Diesel dog aggressive

[donnynannette]

Diesel laying out in the sun. He loves to.


Diesel swimming


The king


One of my favorite pics of my boy. I dont know why but i love this pic

[donnynannette]

Diesel when he loved all dogs playing at the lake


Another favorite


Diesel puppy


Diesel barking at my husband as a puppy


Ok i love pics as you can tell. LOL but im done posting for now. HEhe just glad i know how to doit now.

[mnp13]

Nice looking boy you have there!

[Tubular Toby]

Awwww, I am such a sucker for what I lovingly call yellow dogs (WITH white, of course. ). Haha, Toby's nickname is yellow dog. Diesel is gorgeous! You can share pictures of him anytime. Haha

[donnynannette]

Thank you everyone. He is a people lover. And he loves you even more if you play ball with him. LOL!!

[donnynannette]

So just giving an update diesel has been doing fantastic out in the back alley. He is great with the treats he will even do a down in front of the neighbors dogs now as long as i have food and they are behind the fence. But yesterday i had to walk down to pull money out of the ATM. I took diesel with its only a couple of blocks away and i figured he was getting better. So i geared him all up. I use the halti with him. Its the only way i he doesnt pull me i have tried the whole thing with the flat collar and it doesnt work. He walks like a pro on his halti. We were walking i had chicken in my snack pouch and then a dog comes walking by. Diesel did the crying acting like a goof ball and even chicken couldnt stop him. Guess i moved to quick. I read one of the artical on here about how you should watch the dog and not scan the world looking for potential dangers im going to try this because i will admit i am alwas on guard looking for other dogs seeing if i can quickly get across the street before he sees it but i never pay attention to him. Maybe if i did i could catch him before he goes ballistic. LOL. Do you guys think i should go back to the alley and how soon should i try outside on walks. Also when we see another dog should i turn and walk away or should i make him sit and just let him act foolish. Sorry so many questions but its all new to me.

[amalie79]

I totally sympathize-- I would try to take my reactive dog with me while I did something else, like go return a Redbox movie down the street. It was always a disaster. I learned I had to simply focus on her and nothing else, even if it seemed like I was doing a mindless task.

You were probably either closer to the new dog than you had been to the neighbor dogs, or the proximity needs to be a greater distance when in a different environment. I'd take a step back to the alley and do that a few times to get back to good. Can you then station yourself somewhere-- a quiet spot in a not so busy park, a front porch/stoop-- someplace where you can see people and dogs coming and be stationary yet have the chance to back away and increase distance if you need to? That's where watching your dog helps; you can start to take a step back, shovel chicken in his mouth, get his attention by asking him to do something else like a hand target, sit, shake, whatever, as soon as you see his ears perk up. Sometimes them moving and you moving and the new dog moving is a lot to take in, especially then added to any leash frustration. We had a little terrier mix in class last night that was very reactive to the Newfie when they were heeling past each other. But when she sat on her mat and The newfie's owner and I heeled our dogs in front of her, she was fine. I think she was overwhelmed when she was moving trying to keep track of where the other dogs were, and where she was going; her mat is a nice safe spot and she doesn't have to think about where she's headed.

I used to sit on my porch where I could see people coming, and then watch my girl; the millisecond I saw that she saw the other person or dog, I clicked (we use a clicker) and treated. The very instant she laid eyes on them. That way she didn't even have a chance to think about how scary/threatening/exciting/etc the person/dog was before I gave her something awesome. We actually went to a park yesterday and through the drive thru coffee shop, playing Look At That the whole time, and she was able to do it all without a peep. There was a time when all of that would have been far too overwhelming to her. If you do end up getting too close and he's over threshold, just calmly, quietly walk away, out of site of the other dog. Don't make a big deal, don't get exasperated (easier said than done). Just walk away.

We all have setbacks and MANY of us have been right where you are.

