How to have a better dog-walking experience… for both of us?
September 12, 2013 4:55 PM Subscribe
For the past year I’ve been taking my SO’s seven-year old border collie on my cardio walks. She loves our adventures together, and so do I. One down side is that she is apprehensive about meeting other dogs, which are plentiful in our semi-rural locale. Nothing bad has happened… yet.
How can I take charge of this?
A typical scenario goes like this: we’re walking along a street and approach a yard with a dog in it, no owner present. The dog barks or doesn’t bark, but approaches rapidly, tail wagging or not wagging, with the sole intent to smell her butt. Which she positively hates. (Sometimes the owner is present, but most of these dogs completely ignore commands to “come here” once they’re on approach.)
My pooch completely shuts down when this happens. Tail tucked between her legs, head down, ears plastered to her head, she speeds up her pace to get away while in no way engaging or even acknowledging the dog in question.
It makes me feel bad that I’m not protecting her.
Me, I’m a little bit afraid of strange dogs, so perhaps my body language escalates these situations, I don’t know. I’ve tried talking to the approaching dogs, but they never pay attention to me. It’s her they want to investigate. (Yes, she’s fixed.)
As I say, nothing bad has ever happened. No fighting, no growling even. But it’s stressful for both of us.
I would appreciate any suggestions for de-escalating these encounters (e.g. should I carry treats to divert the dogs’ attention? Or a big stick?).
For bonus points:
Miss knows that we walk after breakfast and is on high alert for any signs that I’m getting ready to go out. Once the baseball cap goes on, or I open the closet where the leash is, she goes into a frenzy of joyous, ear-splitting barking and crazy jumping around. I pretty much hate this behavior.
I’ve had a bit of success by closing myself in the bedroom to put on my baseball cap and walking shoes, and moved the leash there, so when I emerge I can go straight to the door with a minimum of barking, though she knows something’s afoot and still whines, barks and scratches at the door, if to a lesser extent.
Not incidentally, she knows she must sit, and quietly, for me to attach her leash, and she does that perfectly 100% of the time. But once she hears that click, it’s back to crazy time. She continues in her frenzy for about a minute after we get outside, then her crazy switch turns off and away we go, her nibs perfectly behaved and perfectly responsive to the leash, sniffing and doing her business like the best dog in the world.
How can we make going out a calmer experience?
A typical scenario goes like this: we’re walking along a street and approach a yard with a dog in it, no owner present. The dog barks or doesn’t bark, but approaches rapidly, tail wagging or not wagging, with the sole intent to smell her butt. Which she positively hates. (Sometimes the owner is present, but most of these dogs completely ignore commands to “come here” once they’re on approach.)
My pooch completely shuts down when this happens. Tail tucked between her legs, head down, ears plastered to her head, she speeds up her pace to get away while in no way engaging or even acknowledging the dog in question.
It makes me feel bad that I’m not protecting her.
Me, I’m a little bit afraid of strange dogs, so perhaps my body language escalates these situations, I don’t know. I’ve tried talking to the approaching dogs, but they never pay attention to me. It’s her they want to investigate. (Yes, she’s fixed.)
As I say, nothing bad has ever happened. No fighting, no growling even. But it’s stressful for both of us.
I would appreciate any suggestions for de-escalating these encounters (e.g. should I carry treats to divert the dogs’ attention? Or a big stick?).
For bonus points:
Miss knows that we walk after breakfast and is on high alert for any signs that I’m getting ready to go out. Once the baseball cap goes on, or I open the closet where the leash is, she goes into a frenzy of joyous, ear-splitting barking and crazy jumping around. I pretty much hate this behavior.
I’ve had a bit of success by closing myself in the bedroom to put on my baseball cap and walking shoes, and moved the leash there, so when I emerge I can go straight to the door with a minimum of barking, though she knows something’s afoot and still whines, barks and scratches at the door, if to a lesser extent.
Not incidentally, she knows she must sit, and quietly, for me to attach her leash, and she does that perfectly 100% of the time. But once she hears that click, it’s back to crazy time. She continues in her frenzy for about a minute after we get outside, then her crazy switch turns off and away we go, her nibs perfectly behaved and perfectly responsive to the leash, sniffing and doing her business like the best dog in the world.
How can we make going out a calmer experience?
