damages adding up

What kind of dog is Lizzy?  For many breeds, 9 months is still very young.  Some larger breeds *cough* labs *cough* stay puppies well past 1 or even 2 years.  In addition, she is going through her "teenage" phase right now.

She evidently cannot be trusted, so you will just have to watch her more closely.  If you can't pay attention to her have her confined in some way (even if she is just gated in).  Give her plenty to do and as she gets older try giving her more freedom slowly.  You could also teach "leave it" and "drop it."  "No, bad girl" isn't exactly specific and it's very possible she just doesn't understand what you want.

I hope that made sense--it's late and I'm tired--lol.....

Tether her to you and take her everywhere you go, even to the bathroom. You must teach your dog that YOU control every aspect of her life and she controls nothing. You must do your research on being a pack leader and practice these things. Many people don't realize that a simple thing like walking through a door ahead of the dog is one way to show the dog that you are the pack leader. Don't step over the dog to get by, make him/her move. Don't allow the dog on the furniture. There are so many ways to show leadership but you MUST be consistent at ALL times. Don't be stern one day and lax the next. Remember, dogs don't want to be the pack leader and they need leadership. If the dog owner doesn't become the leader, the dog will and this will escalate into huge problems especially if your dog is dominant. Dogs with little or no obedience training MUST be trained and/or re-trained. It's up to the owner to be very consistent with commands. Don't give a command if you aren't going to follow through. If you are inconsistent, the dog picks up on this quickly and won't obey you. Sort of like raising children. When you give a command, don't use an angry voice. Use a normal tone of voice even when you say "NO". It can sound stern but not angry or mad. When you call your dog to you and it doesn't come, you say "NO" then call again. If he still ignores you, go get him. He must learn that when you say "COME" or "HERE", he must do so. However, if your dog hasn't gone through the learning phase of obedience training, you really should consider this first. Train your dog on a long line so there's no way he can run from you. You will always be able to bring him back.  I would like to recommend a site to you if you want to learn how to train your dog properly and easy. I am in no way offiliated with this trainer but own several training DVD's and training equipment. I am a dog trainer myself and have learned so much from this site. It's: [linkhttp://www.leerburg.com]http://www.leerburg.com[/link]I urge you to at least buy the basic obedience training DVD. It's easy to understand and I think you will be happy with your results. Good luck to you and your dog.

The word NO means absolutely nothing to a dog.  And the DOG isn't bad, the behavior is.  Attack the behavior and not the animal. And always remember that her behavior is a direct result of YOU not watching her carefully enough.
 
Around 8-10 months is when the adult teeth are setting in the jaw so increased chewing is gonna happen.  I'm thinking it was about this age when Thor and Sheba ATE a new wall hugger recliner. And I mean, completely destroyed it.  In less than 20 minutes. And not long after they started in on the OTHER giant stuffy in the room....the pillow back sofa.  Yep, it was a royal PITA to constantly supervise, but bottom line is that I didn't crate them when I went out and that allowed them the experience of eating the recliner.  Which they found quite rewarding.
 
I don't think it's necessary to always go through a doorway first.  In fact I think that's a giant pain.  The ONLY place I draw the line is on the stairs and there they may either go first or after me but NOT at the same time as me.  That's for my safety since I tend to be a klutz and six german shepherds and me don't all fit on the stairs at the same time safely.
 
Yes, they must sit and wait at doors exiting the house, but again, this is a safety issue for them.  Pick your battles and stick to them.  If the dog laying in a doorway is a problem, a simple excuse me works for me.  If dogs are under my feet when I'm cooking, a simple, go lay down in the livingroom, works for me.
 
I'd suggest instituting NILF if you feel that you aren't respected as the leader, but you have to BE the leader in order to gain that respect.  Calm and assertive, but always consistent.

Please just supervise your dog more closely and crate her when you can't.  She is NOT being disobedient, she's simply in the "second chewing stage" and an adolescent, and has been given too much freedom too soon.  Don't damage your relationship with her by being harsh.  Simply watch her so she can't get into mischief, and perhaps take a refresher obedience class so that she understands that you are still in charge.  Yelling "No" at a dog means nothing - instead, learn how to train her to do commands that you can then give her as alternatives to her mischievous behavior. 
Adolescence is a trying time with dogs, as with people.  Don't make the classic mistake of punishing the dog for being left unsupervised. []

By the way, I'm a trainer, too, using operant conditioning and positive methods.  There are many ways to train, some more dog-friendly  than others.  The Leerburg site is often cited by the leash pop crowd, but I would submit that you might also want to have a look at these:
www.peaceablepaws.com
www.clickerlessons.com
www.clickertrainusa.com (free videos)
www.dogsbestfriendtraining.com (lots of great, inexpensive books/tapes)

P.S. If you scold your dog for not coming, it will likely never come reliably.
Check this book/tape out:
Leslie Nelson's "Really Reliable Recall". 

