March 14, 2026
How do I teach my dog impulse control so they stop chasing other animals?
Full Question:
Agape is a 55-pound, 3 year old laborador. I can't afford a fully-trained service dog, so I've taken her to group dog training classes. Have trained her several helpful skills as a mobility assistance dog (she knows how to press automatic door openers on buildings, to "brace" when I need help getting up off the floor, hand items to me when I drop them on the floor, pull off my socks, & retrieve objects I request). She needs to learn "impulse control" here in Florida, where LOTS of small lizards suddenly dart across the sidewalks, etc. Agape is powerful and fast -- goes after every one of them with no advance warning, cutting in front of me. I'm very afraid of being pulled over. I have osteoporosis and only weigh 115 lbs myself. Please tell me what to do, to fix this threat to my safety -- and her's. If she pulls away from me, we're in trouble, due to cars & trucks in the area. Thank you for all you do, to help people. I've referred many people to your website. 
Leerburg's Answer:
Hi Mary,
I reviewed your ticket and account history with us, so here is our advice: There are 2 schools of thought on how you can handle this situation. The first one you could try using the content and courses you already own and teach the dog using high value food rewards to "leave it" alone and be heavily reinforcing when the dog engages with you and ignores the distraction, in this case, the lizards. That said, this dog is already 3 years old now and has likely been practicing this behavior for a long time. As a self-reinforcing behavior, you need to apply positive punishment to counter the reinforcement the dog gets from chasing the lizards.
Since this dog is expected to be a service dog “crittering”, or chasing after prey animals, is completely unacceptable. We would use punishment in this case, using an ecollar to punish the interest in the other animals. It needs to be immediately followed up with praise when the dog returns to task. Prey drive is the issue here and it needs to be squashed in the dog, made more difficult by the dog's age.
The reality is, it’s about extinguishing the behavior. I think about tracking with a police K9. We do not want them distracted by critters, deer, etc. They learn early on they need to ignore those things. If the dog has strong prey drive or is simply has a stronger temperament, I’m not sure how effective redirecting the dogs focus will be. For a softer dog with less of a prey drive that approach may be all they need. I would set up scenarios where they will encounter lizards then utilize a prong collar or an e-collar. If they are using the e-collar they need to understand how to properly use it. When the dog shows the slightest interest in the lizard I would provide a strong correction. You could layer this with redirection to another fun engagement activity. Play with a tug for example.
We use these tools for the dog's safety, as you said, darting into the street is dangerous.
Reviewing your tickets, I see you aren't very comfortable using an e-collar. Knowing that, I'd recommend you check out our Remote Collar Master Class with Michael Ellis. That course will cover everything we are discussing here and show you how to properly introduce and use the collar for your preferred working style.
To be clear, before you ever put an e-collar on your dog, we recommend testing it on yourself. Once you feel what the Stim of an e-collar actually feels like, you will understand what your dog is experiencing.
I reviewed your ticket and account history with us, so here is our advice: There are 2 schools of thought on how you can handle this situation. The first one you could try using the content and courses you already own and teach the dog using high value food rewards to "leave it" alone and be heavily reinforcing when the dog engages with you and ignores the distraction, in this case, the lizards. That said, this dog is already 3 years old now and has likely been practicing this behavior for a long time. As a self-reinforcing behavior, you need to apply positive punishment to counter the reinforcement the dog gets from chasing the lizards.
Since this dog is expected to be a service dog “crittering”, or chasing after prey animals, is completely unacceptable. We would use punishment in this case, using an ecollar to punish the interest in the other animals. It needs to be immediately followed up with praise when the dog returns to task. Prey drive is the issue here and it needs to be squashed in the dog, made more difficult by the dog's age.
The reality is, it’s about extinguishing the behavior. I think about tracking with a police K9. We do not want them distracted by critters, deer, etc. They learn early on they need to ignore those things. If the dog has strong prey drive or is simply has a stronger temperament, I’m not sure how effective redirecting the dogs focus will be. For a softer dog with less of a prey drive that approach may be all they need. I would set up scenarios where they will encounter lizards then utilize a prong collar or an e-collar. If they are using the e-collar they need to understand how to properly use it. When the dog shows the slightest interest in the lizard I would provide a strong correction. You could layer this with redirection to another fun engagement activity. Play with a tug for example.
We use these tools for the dog's safety, as you said, darting into the street is dangerous.
Reviewing your tickets, I see you aren't very comfortable using an e-collar. Knowing that, I'd recommend you check out our Remote Collar Master Class with Michael Ellis. That course will cover everything we are discussing here and show you how to properly introduce and use the collar for your preferred working style.
To be clear, before you ever put an e-collar on your dog, we recommend testing it on yourself. Once you feel what the Stim of an e-collar actually feels like, you will understand what your dog is experiencing.
User Response:
You are the absolute BEST. God Bless All of You. My yellow lab has low prey drive, because she's a "fraidy cat" even if a baby Junebug lands on her foot. Once, a cat leered at her through a glass window, which caused her to hang her head & back up, retreating. But fast moving lizards trigger a knee-jerk reaction in her, which is as fast as lightning. The part that scares me is her sheer size. I weigh 115 lbs, and she weighs 60. I'll take your suggestions. THANK YOU Very Much for such a thorough answer AND for checking out my "history" with the dog and Leerburg.
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