Aggressive German Shepherd Training- Breaking through fear aggression- Titan Ep-1 

To just follow up on this video, Titan passed away yesterday from cancer. Tom gave me an extra 5 years with my beloved dog. I can't thank him enough.

“I’m going to see if I can get him to lay down again.” Dog immediately lays down. 😂😂👍🏼

Excellent! I love the examples on trainers. You hit the nail on the head. I am glad this dog had an owner that kept hope, There is a difference between helping a dog and training a dog, too. You’re a problem solver- not a trainer :) very rewarding!

I had a well respected trainer tell me that if my dog bit once it would do it again. That was it. No help. I am thankful for finding this channel.

No doubt about it brother you are saving lives! Keep up the awesome job! And THANK YOU!

That Shep actually leaned up against your leg and gave you a hug, at the end... Didn't he?!? Beautiful ❤️ !!!!!

All I do in my free time is watch your videos. You’re my inspiration. I’m looking forward to my future training people and their dogs. I can’t wait to go home and work my pups. Currently now I’m working on with my 90 pound Doberman Rottweiler Zeus- long downs, down/sit/stand in motion from a heel. With both of my dogs there’s little behavioral issues I have to work like over stimulation from squirrels, rabbits and people knocking on the door. Watching your videos help immensely with my learning process. I couldn’t find a better person to learn from. You’re so detailed and educated when you speak. My boy is 2 years old and I have so much to learn and experience and it’s so exciting. With my other dog (gsd mix) she passed her CGC test at 9 months old with flying colors (she’s almost 3 now). Getting many titles as possible with my dogs is my favorite thing to do. From protection to obedience to agility and everything in between. In the future I’m buying a Czech German Shepherd. And later on a Belgian Malinois or Dutch X. They’re amazing working dogs for what I want to do. (Schutzhund, psa, dock diving, agilty. and many more) My lifestyle is dogs basically 😂

Bud GSD has the same anxiety but the prong collar is wonderful and now when I get it out and say let's go for a walk he is just soooooo happy!! And much calmer and easier to handle. Thank you!

You really have such a gift! you are amazing. Please keep the videos coming, I've been watching your videos religiously so I'm able to teach my dogs.

oh man Titan sounds EXACTLY like my boy. The previous trainer I worked with would use the ecollar at the moment of reactivity and it just made my boy MORE intense. Very interested in this puppy and his transformation

What an AMAZING session. I'm a first time subscriber to your program. I'll be watching you 👍

Hi Thomas! Thanks again for all your videos! I was wondering if you have or are planning on doing a video about preventing the development of aggression when raising a puppy, with tips on good socialization, how to identify and work on problem behaviors before they actually develop? Thanks again!

That's impressive. Not only are you dealing with the underlying issue, you don't know what the others trainers did and must undo that as well.

Wow bro you’re really good. I adopted a huge 1 year old German Shepherd that was tied to a tree his entire life. He couldn’t go on walks, jumped and was so anxious. Watching so many of your videos my King Bowser is our family now. Thank you so much!

My gsd the same . Reactive to strangers. They are bred to guard. My large male is also territorial. These dogs need good owners and lots of training. Intelligent and my best friend.

@7:53 OMG. That is amazing! "OK, so...." Incredible!

yes he still has lots of work ahead of him but what a beautiful start. I'm also a professional trainer and i say fantastic job young man. thank the Lord that owner did not give up 🙏

Bless you. I lost my German Shepherd because of bad dog food. We had no way of knowing what was going on . She went into kidney failure. She did not know us or did she care about us. Poor baby the food was coming from the Vet. Her mind was going so fast. She attacked me and took off the side of my face. I just turned off the light and it scared her. The only reason i have a GSD is because of God and you.Thank you for helping me to remember how Awesome the GSD is. I have had 4, i remember our GSD,s face before i remember my Mothers. We were able to get a GSD out of California when the fires were going on. I Have a beautiful girl and she Loves me and Life is good . I am Beautiful again and protected.

Great job! Wow. I have to say that bark is beautiful in its power and respect. I have a 10 year old and love that sound. I know the differences in my dog. Powerful vid! Also, Love his German commands. Sitz! Sounds like Schutzhund training.

Work to still be done but a great start. Like your honesty . Thank you .

