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Handling Misbehavior in Public

3K views 31 replies 18 participants last post by  Robert&Riley 
#1 ·
Last night I took Bear to the pet supply store after work, which turned out to be a horrible event. When Bear was younger, he didn't like the car so we took him everywhere with us (normally both my DH and I would be going) and this was my first time taking him out to a "fun" event by myself.

It was a disaster. Don't get me wrong, there were some awesome points like:

1) Stop#1 Bear waited until I exited the vehicle before trying to exit
2) He walked nicely next to me while I pushed a cart - no pulling (once we were past the first two mins there where I had to stop literally every single step)
3) He was very socialable. Never cowered or anything.
4) Once I got him refocused on me, he was very well behaved... for a second.

However, there was alot left to be desired.

1) He did pull. Which I corrected
2) He urinated on everyone who stopped to pet him. (I made sure he pottied before leaving the house)
3) He gently stood up and put his paws on a little girls shoulders. Scared the girl out of her mind, I apologized none stop for a good minute or two. The mother just laughed about it and said not to worry, but oh my such inappropriate behavior.
4) When we got to stop#2 (a different pet supply store b/c the first one didn't have one of my food items), he played "boing boing" at the end of his leash b/c there were PEOPLE AND PETS EVERYWHERE!!!!!! It was a combination of pulling and jumping at the same time. I was working on correcting this by stopping or walking backwards, trying to regain his focus, but none of it worked. He saw people and animals and THEY MUST PET HIM in his mind.
5) When I got him refocused on me and sitting calmly next to me, I'd give him the release and he would CHARGE at the closest creature.

Overall, the trip showed me things I need to work on. My biggest issue with last night, ironically, had to do with people and not Bear.

1) Everyone wanted to pet him, even when I said "He's in training, please do not give him attention." I'd get up to the "He's in" and they're already petting him, no body asked if they could, they just assumed. I tried to shorten it to "No!" but everyone just assumed I was talking to the dog. I'm thinking of making him or buying him a vest that reads "In Training, do not approach" or something like that. I'm trying to teach him that everyone does not have to pay attention to him and he's not in control of who does or when they do. Last night was a huge failure on that. I need to step my game up.

2) An employee asked if Bear could have a treat. I said "Sure" and he proceeds to dump an ENTIRE package of treats on the ground. Bear has been known to be nippy when approached over food, and I didn't have anything to trade him for them, so I just left it alone. But I felt that was an excessive amount of food to give the puppy. And maybe in the future I'll say "Only one" or just simplify it and say "No"

3) A woman walked up to us, asked me how old he was and then told me I needed to get him in training fast because he has no manners. This irritated me to no end. Who the heck do you think you are lady? How would you have handled this? I just told her we ARE in training and walked away.

4) Finally, the crown moment of the night! The security guard outside (this was when Bear was the most obnoxious b/c there was a group of people and 3-4 dogs hanging out outside.) stood next to me and made the "Ssssss" sound while flashing his hand towards Bear. We were outside for nearly 10 mins trying to regain our composure and to get Bear to settle down and the WHOLE TIME THIS MAN WAS DOING THIS! I just ignored it b/c the only comments running through my head where completely snarky and rude.

How do you correct your pup and the people around you when you're out and about? Should I just not take him when I have to go and accomplish things (i.e. picking up food, etc)?
 
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#2 ·
I do take puppies out to stores too. Bear is pretty young to be able to handle himself well in public. I wouldn't take him to a pet store, too many overwhelming smells of other pets and food. I would try a sporting good, hardware, or home supply store or something with less good smells. Don't use a cart, just have him leash walk with you. Don't buy anything. Mostly ignore him and just walk normally pausing to look at items on the racks. Try going when the stores are less busy. Don't make eye contact with people, they will be less likely to approach. Just pretend like everything is fine and it will be eventually. It just takes time. I wouldn't expect stays, downs or even many sits at this age when you are out in public. He sounds like a good boy with lots of potential. He's just really young right now and very impressionable. His attention span is very short, so don't expect a lot of him. Remember to make it fun. It's all new to him, the world is his oyster.
 
