lovemesideways

I find myself in this situation fairly often. I'll be at a dog park(with friends or with my own dogs), and I'll see 2 dogs going towards each other. Reading their body language I can tell there will be some kind of tension or a fight. I don't really know exactly how to act in these situations. What are ways to disrupt the tension between 2 dogs Before they fight?

Sent you the details of the school Clyde

That would be a really great idea, except you would have to make sure it was regulated and all reviews where checked out and authenticated. So someone who just happens to be pissed of at a certain vet or trainer doesn't make up a story about them abusing their dog. I'm doing my best to inform people of this class, but I can only go so far.

Anyone looking for puppy classes, or who recommends them to people who live anywhere around this area, Please PM me so I can warn you away from a horrible puppy class near here.

Couldn't this also be a case of, A dog who is completely unsuited to the role of leader, felt that is had to take up the mantle. Since its owner was so obviously failing. This creates a unstable reck of a dog. When the owner shows the dog that it is capable of being leader in ways the dog can understand (ie. Correct body language, clear and consistent training and leadership) The dog is Relieved to give up this mantle of being the top dog, because it wants to be a underling, thats what most domestic dogs have been bred to be happy with! With this change of status, the dog become a lot calmer and happier. Therefore, proving the Hierarchy?

Completely agree. Let the breeder choose! With my boy Rover, we talked to the breeder and said, Here is what we want in a dog. Breeder replied, Yep I have the perfect pup for you! He is exactly what we wanted, calm, happy, loves everyone and everything in life. In regards to having your smaller breed dog alone with the pup, if Molly is a bit scared, then leaving her alone for hours with the puppy would not be advisable. Have the pup outside (as long as your yard is completely secure, safe, fenced in, plenty of shade and lots of water) and the smaller dog inside. Or if your not going to be out for that long, have them both inside and crated.

I start my new job so I cant go! Very sad Hopefully I can come next time!

Why? There are a lot of theories as to why the do it. Its a unknown environment so the pack status changes. Or it could simple be that the dog has never been taught what to do on a lead, so pulling is just what they've done all their life. For you that may be fine but I for example, find the unacceptable in a dog I walk. If I'm walking a dog then I demand that they always keep one eye on me. They can sniff and romp around all they like ONLY if they stay with the boundary of the leash. They never pull on that lead. They do what I suggest because thats what the rules of the leash are. Theres no negotiation. Because by allowing your dog to react and be aggressive. They're succeeding in what they think is the right course of action to take when they see another dog. If you Allow them to react this way, or take the wrong course of action, like petting and trying to "sooth" the dog, your most likely going to increase that behaviour. Then what happens, you become afraid of seeing dogs, you get tense, in response your dog gets tense. You see someone in the distance, you freak out thinking your dog will try and attack. Your dog feels this fear and thinks "Oh shit there is something to be afraid of!! I Was right" Rarara bark bark lunge bark And then from there its all down hill. Its not just about this one dog they might see that they'll never see again. Its still a "person with a dog on lead" so any time they see a "person with a dog on lead" it can get the same reaction, it doesn't have to be the same person with the same dog. Say for example, you have a fearful dog who reacts to other dogs with aggression, because of his fear. Every time he gets within a certain distance of another dog he goes off, Barking lunging snarling. You would think that if you walked past that same dog, every day, at that same distance, he would eventually learn that theres no threat? Only if you don't let him react! Otherwise, if you could speak to that dog, and you said "Hey mate, you've gone past this same dog, every day, at this same distance, why do you keep reacting, theres obviously no threat?" The dogs reply "Because my reaction is the only thing that keeps me safe!" They believe that that basically, if they don't strike first, then the other dog will attack, and the only reason they're safe, is because of their reaction. Its not about wanting first dibs on something. Or about wanting to get somewhere first. Its that the dog doesn't have any respect for the leash and what it means. They think, this leash is just some stupid thing my humans attachs to me that means I have to pull a bit harder. Dont know if I answered any questions or just blabbed on a bit about nothing! Oh well

*applauds K9 Force* Excellent. :D

As huski mentioned. Changing direction is a great way to teach a dog that pulling gets them no where fast. All you do is put them on a lead, and flat collar or martingale. I prefer starting with a flat collar. Then go for a stroll, the very second he starts to pull in any direction, Go the other way! If he pulls out to the left, then march off to the right. If he pulls in front, turn around and go the other way. What your teaching him is that, if he wants to go somewhere, he cant pull. You can use other dogs as distractions, get a friend with a dog to stand up the street. Start walking towards them, the second your Now what you did with your husband and the treats sounded great. Except then when he started pulling to go to the car, you let him! You cant have him being allowed to pull in one situation and not in another. You should have started the same thing all over again, the second he starts to pull just turn around and walk the other way. Its not a case of picking the tool that quick fixes the problem, you need to teach the puppy what it is you want. In this case, manners on lead. Theres no stage where they just miraculously stop pulling, theres no age where they turn into a miracle dog that always behaves. You have to Teach them not to pull, otherwise how are they supposed to know what we want ?

http://www.thegroomingschool.com.au/ Its up in Dural.

I don't know about "training centres", I do however know of various boarding kennels that offer in house training while your dog is boarded with them. The only one I would recommend is "Pet Resorts" in Dural, Sydney. http://www.petresortsaustralia.com/

Interesting post, just happens to be what I'm currently thinking about. My next dog is going to be a border collie, whom I want to use for agility or obedience work. So I've been churning through a lot of ideas on how to make sure than as he/she grows up, I will be the main focus of all fun in the world. At the same time I want the pup to be well socialised with all other dogs and people.