[donnynannette]

I took diesel out in the alley and he was right back to doing his downs and all of his sits on command. Following me and healing right by my side. He was like a pro. I took him out front later on and sat on the porch for a while. I askd the neighbor if she could bring her dog out diesel likes her but usually acts up and cries when i dont let him play with her. I told her to sit on her porch with her. I had the chicken and anytime diesel would look at her i would say look and wait for him to look and he would get the chicken. He was doing fantastic again like a pro. I then put diesel in a down position and asked the neighbor to run with her dog down the sidewalk. Diesel started to cry and whine but not loud just softly as soon as i say look he looks and loves to get the chicken. I want to continue this with a couple of other dogs in the neighbor hood that he knows and likes. After he gets really good with this the neighor said she can have her cousin bring blue who is a blue nose pitt that diesel does not know very well he has seen him but not allowed to play. This way i can control the situation. If he acts up i can also take him in the house. Maybe if i continue doing this i will eventually get to walk my baby. LOL.

[furever_pit]

This is a video of the trainer I was talking about from this weekend with an American Bulldog:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DK6qKfTQ ... ideo_title

The basic principles you see here (attention/focus and obedience to command) are totally able to be put into use in everyday life. I just thought you might be interested in seeing this.

[donnynannette]

wow that is amazing. I watched a video on you tube almost like this. I am just amazed how the dog stares at them the whole time. How do they train them to do that . Diesel will look up if i stop when we are walking and then he will sit. And look at me again as if to say are we going to move or what but he does not hold the look. I would love for him to do this. If he could focus that much on me he wouldnt have a chance to focus on other dogs . Excellent video and very nice looking dog.

[pitbullmamaliz]

Attention heels are lovely things and Inara has a beautiful one, but keep in mind that even if your dog COULD do it throughout an entire walk, they really shouldn't. Competitions for a few minutes are one thing, but your dog would get very uncomfortable craning his head around for an entire walk. And quite frankly, the walk is partly for him, right? You want him to enjoy himself and be able to look around.

That being said, you have to work up to that level of attention but it is do-able. You're not going to get it in just a few days. However, if you continue to reward him heavily (praise, treats, games) when he is looking at you or when he reorients to you, you'll get there.

You are doing so well! Just remember, baby steps. It's so easy for us (all of us!) to get a little cocky when we start seeing progress and then we change too much at one time. Setbacks are inevitable as the world is just not entirely under our control. But when you are moving up by baby steps, that means you are only set back by a baby step, not a huge leap.

Keep up the awesome, patient work with handsome Diesel!

[mnp13]

We ALL do this! But remember, it takes a long time for your dog to learn behaviors.

This:

I askd the neighbor if she could bring her dog out diesel likes her but usually acts up and cries when i dont let him play with her. I told her to sit on her porch with her. I had the chicken and anytime diesel would look at her i would say look and wait for him to look and he would get the chicken. He was doing fantastic again like a pro.

Was GREAT, and though it's hard to do, this is where you should have stopped. After you have done only this a few times, and when you can go the entire time without him crying and fussing, only then should you move on to the next step.

It's slow, it's frustrating, but you'll have much much better control and hopefully fewer setbacks.

I would absolutely not bring a new dog into the mix until he is perfect with dogs he already knows. And when he is perfect, give it another week of perfect. THEN try a new dog, from a distance and see how it works. It might take a month, but in the long run you'll have a much more solid foundation.

Attention heels are great for breaking your dog's focus on other things. I use Riggs' attention heel extensively for control. If you look in the sports section, you'll see a lot of pictures of us in the DSO - he used to do bitework, and when he sees a decoy his brain turns off. So we attention heel on the field, and instead of taking off and doing what he wants to do, he keeps his eyes on me. This was the first year (in six) that he didn't bite any decoy when he wasn't supposed to, it was a HUGE milestone for us. Yes, he has good obedience, but his focus is a lot of it.

But before you can teach him to ignore things, you have to teach him that the stuff he's ignoring isn't bad and scary - because if he's still anxious about them he's not going to be willing to not look at them.