I think your dog is definitely picking up on your anxiety. Like, the story you've told here is basically: nothing bad ever happens. So why are you freaked out about it? Dog is looking to you for cues, the more calm you can be, the more calm your dog will be. Basically, get it into your head that everything's going to be fine, as the evidence of all your walks so far proves. Also, don't assume that your dog is stressed out by it. You might be projecting, and then in turn she's responding entirely to YOUR anxiety.
You might also try waiting until your dog is calm before going out. So go through the leashing and anticipation, but don't actually leave the front door until she isn't crazy. Don't reward crazy. If she gets crazy once outside, stop again until she's calm.
Good luck!
posted by danny the boy at 5:19 PM on September 12, 2013
You might also try waiting until your dog is calm before going out. So go through the leashing and anticipation, but don't actually leave the front door until she isn't crazy. Don't reward crazy. If she gets crazy once outside, stop again until she's calm.
Good luck!
posted by danny the boy at 5:19 PM on September 12, 2013
I fear you're anthropomorphizing. The likelihood that she (or any dog) hates having her butt sniffed is . . . low. This is how dogs communicate, and I wouldn't interpret her tail-between-the-legs and ears-flat as fear, necessarily. She may just be a submissive dog. Next time it happens, I might just stop, stay where I am, and start praising her. Maybe give her a treat or two. See what happens if the two of you don't immediately flee the scene.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 5:51 PM on September 12, 2013
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 5:51 PM on September 12, 2013
As for the first problem, I think this is pretty typical border collie behavior - I have a border collie mix and he is typically insane for the first minute or so of a walk, unless he's already a bit tired. To that point, pretty much the only thing that really gets my dog's energy out is some running around. He's still a puppy, which is probably part of it, but is there any way you could try having her sprint for a few minutes before your walk, ie, play fetch in the yard or something like that? Border collies tend to need to run quite a bit.
As for the first problem, I don't think it's really something you need to worry about. Some dogs just aren't very social; some dogs just decide they don't like other dogs for no apparent reason. As long as she's not behaving aggressively with these other dogs, it's completely fine for her to just not engage. There's nothing for you to protect her against - she's doing that for herself by telling the dogs in easily-understood Dog Talk that she's not interested in meeting them.
posted by lunasol at 6:52 PM on September 12, 2013 [1 favorite]
As for the first problem, I don't think it's really something you need to worry about. Some dogs just aren't very social; some dogs just decide they don't like other dogs for no apparent reason. As long as she's not behaving aggressively with these other dogs, it's completely fine for her to just not engage. There's nothing for you to protect her against - she's doing that for herself by telling the dogs in easily-understood Dog Talk that she's not interested in meeting them.
posted by lunasol at 6:52 PM on September 12, 2013 [1 favorite]
If the other dogs are loose and you don't want to run into them, one idea is to take routes that avoid those yards. I keep track of the dogs that set off my own dogs the most and try to avoid those houses.
It is ok to see a loose dog in a yard and turn around to come the way you came.
You can work on conditioning and training but it is ok to just admit you don't like being around off leash dogs. Just have a game plan in your head for what you prefer to do if you come across a loose dog--such as turn around or cross the street.
I always walk with a stick. I was once attacked by a loose dog and I suddenly realized why so many other dog owners carry canes or sticks. Just threatening with a big stick would probably have helped me but instead I ended up getting bitten by a giant loose dog that came after my little dog. The owner swore to me that her dog was obedient and well behaved, she couldn't understand what happened.
posted by dottiechang at 8:45 PM on September 12, 2013 [1 favorite]
It is ok to see a loose dog in a yard and turn around to come the way you came.
You can work on conditioning and training but it is ok to just admit you don't like being around off leash dogs. Just have a game plan in your head for what you prefer to do if you come across a loose dog--such as turn around or cross the street.
