Leash reactive when other dogs are leash reactive (border collie, barking, aggressive)
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So my lil 6-month-old catahoula/pit is a sweetheart. Loves my other dog and my cat (though the cat is kind of offended by all the eager butt sniffing), loves to work with me in general, and just a really fun dog to work with. She even "protects" the house appropriately.
But yesterday we definitively confirmed her one "trigger" - she mirrors the leash reactivity of other dogs. If another dog approaches her appropriately, she responds in a friendly and outgoing manner (very appropriately). However, if the dog is leash reactive, my laid-back little girl basically seems to say "Yeah? I'll see you your crazy and ramp it up a few notches!"
It's like that's when her full Catahoula comes out and she wants to go scorched earth on her enemy.
She greeted all the other dogs on our walk yesterday like they were her best friends, but lost her ever-loving mind when another dog lunged at her and barked (it was fully under the owner's control at all times). Her responses are manageable, but I'd rather not have my dog lunging at other dogs just because they're not being perfectly amiable.
Normally, I would try something where I let the reactive dog sniff noses with the other dog briefly and then pull them apart and repeat until the reactive dog relaxed. But in this case, she is only reactive to other reactive dogs, so it's not gonna work. Right now, I try to distract with high value treats and work on getting her to look at me and listen to commands, but I'm wondering if there's another method to try.
I mean, it's hard to blame her - she's just trying to protect herself from a hostile peer, but I would like less drama in these situations and to have an easier time containing her. She did get her face chomped by a particularly unhinged dog at an event (totally my bad - didn't realize my friend was bringing her dog out of the crate and had the pup on a loose leash), but seemed to bounce back from that pretty quick (no skin broken or even any yelping, and she was back to responding appropriately to other dogs within minutes). So I suspect this was pre-existing issue, as it is also a very "Catahoula" way to react. But that incident sure as heck didn't help.
So my lil 6-month-old catahoula/pit is a sweetheart. Loves my other dog and my cat (though the cat is kind of offended by all the eager butt sniffing), loves to work with me in general, and just a really fun dog to work with. She even "protects" the house appropriately.
But yesterday we definitively confirmed her one "trigger" - she mirrors the leash reactivity of other dogs. If another dog approaches her appropriately, she responds in a friendly and outgoing manner (very appropriately). However, if the dog is leash reactive, my laid-back little girl basically seems to say "Yeah? I'll see you your crazy and ramp it up a few notches!"
It's like that's when her full Catahoula comes out and she wants to go scorched earth on her enemy.
She greeted all the other dogs on our walk yesterday like they were her best friends, but lost her ever-loving mind when another dog lunged at her and barked (it was fully under the owner's control at all times). Her responses are manageable, but I'd rather not have my dog lunging at other dogs just because they're not being perfectly amiable.
Normally, I would try something where I let the reactive dog sniff noses with the other dog briefly and then pull them apart and repeat until the reactive dog relaxed. But in this case, she is only reactive to other reactive dogs, so it's not gonna work. Right now, I try to distract with high value treats and work on getting her to look at me and listen to commands, but I'm wondering if there's another method to try.
I mean, it's hard to blame her - she's just trying to protect herself from a hostile peer, but I would like less drama in these situations and to have an easier time containing her. She did get her face chomped by a particularly unhinged dog at an event (totally my bad - didn't realize my friend was bringing her dog out of the crate and had the pup on a loose leash), but seemed to bounce back from that pretty quick (no skin broken or even any yelping, and she was back to responding appropriately to other dogs within minutes). So I suspect this was pre-existing issue, as it is also a very "Catahoula" way to react. But that incident sure as heck didn't help.
Have you trained her the "leave it" command yet? I would meld that into your walks, even with the dogs that are not leash reactive so you can get a handle on things. My male knows that command as I've had him since a pup, female follows whatever brother does So, while walking as I don't want my dogs in the face of surprised kids or anyone who doesn't welcome their attention, I use the "leave it" command and neither dog pays much attention.
Have you trained her the "leave it" command yet? I would meld that into your walks, even with the dogs that are not leash reactive so you can get a handle on things. My male knows that command as I've had him since a pup, female follows whatever brother does So, while walking as I don't want my dogs in the face of surprised kids or anyone who doesn't welcome their attention, I use the "leave it" command and neither dog pays much attention.
She does seem to know "leave it" - there was a horse literally trotting by in the park and I'm pretty sure it was the first time she saw a full-size one. I kept her eyes on me and kept the treats coming as long as she did so. She did very well and was very relaxed in that situation. It's solely hostile dogs that set her off. But I think just generally cultivating that "leave it" mindset may be the key. I will give it a try, and also work a few other commands a little more intensely than I have been.
She's so mellow otherwise, this may be the kick in the pants I needed to get super-serious about her training rather than the "it'll come"/"be consistent" approach I've been taking.
I use the "leave it" command also. Then "sit" and make him stay calm and he gets the ball.
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It's like that's when her full Catahoula comes out and she wants to go scorched earth on her enemy.
So I suspect this was pre-existing issue, as it is also a very "Catahoula" way to react.
^^^^^ This, lol.
At least she's not instigating the aggression. That's the important thing to keep in mind.
She sounds like a lovely dog.
Looks like most of us here use the 'Leave it' command.