You do a fantastic job with the dogs Tom love your videos ❤❤❤ very helpful

Hi Tom, another great video! I've recently been watching your videos about insecurity and fear aggression because I've been witnessing my boxer/lab cross (also has a little poodle, terrier, greyhound and mastiff in him) becoming increasing insecure as he gets older (currently a year and 5 months). We socialized him and took him all over the place with us when he was under a year old, but now hes 90 pounds and seems to randomly have issues with some strangers. Its definitely more of a curious/ insecure/ fearful "aggressive" behavior, but when he barks and circles unsuspecting people he is very intimidating. He has never bitten anyone, nor do I believe he ever will (hes a big cuddly teddy bear otherwise), but this is newer behavior that I'd like to get ahead of. Until the last couple of months hes been a 99% friendly off leash dog but every once and a while he becomes wary and starts to "protect" us. I do my best to stay calm and reassure him as well as the strangers to try and deescalate the situation, but rather than wait for the next issue I'd like any advice on how to maybe work on this growing fearfulness. He has an older shepherd sister, with whom hes attached at the hip, but if we try to take him places alone the behavior understandably seems to get worse. I actually first noticed this when I'd take him to the vet alone (at about a year old) and he'd randomly pick a person to bark at in the waiting room for no reason (which at the time was highly unlike him and embarrassing). Without his sister to follow hes very clearly less comfortable within himself and increasingly protective of me/us. From now on when people come to our home I'm going to try more positive reinforcement, with distracting him and praising with treats when hes calm etc, but whats the best way to work on this outside of our home/yard to build his confidence? should we take him places by himself more? ...have more controlled introductions with strangers in the neighborhood? Any advice would be greatly valued! Hes a big dog that can be intimidating if he wants to be so just really want to get ahead of this while hes still young!! I appreciate your time so much!!

Totally agree. Main stream trainers. I don't see too many who really read the dog accurately. I've never taken a class. Did not want to do things the way I saw other trainers do. Started training when I was 14. Most other trainers didn't like me because I couldn't endorse their training. I've had mine in obedience trials, but would rather have a great companion dog then a champion show dog. I didn't see a relationship in the ring. I saw treats. Lots of them. My breeding was for the companionship, many pups went into service work, guard dogs, tracking, ranching, rescue & schutzen. But many went as companions. Temperament was my goal with happy dogs. So versitile, the GSD. I don't care about points & competition. I don't care if trainers don't like my ways. The dog is more important. I love what you do & how you go about it. Thanks for your videos. I am now retired & have 2, hoping they out live me.

I have an aggressive european doberman that I've been working on for a year now. This gives me hope. Thx

Wish I could have found someone like you out by us! My dog is very much like the dog in the video. His saving grace is that we do have a yard, and 4 more dogs that he gets to play with, and burn off some energy, and that I would never have him put down.

Thank you for saving this dog!

I rescued a 7 yr old Shepherd who was in and out of shelters and pretty much only loved me and my wife and my mom, couldn’t leave that big guy in there And we put him through an academy and he lived out his final years happy and loving everyone. never give up on them ❤️

Fantastic video as always! and I love that beat at the beginning of your videos :D

Tom you and I see eye to eye when it comes to the industry, in Canada it's no better. It is frustrating to say the least, I am not above mistakes and I often welcome them. I really wish some balance could be brought in to the canine industry as a whole.

Love this video. We rescued an 11 year old dog with leash agressive fear. He is fine with people but does this when we see other dogs out in public and acts out severely much like the dog in this video. He becomes uncontrollable and lunges out and wants to bite. What videos of yours do you recommend we start with to train him out of this behavior and teach him that he doesn't have to be fearful at the park.

I would love to hear any follow up on Titan... did he become more balanced and easier for his owner to handle? Thank you for showing that it is about energy and trust... both with you and the dog. Trust in the dog, trust in yourself and trust by the owner, as well as on the dogs part to recognize that and react. This is a strong breed, which I am recognizing in my own GSD... my first, lol... Luckily I have background with other strong breeds and with retraining bad behaviors and its still a struggle at times to find what works. But all dogs and dog breeds are different and if one thing doesnt work, try another to break through whatever hang up's they have... same with horse training, which I have extensive background with. The moment when you think you know it all, I guarantee that there will be a dog, horse, whatever that will come and smash that notion to hell, lol. And thank you for being an advocate for these dogs.

this dog is exactly like my GSD. So many trainers are worthless and say they can fix this problem.

