Hi all! My dear little Ema, who is now six months old, is a great, obedient dog... except in the never-caught-by-the owner presence of other dogs! People are Ok now. She simply knows she can't go to everyone passing by. But dogs it's a whole different story. Old friends, new friends, unknown, friendly, unfriendly... I'm playing or training and... there she goes like an arrow to meet another canine. I use "stop"/"keep still" a lot and it's really reliable except here. Any tips? Thanks a million!
Oh dear ! Training to come away from other dogs was , I found, one of the hardest lessons to learn . Six months is the age where they start to become more independent , and as sociable dogs , Labrador pups just want to greet them all ! If you have a look in this section , you will find pinned articles for this specific issue , they should offer advice and help , good luck !
The one thing I did do @flor was to carry a tennis ball at all times , this being his favourite thing in all the world ! I didn't allow him to have this in the house , but kept it as a precious commodity ! If I thought he was about to run to other dogs , I would call him and show him the ball , did the trick every time , so he would get a few throws of the ball as a reward . Any favourite item will work the same , just make sure they know you have it in your pocket !
Great, Kate! In fact, I do the same with a Kong squeaky piglet Ema loves it and actually it has helped other dog owners when their dogs run off! I will be more attentive in order to anticipate and call Ema's attention!
I can't offer anything but support on this point, lol. But for the name and age I'd think you were describing my boy. He wants to say hello to every damn dog in the country. There could be some snarling, slobbering mongrel ready to tear him to pieces and he would run up as if it was his old chum. Love how friendly the breed is but it can get tedious sometimes haha. Best of luck with Ema!
Same here, Mason just doesn't get the some dogs are nicer than others. They warn him but he still goes back for more.
I remember well one walk , which sticks in my memory for all the wrong reasons ! Sam was about six months old , we had taken him to a lovely National Trust walk by a river , it was a Sunday, nice weather and very busy with lots of families and dog walkers . This was in the days before I discovered the tennis ball mode of bribery and oh boy, it was a nightmare ! It was like he was saying " Oh look, a dog , I`ll go with them , oh look theres another one, I`ll go with them " . I thought he was being naughty, but he wasn't , it was my fault entirely , he simply was full of the joys of spring and I had a sore throat from calling him , it just wasn't working and I felt real shame ! I got home , exhausted from the horrors of my young bounding dog who loved everyone else and everyone elses dog more than me ! I had just joined this forum back then , and set about reading up on recall and prevention techniques as I never wanted to go through the ordeal again , the filthy looks from others who all seemed to have perfectly behaved dogs ! That tennis ball trick saved my sanity for sure , I`m not saying Sam became perfect overnight, it takes a real effort and repetition, but it helped so much . I can look back and laugh now, but back then ? xxx
I have similar problems with walks and my dog is a year and a half. Walking past some people and most dogs is impossible as my dog lunges towards them wanting to play and attention seeking. I have not yet found a way to stop this and he is very strong! I also never let him off lead in areas that are not fenced in or other dogs/people are around as I can’t trust my dog to come back to me and not to run over to other people or dogs. Any advice would be appreciated.
I have the identical problem. He has brought both my husband and myself down because of wanting to play with other dogs on our walks. We're getting better with people. Will try his favorite toy in my pocket tomorrow morning and report on progress. It squeaks and he loves it. Thank you.
The same as you, my dog is getting better with people although takes very little encouragement to be their best friend! Sometimes food works to distract my dog from another however this is sometimes!!
We have the same trouble with Coco, and because of it, I tend to avoid walks where I will meet other dogs. I was pulled over many times in the beginning. But we go to group training and get the opportunity to practice recall from play before class starts - this is great practice for him in a controlled environment. Last night, we did a double recall, where a pair of dogs (who were known to get on & play) were released to run the length of the barn together. Coco & his German Shepherd friend Bertie went together, they did get distracted & start play on the way to their handlers, then they both recalled from one another very nicely. We also do a lot of exercises involving passing dogs and weaving in and out of a line of dogs. Practice, practice, practice. It's paying off - yesterday morning we did meet a couple of dogs on-lead. Coco managed to greet when allowed and walk on without pulling and lunging. Even when one of the other dogs started kicking off, jumping, lunging, twirling and biting his owners sleeve. Proud dog-mum moment.
Well, this morning I tried the squeaky toy when a dog was walking by us. That didn't work at all. He couldn't care less. This afternoon, I held a treat near his mouth and just let him try and nibble on it. That worked much better but far from perfect. I think if I work on this approach, I could have found a solution....here's hoping.
I’ve tried this before but my worry is that food isn’t a permanent solution. Someone told me tonight my dog is needing to loose weight (vet hasn’t said this) so I’m now also quite paranoid about using food. I do think it’s kind of something they grow out of too...
If your dog knows the treat (or toy) is there and is only interacting with you because of that thing, then it is a bribe. The problem with bribes is that they will fail - however good it is, there will always be something in the environment that is better. Instead, you have to build up a history of reinforcement, so setting your dog up for successful recall scenarios - which may mean only blowing your recall cue as your dog is already moving towards you to start with. Reinforcing after a behaviour you like is very different to bribing in order to achieve that behaviour. You also need to work on your dog ignoring distractions in the first place so you're not just recalling him all the time from fun stuff - that's a sure fire way of breaking your recall cue. You do this by, as always, setting up scenarios where you dog can have success and training a Premack cue "say hi"/"go sniff"/whatever so you are always releasing your dog to do that fun thing after he "asks" by giving you attention or whatever behaviour you want. Over time, his default will become not engaging unless he is released to engage.
Yes! LAT (look at that) is really starting to work now! The secret is really distance for now. Beyond a certain limit, Ema will become totally deaf to cues, clicker, you name it But at the right distance, she will look at me, C&T and meanwhile the so desired dog just simply passed by As a proud mummy, I really recommend this and lots, lots of patience and love.
