# Abandonment training for learned reactivity?



## Neo93 (Apr 25, 2011)

So Frieda being the smart GSD that she is  has figured out that if she barks at any of the dogs in class she will either get distracted/refocused and treated with high value food, or she will removed from the other dogs. She thinks that is much easier than actually working around the other dogs. What I am seeing does not look not fear based - her barking sounds more like territorial GSD barking, and honestly I think she is getting a charge out of the reaction she causes in other dogs and people. That is NOT exactly what I wanted to be teaching her. 

The trainer and I tried a modified abandonment setup, and it seemed to be successful. When Frieda tried to bark/lunge at another dog, we told her, "Go be aggressive if you want," and shoved her butt way out in front of us. She reached the end of the leash and looked back, absolutely shocked that I didn't follow her, try to refocus her, or feed her. She turned around, came back, sat down, and was giving out all kinds of appeasement signals. She also quit barking at the other dog, and we were able to work with Frieda and the other dog without further incident.

So, has anyone tried abandonment with their dog, and if so, did it work? I know that one of the breeds that it is most successful with is the GSD. 

TIA!


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

No, not for that but if it works and isn't dangerous then it works.

We do have a GSD that has learned to be reactive when they come into our training facility. We haven't worked with her around dogs yet but she is barking her fool head off at people... people she knows. So last week we basically worked on extinction with her. The people gave no reaction at all to her barking and made no advances toward or from her unless she was quiet.


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## sheep (Dec 2, 2011)

I guess that I do something similar, not really patting my pup and say "go and do whatever you want" (as I do this whenever I allow him to do something or tell him to go forward), but rather ignore and act as if I don't care for whatever he barks at. Then I would call him and walk away, as if there's no fun and I'm moving on. He would then usually not care, unless the other dog is close or is making eye contact with him.

In some situations, you can either correct, ignore or get his attention to something else. Often it can be much better to act as if you have something more interesting, but make sure not to reward the barking or bad behavior instead of just attracting his attention back. I don't know well how to explain the difference, but the difference is there and it can make a difference when it comes to minimizing certain behaviors.


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

We used abandonment training with Cassidy (although not exactly as you describe), and it worked extremely well. It's definitely worth a try. 

This is the trainer and facility we used: http://www.positivelytrained.com/edu_resources/Abandonment_Training.pdf


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## KZoppa (Aug 14, 2010)

We use abandonment training with exciteable dogs in class or dogs who KNOW the command but choose to ignore it. Example, we tell the dog to sit when they know the command. They ignore it so we walk away. The dog usually tries to follow. When the dog is re-engaged and told to sit, if they sit, they're rewarded. If they ignore the command again, the disengagement goes longer and the handler/owner is asked to leave the room. By the time the owner comes back in, the dog is more than happy to obey a known command to avoid their person leaving again. Though, we call it disengagement but its the same idea.


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