Help - 8 month old pup behavior at the park

[tahi193]

This isn't a hunting training question but I'm hoping someone might have some insight.

When I take my ES to the park she's very reactive around other dogs. She barks at every single dog she sees. I don't think she's being aggressive. I think she's just excited or intimidated. She also barks at the cat and even small kids sometimes too. As you might imagine, this creates a problem in public. I'm worried that she's scaring other people with her enthusiasm. She has been going to the park since she finished her puppy shots and she's been around other dogs and kids since she was very young. I thought she had been exposed to enough situations but since she has gotten a little older she barks like crazy at everything. The problem is I can't get her to calm down long enough to get close to another dog/cat/child and let her see that it isn't a big deal. I always stop and put her in a sit when she starts this and try to get her attention but that really doesn't work. She's very focused and it's like she doesn't even hear me. This is my first dog so my training experience is quite limited. Any thoughts or tips are appreciated. Thanks!

[Sharon]

I see you have no responses. I'll give it my best shot but , difficult problem.

Start by only seeing dogs of friends.
I would muzzle the dog so that everyone feels safe in the park. The other people don't know he only barks. For all they know, he bites.This is for your safety too. Right now the dog is a liabilityaround people and other dogs.

BE TOUGH. When your dogss starts putting up a fuss, use the leash firmly and put her in a sit.

You didn't say how old your dog was. Often this type of out of control behaviour is from the breeding. She is a good looking dog.

Is the dog getting sufficient exercise - running off leash on private land, going for fast jogs , etc. ?

PS
My gut feeling is that this dog is not getting enough hard exercise so is out of control when going to the park. Sprting breeds need at least an hour a day of hard exercise.

[ultracarry]

Don't take her to the dog park. Have a close group you train with and she will get used to them. I know a lot of dogs that bark and get hyper to play with other dogs.... Not a big deal.

[shags]

Don't stop and make her sit. That allows her to focus on the other dogs. Keep moving, make a lot of turns and pop the lead if she lags or forges so she'll focus on you. Don't say 'heel' or anything, keep your mouth shut and just pop the lead. Time your turns so you can pop her when she starts to bark. When you stop, if she begins to bark, get moving again without saying anything, and if she doesn't bark and remains calm, give her quiet praise like an 'alright' but don't go nuts petting and patting because that will get her excited again. When you're walking, don't go toward a dog or group of dogs unti you're pretty sure she has developed some self control.

As others have said, it would be a good idea to start reprogramming her with dogs of friends. Start in your own neighborhood or somewhere that your pup doesn't get so overwrought.

Good luck and remember to stay calm and cool your ownself.

[mountaindogs]

Don't stop and make her sit. That allows her to focus on the other dogs. Keep moving, make a lot of turns and pop the lead if she lags or forges so she'll focus on you. Don't say 'heel' or anything, keep your mouth shut and just pop the lead. Time your turns so you can pop her when she starts to bark. When you stop, if she begins to bark, get moving again without saying anything, and if she doesn't bark and remains calm, give her quiet praise like an 'alright' but don't go nuts petting and patting because that will get her excited again. When you're walking, don't go toward a dog or group of dogs unti you're pretty sure she has developed some self control.

As others have said, it would be a good idea to start reprogramming her with dogs of friends. Start in your own neighborhood or somewhere that your pup doesn't get so overwrought.

Good luck and remember to stay calm and cool your ownself.

+1
I would also reccomend a class style obedience or "CGC" class. Talk with the instructor before hand and tell them what you are hoping to accomplish. In a group setting, after you get over yourself and quit worrying about looking bad ) you'll find the instructors and class very happy to help. You dog will get used to seeing lots of people and things every week and she will be less excited by it. CGC especially is geared twowards crowd settings and being good in public.
I took a class last year with my dog to work towards Therapy dog work. There was a rescue German Shepard in the class for the 3rd time. She was NOT working towards therapy dog work! The owner talked with me a bit and let me know that his dog had dog aggression issues, and he was working through it. She would still get worked up over certain dogs, but he would just work her through it walking around closer and closer and rewarding for correct befavior, until she was ignoring the dog then he would step back into our class and the dog would be focused again. He did give some leash snap corrections when he turned her away from the other dog, and also rewarded her calmly when she was walking AWAY from the other dog.
She never much liked my laid back lab (who ignored her entirely and just wagged her tail calmly love my lab!) but she would play with my GSP with some careful observasion and keeping both dogs on lead. I was pleased to see someone really working so hard to get the dog to have good manners.
Good luck. Post back and let us know how it goes. I am SURE someone else is having the same issues but is afraid to ask or has decided to keep their dog away from the public.

[tahi193]

Thanks for the responses. I understand it's hard to comment on this kind of thing without seeing the dog.

First, she is 8 months old so I'm hoping this is the terrible twos of dog development. Her mother and the other dogs in her line have always appeared very calm and friendly to strangers. I don't know about the father except that he is accomplished in field trials. There isn't a reason to think she's just wired this way but I suppose one never knows for sure.

