Hi all, I am new to the forum but have been using Leerburg DVD's to help train my dogs. I could really do with some help and input at the moment though.

I have a problem in that my dog which is an 18 month old castrated male Alaskan Husky (a mix of all sorts) goes berserk when he sees other dogs. He cannot pass other dogs without trying to get to them - jumping and flipping at the end of the lead.

He is not aggressive but his frustration when he is not allowed to play with every dog turns to growling and other dogs often react very badly to him - he has been attacked twice in the past 6 months.

I use beef burgers or cheese (which are really high value treats for him) to distract him while I walk past dogs but it does not always work.

He has an extremely high prey drive and more energy than any dog I have ever known, he gets plenty (loads and loads) of exercise, training and is generally very happy but is bonkers for other dogs.

Getting his attention when there are other dogs around is impossible, I use a hard pop on the lead if he ignores me but that just drives him even higher into his excited state.

This is making walking him tough and making him a target for dog aggression, plus I can't walk him with my lovely well behaved mastiff as he causes such a commotion when other dogs are around.

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Suzie

Welcome!

QUOTE: "He is not aggressive but his frustration when he is not allowed to play with every dog turns to growling and other dogs often react very badly to him - he has been attacked twice in the past 6 months."

How was he attacked?

Where is he meeting up with off-leash dogs?

Is he allowed to "play with" any strange dogs?

Also, in order not to reinvent the wheel, what have you read here so far about this issue? (I'm asking because there are so many threads about it.) Have you seen the threads about desensitizing?

Thanks for the welcome and the reply Connie.

To answer your questions:

He was attacked the first time by an off leash Rottweiler who ran over to him when he was on lead and just went in for the kill (my dog didn't fight back). The second time I had him in the back garden to toilet and our neighbours off leash Border Collie went for him (this time he fought back vicously).

He was crazy about other dogs before all this happened though, his prey drive is through the roof. His flipping and spinning on the lead seems to make other dogs angry or scared which makes him a target. He is a husky too and walks around on his toes with high ears and very high tail.

He used to be allowed to play with other dogs until I found this site and felt like my nerves could do with a rest. So since he was 1 year old he has had much more supervised interaction with other dogs.

I am going to go and look at the desensitising threads, I tried to search for this topic before I posted but I am so new to this I didn't really know the terminology.


Suzie

Other people here know MUCH more than I do, but since I have been working on a similar issue with my dog I figured I would share what works for me.

I noticed the key is watching her body language and stopping it before she reacts. At the first sign of a staring contest, or a cautious walk, I redirect her by simply walking in a different direction and I tell her "leave it".

If I have to correct her she is then being corrected for disobeying the command. This seems to make a big difference in her understanding the correction, rather than simply correcting her for something vague like barking or otherwise acting like a maniac.

If your dog hasn't been formally taught "leave it" you could use another command that he does know.

Its also helpful to know situations and the distance that your dog is comfortable with. You can just casually avoid he situation rather than reinforcing the reaction with repetition.

Of course the goal is to get the dog to be good in every situation, but there is nothing wrong with avoiding the problem while you figure out what works. Its better in the long run than letting it happen a million times while you experiment.

For example, my dog is good with dogs being across the street. They can be freaking out and she will just ignore them. When they are passing us on the same side of the street is when she acts up. Oddly, she is also good with dogs we meet at the park, no matter what their proximity. So I use those situations to reinforce a neutral reaction. She gets lots of praise for ignoring them.

I think you need to get this dog under control ASAP--as you are trying to do. For your safety and his. I hear you being very responsible about this, and I hope we can help. I think your next step is e-collar training. I would not even hesitate about taking this step. It will help every bit of training you want to do to get this issue under control.

I would buy en e-collar and Ed's video today. Then back that up with a good trainer in your area who REALLY knows how to train with one, and can continue to teach you over a period of time. Sounds like you have something on your hands that will escalate--if not now, it will inevitably. Then you will be responsible for your dog doing any harm to another, and who wants that? Keep us posted. People here know so much. It's just my two-cents.

I don't want to reinvent the wheel either, and highly recommend going over the threads that go into detail about desensitization.

I did feel, though, that I had to interject here. I absolutely do NOT recommend corrections for an over-reactive, easily stimulated dog in a situation where they are already highly charged. This will only take a bad situation and make it about ten times worse and could quite possibly lead to handler aggression.

This is not an obedience problem. This is a completely separate issue and needs a careful, well thought out and positive approach. The goal here is to de-escalate through quiet, positive and controlled exposure that the dog can handle.

Anyway....there are tons of threads on this.
Here's one:

Do you know anyone that has an old, mellow, lazy, "don't want to do nothing but loaf around" kind of dog?

Casey used to be sorta the same (not as bad, from the sound of it) when I first got her. After a couple days around Bandit (my former 14 year old Husky, who preferred to lay on the rug and sleep most of the day), she started to get the point: "Hey, being all crazy doesn't result in anything. Well, that sucks. Maybe I'll go get my belly rubbed."

In addition to the correcting of the behavior as mentioned by others, you may consider finding your Husky a Role Model.

Oh, and if he's got that much energy around other dogs, he might not be getting enough exercise. Huskies have endurance galore. More than you or I can possibly fathom. Ivan, the replacement for Bandit, used to get a 5-6 mile run every day.

 Quote: Kristel Smart

I don't want to reinvent the wheel either, and highly recommend going over the threads that go into detail about desensitization.

I did feel, though, that I had to interject here. I absolutely do NOT recommend corrections for an over-reactive, easily stimulated dog in a situation where they are already highly charged. This will only take a bad situation and make it about ten times worse and could quite possibly lead to handler aggression.

This is not an obedience problem. This is a completely separate issue and needs a careful, well thought out and positive approach. The goal here is to de-escalate through quiet, positive and controlled exposure that the dog can handle.

Anyway....there are tons of threads on this.
Here's one:

Suzie, not only did Kristel give you a great starting point for your reading on calming down and desensitizing your reactive dog, but she gave you one that happens to be loaded with feedback and continuing questions from the O.P.

If you read that thread carefully and post back with questions, you'll be in good shape for forming your plan.

Desensitizing is a process, yes, and it's not instant. But it works without escalating an excited/scary situation further and even has the added benefit of enhancing your bond with your dog as you work with him outside his area of reactivity.

I'd start by increasing the distance between your dog and others immediately, giving yourself breathing room. That is, I would choose walking routes with an eye to streets where no fence-fighting or off-lead dogs will pop up, because your dog is not ready for that level of distraction.

When the day comes that you are able to march on past a dog in his yard, barking at your dog, and your dog is calm and detached, you are going to dislocate your shoulder patting yourself on the back for doing the work to get there.

I can dig up more threads this afternoon.

 Quote: Jeff Brosius

... Oh, and if he's got that much energy around other dogs, he might not be getting enough exercise.

Huge point!

 Quote: Linda Patch

Sounds like you have something on your hands that will escalate--if not now, it will inevitably. Then you will be responsible for your dog doing any harm to another, and who wants that?

And another great point.

The O.P. came to the right place.