help please

[slickerk]

Ok, if you don't know the story, it is in the thread under this one called pups.
This puppy is driving me crazy...she is such a doll, she just wants to be near me, under my feet, on my feet, inside, outside, in the shower.
Not the problem.
I think she may have a little too much wild in her. She only wants to be outside (in the snow, in the sun, in the rain - it doesn't matter). She nips about everything, not normal puppy nipping, because it wasn't too long ago that I did this all with Felony. I mean she will yip and bite you in the face when you pick her up. She bites at my kids and Fel walks around with this puppy hanging off of her neck skin. She is just mean! It didn't take me that long to get my rott used to her cage, but this puppy, after 2 weeks, she will sit in her cage and howl for 1/2 an hour to an hour at night. I guess that the other 2 guys that took puppies are having a really hard time too...
My husband thinks that she needs some type of farm area, where she can run and be outside... he is concerned with the biting and lawsuits in the future.
I just don't know what to do... any suggestions? Tips? Advice? Things to look for to know whether or not I should keep her or she should go?

[schelmischekitty]

how old is she now?

[greek4]

I think she missed the critical time with her mom and siblings where she was to learn the rules of being a social being.  Maybe a trainer could help with some suggestions or a home with a dominant dog that will let the puppy know forcefully but not feircely that what she is doing is not all right.

[slickerk]

She is 9 weeks.
We have a 1 1/2 old Rottie in the house now. She is playing mother with her and has been since she got here... she also gets annoyed with her and just knocks her away and lays down.
I thought about a trainer, but they are scarce in this area.

[MagicM3]

I don't know how old she is but she needs someone to teach her what rules are and how to follow.

What have you tried with her thus far.
By that I mean what are the consequences in her life for her behaviour.

She sounds like she knows what she is doing,but has no clue that it is wrong.

Also maybe she thinks she has to behave this way,because she knows no other way to be.

It is hard to say what you need to do.or What you are willing to do.

Tricia and the fur kids

[schelmischekitty]

we always did the good puppy training, where from day 1 we would hold them on their backs, tip them partly to one side (but not upside down) and front to back.  we've had great luck with the puppies we've raised like this.  also, i agree with tricia, in that she knows what she's doing, but doesn't see it as being wrong.  did you baby her, and treat her more like a human baby than a dog?  sometimes, when you do this, they don't learn what's right and wrong like they should.  also, she was taken away from her mom a little early wasn't she?  this could also be part of the problem, as the mom teaches them SO much.  obedience would work, even though she is so young she is smarter than you think!  maybe the puppy classes at petsmart or something would be a great idea, to help her learn.

[patrick]

This sounds like a puppy to me- high energy but nothing 'mean' about it.  Puppies need a LOT of playtime and activities- a TIRED puppy is a good puppy.  How much time is she spending in her crate?  How much time in the yard - she just needs to burn off some of this energy.  And at 9 weeks she is actively teething so will have a lot of mouthing activity  Now is the time to teach her bite inhibition but she also needs a whole slew of different things to chew on. 

[slickerk]

Yes, she is high in puppy energy. She gets plenty of outdoor time though and then comes into the house and plops on the floor. She only stays in her crate at night, I don't work - so I am here all day with them. It is not regular puppy behavior though, the biting and such - it is mean! It is nothing like any puppy I have ever had before. I know about the mother thing, yes she was taken away from her mama early, but so was my rott and I didn't have nearly the issues that I am having with this one. The Rott is attempting to play mommy as far as teaching her to play and who is in charge - who gets fed first - who goes out the door first - etc, I treat her the same as I do my other dog.
She is submissive, sometimes. She will let me roll her over and rub her belly, rock her around and such. The meanness is not so much with me as it is with everyone else. She goes right for the face or neck and with me, if I go to pick her up while she is outside, she will growl away at me. I hate to hit or smack animals, so I usually hold her mouth shut until she stops or tap her nose (but tapping her nose just seems to aggravate her).
I ckecked petco the other day and as of right now they have no classes coming up. I guess not enough people signing up for them. My hubby suggested a shock collar, but I really don't like that idea.
Ugh... Guess I will get out the old training manual and start back at square one. Thanks everyone.

[MagicM3]

I think it would be very rare for a puppy as young as her to *be mean* as you say.

What she is doing is paying off for her.Or she wouldn't be doing it.

What is her pay off.

There are all kinds of fun games that you can play with her that teach her what is acceptable and what is not.

Dicipline is not hitting or abusive,but all living beings need boundaries in order to feel safe and happy.

Just for the record I would never use a schock collar.

The only time one has ever been used on one of my dogs what when we took them to get snake proofed.which here in Az is a wise thing to do.

I did ck out the proceedure before going thru it.And it was effective.But I can't imagine using that techinic in raising and teaching a dog anything but pain.

I am sure that if you begin with basic obedience,even at this young age and play leadership games that she is respond.

Whatever the reason she is behaving this way I'm sure for her it works.

The hard part for us is to teach her other ways are better.

Tricia and the fur kids

[slickerk]

ok...that is what I thought. I don't know if I would want to be shocking my 5 year old for doing dumb s#*%, ya know? My hubby just doesn't have any patience at all for animals. And the puppy was only 6 weeks when I got her. I guess she has come quite a ways.
Thank you for the suggestions. I also thought about trying the clicker with her. Like I said for me, she is pretty good.
Ok, I will go at it then. Here are a couple pics of her, these are from a like 2 weeks ago though (my cam broke...wah!)

[patrick]

She is not mean- she is a baby!  Puppies that are removed from the litter too soon will play more aggressively since they missed that part of learning but that doesn't mean they won't make fine pets.  We teach them limits by yelping or crying when they are too aggressive and stopping play with them.  I don't ever hit a puppy that is this young but if they are really out of line I will grab them by the scruff of the neck and say no - just as their mom would.  Don't play any mouth games with them or tug of war but do trade mouthy behavior for an irresistible toy or chewy. Big soup bones and rawhides will help with satisfying some of her teething behavior. Your other dog will also help in setting some doggy limits as it sounds like she already is doing.  But this baby behavior and she really is beautiful.  Hang in there

[schelmischekitty]

Like I said for me, she is pretty good.

maybe you should bring her out and socialize her more.  have some understanding friends over who can help teach her that it's not ok to do those things with people just because they're new.  maybe she's just getting a little over excited because the other people come and go, or are new.  this would also explain why she's always good with you, you're always home, so there's no "you just arrived" excitement?  that could be part of the problem, as far as other people go.

[slickerk]

"went into a huge temper tantrum after I corrected him and picked him up, screaming and flailing around."
Yes, this is what she does, and at the same time is so determined to bite you i nthe face. I was thinking she was crazy - wow, good to know that someone else has had the same issue.
Uhm...breed - I was told that she is part rott, part boxer, part wolf. Come to find out that she is wolf and rott. I think that is one of the reasons my hubby doesn't want to keep her now. He thought that maybe the wolf was just a little bit and now he knows that it's like 1/2 and 1/2 - I guess this is why the guy was gonna drown them all.
Well, I am still getting flack from the other adults in the house - but I think talking to everyone on here has made me decide that it is worth trying with her. So THANK YOU to everyone!

[slickerk]

Ok, she just seriously freaked out on me. She freaking growled up a storm and tore into my hand, my fingers are stinging and I have a few spots of broken skin.

[schelmischekitty]

what happened that caused her to flip?