Trainers and pit bulls and DA

you CAN socialize a DA dog. the biggest thing to over come is building confidence in the dog so it knows it is not required to fight.

IIRC theres game bred breeders on this site that also train dogs which have their CGC awards.

 

U can train a DA dog till the cows come home.. do u think that makes em less DA or just have more control over themselves? Contrary to popular belief its NOT that the dog thinks its REQUIRED to fight or its FEAR motivating it... what it IS is the same thing that makes a border collie want to herd a pointer point out birds and a coonhound trail coons. its what they WANT to do. now that being said... training does go a long way but MANAGEMENT goes even further.... jmo. i could be wrong maybe it is fear or thinking they are required to do it.:rolleyes:

 

Yea, the trainer that said bring your dog to class was trying to set you up for failure. Beware. Your better off spending 15mins. a day with the dog yourself. Obedience trainging is easy.

1. Dog should learn NO. Tone of voice is everything a sharp abrupt NO. Normally the very first time your puppy does something wrong you swat the bottom end once hard enough to get a response while at the same time yelling NO. Peolpe may not agree but your puppy from then on will associate NO with being disciplined. You own a pitbull for the sake of the breed you have to be its MASTER!

2. Praise is opposite and sweet gentle good girl or boy followed by petting no food is needed.

3. Any task you ask or try to gett the dog to do must be followed thru with..ie. dont try to get the dog to sit then give up before it sits.

4. You own a pitbull who wants nothing more to please if you reward with praise, and discipline with NO you will be amazed at what you can get your dog to do for you. IMO!

 

l have had a similar conversation on a european board about training DA out of game breed pb's.Can it really be done period ?
lf the dog was on a leash,you would alway be stressing him/her with strong commands and constantly tugged.Eventially when your on walks any type of mutt could walk up to your dog and destract him/her,wouldn't you be really messing with his "natural traits.......like cutting his balls off":eek:
l would like to hear some straight forward answers,thanks

 

We talk about the in-ability to train DA out of a dog a lot and we talk about how it takes a strong owner to own an APBT, more specifically one that shows strong DA at a young age but we don't talk about why those things are true nearly enough or what it really means. I was glad to see this one posted in the training forum.

When folks say it takes a strong owner, its is because you as alpha have to take ownership of every object/behavior. Your basically saying to your dog "I realize you want to XXX but unless I allow it, it is an off limits". It should be this way for everything.

The reason APBT owners have to be so mentally strong is because the DA dog is PASSIONATE about being able to tear in to another dog, its mind, in just a few seconds (or even a split second) will click in to a a prey drive that you will find yourself hard pressed to break your DA APBT out of. Its an extream situation and for the DA APBT, the most challanging time for you to stay in control of your dogs actions. It is NOT the only time you need to be a strong alpha.

So how do you be strong? Your strong in all your training, not just when your dealing with DA behavior. Respect for you as the alpha isn't something your only demanding at the times when DA needs to be managed, you need to be the object that your dog checks with before every activity.

By strong I mean dominate, and I don't mean Hard. Most APBT's are "soft" towards their owners which is why they are such great house dogs. Its typically more of a head game than a physical one with the APBT.

Another thing to consider is that most of the good trainers on this forum will tell you they have to work a little harder than the rest. The reason is because, they are strong or strict trainers don't leave any room for their dogs to take advantage of them. No mistake or disobdiance can be ignored because it is the first step in showing weakenss and allowing the dog to think it can take control of a situation.

These are the people who have DA dogs but they aren't flipping them selfs upside down on the end of a leash everytime they see another dog. These people have not trained DA out of their dogs and if the dog had a chance that it felt it could get away with, it would lunge. Its just been trained, consistantly, that like all other things it isn't allowed to do, it won't get away with it. It is the ultimate test for some DA APBT, more than the starter pistol, traffice, etc...

Hope I explained my thought well enough, its early and I need coffee

 

thank you button.

 

I mostly have gamebred dog that are my working dogs and while you cannot train out the DA you can control it with training. Some ppl are better at than others but you have to have the puppy at a young age and know what to look for and correct it.
While I have to separate all my bitches at home they are ok in public for the most part. I know what situations they can handle and what they can't. If a dog jumped them my dogs would take care of themselves but they would not start anything at the club or in training.

So it is possible to have control over DA but that does not mean you can train it out and then go to a dog park.

I have a few new dogs and the breeders said oh you will never get a dog from my line to be able to do that....... well they are doing just fine in sports with other dogs around. It does not mean they are not hot it just means they are under control and I am watching everything so they are never in a situation they cannot handle.

Now if you already have an adult that is DA you can make it managable on leash if you can find a good trainer. Your dog will always be DA but you can make them understand that when they are off leash they are to ignore other dogs. It takes work but is very possible, a major part of my business is working with dog that are DA and many happen to be APBT's. Again you are never going to be able to turn that dog lose with other dogs but onleash it is possible to get hem to ignore other dogs.

I myself have a super DA bitch that I bought as an adult and she just lives at home in a secure set up, she is not a working dog. I would never try to take a super DA adult and try to do what I do with my other dogs because I cold never fully trust them off leash.

Hopefully this trainer will help you reach your goals with your dog.