I have a 6.5 month old pup who is easily excitable and wants to greet every person/dog we encounter during walks. If I do not allow him to greet a person/dog he gets very frustrated and will start jumping up and biting my arms. I have tried saying NO and turning my back on him until he starts to calm down. However, this happens so often now that I don't enjoy taking him for walks anymore. I got advice from others saying he is trying to initiate play, but he is doing so inappropriately - that I should try to distract him by asking him to do basic tricks to help redirect his focus. But this has only works a couple of times. I'm really starting to feel defeated because I don't know how to properly address this. I would appreciate any advice.
Hello there, I know this is very frustrating, but I don't know if it helps to know that it is also very normal! Lots of young Labradors act like this, it's because they are very, very sociable dogs. Lots of general training will help in that it will increase his focus on you. Lots of impulse and frustration tolerance exercises also help. Them growing up also helps a bit (in that they get less silly and so easier to train). There are two different things going on with him. First, he expects to be able to say hello to every dog and every person, and second, he doesn't cope very well when he can't. The first of these - his expectation - you can address by having him around lots of dogs and people that he doesn't get to say hello to. Ideally, starting at a distance where he doesn't make a fuss, and slowly getting closer. This is a great deal easier said than done. I know my dog couldn't be in the same field as another dog without making a fuss, so I just had to live with him fussing while working on it. The other thing you can do is just don't let him say hello to other dogs and people in the street. The more he sees dogs and people and doesn't get to say hello, the more he will come to expect not saying hello as normal. Training classes with other dogs are really handy for this, because the people with other dogs co-operate with you. (Obviously, if you go to a training class and all the dogs are having a free for all, meeting and greeting and getting over excited on lead, you are in the wrong class). The same kind of exercise also helps him manage his frustration when he can't access something he wants but you can also add additional exercises by watching very exciting things from a big distance and gradually getting closer. For some dogs, this is all about other dogs, for other dogs its about action, balls etc. and so on.
Hi Anne, Judy (6 months) sounds very similar to your dog. She wants to meet all dogs and all people which usually works out when she's off lead but is a bit of a pain when she's on a lead or meets the occasional dog who's kept on a lead when she isn't. Meeting younger puppies is an absolute nightmare, she goes bonkers and I find her really difficult to manage! Getting her to respond to commands when she's over excited is just pointless. She's actually very good about ending play (for now) and interacts really nicely with older, calmer dogs but the straining at the lead to meet other dogs and jumping up at people as we pass is my main problem. I haven't got advice based on experience but I'm thinking it's time to take her back to training classes and also get her out into busier places where not everyone wants to say hello. Those are things I've been avoiding a bit because she gets so excited and we both end up frustrated. If she bites at me or the lead, I stand still, stay quiet, wait for her to settle down. It tries my patience but I keep reminding myself that she's still very young even if she looks like a big dog. I hope things improve for you both. From speaking to other lab owners, it does sound like something they grow out of so I'm holding onto that thought!
I agree with JulieT that classes could help. I went to puppy classes from when Molly was 5 to 7 months old and it was great as they weren't socialisation classes but ones where the emphasis was keeping your puppy's attention on you. It was easier to work at this while everyone else was trying to do the same.
