Barking At Everything

tigerlily46514

tigerlily46514

Honored Member
//"I never thought of that!
I should try keeping him calm with passing dogs on our walks. "//
:confused:
oh, so you didn't watch either one of the videos then????
ohhhh......


maybe you much prefer reading it, than watching how to do it in video form, (some ppl prefer words, some ppl prefer films)
but, that was first thing i posted to your question, " //"So my question is, how to get Remi to not immediately bark at when he sees other dogs?"//
were two, short quickie tutorials on how to keep your dog calm when he sees other dogs. I figured you DID WATCH them.:ROFLMAO: lol.




and the rest of it was on finding puppy-friendly dogs for Remi to have a playdate with,
so Remi could finally experience actually friendly dogs. It's two different things, imo, setting up appropriate playdates,
and
learning how to teach your dog how to be calm when he passes dogs. but like i said, there ARE lots of ways to teach Remi to be calm when he sees dogs, lots of methods.
 
Mr-Remington

Mr-Remington

Experienced Member
Tiger lily- I'm on my phone for now, cause its my only Internet access and sadly I can't watch videos on it. But I find videos easier to watch to help me understand what I'm suppose to do in certain situations.
 
Mr-Remington

Mr-Remington

Experienced Member
I took Remi out back today, and some morning joggers came running by and I tried the redirecting his attention. He has no problem when we're in the yard so hopefully it will work just as well tonight on our walk. :)
 
Mr-Remington

Mr-Remington

Experienced Member
Yesterday I finally decided to take Remi to our front yard. We live on a super busy street and I have been hesitant to take him out there when the joggers and their dogs are out. I took him out there by himself, and a man with too small dogs walked by the were friendly but I did not let Remi approach them, and kept him close to me. He tucked his tail and barked, it sounded like Chances, like he wanted to attack. I apologized to the man and he pet Remi and then walked away. The second and last encounter was a lady walking 5 large dogs. I kept Remi a good 7-8 feet away. I asked him to sit, and he did. As soon as he saw her he stood up and put myself in his line of view and re-directed his attention. He sat for me and then I stood next to him and I praised him for not barking and just staying calm. I still feel like I'm doing something wrong. :oops:
 
Mr-Remington

Mr-Remington

Experienced Member
So I was working with Remi today and a small yorkie walked by and started barking. Remi barked in response but after the owner got the yorkie to stop Remi kept barking. I had to go in the house it got so bad. This is the only problem that remains huge. He just doesn't stop barking after another dog barks. Any ideas?
 
jackienmutts

jackienmutts

Honored Member
Sounds like Remi isn't being paid enough to keep his attention on you when other dogs are passing. You said you're asking Remi to remain calm in the presence of other dogs, but how? Right now, Remi can't. He physically and emotionally can't. My advice would be to get some really fabulous treats (not boring packaged stuff - chicken, hot dogs, beef, liver, etc) - and when Remi first sees another dog, start speed feeding. It may not sound like it works, but it actually changes how the dogs feels. Have him sit, get his attention, then feed feed feed feed feed feed feed .. until the other dog is passed. Trust me when I tell you, he'll know full well that the other dog is there. You won't be "pulling a fast one on him" by feeding him, and thereby keeping him from reacting and paying attention to the other dog. He'll start changing how he feels in the presence of other dogs. Ah, a dog, that means treats are coming. They start equating other dogs with something good.

Also, for a reactive dog, 7-8' is awfully close to ask them to be to another dog. I have a reactive dog - and when we started working, heck, her threshhold was literally a block away. She'd see a dog a block away and the barkfest would begin. Where is Remi's thresshold? Is it 7'? Is that how close he can come to another dog before he starts barking? Or is is maybe 25'? Or is it 50'? However far it is, you need to start there (plus a foot) - Remi needs to be comfortable, not already on edge. Once you know he can be say, 25' from another dog without barking, then move 24' - and see what happens. If a dog comes, feed feed feed. If that goes well, then try at 23' next time. Feed feed feed. If that doesn't go well, move back to 24' and work at that distance, til he's comfortable ... then try to advance a little. Once he's good at 23', then move a little closer to 22'. And so on. Go slow - there's no race to a finish line.

Don't rush him. This could be a work in progress for a long time - or it could go quickly (relatively), meaning weeks/months - as opposed to years. (I've been working with Makena for 4 yrs now - and for the last 2 yrs we can finally take nice walks around the neighborhood, the beach, etc, without her having meltdowns - but we do NOT meet other dogs, nor get very close to them, ever -- I would NEVER ask her to get 7' from a strange dog).

Also, start working on "look at me" (in the house) - meaning, hold a treat in front of your eyes, and ask Remi to look at you. Laser focus. Perfect that behavior. Once perfected, then start practicing when outside, then when on a walk. When it's perfected away from home, then when a barking dog is 'out there' (and there will be some), you can ask Remi to "look at me" and he will (instead of that barking dog). At that time you can feed feed feed feed until that barking dog passes. Again, pay Remi well for that behavior. This is all high-value stuff.

If you're in a situation where it doesn't make sense to have Remi "sit" while you keep his attention and feed (when in the presence of another dog), you can certainly speed-feed while you keep walking. Just be like an auto-treat-dispenser, and keep shoving food in his mouth as fast as you can. It works the same way, and has the same affect.