Welcome to doggie adolescence! This is often the most annoying stage, when your dog suddenly decides not to listen to you and instead get creative with the naughty behavior. It'll do you well to increase obedience exercises, increase physical exercise, but also increase your patience if you can [] - it is a normal phase. I definitely wouldn't leave her out loose for a while longer, try crating for a few more months and then maybe give her another chance.

thank you everyone. Lizzy is half german shepherd. don't know the other half. she is a small dog. 32lbs. the vet said she is done growing. anyway I will watch her better. she did go to puppy classes and she was great, in fact the smartest in the class. she listens to me 80% of the time and she does know leave it and drop it now and she isn't allowed on the furniture. I will just have to work with her more. I'm just not used to having to do this. Timber never did anything bad and he could be trusted alone in the house at a young age. I don't dare ever leave Lizzy alone in the house uncrated.

I feel your pain. I just left Pronto alone for about 10 minutes. He had been sleeping in a patch of sun when I last saw him. I went upstairs to get him and lo and behold...a 2" square section of the carpet had been destroyed.


The worse thing is knowing it's my own fault.

ORIGINAL: glenmar

I don't think it's necessary to always go through a doorway first.  In fact I think that's a giant pain. 

 
Well is a pain because you are thinking only about yourself, not because is a pain for you means is not true
 
What kind of excersice she has? how long? i have friends that just because they have a big back yard they think that  having the dogs there is "enough" for them, how are the dog walks? does she pull? does she pays attention to you? or you dont even take her more than 10 minutes for a walk?
 
NILIF (google) is a good start, easy for starters and does not require a lot of effort 

Yep, guilty as charged.  I am thinking of me and the six german shepherds who share my home.  Very politely I might add.

Ditto everything that was said about this being the adolescent and second stage of chewing.  This puppy is being a puppy.  Too much freedom at too young an age.  Boredom doesn't take 10 minutes or 15 minutes or an hour, boredom can strike almost immediately-just as the urge to chew. 
 
Keep plenty of chewies on hand, but put away for your pup.  Every now and then rotate which chews are out and which are put up.  Offer her a frozen damp towel to chew on, or frozen broth-cicles.  There's a million things that dogs want to chew-your job as a leader is to narrow that down to a few dozen highly acceptable items which are readily accessible.

ORIGINAL: glenmar

Yep, guilty as charged.  I am thinking of me and the six german shepherds who share my home.  Very politely I might add.

 
I think it goes more like "I am thinking of me not the six german shepherds who share my home"
 
I can say that if i let my dog sleep in my side of the bed making me sleep on the couch i am thinking about my doggy also, but that does not mean that what i'm doing is right []
 
In the dog world the things like letting your dogs out before you actually mean something, does not matter if you want to see it or not

In the dog world the things like letting your dogs out before you actually mean something, does not matter if you want to see it or not

 
No it doesn't.  I can open the door and let my dogs out before I go out.  I can also call them back in, or have them sit just outside or just inside.  I can ask them to go up and down the steps too.  They know who the leader is and who the leader isn't.  If I give them the indication that we're all going outside and we go, it doesn't matter who goes first.  I'm still in control of the door (resource) and when we go and return (time.)  So they know I make the decisions. 
 
The "dog must go through the door after I do" logic is old fashioned and out of date, though it does fall in line with other out of date teachings that have had a resurgence.

ORIGINAL: Xerxes

No it doesn't.  I can open the door and let my dogs out before I go out.  I can also call them back in, or have them sit just outside or just inside.  I can ask them to go up and down the steps too.  They know who the leader is and who the leader isn't.  If I give them the indication that we're all going outside and we go, it doesn't matter who goes first.  I'm still in control of the door (resource) and when we go and return (time.)  So they know I make the decisions. 

The "dog must go through the door after I do" logic is old fashioned and out of date, though it does fall in line with other out of date teachings that have had a resurgence.

 
So if they know who's the leader, can you walk then off leash in the street? do you have control on the walks while they are on the leash?