Letting a dog that is interested in other dogs, and not people, interact with other dogs is a terrible idea. There's no fence to be on. It just makes no sense. Fix the problem with people first. Once that's fixed, THEN bring other dogs into the picture. One thing at a time. Don't go backwards.

First I want to thank everyone for all the replies. We really appreciate it. Ok, let me see if I can answer all the replies!

Let's see..One thing we will have to hold off on is the ration cutting. He is still thin from the worm problem and past diarrhea ( this has resolved perfectly )and needs to put on a bit of weight. I didn't think of him satisfying himself by wandering around on his own, we will try keeping him tethered outside. The reason he wasn't was he can take hours to go on a leash. He will end up laying in the grass idly but if you unsnap it and let him trot off he will sniff a few minutes then go and be done with it even after an hour or two of standing out there on a lead. This is a hurdle Eric has to overcome I suppose.

When we walked the dogs together we had problems with him fixating on her if she was in front of him. We end up having to walk her behind him to get her out of his mind. My dog wants little to do with him. Living together as a pack with both of them out is definitely something we are eventually going to come to but I feel now is not the time so they are not allowed to interact.

Alyssa, I like your words: Playing and interacting with other dogs is infinitely more fun that sit, down, come and heel.
Of course, our dogs don't know that, if we don't let them find out.

Michele, what I see happening when I let them play together isn't good. Reesee's recall is sharp, she would rather be next to me than anywhere else. He would follow her constantly and bother her. I know when we take her to my aunts with her trusted, very passive same-age australian shepherd pup she wasn't interested in much play and when the other came out of her shell a little to play and Reesee retreated to me like she had had enough and that was that. Eric loves the pup. Should have heard him when he had coccidia, he was worried sick. He interacts with him alot and simply wants him to be comfortable. I don't think a lack of human bond is an issue here.

Connie, at my mothers he is pretty uninterested in her. He won't come up to people and if someone comes up to him he goes into avoidance mode. He will come up and let her pet him if she coaxes him, but when we tested his whining I had Eric lead Reesee out of the room with me standing with his leash and all he did was whine and look for her-as in ground level and when he came back not give him a glance-just get excited seeing her. When I left with Reesee and Eric held his leash I could see him straining on the leash, crying and searching for her. When Eric left alone without my dog-no response whatsoever.

Roughhousing seems to help a little. He will sometimes come up and initiate play, jump and mouth the hands and get a little excited on a good day when before he did none of these things. He does fetch, but unenthusiastically. He will run lazily and pick it up and come slowly back. Eric does this with him alot.

The flappy toy thing was something I thought about before since he seems uninterested in toys. Eric has bought him many toys to find he hardly wants them. One thing he did like was a makeshift thing we did with them to tire out Reesee as a tiny pup. We tied a 3-4 foot rope around a normal rope dog toy and would dangle it around and have them tug on it. I could pull Reesee around the yard doing other things and not pay attention to the puppy baggage that would never let go of it and she'd be exhausted afterward. Well they got too big for that.

We got a fleece tug like the one's they sell here on the site and he likes it but will not get into play. It's more like he's the one just holding on while you get excited and tug yet when he drops it he wants it again. He'll also go to it if he can see it put up somewhere and try to get it. Haven't tried squeaky toys-will have to try them!

He hasn't worked marker training with him yet-but he has charged the mark a couple times to start getting into it. He's doing it once more tonight as well. It's something he's going to do with him because despite being taught a solid sit before starting on the down, he gets them mixed up and will sit then quickly lay down if not treated right away or sit when asked to down or down when asked to sit. It depends on which you've worked with him recently.

 Quote: mike j schoonbrood

Letting a dog that is interested in other dogs, and not people, interact with other dogs is a terrible idea. There's no fence to be on. It just makes no sense. Fix the problem with people first. Once that's fixed, THEN bring other dogs into the picture. One thing at a time. Don't go backwards.

I have to say, with zero offense meant to Sheila, that there is no fence for me either. I want to undo the "dogginess" -- and that's my primary goal.

Connie, at my mothers he is pretty uninterested in her. He won't come up to people and if someone comes up to him he goes into avoidance mode. He will come up and let her pet him if she coaxes him, but when we tested his whining I had Eric lead Reesee out of the room with me standing with his leash and all he did was whine and look for her-as in ground level and when he came back not give him a glance-just get excited seeing her. When I left with Reesee and Eric held his leash I could see him straining on the leash, crying and searching for her. When Eric left alone without my dog-no response whatsoever.

I thought you meant whining for your mother.

What you describe is just detailing what we already get. He is dog-oriented, and it can be changed.

Eric loves the pup. Should have heard him when he had coccidia, he was worried sick. He interacts with him alot and simply wants him to be comfortable. I don't think a lack of human bond is an issue here.

Eric's love for the pup is not the issue - not in any way.

Also, I hope that I got it across (and some others made the point too) that leading a doggy dog into being a handler-attentive dog is not an instant process.

I don't really think it's a matter of which toy (although moving noise-making toys are good); it's a matter of who is playing with the toy with him, and how much fun it is.

I also think that marker training is going to be huge.

Yeah I was like..huh, she had to have misread something somewhere! Lol.

Yeah, he will start marker training him asap. I think it will do well too.

He hasn't worked marker training with him yet-but he has charged the mark a couple times to start getting into it. He's doing it once more tonight as well. It's something he's going to do with him because despite being taught a solid sit before starting on the down, he gets them mixed up and will sit then quickly lay down if not treated right away or sit when asked to down or down when asked to sit. It depends on which you've worked with him recently.

Charge the marker enough times so that the dog looks for the reward when he hears the marker. Make sure he knows that the marker means "treat coming." Use fabulous treats (small, though). If he is not food-driven, use cooked bacon or bits of warm hot dog.

I don't understand the combination of charging the marker along with training sit and down. They aren't done concurrently.

Don't worry about him offering different behaviors. And when you say "if not quickly treated," that tells me that the marker is not quite understood yet. If the dog "gets" the marker, then hearing it, which means "treat coming," will tell him that he has done the right action.

Also, if you have watched the video (or even if not), you know that the wrong action is just simply a "nope" thing, no correction - not even a down-beat "nope." Just a "try again" nope. You simply reward only for the command you have requested.

Start and end each short session on a high note, and end with the dog wanting more.

This is another way of increasing the dog's eagerness to be with the handler.

And about the recall: Make the arrival at the handler's spot a great thing. Make compliance with the recall a guaranteed party.

Honestly, you have a perfect opportunity here.

Since the dog seems disinterested, and you need to charge the mark, you can mark for anything resembling attention.

Walking towards you, glancing towards you, touching you, etc.

Oh he wasn't trained sit and down with marker training, just regular old 'good-then-treat' training. He is charging the mark now because he wants to turn all training into marker training.

I watched him charging it just now and it's obvious he knows the treats coming, he looks for it as soon as he says 'yes'. Hot dog works perfectly.

Edit: Thanks Alyssa, maybe he'll charge it once more with him and do that. He was just doing it for looking at him but it seemed like he had the idea to SIT as he looked.

We have the marker training video by the way.

 Quote: Heather Perring

... We have the marker training video by the way.

EXCELLENT!

And don't hesitate to re-train trained command with markers. In fact, it's a great exercise.

 Quote: connie sutherland

I have to say, with zero offense meant to Sheila, that there is no fence for me either. I want to undo the "dogginess" -- and that's my primary goal.

What a b#@ch! No offense taken. As a matter of fact I agree wholeheartedly.

Heather,
Can you tape the pup working with your boyfriend?