Sorry to hear this happened. I hope the trainer has some useful advice for tucker and you..
Reactive dog advice
Well we had a bad experience today, im upset and Tucker knows it. A met a person who had a lab. Denver met him before and hit it off playing. This lab is 6 or 7 month old super close to Tuckers age. So his name is Charlie. We went on a walk, i was walking Denver someone else was walking Tucker(before this i took him on a 10 minute walk to get him started). Charlie walked around the corner and gently met Denver, meanwhile Tucker started barking, lunging and trying to bite Charlie. Then he started trying to do it to a kid near the park. He was walked to the other side of the street until we got home... We told him no tried pulling him away, redirecting him. It didnt work... We are going to call up the trainer we use, but i cant do reactive dogs. I cant we go camping and are always traveling, hiking, walking, outside in the summer. I just dont know what to do? What do orhers do with reactive dogs. At this point im lost at what to do. We have never once had a reactive dog.
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Me to... I just dont know what happened to start this. I did early socializing, training, short walks to get him use to people and dogs.Sorry to hear this happened. I hope the trainer has some useful advice for tucker and you..
Did you let them meet on leash? If so, that needs to stop asap. Even super friendly dogs should never meet another on leash. Other than that you need the help of a professional to help you work through his issues. Without seeing his behavior in person no one should be offering any advice on how to remedy the actual reactivity.
So Billie is leash re-active. Its been a struggle to say the least. We live in a small downtown area in New England with lots of walkers and other dogs. It can be really frustrating and disheartening, trust me, I know. I wish I had answers for you but I know some things that have worked for us is the "Heel" command and "look". I worked with a trainer and I've seen 100% improvement with Billie. Before we couldnt walk by another dog with out her flipping out and lunging. Now when I see another dog and I cant cross the street or avoid, I get a treat ready in my left hand and I start "heel" like were in the training ring. I will walk her in the heel with the treat at her nose so she focuses on the treat, if shes not paying attention I'll say look and distract her while we walk. This gets her more excited about the treat then the other dog ( Billie is super food motivated). I know some people will make their dog sit and stay and focus on them till the distraction passes, but with Billie, this doesnt work. It takes time and dedication but you can get through it. Another thing we have done is we never ever greet dogs we don't know. I am probably known as the grumpy golden owner in my neighborhood because I literally say "Sorry we don't say hi"(which is mostly a benefit for me since I don't wanna talk when I'm listening to my audiobooks lol). If we are going on a walk with another dog I will make the owner start and Billie and I will gradually introduce on completely neutral ground. Billie still has her moments for sure but for the most part if I can distract her before the problem happens and keep her walking by she is fine. I swear she is so proud of herself when she doesnt react either she just looks at me with this big goofy face like "Look Ma! I Did it! I Didn't React!" Because I don't think deep down she wants to be anxious like that but she just is. I always make sure to tell her what a good job she did and how proud I am after we get pass the situation too. I am not sure this is helpful but I know it makes her happy.
I am not a trainer or anything these are just somethings we've done to control the situation. If you want to privately message me and have Instagram there are some great accounts, I follow with lots of tips. Some I agree with some I don't but they're interesting and some have been helpful to me. Best of luck and don't get to down on yourself or Tucker. You'll work through it together!
I am not a trainer or anything these are just somethings we've done to control the situation. If you want to privately message me and have Instagram there are some great accounts, I follow with lots of tips. Some I agree with some I don't but they're interesting and some have been helpful to me. Best of luck and don't get to down on yourself or Tucker. You'll work through it together!
Don't panic. Take a breath. He's a young dog and this is not yet an established behavior and there is every possibility that with the help of a good trainer you can nip this behavior in the bud (the sooner you do it, the easier it will be). For now, carefully manage his interactions with other dogs (and the world in general) to protect him from any further negative interactions. Do your best to stay calm, relaxed and confident yourself. And do get a trainer involved sooner rather than later.
