Buddy is 15 weeks old and up until now been fairly well behaved in walks , better off lead but pretty good on lead other than criss crossing in front all the time in search of a treat. Yesterday when we were walking to the field he barked at a toddler walking and talking on other side of the road , then while overcon the field he saw a mum with a pushchair on the distance and started barking at them but still came to me, and then once back in the lead and walking back home we met the same toddler from earlier going back past us the other way this time on the same side and he started barking the second he noticed her ahead. I got him to sit and focus on me / a treat but he kept turning and barking the closer they got- I had his lead very short and tried putting myself between them but he would have jumped at her barking if he could. His tail is wagging so I’m sure it’s not aggressive but scary for the children all the same. Wondering what I can do to help. Considering going and sitting outside of a play park with lots of children playing inside it that he can see and hear while treating him. Any other suggestions appreciated Helen
Hi @Buddy Just at the end of the socialisation window. I can't tell from your description whether he is frustrated by the inability to play or is reactive. A wagging tail does not say much. One needs to examine speed, and carriage. And the rest of the dog. I suggest you go to park where there are children but make sure there are no short or tight leads. Use distance instead to keep your puppy calm. If you have to be at 40 metres, then so be it. Read your dog. You might be okay at 20 metres. Give treats to reward calmness. Play a game. Let the puppy have a good time. Over the week see if you get to 30 metres, then 20 metres or closer. But don't insist on it. If the puppy does not remain calm then it's fine to create a larger gap. Fun and calmness is the priority.
Wagging tails are not a sign of a dog being friendly! Many dog bites are the result of that myth!! A wagging tail just means a dog is aroused somehow. A reactive dog is frequently an aroused dog in this way, and yes, dogs wag their tails and then are reactive or aggressive. To me, it sounds like he is afraid and reactive - that is typical with the persistent interest and focus in the scary thing you describe, and his being more concerned with the whereabouts of the child than your treat. As Buddy is 15 weeks, he is now outside the socialisation period and this suggests you haven't socialised him to enough children - or perhaps children of that age group. It is too late to do easy and ready socialisation now - just through exposure - because he is outside the socialisation window and already showing signs of fear. I think your best bet is to work with a behaviourist - since as he is still quite young, time is of the essence and learning what it is best to do, fast, is important. (I would suggest Look At That: https://thelabradorforum.com/threads/look-at-that.22184/ 0
Hi @Buddy Socialisation windows vary somewhat depending on the scientist one reads. See whether you can make any headway in desensitising your dog because you may have one week left, according to some estimates of the window. You must ensure the puppy is kept calm, and not allowed to go over threshold. If by the end of the week he is still reactive, then follow Jo's suggestion. It will get worse without any intervention.
You can still change both emotions and behaviour after the 'socialisation period' has ended. When my dog was young she started to bark at people who didn't have dogs with them and we worked through it fairly quickly and I have to remind myself that it ever happened now because it is a distant memory. Whenever you see a child put your pup on lead for safety, give them a wide enough berth so that your pup doesn't feel threatened and FEED. The food isn't a reward for remaining calm, it is to build an association between the scary thing and something good - so feed even if your puppy barks (though next time try to increase the distance from the child.) I think your idea, Helen, of sitting outside a playpark is a good one, but only go as close as your puppy can remain calm - and feed.
You can indeed, but it's not 'socialisation' and it's a different process. It's typically counter-conditioning and desensitisation. Which takes much longer with much less certain results. If pups have been raised in an optimal environment by breeders then research suggests there is an extended socialisation window up to 16 weeks - the pups remain receptive to new things, for longer - but if pups have been raised in a more typical environment which the vast majority of pups are raised in, the window closes around 12 weeks.
Think of socialisation as the dog forming dispositions and beliefs about the society the dog will meet in her life. Desensitisation and counter-conditioning are processes which attempt to change extant dispositions and beliefs.
Morning thanks for all of your comments @Jo Laurens your initial comment had me Very worried Cos I thought I’d been careful to try and socialise buddy to everything I could - from 8 weeks up he came to school with me being carried many times and saw a variety of children of different ages in and out of push chairs. Since my post I’ve taken him on more walks where lots of people are around rather than the fields nearby which are mainly others dog walkers and it’s a big space that you’re not on top of each other and he’s not been barking at anyone we’ve walked by at close proximity only a dog on the the opposite side of the road but then with treats quickly forgot about him And carried on walking. Today I asked my neighbour if we could go for a walk with her and her older dog / and toddler in a pushchair and he was calm And good the whole time, when the toddler got out to walk was settled and even when toddler cried going back in the buggy didn’t react at all. I’m still not sure why he had a day of barking at everything and anything but I’m wondering if he just found his voice and was enjoying using it ? I will always be careful to watch for signs and keep him calm / away from children if it changes again but I’m not feeling quite as bad as I did about it.
Hi @Buddy Curious behaviour. Were the children your dog barked at older than the one you strolled with. Dogs don't generalise well at all. Maybe it's a size issue. Or something that they were doing. We will never know. As I said I can't decide whether is reative or frustrated he couldn't play. But you are keeping an eye out for the behaviour which is good..
