r/DogTrainingTips

My boyfriend and I live together. We got a puppy a few months ago and the puppy is now four months old. I have never had a dog before but my boyfriend has. So I bought some books on puppy training. I have read in the books and online articles that you should not scold puppies for peeing or pooping in the house. But my boyfriend is insisting that it is the best way to get the puppy to stop going in the house, because we have done everything that the books say and he’s still peeing and pooping inside frequently.
I told my boyfriend I will not yell at our puppy but he is saying he’s going to start yelling at him. Am I wrong in insisting he doesn’t yell at our puppy?

I adopted a 4 year old dachshund about 3 months ago. She came from a neglectful breeder who dumped her when she was no longer useful, and never lived in a home before. Because of her background, we are super patient and understanding of all of her difficult behaviors and shower her with love and affection so she can learn what life should be like. She is very destructive and also isn't picking up on house breaking at all and pees all over the house. At night I have to keep her contained to the kitchen with a baby gate at or she will pee all over the place and destroy things. Problem is she barks for hours every single night. She has soft bedding, water, and toys (but she has no interest in toys of any kind). Light on or off doesn't make a difference. Radio on or off doesn't make a difference. No one is getting any sleep. What can I do?

My dog has decent recall except when a ball is involved. He will not listen for any treats if he sees someone throw a ball at the park. Is there anything I can do or do I just have to accept this lol. I don’t mind if he plays but occasionally there is a time I need him to listen (I.e. when I can tell other owner is getting annoyed). He also will sometimes jump for the ball if someone holds it out in front of him for awhile. I have trained him to sit when I throw it, but he tries to sit for others and when it doesn’t work he jumps.

My dog is a 1 year old shihtzu mix.He is not a bad dog. I’ve usually gotten praise on his behavior at the vet and at daycare. However, whenever he is on a leash he acts a whole crazy mess. He sees a person and he becomes lazer-focused on them barking, wanting to turn around and get at them. He used to get up to two legs and try to hop (thankfully we have stopped that, but now he just tried to pull really hard to try and get me to move towards them). Other dogs on the street aren’t much better, he acts like a psycho, 1 dog spotted on a walk and he is barking his head off for a whole block. He acts like a psycho to dogs that are his best friends at daycare too. He’s seen a dog that he plays with all the time, barked his head off, went inside to play and literally did a 180 in attitude.

We were using treats to encourage him on walks, but we stopped for a while as he had a stomach issue and we needed to wait until everything was back to normal to continue. Kenny has made a lot of progress since we first started. He no longer barks at the window where a cat always sits, he will sit down when there is something I can tell is going to stress him out (but once I release him he is full steam ahead even though the threat is gone), and he will sometimes not react to a person if they are four buildings away. I want to hire a professional dog trainer but that really isn’t in the cards right now due to cost. I just get so tired of being the neighbor with the ‘psycho dog’ and wish he would act how he normally acts in every other situation.

I just want some advice on how to handle training him and also a little bit of hope from some people that have possibly their own ‘ loveable psycho’ and have been through it.

Hi everyone! I have a 4 year old Bernedoodle who is super reactive. Walking in the neighborhood gets a bit tricky when another dog starts barking at her. She's a big girl, so she could easily pull down a kid. I'm located in MA, so having trainers nearby would be helpful!

When she was a puppy, we brought her to Blue Dog, but we never continued the training after a long time... (our mistake)

We have looked into using a prong collar, but I'm still partially going against it, as I don't want to be too harsh on her. If we decide to use a prong collar, obviously we will be hiring a professional trainer.

When I take her on walks or out in public, ideally I want her close to my side and not pulling.

She also needs work on basic commands, as she only listens if we bring out the treats.

If anyone has any tips or actual trainers near Andover, MA, please let me know!!

Thanks

I’m looking for some advice, opinions, and experiences from people who have had similar dogs because I feel a little overwhelmed by all the dog advice online.

