# Schutzhund Obedience/Young Dog



## Salt n Pepper (Sep 3, 2009)

Let me also add, I do not intend in competing in Schutzhund. My reasoning for buying this book is because I saw that it had gotten good reviews and I wanted to introduce my pup to obedience.


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

just curious, why would you pick schutzhund instead of traditional obedience?


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## GoldenJoyx'stwo (Feb 25, 2007)

I can't help you, but I ddi know a Rottie that participates in Schutzhund and Obedience and the dog was AWESOME!


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## kgiff (Jul 21, 2008)

I haven't heard anything about this book.

It's never too young to start working a dog on obedience (all my dogs have been in classes by 12 weeks at the latest). I have no idea if a "front to finish" in the schutzhund book is the same as what I've done in obedience but we were working on fronts and finishes probably by 5 or 6 months. 

Puppies are typically too young for activities that require tugging before their permanent teeth come in or or too physically demanding and can harm their young bodies before their growth plates close (such as jumping). Other than that they are capable of learning so much. But you need to break down the steps as with any other dog -- they need to learn sit and come before they can learn front and finish, etc.


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## AmberSunrise (Apr 1, 2009)

I have this book and it has a lot of good ideas. 4 months *may* be too young to start Front to Finish but mostly IMO if you activate your dogs drive by tugging games, you should wait until the adult teeth are in. You can start with food or other motivators though.


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## Salt n Pepper (Sep 3, 2009)

hotel4dogs said:


> just curious, why would you pick schutzhund instead of traditional obedience?


I really couldn't find a book that had a step by step walk through to techniques such as the finish, recall, stay, etc. If anyone knows of a book/dvd that has outlines for traditional obedience, please let me know about it, pro's and con's. 

I've read a few other books, "The other end of the leash" by Patricia McConnel, but thats more of a dog psychology style book, and while I learned a lot from it, it just doesn't offer those step by step instructions that I'm looking for in teaching obedience. 
Anyone have any good ideas for a good traditional obedience book/dvd, let me know.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Puppies are never too young for building blocks of obedience. They can be too young for aversive methods, and too young for certain physical activities, but you can certainly start the pieces of just about any skill with a tiny pup. You certainly can't expect the dog to master some of those complex skills as a pup, but the pieces? absolutely.


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## FlyingQuizini (Oct 24, 2006)

The Janice Gunn DVD has a whole DVD just for puppy foundation stuff for competitive obedience. I was working foundation stuff with Quiz at 8 weeks... Puppy strutting, a tight tuck-sit, fold-back down, attention, fun (life saving recall), focus on my around distractions (i.e., playing tug EVERYWHERE), etc. Save the "boring stuff" (fronts and finishes) for when he's a bit older.


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## katieanddusty (Feb 9, 2006)

She uses more physical corrections than would be appropriate with a puppy — puppies are "too young" for that style of training, not necessarily for what she's training them to do. It's not my favorite book, but it is a lot smarter than some about training behaviors with positive reinforcement and building the dog's enthusiasm before adding corrections. If you leave the physical corrections out and focus on keeping it really fun for your puppy, training in really short sessions, and modify some of it for your puppy's short attention span (don't make the puppy do a stay for too long or with you too far away), I don't see why you can't start.

Are you planning on competing in obedience?


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## gabbys mom (Apr 23, 2008)

diane bauman, connie cleveland, terri arnold, janice gunn all have step by step obedience books.


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## Salt n Pepper (Sep 3, 2009)

katieanddusty said:


> She uses more physical corrections than would be appropriate with a puppy — puppies are "too young" for that style of training, not necessarily for what she's training them to do. It's not my favorite book, but it is a lot smarter than some about training behaviors with positive reinforcement and building the dog's enthusiasm before adding corrections. If you leave the physical corrections out and focus on keeping it really fun for your puppy, training in really short sessions, and modify some of it for your puppy's short attention span (don't make the puppy do a stay for too long or with you too far away), I don't see why you can't start.
> 
> Are you planning on competing in obedience?


Thanks everyone. I really don't plan to compete in obedience, but I would like to build a foundation that would make competition a possibility if I did decide to compete. I do plan on doing things like the CGC, etc. Which one of the authors listed above does everyone recommend the most?


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## AmberSunrise (Apr 1, 2009)

I would recommend Patty Ruzzo (Classics of Training) and/or Leslie Nelson (Really Reliable Recall plus others). 

Clicker Training for Obedience (Morgan Spector) is also very good. 

These authors are not listed above but they are positive trainers with logical approaches. Their methods are very compatible with puppies.


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## damita (Jun 4, 2009)

Another vote here for the Janice Gunn Puppy/Novice DVD - I watched it this weekend and loved it (other than the audio quality)! Go for it!


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## Jersey's Mom (Nov 25, 2007)

I recently bought Clicker Training for Obedience by Morgan Spector. I wish I'd had it when Jersey was a pup! I highly recommend it.

Julie and Jersey


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## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

I love the series of Terri Arnold books. I use these three books as the foundation of my training program. I have many others that I refer to for new ideas or reference for new problems that come up, but Terri Arnold's method of training matches up best with my training style.JodieAJ's Maiden By the Sea CDX RE Mud E Paws UD RE OBHFSunfire's Flying Head Over Heels


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## tintallie (May 31, 2006)

Many German Shepherd Dog breeders begin imprinting using marker (ie. clicker) training before the litter leaves them and goes home at 8 weeks+ to their owners. My GSD puppy has been working with a private trainer who has 3 GSDs and she and my puppy's breeder starts the foundation work of obedience at a very young age. It doesn't require physical corrections, but the use of the clicker and treats to mark the correct behaviour and reward the behaviour. I have started playing with a puppy tug with her (less currently as she is teething) but this is to develop drive and a full grip when she tugs. Other things you can do is to build confidence on different surfaces, socializing to different sounds.

Here is a video of Miya going down the slide of a playground: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzJ6tWoLxng


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## NaughtyGolden (Oct 21, 2009)

I am an agility competitor and I also own that book. The top schutzhund competitors do an amazing job of motivating their dogs--developing drive. Your next step depends on your financial resources, time available, and proximity to a good trainer who can help you reach your goals. Books are great, but a good video is much more helpful, and a good instructor best of all. I am not an obedience competitor, but I love Ivan Balabanov's videos best (DVDs plus online videos). His explanations are well thought out and understandable and his results are incredible. His site is trainperview.com. Lastly, find an instructor or training partner and get to work; experience is a great teacher. While it's always easier to "teach it right" the first time, you can't be paralyzed by a fear of "ruining" your dog. Any mistake you make you can train through later. Develop your pup's drive and relationship now and you can teach them any exercise or sport later. Videotape your sessions. Good luck!


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