Hi All -
We have the craziest problem with our 1 yr old female Shepherd. We've had her since she was 8 weeks old, and she has now developed into a very non-aggressive, intelligent, well-behaved youngster. She plays very well with others (dogs), has no food or toy aggression, but hates the golf club. We have never, ever hit her with anything, nor has anyone else that has come close to her, but for some crazy reason, when my husband went out to drive balls in the driveway, (we have an 800 ft. long driveway) and swung the golf club over his head, our dog went to attack it - not my husband, but the club. She'll take the club away from you, and then put it on the ground and chew on it, and make whining noises like she's fighting with it or something.

We've passed cross-country skiers, kids or adults with walking sticks, but that doesn't seem to bother her at all! Just that stupid shiny club! My worst fear is when we're walking her down some trail, what are the chances that some person is going to be walking down the trail with a golf club; well guess what... someone did one weekend, and it was a good thing I had her on a leash because she went crazy when she saw the club. What should we do? We can avoid the situation at home and not show her any clubs at all, but what if we're caught somewhere on a walk and someone does have a club? She is NOT an aggressive dog at all, but turns into this beast when she sees a golf club, and we can't figure out how this happened.

Any advice would be truly appreciated !

Pat

I would start immediately with desensitizing and counter-conditioning, in your home, going very slowly.

For example, when I had to do this with a dog and a motorized wheelchair, I followed Bob Scott's suggestions and started with the chair in an adjacent room, turned off and no one in it. Then the chair turned on but still not close, and so on.

This whole process with the wheelchair took less than a week from panic to acceptance even turned on and with a person in it.

I'd grab a handful of high-value treats and start outside the golf club's "circle of influence," meaning far enough away from it that the dog is non-reactive.

Edited by Connie Sutherland (04/06/2009 05:55 PM)
Edit reason: added last aragraph

Connie's suggestion is a good place to start working on it.
It needs to be addressed though, or your husband is going to have to be very careful about when he practices.

As a 'theory' for the why, maybe the club makes a sound we can't hear on the down swing? The quick movement and flash? Who knows?
In the days I still had dreams of the pro tour I had a dog that absolutely would not give up on the golf club thing. I tried everything I could think of, even to the point of letting her go chase the balls. But nooooooo, the stubborn thing insisted the club was the thing, and it did become dangerous......she wasn't going to learn, I finally had to make sure she was in her kennel else she was going to lose her head, literally, by diving at the club. Those club thingies can kill. Even a very quick dog has a hard time at a hundred and thirty miles an hour.

Ahem, try to get a grip on it now.
Randy

I recently discovered that my pup had been kicked before we got him. He was sitting and I touched him on the butt with my foot. He howled like he'd been beaten and turned into a five month old puddle of jello.

Here's what I did. I put him up in his crate until he calmed down and then brought him out for some play time with his favorite toy. I started by getting him good and into play, then petting his right shoulder with my right hand and slowly touching his left shoulder with my left foot (I have good balance). Once he got used to that I started petting him with just my foot. From there I sat down on the ground with my legs out like I was stretching before a run and the pup tugging on his toy in between my knees. I started alternately touching his hips with my feet, lightly at first and then adding a little more pressure as he got comfortable. End result, ten minutes later I was pushing him with my feet harder than I do with my hands and he didn't care in the slightest. This is quite possible compulsion training, but it didn't kill his drive or spirit in the slightest. In fact, I'd say it improved our relationship of trust and he's not an overly hard tempered dog. I think the trick was keeping him focused on having fun with the toy.

Wow - o.k. we'll try the desensitizing, and do it slowly. My thought was to have the dog inside the house with me, while my husband grabs a golf club outside, and take it from there. And I'll get some steak and use that as her favorite treat during the training process. Thanks so much for all your input ! I'll let you all know what happens.

Pat

I'd start by playing with her in the living room, using her favorite toy, with the golf club sitting a few feet away and gradually move it closer. Once she gets used to the club's presence go ahead with your plan.