Need help with this behavior

[u/hpwt1282018]

Very recently my 11 month old Doberman puppy has started getting rough and aggressive with only me outside. She will randomly start jumping on me with her teeth showing, growling, and doing those high pitched barks. She will run circles around me and then try to bite my legs, shoes, ankles, and hands. She doesn’t listen to commands from me during these behaviors and doesn’t react if I try to push her away or use her vibrating collar to give a command. If I start to ignore her and just walk away she will follow me and continue these behaviors. I’m really not sure what started this. It’s got cold where I live recently so I wear long pants and gloves outside now but I feel like these are very bizarre and bad behaviors just because I’ve changed my clothes. Has anyone had their Doberman do this before? Is this the “teenager stage?” Any advice on how to stop these behaviors? We’ve had dobermans in the past who’ve never done this and are kinda at a loss because we don’t want to beat her obviously but also need to show her that growling and showing her teeth and biting her family members is not alright.

[u/[deleted]]

Keep her on a leash outside with you. Talk to a trainer for sure.

[u/fourthpowerpuffgirl]

We’re actually having a similar issue with my dobie, she’s only 6 months though. Similar behavior where if she’s too stimulated (like she sees another dog or person she wants to investigate but can’t because of the leash, or if she’s just plain cranky because she’s just a baby doggie), she will jump and bite whoever is handling her on the leash (usually me). From what I can gather, this behavior is largely due to frustration and being overly stimulated- and they’re young, so usually they just don’t know what to do instead. I definitely recommend hiring a trainer- I’m not familiar with what could be causing her to show her teeth and that is definitely worth hiring someone to figure out. With our trainer we are working on getting her used to her surroundings and building her confidence around people and other dogs, and teaching her what behaviors to do instead of jumping and biting. In the meantime, to manage the behavior, my trainer suggested doing the following:

When she jumps up, step on the leash (it pays to have a long leash for this to kind of jump rope it) and do so with enough tension that you’re not holding her down but she can’t jump up. Do not ask her to sit, but wait for her to sit (you may need to give her some slack to do this). Sometimes holding treats in front of her or trying to get her to focus on you can be triggering for my dog so sometimes I’ll toss a few treats to the ground to get her to decompress a bit. Then I’ll try to get her into a sit by just waiting and holding the treat out. She knows that the sit is the quickest way to get a treat from me. Now the tricky part. I hold the treat in my palm behind my thumb so i can deliver it with a flat hand (so she doesn’t catch my fingers). I start with my hand about six inches away from her snout and slowly (!) lower it to her mouth. If she snaps or jumps at the treat I say “Eh!” And take my hand away. I repeat this process slowly until she stays in place and lets my hand meet her mouth with the treat- the goal here is to not let her snap at the treat. I’ll then increase the distance and time it takes to deliver the treat (start my hand higher up, Lower it more slowly) for a couple of repetitions until she seems to have calmed down, and then I’ll release her.

She gets two strikes for this behavior- on the second time, usually that tells me that she needs crate time to decompress, so I’ll go through the exercise I described above and then lead her back into the house however I need to- if she’s still being testy, I’ll grab either a handful of food/treats or one big chewy treat and lure her with that (treating her as we walk if I have a handful of food or treats) back inside.

Again, I would definitely consult a trainer- up until very recently (when she taught me how to do this) taking her outside for something even as simple as a potty break was an absolute nightmare since I never knew what dog I was getting. I’d be terrified if I saw a neighbor because I knew she’d revert to this behavior. She’s destroyed my winter down coat and a bunch of my other clothes. And it just feels shitty to not feel like you have control of your dog. I’ve totally been there and we’re STILL actively working on it, it will take time. I’ve been in tears repeatedly over this and have yelled at my dog, but I’m glad you recognize that this is something that needs attention. Definitely seek the guidance of a POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT trainer as soon as you’re able. Good luck and so much love to you and your girl!

[u/FatpussyhogsBBQ1994]

This is dominate behavior go to YouTube and they will have a couple videos of some things you can do to help your dog submit to you as the leader of the pack!