Have emailed you !

I have no idea about feeding, maybe ask the vet? Just another idea for getting him used to you, Get a bunch of treats, something super tasty delicious, sausage, chicken, whatever the dog will love. Every time you walk by, without looking at him, without stopping or slowing down. Call out in a very low and gentle voice "hey Turbo" and toss him a treat.

I've recently heard about this method from a "behaviour specialist" who practices the "t-touch method" and I have to say that what I heard from this person made it sound extremely silly and far fetched. With a lot of talk that sounded to me like she was thinking of these dogs as little furry children. Would love someone to give me some Real info on this method and what's it about. I've researched around and I cant seem to find anything that really explains how its supposed to work. I'm always keen to learn anything new so please someone point me in the right direction !

I think anyone with half a mind can see that its not the dogs fault, let alone the breed of dog. Its a fact that some dogs are more strong willed than others, but its also a fact that the owner is the one who brings up the dog. The owner makes the dog, and he/she should be responsible for its actions. This is just another pathetic attempt by the government to try and look good. What they should be focusing on is educating the public about how to deal with strange dogs. How did this child get in alone with 4 strange dogs? Where was the mother or father or guardian of any kind? Im sure my Labrador could do plenty of harm to my 3 year old nephew, just by wagging his tail to hard and accidently knocking him over. Does this mean hes a savage beast who deserves to be killed? That his breed should be banned? No! It means I am a complete idiot for leaving my nephew alone with a dog.

1. By your OH opening the door, what you actually doing is giving the puppy the attention he wants. So hes learning that when he barks and carries on, Someone will open the door and give him attention. What you should do. Is when hes outside and barking away, just wait until he stops. When he stops, count for atleast 8 seconds, as soon as that happens, open the door, and give him a Load of praise. Then repeat the exercise. Shut the door, wait for the barking to stop, count for 8 seconds then Yay lots of praise. By doing the your puppy will learn that by Not barking hes actually getting the attention he wants. 2. You should make the crate the most incredibly wonderful and best place to be. Give him all his favourite treats in there, all his best toys. My labrador rushes to his crate as soon as he sees us getting a bone out for him. Also practicing the same exercise as leaving him outside will work as well. Put him in the crate, walk away, wait for the barking whining to stop. As soon as it does, open the door and give him lots of praise and treats.

You cant use a calm voice to tell a dog off. A puppy wont listen to your words and think "Oh gee mum said No, so I better stop." It has to be a sharp sudden sound Try Clapping your hands together accompanied by a loud "Ahah!". Also using a water pistol of some kind is effective, entice him to go for his usual pant attacking and when he moves in, shoot with the water pistol. Humping should Not be aloud. Are you going to puppy school? I would recommend it! Its a great learning experience for every puppy owner, good for socialisation and learning those helpful basic manners

Could someone PM me the brand name? Bit worried now! Will definetly be telling any and all of my dog friends.

You're referring to the scent training you witnessed? I wasn't there, but did the dog finish on a 'win' and did the dog receive his/her reward/s for that? Usually that is a game of tug or a 'jackpot' of food reward, depending on what the dog prefers. Yeah thats what I was refering too.(how did you know?) He didnt get anything that I saw. Maybe a single treat, but no jackpot, no big fuss or game. Just a put away. It was the very first time, and he did it perfectly so they put him away straight away. This is where I got the idea of a dog connecting this more with punishment than reward.

Yeah now that I think further on it, Sin binning isnt just the removal from the situation, its also the lead up, eg. the silence, the chuck into another room, the door slam. And the stopping while a dog is hot technique makes sense if you make a huge fuss over the dog and reward with a game like poodlefan said. What I saw was just a simple pat and then putting the dog away with no further fuss.

So I've been mulling over this idea for a few days so I thought I would post it and see what the general reaction is. Now, sin binning or a "time out" is basically removing the dog from a situation and putting them away for a moment. (Someone feel free to give me a better description because I’m sleepy and this one sounds lame even to me) For example, you’re playing with your puppy and he becomes overly excited. Your response to this is to give a sharp, No, when the puppy tries to bite you in excitement. Take the puppy and place him in a separate room with the door shut. You take him out again after a few minutes, play again; he becomes overly excited again, same consequence. So eventually the puppy realises, This behaviour equals the play time stopping and having to go away, but This behaviour means I get to stay right here and play all night!. Now in the NDTF course I’m doing (National Dog Training Federation for those who don’t know) there was this whole idea of stopping your training when a dogs working really "hot" (hot meaning, High level of drive). It wasn’t really talked about a lot, but from what I understood, a example of the technique would be, your training a scent detection dog, he’s doing really well, very high drive mode, so you stop while he’s "hot" and put him away. This keeps him wanting more and more, increasing the drive. My question. Wouldn’t this work in almost the same way as sin binning a dog. The dog would realise eventually that, when he’s doing this certain behaviour a lot, then he gets taken and put away, but when he doesn’t, he gets to stay out longer? Now I’ve never trained a dog with the second method, it’s just an idea I heard talked about. So anyone who has, I look forward to your thoughts! (I hope this actually makes sense to everyone and I don’t sound like a sleepy ranting crazy person)

I believe energy works in the way that if your feeling upset or angry, your dog can sense that. Your emotions cause certain reactions, so being calm means your dog will be calm. Being anxious will cause your dog to become anxious. Using energy to "control" a dog.. Sounds a bit Suss to me. Like shes trying to use normal training techniques and make them sound "unique" so she can get more moneys

I got Macca hes another of steves springers. Sooo beautiful Haven't gotten my assesment results, when did you get them?