leopui
K9 Maniac
May 3, 2002, 8:17 PM
Post #2 of 7
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I'm not a professional trainer but would like to share how I'd approach the problem if it were my dog (Izac). First, I will look for a collar such as a prong or a Gentle Leader. I will read about them, get opinions on each product, before making a choice on what will work best based on my character, strength, size of the dog, etc. Next, I will have to walk Izac separately from the other dogs. The other dogs probably excite him to act this way and obviously is starting to produce an undesirable behavior to my other dog. In training, I would like some control and 2 large dogs lunging could get me off-balance. I would also keep him close to me with a short leash. If out on a walk, and I spy another dog coming up. I'll say "no" very sternly when he barks or lunges at the other dog. But will allow him to meet the stranger when he is quiet and will praise him for it. Eventually, he will realize that he can and will touch noses even if he doesn't bark. A friend who has an experienced and well socialized dog can help you with this. As it progresses, a subtle "shhh-shhh" or "ah-ah", before he even starts to bark, will prevent him from going full blast. Only when he can meet other dogs without lunging and barking will he be accompanied by another dog. Read you dog's body language whenever he sees other dogs. You didn't mentioned that whether his hairs at the back of his neck stands up, check if there is then that is a sign of aggression or fear on the part of your dog. When did he started displaying this kind of behaviour? If his actions are caused by fear, he must have had some bad experience(s) with other dogs. Gradually introduce him to dogs, start with the ones he familiar with (if there are any). Praise him when he behaves with them. In my dog's case, whenever he sees a dog that he doesn't like, he'd bend low as if crawling, hairs at the back of the neck would stand, and then he'd make his ambush!... Sort of like a lioness hiding and ambushing a prey. Read you dog's reaction and pop her lead and strenly say "NO"... Be very patient, he might need sometime to trust or be comfortable near other dogs. On the other side of point of view, most likely, your dog has weak nerves that's why he is barking at other dogs. You may think that the dog is really aggressive, but try to get them near the other dogs and you'll see that the other dogs will be the ones biting. Anyway, I have rely the message to my friend (Fred, an International Rottweiler Judge cum breed warrant) and asked him about his opponion, below is his reply by the way. Right now, I can think of two ways to solve the problem. Let’s go with the gentler method first; and I will address you like I was talking to your friend, to make it easier. Try clicker training and get Izac to understand that certain behaviors are rewarded. I don’t know if you are familiar with clicker training; but I’ll go ahead and explain what to do. First, condition your dog to respond to the clicker sound by clicking a behavior. If Izac already understands the sit command, then command him to sit and once he does, click, then treat (reward of hotdog, liver treats or anything that Izac likes). Do these a few times to make him understand that there’s a treat coming after the click. Then teach him to bark on command. Once he understands the command that BARK is the behavior or sound he makes (he just learned the human English term or word for barking), you can then start teaching him NO BARK, or QUIET, or SHSHSH (my preference because the dog will easily hear this cue even with his noisy barking). Make sure your timing is right in clicking the right behavior. When you give the SHSHSH command and he shuts up for one second, click and treat. Then lengthen the time of quiet behavior before the click and treat. The object of this exercise is to elicit the behavior (barking), then extinguish it (no bark). You also make the dog understand the human terms for the two behaviors (bark and quiet). Once you’re sure Izac understands the commands, take him out solo for a walk and see if he will follow the SHSHSH command with distractions (other dogs). Izac’s behavior may be caused by either true dog aggression or fearful of the other dog, so he tries to drive it away through intimidation (barking and lunging). If the above suggestion doesn’t work, here’s a more forceful one. Put him on a pinch (or prong) collar. Make sure it’s properly fitted high up on the neck, near the ears. Teach him the "WATCH ME" command (he should look at your eyes or face when you give the command). If he looks at you on command, praise him; if not, give the collar a snappy pop with the leash. It’s easier to teach this command when the dog is on a sit position. Once he understands the command, take him out for a walk and proof him with distractions. Any disobedience (not looking at you on command) is corrected with a pop on the leash. Every time you see a dog coming your way, command Izac to watch you. If he’s not looking at the dog, then he’s not trying to intimidate the dog by staring, barking and lunging. You’re also communicating to him that you’re in control of the situation and he has nothing to fear. You established your Alpha position by telling him what to do (he trusts you as the leader so he doesn’t have to worry). And, if he’s naturally dog aggressive, you immediately extinguished the dog-aggressive behavior before he went into a frenzied barking and lunging. By the way, on behavior like this, you have to correct or extinguish it before it happens or gets into overdrive. You immediately correct him for even thinking about getting aggressive. Once the barking and lunging starts, it would be more difficult to correct it. Hope this helps! LEO PUI Get REAL, Train REAL & Be REAL! Do RIGHT and FEAR No One!
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