# My staffy is still out of control....:(



## vikkizz (Oct 28, 2008)

My 9 month old staffy is out of control an its time to seek help!!
I havnt got a clue where to start??? Shes not aggressive in any sort of way shes very very loving BUT she constantly whines for attention and doesnt listen to anything anyone says to her which is a bad thing when shes out on her walks, Shes very very hyper active 24/7 and annoys most dogs she comes across which means she has to be kept on the lead all the time!
Basically im from newcastle upon tyne, uk and i was wondering if anyone knows what i should be doing next?? thanks


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## Corinthian (Oct 13, 2009)

My first advice to people is to describe the dog in terms of what you want it to do. Writing "I don't want her to ___ " does little in terms of giving you an approach to solve the problem. If you rephrase the problem as "I want to train  my dog to ____ " then you have a good template as how to enact the change that you want and it shifts the onus back on you.

So. you might think of the problem as "I want teach my dog to like the crate" [do you use one btw?] or "I want to train my dog to spend time chewing a kong" These are clearly defined goals and give you a much better chance of success as well as some reinforcement for you to continue training when you see progress being made

Secondly if the dog doesn't listen then it is likely you haven't taught her what you are saying or the cue is has not been sufficiently reinforced. Again here change the mantra to "I want to train her to ____ ". I would begin with her name as it has been my experience that most dogs don't even know "Fifi/Fido" refers to them.

ClickerSolutions Training Treasures -- Attention Training and Name Recognition


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## vikkizz (Oct 28, 2008)

She does know the basics sit, her name, and stay those are the 3 words we chose even though she knows how to do them she listens for all of 3 seconds before shes off doing something else.
I am very firm with her and i have had 2 staffys before, neither were like this and were both trained on and off the lead.
I have had her to the vets twice about this and the vets words were "shes one of the mischevious ones".
She is toilet trained and is already out of her crate although she is confined to one room through the night as shes prone to chewing.
What id like train her to do is, to calm down, socalise better, and be trained off the lead.
I think if i find a method of training that will calm her down alot of the other problems will fade away aswell. Shes just so excited all the time 24/7 Any advice??
Im really keen to find a trainer in my area and learn what prices i will be looking at??


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## hazel pritchard (Jun 28, 2009)

We have a lakeland who sounded just like your dog at 9 months,we were tearing our hair out,we have owned many dogs in the past but never one like this one,he is now just over 2 yrs and hes still alittle hyper,we take him to agility and that has really helped us/him,
One thing i did and still do is only talk to our dog when i need/want to,ie,,on walks only talk when i want him to sit or recall,after a short time i found that when i spoke he really listens,this has also worked in the house,
At about 9 mnths old his recall which had been fantastic just dissappeared he would run off over the fields for hours and come back when he wanted,so i bought a 30ft lead and would not let him off it untill he recalled to sit at my heal,this took a few weeks,now hes perfect with recall,could i ask what food does your pup have?
Good luck with your pup


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## goodvic2 (Nov 23, 2008)

HI. Sounds very much like my staffy x, Sammy. Staff's are very much people dogs and the whining is just for attention. YOu need to ensure you ignore it. I am lucky in that I have 2 other dogs, so they keep him company.

Sammy is also very hyper active with other dogs and it has been a problem because when he see's another dog and is off the lead he runs full pelt to get to them. this is something which causes a problem with other dog owners as (1) because he is a staff, people are not so understanding (2) by the time he gets to the other dog, he is so excited that it can make the other dog react.

My answer has been to find a toy which he absolutely loves. This way when he is about to take off, I recall him with this toy. I only ever get it out for this purpose and no other toy or treat works. I also take him to training classes in the hope that other dogs will not be such a novelty! As of yet, it has not helped much, but it is still early days.

x


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## Guest (Dec 8, 2009)

Have you thought of agility to take away some of the energy and get her attention more on you?


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