is a good thing but I would not try to coax Avek to do anything he doesn't feel comfortable with, if you are sitting on the doorstep with treats or a game I think you will find he will want to be there too anyway.


Leaving the lead on can help in some instances but not in all, it a dog is fearful of a lead it may not help. Better to teach the dog to associate the lead with good things so in this instance I would try putting a very light lead on before a meal/putting the food down/walking the dog to the bowl and leaving the lead on during the meal. If the dog is uneasy with this stop/say nothing and try again another day. Also put a light lead on before playing games/giving treat only leaving it on for a short time, this should gradually help to desensitize Avek from the fear of having a lead on.


It is difficult to be precise when making suggestions with fearful dogs , I can best describe it as take a small step forward and if this is ok take another, if not pause and try again later or by approaching the problem from a different perspective .


I haven't used a Canny Collar but they are ok for some dogs.

Fraid I have to disagree with that one too! Out of ALL my shepherds (one being a rescue at 5 yrs. old too) NONE of them were wary of any strangers entering the house, except the initial barking to just let me know somebody was there! I even had a gas man just come through the gate, all the way round to my back door with one on each side of him, licking his hands! However, I will say that IF you happen to have a visitor you don't want/like or who is a threat to you, then that could all change, because it's the smell of YOU that will make them protective over you, i.e. your own fear, nothing to do with the stranger himself.

I can honestly say, I have never met a gang of gsd's who have shown me any agression when entering their house, and in fact, when we went to pick Zena up, we were immediately bowled over by 4 big gsd's licking us to death, and they didn't know us from Adam,they were everything BUT aggressive, and only barked when we rang the doorbell, and this is the same as I have always found it with any of mine. It's NOT a gsd thing, it's all down to how well your gsd has been socialised and brought up imo, and even if you've missed out on the initial important first 12 weeks, you can still catch up by going to training. As my vet said recently, it's absolutely imperative that your dog is socialised with all different types of people in the early stages, because of the breed, and she also stated it was almost MORE important than worrying about her catching any diseases when she hadn't gone the full course of the jabs, so that's how very important it is that you overcome this.

I had this a couple of weeks ago with mine, she didn't like a couple of men who came to my house, or one we met whilst at training, but through hard work I've managed to completely overcome it now, loads of treats, loads of fuss and loads of grabbing hold of every man I met whilst out and asking him nicely if he would give her a treat and a fuss! Result! Don't accept that gsd's don't like people coming to your house because they DO, if you've brought them up properly! They pretty useless at guarding the house imo, anyone can walk in MY back door and step over Georgie as two paramedics had to do the other night whilst he carried on snoring The will instinctively KNOW when they have to go into threat mode purely by YOUR reactions to whoever has come in and nothing else, and probably a burglar wandering around on his own in the middle of the night, it would be nice to think so anyways!

Have fun at that training class, you'll learn loads, your pup will get properly socalised with allsorts of peops and other dogs, and you will have a wonderful dog who's a joy to own. It's never to late, they're so smart, which I think you've already found out haven't you! Good luck

Zeita always pulled as a puppy, she is now 18months , I use a gentle leader on her, its a head collar. It is a close fitting collar and rests on points that naturally calm a dog, ie at the back of the neck. Hold your lead in your right hand and keep an extra tasty treat in your left hand...sausage, chicken etc. Make sure Avek knows its there, he will soon learn that walking to heel gets him tasty treats. As he gets confident at heel walking slowly reduce the amount of times he gets a treat. Make sure you only treat him when he is at heel and say "heel" as you treat.

Also alternate from treat and fuss, so he has to work harder to get the food treat.. I put Zeita onto a gentle leader when she was about 10 months old but she is a small GSD. You can get different sizes and the are fully adjustable, so when you feel you can't hold him I would start using one. They come with a hndy training b ooklet too

Have fun

Mel x