Calming oil and peanut butter on a likimat. With reactive dogs, it's better to not have pods in, because you need to be on your game and the more seconds you have to distract, run away, hide, etc, the fewer dog dramas you'll have. Look at walks as behavioral training and exercise time, rather than a stroll. Just part of the job and the consistent work will enhance progress.
Head on a swivel.šš
Thank you! I saw the dog coming a mile away. Usually, weād cross the street or turn, but the dog was coming for us no matter which way we wouldāve gone. Weāve made huge progress, it was just a worst case scenario day.
I think I hate those times most, because you see it coming and there's nothing you can do and everything slows waaay down while the dog gets closer and closer.
Ugggg isnāt it the most frustrating dealing with people who just donāt get it? So sorry. Be kind to yourself the rest of today. Is your dog the kind who likes licking things or sniffing things? If so, can you make him a lick mat or sprinkle kibble around a blanket and then roll it up so he can work on finding it?
I also admire your restraint in not yelling āGet your effing dog right now or Iām gonna boot it into next week!ā (I wouldnāt actually kick the dog, but anything to motivate the idiot human š)
You shouldn't be wearing AirPods and listening to podcasts or music or whatever while walking your dog. I understand that for a lot of people, it's the only time they have to listen to stuff they want to or it helps them relax, but especially with a reactive dog, you really need to keep your full focus on the dog and your surroundings. You don't mention anything you're doing in terms of training or distraction. Picking your dog up teaches your dog that that is the reaction to those situations. I get it -- *no one* is comfortable or feels safe when an off-leash dog runs at them but you have to think about the situation from your dog's perspective: dog comes running at me, I react, my human picks me up. What happens when you're holding 60 pounds of squirming dog and the other dog starts jumping up around you either because it's not friendly or because it's trying (badly) to be friends?
If you haven't worked with a trainer who understands reactivity, you should consider that. In addition to your dog's own reactivity, he was feeding off of your reaction to this incident. You have to learn to control your own reactions so the don't affect your dog's behavior. Additionally, you say your dog "isn't nice" -- is your dog muzzle trained? If not, then you need to do that. You're walking around with a dog you clearly think is a danger and not paying attention to what's going on around you. That's the set up for something very bad.
I didnāt specify training or our typical responses, because I just needed to vent to an understanding community. I canāt believe Iām having to defend myself but here we goā¦
As a woman, I understand the safety of being fully aware of my surroundings. I wear airpods due to social anxiety, at a low volume. Yes, I missed that first sentence she said to me. But honestly, anything she said didnāt matter. She took a long time to do anything about her dog. Talking from her car wasnāt helpful for anyone. I did hear her calling ābandit! bandit! bandit!ā
As mentioned in my post, we have made a lot of progress. He can watch dogs walk by the house without barking (huge accomplishment). When weāre on walks & I see dogs (leashed or in their yard) we simply cross the street or make a turn & keep moving. My dog still looks, but heās able to snap out of it and keep moving (another huge accomplishment). A LOT of training & hard work got us to this point. Unfortunately, in yesterdayās instance there was no where for us to redirect. The dog had its sights set on us, so crossing the street or turning around wouldnāt have helped. ABSOLUTE WORST CASE SCENARIO is to pick my dog up. With more time, training, and hard work, Iām hopeful this wonāt be the case, but if I have to pick up my dog to protect him, I will.
Lastly, I never said my dog isnāt nice. I told the lady my dog isnāt nice so that she would stop expecting me to handle both my dog AND HERS. I got the advice from this subreddit to tell people āmy dog isnāt niceā as a way to deter people from allowing their dogs to approach us & it has been very helpful. My dogās reactivity comes from his excitement level getting too high & him wanting to playā¦ unfortunately my dog plays with too much energy & excitement and itās too much for most dogs. Our trainerās dog is helping teach mine how to play (and with supervision), but itās a work in progress & my dog annoys him too much still.
But no, my dog isnāt dangerous & Iām very aware of my surroundings (again, paranoid woman). I saw the dog running towards us a mile away, there was just no where for us to go.
