New thing: Reactive behavior on walks (title changed after Karen said it isn't aggressive behavior)

[Heather & Brinkley]

Hi Everyone,

It's been a little bit since I've been on. It's been a busy holiday season and my father had heart surgery so I have not been online but I need your help. As most of you know, Brinkley and I moved in with my parents for two years while my husband is in school in MA. During this major change, I've noticed a behavioral change in Brinkley that I don't like. As we go on walks, he becomes almost manic in his pulling and barking and growling if another dog walks by. I correct him, make him sit and treat him when he listens on the first try but it is getting worse, not better. This behavioral change also coincides with him now having a fence that he can see through. We did not have a fenced in yard in our old house. My parents yard is fenced and the backyard backs up to the neighborhood walking path, where many people and dogs alike walk by all day long. If he's outside, he barks like crazy. I immediately correct him and bring him inside but it isn't stopping the behavior. He's not aggressive in any other way. He goes to doggie daycare without a problem and he has play dates all the time... But a year ago, he'd approach any dog with joy. It was bad before but I've seen even more of a heightened reaction the last couple of weeks after a neighborhood dog attacked Brinkley while we were on a walk. This dog and Brinkley haven't liked each other previously and then this happened and I got stuck on the leash. Well, the dog escaped his yard and as we came around the corner, the dog charged Brinkley-- not once but twice (when the owner came out, and got his dog, the dog escaped from his owners grasp and it started a second time.) Like I said, the problem was already there so this didn't cause it but it certainly hasn't helped.

Brinkley has been well socialized since he was a pup.

My husband is home for holiday break and he experienced a Brinkley outburst for he first time this morning and was very worried. It was interesting to me that Brinkley did it even with my husband because originally I thought maybe Brinkley was overcompensating as the Alpha dog in my husband's absence but alas, Brinkley did it with my husband on the other end of the leash.

Help- what do we do next? He's had three rounds of training in his three years of life. I plan to hire our trainer for private lessons so she can come to us and witness the behavior-- when it warms up.

Thanks in advance!!
Heather

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Welcome to my world, Heather.  I've been dealing with this (although more extreme) for what seems like forever with Murph.  We've learned a lot along the way.  Here are some of the highlights of what we've come to understand about Murphy's behavior on-leash around other dogs....

-Some dogs are actually "dog aggressive" while others are "dog reactive".  Because of Murph's extreme behavior when on leash and meeting other dogs I assumed he was dog aggressive (on leash).  Both our Behaviorist and our Trainer said the way to tell for sure is to drop the leash when they are most reactive and see what they do. You need to be very sure you have a plan before you do this....just in case.   For a long time I was reluctant to do this because I was afraid of what would happen.  When we finally did it, we saw that he ran up to the other dog, barked, and then backed off and wanted to play.....we got our answer.  He is dog reactive and not dog aggressive.  I'm getting that's the same story with Brinkley, but you can test it if you're not sure.  Just be sure your husband is with you and you have a plan to intercede if necessary. It actually was very empowering for me to know this....I gained confidence knowing that Murph was not going to attack the other dog.

-Murph is also territorial and dominant.  This manifests in barking and lunging if he sees other dogs in what he considers to be his territory.  We have fenced in dog parks at our complex where we take the dogs to run and potty.  We usually go when there are no other dogs, but if a dog walks by Murph will "attack" the fence.  He will run the length barking and going "nuts".  We do exactly what Karen described.  I calmly get to the fence and back him away....owning it.  He will run to another place and I follow and do the exact same thing.  I don't say a word....after a few times he just gives up.  If I know the people walking by with their dog I ask them to help by bringing their dog right up to the fence while I put Murph in a sit/stay.  Here's the tough part....if you really want to control this you can't let him be outside where he can "practice" this behavior without you being there to train and correct.  Each time he goes "crazy" barking and watches the other dog walk away he thinks that behavior works.   He'll need you to teach him otherwise.

