[firetyrant]

My gf and I adopted 6-8m old shepard mix from the pound. We were told she was surrendered but we couldn't get much more info then that from them, since they didn't have any. Anyway's since day she's been a bundle of joy, gives kisses, cuddles, and fetchs. But when we go to take her out to go to the bathroom she dips her head low and piddles, she also does this when we ask her to come. She will almost do a low crawl/walk to us and pee. We do not hit her or yell loudly. When this happens we send her to her kennel, but not close the door. What are some ways we can train her to stop the issue. She also does this grimmice face like she's snarling at us but not vocal, but we have no clue why. Any ideas? I will give you guy's whatever information you need I would very much appreciate it.

[Bacis Dad]

It sounds llike to me that she has been heavily punished for potty training problems before you got her!
Did you keep her name or change it once you got her?
What are you saying to her when you call her to come?

When she comes to you with her head lowered and pees, PLEASE DO NOT put her in her kennel! If she is doing this when you call her she is being submissive and is nervous (to remedy this you need to build her confidence)! My assessment based on what you have informed so far is that this dog has been punished a fair amount before you received her. Most likely for going to the bathroom inside. Also, a very common mistake people make when punishing their dog or prepping their dog for punishment they call the dog to them. This in the dogs mind is a precursor to punishment! Your dog sounds (to me) emotionally fragile and you have to refrain from anything adversive by all means! You need to heavily focus on her good behavior and ignore the bad!
Whenever she goes to the bathroom outside make sure you reward her with treats followed by her favorite toy or game. NEVER punish her for having an accident (try your hardest) dont send her to the kennel! Ask your gf to play with her in another room and clean up the accident when the pup is not around.
Please answer the above questions and more tips to come.

[firetyrant]

I forgot to mention that she has some food agression issues, but thats with raw foods, not with dry food.

The pound renamed her Smiles, then we renamed her missy, cause of two reasons. One we did not like the name smiles, second she never responded. She responds very well to missy, infact the one time we did say it she came jumping towards us like a bunny the first time we mentioned her new name.

When we ask her to come we say "Missy, come here" in an up beat voice and we are usually sitting at her level.

My gf is the one getting very impatient about it and is starting to get more and more vocal with her. I'm however trying to be more and more patient but I know she can sense me being stressed.

[Yogi]

the crate should first never be used as a means of discipline. You have a dog that has been abused and by doing what you are doing, in a sense you are actually adding to the problem. Many young dogs pee out of submissiveness.
The dog obviously has some nervous issues but with time and patience as well as understanding these will end. Just try being supportive when the dog does this as opposed to sending it to its crate. It is these type of things that will only extend the behavior issue.
Food aggression is not uncommon with dogs that have been abused in any way.
Fear that they may not get fed drives them to carefully protect what they have. Realistically as the dog becomes more acclimated with the 2 of you and feels secure in its new surroundings it will come out of its shell and be less inclined to fear that the food it has is all it may see for sometime.
Good luck.

[Bacis Dad]

Yogi is right about the crate, and food aggression. She will get over the aggression once she "trusts" you a little better. And dont ever raise your voice to her or put her in the crate for something she has done, you're just going to have a lot more problems down the road.
As far as your patience and your GF's patience, it has to be kept in check. It was most likely that lack in patience and lack of training that ended her up in the shelter in the first place. I have to say you Rescued a puppy, I hope you didnt expect an obedient champion the day you took her into your home!

Anyway, back to things that could help you out.
Im glad to hear that you changed her name, that was a good move. However my next reccommendation is to change the "come" command. When I work with older dogs, we have to do this all the time. What happens is, this command becomes "poisoned". That means a command used to be or is meant to be a good thing, but what happened is that it somehow got paired w/ a negative association to the dog. Therefore when the dog hears this command it induces a different reaction then we are trying to achieve.

