Doesn't Like Strange Dogs

*Caro said:
I would definately get him into a gentle leader type head collar. It will help immensely with his reactivity. Make sure you have a connector from the gentle leader to a flat collar if he is really reactive. A good pet shop or a dog club should be able to help you fit a head collar.
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I have a gentle lead. The one that goes around his jaw.
I don't notice a lot of difference when goes nut.
My daugther sometime uses it when she walks him.

The aim is to get him a bit more relax. I can't see him as a calm dog around other dogs.
Even at home sometime if I walk toward him with a stick or something he gets a bit frightened to come near me.
We got him when he was 8 months old from a breeder. I don't think he's been abused. He was a show dog but grew too tall.
 
Nellie isn't aggressive onleash, she's fearful. Offleash in our yard, she runs to the fence and BARKS at all the dogs going past.
 
You have my sympathies here as he sounds a bit like my Yogi, and walking with a barking, reactive dog is not a lot of fun:no: I'm sure that Yogi's issue is not fear related, but over confidence. However, he is usually better off lead and fine with dogs he knows really well. I am working with this problem through 'attention' training. Using a clicker, I got him to watch me when there were no distractions then gradually built up so he could get nearer and nearer other dogs but focus on me rather than them. The barking is still a bit of an issue but he is not now so inclined to lunge at other dogs. I haven't been doing it for very long, not much more than a month but this is a long standing issue to work on. Watching me means he is not watching the other dog and it seems to be having a positive effect. It might be worth a try perhaps?
 
If you are still having this much trouble I really think you need to get into an obedience class.

If you have been putting up with it for this long you are now probablly feeding into the problem. When I see dogs at my club that are reactive their owners tend to be as well. Many young dogs go through a period of reactivity (commonly during adolescence) and then settle down. What often happens is owners themselves get tense about it and this feeds back into the dog, so instead of growing out of it the dog stays in this heightened reactive state. While I am not a fan of Cesar Milan there is one thing i agree with - that you need to be calm and confident when you walk your dog. Of course the other problem is that people with reactive dogs tend to walk their dogs less and this only makes the dogs worse - so you really do need to keep it up, even if it is difficlt.

Most obedience clubs have specific classes for adult dogs with these sorts of issues and the trainers are usually very experienced in dealing with reactive dogs. Ironically though we also tend to have the highest drop out rates in these classes because a lot of owners are not committed enough to put in the homewok and so give up. Amazingly they expect the trainers to fix their dogs for them.

There is one other thing I would suggest. Do you know anyone with an older and calm dog? Walking alongside a confident dog is likely to reduce the reactivity in your own dog - you would be amazed what a change it will make. Dogs learn a lot from watching and mimicking other dogs and it will make you it easier for your family to go on regular walks.
 
Caro,

Both are excellent suggestions.

Obedience school will also socialize him in a controlled environment, which will also help. When we were at puppy school, they did alot of teaching on walking dogs in a distracted environment. It all seemed to work.

And the walk with a calm dog is brilliant (god forbid, unless the calm dog gets riled up by him!)

Good luck!
 
Good suggestions.

There is one other thing that was suggested to me last year: Behavior Adjustment Training (BAT), which works very well for fearful dogs.

Here's a link to a website for it: http://ahimsadogtraining.com/blog/bat/

You can also search YouTube for additional videos of BAT in action.

I have one of their DVDs and joined their Yahoo Group to listen in to professional dog trainers that are using BAT.
 
seashel said:
You have my sympathies here as he sounds a bit like my Yogi, and walking with a barking, reactive dog is not a lot of fun:no: I'm sure that Yogi's issue is not fear related, but over confidence. However, he is usually better off lead and fine with dogs he knows really well. I am working with this problem through 'attention' training. Using a clicker, I got him to watch me when there were no distractions then gradually built up so he could get nearer and nearer other dogs but focus on me rather than them. The barking is still a bit of an issue but he is not now so inclined to lunge at other dogs. I haven't been doing it for very long, not much more than a month but this is a long standing issue to work on. Watching me means he is not watching the other dog and it seems to be having a positive effect. It might be worth a try perhaps?
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That sounds like real sound advice to me!
Great work out for yogi.. get his brains working BEFORE he escalates :)
 
Kobe said:
I have the book. Maybe I haven't been following the instructions very well.

We have one bahaviorist that is quite well known where I live. She charges around $500 for first consulation. It's around 1 1/2 hours. I thought that was a bit much so I didn't do it.
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It does sound expensive but, if you put it into the perspective of what vet bills may cost if he escapes from his collar and gets hit by a car or gets injured in a dog fight the money may be well worth it. Just a thought.
 
facility where I train specializes on " difficult" dogs and charges about $100/hr for consultation.
Susanne Clothier and trainers that I know do travel around the world and give presentations and private lessons after so that is one option to look- see if someone visiting...
second- find a really good obedience trainer.... you might have to start with private lessons, from your statement it is unclear if your pup can function in the class with other dogs... you are mentioning that your pup was kennel dog until 8 months old so he should be very aware of doggie language and behavior... he probably was not socialized with humans as often happens in big kennels... so this does not makes much sense...
sometimes and just sometimes dog is just "not quite right".... and there is nothing one can do...
 
and for what it worth you can not have a tight leash or collar when you walking your dog and about to meet with other dog... it is worst mistake people make... there is somewhere on the forum video of teaching reactive dog Maya? if anyone can direct to it ... how to handle leash properly
 
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