Hello Al, Check out James Penrith from TaketheLeadDogTraining. He has a Youtube channel. He works with dogs that chase and sometimes will kill livestock. Day 1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgNbWCK9lFc Day 2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kpf5Bn-MNko&t=14s Day 3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xj3nMvvHhwQ Day 4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxrGQ-AZylY I would also work on a high level recall. https://www.petful.com/behaviors/train-dog-to-come-when-called/ Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

Dec. 13, 2021

Hello! Your best bet in this situation is to go with a method to desensitize her to the squirrels. Sundae needs to learn that the squirrels are just a normal part of the environment. So we need to teach her to become less reactive by them. If you are up for this, it is going to take about a month of consistent practice before you see results. You will want to start out by teaching her "leave it". Leave is great for anything you want your dog to leave alone. Instructions on leave it will be at the end of this response. After about a week or so of working on the command, you can start taking her around the squirrels while on leash. Any time she even looks at a squirrel, you give the command leave it. Once she breaks his attention away from the squirrel, you reward her with a treat. Ideally, you want to her to be sitting and looking at you. But in the beginning stages, as long as she isn't focused on the cat, you can reward her. You will literally practice this over and over, while moving closer to the squirrels until she is no longer interested in the squirrels. While this method takes a while, it is the best in relaying the messages across to your dog. The squirrels need to be left alone! Here are the steps for "leave it" Teaching a dog 'leave it' Teaching “leave it” is not difficult. Begin the lessons inside your home or in an area with very few distractions. Here are the steps for teaching “leave it”: Make sure you have two different types of treats. One type can be fairly boring to the dog, but the other type should be a high-value treat that he finds pretty delicious. You will also want to make sure that the treats are broken up into pea-sized pieces so it won’t take him too long to eat them. Put one type of treat in each hand. If you like to train with a clicker as your marker, you can also hold a clicker in the same hand that holds the high-value treat. Then, place both of your hands behind your back. Make a fist with the hand that is holding the treat of lower value and present your fist to your dog, letting him sniff. Say “leave it” and wait until he finishes sniffing your fist. As soon as your dog is done sniffing, you can either click with the clicker or say “yes.” Then offer him the higher-value treat in your other hand. Repeat until your dog immediately stops sniffing your hand when you say “leave it.” When you say “leave it” and he stops sniffing right away, leash your dog and then toss a low-value treat outside of his reach. Wait until he stops sniffing and pulling toward the treat. As soon as he does, either say “yes” or click and then give him a high-value treat from your hand. Practice this exercise a number of times. Over time, by practicing “leave it,” your dog should stop pulling as soon as you give the cue. When rewarding him with a treat, make sure that it is something good, not plain old kibble. By doing so, you are teaching him that asking him to leave some food doesn’t mean he won’t get anything, but that in fact he might get something even more delicious. When your dog is reliably responding to the cue, you can teach him that “leave it” can apply to other things as well, not just food on the floor. Repeat the exercise with five different items that are fairly boring to your dog. After using five different “boring” items, start using slightly more exciting items. You know your dog, so you alone know what items he would consider more interesting, but don’t jump to high-value items right away. To increase his chances of success at learning the cue, you want to work up to high-value items gradually. If Kleenex or a piece of plastic, for instance, would attract your dog on a walk, don’t start with those. Choose the items based on your ultimate goal: Anytime you say “leave it,” you want to be confident that your dog will indeed leave whatever you are asking him to leave. . The reward he receives when he leaves an item can change as well. If your dog has a favorite toy, squeak it and play for a moment when he comes running to you after leaving the other item of interest. Most dogs love interacting with us, so a moment of praise or play with a toy can be just as effective as a treat. Keep it fun Even though you’re practicing “leave it” as a way to keep your dog safe, you want him to see it as a fun game you play. When your dog is proficient at the game in your home, start practicing in a variety of locations with more distractions.

Sept. 30, 2021

Hello Erica, First, when addressing reactivity be aware that some reactive dogs will redirect aggression toward whoever is closest when aroused. If pup may bite you when aroused, I recommend starting by desensitizing pup to wearing a basket muzzle ahead of time using food rewards in a calm location. Muzzle desensitizing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJTucFnmAbw There are two ways to generally address this, depending on how pup responds. The first is without an e-collar, just working on building impulse control. The second is building impulse control and teaching commands also, but then layering the e-collar on pup's low level after to gain reliability with the training you did. Some dogs need the interrupter, others can disengage and do okay without it. First, I suggest teaching a solid Leave It command to pup. Follow the Leave It command using the Leave It method from the article linked below. https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-shih-tzu-puppy-to-not-bite Second, teach pup a structured heel - practice away from the things pup is reactive toward at first. Check out the article and video linked below Heel article - The turns method: https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-poodle-to-heel Heel Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTiKVc4ZZWo To pursue training without the use of a remote training collar, check out the video below. Practice that training with the above commands, without the below information. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buaZctWLWR0 Third, for training with a remote training collar, purchase a high quality remote training collar with stimulation, learn how to fit it properly and find your dog's "Working level" - which is the lowest level that your dog feels and responds to. Only use a high quality collar such as E-collar Technologies, Dogtra, Sportdog, or Garmin. Check out the videos below: Fitting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLxB6gYsliI Working Level finding: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cl3V8vYobM Examples of a remote training collar being used to address reactivity and prey drive. Jeff Gellman cat aggressive dog: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MLJV5PBh7Y More e-collar work with cats: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8lkbX0dhT0 Fourth, teach an e-collar heel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJaZsZdcjwU Fifth, put it all together. Walk pup on a collar or front clip harness that's secure. Practice your e-collar heeling with a smaller distraction in sight first. Whenever pup starts to fixate on the distraction or break the heel position, tell pup "Ah Ah Heel" - If breaking heel, or "Ah Ah, Leave It" - for fixating on something, and correct on pup's working level on the e-collar. Practice around the various triggers a lot until pup will ignore them and focus on you around them. Start with the easier distractions first, then work up the harder distractions gradually as pup improves. You want pup's impulse level to increase at the same rate as how quickly you are adding in distractions. Not adding in more distractions than pup can handle too quickly. Any other training you can do to help with impulse control is also great, such as a long Place, Down-Stay, waiting at doors, not exiting a crate until told Okay, ect... Because this training does involve such a variety of things, it would be worth considering hiring a professional trainer who has experience with this type of training and the tools, if you don't feel confident learning how to do this on your own, or if pup has a bite history or any form of aggression, I wouldn't train on your own if aggression is present also. Not all trainers will have experience with the above so be sure to read reviews from previous clients and ask a lot of questions about experience and how they would train this, to be sure you find a good fit for you. Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

Aug. 17, 2021