Im having quite a few problems at the moment and am not sure if I am making it worse ,ive always had sound advice from here bfore so here goes,Zeus is now 1 he is a very lively and powerful and he has only just got the hang of not dragging me all over the place on walks(LOL)AS a pup he had a fright around traffic and ive managed to start geting him used to traffic but only from a distance,he is very stubborn and will refuse to come to me in the house when Icall him even with the clicker, treats ,toys tone of voice,also when people come into my house he barks at them then jumps all over them wanting to give them kiss`s ,he has now started to bark at people when we are out walking and lungeing towards them I ask him to sit which he does but the barking he will not stop he sounds very unfriendly but if the people come over to him he wants to lick them all over,ive had some very unkind comment s and have been upset by afew so am now walking zeus at times when their is not many people about which i know is probably the worse thing to do he also does this behaviour to other dogs on walks ,I try to stay calm and relaxed and have tried the treating him if he does not bark and even the ceasar milan ssshhh,but nothing stops him untill the person who he is barking at fuss`s him even then if we are in the house he will occasionally bark at the visitor after they have been there awhile and when we are at the vets he non stop whines and crys and barks I know he is stressed but do not no how to stop him hes always the one who starts all the other dogs off:rolleyes:I do not hve many visitors anymore and when people do come I put him behind the childgate so he can see them but not jump all over thembut this makes his barking worse I would be so grateful of any advice.I wanted to take him to training class`s but am concerned his behaviour would get him thrown out.
By Tenaj
Date 13.08.07 07:59 UTC
Edited 13.08.07 08:06 UTC
yes I agree.... do look at training classes. Make it clear what behaviour you are needing to work on ..some clubs only train well trained dogs! lol! A good club will be there to work with all dogs, the trainer shold give you some one to one advice and encouragement and you normally other people in the club will give you support..but only if they see over the weeks that you are serious about improving your dog.
When you do go to class appreciate this is taking your dog to the most difficult environment... and make sure the club will make you feel relaxed and safe and then you can pass that message on to the dog. People in the training class should appreciate why you are at class and if your dog causes a commotion people should take advantage of that as a useful training exercises for their own dogs. If your dog creates a fuss remember your dog is on a lead and you are working through dealing with the behaviour and therefore the dog is in good hands and under control and so relax. Soon you will enjoy going and have a good laugh.
Possitive training us about concentrating in what behaviour you want... to focus on training into the dog the behaviour you want and thinking always about what you want the dog to do... replacing the unwanted behaviour with wanted behaviour through rewarding the good. Learning to read the dog and anticipate situations to be able use possitive distraction training to break the unwanted habbits.
Negative training is about focusing on the unwanted behaviour... through punishing what you don't want.
Some clubs might use a bit of both. If the dog lacks confidence the possitive will work best and help your relationship be more possitive and keep the dog fun and well rounded.