-As for his behaviors when you're walking him on leash and he sees another dog, there are a few ways you can approach it.  If he's trained in a solid heel you can try giving that command as you pass the other dog and correct if he "breaks".  For some dogs this is enough.  I tried this initially, but even though Murphy had a fantastic heel that went out the window if another dog was approaching, and the corrections did not motivate him to change that behavior.   You can put Brinkley in a sit/stay and teach him to "look" at you as the dog passes....high value treats are the key here.  This actually worked pretty well with Murphy, and if it's a dog who is also highly reactive (barking and lunging at us) I still do it.  What I do most of the time now  is watch Murph's body language so I know the second his state of mind changes (his head and ears move forward and his body gets tense)....we turn and walk the other way for a couple of steps...when he calms we turn again.  We may do this two or three times as the other dog passes.  I am no longer actually correcting for reactions to other dogs....instead we are avoiding them.  I let him "tell" me when he's comfortable.  With some approaching dogs we can actually walk right by while with others we have to turn around and re-approach several times.   That said, I do have an e-collar on him which is my "safety net" in case we encounter a situation I feel uncomfortable handling.  I haven't had to use it in this situation but I have more confidence knowing I have it.

I think it's awesome that you're going to have a trainer work with you.  Our trainer still goes on walks with us once a week.  We've come so far but he still notices things about what Murph that I totally miss.  Please keep us posted on your progress. 

[Heather & Brinkley]

Jane, thank you so much. I'm going to read through all of this carefully and incorporate your tips.

It does make me feel better knowing that others have the same problems from the not coming when called at times to the reactive behavior. We had dogs growing up but Brinkley is our first dog together as adults so I never quite know what other deal with on a regular basis.

It's strange because when we go to group training he's both on and off leash and not peep from him... unless another dog challenges him first. He'll play and train with no issues. We don't even have issues at the pet store the majority of the time. But the leash walking in the neighborhood is where I see the problem.. This is why I want our trainer to come to us. She sees Brinkley act like an angel and has only seen him react to other dogs when they started it-- so I'll keep working with him, Thank you so much again!!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Good luck....Murphy is the same way.  He's totally fine at Daycare, the Groomer, etc.....dogs' behavior is so contextual.

[Heather & Brinkley]

Thank you!

[Lori (Wilson and Woody's Mum)]

I have a dog-reactive doodle when he is on leash.  It started when he was about two.  He, too, was socialized, has been to many obedience classes (where he is an angel) and I have worked with him daily since he was a pup.  This behavior is fairly predictable (now) and we still are dealing with it.  I have worked one on one with two different trainers.  Our normal trainer/behaviorist wasn't a good fit because he never did anything wrong when she was around.  But I will say, getting a handle on this now is the key.  The more times they react, the more ingrained it becomes.  Once it becomes an auto response, the harder it will be to ever get Brinkley over it.  I know this from personal experience.

The second trainer we worked with uses the BAT method (Behavior Adjustment Training).  This really works well.  Here is a website:  http://ahimsadogtraining.com/blog/bat/

I also invested in this book:  http://www.amazon.com/Behavior-Adjustment-Training-Frustration-eboo...

This method does work.  It isn't instant and it does take patience.  But it works.  What I like about BAT is the dog is learning and coping.....this isn't just changing his behavior.  It is changing how he thinks, which is key IMO.  

[Heather & Brinkley]

Thank you! I will look at all of this! I am determined to get this under control!

[Pat and Traveler]

"Look at that!"  I got a book recently titled Control Unleashed by Leslie McDevitt.  One of the fascinating training things she talks about is the "Look at that!" game.  The idea is to click (or say yes or otherwise mark the behavior) when your dog first notices another dog, before he has a reaction.  When the dog looks back at you, give a treat.  This has to be done subthreshhold, before your dog reacts or becomes fixated on the other dog.  Dogs want, even need, to look at things, and this game gives permission to look but enables your dog to break focus on the other dog.  Or horse.  Or man with a hat.  This is a serious oversimplification of McDevitt's work, but is maybe enough to see how the training game works.  Dogs are rewarded for looking at their triggers, when they see another dog something nice happens (counterconditioning) and their association about what it means when they see another dog changes.