The German Shepherd is strong with this one (part 2)

So, we get Sadie home and all my fears that'd I'd heard about German Shepherds as a kid came true.  This 3-month old puppy is lunging and attacking me in the face.  I totally freaked out.  I didn't know what was happening, why it was happening or what to do about it.  I'd never had a dog play bitey face with my face.  In fact, I'd never been bitten by a dog with the exception of Brut, who grabbed my hand once over food and was totally my fault.  To say I was scared was an understatement.  To top it off she was doing the same thing to Chevy.  And Chevy being the mild mannered therapy dog who is taught to ignore everything just let her do it.  It seemed all the info I looked up on how to stop a puppy from jumping and nipping didn't work.  I don't know how many times I thought about taking Sadie back to the shelter.  I couldn't figure out how to get this behavior under any kind of control and I didn't know where it was coming from.  And I was terrified.  One time I cried all day long, Sadie licked my tears, but it didn't stop her from jumping and biting me.  The funny thing was when she wasn't attacking me, she was a really good puppy. 

After a couple weeks of being attacked, I began to realize Sadie was communicating with me with her attacks.  She needed to go outside or eat or sleep.  She didn't know how else to do it.  So I started working with her mostly by anticipating what she needed before she got to my face.  It was during her third week with us, we discovered she had two infections and hookworms.    Treating all these issues helped immensely with her attacking me, but it didn't stop it.  Sadie was a very anxious and scared puppy and teaching her be calm and feel safe was a challenge.   

I wasn't consciously thinking at the time that this was my childhood fears that I'd heard all those years, but it was somewhere in the back of my mind.  I was too busy trying to survive this nightmare and hoping for some light at the end of the tunnel.  But I was petrified.  I'm shaking just writing about it.  It was horrifying.  And I didn't see any end to Sadie's behavior.  Every method I looked up and tried didn't work or made things worse.  (I'll share those in another post)  After she was treated for her infections and hookworm, I discovered Sadie needed sleep.  She was so anxious and nervous that she was hardly sleeping.  So I began enforcing naps and this made a difference.  We were finally getting somewhere.  When Sadie would start getting bitey, I would put her in her crate so she could take a nap.  She never cried or whined, she had no problem with her crate, and would get some much needed rest.  I will also note that all of Sadie's biting was soft.  She did break my skin, but it was never hard. Never.  So that was a good sign that we were going to get through this period of her life.  And we have for the most part.  She still jumps, she is still mouthy, but she rarely gets in my face.  So, we are making progress and my fears have begun to diminish.  She really is an awesome dog.  Time and patience.  And lots and lots of love.  The recipe for success and for finally seeing the light at the end of that bitey tunnel.