I know there’s a LOT here, and that’s part of why I’m overwhelmed. I want to work on everything eventually — I just want to figure out the best order and approach rather than trying to do 15 things at once.

Murphy is a German Shepherd/Mini Australian Shepherd mix and will be 1 year old on August 26. She is honestly a **really good dog** and very smart. She learns commands quickly, listens well at home, and I’ve taught her sit, lay down, kennel, etc.

The biggest thing is that her listening/focus gets MUCH worse when there are distractions. At home, she’s pretty good. Outside, on walks, when people come over, or when something catches her attention, it’s like her brain has left the building 😂.

Some things I’m noticing:

She randomly whines at doors and windows even when she has food, water, toys, has been outside, etc.

She follows me and my boyfriend **everywhere**. I work from home, so I know she’s probably very attached to me, but she is CONSTANTLY right behind us.

She barks at people walking along the ditch behind our house.

She barks at people who come into the house, especially if she doesn’t recognize them.

On walks, she barks when she sees people or animals.

She pulls on walks. I bought a no-pull leash/harness and that has helped, but I’d like to teach her actual leash manners too.

She gets distracted VERY easily outside the house.

She sometimes barks at completely random things or sounds. She has literally barked at gargoyle statues 😂.

She’s not aggressive and she’s genuinely a sweet, good dog. I just want to make sure I’m helping her develop into a well-adjusted adult instead of accidentally reinforcing things or waiting too long to address them.

**I’m really looking for people’s thoughts on all of this.** If you have a German Shepherd, Aussie, herding breed, or just a dog who went through something similar around this age, I’d love to hear what your experience was like.

I’d also love advice on:

•What you think might be causing some of these behaviors
•What you would prioritize
•What training actually helped your dog
•What you wish you had started sooner
•How much training you realistically do each day
•Whether some of this is just normal adolescent behavior
•How you taught your dog to listen when there are distractions
•Anything else you notice from what I’ve described.

I’m not looking for a perfect “do these 10 things and your dog will be fixed” answer. 😂 I’d genuinely just like to hear **what other people thi**nk, especially people who have raised similar dogs.

Hello, I have a 4YO Male standard poodle, very good dog. Knows many commands and hand signals, he is also a certified service animal.

For his whole life he has always been friendly and liked meeting dogs but would always stay next to me or simply not be interested.

We moved almost a year ago and the town we are in now has a wonderful dog park, my poodle now wants to meet every dog he sees weather we are at the dog park or not. On leash he dosent pull much but he will be fixated on the other dog, whine a little and not be focused on me.

As my service animal (not a life or death disability necessarily) I try to give him freedoms, like the dog park or sniffing for an extended time, he gets a lot of play. This meeting dogs thing has really affected him and I.

What can I do to get him to not be so interested, or just not fixated on other dogs outside the dog park?

Hello,

I’m a longtime dog lover and sitter and first time owner. I rescued the sweetest 16 month old dachshund two weeks ago and he’s fantastic - very sweet and shockingly calm and quiet for his breed. Behaviorally he definitely still has some puppy habits: he is mostly housebroken but still has accidents from time to time and he chews on things if not supervised (we are working on both things and making good progress, but I’ve only had him a short time so they’re still concerns).

What I’m really struggling with is that I don’t know how to leave him home alone. We are working on crate training, but I’m scared I’m going to put him in there too long and create anxiety around the crate so we’re not making much progress. I cannot give him free rein to any rooms because of the chewing and potential accidents. As a result he hasn’t been home alone yet; he goes to a sitter when I’m at work and then is with me whenever I’m not there. Obviously, this is not sustainable but I am really unsure of what to do with him. Please help!

Also, please please pleads be kind. I’m new to this and trying my best!! I’m dedicated to training him but I need guidance on how to do it right.

Thank you!

