Doberman Training Ideas?

Question

I have a 10 month old Doberman and he generally is a good dog but thenhe has his days where he will become disobediant, scrounging for food when he has food in his bowl and he'll pinch things from off the sides. As for chewing he leaves a trail of mess behind him worse than children. I have looked on the net but they always ask you to pay and i cant guarentee it will work. If i dont get it sorted asap my mum says she will get rid of him. does anyone have any suggestions or ideas. Desperate please: serious answers only

Answer 1

You must take him to obedience training classes *yourself.* Don't look for an expensive trainer, but rather talk to your vet, or even better, the local office of the RSPCA; they often offer free or low-priced classes, or know where you can go for some. It's always best to train any dog yourself but esp. Dobeys because then they learn to respect and obey *you*, not someone else. And doing it in a group is better because your dog gets socialized at the same time. (Not to mention it's more fun for you.)
Meanwhile, look for Barbara Woodhouse's "Training Your Dog" or "Dog Training My Way", probably at the library or a bookshop. Her method works, I've used it myself for years with great success. I've trained lots of dogs, and even great big old Dobeys. They're sweet and softhearted but very strong and willfull. Remember a Dobe is just a big old terrier! So they have the energy and stubbornness of the terrier breeds.
Best of luck, and don't forget to have your dog neutered if you aren't going to be breeding purebreds. This not only calms them down it stops them weeing all over the place, and cuts down on the numbers of unhomed puppies.

Answer 2

Aha... doggie adolescence. It's a phase that dogs will go through. Our German shepherd is just over a year old and is getting over this phase right now. Obedience training is one of those things that is life-long. Some breeds require more of it than others, including Dobermans & shepherds. The best thing you can do about the begging is to create a rule where the dog is not allowed in the area where you are eating. When I sit down for a meal or even just a snack, the dogs are to leave the room. This solves SO many problems. It sets you up as the alpha (the pack leader), resolves begging, and eventually, the dogs learn the command and automatically leave the room when they see people food. This is how you do it:
When you're not really starving, get out a little snack. Pick an area where you would like your dog to consistently lie down when you are eating. Ours is on a rug in the hallway, where the dogs can see us but are not in the room. Our command is, "Go on the rug."
Then take your dog to the area and have him lie down and stay. Go back and have your snack. If he gets up, put him back, and give your command.
Remember that this make take a lot of time and work, and that CONSISTENCY is the most important thing. If you keep working on it, interruptions during your meals now will be worth it later.
As for the messy mouth, we also trained our puppy to stay over her food dish while eating and drinking. (She used to take a mouthful of water and then dribble it across the new carpeting!!)
Good luck!

Answer 3

Your dog is still a puppy - in fact a teenager. Like human teenagers, they test the boundaries by rebelling and breaking the rules to see how you react. If you are firm and strict and consistent and fair, but don't let him get away with things - he will see that you are the boss and eventually he'll accept you as leader.
You will notice that there are more good days than bad days and eventually you will have a well behaved adult dog. Until then, you must continue with your routine of training.
Remember, he is testing you. If you or your mum lose your temper he will have exposed your weakness. Instead, play him at his own game. Make sure you determine when he eats (so no begging, no tit bits at your dinner time, feed him after you finish dinner), when he has his walks and where you go (so no pulling on the lead should be tolerated), and what objects he is allowed to chew or not chew. If he can see that you control all these areas and that you provide for all his needs, you will earn his respect and he will be better behaved. Also, as he gets older, he will have better self control and won't keep stealing all the delicious food you leave lying around!
To try and reduce the trail of destruction (be comforted - all young dogs do this and they do grow out of it if properly trained!!) he leaves behind him - do not leave your stuff lying around. The rest of the family need to make sure they don't leave their shoes and books and dinner etc lying about either. Its too tempting for him! Instead - buy a huge box of pigs ears and raw hide chews and let him chew those. Chewing is important and keeps him busy and out of trouble.
Make sure he gets two half hour walks a day. This will make him tired and when you get home - make him lie down and rest until he goes to sleep. He needs to learn to relax in the house. When he gets up, tell him firmly to lie down again.
Don't give up on him - be strict - he will improve. Your mum will be less cross if you make a bigger effort to clear up the mess and keep him occupied. Hope this helps and she is able to bear it until hes older! He will get there in the end!