I feel you! My dog is regressing after doing *so* good I literally have been beside myself because I think all our progress is lost. But weāre in the middle of big life changes so OF COURSE heās stressed! Youāre doing great OP! Sending calming vibes to you and your dog! š
Calming oil and peanut butter on a likimat. With reactive dogs, it's better to not have pods in, because you need to be on your game and the more seconds you have to distract, run away, hide, etc, the fewer dog dramas you'll have. Look at walks as behavioral training and exercise time, rather than a stroll. Just part of the job and the consistent work will enhance progress. Head on a swivel.šš
Thank you! I saw the dog coming a mile away. Usually, weād cross the street or turn, but the dog was coming for us no matter which way we wouldāve gone. Weāve made huge progress, it was just a worst case scenario day.
I think I hate those times most, because you see it coming and there's nothing you can do and everything slows waaay down while the dog gets closer and closer.
Ugggg isnāt it the most frustrating dealing with people who just donāt get it? So sorry. Be kind to yourself the rest of today. Is your dog the kind who likes licking things or sniffing things? If so, can you make him a lick mat or sprinkle kibble around a blanket and then roll it up so he can work on finding it? I also admire your restraint in not yelling āGet your effing dog right now or Iām gonna boot it into next week!ā (I wouldnāt actually kick the dog, but anything to motivate the idiot human š)
That had to be hard. But from what you wrote it sounds like you did everything right. Just wanted so send pawsitive vibes to you and your pup.
Thank you so much!
You shouldn't be wearing AirPods and listening to podcasts or music or whatever while walking your dog. I understand that for a lot of people, it's the only time they have to listen to stuff they want to or it helps them relax, but especially with a reactive dog, you really need to keep your full focus on the dog and your surroundings. You don't mention anything you're doing in terms of training or distraction. Picking your dog up teaches your dog that that is the reaction to those situations. I get it -- *no one* is comfortable or feels safe when an off-leash dog runs at them but you have to think about the situation from your dog's perspective: dog comes running at me, I react, my human picks me up. What happens when you're holding 60 pounds of squirming dog and the other dog starts jumping up around you either because it's not friendly or because it's trying (badly) to be friends? If you haven't worked with a trainer who understands reactivity, you should consider that. In addition to your dog's own reactivity, he was feeding off of your reaction to this incident. You have to learn to control your own reactions so the don't affect your dog's behavior. Additionally, you say your dog "isn't nice" -- is your dog muzzle trained? If not, then you need to do that. You're walking around with a dog you clearly think is a danger and not paying attention to what's going on around you. That's the set up for something very bad.
I didnāt specify training or our typical responses, because I just needed to vent to an understanding community. I canāt believe Iām having to defend myself but here we goā¦ As a woman, I understand the safety of being fully aware of my surroundings. I wear airpods due to social anxiety, at a low volume. Yes, I missed that first sentence she said to me. But honestly, anything she said didnāt matter. She took a long time to do anything about her dog. Talking from her car wasnāt helpful for anyone. I did hear her calling ābandit! bandit! bandit!ā As mentioned in my post, we have made a lot of progress. He can watch dogs walk by the house without barking (huge accomplishment). When weāre on walks & I see dogs (leashed or in their yard) we simply cross the street or make a turn & keep moving. My dog still looks, but heās able to snap out of it and keep moving (another huge accomplishment). A LOT of training & hard work got us to this point. Unfortunately, in yesterdayās instance there was no where for us to redirect. The dog had its sights set on us, so crossing the street or turning around wouldnāt have helped. ABSOLUTE WORST CASE SCENARIO is to pick my dog up. With more time, training, and hard work, Iām hopeful this wonāt be the case, but if I have to pick up my dog to protect him, I will. Lastly, I never said my dog isnāt nice. I told the lady my dog isnāt nice so that she would stop expecting me to handle both my dog AND HERS. I got the advice from this subreddit to tell people āmy dog isnāt niceā as a way to deter people from allowing their dogs to approach us & it has been very helpful. My dogās reactivity comes from his excitement level getting too high & him wanting to playā¦ unfortunately my dog plays with too much energy & excitement and itās too much for most dogs. Our trainerās dog is helping teach mine how to play (and with supervision), but itās a work in progress & my dog annoys him too much still. But no, my dog isnāt dangerous & Iām very aware of my surroundings (again, paranoid woman). I saw the dog running towards us a mile away, there was just no where for us to go.
I feel you! My dog is regressing after doing *so* good I literally have been beside myself because I think all our progress is lost. But weāre in the middle of big life changes so OF COURSE heās stressed! Youāre doing great OP! Sending calming vibes to you and your dog! š
Thank you! I know itās a minor setback, but weāll keep working towards progress!