#3 ·
I do take puppies out to stores too. Bear is pretty young to be able to handle himself well in public. I wouldn't take him to a pet store, too many overwhelming smells of other pets and food. I would try a sporting good, hardware, or home supply store or something with less good smells. Don't use a cart, just have him leash walk with you. Don't buy anything. Mostly ignore him and just walk normally pausing to look at items on the racks. Try going when the stores are less busy. Don't make eye contact with people, they will be less likely to approach. Just pretend like everything is fine and it will be eventually. It just takes time. I wouldn't expect stays, downs or even many sits at this age when you are out in public. He sounds like a good boy with lots of potential. He's just really young right now and very impressionable. His attention span is very short, so don't expect a lot of him. Remember to make it fun. It's all new to him, the world is his oyster.
This is interesting. The only stores in my city that allow pets other than service animals are pet stores. Even then, not all of them allow them.
 
#4 ·
You are Brave. I'm so sorry but I got a chuckle out of some of this. Jesse is now 15 and has always LOVED people. One would think that an arthritic 15 year old dog couldn't still jump on people, but she surprised us the other day when we had someone over for the first time and she actually jumped on them. I was apologetic, but so happy that she actually could still do it when we spent so many of her young years trying to stop that behavior. She used to be so bad in stores. If stores could be empty she would have been the best behaved dog, but they all have people who were put there to pay attention to her. Tayla is much better because she is not so people oriented as Jesse which is fine with me. As others have said 4 months is way to young to expect much better behavior, but you keep taking Bear out and working on it and someday you will be proud when your arthritic dog actually jumps on someone :)
 
#5 ·
You are Brave. I'm so sorry but I got a chuckle out of some of this... As others have said 4 months is way to young to expect much better behavior, but you keep taking Bear out and working on it... :)
LOL! That's awesome!

No other stores around here will allow dogs unless they are service animals. I've checked w/ Lowe's and Home Depot and while the stated policy is 'No' I've been told, that it depends on whose on staff and what the dog is doing. I'm leery of trying it b/c I don't like confrontation and the most embarrassing thing would be getting kicked out of the store.

I'm thinking of bringing him to the coffee shop and sitting outside. Or taking him to the dog park, but just walking around the outside.

I know he's young. I know his attention span is short. And maybe my expectations of him are too big. All I really expect him to do is not pull and no charging

Believe it or not, he's gotten better. Before he wouldn't even sit still if I was still. He'd pace back and forth and whine if he saw another dog or person.

I guess my first mistake was taking him when I knew I had to get stuff. The cart was necessary b/c I was picking up 50 lbs worth of food, plus chewies and toys and treats. He was fine around the cart. When I stopped to get something he would immediately sit or lay down. No pulling at all. And he was always ready to move on as soon as I said "lets go"

On our way out of the first store, I stopped at the edge of the sidewalk, about to cross, and Bear was focused and sat down on my foot. A woman walking by with her husband complimented us, saying she's never seen a dog do that before. Voluntarily stop and sit when his owner stopped.

I think I'll take him to the store more often - but without needing to buy anything and with treats and the clicker on hand to work on his behavior.
 
#6 ·
First, I think four months is very young and your expectations for Bear are maybe a little unrealistic.

I would get into an obedience class and learn loose leash walking and practice that for awhile. Usually in class they work on socializing dogs with each other and learn commands such as "bypass" to teach the dogs to ignore each other.

Stores like Petco are a good place to practice, because dogs are welcome there. We have taken Max many times to Home Depot and have never had a problem. Tonight, our obedience class is being held at our local Home Depot.

We take Max out in public a lot. He is a big boy. Usually people ask to pet him, but not always. When I see people that are going to approach us, I usually speak up first, and tell them if it is OK to touch Max. Most of the time, I do not mind if people pet him. However, with Bear, people probably assume that it is ok to pet him because he is a puppy.
 
#12 ·
First, I think four months is very young and your expectations for Bear are maybe a little unrealistic.

I would get into an obedience class and learn loose leash walking and practice that for awhile. Usually in class they work on socializing dogs with each other and learn commands such as "bypass" to teach the dogs to ignore each other.

