Hi all, this is my first post but I've been reading for some time.  I recently brought home an 11 week old GSP female.  She's fantastic, I work with her a little each day.  In less than a week she's darn near housetrained, great in a crate and is learning sit/stay and whoa.  I work with her about 20 minutes in the morning and again at night.

My question though.  I have a one year old Maltest/Shihtzu mix that is another ball of energy.  He loves playing with big dogs. He bites their legs and they chase him.  Maybe I should have corrected this behavior but it hasn't been a problem until now.

With both of them, they respect me as the alpha but I think are fighting it out  between them for #2.  Half of the time they lay next to each other and chew on their chew toys or just sleep.  The other half of the time they wrestle and growl and bite each other.  She is teething I believe and latches on to his ear or tail or snout and won't let go until he yelps.  He then chases her and bites at her legs (again, should have fixed this but it has never been a problem). 

So my question, her teeth are sharp and she's pulled hair off of him a few times.  I don't want either puppy to get hurt and I don't want this to continue into adulthood.  I have been saying NO and picking both of them up when they do that.  I make her smell him without biting and same for him and then set them down and sometimes they go on their way others they go back to fighting.

Suggestions, comments, advice?  I don't believe in hiting puppies, but how do you stop such a negative behavior?  Oh, by the way, she lunges at him when she bites and she did the same thing to my 7 month old cousin last night.  She grabbed his hat luckily, but still this needs to stop.

Can you tell if the behavior is play or more aggressive?  My three shorthairs play rough (even the 5 mos old pup) and most people don't recognize it as play. They bite at ears and such and sometimes get a little too rough meaning I will hear a whimper, but when that happens the other backs off.  Then they start the play again.

I have a 5 month old male who was very mouthy when I got him.  Wanted to chew on everything including me and my other two shorthairs.  My youngest female wouldn't tolerate it and let him know in no uncertain terms that that was unacceptable behavior.  My oldest however would just let him chew on her ears.  That went on for a while (I would intervene when I caught him) and then my oldest also corrected him (she is my alpha an is very tolerant of pups until they get a certain size, then she stops them in their tracks).  Again no more problems. 

Now for him wanting to chew on people, as soon as he gave that indication everytime he did it to me I would put my thumb in his mouth and hold his bottom chin with my other fingers and depress the tongue and hold until he backed off.  You don't press hard, they just don't like to have their tongues pushed down.  Anyway I did this consistently and also had friends and relatives do it with him and it didn't take him long to figure out chewing on people was no fun. You might want to try this with both of them when they start the nipping.  Nipping is not a good thing and can lead to problems.  I have also grabbed a dog by the scruff and given them a gentle shake and growled harshly at them and said no.  If you are alpha and you assert yourself consistently the behavior should improve. 

Teething is a problem, so I keep lots of bones around and some pups are bothered by it more than others. It has been driving my 5 mos old absolutely nuts.  He wants to chew on everything.  I particularly like very large leather chews for this (but the dog needs to be suprevised with leather chews).  I also have to make sure all my dogs have a new special chew or they are isolated from each other or they all want the same one.  When that happens my oldest alpha ends up with all the bones and the other two will stand there and bark at her and try to steal a bone.  It is more annoying to me than an aggression problem with the dogs as they will not mess with my oldest dog if she says no.  She will sometimes give into them though, so they stand their barking and trying.

So, all this aside I am betting you are not asserting yourself strongly enough or consistently.  That doesn't mean you have to hit the dogs, or yell at the dogs, or anything like that, just let them know you do not like the behavior (be firm and use a strong voice, think about how a drill sargeant might lay down the law) and will stop it every time.  You have to be equal though or you may create other problems.

Good luck! and keep us posted.

First, make sure she is getting plenty of exercise.  This helps keep them from getting too wild.  Then what I do when Ringo (my 5 month old) and Halo (my youngest female (3YO) and Ringo's favorite playmate) get a little too rough is I separate them and they go to their crates for a little timeout to either nap or calm down.  I have noticed with GSP pups when they get overly tired they get a little wild and crazy.  Often with Ringo when he is tired he picks on his big sisters, so when I pull him aside and put him in the crate he usually crashes.  Then when he gets up he is not so wild.

I don't necessarily think the problem is training, although obedience work and training helps to tire dogs out mentally.  Also, obedience class would help with socialization and being around other dogs. So, I would get your pup into a good puppy class.  And do short periods of training while you are at home. I would also watch how your dogs are with you.  I am not convinced you are the true alpha in their world.  What happens at feeding time?  Where do they sleep?  How do they behave when you are around vs when they are together and you are not around? Think about how they both interact with you?  What happens when you give them treats? What about playtime, who is at the center of the play time and who stops the play?  Do they behave differently inside as opposed to when they are outside together? All these things can give you a good indication of the pack order. 

Also, there is nothing wrong with giving your pup some good exercise and then putting her in the crate for a nice nap.  It gives you and your other dog a break from the puppy crazies.

I know there isn't allot of advice her, but there are allot of questions that you need to think about.  That is why I am sure singltrak was recommending an animal behaviorist. They come in and observe the dynamics of what goes on in your house and can make really good recommendations and work with you on how to carry those recommendations out.  Since you are very frustrated it might be a good idea to check into a behaviorist.

Trust me, if you take the dog down and use strong discipline (that doesn't mean abusive), the dog will not fear you.  On the contrary the dog will respect you and the end result will be a tighter bond. Separating the dogs, growling your correction and then putting in the crate.  The correction is your growled no and taking them down the to floor.  Putting them in the crate just gives them a time out.  At this point the crate ought to mean time to chill and relax, take a nap. The dog won't see it as punishment, especially if you have been feeding them in the crate.  It already means good things. I never hesitate to stop behavior I don't like, and as pixie says they will get it.

PS - There is a time for positive and a time for the negative.  I use mostly positive, but every once in a while a correction is needed.  Give it as the leader of the pack, that is what an alpha wolf would do for the protection of the whole pack.  Remember dogs live in the moment and do not carry grudges like us humans, and will not be scarred for life. Instead thety will respect you and show you the love you deserve as their leader. Good luck!!

Erric -

Good luck and be consistent.  If you let them get away with something even once they learn that you don't really mean what you are saying.  Many people make the mistake of telling a dog to do something, and then instead of following through and making them do they repeat the command or give up.  At that point they have lost the battle and the dog has learned I don't really have to do what I am being asked.  A good example is the sit command.  How many times do you give the command?  The answer should be once and then if they don't sit I make them sit.  As humans we often repeat commands.  It is just our nature.  Good luck and have lots of fun with that new pup.  There is no better breed on earth than GSPs.  Of course I am very partial.  Keep us posted on how things go.

If you haven't already read go it, The Other End of the Leash is a great dog behavior book and a fun, easy read.  You will be amazed at how many mistakes we make in communicating with our four legged friends we humans make.