Distracting A Greyhound Who Is Focused On Squirrels

[Guest Swifthounds]

Every interaction you have with your dog can be classified as "training".

 

 

Wonderful post! I picked the above out as the single best line because I think it's such a simple and important - and obvious - truth that is too often ignored - to the detriment of human and hound.

[Guest KennelMom]

I agree with what Giselle posted :nod

 

side note: for all the criticism Cesar gets for his methods of correction on leash, the lady in that video sure is yanking that dog around by his head an awful lot. Great video though. It's actually a lot of fun to practice walking/eye contact (aka heeling)! Recommend a waist leash like she's using.

[Guest Giselle]

Oh, believe me. I dislike the Gentle Leader and I do not like doing that method. I only use it with clients when she asks me to. It's really just something that stands contrary to my personal training beliefs: I'm a minimalist. Least force possible = least guidance possible = increase dog's thinking ability = increase dog's ability to offer behaviors. To the OP: you can easily achieve that level of eye contact and focus without the Gentle Leader, and the activities I spelled out in my previous post will provide you with a strong foundation.

[Guest iLoveLucie]

Thanks for the great info!

 

I think one problem is we might be expecting too much too fast. We haven't done much eye contact training indoors so of course he won't get it outdoors.

 

Right now the big challenge is he doesn't seem interested in treats - indoors or outdoors. Our girl is such a chow hound she would walk away from a group of squirrels right in front of her to get a treat!! Lol!! I'm thinking one hesitation our boy has with treats is due to our girl running in front of him to get them first (so obviously that is a good training opportunity for her!)

 

I suppose we just need some tastier treats he will like, work with him inside first, and we need to keep our girl awawy from his treats when it is his turn.

 

If anyone else has tips on how to train a dog who isn't food motivated, please let me know!!

[Gryffenne]

Bring a squirt gun along on your walk & try it.

On the squirrel or the grey?

 

 

I used to have a time with Sammi when I first adopted her. A friend that I walked with (who is a Caesar devout) always used to quio that he'd hate me because Sammi walks in front of me (Hip to hip, not shoulder to hip or behind) I did that because I wanted to have her ears/head in my view at all times. She would spot, ears went up, drool and be in her zone then try to lunge if I didnt stop her. If I got her before the drool, all it took was "Up here" for her to break her trance and look at me instead. Okay.... at first it took about 5 "Up here's" and an awesome treat If I didnt get her attention before the trance stage, I would have to cover her eyes with my hand (since she had the audacity to just look around me if I stepped in front of her )

 

Fast forward to almost 5 yrs later and she ignores most critters on walks. In fact, my best friend noticed that her habit is to look at the critter, then look at me, then back to walking. Almost like she is breaking her own gaze herself. But her drive has mellowed greatly! I don't trust her, but I have to say that I am impressed I have pictures of her with a friend's cat walking under her and even sitting next to her

[Guest sheila]

Cesar would not agree with me either. My dogs walk out the door ahead of me. It's just easier that way because the door opens to the 5 steps we must go down. So the dogs go out and down the steps and I follow and shut the door behind me. On walks they are usually just slightly ahead of me, when they start to tire they might be slightly behind me. Occasionally they will step off the path to sniff something and I usually stop and let them snuffle about for a little bit. If we are in an area where it is OK to do so, I even let them mark. My only real rule is that my leash arm is slack at my side. If a dog does pull I use a leash correction that is so subtle that I don't think most ppl would even notice it. It's just a finger pull or a slight tightening on that dogs leash and sometimes a sound like. 'EH! or 'SSS' .

[Guest Giselle]

I suppose we just need some tastier treats he will like, work with him inside first, and we need to keep our girl awawy from his treats when it is his turn.

 

If anyone else has tips on how to train a dog who isn't food motivated, please let me know!!

That sounds like an excellent idea. May I ask what type of treats you're using? When in doubt, always use real meat (like plain boiled chicken) or food rolls (like Natural Balance rolls) or hot dogs (low sodium, preferably). Cut them up real small, and work away!

 

You might also want to try withholding breakfast/dinner and using that hunger as extra motivation.

 

As for "walking ahead of you" mumbo jumbo, my dogs always walk wherever the heck they want to. BUT, as soon as I ask them to come, they come. As soon as I ask them to "heel", they heel. It's about being authoritative not authoritarian.

 

Another tip: If it's hard to break your dog's stare on the squirrels, simply take a couple brisk steps backwards and ask for a "Sit" or eye contact. This is where Repeat Sits Backwards would work well.

[rschultz]

Lexie was like that when we first got her. She will always be fixated but when I walk her and she sees a squirrel i say "leave it" and pull her away real fast..after a few months she just knows not to pull or she will get a lil "yank"

[JohnF]

My last one, Angel, was totally squirell mad, and the only way around it was to distract and 'trade-up' to looking for the next squirrel at the next squirrel tree. Peggy is very keen on them too and goes into the zone instantly with racing heart etc, but can much more easily be distracted off them. Bunnies are usually OK because they don't dart for cover. Cats on the other hand are a much more serious matter. You just keep your dog on a close lead if you know the local wildlife is going to be causing problems.

[Guest missecho]

We see bunnies running around our neighborhood constantly. Molly could care less! But a SQUIRREL is indeed zone time...there is no way I could ever do anything about her love for hunting squirrels. There is a special squirrel tree at the park that gets visited as a special treat. The squirrels are busy in the morning, which of course is prime time for squirrel sightings, and then in the evening the squirrels have all gone to bed. Nevertheless the tree is the highlight of the walk.