FWIW, I also had a dog reactive dog. I think it started when, unbeknownst to me, our pet sitter was allowing her dog (whom she was bringing to our mid-day letouts to play with my dog) to "correct" my dog for trying to hump her. Problem was, the corrections were hard enough to draw blood and the more my dog was "corrected" the more anxious/aroused he became and the more he defaulted to trying to mount her and the more she corrected him. By the time we noticed the scabs on him and asked the pet sitter to stop bringing her dog, we already had a dog that was somewhat anxious/reactive around dogs AND a dog that was a problematic humper. To make matters worse, he started running the fence when he saw the dogs next door out. Not knowing that this was also reactivity (and not knowing much about reactivity at the time), I reacted with a lot of yelling and physical corrections... which likely just confirmed for my dog that other dogs weren't safe (and their presence, to my dog, made his momma angry and unpredictable). By the time I recognized what was going on and got some help and training, it was hard to overcome the reactivity. I eventually neutered him (which helped a bit with the humping), and I was able to get him comfortable enough with show environments to earn his Rally Excellent title, but I never felt comfortable running him in an agility trial, and even in classes there was a lot of management going on.
All of which is to say - Good for you in recognizing the early signs of a potential issues and committing to addressing it sooner rather than later!
FWIW, I also had a dog reactive dog. I think it started when, unbeknownst to me, our pet sitter was allowing her dog (whom she was bringing to our mid-day letouts to play with my dog) to "correct" my dog for trying to hump her. Problem was, the corrections were hard enough to draw blood and the more my dog was "corrected" the more anxious/aroused he became and the more he defaulted to trying to mount her and the more she corrected him. By the time we noticed the scabs on him and asked the pet sitter to stop bringing her dog, we already had a dog that was somewhat anxious/reactive around dogs AND a dog that was a problematic humper. To make matters worse, he started running the fence when he saw the dogs next door out. Not knowing that this was also reactivity (and not knowing much about reactivity at the time), I reacted with a lot of yelling and physical corrections... which likely just confirmed for my dog that other dogs weren't safe (and their presence, to my dog, made his momma angry and unpredictable). By the time I recognized what was going on and got some help and training, it was hard to overcome the reactivity. I eventually neutered him (which helped a bit with the humping), and I was able to get him comfortable enough with show environments to earn his Rally Excellent title, but I never felt comfortable running him in an agility trial, and even in classes there was a lot of management going on.
All of which is to say - Good for you in recognizing the early signs of a potential issues and committing to addressing it sooner rather than later!
Well we had a bad experience today, im upset and Tucker knows it. A met a person who had a lab. Denver met him before and hit it off playing. This lab is 6 or 7 month old super close to Tuckers age. So his name is Charlie. We went on a walk, i was walking Denver someone else was walking Tucker(before this i took him on a 10 minute walk to get him started). Charlie walked around the corner and gently met Denver, meanwhile Tucker started barking, lunging and trying to bite Charlie. Then he started trying to do it to a kid near the park. He was walked to the other side of the street until we got home... We told him no tried pulling him away, redirecting him. It didnt work... We are going to call up the trainer we use, but i cant do reactive dogs. I cant we go camping and are always traveling, hiking, walking, outside in the summer. I just dont know what to do? What do orhers do with reactive dogs. At this point im lost at what to do. We have never once had a reactive dog.
Me to... I just dont know what happened to start this. I did early socializing, training, short walks to get him use to people and dogs.
I agree with myluckypenny on both accounts: (1) no greetings on leash, never, not ever, for any reason, and (2) it's impossible to give advice without seeing the actual behaviour.Did you let them meet on leash? If so, that needs to stop asap. Even super friendly dogs should never meet another on leash. Other than that you need the help of a professional to help you work through his issues. Without seeing his behavior in person no one should be offering any advice on how to remedy the actual reactivity.
