What’s this subs take on this video?

C

charles72

New member
I have a reactive Shepard, Lab, Mastiff mix. He is an amazing dog and I love him to bits. He’s just reactive to small animals and on leash with other dogs. He’s big so although I can handle him when walking, it’s embarrassing and prevents my wife and older parents from walking him.

I’ve watched a lot of different videos about how to deal with reactivity and quite frankly, I’m now totally lost as to which road to take to try and deal with this problem.

This video is the most comprehensive video I’ve found and it describes my dog to a T. Never bitten anyone, never seriously attacked another dog, never abused, has a loving home and family and gets lots of exercise. But, my dog gets reactive on leash and seems to get ‘aroused’ and more worked up when he gets held back.

The techniques he uses involve a prong collar and very firm ‘no’s. He’s even got a lot of e collar training videos. I’m worried about using these techniques but I spent a lot of money going to a ‘positivity training class’ and it was a nightmare with my dog pulling me all over the place while we just were throwing treats all over.

So ya, is this guy’s technique totally out of line? He really seems to know what he’s doing and I feel that this would work on my dog. What are others thoughts?

 
@charles72 Yeah no pls no.

There are so many ways to build focus and impulse control, but this is not it. We had the same issue, and we fixed it, but not this way. Prong collars are NOT a teaching tool, they are a breaking tool. That first yelp was absolutely heartbreaking, I could barely watch past it. I really don't get it, punching your dog is terrible, everyone agrees on that, but prong collars that make the dog scream are somehow fine to most people in the US. Ffs you guys, they are illegal in most places with proper animal protection laws. I wonder why.

I get that a proper certified trainer costs a lot of money, but I'm sure people here can give you advice if the internet is the only option that is left for you due to finances. Hell, even I'm willing to chime in tbh, if you're willing to read a whole lot of what worked for us. But please don't take advice from random teenagers on the internet ...
 
@charles72 I’d recommend the reactivity management course via FENZI dog academy. It’s all about treating and walking strategies. It’s really about just building up your dog’s collection of neutral and experiences around dogs.

My dog struggles a lot w arousal, and we use high value treats a lot on walks. I can’t say he is no longer aroused - some of that is genetic and will always be something he struggles with. But he knows if he breaks his focus on the dog and looks at me, he will get something tasty, and that’s how we manage to get around other dogs and triggers.

I’ve never done BAT, but a lot of people have great success w that too.
 
@shamila Oh ok, I watched the preview video. Kong hand, getting animated, treat distractions. I tried all that, even spent hundreds of dollars on a multi week course teaching all that. I’m sorry but this just does not work for my dog.
 
@charles72 Also, what kind of mental enrichment do you give your dog? Smart dogs need physical and mental enrichment. It sounds like you have the physical aspect covered, but mental is huge for reactivity too.

Adding frozen kongs, licking mats, and puzzle toys into my dog’s routine definitely had a big impact on his behavior overall. Nosework is supposed to be great for reactivity too!
 
@charles72 Are you working at a distance your dog can handle? If your dog is unable to focus on you or take food, you need more distance.

Unfortunately there is no magic cure for this, it takes work and repetition. What about these strategies do you feel don’t work? What issues are you encountering? It’ll be more constructive to offer guidance if you say more than just “it didn’t work”.

Using aversives and a prong for reactivity will not help your dog. Your dog is struggling with a lot of big feelings. Aversives basically tell your dog to “sit down and shut up”. You may get pleasant results for yourself in the form of easier walks, but you aren’t doing your dog any favors in helping them feel more at ease in these high-arousal situations.

Adding stress and discomfort through aversives on top of what your dog is already experiencing is not a great idea. It’s just further escalation where you need to help your dog feel calm.

This video explains some of what I’m talking about.
 
@charles72 If you can get both, it might be worth doing so. The benefit of the one you linked is that it's self-study and therefore on demand; the class could be available to you in a matter of seconds. BH150 is probably the single best step I've taken for my reactive dog (and I've taken a lot of good steps that have helped her), but the course doesn't run again, I think, until the June term.
 
@charles72 Have you done impulse control training starting very small? Not reacting to a dog, especially close up, might be too hard for your dog at the moment. I'm still searching for a training class/video online btw. If I can find one I'll let you know.

Essentially, first we just put the dog in a sit outside somewhere in a park, some woods, an area where you can work with your dog. If there are lots of dogs in your local park, this might be too much still, but you want at least some mild distractions, like smells, to be present. So don't do it at home or something. Our dog had to learn to do nothing, is what our trainer told us. In between we would reward with play. Like this: Put dog in a sit. He has to sit for some amount of time which will get longer and longer, then use the command "Play" and animate your dog with their favourite toy, after a bit of tugging and playing, tell him to leave it, put in a sit again and start from the beginning. If play doesn't motivate your dog at all, you can use treats, but playing will help your dog build a bond with you. We did this for at least 30min every day and amped up the distraction while he has to sit and wait whenever he was doing well: Trowing toys, treats, having kids run around, we run around, my partner and I "playing" without him, and finally other dogs, first from really far away and closer every time he managed to stay calm.
 
You need to absolutely start little. Going right into big situations with another dog close will obviously not work or require big actions from you like what that trainer you asked about did. This doesn't teach your dog the skills to handle their emotions though. It's like a kid crying for a lolly, and the parents slap it, instead of helping the kid through what they are feeling and rewarding good behaviour.

We worked on impulse control for months until meeting dogs worked reliably, but our dog got a lot better at handling his exitement within weeks, really.

I think this guy explains really well why play and especially tug is such a great way to train impulse control and also suggests similar exercises:
 
Essentially what you are doing with this exercise is putting your dog into an aroused state by play, but in a controlled way and making them learn how to calm down, and then later slowly introducing other arousal triggers and distractions for which the dog can then use and improve the self-calming skills he was/is being taught.
 
@charles72 Hard pass. What this guy does is representative of a lot of social media balanced trainers imo - heavy aversive usage with either a poor understanding of dog body language or just straight up ignoring it. Typically they throw around a lot of control, aversives and “structure” rather than addressing the root issues of fear or frustration.

Many people who are struggling with their dogs get pulled in due to the seemingly effective results and videos, but these types of trainers are where one tends to see fall out. When that happens, they are quick to blame owners for not “following through” or staying consistent. They often bully owners the same way the use aversives on dogs.

Another huge red flag in this guy and others is that he offers “guarantees.” No ethical trainer, balanced or not, would offer a class called “off leash anywhere in 8-weeks,” that is not how living creatures are or learn.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

M
Adopting a puppy soon - need advice on puppy's temperament (video below)
Replies
2
Views
3
mommyailish
M
M
Great Video on a Day in the Life of a Puppy
Replies
0
Views
10
michaeladolf
M
A
Recently video’d my dog while the wife and I went to lunch. Help?
Replies
3
Views
38
jazzyd777
J
L
Must Have Dog Watching Robot check this video
Replies
0
Views
18
leoneltable
L
Back
Top