Stores like Petco are a good place to practice, because dogs are welcome there. We have taken Max many times to Home Depot and have never had a problem. Tonight, our obedience class is being held at our local Home Depot.

We take Max out in public a lot. He is a big boy. Usually people ask to pet him, but not always. When I see people that are going to approach us, I usually speak up first, and tell them if it is OK to touch Max. Most of the time, I do not mind if people pet him. However, with Bear, people probably assume that it is ok to pet him because he is a puppy.
Thank you! It's hard to hear that my expectations are a bit too high, but I can swallow the pill. :D

I'll try taking him out to home depot or maybe just the mall parking lot on a weekend. He's already enrolled in puppy kindergarten, and we've been working on loose leash walking for a week in class and for two months at home. Normally, he's 75% of the time right where I need him to be on the leash. We do have socialization at class. The first class, Bear was on target with staying on his mat and leaving the other puppies alone. For the past two classes, he'll stay on his mat, but has trouble listening or focusing on us b/c he wants to play and if another puppy gets within 10 feet of us, he's off his mat, looking to socialize. Each time I rein him in and make him sit. He hasn't been taught stay yet. When we're walking around home, he's 2x better when we come across another dog. Maybe because they are so far away, but he will stand on 'alert' and watch the dog, but will easily respond to my commands, no pulling, no jumping, no barking, etc.

I'm not mad at him. I was really frustrated last night (more so with the people than him anyways), but once we got in the car, he stepped up on my thigh to lick my ear and my heart just MELTED! Can never stay mad at any of my animals.
 
#7 ·
Sorry ...I had to smile as I read through your posting. I was actually thinking we should take Loki into our pet shop, as they keep asking us when are they going to meet up with him. But our pet shop is a forty min drive, in the city, & like Bear, Loki can get very excited when there are lots of people & other dogs around, so after reading this, I have made a mental note " do not take Loki anywhere near the pet shop" lol.

Some of Bear's behaviour reminds me of our trip with Loki to an open market last weekend. Like Bear, Loki thinks that every person on the planet was put there for the sole purpose of making a fuss of him. I can actually see the disappointment on his face when people just walk on by. He is coming up to five months old ( next week), & he adores everybody. Thankfully he is very well-behaved when anyone stops to pet him ...he goes immediately into a sit & stares adoringly up at them ....sometimes he will turn & plonk himself on their feet in a sit, still staring up at them with adoration ...even with young children he does this ...I haven't taught him to do it, he just does it naturally. So I am never worried when people want to pat him. It's when they don't want to, that I worry ...like your Bear, Loki will pull towards them on his leash, & when we walked him through the open market last weekend, he started the pulling jumping thing, which he has never done before. I put it down to him being overwhelmed by so many people walking passed him ...new place .....different smells .....lots of truck traffic noise from the main highway next to the market. When a couple of people did stop to pat him, he behaved in his usual polite way. So we walked him across the road to a cafe, & sat at a table on the pavement with coffee & cake, & Loki sat down in the shade & quietly watched all the people scurrying about. We decided not to take him back to this very busy market, as just too overwhelming for him at this age.

Now I park the car in town & walk him through town on our way to the park every alternate day. We live in a rural town of just 5000 people, so the town isn't thronged with people, but enough to give him socialisation. He is gradually getting used to the idea that not everyone is going to stop & pet him, & has not jumped again ...he will sometimes pull towards them, but I then pull gently on the lead & say " this way!". It seems to be working, but it is an on-going process. I would say that Bear got very excited & the urinating when he got petted was due to that. It hasn't happened with Loki, but I have read about it. Bear actually sounds adorable! And I bet you had a good chuckle about it later! Loki only has to lay his head on my lap & stare up at me, & every misdemeanour is forgiven. I bet it's the same with your Bear.
 
#8 ·
Pet stores are tough. Bella gets way too excited, and pulls and pulls. There isn't much I can do about it at this point. It's the one place where I feel like I have little control, other than to just hold her on a short leash. I haven't taken her to one for about a month. Maybe I'll give a try in the next few days. I don't really care if the people in there want to pet her, or give her a treat.