My 13mo Rotti has PICA & has been a real pain to train. He usually obeys but there's still times where I have to get in front of him, raise my voice & 'man-handle' him with his harness & choke chain (No not to choke. Because I've got a hold of a loop on the back of the harness, I'm able to make the noise of the chain running through the ring by pulling the leash without the need to tighten or choke) Not sure why but he shows particular interest in certain dogs.
He's not aggressive towards other dogs, he just wants to greet & play. So it could be worse.
She's going to be quite a strong dog. Using a harness gives much better control & it saves their throats from the choke chain.
Sounds to me like you are going in the right direction and just need to be more consistent. Make sure that you have your treats with you at all times so that your are ready to go to treat for the behavior you want. I recommend an open zip lock bag in your pocket so when you wash the item it doesn’t get grease stains everywhere. Little squares of cheese and chicken or beef or ham are super.
If you use a treat bag, sometimes the dog won’t do what you want unless you are wearing the treat bag.
If you have not taught “Leave It”, then the dog doesn’t know it. You can reinfoce that by both classical conditioning(gets a treat when he accidentally leaves it) or operant conditioning(gets treat because you teach him to leave it).
But yesterday we definitively confirmed her one "trigger" - she mirrors the leash reactivity of other dogs. If another dog approaches her appropriately, she responds in a friendly and outgoing manner (very appropriately). However, if the dog is leash reactive, my laid-back little girl basically seems to say "Yeah? I'll see you your crazy and ramp it up a few notches!"
It's like that's when her full Catahoula comes out and she wants to go scorched earth on her enemy.
She greeted all the other dogs on our walk yesterday like they were her best friends, but lost her ever-loving mind when another dog lunged at her and barked (it was fully under the owner's control at all times). Her responses are manageable, but I'd rather not have my dog lunging at other dogs just because they're not being perfectly amiable.
Normally, I would try something where I let the reactive dog sniff noses with the other dog briefly and then pull them apart and repeat until the reactive dog relaxed. But in this case, she is only reactive to other reactive dogs, so it's not gonna work. Right now, I try to distract with high value treats and work on getting her to look at me and listen to commands, but I'm wondering if there's another method to try.
How old is she?
I would do my best to steer her away from reactive dogs.
I don't understand why she would need to go nose-to-nose with other dogs, especially reactive dogs? I would only let her engage with dogs that I knew were friendly.
Especially because she is a puppy. She needs socialization, but also need to be careful that she is getting her socialization from positive influences. If she is going through a fear period (again, not sure how old she is?), having to meet other dogs that are reactive would not be good, especially since she still doesn't quite know how to moderate her behavior appropriately. We want her to get plenty of good play and socialization time with other dogs that are good role models and teachers for her so that she develops the social tools she needs.
My last thought is that on the one hand you are in a bonding period with her, but on the other hand, (from her perspective), she had to step up to manage that other scary dog because you allowed her to be exposed to the reactive dog. She is learning to trust you, so if you don't protect her from the reactive dogs, she will feel she needs to take on the role of managing the situation. I hope that makes sense.
I would do my best to steer her away from reactive dogs.
I don't understand why she would need to go nose-to-nose with other dogs, especially reactive dogs? I would only let her engage with dogs that I knew were friendly.
Especially because she is a puppy. She needs socialization, but also need to be careful that she is getting her socialization from positive influences. If she is going through a fear period (again, not sure how old she is?), having to meet other dogs that are reactive would not be good, especially since she still doesn't quite know how to moderate her behavior appropriately. We want her to get plenty of good play and socialization time with other dogs that are good role models and teachers for her so that she develops the social tools she needs.
My last thought is that on the one hand you are in a bonding period with her, but on the other hand, (from her perspective), she had to step up to manage that other scary dog because you allowed her to be exposed to the reactive dog. She is learning to trust you, so if you don't protect her from the reactive dogs, she will feel she needs to take on the role of managing the situation. I hope that makes sense.
She's 6 months old. She's not really meeting reactive dogs up close and personal - aside from that one incident, there was only the one that she never came close to on our walk. It started barking at her from across a wide path and she responded by doubling down on the crazy - lunging and barking like a lunatic. She mostly LOVES other dogs, no matter how big they are. We're doing playdates with other friendly dogs and she's been great.
The only sign of a fear period is a little uncertainty around doorways, which I went through with a young border collie at about this age about 20 years ago. Otherwise, she's crazy bold and MUCH more relaxed at this age than my male Catahoula was. Nothing skittish about her at all.
So my lil 6-month-old catahoula/pit is a sweetheart.
No.
She isn't.
Her genetics predispose her to being aggressive. She isn't sweet. Get this under control NOW or you are about to embark on the hell of having an aggressive dog for the next 10-15 years.
Quote:
Originally Posted by JrzDefector
She greeted all the other dogs on our walk yesterday like they were her best friends
Why in the name of all that is good are you letting her "meet and greet" other dogs on walks? NO. NEVER. They aren't part of her household, she does not need to meet them EVER. She needs to ignore them. If you keep letting her approach other dogs, you're going to have more and more aggression. Count on it.
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So, while walking as I don't want my dogs in the face of surprised kids or anyone who doesn't welcome their attention, I use the "leave it" command and neither dog pays much attention.
