Exercising Reactive Dogs Thread

[hankdog]

I have a waist bag that I've removed the plastic snaps from and tie in a knot. Since I carry enough treats to solve half of Africa's food crisis I need it anyway. Jakes harness is connected to the this and then his martingale collar is connected to the leash in my hands. I think it's important to have two points of connection just in case something breaks. I feel confident that he can't get away from me if I die on our walks although the ambulance people may have a problem. He did once drag me a few meters when I slipped once, tough little dog.

It's great that Stella recalled although losing the plot for a second was a bit naughty.

[BC Crazy]

Hankdog you've cracked me up & I'm laughing which beats the hell out of the state I was in this morning. And I'm exactly the same regarding the amount of treats I tend to carry ;)

I'm going to have to come up with a 2nd point of connection with Stella as I sit here nursing my left hand that has turned a delightful shade of purple. I need to confident she cannot run off on me again as next time she may not be in any state to show off her brillant recall skills in you know what I mean

[BC Crazy]

I have been thinking maybe as her collar has 2 rings on it, II could attach a 2nd leash & connect it to my waist. Or I could put her harness on & again attach the leash to my waist.

Edited May 10, 2014 by BC Crazy

[hankdog]

I'd go the harness. I think two completely separate systems is a good idea. Even the best collar can break and in the wrong place that could be a disaster.

Very proud of my dog. We have had a disaster off leash encounters week culminating in a dog turning up to attack my chooks yesterday. I called Tubby and he ran to me with the stray chasing him. I copped a small puncture grabbing the dog but after losing a chook to a dog last week I was pretty ropable.

[BC Crazy]

Geez, hope you are OK Hankdog. Go Jakey That's a great response from him. He could of gone right off in a situation like that HD. Terrific improvement there

[raineth]

Under low distraction (around the house/quiet walk) if I just feel like getting her to look at me/having her full attention she will do so when I say her name as I've tried builing a strong link with name=mum wants my attention for something. If she is distracted though I've been working on LAT so when I see her look at something (not necessarily something she's reactive to but just something that's caught her eye and might lead to her getting distracted/excited) then I'll I generally say her name rather than look so I don't think I'm really doing LAT right :/ I use look more for when I want eye contact preceding a command for example I am trying to get her into the habit of stopping and sitting every time we have to cross a road and even though she'll generally sit if I just say the word I prefer eye contact when I give the command so I will say 'look' before I give the sit command or when I'm at obedience training and we are about to start going through a command.

I also have a 'leave it' command that is relatively solid if we are walking and she stops to sniff when I don't want her to/when it's poo or something dead or if we are at the park and a dog comes up to say hi but I want to keep walking I also use 'leave it'.

SO long story short I don't think I really have a solid behavior interrupter except perhaps a loud 'NO' which I use if she gets too hyped up in play and starts mouthing or if she tries to get too close to something I am eating or if she's barking. It works most of the time but if the behavior is really self rewarding like chasing the birds it's not that effective.

Behavioural interrupter's work very well.

I noticed you spoke about your 'leave it' command being pretty good. You could always build it up to be used in this situation. For instance, right now it sounds like she understands it very well when it comes to sniffing, but I think you could do with building it up a bit before using it on birds, which sound like they are a much higher level of distraction for her.

Does she like toys? You can practice 'leave it' with a toy she likes, when she turns away from it have a big party with her using another toy that you've had hidden on you. Because what she likes about birds is chasing them (I assume) it's probably a good idea for your reward for leaving them to be an exciting high-energy game, rather than just a treat for example. You could still incorporate treats into it though. All I'm saying is that if she wants to go after the birds because they are fun, show her that she can have fun with you instead :)

Ofcourse when you start practicing on real birds, try and make it easy by not being too close, but you've probably figured that already :)

Hankdog you've cracked me up & I'm laughing which beats the hell out of the state I was in this morning. And I'm exactly the same regarding the amount of treats I tend to carry ;)

I'm going to have to come up with a 2nd point of connection with Stella as I sit here nursing my left hand that has turned a delightful shade of purple. I need to confident she cannot run off on me again as next time she may not be in any state to show off her brillant recall skills in you know what I mean

Oh BC Crazy! So scary!

But it really stood out for me that she recalled to you That is so brilliant! Well done you!

I was going to suggest a walking belt as well (as others have). I was looking into them recently as Dr. Sophia Yin uses them a lot as they mean you can often treat faster.

Sorry about your hand, that really does sound nasty

[raineth]

I'd go the harness. I think two completely separate systems is a good idea. Even the best collar can break and in the wrong place that could be a disaster.

Very proud of my dog. We have had a disaster off leash encounters week culminating in a dog turning up to attack my chooks yesterday. I called Tubby and he ran to me with the stray chasing him. I copped a small puncture grabbing the dog but after losing a chook to a dog last week I was pretty ropable.