Right now, you're teaching him "see those other dogs? They don't matter. Just pay attention to me. They aren't going to jump on you or bother you." If you move too fast, and one of the dogs does go over his threshold, you're going to have a setback (very common, don't feel bad!) but let's try to minimize them!!

[amalie79]

Learning to quit while you're ahead is a really really tough thing to do. Just appreciate the little things and take it slowly.

That being said, you have to work up to that level of attention but it is do-able. You're not going to get it in just a few days. However, if you continue to reward him heavily (praise, treats, games) when he is looking at you or when he reorients to you, you'll get there.

And I think it's worth mentioning that this is good advice all the time-- not just on walks, not just on leash. Wait for him to look at you to get his food at mealtimes; wait for eye contact to get treats, pets, to go out the door, to get on the bed. Just make that his "please" in general (not just on walks) and it'll make it so much easier to come by on a walk.

You're doing great!! Just remember not to push it too quickly, and you'll get there.

[donnynannette]

Thank you for the all of the kind words. I work alot on the stuff in the house i have since diesel was a baby. He will not even go out the back door into the fenced yard before me this was taught as a pup he must sit and then wait for me to go out and then go out. When people come over and ask if they should let diesel out if im busy with something i forget to tell them he sits and waits for you to tell him to go out. LOl they come back out and say diesel wont go out for me and i explain that you have to tell him he is allowed to go out. Same with food. Diesel will not take his food unless he is told he is allowed to eat it. He will sit there and look at you like ok mom am i allowed to have it yet. He also does an awesome leave it command. I can put any food chicken or even regular food in between each his toes and tell him leave it and he will not touch it. My neighbors love this trick i even showed them he could do it with chicken which they could not believe. LOL. He is a really good dog for me except when he sees other dogs . He learns fast so hopefully he will learn that mommy doesnt care if he never plays with another dog but he must behave when we see them. Thank you so much again you guys are great.

[furever_pit]

You're on the right track to get that behavior if you really way it. It all starts with the focus/ eye contact...and you are exactly right, a dog can't be sizing up, posturing, or freaking out over another dog if he's staring at his handler instead. For my dogs, I teach them that "watch me" means to make eye contact from wherever they are before I start associating it with the heel. It allows you to use the focus in a variety of ways and not just in the heel position that way.

I know that for me personally, seeing the attention heel and focus in other dogs was really inspirational.

Overall, it sounds like you and diesel are doing well. Being patient and knowing when to stop is difficult sometimes, for everyone I think.

[donnynannette]

It is very difficult. I didnt have alot of time today so i took him out in the back alley and did his sits and downs. The little yappy dogs were out again but he couldnt care less i had him on his long leash but put it down and tried a down and walked away from him and he held his down until i walked back and said diesel come. He came and stayed on my right side even when i turned he followed me around instead of just standing there and looking at me . I was very impressed as i havent worked that much with him on healing only because he walks well on his gentle leader he also walks wonderful on a prong collar. You should see the looks i get when i walk him by people and if they insist on walking straight at as i just tell diesel move over. He moves over i have had so many people ask me how i taught him this. Lol. I actaually taught it without trying. Whenever someone would walk towards us when he was little i would just pull him with his gentle leader and say move over diesel. Eventually he was doing it on his own, Its a pretty good trick when you live in the city and there are always people around that insist on walking straight at you . Tommorow we will work on our watch me in the alley. I do have a question as far as the watch me. When i say diesel watch me do i hold the treat up to my eyes or do i just wait until he looks at my eyes and then give him a treat. Thanks for any input.

[mnp13]

When i say diesel watch me do i hold the treat up to my eyes or do i just wait until he looks at my eyes and then give him a treat.

If you are saying it before he knows what it means, and when he's not looking at you, you're just making noise... and he'll just tune it out after a while. You can lure the behavior - show him the treat and bring it up to your nose, then say "watch me." Or, wait until he makes eye contact, and then say it - which is capturing the behavior.

i had him on his long leash but put it down and tried a down and walked away from him and he held his down until i walked back and said diesel come.

