Have not been here in a while. How is everyone? When I adopted my American Bulldog last year, he came with same strange quirks. Thanks to the advice given here I was able to work most of those out over the last year. I still have a few issues that I can't solve, and have an E-Collar arriving in the mail today. All of that youtube videos I've seen are basically geared towards proofing basic obedience, which I plan on doing. I also plan on using it to train the dog how to run next to a mountain bike, but that's not the main reason I ordered it.

The 2 main issues I'd like to address are:

1) Barking at other dogs in the neighborhood. He hears them when he's inside and he barks until I give the command to stop. When he goes outside he does a patrol of the yard and barks. Hoping for a dog to bark back, and then they bark it out. I'd like him to bark at strangers until told not to, but not other dogs 4 houses over. It drives me nuts.

2) Now this is a weird one. When I let him outside, as soon as he gets outside he spins and starts barking at me, while I'm still inside. If I tell him to go, he gets angrier, if I go out there he may either spin and jump off the deck, or try to "fight" me. It feels like very high level play. This dog doesn't play well. It looks intense and he snaps and then holds his closed mouth next to, and pressing against my arms like "I would have had you". If I initiate this play fine, but he does it to everyone. My roommate, who is uncomfortable with it, my gf who trains horses, and while not intimidated, is disgusted by it. I've pinned him to the ground by his neck, a few times, but he keeps doing it again and again.

My roommate is intimidated by the behavior, and the barking drives us both nuts.

I'm excited to be able to sure up recalls, and get better attention from the dog off leash, but I'm not sure how to handle behavioral issues. Help

-John

 Quote: John Stowe

Have not been here in a while. How is everyone? When I adopted my American Bulldog last year, he came with same strange quirks. Thanks to the advice given here I was able to work most of those out over the last year. I still have a few issues that I can't solve, and have an E-Collar arriving in the mail today. All of that youtube videos I've seen are basically geared towards proofing basic obedience, which I plan on doing. I also plan on using it to train the dog how to run next to a mountain bike, but that's not the main reason I ordered it.

The 2 main issues I'd like to address are:

1) Barking at other dogs in the neighborhood. He hears them when he's inside and he barks until I give the command to stop. When he goes outside he does a patrol of the yard and barks. Hoping for a dog to bark back, and then they bark it out. I'd like him to bark at strangers until told not to, but not other dogs 4 houses over. It drives me nuts.

2) Now this is a weird one. When I let him outside, as soon as he gets outside he spins and starts barking at me, while I'm still inside. If I tell him to go, he gets angrier, if I go out there he may either spin and jump off the deck, or try to "fight" me. It feels like very high level play. This dog doesn't play well. It looks intense and he snaps and then holds his closed mouth next to, and pressing against my arms like "I would have had you". If I initiate this play fine, but he does it to everyone. My roommate, who is uncomfortable with it, my gf who trains horses, and while not intimidated, is disgusted by it. I've pinned him to the ground by his neck, a few times, but he keeps doing it again and again.

My roommate is intimidated by the behavior, and the barking drives us both nuts.

I'm excited to be able to sure up recalls, and get better attention from the dog off leash, but I'm not sure how to handle behavioral issues. Help

-John

Well, it sure looks to this "layman" like you've got a HIGH DRIVE Am-Bull in a pet home, who wants a WHOLE LOT more engagement, Exercise, and work-Work-WORK than he's getting right now -- That is "above my pay-grade" to try & advise you on how to address, but I bet you'll get some very good assistance here ... As just a pet owner myself, it seems as if your dog Is Demanding a serious TIME COMMITMENT during which to release all of his Frustrated PENT-UP Energy ("They say a TIRED Am-Bull is a GOOD Am-Bull") !!! What type of Interactive Relationship were you expecting to enjoy with a pet dog when you got this particular individual?

That's AmBull play for you. Intense and in your face.

Sounds like your boy is looking for a job other than yard patroller.

Honestly he sounds like he'd be a lot of fun to work with!

Would you guys suggest teaching a dog like this tug games to give him a more appropriate energy and engagement outlet or is it likely just to make the physical demands for play more intense?

Hey guys, I couldn't agree more. He is definitely the highest drive dog I have ever owned. My last dog was the lowest drive, but also an AmBull... I had him for 12 years and put him down a year ago. Don't let anyone tell you breed predicts drive.