Far out! That is just amazing. Awful that you've had to deal with it, but a really fantastic response from Jake

Poor chooks, I hope that dog doesn't come back. I really think people who let their dogs off have just no idea what they get up to. Do you know the house he belongs to?

[BC Crazy]

Thanks Raineth, I nearly had a heart attack. Very close call. In hind sight I'm thrilled that she recalled back to my feet as fast as she took off. I've worked very hard with her on recall as she has always been so reactive my thinking was as least a very efficient recall will 'hopefully' get her out of trouble. This time it did I could do without the near disasters though

Black Dog have just brought out a Hands free leash system which looks great & I really like their gear, so it's on the shopping list.

Edited May 12, 2014 by BC Crazy

[raineth]

Yeah, I have been looking and looking because a lot of them don't look quite strong enough for a dog the size of mine. Sometimes having a giant size dog is most inconvenient :laugh:

I play this game with Digby where I toss a treat and he runs and gets it enthusiastically. I was playing it with him while I was wearing a doog walking belt and I accidentally threw the treat a bit far and the belt just snapped so easily!

But I think it won't be such a problem with a dog that's not quite as big :)

I'll share some links here for you to look at some of the ones I've found. I haven't bought mine yet as I can't make up my mind

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Umbilical-Belt-Handsfree-dog-leash/123746857672415

http://irondoggy.com/ <- this one has bungy cord in it though, so it would only be used as a back-up really. I was looking at it mainly for running and bushwalking.

https://www.windchill.com.au/WalkingBelt.html <- these guys are from Australia and make a lot of accessories for hiking etc with your dog.

http://www.buddysys.com/ <- these are the ones Dr Yin uses, I think they are very nifty :) but I don't think they'd be strong enough for Del if it came to it.

http://www.cardiocanine.com/ <- this one is the one that I'm leaning towards getting the most.

[BC Crazy]

I really like the iron doggy & the cardiocanine one. They both look really good. Have to have a rethink now. I want to get the right on for us as you do. Thanks for sharing you links :)

[hankdog]

I'm thinking that bit of bungee might act as a shock absorption if they lunge out and could be a good idea. I'm unable to make up my mind on the quick release snap. I've had one fail and if I'm onto the waistbelt then I'm in trouble and can't afford failure. I took the snap off my present one for that reason but if he's had a pull on it it takes forever to undo the know when I get home.

Can't believe council gave the dog I caught attacking my chickens back to the owners with no fine..... It's ok though because it didn't attack a person!!!!! Tell my dead little chook that.

[BC Crazy]

Poor little chicken

[persephone]

I made my own long leash walker thingy - luckily there are no neighbours to see ;)

One old car fan belt to fit

a loong length of plastic coated steel cable

two brass snap hooks with swivels

one strong largeish carabiner.

Find someone who is strong-has pliers,and can tie professional knots!!

Attach a snaphook to each end of your line .

clip caribiner onto fan belt ..slip fanbelt on so it rests comfortably around you, with plenty of free space - teh carabiner can then slide around ....

Attach one end to dog collar/harness ..and other to carabiner.

if knots are done properly - NO breakage !!!!

I have used the current one for years ....

[persephone]

BC Crazy ....

perhaps some of these ideas will catch your interest - for specialised leashes.

I will also suggest something which has been SO good for me - I have some arthritis in my thumbs ..and often find gripping things tricky .These glovesalso have made such a difference - and I gave dad a pair as well - his old hands are getting weak , and sensitive ..but now he is very happy with what he can now do with comfort :p)

link

link

link

link

[BC Crazy]

I'm thinking that bit of bungee might act as a shock absorption if they lunge out and could be a good idea. I'm unable to make up my mind on the quick release snap. I've had one fail and if I'm onto the waistbelt then I'm in trouble and can't afford failure. I took the snap off my present one for that reason but if he's had a pull on it it takes forever to undo the know when I get home.

Can't believe council gave the dog I caught attacking my chickens back to the owners with no fine..... It's ok though because it didn't attack a person!!!!! Tell my dead little chook that.

I have been using bungee type leads for a while now HD. They are a god send for me with hand issues especially. They take out all that hand & wrist jarring when your dog lungs or reacts to something. I haven't had any experience with hands free leashes yet but I must say the quick release button does worry me a bit. As you say we can't afford failure can we? The risks of malfunction are scary.

I can't believe they gave that dog back to the owners either with NO penilty. The dog killed.

[BC Crazy]

Thank you Persephone for your welcome ideas & links :) I have some informative reading to do.

You are very creative weaving magic with a fan belt pers.

I have had hand, wrist, & elbow prob's for 12 years now. Had them operated on 7 times to date & now Arthritis has set in unfortunately. I have limited feeling,movement & very little actual grip strength so it makes walking my dogs, well, very interesting at times.