I would like to encourage you not to do this. It's VERY hard not to get excited about progress, but it's also dangerous territory. He is not solid in his focus and he's not solid in his sits. I totally understand how you feel. You see huge improvements in his behavior and it's hard to not say "wow, look how great he's doing, now I'll try this."

If he had broken his down when you walked away and reverted to his previous behavior, you likely would have set yourself back farther then when you started - because he would have learned "as soon as mom isn't next to me, I can do whatever I want."

Please believe me, I'm speaking from experience here . I've set myself back many times by doing exactly the same thing. That's the best part of forum communities - being able to learn from someone else's mistakes! Might as well take advantage of it.

[donnynannette]

I would like to encourage you not to do this. It's VERY hard not to get excited about progress, but it's also dangerous territory. He is not solid in his focus and he's not solid in his sits. I totally understand how you feel. You see huge improvements in his behavior and it's hard to not say "wow, look how great he's doing, now I'll try this."

If he had broken his down when you walked away and reverted to his previous behavior, you likely would have set yourself back farther then when you started - because he would have learned "as soon as mom isn't next to me, I can do whatever I want."

Please believe me, I'm speaking from experience here . I've set myself back many times by doing exactly the same thing. That's the best part of forum communities - being able to learn from someone else's mistakes! Might as well take advantage of it.

The long leash was right in front of me so if he decided to get up i would have been able to quickly grab it. I always made sure the leash was not out of reach. LOL. I do believe you guys. And i understand not to move to quickly. Downs and sits are just refreshers for diesel he knows these as ive done these since he was a pup. I can get him to sit when we see other dogs also but he will just yelp and still cry. I want him to know his sits and stays and all of that so that if there is an emergency and the leash or something would break he wont jet off on me. I always keep him on a leash but there are emergency situations where i need him to understand when mommy says stay that means stay no matter even if shes not by my side. I was reading some of the other post. I have alot to catch up since im new but i saw about how alot of people have problems with there dogs jetting out of the gate. My neighbor had this problem and i taught her what my friend learned from a trainer. The trainer said this is something a dog needs to learn to save its life. So what you do is stand outside the gate and open the gate only a tiny bit just enough that if the dog tries to get only his head gets through. When the dog puts his head through to try to get out close the gate softly against his head dont slam it and dont put any pressure on it just hold it there. Dont let the dog pull his head back out right away. Most dogs wont try again. They dont like the feeling of being stuck. You are not hurting them because you are not putting any pressure on the gate. You can also do this with the front door and back door it does work. Diesel used to try to bolt out our back gate when i would go out back with him because he knew we were going out back to do training and he would be getting lots of treats. Now i can open the gate and walk out ahead of him and he will sit there until i say come. Hopefully this will help someone who has a very stubborn dog who insist on running out in front of them. LOL.

[donnynannette]

I went out to eat with my family for dinner tonight and its right by the pet store. I talked my husband into stopping in because they are turning into a petco so everything they have is really cheap right now. I saw that they had treat bags for 50 percent off they had one that ive wanted for a while but i just couldnt see paying 16.00 for it. Its one of the big ones and it snaps closed and open like a purse. Its really nice but still 16.00 for a treat bag is alot but 8.00 waas reasonable. So i got it today. I also got some more natural balance rolls. I cant wait to try it out tommorow.

[TheRedQueen]

I went out to eat with my family for dinner tonight and its right by the pet store. I talked my husband into stopping in because they are turning into a petco so everything they have is really cheap right now. I saw that they had treat bags for 50 percent off they had one that ive wanted for a while but i just couldnt see paying 16.00 for it. Its one of the big ones and it snaps closed and open like a purse. Its really nice but still 16.00 for a treat bag is alot but 8.00 waas reasonable. So i got it today. I also got some more natural balance rolls. I cant wait to try it out tommorow.

Oooh...good deals, love it!