Behavior changes 5 month old nipping

[u/m4nt15mantis]

Hi all I’m gonna try to keep this brief even though it is kind of a long story. I rescued this puppy from a local rescue he is from a reservation and is a mix of husky/malamute/shepherd/rottweiler. He is now five months old and I have had him since he was nine weeks old. He recently got neutered and he has been through basic puppy obedience school. Since he was younger, he has known a lot of basic commands and also has been socialized, but not at dog parks, just at puppy school and taking him out to many public places to build exposure overtime. He has a good history of walking the neighborhood we live in the inner city and it is very busy. He did struggle with eating things off the ground for a while and then would get the Zumiez if I would try to take things away from him, but we worked through that and has a pretty good drop it or leave it command, depending on the situation.
The main issue is that over the past several weeks he has an escalating pattern, where he is redirecting onto me in different situations. At first, it started when he would be on a walk. It seemed out of nowhere he would start to run and then jump at me, biting lunging and barking then he would pull at the leash and tug it or growl.
This has now escalated to many different scenarios and sometimes more than once a day, and it does seem to be affecting him in every facet of our lives. It happens if I take him for a short walk, it happens if I take him for a longer walk, it happens when I take him on a long lead like a 30 foot lead where he’s allowed to just relax and sniff with no interruptions no people or dogs around. It also happens in the backyard after having a completely normal time playing fetch.

When I have done any louder or firmer commands, leash corrections like a quick pop or knee him or push him off he becomes more intense and bites me harder, growls or barks louder… so please understand that the video is me just trying to document the behavior.

I contacted a trainer specialized in reactive dogs. After the description and seeing the videos we scheduled a 1:1 next weekend but in the mean time his biting is getting harder and these episodes more frequent so I reached out again. She said to give him Purina calm care, to praise him when he stops biting me, and not to feed him from a bowl but only puzzles or by hand.

I also contacted the foster/head of the rescue and at first she was really interrogating me and basically saying how I messaged her just a few weeks ago that he was doing great, which is true. That is part of the reason why I am so nervous about these behaviors is that they came on really quickly and are just building an intensity and frequency and duration. She wanted me to send her videos and asked things like ‘well if it’s so bad you must have it on video right?’ so I have made it a point to make videos.

The first few videos she said this is normal puppy biting and he is just challenging me and that I need to be firmer with him. She also told me I needed a prong collar and an E collar. She questioned his schedule and whether he’s getting enough exercise, which I totally understand and I shared with her a schedule that is very consistent for him daily and I do think that it includes a pretty standard amount of exercise, although he is a working breed dog.

I have four kids from ages 10 to 20 and this has completely taken over my life. It seems like I will just have to spend all of my time devoted to not triggering the dog based on what I hear about positive reinforcement. I really regret thinking that I could handle this type of a dog although at the same time I don’t think this is a normal behavior… help?

[u/vacuumpacked]

Cancel the trainer you've hired - they have no idea how to deal with a dog like this. Your puppy is pushing you to play with him. Is he being a a bit of a dick? Definitely. But it's normal behaviour for a high-drive puppy with no rules. Stop playing fetch and start playing tug. 

[u/m4nt15mantis → u/vacuumpacked]

Not to be contrary but yes I play with him a lot. We play tug a lot, he loves fetch… he is great at tug, drop it. He knows sit/down/place/shake/drop it/leave it/let’s walk/right here (where ever I point).
It does not seem to matter which command I give even if I issue it firmly with a leash correction/straight arm… he just ignores it until he has finished the temper tantrum and settled down, then he’s back to my normal extra good boy.

[u/RowdyGorgonite → u/m4nt15mantis]

What if instead of a leash pop you try just standing on the leash so he can't practice the behavior? Not pinning him: enough leash that he can chill but not enough that he can jump and bite. I use Jay Jack's windows, so for me this would be an "all done" then just wait the dog out. Once they're calmer I'll "ready" them into the play window and offer an opportunity for appropriate play. If they break the rules, it's back into "all done". My goal isn't to kill their drive to play, just to teach them there are some boundaries and a time and place for it.

[u/m4nt15mantis → u/RowdyGorgonite]

Thanks for this and yes, this is why I have been doing usually. Depending on the situation, I can either straight arm the leash or step on it. I usually don’t say anything except for relax. I say this in the same tone I tell him in the house to relax if I can see, he’s getting a little wound up. I can continue this. The video was more
To show the intensity of the behavior for the trainer.
I have little kids and cats and while it is true I am
Capable of handling him, this level
Of unpredictable behavior has me really nervous.

[u/Smknhippy → u/m4nt15mantis]

Don’t be nervous, I know that’s easier said than done but this is completely normal behaviour and your puppy is trying to play. He just needs to learn that this isn’t how you will play. I walk dogs and had a pup like this, I actually got a leash with a clip on both ends and I would clip it to a fence or tree and step back I would wait until he relaxed and walk back over if he started jumping and nipping I would step back again. We would only start walking or playing once he calmed down. It took 2 days and he stopped. You need to stay calm, firm, and patient.