busterbutt\";p=\"97757 said:
He is not super bad but he has a major attitute problem like barking at us when we tell him NO!!!!!!! All of the sudden too!!!
That doesn't sound good to me. Sounds like he is challenging your authority. I personally think that should be handled right away, he has to know that when you say NO or anything, that you mean it.
Something had to happen to change his attitude to make him think he's an equal (if you want to run your house like that, then it's fine, I have nothing against people who let their dogs sleep with them or whatever)...but me, personally, I don't think he is an equal. When I say something, my dog listens. Now when we come home (my girlfriend and I), he doesn't run up and jump all over me first all happy like, but I can assure you that if I said "come here" when we got home that he'd come to me first.
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Just a few things that I take pretty seriously...
When I'm eating, he's at least 10 feet away. If he's not, he gets put there.
When I come home, I don't pet him and get all happy when he comes up to me. I wait until I'm done with what I have to do, then I say hi to him.
I do not tell him "good boy" when I'M HAPPY. I tell him that when he's actually a good boy.
I don't "reward" him with treats or anything like that. I reward him with letting him know that I approve of what he did...like a nice pat on the back or overall approving body language.
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So anyway, just things like that, he definitely lives a structured life, but he has to. Otherwise, things can get out of hand. I don't ever suggest hitting your dog, and I would never hit mine, but I do some stuff every now and then that if he didn't know the order in which he falls, he may have a problem with. And that's the main thing that you want to avoid...if he's too close and you push him away, if he doesn't KNOW for 100% sure that you're the boss, he just may try to challenge you. And a physical challenge from a powerful dog could be dangerous for most people.
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But yeah, the barking at you when you tell him no should definitely be stopped in my opinion. And there's no way to fix something like that without seriously laying down some structure in your dog's life. Personally, I feel I owe it to my dog to be strict with him and let him know exactly where he falls.
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And I know I said it once and I know that to some people who sleep with their dogs, etc, it may sound like I am a bad owner because I don't "spoil" my buddy, but I can assure you I love and care for him a great deal. He lives a great life and my life is better because of him too.
Hope that helps.