I try to exercise him as much as possible. I play tug with him, but he wont drop. I've tried the 2 ball technique, I've also tried prying his mouth open. Neither work. He goes for walks with me, but they aren't enough. He runs on the treadmill 3 times a week, and occasional hikes. I'd love to teach him to run next to my mountain bike, and that's one of the reasons I stepped up to the e-collar with the 1/2 mile range. I mountain bike a lot, like 3-4 times a week, 4-10 miles at a time, oveer technical terrain with lots of climbing. I just have to work through so many issues first before I can even think about bringing him out. He's pretty damn good off leash, but not perfect so the e-collar should help there.

The problem lies in:

1) He has panic attacks in the car, he just totally freaks. If my girl drives i can hold his leash, with prong collar, and snap him out of it. I've just been starting the car and sitting with him in it, in the driveway letting it run to desensitize him a bit. He hates accelerating, braking and turning, and the windows rolling up and down. He tries to bite them, he bit into the door panel when he saw the window roll into it.

2) He also hates my mountain bike, I tried putting a leash on him last year and getting on it and he bit through my front tire. It was right after I got him. I've been riding around the back yard with him loose since. I call him over and have him sit near it, and he sniffs it. He seems calm.

Its just so many baby steps..

The only other thing is he wont drink from a camel bak, but I could probably just get him a bowl. I havent really tried to teach him, my other dogs just figured out to drink the squirting water.

I'm substituting the treadmill for now, but once he's cool with the bike and the car he'll have all the exercise he could ever want.

I wont claim to be the best trainer in the world, but I do have a pretty solid understanding of how they learn. I use some marker training, but this guy has almost no food drive. Im decent at desensitizing dogs to things. This guy wouldn't walk on hardwood floors (pretty much my whole house) or do stairs. No problem now. Just moving on to the small things.

Ive done a little work with the e-collar so far. I just zap him when he turns at the door and comes at me and tell him "go". This seems to work. Also light zaps when he barks incessantly at other dogs in the neighborhood barking, but praise for barking at people on or near the property. He's getting it. I've been following the training per the DVD for suring up the basic obedience and he'll follow me through the neighborhood at heel.

I dont know if it matters but he has really weak nerves IMO. I had to set the e-collar to the "soft dog" mode. Even then I mainly use 2-3-4 of the 7 levels. He stays glued to my hip most of the time in general, and is slightly nervous of things sometimes.

I wasn't expecting this, my old bulldog with way lower energy had nerves of steel. He didn't peep unless told to speak, or if something was really "wrong", like someone on our property when the whole house was sleeping, or coyotes in the yard. I had to set his wireless fence collar to the max, and even then he only vocalized once during the training phase, after getting zapped 7 times. I did some bitework with this dog, and never worried about him. My current dog is a complete headcase, and I would never do any bitework with him. Sometimes in tug he looks like he is losing it.

spring-pole

closed (opaque) crate during transport so he won't get so anxious thru visual stimulation.

prongs and e-collar usually have the opposite effect on high drive dogs and can trigger a fight response - with you.

collapsible water bowl ie soft fold up variety are great for hiking.

advise to get covers on your bike spokes so dog does not get massive injury if he goes for wheels.

seems like he is herding and catching the bike, this should be easy to de-condition, perhaps two people, one on the bike and one controlling dog. I would work on getting MB thing going as it is an easy way for both of you to get energy out.

join a sport club doing anything high energy, Frisbee, dock-diving, weight pull, a bazillion new fun sports out there just made for this dog, plus you will get more formal structure and guidance.

hope this helps.

Car desensitizing for me has been best accomplished by taking the dog in the car a lot, and never letting it out of the car. Like a month of daily rides where he goes no where, just back home.

Then the car becomes like watching TV. We aren't worried about the windows cause they aren't opening. We aren't worried about what's outside because we aren't getting out. We aren't filled with anticipation about the exciting place we are going because we are just coming b ack to the garage.

My guys LOVE to go in the car even though they very, very rarely get out.

"Hoping for a dog to bark back, and then they bark it out."

Why?

Great advice guys, Thanks. Connie not sure about what your asking me. Why does he bark at other dogs?

Connie. Just my bad grammar. The dog runs outside, runs a perimeter of my fence barking, hoping for another dog to bark back. I don't want hun barking at the neighborhood dogs at all