# constant barking and lunging on leash at other dogs



## Lisa Brooks (Jun 28, 2018)

when flash was smaller he was scared of larger dogs hes 7months old now ...now if hes on a leash and sees a dog he barks un stoppable and trys to get to them how do I stop this behavior it stops me from taking him out when he was smaller he didn't do this and I took him every where now I cant take him because he wont stop im not sure if aggression is behind it or if its fear but not even treats snap him out of it.. when he is home hes great


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

It really doesn't matter the reason he is doing it, the solution is the same. OBEDIENCE. First you either need to shut down the reaction or stop it before it starts. And teach a behavior incompatible with lunging. 

I would teach two commands for this. Leave it. And Sit. Leave it means just that....Leave it alone. Don't bark at it. Don't go towards it. It's none of your business. Sit for when a dog is approaching. Move off to the side and make him sit as they move by.

Teach him the commands and increase your overall obedience. You can correct him for breaking a command.


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## car2ner (Apr 9, 2014)

use distance. It is much easier to deal with if you aren't right on top of the other dog. If I miss the first notice and a hard stare starts, I firmly and slowly walk into my dog's head and force him / her around in a circle. It may take a few circles before the dog looks up at me as if to ask, "what the heck are we doing". Once I have the attention back then I can command a sit, down or move along. Tell the dog the command once and then enforce it. After a minute or two when all is calm, then reward. Make all movements sideways, not pulling straight back. That will just encourage the dog to pull against the leash and lunge. In fact we use that leash frustration to build forward drive! 

My boy always wanted to meet and greet. We didn't want to build that expectation or deal with the rowdy game with tangled leashes. To help him learn that he could be near other dogs and be expected to stay calm, we took a basic obedience class. I let the instructor know that we already knew sit, down, stay, etc. We were there to practice working peacefully near other dogs. The entire first class I spent making it clear that he was to ignore the other dogs. By the end of 6 weeks we were fairly successful (ok, the huge Bermese Mountain Dog Pup was almost irresistible to me too). 

I did the same thing with my gal-dog. Again I told the instructor we were there to learn to work near other dogs. It was well worth the time and money. She kept wanting to tell the bully mix to stop acting like a fool. She learned that it really was not her business. And the trainer helped me see some poor timing with rewards that I had missed not being able to see myself.


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## Lisa Brooks (Jun 28, 2018)

car2ner said:


> use distance. It is much easier to deal with if you aren't right on top of the other dog. If I miss the first notice and a hard stare starts, I firmly and slowly walk into my dog's head and force him / her around in a circle. It may take a few circles before the dog looks up at me as if to ask, "what the heck are we doing". Once I have the attention back then I can command a sit, down or move along. Tell the dog the command once and then enforce it. After a minute or two when all is calm, then reward. Make all movements sideways, not pulling straight back. That will just encourage the dog to pull against the leash and lunge. In fact we use that leash frustration to build forward drive!
> 
> My boy always wanted to meet and greet. We didn't want to build that expectation or deal with the rowdy game with tangled leashes. To help him learn that he could be near other dogs and be expected to stay calm, we took a basic obedience class. I let the instructor know that we already knew sit, down, stay, etc. We were there to practice working peacefully near other dogs. The entire first class I spent making it clear that he was to ignore the other dogs. By the end of 6 weeks we were fairly successful (ok, the huge Bermese Mountain Dog Pup was almost irresistible to me too).
> 
> I did the same thing with my gal-dog. Again I told the instructor we were there to learn to work near other dogs. It was well worth the time and money. She kept wanting to tell the bully mix to stop acting like a fool. She learned that it really was not her business. And the trainer helped me see some poor timing with rewards that I had missed not being able to see myself.


 ill go a head and try that thank u so much


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

Lisa Brooks said:


> when flash was smaller he was scared of larger dogs hes 7months old now ...now if hes on a leash and sees a dog he barks un stoppable and trys to get to them how do I stop this behavior it stops me from taking him out when he was smaller he didn't do this and I took him every where now I cant take him because he wont stop im* not sure if aggression is behind it or if its fear but not even treats snap him out of it.. when he is home hes great*



Without seeing it it's pretty tough to say, and it really doesn't matter why but it is likely fear if he is refusing treats. So follow the advice you were given and give him space to learn before he gets upset.


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## McGloomy (Mar 13, 2018)

Yeap. Same here. It's one of the issues that I needed a trainer to co-operate with. What my trainer told me to do is to teach the 'Look!' command. So whenever there's another dog coming, I have a treat in my hand and say, 'look!' He'd learn to ignore the dog as he is focused on me, and give him the treat. Eventually he won't be needing the treat anymore. So have him focused on you when you see another dog comes by.

Option 2 is have him sit and stay as the other dog walks by. I do this too, depending on the situation. He has to learn that if he wants to say hi, it'll be under my control. If he sits down and the other dog comes to him, I PRAAAAISE like crazy. He is not allowed to smell or say hi to other dogs if he pulls etc. So now he knows and has learnt that saying hi to other dogs is completely up to me. 

Lastly, if your dog tends to react negatively by lunging and barking at other dogs, I use Cesar Millan's kick. But each time I have to be quick to assess the situation, if he looks tense in his body, ears, eyes and how he stands, I use Millan's method. He'll sit down and bam, he's cool as a cucumber and lets the dog walk by us. You just have to snap him out of it.

After using/training these 3 methods, I'm very relaxed as a dog owner and he is relaxed too, knowing I'm always behind him and will protect him.


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