Answer 4

sorry to hear that he is being naughty. I have had dobermans for over 20 years. We lost our last boy in feb last year aged 12. He was a handful also. You must be firm with him at ALL times. lots of excercise and play. He must know who is boss and Dobermans generally only see the strongest person in the home as his leader. You really must sort this otherwise I am afraid you will have a handful and people dont like to see a doberman with a handler who does not have 100 per cent control. Also I find that they do not reach maturity and stop the naughty in them til around 3 years.

Answer 5

You must be very consistant at training this dog. Dobermans are very intelligent, but they also can be very head strong and stubborn!!!!Stay on him let him know what he is doing is wrong and you are the boss. He is still a baby, and just as young children are,he will try to do as he pleases. I guarantee if you keep on him you will be pleased and see exactly how smart he really is. Don't give up and good luck.

Answer 6

Do not let him in the room when you are eating, dobes are very food oriented dogs and will do anything for a snack. He will probably whine and howl for a while but stay firm and feed him AFTER your family has eaten to make sure he knows his place in your pack. As for chewing if there is anything you dont want chewed spray it with an orange oil based cleaning product i can guarantee he wont go near it. Also get him some chew toys but only allow him to play with them in one room to localise the mess and if he tries to take it out of the room, take it off him and put it back in the room for 10 mins where he cant reach it, then give it back. Make sure you reward him when he does the right thing with treats, coz a dobe will just about bend over backwards for a treat. He will grow up in about a year, so these things will subside. Take him to obedience classes, you can usually find reasonably priced classes, that will operate out of a vetrinary clinic, at your local dog park. Good luck with your beautiful boy and i hope this helps.

Answer 7

The only guarantee that the chewing behavior will stop begins with having the dog crated when you cannot pay 100% attention to him. Since he's got a reward history of being able to chew on things, it will be hard to turn this around - you must be vigilant. Provide your dog with wonderful chew treats when he's in the crate. Get a Gentle Leader head harness (or similar - a GenCon or Snoot Loop will be as effective) to control his head when you take him for walks.
As far as scrounging for food - you humans must make it impossible for him to reward himself by doing this. This requires a change of habits for you - and again, the "stealing" behavior won't go away until you stop the rewards from happening. Crate him while you're cooking/eating! But, make sure that his crate is a good place for him to be. Follow the steps from the link below and you'll do fine.

Answer 8

Any training will distract your dog from mis behaving.
Even simple things like sit, shake paw, down will keep his mind from wandering on to other things. If you get him to sit and shake a paw every time you walk past he will soon be thinking of other things.
Once you have mastered these basics then he will learn to listen to you; you could try harder things like stay, speak, walk backwards. Once the dog has learnt to listen to you then he will respond to your voice and you can use no to discourage any unwanted behaviour - he'll soon pick it up!
Hiding a treat and getting your dog to go an find it will also keep him occupied.

At the moment his only a pup so don't expect that he will be as good as gold and not cause any mischief at all.

Answer 9

A well-trained dog makes everyone happy, including his owner. Take a little time training him, and you'll never regret it; you'll always have an obedient dog by your side. Find more https://tr.im/CnfXZ

By their nature, dogs are pack animals with a well-defined social order. Through basic training, you need to consistently make sure your puppy understands that you are the leader, not him. So in teaching him the basic rules, you take on the role of pack leader.

To fit into the family circle, your dog must be taught to recognize his name and such commands as come, heel, lie down and sit.

Answer 10

Get some toys for your dog, it sounds bored.
Toys that you can push dog treats into are a great way of distracting them.
There are sprays on the market which sometimes work (they didn't for me my dog just ignored it and carried on)
My aunt had a collie that was a problem and they had to muzzle him at times and reward good behaviour.
Clickers are good they associate the noise with being good and getting a treat.
There is no quick fix but stop it as much as possible with avoidance and rewards for good behaviour.
make sure that you dog is getting enough exercise and getting worn out.