My German Shepherd show very similar behavior to this. He would even bite me if I'm restraining him from strangers. I wish i could afford your courses, but I'm glad i at least have your advice online. Thanks so much!

Alot of certified trainers don't even really know dog behavior and basic history on each dogs breed/what they were bred for. There seems to be this standard way of training a dog but when they get issues like this, they don't know what they're doing or even how to tell the owner how to fix it. If it's too hard they don't want to tackle it. They just want easy dogs that will respond on command, some using force and controversial methods to get that result. Dogs have personalities. They have issues just like we do sometimes.

hoping to get my Sarge to listen .. going to get the Herm Sprenger 2.25 collar to see if that will help . and a leash. Love my dog but he won't listen. German Shepherd 1 1/2 yrs. old wish I could afford to take him to you! love your video and will continue to refer back to. Thanks

I'm curious, why did he keep jumping up on his owner almost looking like hes trying to slap him with his paws? What was the reason for that? I've just come across your channel and its fascinating to watch.

My GSD reacts the same way aggressively barking, lunging and pulling (I call it going skiing) towards people and other dogs. I have gone through puppy classes and another professional dog behaviorist trainer. Thank for doing these videos and working to save these type of dogs. I will try use these tips. What did you use around the dogs neck? and where can I get one?

This is great stuff!

U are shut a ossome person and u are good I wish u could train my dog with sound noises do u have a training class on line please

Amazing

The diagnosis is correct .. the dog lacks self confidence and is fearful of new people and likely in new places ... never been a fan of e collars ... most people (handlers) over use them ... or use them as a negative ... and the dogs get collar wise very quickly

Like your concepts, which are very helpful. A better sound sys would be great.

Love watching these for tips for my GSD, you’re also super easy on the eyes which helps😜... wish I was from your area for sessions with my pup!

4:45 calling it right now, fear based aggression

I have a training question. My dog is generally a good dog, doesnt listen wildly well but hes not mean, just a stubborn boy. The exception to this is when hes resource guarding, and he only guards in two very specific places in the house. If he gets a hold of some garbage (say a beef package off the counter) and returns to either his kennel or under our bed he will defend it aggressively. Due to the very confined space it occurs in I cannot seem to fix the issue. One other issue that may also fix this one is he goes through the garbage at our house alot, he can open the foot release ones, under the counter he can open the doors and even big ones left outside he can unclip the handle area and get into them. For reference hes a 2 and a half year old Bullmastiff, staffordshire terrier, australian shepard cross. Any advice would be fantastic.

First off I Love you !! German Shepherds are my breed .. Where these dogs not socialized as a puppy?? I went to a training classes 4 years ago to mainly my boys socializing. I was so excited because I never did anything like that before Well I did not realize me being put 30 feet away from everyone was because they were scared of my boy whom was really good at class .He just barked when we first got there .well after 4 months of going I finally spoke up ask when is someone going to touch my boy ? He did not act like this dog at all he was fine with everyone till the only man whom would take his leash than my boy lashed out and barked that was it I was so sad and left and never took him back .He was great in stores and at class till that guy took his leash . I can't believe they were trainers .I love the breed train my own but I need a place to socialize him .I do not have anyone whom comes to my house so my dogs only see people when I take them out .I am very happy with my pack I will share the video a Parade went by 100s of strangers in town kids tapping on the window and my dogs were great .I and still very sad that they had us in class for 4 months and no one told me they were scare to death of my dog . I wanted to take him to veteran hospitals and see sick vets after he was certified. They stomped on that dream .We did donate pups to veterans for PTSD those pups are all doing great helping their veterans. They are 3 and half now . I have a other litter to donate in honor of my brother who was a veteran, he would be 58 tomorrow.

Why would someone dislike this ???

When a dog wants to bite you so bad that it literally cries..damn.

Another cases of a timid handler.......confidence is huge. A show line is a more appropriate family couch dog. This animal looks like he has some or all DDR blood line,They ‘re damn near biting when they are born....Great animals if your the a dominant personality.

Hi! Quick question, was he already conditioned to the e-collar before this or was this is his first time?

Can this type of work for that much fear aggression towards other dogs (2yr old GS spayed female)?

