Hello, Newbie here!

[soatley]

Just thought I would drop in for a chat. A few weeks ago I lost my very best friend, He was a german shepherd and at only seven years of age he was struck down with a heart condition and I was forced to make the decision that it was time to say goodbye. He left a huge gap in mine and my husbands life and I vowed I would never get another dog, anyway one morning I set out to the shops as you do and I ended up at the local cats and dogs home, just for a look. There was one cheeky chappie that caught my eye, I kept going back to this little man and after all the initial checks had been carried out by the dogs home he is now living with us. It's almost as if my best friend has come back to me, he has all of my sheps habits, shadow chasing teddy bear fetish etc etc.He has only been with us for 5 days and has settled really well. He is 21 months old and he is exceptionally intelligent but has the tendancy to nip, not aggressively, he only does this when he is excited, does anyone have any tips on how to combat this, I have a two year old grandson that this little man adores but he just gets too excited. I apologise for this post being rather long.

[cassblonde]

First of all let me extend my sympathy for your loss - My family lost our very old lab mix(he was 16) on Christmas morning just over a year ago and it still makes me cry. We've recently adopted a puppy(another lab mix) and are also very happy with our choice.

Our new puppy also has some nipping issues, although with her part of it is age since she is only 11 weeks old. There are a few suggestions for nipping that I have read on the board, all you have to do is look. Otherwise the only thing is supervision(I have 12, 7 and 4 year old children) and consistency.

[April]

Hello & welcome to df. I know how you feel about your loss. My nearly 15 y/o Border Collie passed away last Monday.
Head over to the behaviour forum for lots of advice on your new fellow's nipping problem.

[skunkstripe]

Hello soatley and http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q108/2dogmom_album/crittergraphics/welcomepawprints.gif

What a sad story about your German Shepherd! He was taken from you so young! But at the same time how wonderful that you found room in your heart for another dog! It sounds like the boy may not have been trained not to nip so now that falls to you. Cassblonde and April mentioned some tips on the board, some are in the FAQ section (http://www.dogforum.org/forumdisplay.php?f=26). And cassblonde has it exactly right, supervision and consistency. Especially with a two-year old I would be worried that if he squeals the way little ones do that this might get your new dog overly excited.
At any rate, do pleas have a look around and best of luck!

[sheplovr]

Hello and Welcome to the Dog Forum. So sorry to read your heartfelt story of loosing your best friend. I have German Shepherds from Germany and they are my best friends all six of them and pups coming soon.

Shepherds have that special bond to humans, you lost yours way too young, unfortunately so many things can happen that are not checked by Breeders and unless we charge like 3,000 a pup all these health conditions cannot be checked and guaranteed. I hope if you get another you get more time with it. Enjoy the forum and chatting.......:)

[Borzoi mad]

Hlow sad, so sorry for your loss. You can never replace one you loose but your new addition will help make it a little easier.

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f119/Borzoi03/Doggy_Bone_WELCOME.jpg

from me and my Gang

[tankman12]

Welcome to DogForum. Sorry to hear about your loss. Hopefully the new addition can help ease some of the pain. Best of lcuk with the training and dont hesitate to ask questions.

[austin]

Hi there, i'm so sorry to hear about your gs. It's great you headed to the rehoming centre to find a new companion. I have heard several different methods to stop knipping but one that worked with ours is to let out a sharp, loud squeek when the dog knips and then turn around, cross your arms and ignore the dog. During the ignoring part don't look at your dog or say anything. Im no expert but i think this sounds replicates a yelp.

[soatley]

Thank you everyone I'm so glad I joined this forum everyone is so nice. A special Thank You to austin I will try what you suggest and will keep you informed as to whether it works, thankyou all once again.

[sheplovr]

Also kinda use a growling type of voice and say: hey that hurt me ouch!!!

Often if you let it know it hurt you by crying pretending, or say Ouch that hurt, or growl kinda it works.:)