Quote: Connie Sutherland

 Quote: Holly Page

... I would love pointers on desensitizing her to children. ...

I found these with a quick search:



You might want to just read through them and then post questions ...

I rent my kids out to Desensitize and santitize dogs three times a week, got special group rates

Quote: The other day a woman was walking with her toddler on the sidewalk in front of my friend's house. My dog charged the fence, trying to bite through the chain links, and trying to jump over it to get at them.

Do you know if the toddler was walking, or in a stroller?

 Quote: Tammy Moore

Quote: The other day a woman was walking with her toddler on the sidewalk in front of my friend's house. My dog charged the fence, trying to bite through the chain links, and trying to jump over it to get at them.

Do you know if the toddler was walking, or in a stroller?

That is a great catch.

One of the links addresses first ascertaining what it is that is the trigger (running around, screaming, just being a kid and kids may have teased the dog in the past, or what), but you are so right about little vehicles!

I would absolutely ask whether this child was in a stroller.

I have a small senior dog who is so reactive to strollers (in a different way: he wants a ride, ever since a friend allowed him to hitch a ride in the back of one of those two-seater strollers) that I had to work on him for weeks (months, maybe) to lower his stroller-excitement.

But many dogs are reactive to strollers, bikes, skateboards, and wheelchairs .... and these are actually simpler to desensitize to than children in general (if we don't know what aspect of the children is the trigger).

dogs and wheels, that could be a thread by its self. got two that didn't like wheeled anything. fixed that, got another that doesn't exactly want to chase bikes but run along with, run with the pack thing I guess.

I would try barrowing a stroller and have a friend who is not familiar with the dog roll past him to make sure and go from there.

Wow, that is a great catch! Today the child was walking and there were no problems other than a tongue bath. The other day when Hope spazzed the girl was in a stroller. I will go out and buy a stroller to test that theory. Assuming it is the stroller and not aggression towards children, am I doing the right thing when introducing dog and child? Or should I still work on training her to ignore children? There have been no problems with getting her focus back onto me even with a shrieking child around.

Dennis, thanks for the offer! LOL. I may take you up on that if the rates aren't too steep.

 Quote: Holly Page

Wow, that is a great catch! Today the child was walking and there were no problems other than a tongue bath. The other day when Hope spazzed the girl was in a stroller. I will go out and buy a stroller to test that theory. Assuming it is the stroller and not aggression towards children, am I doing the right thing when introducing dog and child? Or should I still work on training her to ignore children? There have been no problems with getting her focus back onto me even with a shrieking child around.

Dennis, thanks for the offer! LOL. I may take you up on that if the rates aren't too steep.

Well if you lived near Richmond, the kids and I would be more than glad to help. They helped me train and take care of my four GSDs

I would buy an inexpensive umbrella type stroller, they seem to set dogs off the most because, besides the wheels,they are clanky, creaky,and make more noise on pavement, It would also be easy to bring in the house. When training the service dogs, I find the toddler age group the most challenging, they screech,schrill, shuffle their feet, flap their hands, and if they are not in a stroller, they walk next to them, holding on for assistance.

Also, I would put the stroller in another room, not moving it or paying much attention to it, until it has become a boring piece of furniture to the dog.

When I was working with a dog who was very reactive with his new owner's electric wheelchair, we used a turned-off chair in a different room (not right in the dog's face, but visible). Old Earth Dog Bob Scott helped me with this; I had not thought to have it empty at first, and turned off. (Tiny links in a chain!)

Then I sat it in a few times every day. Then I sat in it with odorous treats in my hand (cooked bacon), and the dog did not take long to approach me. (Bits of cooked bacon became something that I always have in my tool-kit now for working with very reactive dogs. ) I asked for sit, marked, and rewarded with the bacon.

If the dog had been unwilling to approach, even with the bacon smell, no problem: I would have just worked with the dog from far enough away not to elicit his fearful reaction, slowly and gradually getting closer. And when I say slowly and gradually, I don't mean that it's measured in minutes. I mean that a step in the process might take a couple of days (or more).

The next day I turned it on but did not move it. Turned it off and on throughout the day. Sat in it sometimes, sometimes not.

Anyway, you get the drift: tiny desensitizing steps combined with counter-conditioning with fabulous treats. Never did I go fast enough with the steps to elicit the fearful reaction .... not even close.

I would start with carving a stroller figurine out of a chunk of cheddar. Still too reactive? Wrap it in bacon.

 Quote: Ana Kozlowsky

I would start with carving a stroller figurine out of a chunk of cheddar. Still too reactive? Wrap it in bacon.

Life size?