I am so baffled , i yelled at her to come back , normally she comes back instantly , but she kept going to danger , i ran to her , and pulled her back ,from her bum , couse that was the first place i could get to . and she yiked, and i got her away,then the 3 pit bulls started to atttack eachother. What the heck happend here?how do i stop kira from going into danger?

Seeking advice on contextual dog car restlessness/anxiety.

Romeo / 2.5 yo / Great Pyrenees-pittie-mutt / 53 lbs. / obedience trained / anxious & reactive

What: Romeo gets severely restless on car rides longer than ~15 minutes. He experiences heavy panting, excessive drooling, restlessness/pacing, full-body trembles, and incontinence (poop only).

Context: Romeo experiences these symptoms on the way TO places, but frequently doesn’t display them on the way FROM places, back home. For example, today I took him to check out a new park-- 35 min car ride; I expected the anxiety but not at the severity it was today. For starters, I had to lift him into the car because he refused to willingly get in (more context on this later), from there, as the drive progressed, his anxiety kept building until he eventually pooped all over the back seat (he did have the opportunity to go potty before the ride). Once at the destination, he pretty easily recovered and was able to enjoy the walk anxiety-free. We walked for about 50 minutes, 2.3 miles. In contrast, on the way home, he was extremely calm. No panting, drooling, or trembling. He calmly stuck his head out the window and even lied down for the majority of the ride, which is a fairly new car behavior for him. While I cannot exactly pinpoint when these behaviors started, I want to say they have been happening for around 1.5 years.

Hypothesis: My current hypothesis is that he may be anticipating that I am going to take him to work with me. My workplace is also Romeo's training facility, where he did a 5-week board and train program (Oct/Nov 2025). About 2 months after the program, he continued to come to work with me once a week for 6 hours while I worked so we could maintain his socialization/reactivity progress. He would go on a “down stay” in the training club. This made him anxious despite the fact that he could see me passing by throughout the day, but he would eventually settle. This continued for around 8 weeks until I had to stop bringing him due to a location change/farther drive. Understand that he is NOT afraid of his trainers or the building; he is anxious by nature and fears being left in unfarmiliar/uncomfortable places without me. One factor throws this current theory off, though: he displayed these behaviors before training, so I don’t believe it is the sole cause. I am unsure what negative association he could have had with long drives prior to training. While anxiety is my initial assumption because of the context dependence/his personality, I am aware motion sickness could be a possibility and plan to discuss it with his vet at the next visit.

Additional details:
- We go on daily walks at a park less than 10 minutes down the road. He does fine on these rides, so he definitely has daily positive associations with the car.
- Sometimes he will refuse to willingly jump into the car. This happens in the mornings, and I suspect it is because he thinks we are going to work. We only recently started morning walks, so before that, his only association with the car early morning was work.
- Romeo is not kenneled in the car and rides in the back seat. I have attempted crate training him separately but he has significant kennel anxiety. I also have a sedan, so not the best car for a kennel setup. I put the windows down for him, and he sticks his head out (we have tried car rides with no windows as well but no improvements)
- Trazodone does eliminate his anxiety; however, it is not my ideal medication. Most of our long car journeys are to get to cool new walking spots, so having him sedated defeats the purpose of even going.
- For some reason, he seems to not be as anxious in my mom’s car; however, he doesn’t go in it often, so this very well may just be coincidence.
- He shows less anxiety when his two doggy siblings come in the car with him and happily jumps into the car with them any time of day.
- Say I were to just hop in the car and sit, he doesn’t get anxious about this. He may get antsy/whine out of boredom but he doesn’t display his anxious tell-tales
- I have not explicitly attempted systematic car desensitization yet, as I am unsure how to go about it given the odd circumstances.
- I think it is also worth noting Romeo is not a super treat / toy / praise motivated dog. When he gets very anxious, he sees little value in anything but his surroundings, including me. He will not take any reinforcement once over the threshold. Engagement is another huge work in progress for us.

