I need help with Mya...

Mya'smom

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I really need some help with Mya.
Mya is a great dog and has come long way since I got her two years ago.
My problem is this: when she's on the leash she goes absolutely crazy when she sees another dog. Mya is a very sociable dog, unfortunatley she comes across like she wants to tear the other dog apart. She lounges on the leash barking like nuts. She does this with some people too (It's so embarassing).
I wanted to take her into training to correct this .. unfortunatley my dh refuses and said she's not worth a cent to waste on.
I've never had this problem with Sassy so this is a whole new ball court for me.
Any advice or suggestions would be well appreciated...thanks.

ps...she also has a great desire to lounge and chase after motorbikes as well.
 
I really need some help with Mya.
Mya is a great dog and has come long way since I got her two years ago.
My problem is this: when she's on the leash she goes absolutely crazy when she sees another dog. Mya is a very sociable dog, unfortunatley she comes across like she wants to tear the other dog apart. She lounges on the leash barking like nuts. She does this with some people too (It's so embarassing).
I wanted to take her into training to correct this .. unfortunatley my dh refuses and said she's not worth a cent to waste on.
I've never had this problem with Sassy so this is a whole new ball court for me.
Any advice or suggestions would be well appreciated...thanks.

ps...she also has a great desire to lounge and chase after motorbikes as well.


First of all, how awful for Mya to feel that way and for you to have to go through this. You will receive some excellent advice from the experienced dog owners and trainers here. I also terribly sorry your DH feels the way he feels:uhoh:
 
Bailey does the same thing and she is only 7 months old. I've been trying to distract her and reward her with treats when she is calm. Sometimes it works and some times it doesn't.

In Bailey's case, I think it's going take weeks, maybe months to get her over this. She just goes into a zone when she sees another dog. She appears aggressive. Barking and lunging towards the dogs, but when the dogs gets close to her, she turns into a mush.

We discussed this topic before. here's the link:
http://www.sheltieforums.com/showthread.php?t=4051
 
One of our boys "Baron" does this too. It all started suddenly. Something I've noticed is that if I spot the other dog first and begin approaching ... he's fine. It seems to have something to do with feeling restrained? Also, we commonly put him into a sit, or down and preoccupy him with goodies and rewards for paying attention to US and ignoring the other dog passing by. Sometimes just a simple "leave it" command also works.

As a precaution, I always reel him into a "heel" position when passing people, or bicycles or ESPECIALLY skateboards or anything wheeled goes by us...even if they are on the street and we're on the sidewalk.

Kind of a pain because he's such a sweet dog..and we all want everybody to see our furkids as we know them..but better safe than sorry.
 
I would suggest an obedience class to help with this issue. Also, you may find help in the book Control Unleashed, which you can purchase from cleanrun.com
 
I posted about this a while back. I had the EXACT same problem with my Maia! What has worked for me is to use a snoot loop. It does not allow her to lunge forward. She loves other dogs, but being on leash, I don't know, something changes and she is loud, barking, lunging etc. It makes her look very aggressive when in fact she's not. She just wants to say 'hi' to the other dog. I've never had this issue with her being off leash at the park.
 
I had the problem for awhile with Indy. I used the Sit and Look commands to get his attention on me, rather than the other dog. If he settled down, I would allow him to say "hello", otherwise, I would then continue walking with him on a short leash, and as soon as he gave his attention back to me, I would treat and praise.

Hope this helps!

Ania - what's a snout loop? Never heard of it!
 
I posted about this a while back. I had the EXACT same problem with my Maia! What has worked for me is to use a snoot loop. It does not allow her to lunge forward. She loves other dogs, but being on leash, I don't know, something changes and she is loud, barking, lunging etc. It makes her look very aggressive when in fact she's not. She just wants to say 'hi' to the other dog. I've never had this issue with her being off leash at the park.


I agree with Ania - get a gentle leader or halti or similar collar. It will save you heaps of embarrassment. It will take a little while for her to get used to it (mine nose ski-ed for a couple of weeks trying to get it off) but after a while she will hardly notice. Many people with over-exuberant dogs use them nowadays.

As with the motocycle - its loud and it moves, not unusual to go silly with it. Again a gentle leader type collar will allow you to get control of her when a motorcycle goes past.
 
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