My new dog nips. How can I train him to stop this biting behavior?

I'm sorry you are facing this problem! First find out if Dobby is neutered or not. If he's not, get him neutered. Sometimes aggressive behaviors can be hormonally related, and neutering him may help. Then I would get him in with a professional behavioral expert. I never recommend owners work with aggressive dogs on their own due to the risks. It can be dangerous. While in training, do not allow Dobby around your son unsupervised. Monitor all interactions between them, and keep them completely apart when you cannot watch them closely. I hope this helps.

I hate to hear this is happening. If you do not want to rehome her, I recommend to work with a professional trainer because this will give you the best results the fastest. Canine aggression is a complex behavior as it can stem from dominance, possessiveness, fear, anxiety, resource guarding or a combination. Most people are not familiar with reading canine body language and training. A professional trainer is fully capable of reading the body language and then teaching you how to modify this behavior. Researching on your own will also be helpful. Familiarizing yourself with canine body language and dog training can help you to recognize what your pet is trying to say. You can find many books written on the topic and there is a trainer named Victoria Stilwell who I think is particularly helpful. Best of luck.

Unfortunately nipping/lashing out/aggression is a very complex topic and one that may be difficult to fix without a trainer. Because it is multifactoral- Bernie’s temperament, your temperament, Bernie’s experiences, your experiences, the environment- your surest, fastest and safest bet is to work with a trainer or behaviorist. Basically, the trainer will watch you and Bernie, paying attention to how you react to each other and the environmental stimulus. The trainer will then work with both of you to modify both of your behaviors to meet a common goal. The humane society can often recommend a trainer/behaviorist. Otherwise go online and read ratings and reviews. There are several different training methods so you will need to find the one that works best for you and your pup. You should also stop by the library and pick up a few books about dog behavior and dog training so that you can learn to recognize Bernie’s body language. By knowing what he is saying, you be better able to react before he nips. You have to step in at level 2, by the time he nips he’s already at level 10. I hope this at least points you in the right direction. Please post again with any further questions.

I hate to hear that about Jimmy. Aggression is a very complex problem and one that may be difficult to fix without a trainer. Aggression can be related to dominance, possessive behavior, fear or anxiety and each one needs to be addressed in a different fashion. The trainer will be able to determine the cause. The trainer will then work with you and your pet to modify both of your behaviors to meet a common goal. There are several different training methods so you will need to find the one that works best for you and your pup. You should also pick up a few books about dog behavior and dog training so that you can learn to recognize your pet’s body language. By knowing what he is saying, you be better able to react before he reacts. Neutering Jimmy can also help to reduce undesired behavior. I hope this at least points you in the right direction. Please post again with any further questions.

First off, I highly recommend a beginner training class with Nero, and also getting him into something fun and active such as agility or flyball, as Sheepdogs are extremely smart and extremely prone to boredom. Sometimes, having a focused training class or activity can help get out that energy and put your dog to work so they are less likely to become bored and destructive. As for nipping, there are a few things you can try out: Have a toy or bone handy that you can put in Nero's mouth when he gets excited to give him something to chew on and be mouthy with other than your hands/arms. If he picks up a toy on his own, be sure to give him lots of praise to help teach him this is a good thing. If walking away or yelping doesn't help, teaching him something such as "settle" can help him to focus on calming down and relaxing instead of ramping up the behavior with more excitement. Grabbing his collar and holding him down is likely just exciting him more, but focusing on training such as sit, down, settle, etc can divert his focus into something productive instead. Practice "airplaning" treats. This involves having Nero sit and slowly bringing a treat down to him. If he jumps up or gets excited, you have him sit again and start over. Once he can focus on staying still, he gets the treat. This can help teach some impulse control and reduce excitement behavior. Give him a job! Redirect his attention by telling him to go find a specific toy or bone. This can help him get out that excited energy and focus on chewing on the toy, instead of jumping all over you.

Hi there! I'm sorry to hear that you're having this problem with Buffy. It's not unusual for behavioral issues to take a few weeks to show up in a newly adopted dog - there is often a "honeymoon period" while they're still getting comfortable and adjusting to their new home, before these issues start to emerge. Aggression towards other dogs and humans is a complex behavioral issue that's difficult to address properly in a forum like this, but I can try to give you some general information that may be helpful. Treatment for aggression issues is generally based on identifying what situations tend to trigger the aggressive behavior - then either finding ways to avoid them, or working with the dog to teach her to respond differently using reward-based training techniques. If this is something you want to work on, I would recommend making an appointment with a veterinary behaviorist who can evaluate Buffy in person and help you put together a detailed treatment plan to address her aggressive behavior. For now, if the aggression only happens with dogs and people she doesn't know, I would recommend keeping her separated from visitors for now until you are able to get a more detailed plan in place to work on the problem. You can search for a board-certified veterinary behaviorist in your area here: www.dacvb.org

Aggression toward people is a very serious and complicated topic, and one that should be worked with by a local animal behaviorist or trainer in person. It is best to work together to address the root cause behind the biting (fear, uncomfortable in new home, undersocialized, etc) and then work on a training plan together than can ensure both Okami and any visitors remain safe. In the meantime, moving Okami to another room and not having visitors approach, or just tossing a treat if they walk past where he is is best to avoid direct contact and anyone getting hurt. In the US, this site is useful for finding a certified behaviorist near you that can get you started on resolving the issue: http://www.dacvb.org/about/member-directory/