Extra special surprise for DK members!!!!

[Jess & Stewart]

Boy do I have treat for all of you! I was able to get a video of Stew's guarding. The dog butt hook I have his leash hanging on fell to the ground & of course our lovely Stew couldn't resist guarding it.

Ironically, it actually wasn't too bad. I ended up able to redirect him into a sit, he dropped it, then went nuts over it again. Was able to redirect him again away from it & out to go for a walk.

Will post the video when I am back at my computer.

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

Hey, Jess... post the video- we are curious!!  :-)

[Jess & Stewart]

Here is the video. At the beginning, Stew had already dropped the hook, I was able to maneuver him away from it, but couldn't get him to stop fixating on it & outside for our walk. I tried a few times to just pull him away but he'd growl again. I didn't want to pull hard & have him turn around & come towards me in that state so I kept trying to just get his attention on me. Eventually I got him down the hallway & onto our walk.

My neighbor watched the video & suggested that I keep my voice really neutral & low, because I started to get high pitched & that could add to this state. The trainer told me to be calm but instead of going right for a business voice that I try to redirect him with a command and immediately reward if I see him look at me, do the command or have a moment of hesitation since it means Stew was getting out of his overstimulated state & shifting focus onto what I told him to do.

Obviously, I still stink with the voice inflection thing & it just doesn't translate well when I put it into practice. One of these days I'll be able to do it or I'll need to invest in a voice changer that spies use (mostly sarcasm but would be cool, lol).

[Jess & Stewart]

I've tried uploading it 7 times. Taking a break before I hurl my phone across the room. Will attempt again later

[Adina P]

Try uploading to the video section of our site and then linking to it here (if it's not working to add it to the original post)

[Jess & Stewart]

Adina, 

This is just a general question-but would be there be any way to add a function like facebook or twitter has where I could tag a member in a post? For instance, if I wanted to direct say Karen/Jackdoodle or Jane/Guinness/Murphy to a discussion? I guess I could always message someone though. 

[Ginny Nightingale]

well, you certainly have us in suspense--but I don't see a video?

[Jess & Stewart]

Let's see if this finally works!! WOOHOO!! 

[Adina P]

1) You're trying to reason with him at the beginning. Don't.  Don't chatter with him like a person unless you're playing or praising or you don't care what he does.   

2) You kept the leash tight the whole time.  Don't.  The leash should never be tight like that unless you give a correction. A tight leash adds tension. Either give him a corrective jerk or walk away taking him with you or the leash is useless.  The leash is there to give you physical leverage.

3) You're asking him if he CAN drop it.  Of course he can.  Don't ask him.  GIVE A COMMAND and then follow through. But this is a tough/tricky one to follow through on.  What does your trainer say to do if you give a command and he does not do it? 

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

Just watched the video and I don't even know what to say. Other than my dogs would have been given one command of Leave it" and if I didnt get them unfocused on the toy, the next would be "Lets go" and pull, carry, stand between them and toy and walk into them or move them in the direction I wanted. Four words, probably not much else. I dont ask them if they want to do anything that I need them to do , it's not up for debate nor do they have a choice.  Unless it's "do you want a cookie?" and then they come flying in for their treats, and its something I don't care either way if they come or not.  Thier cookies btw are dehydrated sweet potatoes. haha.

Maybe focus on less conversational directing and make it more of a command?

[Jess & Stewart]

I was worried if I yanked him and got him turned around that he'd focus that growling on me and snap or try to bite.

I actually was impressed that I was able to get him to drop it twice, it did seem to work to give him a different command (sit, etc) and that seemed to refocus him a bit, which was my trainer's advice.

I didn't show this part of the video but I ended up getting him away from the hook at the end of this video and down the hallway. He still wouldn't come, but he did listen when I gave him a sit command. I ended up showing him a goldfish that I happened to have in my bag and he came for that, then I made him sit, opened the door and he followed after I released him. 

You said this "I dont ask them if they want to do anything that I need them to do , it's not up for debate nor do they have a choice." I think what I struggle with is HOW do I get Stew to this point? I don't want to physically dominate him, my trainer & a behaviorist I spoke with said this could be dangerous. Family I talk with say I should approach him with a heavy coat & gloves on & just accept that I may be bitten once or twice. That sounds absolutely crazy to me.

It's great that your dogs listen to you, I'm just unsure of how I get Stew to that point. How to establish that I'm in "control" without subscribing to the Cesar Milan "dominance, alpha roll" type stuff. Does that make sense? 

[Adina P]

Through practice of good training methods---that is how you get your dog to obey.  There is the method itself that needs to be good and work for Stew AND you need to implement it correctly.  A great method implemented poorly won't work.  And a poor method implemented perfectly won't work. 

In the meantime, while Stew does not respond readily to commands, I would NOT even use them unless you can MAKE him respond/follow through.  If you are not 90% certain he will do what you ask of him, don't say the command.  Be creative instead.  Otherwise you're training him, inadvertently, to NOT respond.

I don't think it's either Cesar Milan or Cookie Thrower.  There are happy mediums.  

[Jess & Stewart]

So what would I do in this situation again? Say a command once & if Stew did nothing, just drop his leash and stand in the middle of my apartment and not move, in the event Stew comes after me?

He would have laid down and started chewing his leash, then guarding that too, or start chewing on the hook and growling if I moved anywhere he thought was close to him. Then I'd be trapped, stuck in one spot in my apartment, which clearly would show Stew nothing. 

I've actually had this happen and my phone was across the room. so I could't even pick up my phone and call a trainer, a neighbor, nothing. I sat on my floor and cried. Then Stew got up to get water across the room and I RAN to the toy he had, picked it up, put it away, then when Stew was growling running toward me, I just stood with my hands behind my back staring at the ceiling so I didn't cry, yell etc and could ignore him. Then I was on edge the entire night and spent most of it on my couch. 

And not to put myself down but I must really stink at all human or dog interaction because I try the approach of 'give a different command' and maybe it'll refocus Stew, doesn't work. I try to  sound happy, sound like I swallowed helium and don't give command correctly. Then when I'm with all the trainers I've used I must not get across the point that what they tell me to do doesn't work & I guess I don't know how to train Stew or that I think they should train me. Because we end up sitting and talking each damn session and then Stew listens to the trainer and that night guards something and it's back to square one and I'm pissed because the alternative is to get upset that no one helps me & I'm alone again. 

Sorry for the diatribe.