Growling at other dogs while out for walk

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we have just adopted our dog and although he was fine first few days, he has now started growling at and trying to get to other dogs while out walking. its getting difficult to hold him back. is there any way to stop this? he is ten months and needs to be trained, i am just not sure of the best way to do this. any ideas appreciated :-)

~Thalia~

tweet-tweet wrote: »

we have just adopted our dog and although he was fine first few days, he has now started growling at and trying to get to other dogs while out walking. its getting difficult to hold him back. is there any way to stop this? he is ten months and needs to be trained, i am just not sure of the best way to do this. any ideas appreciated :-)

My dog does this too, in her case she wants to play and say hello and sniff. Have you socialised your dog with other dogs yet? How does he behave with them? It could be just that like with my dog it's 'Hello, who's that? I'll just let them know I'm here and try to drag my owner over to them so I can play' but best to introduce him/her to other dogs on a lead to see if this is the case or whether he/she is actually cross.

macshadow

I think when you walk your dog keep him on the side of you where he's farthest away from the other dog. If your dog is barking and growling at the other dog he probably feels threatened whether it's real or perceived depends on how the other dog is behaving.
Through a dogs eyes the leader decides who to fight and when to fight so it's important that your dog sees you as the leader.
If you can ease him in to the kind of situation you mentioned in a controlled environment like a training class he'll be all the better for it.
Try some training exercises that get your dog to focus on you for a reward then hopefully when this happens again you can get his attention and get him to take his mind off the other dog.

Amimad

Tweet,
Find a good dog trainer & get some advice.
Don't let it get out of hand he'll just get worse.
Ami

MogwaiFearSatan

macshadow wrote: »

I think when you walk your dog keep him on the side of you where he's farthest away from the other dog. QUOTE]

This is a bad idea. It puts you between the two dogs and that will only antagonize your dog more.
This is always a problem with dogs that have moved around a fair bit, as the dog begins to see you as the leader it will look to protect you more and will look to put itself between you and perceived danger. If it can’t it will become more verbal.
All the dog is doing is showing the stranger that it has established itself in the pecking order.
The best way to stop your dog doing this is simply by training it. Let the dog know this behavior is not acceptable. Over time it will become more relaxed with its new environment and its feeling of 'belonging' but until then you must set the rules for how the dog behaves with other animals.
When it growls at another dog take it off to the side and let it know though stop. Then keep it on a short lead and at heal for the rest of the walk (yes the entire walk). It won’t take long for the dog to put 2 and 2 together.
Remember, your dog doesn't speak English so stop trying to explain everything to it. Just give it a yank on the lead, a big load NO with loads of eye contact and make it sit calmly for a while before moving off. Even if the other dog is freaking out you must make sure your dog is listening to you & only. Once your dog begins to ignore other dog on its walk then praise it.
also if you are going to scold your mutt using logic (Fido! why did you chew that paper, you know I always leave the crossword until last thing at night) never use its name, to the dog its just a sound and when sometimes it means good and sometimes it means bad, well that’s just plain confusing.

macshadow

The leader always puts himself between danger and the rest of his pack and he decides if trouble has to be sorted. If he needs help the rest of his pack will help. If he decides no action is to be taken NO OTHER PACK MEMBER WILL TAKE ACTION!