Berserk Over Other Females
My newly adopted F Corgi named Winnie. I love her to death. With ME she's affectionate, loyal and funny. With female dogs----NOT!!! I have read (here) that F Corgis often (always???) have this trait.
She has had several dust ups with neighboring Basenji and a Westy. With the Westy it has gotten pathological---recently Westy was walked by the house, on leash, by owner. I have a front fence but BOTH DOGS wanted to shred the other. Winnie was SO upset that when I picked her up to separate them she vomited. EEK.
My question is.....is there any point in training or is this just something I need to deal with? I'm going to set my fence back another 2' from the sidewalk this spring just for safety's sake. I try and avoid other dogs when we're walking (which is 3x day).
I had an obedience teacher the first month Winnie was here and she got IMMEDIATE results but I (softy that I am) thought that what I saw was FEAR more than training. How do I land on the proper balance between training and (this is a corny phrase) "breaking her spirit"? Maybe I'm getting to human in my view of the dog's psychology but PLEASE COMMENT....I've used some of the V. Stilwell techniques but am probably too lazy about re-inforcing them....should I suck it up and get with a training program or is this girl hatred of hers too strong?
HELP!!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Jane on
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What kind of methods was the trainer using? You should not be seeing fear during training.
I would look for a good positive based trainer that can help you with counter conditioning and desensitization. I doubt you will ever completely eliminate her hatred of female dogs, but she could probably learn to at least ignore them in passing.
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Permalink Reply by Winnie on
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I think I have found one who does just that......i'll post the (hopeful) results after we begin meeting. Thank YOU.
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Permalink Reply by Sam Tsang on
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Hi Winnie's dad! You've answered your own question :) Yes, just like any relationship, it takes hardwork, daily. If I was in your situation, I would hire an inhome trainer to give you immediate feedback, it is more affordable that you think and cheaper than any surgery. The trainer should observe you and train you to work with Winnie. I've fostered a lot of corgis, I heaven't met one that is truly "broken", Winnie's future is in your hands now, good luck!
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Permalink Reply by Kari & Quin on
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If you use negative training such as shaking a jar of pennys, yanking on their collar or hitting or a shock collar yes I think you can brake their spirit, if you give positive reinforcement I think she will learn to deal with other dogs.http://www.youtube.com/user/kikopup#p/u/154/Jp_l9C1yT1g watch her other vids on barking also
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Permalink Reply by Melissa and Franklin! on
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What was the obedience trainer doing that caused the fear? Was she being rough or just asking Winnie to mind? Did she use praise at all? The thing is, some dogs with NO discipline will react fearfully at first because it is something they have never seen before and don't understand. You will get zero results unless you are consistent and do it ALL THE TIME. I really like V. Stilwell's methods and we often use them with the rescues at my school. My new dog reacts extremely fearfully when I tell him no or use a stern voice with him, he acts like I just kicked him or something. After talking with the old owners I have found that they just thought he was "such a sweet dog" and didn't want "anything to happen to him" so they NEVER disciplined him. Because of this he has no confidence and is extremely anxious and fearful, this fear results in aggression sometimes. So I really think an obedience class would be the way to go and STICK WITH IT. Do as the instructor says and do it all the time. Also, if you can find a good in home trainer that would be excellent. You may only need one or two sessions, but remember the money will be completely wasted and you will get no results if you don't stick with it.
As for "breaking her spirit" dogs are pack animals, all packs have a hierarchy and its the alpha dogs job to tell the rest of the pack what is wrong and what is right. Winnie absolutely should NOT be the alpha dog, and so you need to teach her you are in charge, but part of being in charge of your pack will require you to tell her what is ok and what is not ok. Depending on how alpha she is, you guys may have some difficult training sessions ahead of you. She may be reacting so aggressively because she DOES NOT want to be alpha but since you aren't being a leader she feels she has to step up and do it. This often results in a lot of bad behaviors such as barking, snarling, biting, etc. My uncle's dog has been forced to be alpha even though she is a very submissive dog and has now bitten 3 people. She is so confused about her role in the pack and when she is with me or my dad immediately becomes more calm and settled because she knows she no longer has to be in charge.
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