I keep hearing about Home Depots and other stores allowing dogs. That's not the case around here. Otherwise I would do it all the time. There are a few restaurants that allow dogs, but I'm pretty sure Bella isn't ready for that.
 
#9 ·
Practice, practice, practice.

Best suggestion I have is to bring him there very tired from playing, and keep the trip as short as possible. If it's a day when your purpose is accomplishing shopping, perhaps don't take him. Go when your purpose can be training him, and if you get some shopping done, that's gravy.

Good luck. Don't get discouraged. This too will pass. And you'll have a great dog. :)
 
#10 ·
Even at 15 years old I can see the disappointment on Jesse’s face when kids don’t notice her. She loves kids and has always been especially good with handicapped children. For as wild as she was when she was young, she was always so gentle with kids. She still loves all the kid attention she can get.

I shied away from letting a lot of people pet Tayla until recently. She had that biting issue with us and I was afraid she would do it with a stranger, but she never has so I’ve been letting people pet her when we are out. She is good about 90% of the time and will just sit there. A couple times she has poped up and goes to jump but I have her on a short leash so she can’t. Most of the times it’s with kids who are overly aggressive with their petting techniques and it gets her all excited. For all her issues she is fairly calm with people for a year old Golden. I’m grateful.
 
#11 ·
I feel your pain! What I've found useful is the elementary school across the street. Ky always tells them hi in the AM and again when they get out of school. I've been taking Bentley for a walk when they're all lined up waiting for the buses, we're practicing walking by them with no contact. The kids know they can pet and love on Ky when she's over there but they have to ignore the puppy. Sometimes a kid will forget but for the most part it's working out well. Bentley is becoming more relaxed around people now.
 
#14 ·
I understand you. i am experiencing the same thing with chester. Our Petco is the only place that allows dogs, so whenever i go there i usually take him. the hardest part is the people, like you i am having a difficult time trying to explain he is in training. by the time i try to explain they are already all over him. I don't mind if they pet him or give him one treat but when it comes to petting him and getting him overly excited when he starts to jump on people is when i have the problem. We've been working on this for a while now when he jumps we simply ignore him. I think next time what may help you is putting your hand up in "stop" signal and just say he's in training and you would prefer if they show no attention. My trainer recommended this for chester and I think I'm going to try this out as well.
 
#15 ·
Oh man, I know this all too well! Liberty just adores kids and people. She goes crazy for attention! What I try to do is have her sit before anyone pays her any attention. It is harder for her to jump on someone if she is sitting. So if someone asks to pet Bear, tell them only when he's sitting. Then tell Bear to sit. If Bear stands up or gets too excited, ask the person to stop petting him until he sits again. It will take some time, but he will eventually sit when he wants to be petted! It's taken me a long time to get to this point with Liberty, but we're pretty much there.

Also, have you considered a Gentle Leader? When I take Liberty out she wears one. It's a personal preference but I find it really helps calm her down and she pulls less. I am hoping that as she matures, I will be ale to wean her off of the Gentle Leader. But for now, for my sanity, I don't go out without it!
 
#18 ·
What you describe sounds to me like a normal pup. Mine is 4.5 months old and is a work in progress....
 
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#20 ·
I've had good luck telling people that Casper has to sit before he gets pets. It's quick to say "He just has so sit first" and most people are comfortable telling a dog to sit. So they'll tell him to Sit if/when he gets up. Not everyone, but many. The most trouble are the people, mostly kids, that insist on moving the hands right past his mouth and eyes to get to pet the top of his head. His whole body and head follow, then they jerk their hands into the air, and he follows the hands, and then it's just chaos after that. And the keep doing it over and over. Arg!
 
#21 ·
Sorry I didn't realize that dogs aren't accepted in businesses down in the states like they are here. I even see dogs sometimes in the grocery store. Hotels all take dogs here too. I think the only place I don't see dogs are restaurants. I also forget that everyone doesn't have miles of off leashes trails in their towns.

Have you tried just getting out walking around town on a leash? Maybe go into a downtown area that has more people and traffic? What about just finding a park bench and sitting down for awhile and let your little one just observe everything around them? They are so happy at this age and so curious!
 
