Four months in .... small dogs a problem!

[Feefee147]

So we're four months in now with Samson. 

He's brilliant, an absolutely lovely boy. Indoors he has turned into a gentle, sweet giant with a bit of an affectionate, playful nature (amidst all the snoozing). He's also surprisingly (after a lot of blank stares) doing quite well with training - down, wait, up, sit...etc are cheerily done for a treat. And the excitement when a squeaky ball comes out - the smile and waggling ears melt my heart. I know it's only been four months so I can't wait to see how he changes over the next four.

However outside he is turning into a tricky chap. He's much more confident and really happy to go out for walks. Still a bit nervous here and there, particularly with big dogs and noise,  but overall he's doing really well. 

Now he's more relaxed a high chase/prey drive is rapidly coming out. If he sees a squirrel and can't get it he goes from meek gentle giant to screaming diva (if I heard those noises in a park I'd assume a dog was being tortured!) but it is manageable so far - we're doing 'leave-it' training and working on getting his focus back when he has zoned out. As long as I make sure I have a good grip on his lead he can't get anywhere.  He will dig his heels in at any 'prey' (squirrel/cat/fox/some birds) and refuse to budge which, again, we're working on. 

BUT the one thing I am genuinely concerned about is his behaviour with small dogs. He has stopped being nervous and started getting that look (stiff, ears up, darting towards). A week or so ago a small dog ran up and he very quickly turned and nose butted it. Yesterday a small puppy came running over. The reaction was not playful, but snappy and very quick. No warning at all, just lunge. 

We muzzle him, and have been contemplating if he actually needs it or not. I do worry that muzzling him has a detrimental impact on his confidence around the bigger dogs. But i'm very glad we continued with it - yesterday would have had a very nasty outcome. I don't want to avoid parks but also cannot control dogs running over. I also want to make sure our walks are relaxed and that I don't start worrying and giving off the wrong signals. 

I know this is a regular topic and I've read countless articles and suggestions in training manuals - does anyone have any suggestions on this that they have tried and tested?  

 

Edited June 9, 2020 by Feefee147

[DocsDoctor]

Hi there - I'm also in London! Doc, my first greyhound had a very high prey drive and got much too excited about puppies initially; with their squirmy movements they can look very like prey....

What worked for us was finding a good, all-breeds, positive reinforcement dog training class. Here Doc got to learn that all those other funny-looking creatures he kept meeting in the streets were just other dogs, like him! The trainer also invited us to come along to a puppy class, and sniff a few puppies under carefully-controlled conditions - again, once he realised that they too were dogs, no more problems. And it was an education for me too, in learning to read doggy body language.

I doubt such classes are running in lockdown, but they would be worth seeking out when they resume - maybe your vet can recommend someone local. You could also go to a trainer one-on-one, of course, that might be helpful initially, but the brilliant thing about classes is that you automatically get to meet and work with all those other dogs.

PS: meanwhile, I would continue to walk him in a muzzle; better safe than sorry!

Edited June 9, 2020 by DocsDoctor

[Feefee147]

26 minutes ago, DocsDoctor said:

Hi there - I'm also in London! Doc, my first greyhound had a very high prey drive and got much too excited about puppies initially; with their squirmy movements they can look very like prey....

What worked for us was finding a good, all-breeds, positive reinforcement dog training class. Here Doc got to learn that all those other funny-looking creatures he kept meeting in the streets were just other dogs, like him! The trainer also invited us to come along to a puppy class, and sniff a few puppies under carefully-controlled conditions - again, once he realised that they too were dogs, no more problems. And it was an education for me too, in learning to read doggy body language.

I doubt such classes are running in lockdown, but they would be worth seeking out when they resume - maybe your vet can recommend someone local. You could also go to a trainer one-on-one, of course, that might be helpful initially, but the brilliant thing about classes is that you automatically get to meet and work with all those other dogs.

PS: meanwhile, I would continue to walk him in a muzzle; better safe than sorry!

A fellow Londoner :-)

I've had a look around at classes - gawd knows when they will start up again. I assumed I wouldn't be allowed to take along a muzzled, prey-driven greyhound to dog glasses so it's great to know I can! Can you recommend any in particular?

I'll scour the London options. THANK YOU!!

[DocsDoctor]

What a trainer might do I guess is to suggest a one-to-one session first, to assess the dog first, though mine was happy for us just to turn up, having worked with lots of  greyhounds already.

She's moved away I think and now Winkie Spiers is the one I most often hear being recommended, here in South London. NB I have no personal experience of her, however.

[Feefee147]

8 minutes ago, DocsDoctor said:

What a trainer might do I guess is to suggest a one-to-one session first, to assess the dog first, though mine was happy for us just to turn up, having worked with lots of  greyhounds already.

She's moved away I think and now Winkie Spiers is the one I most often hear being recommended, here in South London. NB I have no personal experience of her, however.

The training school near me (North London) says no muzzled dogs which I thought was a bit unfair. I'll see what else is available.

[HeyRunDog]

Unless you know any small dog owner who is prepared to help with his socialising I think all you can do is keep on with the leave it training. It took Grace several months to learn that everything small and furry isn't prey. Now she even ignores cats

[Feefee147]

On 6/10/2020 at 6:31 AM, HeyRunDog said:

Unless you know any small dog owner who is prepared to help with his socialising I think all you can do is keep on with the leave it training. It took Grace several months to learn that everything small and furry isn't prey. Now she even ignores cats

Ah great! Good to know you had success with the small furries issues. Thank you!

[lulah62]

On 6/12/2020 at 1:59 PM, Feefee147 said:

Ah great! Good to know you had success with the small furries issues. Thank you!

Hi Feefee147,

 

I was just wondering how you were getting on with the small furries issue?

Our foster girl is starting to show errr interest in small dogs - she's not food orientated, so we are struggling with "leave it" training too (as nothing we have to offer is as fun as little squirmy dog)

[Feefee147]

On 9/4/2020 at 10:57 AM, lulah62 said:

Hi Feefee147,

 

I was just wondering how you were getting on with the small furries issue?

Our foster girl is starting to show errr interest in small dogs - she's not food orientated, so we are struggling with "leave it" training too (as nothing we have to offer is as fun as little squirmy dog)

We’re now seven months in with Samson and he’s actually doing really well. He went from foster to adoptee 😁

I bought a good harness so I can get a strong hold on him if necessary without hurting him and still do leave it training with him daily, just to reinforce what it means.

I backed away from all dogs (mainly because he was very nervous with bigger dogs but also because I wanted to see smaller dogs from a safe distance and work on that) and gradually walked him nearer and nearer over a long period of time.

He’s still on lead and muzzled, prey drive still *very* strong, but he doesn’t fight and howl to get to small fluffies and understands that “leave it” means back away and walk on rather than lunge, snap and try to get them.

He rarely takes a treat outdoors if he is fixating on something, but the repeated indoor leave it training has gradually stuck in his brain somewhere and even if he is too excited to want a reward, he will still begrudgingly oblige. Now if a small off lead dog comes bounding over it’s much less stressful 😁

It’s worth persevering with leave it training. It’s also worth trying all sorts of different treats (cheese, ham, good smelling food) in the hope something will engage her?

Let us know how you get on 👍🏻