Hi all, we are going really well with Buddy and his training. I have just one problem with his socialising. He gets too excited and wants to jump over all the dogs he meets. He gets so focused that he doesnt listen to anything that i say. he pulls really hard on the lead until he gets to the dog. Eventually he calms down a bit only because he gets tired. I make sure he is around dogs often so im not sure what i am doing wrong. if anyone could help that would be great.
How old is Buddy? Some pups go through stages of being really wild about seeing other dogs, my own went through a phase of being utterly uncontrollable when we were at the park and another dog came into view. My method was just repeated yelling, basically If my dog, Jackson, was off lead, I would quickly give a sit command, and get him on his lead so that he wouldnt take off after the other dog. If he pulled on his lead, I pulled harder, giving a very dominant "NO" or "enough!" command. His pulling might not stop, but I knew he had registered the command because his ears went down. I did this everytime we came across another dog, and with repetition, Jackson behaved better and better.
If Buddy isn't responding to just you pulling on his lead, have you tried a halti or muzzled lead that will give you more control over his head and neck, without hurting him? These collars are great training devices, I'd recommend looking into one.
Work with Buddy on his returning to you when you call him. Do this when you're alone, at home, or one a walk with no one else around. If you do it at home, try having a family member provide distraction to Buddy, which he should learn to listen to you through. Always give a good reward for his listening, and give your "no" and "enough" commands when he doesn't. You can step up from this by buddying him up with a friend's dog and doing the same, ultimately broadening his horizons
Have you thought about enrolling in an obedience class or puppy class? These not only socialize your dog and teach him how to behave around other dogs, but provide other good training techniques and a source of advice for you, the owner.
I think most dogs go through a phase of this super-excitement to see other dogs, as I said Jackson has already grown out of it, after a couple months. It'll just take you always correcting it and maybe using some new training methods.
KOPcaroline gave you some great ideas. One thing I'd add is, if you use the halti, don't yank on it for a correction. The halti is supposed to self-correct the dog and you could hurt his neck by giving a hard jerk. Sometimes, it is better to have two leashes -- one attached to the halti for controlling his head, and the other attached directly to his collar to give sharp corrections.
Don't worry. He will finally get the idea and stop this behavior. kjd
wow thanks heaps for the replies guys. Some great ideas which i will put into use immediately. Buddy is now 4months old and weighs 15kgs. I have wondered about using the halti but i didnt realise that you shouldnt use it for corrections, so thanks for that great piece of advice. He is a great puppy and learns very quickly. Although i do think he has some dominance issues that i am working on. He quite regularly back chats us and snaps his jaws at us if he is asked to do something he doesnt want to. He isnt aggressive about it, just defiant. I am always doing the suggested Alpha Dog training with him. Sometimes he fights my instructions and i get the feeling he doesnt realise that im the Alpha. Also, Is he too young to be let off the lead and expected to return to us at our recall? He does it sometimes but not consistently. Should we not let him off at all? Wow i think i need one of you to live at my house so i can always make sure i am doing the right thing. I said to my husband yesterday that Buddy already knows how to act and behave, its us as humans that are going to ruin him.
The rule for letting a dog off lead is usually: not until he ALWAYS returns! That refers to true freedom; once he has proper puppy manners towards other dogs, you can let him loose in a dog park or fenced-in yard. Don't let him off lead around the neighborhood. There are just too many wonderful distractions for a young dog. You don't want him darting across the street to check out a squirrel just as a car comes along!
Also, a puppy his size can frighten someone if he rushes up to say hello.
Don't worry about doing the wrong thing. Dogs are adaptable. If you accidentally teach him something wrong, he can fairly easily learn the right thing. (For example, my dogs know "down." When we started living with my mother, she was in the habit of saying "sit down." Since, as you have noticed, it is easier to change the dog than the human, I taught a new command, "grovel," for "down." The dog had no problem learning "grovel." From then on, "sit" or "sit down" meant the same "sit.")
Hope the previous advice helps! As far as Alpha Dog training, its an ongoing thing with pups. Being 4 months old, Buddy might still challenge a bit, and thats normal. The more you train with him, the better he'll get the idea. Just keep up the great work!
As far as letting off lead, a good rule is not to do it in public til he comes back everytime when you've got him in a more private/not so distracting setting. But its something you're going to have to test out at the same time. I started letting my dog, Jackson, off his lead at the park once he was fully vaccinated for parvo, so around 3 months. I tried to take him when I knew not many people would be there, so that it would be easier to train him to return when I called his name. It worked really well for me, so you could try something similar. The more you use Buddy's name around the house, and expect him to come to you when you say it, the quicker he'll learn to come back once you've let him off lead. Its a good idea to bring treats to the park with you, so that Buddy learns returning is a great thing! ("I get treats just for coming back?!?"). I think you'll do really well, and anytime is fine to start training this way with him.
And as kjd said, dont worry about training. Jackson's my first solo dog, and he's amazing! You both learn from each other, and have fun doing it!