However, I would say this: There's a myth among dog owners that dogs need doggie friends. They don't. Dogs are perfectly happy to do stuff with their humans. A lot of the types of problems you're currently encountering - reactivity, lunging, etc. - are caused when "socialization" becomes focused mainly on meeting and playing with other dogs, and when young pups are allowed, if not encouraged, to meet and greet and interact endlessly with random strange dogs, both on and off leash. Dogs don't automatically like all other dogs, nor should they be expected to do so. And the vast majority of dogs you're likely to encounter at random, on the street or in a park, are probably untrained and are handled by people who have no understanding of dog behaviour.
It's important for a dog to be able to encounter other dogs calmly. The advice in the earlier post by laurab, to teach a dog to focus on its human when in the presence of other dogs, is spot on. If you do this early on, it eliminates lunging and pulling and barking because the pup develops the reflex to look at its human whenever it sees another dog. On the other hand, if you allow or encourage greetings, the pup develops the reflex to pull towards other dogs instead of staying with its human. That's fine when the pup is young and benefits from the "puppy tolerance" of adult dogs. But that "tolerance" runs out when the pup reaches six months of age or so, and that is when the problems can start. And while pulling towards other dogs seems cute when the pup weighs 20 lbs., it's not quite as fun when the dog weighs 70 lbs and has become a pent-up bundle of muscle and energy. That type of energy - pulling and lunging - can be very off-putting to other dogs.
Anyway. Your dog is still very young and is by no means a lost cause. I hope you and your trainer can find a solution, and I wish you the best. Let us know how it goes.
No, i dont let him meet other dogs on leash. I set up playdates, with dogs i know and have been around.Did you let them meet on leash? If so, that needs to stop asap. Even super friendly dogs should never meet another on leash. Other than that you need the help of a professional to help you work through his issues. Without seeing his behavior in person no one should be offering any advice on how to remedy the actual reactivity.
He knows heel, once again this morning on the walk another lab was outside on a leash. We were walking by, he is super food motivated like anything for food. I tried ditracting him, walking the other way, getting him to try and listen, nothing. Thanks though i will continue trying.So Billie is leash re-active. Its been a struggle to say the least. We live in a small downtown area in New England with lots of walkers and other dogs. It can be really frustrating and disheartening, trust me, I know. I wish I had answers for you but I know some things that have worked for us is the "Heel" command and "look". I worked with a trainer and I've seen 100% improvement with Billie. Before we couldnt walk by another dog with out her flipping out and lunging. Now when I see another dog and I cant cross the street or avoid, I get a treat ready in my left hand and I start "heel" like were in the training ring. I will walk her in the heel with the treat at her nose so she focuses on the treat, if shes not paying attention I'll say look and distract her while we walk. This gets her more excited about the treat then the other dog ( Billie is super food motivated). I know some people will make their dog sit and stay and focus on them till the distraction passes, but with Billie, this doesnt work. It takes time and dedication but you can get through it. Another thing we have done is we never ever greet dogs we don't know. I am probably known as the grumpy golden owner in my neighborhood because I literally say "Sorry we don't say hi"(which is mostly a benefit for me since I don't wanna talk when I'm listening to my audiobooks lol). If we are going on a walk with another dog I will make the owner start and Billie and I will gradually introduce on completely neutral ground. Billie still has her moments for sure but for the most part if I can distract her before the problem happens and keep her walking by she is fine. I swear she is so proud of herself when she doesnt react either she just looks at me with this big goofy face like "Look Ma! I Did it! I Didn't React!" Because I don't think deep down she wants to be anxious like that but she just is. I always make sure to tell her what a good job she did and how proud I am after we get pass the situation too. I am not sure this is helpful but I know it makes her happy.
I am not a trainer or anything these are just somethings we've done to control the situation. If you want to privately message me and have Instagram there are some great accounts, I follow with lots of tips. Some I agree with some I don't but they're interesting and some have been helpful to me. Best of luck and don't get to down on yourself or Tucker. You'll work through it together!