I always walk with a stick. I was once attacked by a loose dog and I suddenly realized why so many other dog owners carry canes or sticks. Just threatening with a big stick would probably have helped me but instead I ended up getting bitten by a giant loose dog that came after my little dog. The owner swore to me that her dog was obedient and well behaved, she couldn't understand what happened.
posted by dottiechang at 8:45 PM on September 12, 2013 [1 favorite]
Regarding the anxious pre-walk behavior, you could try more general obedience training. You can also try getting those various trigger items out at random times, to make those triggers meaningless.
posted by filthy light thief at 8:53 PM on September 12, 2013
posted by filthy light thief at 8:53 PM on September 12, 2013
I was a walker for a dog-walking agency in one of my past lives and had all kinds of dogs with all kinds of funny issues. You really just need to get a consistent training regimen. I like Phunimee's tips above. The owner of the agency would work with all the dogs for some time before he handed them over to the walkers. He would train them (as much as he could) and figure out their personalities and short-comings so that each walker would know what to expect and would know how to respond properly to the dog's temperament. I had a "red" Doberman who was a perfect walker except she would lunge for and eat cigarette butts and she was petrified of other dogs. If you came on a house that had a dog, she would stop in her tracks and then suddenly leap to get away and near pull your arm out of your socket. We couldn't train this out of her so we worked around it. If she stopped because there was a dog, we gave her the stop command and then, after a pause, turned and got her on a heel in another direction, giving her a treat after a few paces. But really, it was pure avoidance. See a dog on a leash down the street, cluck-cluck and a swish of the leash and we headed another direction. Never did figure out the damn cigarette butts. Yuck!
It doesn't sound like your situation is this extreme but a dog that isn't trained can really hurt you or others if they have anxiety and can't follow directions. You might do well with a doggie trainer if you haven't already.
Good luck!
posted by amanda at 9:28 PM on September 12, 2013
It doesn't sound like your situation is this extreme but a dog that isn't trained can really hurt you or others if they have anxiety and can't follow directions. You might do well with a doggie trainer if you haven't already.
Good luck!
posted by amanda at 9:28 PM on September 12, 2013
Regarding the anxious pre-walk behavior, you could try more general obedience training. You can also try getting those various trigger items out at random times, to make those triggers meaningless.
Definitely this! Since she's a border collie, you could probably even do more advanced training with her, e.g., doggie has to bring you her leash and/or wait in a down-stay until you're ready to go. Google clicker training if this idea appeals to you. (Caution: web results may be excessively cute.)
posted by Carmelita Spats at 7:12 AM on September 13, 2013
Definitely this! Since she's a border collie, you could probably even do more advanced training with her, e.g., doggie has to bring you her leash and/or wait in a down-stay until you're ready to go. Google clicker training if this idea appeals to you. (Caution: web results may be excessively cute.)
posted by Carmelita Spats at 7:12 AM on September 13, 2013
Do you people often leave their dogs off leash and unattended without a fence? There are leash laws were I live to dissuade such things. Nevertheless, I agree with dottiechang. If these potential interactions stress you out then avoid those yards or cross the street.
posted by nerdia12 at 9:04 AM on September 13, 2013
posted by nerdia12 at 9:04 AM on September 13, 2013
Response by poster: Thanks for the answers!
We've had a couple of walks since. We're definitely working on making triggers not triggers. That is going to take some time, but it seems feasible based on what I've tried so far. I'm also now getting myself ready before she's paying attention, so that I can simply walk up to her and snap on the leash before she gets crazy. I'm also trying exiting via the downstairs back door just to get throw her off a bit.
I also had a chance to try having her sit on the approach of an unleashed dog. And instead of paying attention to the other dog, I focus on her, petting, making soothing noises, etc. ,
posted by Short Attention Sp at 7:11 AM on September 15, 2013
We've had a couple of walks since. We're definitely working on making triggers not triggers. That is going to take some time, but it seems feasible based on what I've tried so far. I'm also now getting myself ready before she's paying attention, so that I can simply walk up to her and snap on the leash before she gets crazy. I'm also trying exiting via the downstairs back door just to get throw her off a bit.
I also had a chance to try having her sit on the approach of an unleashed dog. And instead of paying attention to the other dog, I focus on her, petting, making soothing noises, etc. ,
posted by Short Attention Sp at 7:11 AM on September 15, 2013
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For your first problem, the stranger dogs approaching, train her to sit. My dog is either apprehensive or SUPER EXCITED when he sees a strange dog, based on whatever factors his dumb little dog brain has decided to parse out. So, in order to keep him from excitedly butt sniffing the other dog, or to keep him from hiding between my legs and wrapping me up in leash, we now both stop and he sits for a moment while the other dog passes. Sometimes he really wants to get up and butt sniff, but we only do that if the other dog has consented to the butt sniffing. It keeps my dog safe and it keeps other dogs from being startled by my dog. Win-win.
posted by phunniemee at 5:12 PM on September 12, 2013 [1 favorite]