Quote:
Originally Posted by Trayderjoe
Several of the previous posters have hit the nail on the head. My dog Jenny was very social until she got bit by another dog. Unfortunately, she has also been "set upon" three other times by dogs whose owners did not have them on lead. When she sees other dogs walking by, she barks aggressively and raises her fur.
I spoke with a trainer who suggested walking her with a training bag and to keep my head on a swivel. When I spot another dog (hopefully before my dog sees it), I give Jenny a command of "look" with the intention that she look to me and when she does, I reward her with a treat. My first step was to get her to disengage from focusing on the other dog and to look to me on command. She did well enough that we walked by several dogs (who were across the street) and several homes with dogs barking and she did not react. Our next step was with the help of a member of a dog rescue at PetSmart. She had a large male dog and brought him outside to meet Jenny (this is the neutral territory), turning him so that Jenny could "sniff" him. We then turned Jenny so that the male could "sniff" her as well and she could be comfortable with the "inspection process". We were ultimately able to bring Jenny into PetSmart (I kept a muzzle on her just in case as I wanted to see her behavior) and kept her near her new BFF. She was a little nervous, but started to relax even with other dogs around, and even with all of the new scents she had to have been picking up. We now can bring her to PetSmart and she does well, but occasionally there is the warning growl if another dog is too hyper and gets in her face too fast. I keep my eyes on her at all times, but I can also tell you that she has laid down on the floor with her stomach exposed which she would never do if she was fearful or aggressive. We are also now able to bring her in without the muzzle on, although I always have it with me just in case. We take it slow when new dogs show up and if an owner does not have control of their dog, I turn Jenny away and we walk away. She had one dog snap at her and I was shocked that she did NOT react negatively. I had expected her to go back at the other dog, but we turned away quickly and then I rewarded her promptly with several treats. By the way, I continue to have the training bag on me and reward her good behavior promptly. It is not a quick process, but I would never have thought I could ever bring her to PetSmart. I also have to admit that I will always be alert when walking her since she is my responsibility. I don't know that I will ever get her to accept another dog in the house (she is also 14) but at least I can now bring her to a more social situation. Unfortunately I have also passed up adopting some nice rescue dogs to replace our friend whom we lost 2 years ago.
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That's a long, involved process, but very solid training practice. You are to be commended to spend the time to go through it with Jenny. I always forget about PetSmart and Petco as being possible places to get a dog used to other dogs, though like you say, one must be vigilant in anticipating other dogs' and owners' behaviors.
Now excuse me, my dog is pointing at his watch. The little paw is on the 4, and the big paw's
already past the 12. Dinnertime!