She runs on about an acre for a few hours at a time almost every day, sometimes twice a day. Not ideal but I do believe she gets enough exercise. By nightfall she hardly moves from her bed. I go to the park for socialization and because I may have to move to a city for a few years for graduate school where she will most certainly have to go to parks and be around other dogs. Hence my small freakout when she suddenly decides to be a real brat at the park! She is not out of control otherwise at the park and walks nicely on a leash.

I would *love* to do an obedience class but I haven't found any within an hour's drive yet. My home is in a very rural part of NC. There might be a class by a private trainer starting soon nearby so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

She's obviously not interested in harming anything she barks at. She barks at anything that I won't let her get close to. It's like she's saying, "Hey, I'm over here but I can't move so come see me!" But other people don't know that so it definitely needs to stop. My dad suggested using a training collar at the park and giving her a nip when that behavior starts. I don't really know what to think about that. Thoughts?

[Ranger351]

I keep a e-collar on mine anytime he is at a park. He is two completely different dogs depending on if he's wearing it or not.

[shags]

Do not use an ecollar on her for this problem! Bad bad bad idea!

A clue is that you mentioned your little freak out. Do you not think the pup picks up on that? Take a deep breath anf calm down before you get out of the car, again when you start toward the park, again when she starts up. Pop her lead and keep your mouth shut. When we vocalize when we're nervous or upset and the dog doesn't mind, we tend to get more stressed and that's the last thing you need.

Start walking her at the periphery of the park where you can work her, and gradually work your way closer to the other dogs as she improves.

Start now, and don't allow unwanted behavior just because she's young. No need for a smack-down, just let her know you won't tolerate it.

[tahi193]

Do not use an ecollar on her for this problem! Bad bad bad idea!

A clue is that you mentioned your little freak out. Do you not think the pup picks up on that? Take a deep breath anf calm down before you get out of the car, again when you start toward the park, again when she starts up. Pop her lead and keep your mouth shut. When we vocalize when we're nervous or upset and the dog doesn't mind, we tend to get more stressed and that's the last thing you need.

Hah. I guess I really meant internal freak out. I actually thought I was pretty calm. I thought talking to her in a low, smooth voice might calm her down but it didn't seem to help so next time I'll just not speak to her at all. Why is an e-collar not a good idea? I've never used one.

[shags]

For starters, because you've never used one Ecollars are great tools, but they are not appropriate for every situation. Your dog needs to be conditioned to the collar, and you need to learn about how to use it. It's not hard to learn, but you can make a mess of things if you just strap it on and zap away.

If your dog is focused on another dog and gets zapped, she'll think the dog zapped her. You're setting her up for fear or aggression.

Internal freak outs are freakouts none the less. You calm=her calm. You nervous=her nervous.

[Sharon]

Do not use an ecollar on her for this problem! Bad bad bad idea!

A clue is that you mentioned your little freak out. Do you not think the pup picks up on that? Take a deep breath anf calm down before you get out of the car, again when you start toward the park, again when she starts up. Pop her lead and keep your mouth shut. When we vocalize when we're nervous or upset and the dog doesn't mind, we tend to get more stressed and that's the last thing you need.

Start walking her at the periphery of the park where you can work her, and gradually work your way closer to the other dogs as she improves.

Start now, and don't allow unwanted behavior just because she's young. No need for a smack-down, just let her know you won't tolerate it.

I agree - no e collar for this problem. She could easily think the correction is coming from the other dog, which would make things worse.

[tahi193]

If your dog is focused on another dog and gets zapped, she'll think the dog zapped her. You're setting her up for fear or aggression.

Internal freak outs are freakouts none the less. You calm=her calm. You nervous=her nervous.

Okay, that all makes sense. I can definitely see how she might interpret the zap as coming from the other dog.

[isonychia]

You need to do some intense socialization, my guess is that this could be a lack there of from the onset during a critical period (unfortunately the last puppy shots come in after 12 weeks, which just so happens to coincide with the presumed average end of the socialization period) I waited too, but was fortunate to know enough people with dogs and kids that I knew were not sick to get some good socialization in during this period. I would try taking your dog to a doggy daycare and tell everyone there your concerns, they may need to muzzle the dog but likely not since you won'y be there holding him on a leash. Do you notice this behavior when your dog is not on a leash? Some dogs get very defensive while on a leash. Teach your dog to heal. When walking in the park if he starts to act up and get focused in on a dog put him at heal, you will have to be very stern and use a lot of correction and directional changes (mostly turning IN to the dog) because he will not be focused on you (this is AFTER you have trained him heal), this will give him a correction while taking his focus off of whatever he is barking at and redirecting it towards you, it will also help you calm down and focus as well. Heal will help, but will likely not solve the problem, only act as a tool you can use when you need it and may eventually get the message across to the dog "Hey, if I'm cool I don't have to be at heal" Remember to praise your dog when he heals well. Also, don't be afraid of correction. My dog showed early signs of this and I always correcting him, the key is to be very stern and consistent, if he does not listen, step it up a notch. If he is on a leash, you do not need an e collar, carry a heel stick with you and swat him if you need to, but try everything else mentioned above first, especially the daycare.

