A bit of background... Our dog club has a lot of positive trainers and few 'balanced' (I hate this term but it's the easiest one to use to describe those that use positive reinforcement but will also recommend some old school methods) trainers. I've been happy to work with both types as I've found their advice to be really helpful and those 'balanced' trainers are totally comfortable with offering positive methods of training everthing if you say you only want to train positively. Ella stresses high - her response to stress (whether worried or just totally overwhelmed) is to act like a lunatic. Zoomies, lunging, leaping etc. Ella was a little silly on two occasions today (one was stand for examination and the other was when a dog broke in their off lead heel work and sent all of the dogs a bit batty) My particular trainer today falls into the 'balanced' category. (incidentally - this trainer taught us hand touches, targeting, increasing enthusiasm in heel work and is totally against any physical negative methods. He does however use a firm 'no'). He discussed Ella's behaviour with me and understood that it was a stress reaction and explained that I need to reassure her. My two questions.. 1. He suggested that I need to reassure Ella that everything is fine and that I've got it under control. He said that it's not a dominance thing but ideally she should be looking to me for guidance in a stressful situation. However, he said that I need to show her that it's not actually right for her to behave in that way. What do you think? Reassuring while trying to show her that they way she's reacting is wrong? 2. If the above part is correct, his 'balanced' solution is to give Ella a firm "no" as soon as she starts to react, then drop down to her level and calmly pat her and reassure her, trying to keep her calm. Obviously I'm not going to start 'firmly telling her no' so, does anyone have any ideas of how to show her that her behaviour isn't the right response? Oops... I tried not to make it an essay
How about dropping down to reassure her then giving her an alternative behaviour, something she is really good at?
I think I'd just offer reassurance. My wonderful OH got Molly over her bike chasing just by sitting her by his side, stroking her and talking gently. I know this isn't quite the same situation you're in, but if you think she's stressed (worried) that's what I'd go for. If you think it's over-excitement I might try asking for an alternative, easier, behaviour.
Hi @Emily, I don't do any classes with Charlie but I do the same as @edzbird with him which really helps his confidence as I have set him up to succeed x
Without actually seeing the behaviour I wouldn't like to hazard a guess as to whether she is stressed and whether she needs reassurance. She could just as easily need more space if she is lunging/jumping etc. What I would advice against is the use if a firm No. The 'No' is actually pretty meaningless to Ella - you could use any word you like. The bit that Ella can react to is the tone of your voice. A firm voice could ne construed by Ella as you being cross ir angry which us hardly likely to help her if she is stressed. I would create more distance and speak quietly to her with some gentle strokes down her sides/chest.
Yes, I think he's right and I agree with all of the above. Being really calm yourself and 'nonchalant' helps too. When our pups are concerned by traffic my supervisor suggests just looking at it from a distance, reassuring the pup and then standing and checking our phone etc until the pup relaxes completely (usually by lying down and huffing). Then rewarding and moving on. The next time a little closer etc until we can walk down the busiest streets with whizzing lorries and a relaxed pup.
