# Going crazy for other dogs on walks



## amg_smurf (Jan 25, 2013)

Hi all

When we go for walks my dog 'heels' very well but when she sees another dog everything goes out the window and she goes crazy pulling and spinning to try to get to the other dog, doesn't matter what size or breed or anything, but she gets riled up much faster for small dogs. She doesn't want to bite or hurt the other dog but my neighbors are terrified to even get near us because lets face it, it's a german shepherd with it's hair standing up barking and pulling towards them. I know she doesn't want to hurt the dog because one time she got away from me and just ran up as fast as she could to the other dog and stopped and just sniffed and that was it. (terrifying experience seeing her run off towards them)

The interesting part and what gets me is when we go to a dog park, or dog beach or anywhere else she could see a thousand different dogs and not even flinch, she actually avoids/ignores them and plays with me only. Does anyone else experience this?


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## David Taggart (Nov 25, 2012)

Your dog doesn't heel very well, otherwise she would walk next to you, and your leash would dangle loose. She may bark, but still heeling perfectly. You have leash problems, the trouble is - when the leash is tense - your dog would behave more aggressively. In your case that is aggression of the hunter, she is preying on other beasts, or, better to say she is playing a predator, because she is still young. you should provide her with a prey object (ball), use it to divert her attention from other dogs, tell her with your body language: "This is a right object to hunt, and those dogs you should ignore", lure her away from them in the opposite direction.
"Heel" is a complicated command, there are several types of "heel", train her off-leash heel more often, from short distances up to half a mile heeling, cue "heel" every time she reacts on other dogs. You can train her to stop barking on command ,with a clicker.


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## SuperG (May 11, 2013)

I like the essence of David's response.

Yes, I have experienced what you describe...and the sooner you curtail it the better. You need to up the training and maintain better command and control. Easier said than done....but certainly doable.


SuperG


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## car2ner (Apr 9, 2014)

I'm working with the same thing with my ten month old. I try to keep my distance. I don't let him meet the other dogs unless he has sat calmly (dogs and owners I know). Treats don't do a thing to get his attention back but if he does well I offer one after the fact. Sometimes I go to the side of the road and have him sit between my legs until the other dog passes by. Sometimes he is calm this way but if the other dog looks at him with any sort of challenge he gets rowdy again. Since he is between my legs it is a bit easier to hold onto his collar and keep him there. 

Toys will get his attention back on me from another dog but if he knows I have a toy he will want to tug and play with it the entire two miles walk! I need bigger pockets!


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## ChouMaKen (Apr 28, 2014)

I am starting to experiment the same issue with my 4 months, he was always calm and indifferent until yesterday when he start to go crazy for passing dogs. 

There is no aggression at all if I allow him to meet the dog he just polity butt sniff and wants to play but I don't accept this kind of behavior and I have no idea how to manage it.

So I will be keeping an eye on this thread for ideas


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

"There is no aggression at all if I allow him to meet the dog he just polity butt sniff and wants to play but I don't accept this kind of behavior "

there may not be aggression but you are rewarding the dog for this behaviour by rewarding, making this behaviour, that you don't want, productive. It gets him what he wants. You cave .

keep moving -- keep the dog with you, don't allow the contact when the dog is making the decision .


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## shantinath1000 (Mar 18, 2014)

We have the same problem- we have started using a prong collar and find that while she still barks she does not pull nearly as hard- this made it easier to keep her moving and not feel like I am fighting a freight train. Hope that helps- keep us posted - You may find something that I can use!


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## SuperG (May 11, 2013)

Yesterday, I came around a row of bushes with my dog on lead/prong and there was a person sitting at a picnic table with a small white dog and my dog lit up. A millisecond later, once I saw the situation, she got a sturdy hit on the prong and me in her face ( literally ) telling her to "leave it!"....no ifs, ands or buts about it. I proceeded to put her on down/stay while scrutinizing her behavior...I added "leave its " and "eyes" the moment her ears would perk forward and if her head would slightly drop and any other body english suggesting she was nearing threshold. I only needed to add verbal distractions to break her attempts to stare down the other small fluffy pooch ( which was mostly keeping it's calm ). Once my dog was under my control I initiated a brief exchange with the other dog owner...all in a friendly tone of course and asked if our proximity was okay with her as I was using this moment as a training session...she was fine with the situation. Once my dog..still on a down/stay got her crap back together and her ears became more relaxed..we proceeded on our walk. On our return, I walked toward the same person and dog at an angle which closed the gap rather than head on and I had my dog on a heel with my body between the other person and dog. This time, I was more strict on my dog verbally at the first hint of any posturing....kept the leash loose..and the moment she started to do her scenting/tracking of all those wonderful smells at the park, I continued closer and closer to the other dog..the scent trail just happened to head their way. Of course my dog was fully aware of the other dog's proximity but perhaps my dog was understanding what happens if she acts up and the scent trail was a wonderful diversion for her. We passed much closer than the first encounter without a hitch..a passing conversation and a "thank you" to the other dog handler and away we went. 

In my dog's long journey down the road of modifying DA behavior, I considered this event a small victory, it would have been better had she not gone off the first time, of course. But all in due time.

There were earlier days when I would have removed the dog from this situation at first encounter but we are past those days...we have progressed to where I fully expect my dog to keep her crap together with the trigger visible and closer.

I have been through the counter-conditioning sessions and perhaps there was some value but what has seemed to work best is stern correction when she decides to exhibit her DA tendencies. Slowly but most surely, she has discovered it is better to heed my "wishes" rather than loose her civility when encountering other dogs on leash. I truly believe, all the training time I have invested in this GSD has paid dividends as she is grasping the understanding it is better to rely on my "protection" rather than her deep rooted tendency to succumb to her leash aggression and less than civil behavior when meeting other dogs on leash.

Never give up and proceed one small step at a time...bring your dog close to threshold and reward your dog with the calming, confident leadership qualities you should be employing. If you are nervous as you approach your dog's breaking point....you have pretty much already lost the battle.


SuperG


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