Okay, with the talk of male dogs being mothers...was this a personality trait from the start or did they have times you wondered? I ask because I am very inexperienced, being a newbie of 2 years. I have a male that just turned 1 year. For the last 3 months or so, he seems to like to "pick fights" with dogs, although honestly, he's always seemed to have dominant tendencies. He even didn't like the other boy in the ring with him over the past weekend, which affected his performance. It's not all dogs, just ones he thinks he can beat. The exception is most toy size dogs. He plays well with these guys and there's only been one or two he's been bad with. I've had several people say it's not dog aggression and it's just "a young intact male" behavior. How true of a statement is this? Has anyone else gone through this? If so, how did you deal with it. I fear if it's not nipped in the bud, it will get worse and become dog aggression. However, I don't want to correct him inappropriately and help to make it worse. I have also already taken some steps at home to help him understand I'm the leader, but I'm not sure it's helping. I make sure I control resources, he works for his food (sit/down stays), I message him while he's relaxed on his side or back, I go first down stairs, through doors, etc. My goal is for all my dogs to be ambassadors for the GSD, especially with all the BSL lately. My girl is there and has been since she was a pup, but I'm worried about my male. Just to mention, he's really good with people accept at first at my house. Judges have even commented about his nice temperament in the ring during the "test." If anyone has suggestions or thoughts, I'd gladly accept. Tina --------------------------------- Building a website is a piece of cake. Yahoo! Small Business gives you all the tools to get online. ============================================================================ POST is Copyrighted 2007. All material remains the property of the original author and of GSD Communication, Inc. NO REPRODUCTIONS or FORWARDS of any kind are permitted without prior permission of the original author AND of the Showgsd-l Management. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. ALL PERSONS ARE ON NOTICE THAT THE FORWARDING, REPRODUCTION OR USE IN ANY MANNER OF ANY MATERIAL WHICH APPEARS ON SHOWGSD-L WITHOUT THE EXPRESS PERMISSION OF ALL PARTIES TO THE POST AND THE LIST MANAGEMENT IS EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN, AND IS A VIOLATION OF LAW. VIOLATORS OF THIS PROHIBITION WILL BE PROSECUTED. For assistance, please contact the List Management at admin@xxxxxxxxxxxx VISIT OUR WEBSITE - www.showgsd.org ============================================================================