Hi, haven't posted in a while as very busy dealing with the monsters and their issues whilst also trying to get some work done! So we started puppy club a couple of months ago now. It's a large club, unfortunately, but all the others locally to me, that I found, are most definitely NOT reward based training methods. First club session was a disaster - M&M were petrified, behaviour that had not shown itself up to this point. I can only think they were simply overwhelmed. Anyway to cut a long story short Milly had to leave, Monty however, was a little calmer and less reactive so they agreed he could stay. At the end of the session, which for Monty had simply involved being off lead calmly and I did a few sit/down, the club recommended a trainer. I contacted the guy immediately have had some 1:1 sessions as well as attending his classes. Progress is being made albeit very slowly, but that’s fine no point going faster than M&M can deal with. I’m please with the guy and his positive methods so will not be returning to the club. The first 1:1 he assessed them both interacting with each other, me etc and then individually they had some time with his Husky ‘chien régulateur’. The Husky was fantastic. We established a plan to have some 1:1 sessions and time with the Husky and for Monty to start his puppy class. Today we’re at the point where Monty has moved to the Big Puppy class and Milly has now joined puppy class. Monty is doing very well, extremely intelligent and socialising ok with the other dogs but when with his sister he unfortunately 'feeds' off her as opposed to the other way round. Milly is managing in puppy class, her body language has changed, tail no longer between legs etc but it’s slowly slowly we’re going at her pace and she will stay in that class for some time yet I think. She too is extremely intelligent. She’s giving mixed signals very fearful and a little I really would like to try and play but… I would like progress out of class (& he closes for August) and I wondered if anyone has experience with reactive dogs and perhaps some recommended reading/techniques? Sorry for the long post!
We definitely have people with reactive dogs on the forum, @Jen being top of mind. She has two dogs as well. Hopefully she will see the mention and respond. Sounds like you are making progress, though. Good for you for recognizing the club was a bit much for them.
Rather depressing to think I'm the only one with fearful reactive dogs but hey I'll soldier on...slowly making progress.... just bought Control Unleashed & BAT books so lets see how we get on...
You are certainly not alone. There have been lots of threads around fearfulness and reactivity. Have you done a search?
Sorry, I didn't see this earlier. My Shadow can be reactive, and is more so when Willow is around. Control Unleashed will give you lots of ideas to help out, but for me, it's a case of taking things really slowly, ensuring you're setting the dogs up for success and building their confidence. Distance is a big thing with Shadow, so when we're training on his behaviours, I have to keep him well away from the other dog. Always on lead, even though this makes him more reactive; I just have to keep that distance even greater. I have to be careful with him, because sometimes it looks like he's coping and he'll pass other dogs without reacting, but that can be because he's nervous about other things in his surroundings. So, you have to keep your eyes wide open all the time to the signals your dog is giving off. The clicker and very high value treats are your friends! Something I've been working on a bit, too, is keeping him calm when we're in the car and he sees another dog. It's hard, because he can appear to get rewarded by barking, if the other dog "disappears" (as we drive past). So, I have my husband driving and I keep a fistful of treats, which I start streaming to him as soon as he notices the other dog. This is still slow progress, but he's certainly started calming down a bit and, when he sees a dog, he'll look for his treats for a split second before reacting - I just have to make sure I'm ready with at least a "good!", which is a verbal event marker meaning his treat is coming. Let us know how you get on. It's certainly a less fun part of training, but I know strides can be made when approached with bags of patience; my two used to react strongly to motorbikes, children, strangers with their heads covered etc, and now they're a lot calmer around them.
Oh, I should also mention, it really makes it easier when you can spend time with them one-on-one. I don't know if you're doing this currently (outside of class), but it really helps the dogs individually to get more trust in you; and for you, you only have to worry about one dog at a time. Wrangling two can be a bit of a handful, even if it's only one that's being reactive.
Good to know, I've never had this in prevoius dogs so bit of a steep learing curve. I have been looking through the threads, hence the BAT book purchase but there is sooooo much information to look through - very good stuff I hasten to add. Unless I've missed something I haven't seen a search button to look for key words or something similar.
Thanks Fiona, absolutely going slowly is key. Milly needs to take it really slowly otherwise she quickly gets to threshold. She has already made some progress and is now giving mixed signals when off lead in puppy class. Interestingly last wk there was a new arrival who was also reactive & it was Milly who was saying to him don't be silly come & play! On lead she's ok when focused on me & the training but she's not so keen on the simulation scenes we do (vets / cafe / boulangerie! etc) in close contact with the other pups. She will stay in that class for a bit longer yet, age wise she could do with moving up but I don't want to rush her & undo the little progress we've made. The trainer asked asked me to stop with the clicker for a bit then when we reintroduce have one per dog. Neither of them are reactive in the car, but they can't see much! But it still takes 30 mins to get her in the car reduced from a hour! but she comes to the gate to wait now instead of running off down the garden. Once I lift her (too high to jump) in she dives into her crate. She's car sick too but that is improving and mainly now just excessive dribble. So I'm doing daily car trips sometimes with a 'reward' at the end sometimes just to the post office. Apart from car sickness none of their behaviours were evident initially & they were socialised. Patience isn't a strong point of mine in all areas but I've got bucket loads of patience for them & will do whatever they need to succeed.
Our rescue lab is two and is becoming pretty settled in the house. But outside he is anxious and super reactive to other dogs. We have been told he is poorly socialized and anxious. He was a stray, so maybe his on the run experiences have something to do with this. We have a vet appt soon to see if meds might benefit him. We have to board him in a month and I'm so afraid he will be in a constant state of panic in a kennel situation. Plus, the trainer said he was aggressive to other dogs and could wind up in a dog fight. So upsetting because otherwise he is the sweetest boy.