Thank you! Im sorry about your experience. He hasnt had a bad experience with dogs or people that i know of. now could he of before we brought him home, i dont know. I want to stop it know, a relative has a reactive pit collie mix, her trainer was so helpful. now they just have to watch her around other little dogs. I am in contact with the trainer that i took Tucker to, she was busy at the moment so i sent her a email and she said she would call me later.Don't panic. Take a breath. He's a young dog and this is not yet an established behavior and there is every possibility that with the help of a good trainer you can nip this behavior in the bud (the sooner you do it, the easier it will be). For now, carefully manage his interactions with other dogs (and the world in general) to protect him from any further negative interactions. Do your best to stay calm, relaxed and confident yourself. And do get a trainer involved sooner rather than later.
FWIW, I also had a dog reactive dog. I think it started when, unbeknownst to me, our pet sitter was allowing her dog (whom she was bringing to our mid-day letouts to play with my dog) to "correct" my dog for trying to hump her. Problem was, the corrections were hard enough to draw blood and the more my dog was "corrected" the more anxious/aroused he became and the more he defaulted to trying to mount her and the more she corrected him. By the time we noticed the scabs on him and asked the pet sitter to stop bringing her dog, we already had a dog that was somewhat anxious/reactive around dogs AND a dog that was a problematic humper. To make matters worse, he started running the fence when he saw the dogs next door out. Not knowing that this was also reactivity (and not knowing much about reactivity at the time), I reacted with a lot of yelling and physical corrections... which likely just confirmed for my dog that other dogs weren't safe (and their presence, to my dog, made his momma angry and unpredictable). By the time I recognized what was going on and got some help and training, it was hard to overcome the reactivity. I eventually neutered him (which helped a bit with the humping), and I was able to get him comfortable enough with show environments to earn his Rally Excellent title, but I never felt comfortable running him in an agility trial, and even in classes there was a lot of management going on.
All of which is to say - Good for you in recognizing the early signs of a potential issues and committing to addressing it sooner rather than later!
It will take time but I know you guys will do it! Best of luck!He knows heel, once again this morning on the walk another lab was outside on a leash. We were walking by, he is super food motivated like anything for food. I tried ditracting him, walking the other way, getting him to try and listen, nothing. Thanks though i will continue trying.
Thank you! Leash greetings are a no. I never go to dog park, or areas with lots of dogs. I only do play dates with dogs i know, and they are always being watched. I cancelled our play date with a dog for today, as i dont know how he would react. I hope we can find a solution before July.I agree with myluckypenny on both accounts: (1) no greetings on leash, never, not ever, for any reason, and (2) it's impossible to give advice without seeing the actual behaviour.
However, I would say this: There's a myth among dog owners that dogs need doggie friends. They don't. Dogs are perfectly happy to do stuff with their humans. A lot of the types of problems you're currently encountering - reactivity, lunging, etc. - are caused when "socialization" becomes focused mainly on meeting and playing with other dogs, and when young pups are allowed, if not encouraged, to meet and greet and interact endlessly with random strange dogs, both on and off leash. Dogs don't automatically like all other dogs, nor should they be expected to do so. And the vast majority of dogs you're likely to encounter at random, on the street or in a park, are probably untrained and are handled by people who have no understanding of dog behaviour.
It's important for a dog to be able to encounter other dogs calmly. The advice in the earlier post by laurab, to teach a dog to focus on its human when in the presence of other dogs, is spot on. If you do this early on, it eliminates lunging and pulling and barking because the pup develops the reflex to look at its human whenever it sees another dog. On the other hand, if you allow or encourage greetings, the pup develops the reflex to pull towards other dogs instead of staying with its human. That's fine when the pup is young and benefits from the "puppy tolerance" of adult dogs. But that "tolerance" runs out when the pup reaches six months of age or so, and that is when the problems can start. And while pulling towards other dogs seems cute when the pup weighs 20 lbs., it's not quite as fun when the dog weighs 70 lbs and has become a pent-up bundle of muscle and energy. That type of energy - pulling and lunging - can be very off-putting to other dogs.