Do you happen to know anyone in the Sacramento area that has the same methods as you? My GSD shows the same fear aggression outbursts as Titan.

Will you ever come to Ireland

Hi I have a question, my German 11 month is just like this when he sees people, I can get him to a point that he is ok with them with a lot of treats, but every time they come around again it’s the same behavior all over, I do not have a e collar or prong collar on him, he is very aggressive, my question is should I use a prong collar first or e collar, I have been doing research for this kinda behavior and watching videos specially yours, I would love to do sessions with you guys but I am to far away from where you are located, I am desperate because I don’t want to take him to the pound as I have heard they will put him down for his aggression, he has nipped one of my friends cause they came into the house which he lives here now but he is not use to him yet, any advice would be greatly appreciated,, I love my dog please I don’t want him put down,,,

Good stuff man!

His stress/fear are palpable, the panting and anxiety is so intense. Is there anything you can do to reduce the amount of stress in training sessions here on out? Thundershirt... prozac? I'm so sad for him. =( Thank you so much for helping this baby. And kudos to the owner for trying to help him no matter what, and never giving up on him. You are both GREAT PEOPLE and if you talk to the owner please tell him he is a GREAT DOG FATHER, so many would have put him down, or just let him hurt someone.

Titans aggression isn't fearbased, but over-protective like a watch dog. It's misdiagnosed. BUT! I love the work, that young man is doing. Beautiful, just beautiful dog training/rehabilitation... Watching his videos right now and his work makes me hopeful und I'm SO GLAD that there are SOME competent dog trainers out there. Thank you so much for sharing. I can learn so much from your videos. Plus the trainer is cute ;-)

This guy is so cool😍

....wow!

Looks good but the dog looked knackered and thirsty...hope there was water handy?

My GSD has figured out how to unlock and open the front and back doors in my house.... How do I get him to stop? It's getting cold lol.

Good job 👍

Do you know anyone in the gulf coast/panhandle that can help me! My 1yr old Belgian Malinois/German Shepherd mix is EXACTLY like this! I’m a broke college student too... I don’t want to give up on her because I know she’s so attached to me and if I gave her up she’d lay down and die.

Did a prong collar not work for him? My rescue just recommended prong collar training on my fear aggressive pit and have been watching your videos nonstop!

Wow

Ouch that had to hurt that dudes arms and legs!!!

Do you ever come up to NH..?

Tom, what caused Titan to jump up and paw at its owner? He started to do it to you, too. Thank you!

Hi may gsd is very aggressive when he see other dog or cats. But when we walk to the public people he is ok to the human but when we me and gsd only sometimes he is very protective or afraid i dont know what is the problem i dont tolerate him about thet kind of attitude.. Please help thank you.

So were you using only the vibrate function on the e-collar in this video? Many "trainers" will say the vibrate function terrifies the dog.

Do you have a video on how to prevent this in a fearful puppy? My 4 month old german shepard/rottweiler mix seems to be scared of a long long list of things I have been working with her little by little but sometimes I wonder if what I'm doing is actually helping or if it could just be making it worse. Thank you in advance.

Check out the show Dog: Impossible. I think you and Matt Beisner would have a lot to talk about and share with each other. :)

If I raised this dog with lots of little kids do you think he would act like that?: This dog would one of the family.

Not ALL of us would rip him off. We refer them to a Professional Dog Trainer who handles these serious cases. Professional Dog Training is a noble way to earn a living, even if we don't agree.

my dog is Germany shepherd 4 month old , we adopt it from animal shelter, she is friendly but , when I put lash on and for a walk , she pull lash and bit lash as well , then I can't event walk with him , how can I do with it ? thank you

Can someone explain the E collar to me? Is it different to a shock collar because as far as I was aware, shock collar = bad?

Wear his butt out! Don't ever give up they need you to be in control calm and cool.

