How do I stop my dog from losing her mind at the diving dock?

Hi! I took your dock diving course and was wondering if you have any other courses or resources on over arousal in sport dogs.

My dog Chance absolutely loves dock diving, but she gets so excited that as soon as we’re near the pool she starts barking, lunging, and pulling etc. She’s good at home and in most public places, but all of her training seems to disappear around the dock. By the time it’s her turn, she’s exhausted from working herself up.

She’ll pull until she chokes herself on a slip lead, so I have to use a prong collar just to safely get her to the dock. She’s also not interested in toys and only mildly interested in food before she jumps, and I try to avoid using much food anyway because if she throws up in the pool there’s a cleanup fee.

Do you have any courses you’d recommend or management tips? Right now we keep her crated with a raw marrow bone as far from the pool and other dogs as possible until it’s almost our turn, but it doesn’t seem to help.

Leerburg's Answer

I would do a combination of a few things. First, would be some counterconditioning. I would take my dog to the dock location and then leave. I would do this a few times. Sometimes I would get the dog out and do some obedience and engagement, and then put the dog back in the car and leave, sometimes I wouldn't even get the dog out of the car. We want to do this a number of times to start to condition the dog that just going to the location isn't always going to result in diving.

After that, I would start looking at capping and impulse control exercises as you approach the dock. This activity is so highly rewarding for the dog that I would start making the dog work for it with sits, downs, and heeling as you approach the dock and get up on the dock. The reward for all that obedience is getting to dive off the dock, I wouldn't worry about rewarding her with toys or food. If she can't comply with the obedience at the dock she goes back in the car and you leave and try again next time.

Give this a try and let us know how it goes for you.