Training Technique - The Umbilical
Establishes Pack Order and helps the dog realize you are Pack Leader

A technique call the umbilical makes problem dogs, good dogs and makes good dogs better. Put him/her on leash and hook the leash around your waist and make him/her walk behind you as you do your every day chores (do the dishes, vacuum, etc) do this indoors and in you backyard as well. As you do this never let him/her go in front of you, never let him/her enter a doorway in front of you, never let him/her go up the stairs a head of you. (The pack leader always goes first. When you first do this watch to see if he/she tries to take the lead. If he/she does you will know he/she thinks he/she is the boss.)

Don't talk to the dog too much.
Every member of the family should take turns doing this as well as feeding him/her.

These techniques help dominant or difficult dogs and make good dogs even better.

A dominant dog is happy with those he feels he is dominant over (like children and women). In the dogs eyes he sees you all as his pack members and he wants to be the dominant male, and all others under him. He is aggressive with any one (males) he thinks may dethrone him.

Other dogs that are submissive toward him he would be ok with and other male dogs or dominant dogs (not always male) he will have a problem with.

This behavior will worsen over time if let go.
(eg. the dog will snap if lower members of his pack touch things that he has claimed as his (food, toys, or treats), Instead of just getting grumpy or growling in an attempt to discipline and bring order to his pack he will turn to snapping.)

To fix this behavior:
- don't let him on furniture (he will think he is an equal)
- control the food (don't leave food down all the time. Make him sit and lay down and wait until you tell him he can eat)
- do a technique call the umbilical, put him on leash and hook the leash around your waist and make him walk behind you as you do your every day chores (do the dishes, vacuum, etc) do this indoors and in you backyard as well. As you do this never let him go in front of you, never let him enter a doorway in front of you, never let him go up the stairs a head of you. (The pack leader always goes first. When you first do this watch to see if he tries to take the lead. If he does you will know he thinks he is the boss.)

Don't talk to the dog too much, let the dog learn to read your body language.
Every member of the family should take turns doing this as well as feeding him as described above.

The dog will soon realize he is not the boss. You are re-organizing the pecking order in the dogs head. He will realize he is last and the last member in the pecking order has no say they simply follow and if you have no problem with the vet or any other dominant figure he will say in his head "ok your the boss."

Put a leash on her in the house & work on calling her and when she comes & sits in front of you reward her with praise & a treat.
Do this through out the day so she wants to come when you call her because it means good things.
If you chase a dog, it will think it is a game. Once you have worked on the recall in your yard & in the house, you can do it at the park.
Once the dog is good at it, if it should run away from you, just stop and call him/her and the dog should come back just as you have taught, because he/she things it is going to get good stuff, praise & a treat.

Large Breed Puppy & Dog Food
Authority is a great brand, Containing No Animal By-Products and containing extra good stuff such as those below listed in red with a * next to them.

 

Specially formulated for breeds weighing greater than 55 lbs as adults. Made with high quality chicken for great taste. No by-products, artificial colors, or flavors. Naturally preserved with Vitamin E. Highly digestible for better nutrition and less backyard clean-up. 100% complete and balanced.

I feed Large Breed Puppy for 2yrs and than Large Breed Adult.
All Large Breed foods are not the same
example:
Royal Canine Large Breed Pupppy - 30 to 32% protien
Authority Large Breed Puppy - 26 to 28% protien
I think the Royal Canine is too high for a growing pup, I feed the Authority for growing pups and Royal Canine & Authority with fresh cooked meat mixed for a pregnant mom.

Authority Large Breed Adult w/ Real Chicken

(Formulated for ages 2 to 5 years):
Ingredients: Chicken Meal, Brewers Rice, Corn, Brown Rice, Animal Fat Preserved with Vitamin E (Mixed Tocopherols), Chicken, Corn Gluten Meal, Dried Beet Pulp, Natural Flavors, Canola Oil, Dried Egg Product, Dicalcium Phosphate, Corn Oil, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Vitamin E Supplement, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (Source of Vitamin C), Copper Sulfate, Vitamin A Supplement, Manganese Sulfate, Niacin, D-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Riboflavin, Calcium Iodate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Thiamin Mononitrate, Folic Acid, Sodium Selenite, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Chondroitin Sulfate.

Guaranteed Analysis: Crude protein (min) 23.0%, crude fat (min) 12.0%, crude fiber (max) 3.0%, moisture (max) 10.0%, calcium (min) 1.0%, phosphorus (min) 0.9%, vitamin e (min) 200IU/kg, omega-6 fatty acids* (min) 2.0%, omega-3 fatty acids* (min) 0.2%, glucosamine* (max) 375mg/kg, chondroitin* (max) 35mg/kg, vitamin c (min) 30mg/kg.
* Not recognized as an essential nutrient by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profile.

Authority Large Breed Puppy w/ Real Chicken

(Formulated for ages 6 weeks to 2 years):
Ingredients: Chicken Meal, Brewers Rice, Ground Corn, Animal Fat Preserved with Vitamin E (Mixed Tocopherols), Chicken, Dried Beet Pulp, Corn Gluten Meal, Natural Flavors, Dried Egg Product, Canola Oil, Corn Oil, Dicalcium Phosphate, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Vitamin E Supplement, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (Source of Vitamin C), Copper Sulfate, Vitamin A Supplement, Manganese Sulfate, Niacin, D-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Riboflavin, Calcium Iodate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Thiamin Mononitrate, Folic Acid, Sodium Selenite, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Chondroitin Sulfate.

Guaranteed Analysis: Crude protein (min) 26.0%, crude protein (max) 28.0%, crude fat (min) 13.0%, crude fat (max) 15.5%, crude fiber (max) 3.0%, moisture (max) 10.0%, calcium (min) 1.3%, phosphorus (min) 1.0%, vitamin e (min) 225IU/kg, omega-6 fatty acids* (min) 2.0%, omega-3 fatty acids* (min) 0.18%, glucosamine* (max) 375mg/kg, vitamin c (min) 30mg/kg.
* Not recognized as an essential nutrient by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profile.

How to teach your puppy not to bite hands & pull on clothes

Never pull your hands away. By pulling your hands away it make the dog want them more, partly because he can't have them & partly because the pulling away action triggers his instinct to go after it, it's kind of like teasing even though that is not your intent.

Lifting your hands high doesn't teach the dog anything, except maybe to jump. As soon as your hands are down again he will want them again.

I teach soft mouth first, so the pup learns how hard is too hard.
Than it is the perfect time to start to teach "leave it", when you give the command and the dog takes it's mouth off your hand himself, (it will be just because you broke his attention for a moment) reward him with a small treat.
He will get the clue quickly, if he takes his mouth off your hand, he gets good things.

Original Author: KeyStoneK9