There is no fear. That is a total misdiagnosis. GSDs are naturally protective. What we have here is a dog who is overly protective because his owner is not telling him what to do or not to do. The owner is not/did not set boundaries. He is not a leader. Thus the dog is stressed because the owner inadvertently put his dog into decision-making position - leadership position and dog is not ready nor trained for it. GSD is a command dog and he needs to be told what to do or not to do. This, however, is not the case here. When approaching a stranger his owner is terrified that the dog will bite someone. Dog senses that feer and reads it as a fear of the approaching person and becomes protective of his handler. The handler does nothing effective about it so the dog by default believes that that is what he suppose to do and it works because when he gets aggressive the "intruder" leaves or his handler takes him away and the stress of being a leader and protecting his handler goes away. Thus the dog is this way "trained" to be more and more aggressive on people who are farther and further away from him. It is all miscommunication which spiraled out of hand. Also to transfer of the dog, which is what we see here, is not equal to the rehabilitation of the dog. The problem is not the dog, the problem is the owner and the relationship between the dog and the handler.

Were is your training camp located?

My dog growls at certain people. She will go after anyone who chases my kids or comes around the house. She is a service dog for my diabetes but it is hard to take her places because I dont know when she is going to growl or try to bite someone.

I have found a Rescue German Shepherd that I'm considering adopting that has aggression issues and issues with other dogs. Is there anyone in the DALLAS TEXAS area that could help me.

It's all in the way you can get into a animals head , I trained a few horses years back and I must say when I stopped riding my horses went to the best homes possible and were pretty much bomb proof , I wont say 100% because I dont believe any animal especially a horse is ever that. As long as you do your best to introduce them to as many things as you can and make it positive your on the right track . This guy is pretty good , I have a beautiful g/shepherd who's training is great , until another dog comes into the mix ??? and oh boy and having a bad back and no one to help I can't take the tugging so I just avoid the situation altogether , which is'nt the answer but thats life . ( she's a terrific house dog though ) LOL can't win um all I guess.

Do you know any trainers in the Midwest who can handle this type of aggression?

I have a 5 month old GSD he jumps up at me when I take him out on the leash I am always bleeding by the time I get back in my house and he pulls so hard he almost pulls me down any suggestions for me help!

I need someone to work with my Staffordshire Terrier especially meeting other dogs or fake child. Can I drive to your facility? I also have a Sheltie who the Staffie is great friends with.

What happened with this case? I mean, in the long term? Have they let you know?

Thomas. Your shows should be manditory watching for all new dog owners.

Boyfriend and I were walking his parents dog for them in the park when this lady lost control of both her pits. They charged at our dog and we damn near choked them to keep them away from our dog. I don't understand why people buy dogs they can't handle. She's SO lucky my boyfriend and I grabbed her dogs, otherwise they surely would've been put down. Far too many people simply don't care that their dog is dog aggressive, so they don't get a professional trainer to help and in turn it gets dogs killed. We're adopting our first German Shepherd in a few months and I'm hoping by then the owners of those dogs will have theirs under control. There's only a few parks to take dogs here.

I WANT THAT DOG

this is my neighbors dog....everyday!!

How do i get my 3 year old gsd female to protect me and my house

a little work needed on the editing. Pretty good informational wise but a few points got cut off

A fellow Scotsman

Wow, that GSD wants to eat you for lunch!

Why do I have a feeling everytime the doorbell rang, or a random passerby was around the house, and the dog just "noticed" - the owner said: "Who's that, Who's there...?" Then, instinctively, the dog barked/reacted and received a "Good Boy" from his owner. So, within a few weeks, if not days, the dog grew into this neurotic beast! (lol ...hey I'm just spit-balling here, but it sure seems to be a very real scenario) I dunno ... every single bit of my instinct, tells me this man innocently purchased this German Shepherd as a pet, to double as a "home protection" dog, thinking "high-alert" was a good thing.

Why does the owner use German commands with the Dog?

I have a 2 year old GSD that has major fear aggression. Maybe worse than Titan. It started a year ago after a house fire and he was very isolated for almost a year after that. I’ve been told by two trainers that he should be put down. He can’t even be around our sons, just my husband and I. He is in an inside kennel in the basement when in the house and a kennel when he goes outside. (Which I believe is making him worse.) He use to have the run of the house, yard and slept with our 14 yr old son before the fire. I don’t have anyone to help me train him. Everyone is extremely scared of him. I refuse to have my baby put down. One thing I didn’t mention is we also have a female GSD that was in the same situation for the last year with him but she is fine, no aggression issues. If you have any suggestions I would love to hear them. I don’t think it’s right to keep him locked up. I want him to be happy again.

This dog is far from being fixed. He is just obey who has the leash.

I want to do this for a living.

just curious but was he a rescue? I am wondering how he got so fear aggressive