My dog is still a watch dog at home, and actually comes to my benefit quiet often when the mailman comes and I forgot to put my netflix in the box

[mountaindogs]

I drive 75 minutes for the classes I drove 60 to work....
Sometimes living out has tremendous benefits. Sometimes you gotta travel a bit. Most classes are 1 time per wee week For 6 weeks.

[isonychia]

Rural NC? Where at, my sister used to live in Tarboro and my GF is from Ashe. County. Easy state to miss, but then again Colorado would be a hard state to leave

[RoostersMom]

Ditto on not using the collar for this behavior. I would seriously be looking for a training class. I drive an hour and 15 minutes to my obedience and agility classes. It sucks, but in the long run, it's worth it for the dog. I also have a few training friends that can help me out one on one with behaviors like you're describing. Set the dog up for situations and be prepared to correct her for bad behavior. I'd also teach the "watch me" command. It's an excellent one to use in this situation. Have the dog be hungry and provide mucho excellent, very high value treats to teach this one.

[tahi193]

You need to do some intense socialization, my guess is that this could be a lack there of from the onset during a critical period (unfortunately the last puppy shots come in after 12 weeks, which just so happens to coincide with the presumed average end of the socialization period) I waited too, but was fortunate to know enough people with dogs and kids that I knew were not sick to get some good socialization in during this period. I would try taking your dog to a doggy daycare and tell everyone there your concerns, they may need to muzzle the dog but likely not since you won'y be there holding him on a leash. Do you notice this behavior when your dog is not on a leash?

My vet seemed to think it was unsafe to take her out until after her puppy shots. I later learned that I probably missed a large part of the first socialization period by waiting that long to take her out around other dogs besides the ones she sees every day. Puppy class didn't even cross my mind because I've always known setters to be rather laid-back around other dogs and she seemed to be doing so well. She was easy to house train and quickly learned the basic obedience commands. I was taking her to the park where she met many children and was around other dogs. The barking didn't start until around 6 months. The doggy daycare idea is good and I'll definitely look into that. She displays this behavior to some extent off the leash. If she is off-leash but there is a fence between her and another dog that also seems to set her off.

Rural NC? Where at, my sister used to live in Tarboro and my GF is from Ashe. County. Easy state to miss, but then again Colorado would be a hard state to leave

I'm in the NC mountains about an hour from Asheville! I'm definitely an NC girl but if another state were to change my mind it might be Colorado. Looks too beautiful to be true!

Ditto on not using the collar for this behavior. I would seriously be looking for a training class. I drive an hour and 15 minutes to my obedience and agility classes. It sucks, but in the long run, it's worth it for the dog. I also have a few training friends that can help me out one on one with behaviors like you're describing. Set the dog up for situations and be prepared to correct her for bad behavior. I'd also teach the "watch me" command. It's an excellent one to use in this situation. Have the dog be hungry and provide mucho excellent, very high value treats to teach this one.

I'm definitely going to look into training classes for the spring. I've worked with her on the "watch me" command and she does it well until there's something to fixate on (bird, other dog, cat) and then it's like she forgets everything! I knew she would be a challenging first dog but this is more difficult than I imagined. All of the "regular dog" advice seems to be totally ineffective on her.

Anyway, thanks to all. I will take all of your advice to heart. Maybe this will help others with unruly but so very lovable dogs.

[Swagg]

How long has this been going on for ? Part of me thinks this i just a stage she is going through. Mine did the same thing. she was always super around dogs kids other people actually anything for that matter. Then she started this barking thing. she would bark like mad at people when they came over or upon seeing other dogs. i knew it wasnt a socilization thing as she goes everywhere with me and always has and always will. I would just correct her and do the best i could. i know what you mean about her not hearing you and the such. The good news is that she stopped doing this weird stuff just as fast as she started. So i would suggest just keep doing what u were doing. Making her wear a muzzle will only make her look super scary. just correct her and keep moving. nothing else needs to be said to her. no sweet talking or other forms or comfort....

[tahi193]

Swagg, that's very encouraging! Thank you. I'm hoping Ellie's problem is just a phase as well. It's been going on for a month or two but we're not visiting the park as much as we were in the summer and early fall because of the weather and the holidays. Like I said before, she gets plenty of exercise at home and I just go to the park for social hour. The excitement of being at the park after not having been in a couple of weeks may have set it off. I've decided to try to get her to the park more often and practice the tips everyone has mentioned on here. I hesitate to put a muzzle on her as well because this is a small town and she could quickly get a bad reputation. I don't think a muzzle is necessary at this point anyway. We're going to start with learning to heel properly and rewarding for being calm.

[Swagg]

Sounds like a great plan. good luck to the both of you keep us posted