Sorry OT for a second

Edited May 14, 2014 by BC Crazy

[raineth]

I really like the iron doggy & the cardiocanine one. They both look really good. Have to have a rethink now. I want to get the right on for us as you do. Thanks for sharing you links :)

No worries :) the thing that worries me with the cardiocanine is that no where can I find how it does up around your waist? I worry that it is Velcro... but surely not?

I'm thinking that bit of bungee might act as a shock absorption if they lunge out and could be a good idea. I'm unable to make up my mind on the quick release snap. I've had one fail and if I'm onto the waistbelt then I'm in trouble and can't afford failure. I took the snap off my present one for that reason but if he's had a pull on it it takes forever to undo the know when I get home.

Can't believe council gave the dog I caught attacking my chickens back to the owners with no fine..... It's ok though because it didn't attack a person!!!!! Tell my dead little chook that.

Poor chicken that is so sad and disappointing

I'm thinking that bit of bungee might act as a shock absorption if they lunge out and could be a good idea. I'm unable to make up my mind on the quick release snap. I've had one fail and if I'm onto the waistbelt then I'm in trouble and can't afford failure. I took the snap off my present one for that reason but if he's had a pull on it it takes forever to undo the know when I get home.

Can't believe council gave the dog I caught attacking my chickens back to the owners with no fine..... It's ok though because it didn't attack a person!!!!! Tell my dead little chook that.

I have been using bungee type leads for a while now HD. They are a god send for me with hand issues especially. They take out all that hand & wrist jarring when your dog lungs or reacts to something. I haven't had any experience with hands free leashes yet but I must say the quick release button does worry me a bit. As you say we can't afford failure can we? The risks of malfunction are scary.

I can't believe they gave that dog back to the owners either with NO penilty. The dog killed.

Oh good to hear about the bungy cord

I know what you guys are saying about the quick release, but at the same time it could be handy if a loose dog was actually attacking your dog. You wouldn't want to be attached to them in that situation as I imagine it would make it really hard to help them and you could even end up in a very dangerous position yourself?

arrgh so many variables!!!

[dididog]

Under low distraction (around the house/quiet walk) if I just feel like getting her to look at me/having her full attention she will do so when I say her name as I've tried builing a strong link with name=mum wants my attention for something. If she is distracted though I've been working on LAT so when I see her look at something (not necessarily something she's reactive to but just something that's caught her eye and might lead to her getting distracted/excited) then I'll I generally say her name rather than look so I don't think I'm really doing LAT right :/ I use look more for when I want eye contact preceding a command for example I am trying to get her into the habit of stopping and sitting every time we have to cross a road and even though she'll generally sit if I just say the word I prefer eye contact when I give the command so I will say 'look' before I give the sit command or when I'm at obedience training and we are about to start going through a command.

I also have a 'leave it' command that is relatively solid if we are walking and she stops to sniff when I don't want her to/when it's poo or something dead or if we are at the park and a dog comes up to say hi but I want to keep walking I also use 'leave it'.

SO long story short I don't think I really have a solid behavior interrupter except perhaps a loud 'NO' which I use if she gets too hyped up in play and starts mouthing or if she tries to get too close to something I am eating or if she's barking. It works most of the time but if the behavior is really self rewarding like chasing the birds it's not that effective.

Behavioural interrupter's work very well.

I noticed you spoke about your 'leave it' command being pretty good. You could always build it up to be used in this situation. For instance, right now it sounds like she understands it very well when it comes to sniffing, but I think you could do with building it up a bit before using it on birds, which sound like they are a much higher level of distraction for her.

Does she like toys? You can practice 'leave it' with a toy she likes, when she turns away from it have a big party with her using another toy that you've had hidden on you. Because what she likes about birds is chasing them (I assume) it's probably a good idea for your reward for leaving them to be an exciting high-energy game, rather than just a treat for example. You could still incorporate treats into it though. All I'm saying is that if she wants to go after the birds because they are fun, show her that she can have fun with you instead :)

Ofcourse when you start practicing on real birds, try and make it easy by not being too close, but you've probably figured that already :)

Thanks Raineth. Didi loves toys, she is more obsessed with food but she gets more excited about toys so I think I'll try it out and try strengthening her 'leave it' to cover super fun things like birds... in the mean time I'm going to be super vigilant to avoid getting my arm yanked out of its socket :laugh:

[raineth]

Hehe yes, I find arms work so much better in their sockets than out :D

Good luck with it! Let me know how you go. Del was very silly about birds for a while there, but she's very good about them now. She knows if she is on lead that chasing birds is not an option. I'm sure Didi will be the same before long :)

[dididog]

Thanks Raineth, I'll let you know how it goes :)