My dog is too strong! No impulse control

Hey Sandy,

I see youve looked around the forum a bit (saw another post on another thread ) Hopefully some tips from other questions helped a bit.

My own dog used to be bad about this, and hes a German Shepherd cross, so everyone assumes hes aggressive as he comes bowling at strangers just to say hello. My technique with him was to be dominant and stern with him on lead, until he listened enough and learned heel, and now he listens to me off lead very well.

On walks I kept him strictly on lead around other dogs. As soon as I saw him building up excitement I gave him a warning "enough" command. If that didnt work, I told him to sit, and kept his attention on me, not the other dog or person nearby. As he got older and a bit better at listening, I used "heel" instead of "sit" to keep his attention. He's a pretty smart dog and it seemed to work well. I think the best bet is to keep their attention with repeating commands and giving them treats in between, this is what worked wonders for Jackson. Have you tried something similar with your own dog?

You could also consider a halti head collar, which will give you better control over your dog, since your specific situation might not lend itself to strength control over him. Haltis wont hurt him, but are better than normal leads for keeping dogs in line.

Have you thought about enrolling in a socialization class, so that he can play and get energy out in an appropriate environment with other dogs? These sort of classes can really help excited dogs get used to other animals and people,and therefor hopefully help them get over being so worked up when they run into other people/animals in other scenarios.

Try to stay stern with him, make sure he hears that you're serious when you give a command. If he doesnt listen, stop the walk until he does, or turn around and head home if he absolutely isnt interested at first (I had to do this a few times with Jackson). Ultimately it just takes patience, he will get it and become well behaved if you both work together!