[nagdu] dog distraction, continued

Danielle Sykora dsykora29 at gmail.com
Wed Oct 21 15:20:05 UTC 2015


This is pretty much the main way I handle dog distractions. When Thai
started pulling more at the sight of another dog, I would have him
stop, sit, and touch. Then I would have him get up and move forward,
repeating if he started pulling too much again. It eventually got to
the point where he would often slow down or stop and sit without any
prompting when he saw another dog. Probably not ideal, but it's
preferable to pulling, at least for now. The same technique can be
used both for dogs walking by or passing a dog in someone's front yard
or something.

Danielle and Thai

On 10/21/15, Tracy Carcione via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> I was thinking, when Krokus sees a dog and starts pulling, that maybe I
> should stop and have him touch my hand, then go on.  If he keeps pulling
> hard, I guess we would stop again.  Either it will bring his attention back
> to me, or the other dog will get far enough away so Krokus will lose
> interest.  What do you think?
> Tracy
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Danielle Sykora
> via nagdu
> Sent: Wednesday, October 21, 2015 10:33 AM
> To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
> Cc: Danielle Sykora
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] dog distraction, continued
>
> I took the high tail wagging as a show of dominance or maybe trying to warn
> the other dog away. He doesn't hold his tail down like he's terrified, but
> it's definitely not a happy wag either. It was really the vocalizations
> that
> lead me to the conclusion of anxiety, because Thai doesn't bark, growl, or
> whine in harness without good reason.
> I've found the touch command extremely helpful and I've gotten him to the
> point where he can sit calmly in close proximity to another dog.
> It's when we have to walk past one that I have trouble keeping his focus.
> I'm waiting to hear back from the school, so I hope they'll be able to help
> me solve this problem.
>
> Danielle and Thai
>
>
> On 10/21/15, Tracy Carcione via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> Catching up on email ...
>> Wagging his tail over his back doesn't sound like anxiety to me.  An
>> anxious dog tends to tuck his tail, or wag it down low.
>> Some people I know have had success using the hand-touch for dog
>> distractions.  Dog gets distracted, you stop, tell him to touch your
>> hand, click and treat.  I should try this myself, as Krokus has gotten
>> more dog-distracted.  And people-distracted, especially kids.  His
>> inner golden expressing itself.
>> Tracy
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Danielle
>> Sykora via nagdu
>> Sent: Saturday, October 10, 2015 10:59 AM
>> To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
>> Cc: Danielle Sykora
>> Subject: [nagdu] dog distraction, continued
>>
>> Hi all,
>>
>> Some of you probably remember my previous posts concerning dog
>> distractions, but here's a quick summary for those who don't. Starting
>> some time in early spring, my dog started lunging and growling at dogs
>> while working after experiencing interfearance from off-leash dogs on
>> many occasions.
>>
>> Working with him over the spring and summer, I got him to the point
>> where he no longer lunges, barks, or growls. On the other hand, he now
>> reacts to almost all dogs where he used to only have a problem with
>> dogs that were off-leash, behind invisible fences, or tied out on long
>> lines. His natural reaction is to pull harder when he sees another
>> dog, but he also often slows down or sits since that's what I
>> previously encouraged in order to give him food rewards. Thai doesn't
>> react to all dogs all the time and he can calmly sit and watch another
>> dog walk by, but he definitely reacts to the majority of dogs while
>> trying to walk past them. Because he stares at other dogs, wags his
>> tail curled over his back, and/or whines, I think the route of the
>> problem is anxiety from his past negative experiences. Some techniques
>> I've used are food rewards in the presence of other dogs (dogs =
>> food), obedience to focus his attention on me, and calming petting
>> while interrupting his sight line to the other dog. He also wears a
>> Halti so I have better control over his head.  Thai has improved
>> significantly, but I've essentially hit a plateau in training where I
>> don't know how to proceed. I'm probably going to contact the school
>> when I have some free time after midterms, but I'm hoping some of you
>> will have suggestions for overcoming my pup's anxiety in the meantime.
>>
>> Danielle and Thai
>>
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