Other dogs on our walk

[Sara & Trix]

I posted this in the Puppy Madness group, but it should have been posted here! Sorry to whoever gets this twice :)

I am starting to get a little frustrated.

Trix is almost 10 months and really starting to improve on her walks in terms of training her heeling and walk with me on a loose leash. When we meet other dogs on our walk, my little lady turns into the Tasmanian Devil. The other dog and owner see us approaching and I can tell they want to say hi - who wouldn't want to say hi to a cute doodle that is behaving so nicely on a leash...but then as soon as she sees they are approaching, she starts to bark and jump in excitement. No aggression, just total craziness and high pitched barks and wanting to jump and play. The other dog always has the same confused look on its face saying "what the hell is wrong with this dog?". I ALWAYS stay calm and try to have her sit and say hi, but by this point, the other owner is thinking "yeah, I'll just move along before your dog has a heart attack". Then we turn around to keep walking, and boom - she's back to being a perfect little lady.

Trix should be very well socialized by now since she has been going to daycare twice a week since she's 4 months old! I just don't know what to do. She's also about to start her level 3 obedience. I could always just change sides of the street until she is a little older, but I would rather find a way to fix this. Have any of you experienced this and managed to find a solution? Is it just an adolescent thing?

Thank you!

[Amy, Cubbie & Ollie]

We are going through this right now with Ollie too.  He turned 2 in August (we adopted him in June) and have had to work on proper leash manners and while he has gotten better about not pulling, we still struggle with reacting to other dogs while out on a walk.  I tried the leash corrections but they seem to amp him up even more.  The other day we encountered another (barking) dog while on our walk and I decided to just keep walking and pulled on his leash to keep him moving forward but he just turned into a bucking bronco at that point. 

Cubbie used to be very good about greeting other dogs when out on a walk (he had no problem passing his CGC exam 2 years ago), but he has started to feed off of Ollie and has started to get a little crazy.   I am not sure if this is the right method or not, but I have started carrying treats in my pocket and if we encounter other dogs while out walking, I pull off the sidewalk and put both dogs into a sit stay and get them to focus on me (errr...the treats) and keep telling them to stay and when they look at the other dog, I tell them to leave it.  If they stay sitting and stay quiet they get a treat and praise.  

Regardless of what method you use, be sure to stay consistent.   

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Amy, my feeling is that "whatever works for your dog is the right approach".  I used treats with Guinness as motivation to stay in his "heel" command even with distractions...and it worked for him.  He was very treat motivated....the treat meant more to him than the other dog.  I also tried this with Murph...but he'd gobble the treat then turn and lunge after the other dog.....different dog with different motivation. 

[Sara & Trix]

Sounds like Trix is a lot like Murphy! 

[Amy, Cubbie & Ollie]

the treats seem to help, but I hate the fact that all of my coats now how "treat crumbs" in the pockets!! yuck!  :)