How can I stop my German Shepherd pulling me over?

Question

I have a 9 month female german shepherd. She is well natured, however sometimes (not all the time) she will go into an absolute frenzy when we meet other dogs on the street. She wears a halti, and has been taken to obedience classes with other dogs since she was 3 months old. When we see the dog, I tell her 'No' but she does not respond to her name or anything. She wriggles around, barks, trying to get at the other dog. She has pulled me over twice now and it's starting to hurt now!! My partner walks her also, she will bark with him but none of the lungeing etc.

Any advice?

I have also tried taking a bottle of pebbles out with me and shaking it when she does it, then reward. Worked for a while

Answer 1

A dog will respond to your body language. When you get close to another dog, she can feel you tense up, you probably shorten her lead so she thinks there's a reason to react.

You need to change your reaction in order to change her response. First, you need to be calm if you want her to be. Quietly but firmly, ask her to sit and stay. Stand in front of her if you need to. Lots of praise for obeying. When a dog gets close to you, talk to her to distract her - tell her "easy" or "stay close" and keep walking. You'll have to try what works best for her.

Find out what triggers her. Is it big dogs? Dogs who bark at her ? Small, white dogs? If you know what gets her to react like that, you can be ready well ahead of time. Spend a little more time working with her. She is still a puppy and needs more reinforcement - be patient.

Answer 2

Are you aware that a sharp jerk on the leash and a command voice works better than firm pressure?

Do try the Gentle Leader collar.

When she misbehaves that way, I would also do an about face and march her away from the other dog. If that happens as a direct result of her misbehaving, she'll get the message.

Answer 3

I've heard them called POLICE DOGS but they're starting to pull people over now?? Just kidding. Keep dog on short lead and Tug sharpley with a good No! each time he starts to pull. Stop the dog from walking until he stands for a few seconds then allow him to move forward again. Must be done over and over again.

Answer 4

Is the Halti on correctly when you walk her? I ask because my 10 month Lab can pull my 10 year old wherever she wants on a Martingale. With the Halti she can't budge the 10 year old.

Since it doesn't happen with your partner it could be your handling/body language as mentioned.

Do you also work on her training or is it mostly your partner?

Answer 5

Watch the Dog Whisperer on National Geographic tv. He deals with these things all the time. Also, you might try a prong collar ( German training collar). They work wonders also and are available at pet stores. Maybe she is reading stress in you when you walk her. She will do what you think she will do by your body language.
Good luck.

Answer 6

Was it a Halti head collar or harness? I recommend the Gentle Leader head collar for training. It effectively restrains my 80 pound Pit Bull (who is dog aggressive). One caution- It must be properly fitted to work correctly. Good Luck!

Answer 7

Have you ever watched the show Dog Whisperer? Cesar handles these kind of issues all the time on that show. His solution is usually to keep the leash short but relaxed, and when your dog shows signs of misbehaving, yank the leash to bring his attention back to what's in front of him.

Answer 8

dog obedience training is never ending and as long as your dog is in good health you shuld continue to do obedience training. Go to a more advanced class next time