So I adopted my now 1 yearish old dog in January from a shelter in the city. They’d picked him up off the street and had no idea what his background was. When I adopted him his forms said 3 years old, but when I picked him up after neutering they said he was 7-9 months old. I thought I was getting a fearful adult dog and instead picked up a maniac puppy He is a mutt of a mutt when I did his dna test beagle was the highest at 28% followed by chow chow chihuahua and Boston terrier at much lower percentages.
He’s a sweet dog, but lacks so much confidence. He knows all of his tricks inside the apartment, but the moment we’re outside it’s all gone. He doesn’t care about me or any food. He has 0 food motivation. I’ve brought chicken and steak to try and keep his attention, but he doesn’t care. I tried toys and nothing. He is very stubborn. When I first got him I made the mistake of letting him socialize with select friendly dogs whose owners welcomed me and gave me tips. Now he is reactive towards every dog we see. Even those he’s played with. It’s like he gets so excited he can’t control himself and starts lunging, barking, and nipping towards dogs and people. When I drag him away or manage to get him to sit he cries and cries. He is his own worst enemy. If he calmed down he’d be allowed to approach, but even that just resets him off again. All he wants is to play. He goes to daycare and they say he’s a good boy and plays all day. We’ve gone to trainers and he’s well behaved around them so they don’t see it as much.
The most embarrassing part has to be that I use a front clip harness so that he doesn’t choke himself when he starts lunging, but he ends up doing flips or walking like a cryptid. The cryptid walking he’s done since I got him and it’s funny when he’s confused but not when he’s reactive.
TLDR: Accidentally adopted a puppy and now he gets so excited to see dogs and people that he lunges and barks. We walk away and he cries. He can’t control his excitement and nibbles/bites. Any advice?
He’s a sweet dog, but lacks so much confidence. He knows all of his tricks inside the apartment, but the moment we’re outside it’s all gone. He doesn’t care about me or any food. He has 0 food motivation. I’ve brought chicken and steak to try and keep his attention, but he doesn’t care. I tried toys and nothing. He is very stubborn. When I first got him I made the mistake of letting him socialize with select friendly dogs whose owners welcomed me and gave me tips. Now he is reactive towards every dog we see. Even those he’s played with. It’s like he gets so excited he can’t control himself and starts lunging, barking, and nipping towards dogs and people. When I drag him away or manage to get him to sit he cries and cries. He is his own worst enemy. If he calmed down he’d be allowed to approach, but even that just resets him off again. All he wants is to play. He goes to daycare and they say he’s a good boy and plays all day. We’ve gone to trainers and he’s well behaved around them so they don’t see it as much.
The most embarrassing part has to be that I use a front clip harness so that he doesn’t choke himself when he starts lunging, but he ends up doing flips or walking like a cryptid. The cryptid walking he’s done since I got him and it’s funny when he’s confused but not when he’s reactive.
TLDR: Accidentally adopted a puppy and now he gets so excited to see dogs and people that he lunges and barks. We walk away and he cries. He can’t control his excitement and nibbles/bites. Any advice?