Stubborn dog

[g_shepherd]

Hi doglovers!First I'm really sorry for my bad English,but I couldn't find help in the forums in my country or from a dog trainer.People,neither dog trainers could answer my questions concrete or help me.

I have male germans shepherd mix.He is now almost 6 years old.I made the mistake to adopt a 5-6 months old puppy.He was a street dog,then when he was 2-3 months old he was adopted by his previous owners and chained in their yard.Then I took him home.He was so active and whatever I did he escaped from the yard(I live in a house).Then I chained him too,but he has a lot of space(more space he will have in a huge dog cage with a dog house.Than he became a guard dog,I didn't want this from him!

I usually go out with him 2 times a day.The dog park is far and we always walk to it.

Problem number one:The dog is sometimes aggressive not to other dogs,but to pepole who are close to us when we are walking.He attacks them,he doesn't bark.When I release him to run he is aggressive if there are pepole who are close to me.When he is far from me and he sees a human he doesn't attack him.He attacks if I'm there.

Problem number two: After hours of running(for example when we are in the forest hiking) and he is not too tired,and he knows that it's time to go home he doesn't let me to tie him or he doesn't get in the car if he isn't tied.He runs,bites me and "plays"when I'm trying to catch him.When he sees the leash or when he thinks I will use the leash he starts behaving like I've said.People adviced me to release him with a rope that is hard for the dog to see or feel but when I do that he knows that he's not released and always comes when I call him and eats a dog treat.

Yeah,my dog could be too old to learn anything,but at least I could try something,but what?

 

[eingana]

Hi there, and welcome to DogForum

As this forum's resident GSD person, I'd like to say that the issues you're having are unusual, but unfortunately among shepherds they're not. Sadly, when a GSD gets scared they come out looking or acting aggressive and your first problem is, I think, related to fear.

Street dogs and dogs which have been kept unsocialised in yards tend to space guard and resource guard very seriously, so it's not a surprise that he's showing this behaviour. If you look at things from his point of view guarding your resources and the one human who has been good to you makes perfect sense. Most people in his life (and certainly in his formative period, which is before 16 weeks) have been horrible to him, have taken away his things, have chained him up and have scared him, and he expresses his fear by making people go away and also, very importantly, to leave you alone because you're the most precious resource that he has. Allowing people close allows them to hurt him or you, so making them go away is a lot safer than allowing them close.

If you start seeing his aggression as fear, rather than aggression, you can see that when you're around other people he's in a state of mild panic because of what he believes that these people are going to do if he allows them close enough to him or you. The training to change this has several parts:

1) Take him out around more people as often as you can, and at every available opportunity ask the people who are around you and your dog to not look at him, or approach him, but just throw a fabulously tasty treat to him and then walk away without being a threat. This is the first step of a process that will take months, but it's the only way to start because he needs to start seeing people as a good thing, rather than a bad thing and dogs are one of the most easy animals to bribe with a lovely little morsel of sausage, chicken or cheese.

2) At home find a way to provide him with a den, a crate with a cover over it or a little space with a bed in it that is just his, and where he can hoard his toys and he feels safe. You call him out of it to you for going out or for cuddles, but you don't try to go into his space (unless he's outside and you need to change the cover or vacuum it). This is to help him to feel like a more confident dog,

3) Develop a 'leave' command or an 'ah ah' for when he's focusing on people and you want him to walk away from them. A confident command which calls him back to a proper heel will help to show him that you're in charge and he doesn't need to take charge on this. It also gives you an opportunity to praise him and give him a stroke or a treat when he's left them as you've asked.

4) What do you walk him on? I'd recommend a head collar like a Dogmatics, if they're available where you are, and a big strong collar, with a training lead joining the two together. This gives you very good control of his head and the ability to turn him away from people he may be focusing inappropriately on, rather than pulling him back. When you've got that set up then you can practice turning him and saying 'this way' or similar, and taking him off another direction if he looks like he may be about to try to snap at someone.

Everything that you can do to take control of the situation in a way that doesn't scare him chips away at his belief that he has to protect you from everything that's around you that scares him. This is the new way that things are going to be in his life, and the result of this will be that bit by bit he will start to let you take the lead and protect him because he doesn't need to protect you.

OK, on to problem 2.

At the end of a run he doesn't want to go home because he's having fun. It's as simple as that. He's a clever boy and he's having such a lovely time that he doesn't want to go home and having his lead put on is the start of going home. The solution to this one is a game:

1) Let him off the lead on a walk and then 2 minutes later, before he's had chance to get very far from you, call him back and put him on the lead, then give him a treat and a fuss. Carry on your walk.

2) 2 minutes later let him off again, then after 30 seconds call him back, give him a fuss and a treat and don't attach the lead, then send him off again.

3) Repeat throughout the walk calling him to you, sending him off, calling him back, putting him on the lead, letting him off again, making it all a game and including lots of fuss and treats.

Don't chase him when he goes away from you. Say 'goodbye', turn your back and run in the opposite direction, giving him a target to chase. You are his world, you are the one person he trusts enough to let into his world and the person he wants to protect above all else- he will come running back to you, at which point you can praise him for coming back, give him a fuss and let him go again.

A few days of him not knowing which time you put him on the lead will mean you're going home should sort out his problem with that

Hope these tips help, and please don't believe that he's too old to learn. No dog is too old to learn