Anyway. Your dog is still very young and is by no means a lost cause. I hope you and your trainer can find a solution, and I wish you the best. Let us know how it goes.
Cancel all of your future play dates. Dogs do not need to play with other dogs. Take the time you would have spent at the play date and use it to train focus and obedience.Thank you! Leash greetings are a no. I never go to dog park, or areas with lots of dogs. I only do play dates with dogs i know, and they are always being watched. I cancelled our play date with a dog for today, as i dont know how he would react. I hope we can find a solution before July.
I had a dog that was protective. He heeled perfectly, and he had the best focus. Those two things, along with a solid down stay were absolutely imperative. I traveled with him. We have an RV so campgrounds, hiking, heck even Disney World. All I needed was for him to focus on me and we could get through anything.
When on a crowded sidewalk I'd have him in heel, with my leash shortened up, I'd say "with me, watch me" as we passed people. If I needed to I'd step off the sidewalk and put him in a sit while saying "watch me". If he focused on me, and ignored the passerby, he got a very high value treat. They learn really quickly with consistent training.
Every time he gets away with this bratty behavior it is going to set your training back. I'm not there with your dog so I don't feel comfortable giving you anymore advice then to tell you what worked for me. I'd join a group training class so he was exposed to other people and dogs in a controlled setting.
A trainer that I think a lot of told me to always be the most exciting thing in my dogs world. She was right! If you're the most exciting thing you can always keep their focus on you.
I would stop the play dates. Dogs don't need friends. what dogs need is to be able to maintain focus when around other dogs/people/kids/etc. I have a dog reactive dog. Meaning, if a strange new dog came up to her, she would attack, no questions asked. This same dog can be around other dogs no problem, my mom owns one of the busiest campgrounds in the state, full of other dogs, and she's fine. Just don't expect her to be nice and play with a new dog.
This may help - FDSA is an online dog training academy which specializes in R+ methods in case you might be interested.
www.fenzidogsportsacademy.com
Amy Cook, PhD - Walking with Reactive Dogs!
Date: Thursday, May 25th, 2023
Do you have a dog who barks and lunges on walks, overreacting to the other dogs and people in the world? Maybe he’s enthusiastic and frustrated and wants to greet, or maybe she’s feeling pressured and defensive and wants everyone to go away! It can be hard to walk a dog that is triggered into a reaction by so many things in the world. In this webinar, you’ll learn the skills that will get you through the rough spots without the blow up, and master the fine art of the magnet walk and while you develop strategy that can help get you back out and about! Let’s get your dog walking with you again!
Fenzi Dog Sports Academy - Webinars
Online dog training classes for obedience, rally, agility, tracking, nosework, dog behavior, freestyle, and foundation skills.
Amy Cook, PhD - Walking with Reactive Dogs!
Date: Thursday, May 25th, 2023
Do you have a dog who barks and lunges on walks, overreacting to the other dogs and people in the world? Maybe he’s enthusiastic and frustrated and wants to greet, or maybe she’s feeling pressured and defensive and wants everyone to go away! It can be hard to walk a dog that is triggered into a reaction by so many things in the world. In this webinar, you’ll learn the skills that will get you through the rough spots without the blow up, and master the fine art of the magnet walk and while you develop strategy that can help get you back out and about! Let’s get your dog walking with you again!
Thats the only one we had set up. Ill try that, he usally watches me until a distraction comes up. He was in 2 group classes, a puppy class, then obedience class. The play date we had set up was with another Golden from the obedience class.Cancel all of your future play dates. Dogs do not need to play with other dogs. Take the time you would have spent at the play date and use it to train focus and obedience.
