Hi Kathy,
We certainly can help you with this issue and the solution is a little more complex than I can go into here. My website TheOnlineDogTrainer.com will be able to help you as we comprehensively cover how to overcome these behaviours and we can also offer individual advice via our Forum…maybe take a quick look…its a $1 trial for 3 days.
In the meantime if you have guests over I would suggest having your dog om a leash with you until he is more relaxed and you have control at all times.…all the best Doggy Dan

Hi Cindy,
There is absolutely no doubt that some dogs are far more challenging than others! However the really great thing is that when given the correct information, calmly and consistently their behaviour does start to improve. I have helped many owners, with similarly challenging dogs, work through their dog’s issues and the key really is to be giving the dog the RIGHT information and the right time. My website TheOnlineDogTrainer.com covers the majority of the behaviours you mention but more importantly it shows you how to achieve a calm and happy dog…maybe take a quick look…its a $1 trial for 3 days…all the best Doggy Dan

Hi Lynelle,
It sounds like you have a really amazing group of dogs in your family. In many situations, especially when it comes to emotions, it can be very difficult to say just how intelligent dogs are in this respect. Personally I do believe that dogs are far more evolved in this area than we give them credit for and so it’s really difficult to attribute reasoning to their behaviour with 100% accuracy. No doubt all of your dogs are attuned to both you and your husband’s emotional state and when they detect a change they will respond accordingly. It may be that your younger dog feels that the older dogs have your husband covered and so she is gravitating towards you to ensure you are also ok, or she may be trying to ‘read’ you in the context of the situation, or she may just have bonded with you more than your husband. Your dogs will have their own dynamic together, working together to ensure everyone is taken care of in times of unease. They really are amazing animals and family members. Thanks for sharing…..All the best, Dan

Hi Regina,
The easiest way to ensure everything goes calmly when guests or grandchildren arrive is to place your puppies on a leash and ask your grandchildren to wait for them to calm down before they say ‘hi’. Just explain you are trying to teach your puppies some manners around guests, if you give children a good reason why then they are generally happy to co-operate. Once you feel that your puppies have relaxed and calmed down you can allow them off-leash or even leave their leash attached and just let go of it. This will make it easier if you do need to quickly gain control of them if they start to get too excited. Also be aware that young puppies do tend to feed of excitement and it can wind them up to a point where they lose control a bit. So step in and remove your puppies if they start to get to a point where their excitement is reaching a limit. Take hold of their leashes, wait for them to calm down a bit and then you can decide if you think they will be ok to go and play again. If you are consistent then your puppies will learn what kind of play is allowed and what isn’t but remember to remain calm and don,t make too big a fuss of their behaviour, actions speak louder than words here. Hope that helps….Doggy Dan

The two main things were to 1. Identifying and recognising that the ladies actions, feelings and emotions were effecting the dog. Then helping the be aware of being calm as she left for the walk, clearing negative thoughts, breathing fully and being more relaxed about it. 2. Ensuring that in and around the house the dog knew that the lady was in charge of all the big decisions including protecting the property. This made it easier to then carry this role on when they were out on the walk. The dog could relax and the lady was in charge, keeping an eye on things. Hope that makes sense. Cheers Dan

Hi Connie, I have found that many times when we give our dogs “corrections” and think we are doing it calmly without emotion and frustration it is actually adding energy to the situation. Something you may want to try is using timeout as a consequence of their actions without saying a word. The other thing to consider is that they may think it is their role to be protecting the property. Regards Dan

Hi Victoria, I did wonder if anyone would make a connection to Kevin’s book which I have on my shelf at home. I have read it and found some really interesting points that really resonated with me. In terms of his actual dog training I have no real idea what he does or how he works, (the book did not focus on how to train your dog in that respect) so I cannot comment. What I can say is that I have found that whatever “pure training style” you prefer it always seems to be more effective if you put the 5 Golden Rules in place first. That is the key to success, and then taking it slowly, usually with fearful dogs we tend to rush it. Here is a post that may help you… http://theonlinedogtrainer.com/fear-aggression-training-the-amazing-ability-for-dogs-to-change/
Hope that helps, regards Dan

Best,
Victoria (Riccardi)