Any advice on how to reinforce positive association with car rides is much appreciated! If any additional context/information is needed, I will happily provide it. We keep our long car rides to a minimum but I don’t want his world/experiences to be limited because he cannot handle the car. It breaks my heart seeing him so anxious, and I would love to help him work past this.

got a 3 year old male German Shepherd mix. he’s smart, loyal and really attached to me, but outside is a different story. the second he sees another dog he locks on, starts pulling hard and barking. sometimes he completely ignores treats and just fixates.

he’s fine with people walking past and doesn’t care about bikes or joggers. it’s mainly other dogs. at home he’s calm and listens well. on leash he turns into a different dog. i’m not a big person so holding him when he reacts is getting harder and it’s starting to make me anxious before every walk.

been working on it myself with distance and high value treats but progress is slow.

how long did it take before your dog started disengaging from other dogs more reliably?

did you notice the biggest change from daily practice or from a more intensive program?

thanks for any advice.

We have had him a month. He is 10 months old. Last night, my pug mix awoke from a sound sleep and charged the tv, jumping at it and almost knocking it off the console table. I assume it was a nightmare and a fight or flight response to arousal, but he does bark at the tv when awake and I don’t want this to be an escalation. He was getting better, but lately he’s been more insistent with boofing (that pug noise) then growling and barking. Charging is new.

We removed him from the area and put him on the patio then escorted him to his crate and covered it with a blanket. He was perfectly quiet for the rest of the night. He was sweet and milder than usual this morning (He usually scrambles around excitedly before we walk) and great on the leash too.

His tv triggers are random except for dogs. Basically someone walks into the frame! I was saying quiet, redirecting him with a toy giving him treats when he is quiet or when he just boofs softly, and firmly resting my foot on him (seemed to work). He was improving. We also crate him out of the tv sightline if he won’t stop and he accepts that. I just don’t want to have to crate him whenever the tv is on. We live with a very elderly senior and she watches tv all the time.

I’m mostly worried about the charging. Is it okay to leash him when we watch tv, especially when he sleeps?

got a 6 month old golden retriever mix a couple months ago. first dog i’ve ever had so i really want to set good habits early. main things that matter to me are solid leash manners, calm greetings and basic obedience that actually sticks.

how often did you train the basics when your dog was this age?

what helped the most with keeping the good habits once they started sticking?

My boy Todd turns 4 this month. Around his first birthday he started dropping into a down whenever another dog came into view, sometimes from 20-30 metres away. No barking, ever. He just flattens and locks on, eyes fixed, ears forward and stiff, heavy like a sack of potatoes lol. Owners walking past ask me if he's dangerous. He's not. If I call him at that point I don't exist. It can last anywhere from 30 seconds to 2 minutes, depending on the others too ofc.

If the other dog gets close enough he lunges, low and fast toward its side, doesn't bark, doesn't growl. When he gets there it's usually excited sniffing, sometimes rough play, depending on the other dog. And if the dog just passes by without contact, he gets up and whines.

Happens with about 90% of dogs. Less with very small ones like chihuahuas, though he still stares and pulls hard.

Off leash in a dog park he doesn't do any of this, he just runs and plays normally.

I worked on this for a while and then stopped. I was going through depression and social anxiety and walks became something I dreaded. He's now getting less time outside than I feel he needs, and I feel awful about it and I want to start again.

What we have is a huge nose drive, he works the ground like a scent hound and will ditch a frisbee to go sniff. Loves tug. Follows me around waiting for something to do. Learned a new cue every day or two since he was a puppy. So it's not like he has nothing to do. I just want him to be outside more, and this behaviour is honestly killing my own drive to be out with him. It's like we have a totally different relationship outside and I want to fix this.

1. All things considered, does this read as herding eye-stalk plus leash frustration, or is fear still on the table?

2. Is 4 too late to change it?

3. Starting from zero, do I go straight to threshold work, or rebuild engagement first?

No money for a trainer, so anything I can do myself. Thanks.