Whenever I sit down outside my German Shephard nips me. What do I do???

Question

I have had him for about a year now and he is fixed but I dont get why he nips everyone and everything...

HELP!!!

Answer 1

Your dog does not need to be put down or etc. and you don't need to be over-alarmed about your canine friend's behavior. All dogs want lots of attention. Some get this attention by jumping up on their owners, others get it by barking a lot. Your dog found a different way to get this coveted attention by nipping. Even when they are punished for it, many dogs will continue in their negative attention seeking behaviors. They crave your attention so much that they will take it even if it is in the form of a punishment.
To get your dog's bad behavior to cease, you must stop giving him the reward he gets from doing it. The next time your dog nips, immediately turn away from him and walk inside and shut the door. Leave the dog alone for a time-out for a while.
Of course this is the opposite reaction your dog was expecting so for a few times he will continue to test you by nipping. Stand firm. When your dog realizes that he no longer benefits from the behavior he will slowly began to cease doing it. Be patient and don't physically punish him for his attention seeking behavior or it will get worse. I have dealt with this type of thing before with both a dog that jumped on people and with a nipper, I rescued both of them from the pound. Follow my advice and I guarantee that the behavior will cease fairly quickly. The dog that always jumped on people stopped the behavior after only a week using this method. Good luck!

Answer 2

NO dont ever hit your dog on his nose it is the most sensitive part of a dog and one day he'll take your hand off obviously advice from a poofy dog owner.My cousin breeds alsatians and i my self have a rotty,the best way is to be cruel to be kind give him a right good punch in the ribs so he yelps and in a dominant voice say NO Bad Boy.If he keeps that up much longer he might do it to the wrong person and then you will be in trouble.As far as classes are concerned they are just a licence to print money.If you want your dog training do it yourself then it is your commands and nobody elses you must get this in hand now before he gets any older.Big dogs are so gentle really it is the owner whom are to blame for them being nasty .Its the little dogs you have to watch out for.You and the rest of your family must show your dominance or he will literally walk all over you.All he is doing is saying dont sit here its my garden get on top of it right now and you'll find he will obey and that will be an end to it.And as for having him put to sleep i've never read so much nonsense you would only do this if he took a real good hold of you but you must be very firm and remember to always reward him with a gravy bone when he is good and he'll soon learn if im good i get a treat but you must give him a good crack on the ribs never on the nose as that actually angers a dog you should only grab his nose if he does take a hold of someone and give it a good twist and he'll let go straight away.OK go to it start from today always remember its your house not his he is bottom in line and always will be the sooner he learns that the gentler he'll become.Please tell us carrie was your nipper a member of the big breed club have you ever been nipped by an alsatian or rotty as we learn not alot of kids live to tell the tale ignoring big dogs just makes them worse

Answer 3

Never ever use your hands to discipline a dog! goodness some of these answers. Most trainers average 10 dollars an hour. and most ppl only need about 10 wks. 10 min. a day. Better not go out the door without a leash on the dog. Muzzles are not cruel. They are training tools. "No bites" every time it happens as soon as it happens. A leash is your control of the dog! nips are usually out of fear!!!!!!!!!!!! You need a trainer!

Answer 4

He might be trying to establish dominance over you, and to be the alpha member of the family. This can get very dangerous, and can lead to personal injury for you, and euthanasia for your dog. You need to find a good trainer who has experience working with German Shepherds, and get to work fast. Your dog's life may depend on it, because this type of problem usually gets worse as the dog gets older. It comes from not having been properly trained or socialized in the first place. Good Luck!!