I had a dog that was protective. He heeled perfectly, and he had the best focus. Those two things, along with a solid down stay were absolutely imperative. I traveled with him. We have an RV so campgrounds, hiking, heck even Disney World. All I needed was for him to focus on me and we could get through anything.
When on a crowded sidewalk I'd have him in heel, with my leash shortened up, I'd say "with me, watch me" as we passed people. If I needed to I'd step off the sidewalk and put him in a sit while saying "watch me". If he focused on me, and ignored the passerby, he got a very high value treat. They learn really quickly with consistent training.
Every time he gets away with this bratty behavior it is going to set your training back. I'm not there with your dog so I don't feel comfortable giving you anymore advice then to tell you what worked for me. I'd join a group training class so he was exposed to other people and dogs in a controlled setting.
A trainer that I think a lot of told me to always be the most exciting thing in my dogs world. She was right! If you're the most exciting thing you can always keep their focus on you.
Ill look into this. Although Tuckers obedience class trainer is super helpful!This may help - FDSA is an online dog training academy which specializes in R+ methods in case you might be interested.
Fenzi Dog Sports Academy - Webinars
Online dog training classes for obedience, rally, agility, tracking, nosework, dog behavior, freestyle, and foundation skills.
Amy Cook, PhD - Walking with Reactive Dogs!
Date: Thursday, May 25th, 2023
Do you have a dog who barks and lunges on walks, overreacting to the other dogs and people in the world? Maybe he’s enthusiastic and frustrated and wants to greet, or maybe she’s feeling pressured and defensive and wants everyone to go away! It can be hard to walk a dog that is triggered into a reaction by so many things in the world. In this webinar, you’ll learn the skills that will get you through the rough spots without the blow up, and master the fine art of the magnet walk and while you develop strategy that can help get you back out and about! Let’s get your dog walking with you again!
Use a gentle leader on walks. That will stop the lunging behavior but also try to maintain distance to other dogs and no meeting on leash as others have mentioned. You can eventually transition out of the gentle leader with training and desensitization around other dogs. Your trainer can help with this but in the meantime the gentle leader will prevent tucker from practicing bad behavior. Also a training class with other dogs once a week (where they practice obedience but don't meet) can help tucker learn to listen to you around other dogs and people.
Our pup is 6 months old and leash reactive but the gentle leader has stopped that.and she continues to improve her focus on us vs other dogs and people.
Our pup is 6 months old and leash reactive but the gentle leader has stopped that.and she continues to improve her focus on us vs other dogs and people.
Don't set up playdates with other classmates. Then they get to class and want to play with their friends instead of listed to you. I know it's tempting when it's another golden but it won't help Tucker's training at all.Thats the only one we had set up. Ill try that, he usally watches me until a distraction comes up. He was in 2 group classes, a puppy class, then obedience class. The play date we had set up was with another Golden from the obedience class.
I do think playdates with other dogs not in the class are ok from time to time, but maybe not for now.
We train our dogs to be part of our pack!
They are pack animals so that training is important to the long-term behavior of the dog. When we start exposing them to socialize with other dogs, from other packs, they will eventually react. When you do this, it confuses your dog on who he/she is and what pack he/she belongs too.
I suggest you....get off the 'my dog needs another dog in his life' story. ...unless you buy another dog of your own who will them become a pack member. Then your current pup will have that dog you want him to have....of course they may not 'hit it off' when they try to work out the dominance thing....but that is another story!
They are pack animals so that training is important to the long-term behavior of the dog. When we start exposing them to socialize with other dogs, from other packs, they will eventually react. When you do this, it confuses your dog on who he/she is and what pack he/she belongs too.
I suggest you....get off the 'my dog needs another dog in his life' story. ...unless you buy another dog of your own who will them become a pack member. Then your current pup will have that dog you want him to have....of course they may not 'hit it off' when they try to work out the dominance thing....but that is another story!
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