# Leash reactive, getting worse with time.



## intothevoiddd (Feb 11, 2014)

I have a nearly 2 year old GSD. He is quite energetic, but overall a good dog. He has been through training and listens well to commands... that is, until other dogs are in the mix. He has never been particularly fond of other dogs, pretty much only tolerating the other dogs in his training class. He is alright around dogs if approaching very slowly and with lots of reassurance. 

He has always been leash reactive to an extent, but nothing intolerable. Unfortunately this seems to be quickly changing. I will admit I live in an area where there area lot of reckless dogs, jumping up on fences, barking in an aggressive way, etc. and this seems to REALLY throw him off. He has also recently started freaking out about perfectly well behaved dogs.

He walks very politely on a leash, right next to my side with a bit of slack, but when he sees another dog, all bets are off. He will pull on the leash full power, hackles up, and usually goes up on his hind legs barking and freaking out. We used to walk him on a prong collar for this reason, but it doesn't make a difference. He will pull, even on a prong collar, as hard as he can. I don't have issues controlling him so we dropped the prong collar and went for a choke chain (lack of better words). I should add he was trained on this type of collar, and our trainer taught us how to properly use a prong collar as well. The only way to subdue him when he's freaking out is to grab him by the scruff of the neck. I don't pick him up by the scruff, but I give it a good hold until he gets under control. 

I'm not sure what to do. I don't fear dogs, I'm not anxious or nervous about him doing this because I know I can control him, but it still sucks. He will not listen to me when this happens. This is not a protective thing, he completely ignores me. This is purely him feeling threatened by the other dogs, regardless of what they are doing (which is usually nothing). I have taken to walking him at night which I feel is ridiculous, I just want to walk him during the day! He has no issues with people, kids, etc. But he is equally as dismissive of me when he sees a squirrel, rabbit, cat, etc. 

Any ideas?


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## Chip18 (Jan 11, 2014)

Aww, the old scruff of the neck approach. 
Don't have any info on that one ... but a much better option for you would most likely be the "Pet Convincer":
http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/7400865-post6.html

And again in use here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-VJXhM0iJo


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## intothevoiddd (Feb 11, 2014)

Chip18 said:


> Aww, the old scruff of the neck approach.
> Don't have any info on that one ... but a much better option for you would most likely be the "Pet Convincer":
> http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/7400865-post6.html
> 
> ...


Interesting approach. We do something similar to this, but instead of a blast of air we have a noise that he absolutely loathes and responds to 100% of the time  I will try it out on our next walk and report back. There are a couple of houses that trigger him, I'll make sure to take him past those haha.


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## dogma13 (Mar 8, 2014)

Do a search for counter conditioning.There are plenty of threads here on the forum and info in cyberspace if you Google it.An excellent book is The Other End of the Leash by Patricia McConnell.
In a nutshell you are going to keep him at a far enough distance from whatever he reacts to,keeping him under threshold,rewarding for good behavior.You increase duration while decreasing distance over time.


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## Chip18 (Jan 11, 2014)

intothevoiddd said:


> Interesting approach. We do something similar to this, but instead of a blast of air we have a noise that he absolutely loathes and responds to 100% of the time  I will try it out on our next walk and report back. There are a couple of houses that trigger him, I'll make sure to take him past those haha.


Ugh I would prefer the "PC" over "noise" thing that might cause "issues" down the line??

I use a Slip Lead Leash myself and it works well for me, a slight tug sideways and we're good to go. It's more of a straight at it approach, and "you" will behave. Positioned properly at the start and the dog's don't give me any grief. 

Details on the SLL if your curious are here:
Slip Lead leash - Boxer Forum : Boxer Breed Dog Forums

And yet another approach to reactivity issues is here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzVrysP3tQY


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## Debanneball (Aug 28, 2014)

My previous female was like that. I carried treats she loved, and when I saw a dog approaching, I made her sit, watch the treat..the dog would pass safely. As for dogs running the fence, when we came across this, again, sit, watch the treat..and not until the other dog calmed down did she get the treat. Repitition..repitition. Eventually we could get past the fence runners, they got used to our routine. Good luck.


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