So, change the command to something else like "Cookies" or "Hot Dawgs". It may be silly but to the dogs they dont know english you can make the command anything you want, but I have to say "cookies" or "treats", in my experience, has yielded the best results.
Now you have to teach her what the command means.
Have your GF sit on one side of the room and you on the other. Both be prepped with some hot dogs or cheese. Call her over to you, w/out giving the command or her name. In a happy excited voice cal "Puppy Puppy Puppy" until she responds and comes to you and reward her HEAVILY w/ treats. Do that a bunch of time until she is sprinting back and forth to you. Then when she is responding and learning this game then we can start giving her the new command that we thought of.
After she is learning the command it is CRUCIAL you follow these rules! (CRUCIAL)

1)NEVER use this command if she is about to get in trouble or to take something away from her.

2)Only give the command when you are prepared to give her only her ABSOLUTE FAVORITE THINGS!

3) Only give the command when you KNOW she will respond! (dont ask it right now if she playing with another dog cuz it might not work yet, we can get it to that point later, baby steps) Pair it with her favorite game/ toy, when you feed her raw(good choice BTW!) If you just want to give her a treat, whatever she LOVES!

4) make sure you try to pair the new command at least 4-5 x's a day.


So in a nutshell, change the command, and teach her what it means. She is peeing when she comes to you bc she is unsure of you and herself and is showing that she is scared and needs your support to give her courage. Dont ever jeopordize her trust in you by punishing her or losing your patience in her. Good things will come she will have the makings for such a Great Loyal dog if you take your time w/ her and make every experience with her a positive one! Good Luck and any more questions feel free to ask!

[firetyrant]

Originally Posted by Bacis Dad

. I have to say you Rescued a puppy, I hope you didnt expect an obedient champion the day you took her into your home!

I know that rescuing a dog doesn't warrent a perfect puppy. I didn't have any expectations with her already knowing all the commands it just comes with the territory with adopting a dog from a shelter. I really like the excersize that you gave me and my gf to try with her so she starts learning us. I guess I'll be getting more carrots for her, since she seems to really like them, not to fond of hot dogs, seriously a first for me. I'm hoping she can get used to us and trust us cause we both love her very much.

[Bacis Dad]

I wish you the best of luck with her! I cant believe shes not fond of hot dogs!!! That IS a First! haha Well if you hit any speed bumps or you want to take her training past this level let us know & we'll all be happy to help!
And please keep us updated on her progress, I love hearing the news!

[Lara's mom]

If your dog likes raw veggies, you're way ahead of the game. Mine were all raised believing that raw veggies were treats although they got their fair share of cookies too. To this day, I can't slice carrots without all the dogs wanting some! If your dog should ever develop a weight problem, you'll be able to substitute the higher calorie treats for veggies without your dog feeling hard done by.

[firetyrant]

she seriously loves them, I just bought a couple big bags of baby raw carrots. I'm trying to find other stuff she might like that's healthy for her and that wont cost a bundle. With the training excersize we had to cut up the carrots a little to make them quick bite size so she'll eat them quicker so we can stay focused on training.

[Bacis Dad]

Thats Great! Glad to hear you are doing the exercizes and you realized bigger treats lose focus! Keep up the good work!
PS Cheese is pretty good too! I also cube Natural Balance duck and potatoe rolls... But to each their own! Good Luck!

[connor12]

Originally Posted by firetyrant

My gf and I adopted 6-8m old shepard mix from the pound. We were told she was surrendered but we couldn't get much more info then that from them, since they didn't have any. Anyway's since day she's been a bundle of joy, gives kisses, cuddles, and fetchs. But when we go to take her out to go to the bathroom she dips her head low and piddles, she also does this when we ask her to come. She will almost do a low crawl/walk to us and pee. We do not hit her or yell loudly. When this happens we send her to her kennel, but not close the door. What are some ways we can train her to stop the issue. She also does this grimmice face like she's snarling at us but not vocal, but we have no clue why. Any ideas? I will give you guy's whatever information you need I would very much appreciate it.

I am sorry to hear about this. Yes, definitely a sign of abuse. In my experience, the ONLY way to correct an issue with your dog is to stick to repetitive routines, and lots of joyful praise. The kennel thing won't work for this. So, in your case, you should find something that she responds well to like a toy or something that you can call her to you with. Get her used to your cheerful call while showing the toy while she approaches you. Over time you should be able to exclude the use of the toy or whatever prop, as she will associate your voice to coming to you cheerfully.

Be consistent. Hope this helps.

[Ward9320]

sounds like your doing a great job so far.. good luck with everything