#24 ·
It sounds like Bear just got a little over excited. No big deal, mistakes happen. I suggest working up to it. A pet store with so many people and dogs was probably just too much at this stage of training. Start by working on a sidewalk with people passing by, then move to maybe a shopping district but stand away from the stores, etc. Basically, step up the distraction incrementally and set him up for success!
 
#25 ·
We're volunteering at a booth set up by Golden Rescue of Canada at the Pickering Markets. Because she is greeting over and over and over as people come over to the booth, this has been wonderful experience for her. We went 2 weeks ago and since then I've noticed a huge difference in her excitement level when greeting people both at home and out on the street. We are going again today so she'll get even more experience with greeting over and over. I wonder if there is a way for you to set up an environment like this where you are greeting over and over until Bear gets more used to it.
 
#27 ·
Update! :)



This weekend, we spent about 6 hours out in the public. Today, we went to Petco after an hour long playdate with a littermate and OMG he was the most perfect angel. He walked w/o pulling and sat before greeting everyone. Most without asking!!! And I was more confident to direct people into waiting for Bear to sit before greeting him. Alot of people were amazed with how well he was behaving. We were looking at upgrading his collar and harness (from the ones we bought at the dollar store, that he is outgrowing) and he sat or laid down while I was browsing and was immediately responsive when I told him "let's go".

Afterwards, we walked down at Balboa Park (very large, public, crowded park with museums, galleries and grass areas). He did FANTASTIC! He walked w/o pulling 95% of the time and when he did pull, it was a lazy pull and he responded well to my correction. He met alot of people and dogs and ignored even more!

At the tail end, we sat down and people watched, which I think did tremendous good. He heard a saxophone for the first time (OMG his expression was priceless!!!), and I convinced him to splash around in a shallow pool.

BEST DAY EVER! :woot2:
 
#26 ·
I have also started working with Rose on greetings. She used to be an angel but lately she has become a complete brat.

I have to admit it but yesterday I broke down and got a gentle leader. She hates it but it is the only way I can walk her straight for a half an hour.

She heels perfectly in the house on and off leash. The moment we are outside she is HORRIBLE. I was happy when she was loose leash walking but that went down the drain too.

I can put her in a sit with no problem but the moment I say heel she charges thru. I can give her the around command and she comes into heel position with no problem. The moment I say heel she once again charges thru. I say come back here and she comes right back with no problem. And she is so proud of herself in her sits and arounds and come. The other day she even corrected herself, the leash got tight and I stopped. She came around and plopped her but down, pushed her chest up on my left so proud of herself. I could not help myself but giggle. We walked like that for one mile in a little over an hour. :doh:

It has worked better with her to make her sit and whoa when anyone was approaching her at the store. I also used the leave it command as we passed by people in the reptile section. (most of them were not interested in petting a dog and it worked great). One would think that people who shop for dogs know how to behave around a dog. Rose went to this dog woman and I was trying to put her in a sit and the woman said "It's OK mine does the same!" I zipped my mouth and turned around with a stern "This Way" to Rose. I was amazed that she followed with no questions asked (or should I say - no tight leash pulled)
 
#29 ·
I have read through the thread and am happy to see that things are going better for you.
I would like to respond to the original question of what I do when my dog is misbehaving in public. I usually remove my dog from the situation pretty much the same as I would a child. No one wants to see a dog misbehaving any more than they want to see a child screaming and throwing a tantrum. Nothing good can come from trying to force the issue. You get frustrated, the dog gets frustrated and the vicious cycle begins. I would just take my dog home and start over on a new day. No sense beating my head against a stone wall trying to control a bratty puppy. They all have their good days and their bad days just like us.
 
#32 ·
I personally bring Riley as many places as I can. Lucky for me I live in an area where owners are very on top of vaccinating but I still have to be careful because he only has his 2nd round of shots so far. If I go to the petstore I carry him which is getting harder and harder but most places I'll just let him walk. I have started to socialize him with other dogs so now he doesn't really think much of seeing another pup. I haven't had any bad situations happen yet. Gotta keep my fingers crossed!!
 
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