Hope this gives you some ideas. If you need more help, please ask.
 
Mr-Remington

Mr-Remington

Experienced Member
Jackienmutts- I give him fresh chicken when we practice this exercise, but I will try the speed feeding when other dogs are passing and see if that helps keep him interested.

I stand 7-8" feet because if I take him any farther then that he doesn't care and will focus on everything but the dog passing by. I started farther then this but he quickly realized that being so far from the other dog means nothing for him so he stopped paying attention to them. Usually we stand in the driveway or at the front of the back gate. That way if he gets out of control I can quickly remove him to somewhere where he can't see the other dog. The driveway and back gate are anywhere from 7" to 14" depending on were we're standing at the time. We live in a corner house so everything is kinda connected from the front yard to the back so it all depends were we choose to stand. But again if I'm more then around 8" he will 95% of the time become interested in something else then a passing dog.

We have been working on 'look at me' since Adrianne & Calvin suggested it. Remi understands what it means, but gets side tracked so we are working hard on perfecting it.
 
jackienmutts

jackienmutts

Honored Member
Good for you using chicken, that's a good high-value reward and should keep his attention. Forgive me for asking - but I felt I must, cuz some people try to use packaged treats for stressful reactivity work. There's nothing wrong with little packaged training treats for trick training - but when you're asking a dog to work at a high stress level, it's best to pay them well for a really hard job. I always want to clarify that. Keep working on "look at me", practice all the time - in the living room, in the kitchen, in the bedroom, in the backyard, all the time. And pay him well. It soon will be 2nd nature, but it will really help if he gets in a stressful situation and you ask him to "look at me" and he whips his head around, rather than stares at the big barking dog with the foamy mouth. :confused:(y)

Ok, now I have another question. When you're 7-8' away, and a dog passes by, when you say he "doesn't pay attention to them" ... do you mean he won't look at them at all and totally couldn't care less? Or if you weren't right there with him, would he want to be all over that dog, and be barking, etc.? What's Remi's behavior? Is he turning his back and/or is he sniffing the ground? The reason I ask, is both turning the back and sniffing are deflection signals a dog gives off to another dog. If he suddenly is becoming very interested in things on the ground, he's actually "talking" to the other dog, and sending out signals loud and clear "I mean no harm, let's not bother each other, I'm not going to bother you, (and maybe I'm not even gonna look at you) so just keep on moving". Since I can't see Remi, I have no way of knowing what he's doing - but if this could be what you mean, then he's in fact very aware of the other dog, and is in fact, very busy (despite what he looks like). If this could be what is going on - then step back, much farther back, than 7' - maybe back to around 20' and let him learn to be calm and watch from afar and "enjoy the scenery" (so to speak) without having to feel stressed. Not sure what his behavior is - but will wait for details. Hope this gives you some info to go on.
 
Mr-Remington

Mr-Remington

Experienced Member
He watches them when they first come into sight and then he'll at me and then sniff the ground to the side of him or in front, Usually wherever there is a bush or plants. But if we stand on the sidewalk where there is dirt or concrete then he just watches the dog pass by. If I ask him to focus on me then he will. I am with family at the moment, in an area with very few dogs around , but when I get home in a few days I will try posting a video of his reaction around other dogs. Then maybe by seeing him, you can help a little more. But for I will be working "look at me"
 
Mr-Remington

Mr-Remington

Experienced Member
Just wanted to let everyone know that Remi is doing much better and no longer barks at passing dogs. We can walk on the opposite side of the street and he is fine. I can tell him watch me and he will focus on me instead of the other dog; he sometimes sees a dog and looks immediately look at me without me saying anything. Today we passed over 6 dogs and no once did he bark. I was even stopped and asked were he was trained and we I told them I didn't take him to any classes, she asked if I had a business card and was interested in training her puppy! I could not have gotten this far without you guys so thank you for all your help I can't thank you enough! :D
 
Mr-Remington

Mr-Remington

Experienced Member
Thought I would let you guys know how Remi is doing, and kinda vent. He was getting better, but around Christmas I went to visit family and left him with my roommate for two weeks. After I got back, he has been move 'reactive' towards other dogs, he is not aggressive, its more excitement. I talked to my roommate and she has only taken him to the dog park, she didn't walk him in the neighborhood often and when she did it was in areas without dogs, it was mainly just the dog park for 2 hours every other day. He has taken major steps backwards, he barks at dogs on walks and behind fences, as well as barking when another dog barks. We do have days when we walk out the door and just walk right back in because he barks at every dog he hears or sees. :(

Since I know he just wants to meet every dog he sees, I am going sign him up for obedience classes today. Hopefully its like 648117 said in the beginning of the thread about him feeling like he has to greet them all, and I just need to train him to ignore other dogs. I'm praying this will help, as I am feeling hopeless at the moment.



He did better today on our hike we were passed by 4 dogs over the course of the walk and he didn't bark. He whined once when a dog growled at him but that was it. I even got him to sit when a large bull dog passed, of course I had fresh chicken. :rolleyes: But it's an improvement from yesterday when I walked home crying out of frustration, its the only good thing to happen in nearly a month. Fingers crossed that I can get him into this obedience class and improve his focus.



 
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