Help with other dogs

Hey fellow corgi owners,

I need some help. My corgi is 7 months old and although she loves people to death, I'm finding that any dog she sees she immediately goes into the barking aggressive mode. Smaller dogs she will calm down faster for, especially after I pet them but bigger ones can forget it. I've tried distracting her, telling her to sit/hush but nothing works. If we're on a walk the best thing I can do is just take her home. How can I train her to be calm around other dogs and stop the aggressive behaviour?

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Permalink Reply by Jane on August 2, 2011 at 12:33pm

Is she actually being aggressive (lunging, snarling, snapping, etc) or just barking?

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Permalink Reply by Katarina on August 2, 2011 at 12:53pm

She lunges until they come closer to her the she runs behind me and barks/growls. If I try to pull her back on her leash she'll actually stand up on her hind legs to keep barking.

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Permalink Reply by Jane on August 2, 2011 at 2:08pm

Has she been through any puppy or obedience classes? If not I would highly recommend it, but make sure you tell the trainer when you sign up that she is somewhat dog reactive.

Luke can be reactive towards other dogs on our walks as well. What I've found to be the most effective for us is to carry a treat pouch with super yummy treats. When we start the walk I will ask him to heal a couple of times and reward with the treat so he knows I have it. If I see another dog approaching, I will give the command "watch" (look at me), put him in a sit and body block him (stand directly in front of him, my knees very close to his nose) so he can't see the other dog very well. Then I basically stuff his face with treats until the other dog passes.

The trick to this is that you have to be very aware of your surroundings and distract her BEFORE she gets super focused on the other dog. It's very hard to tear them away once they're fixated. Use your legs as best you can to block her view and keep yourself in between her and the other dog. Luke is still a work in progress but he has shown significant improvement. The end goal for me is to have him look to me when he sees another dog instead of getting all crazy. I don't expect him to love all dogs but I do want him to be able to at least ignore them.

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Permalink Reply by Elyse & Caese on August 2, 2011 at 2:20pm

My guy does this too. He is completely well trained other than this issue. He just goes nuts like he is unruly and then when a person (basically big males) or bigger dogs actually come close he cowers. Obviously I need to go to training as well, but your not the only one with this problem. Like Jane said the treat trick does work. I have noticed that if I am proactive BEFORE he is distracted I can have his attention rather than the stranger/dog having his attention.