Answer 5

First thing to remember is that dogs do what they do because they think that is what they are supposed to do. Second, if you shout then to him you are barking, so he will bark, it's what he is supposed to do. So first lets teach him the "No" command. This will mean what ever he is doing (or thinking of doing) he should stop. Don't wait for the barking to do this, start with playtime and little treats. Get down to his level on the floor and play with toys, every time his open mouth comes into contact with your hand, even if not a nip, gently hold his nozzle and say "No", not loud not shouted, just the word. Using treats, place one in your open hand, as he goes for it say "Stop", and gently hold him back with the other hand. Then say "Eat" and let him eat it. After a time when you say "Stop" you will not need the other hand to hold him back, he will wait. Slowly increase the wait time, sometimes having to say "Stop" a second time. It doesn't take long before he will stop what ever he is doing when ever he hears you say "Stop", that can save his life. Do the same at meal times, hold his bowl and say "Wait", he is not allowed to eat until you say "Eat". He also needs to know that you are giving him the food, that is why you hold the bowl, he can only eat what you give him when you give it to him, all other times the command is "No". As he is getting used to the words "No" and "Stop" you use this to stop the barking. Gently hold his nozzle, there must be no sign of alarm in your boice, say "No". He will learn. Important, he must not get mixed signals, if there is a family member who lets him nip in play then this must stop. Dogs must learn that they can never nip or bite, as a pup he will learn quickly so long as he is not confused about the command. Both the "No" and "Wait" command are the bare minimum commands, but dogs do learn them quickly so long as you are consistent, use both commands often, several times per day and have the patience to ensure he knows what you mean. Remember that dogs want to communicate, they will make attempts of their own to communicate with you, learn the signs, you will have a much happier dog if he believes you understand him. Please see my other posts here about teaching him to wee and poop on command, it is very easy to do, all dogs I have known have leant these within a couple of days.

Answer 6

ITYM german shepHErd not shepHArd.
If he is biting, you need to train him not to.
I see we have the usual batch of idiots recommending all kinds of violence and abuse.
Of course, it is Saturday and the children have a day off school. No doubt they have taken time off from abusing their own family pets, in order to advise others to do the same.

Answer 7

please do not listen to the 1st poster...Your dog is trying to get dominence over you. You need to draw a line of what he can or can't do... You need to be the leader of HIS pack. If he nips you, you can try giving him a real quick jab right on the end of the nose. Stand up make yourself big, growl and jab his nose. That way, you portray yourself as the alfa dog getting after its pack. A mother will do the same to her pups if they play to hard. She'll give them a yap or a warning. If your dog challenges you after you do this or growls again you may need to consider serious obedience classes. Or possibly you need to give your dog to a more experienced handler. Make sure you make your movements quick and really get after your dog. He needs to know that what he's doing is not acceptable.
Was your dog abused at all? Depending on the background of your dog...there may be another reason why he's nipping you that you need to deal with. Also, if he's trying to protect his territory or something, you need to let him know that its YOUR territory and your sharing it with him. You can do this by doing lots of little things. Make sure hwne you walk out the door, you're going out first. You are the leader. If your dog is around you or crowding you, you better make sure that he moves when you want him to and he better be moving quick. After awhile, you'll be able to be less harsh with him as he figures out that you are dominent.

Is your dog a puppy?! That would just need to be fixed because pups like to play...its very possible that he just hasn't learned that he's not allowed to play rough with you. If thats the case get him some toys and teach him that he's allowed to bite and play with those. You have to start teaching pups not to nip early. Like i said before, a mother dog will yap at their pups if they play too rough. Snap at your dog and bang him on the nose if he's playing to rough. Another thing that works for some people is curling the dogs lip over their teeth while they're biting you so its like they're biting themselves...
anyways, just a few suggestions...if in doubt ask a breeder, a vet, or also find out about local obedience classes... Good luck!
EDIT: Sorry, i forgot to add, (thanks to the other below poster :) ) The way that i suggested also depends on your dog. The below poster said that it could just make your dog mad. This is true. However, if you have a submissive dog, this way will work nicely and when i say bump the dog on the end of the nose...no not hard. I tend to "nip" with my fingers a little on the end of the nose. If you know you have an aggressive dog and you think this might anger your dog then i'd suggest obedience classes...

Answer 8

I had a similar question on here the other day but mine is a rottweiler and he started growling at us. Anyway I got this web-site from someone who answered me and it has helped me and my dog soooo much. He is trying to establish him being Alpha and if you don't get a handle on it now he will progressively get worse. This web-site really works and it happened in one day. I am still practicing this daily just so I can maintain and remind my Rottie that I am the leader.
Click on this link, I promise you it will fix your problem. Good luck and I hope this helps you and your Bud as much as it has helped me and my Bud.

http://sonic.net/~cdlcruz/GPCC/library/alpha.htm

Answer 9

Hey this is probz his way of telling everyone that he is the boss but you must make this stops before it gets any worse you should consider putting your dog into training classes this should help. Make sure you let him know your the boss

Answer 10

Take him and yourself to a good canine training school. There are plenty around. Don't just blame the dog. You need to learn also.