On-Lead vs Off-Lead Behavior
OK - so you all remember when I first hired Frank, my behaviorist. The first session he came out...he was able to do some training with Ninja and pet him on the head without any issues.
Well Today...for some reason my brother wanted to walk the dogs in the late afternoon so he put the collar on Portia and was attempting to put it on Ninja...but he was very hesitant and kept running away when my brother would get close...but then sit down and wait for the collar and then run away when he got close. So I ended up putting on Ninja collar and giving the leads to my brother.
Well after 10 minutes of walking and noticing that Ninja was more relaxed, I wanted to test Ninja, so I told my brother to tell Ninja to do a sit/stay and walk a couple steps ahead and tell him to come to him. So he did and Ninja was wagging exitedly while walking to my brother. So I told my brother to make him sit again and this time when he sits - say "GOOD BOY!" and pet his back. So he told Ninja to sit and then pet his back. JUST LIKE THAT!
So - I guess my question is...do your dogs act differently on-lead vs off-lead? Ninja seems to be more comfortable with "new" people if they walk him and do a bit of training with him. But off-lead - he won't let anyone get near him.
Or is it possibly because he is on-lead and knows he can't run away even if he tried? But then I would think he would become more aggressive and start growling or bite if someone got close or attempted to touch him..
I want my brother to do this more often to see if Ninja will get more and more comfortable with him and eventually get used to him off-lead as well. But it's hard to rely on someone else to be consistent.
Well Today...for some reason my brother wanted to walk the dogs in the late afternoon so he put the collar on Portia and was attempting to put it on Ninja...but he was very hesitant and kept running away when my brother would get close...but then sit down and wait for the collar and then run away when he got close. So I ended up putting on Ninja collar and giving the leads to my brother.
Well after 10 minutes of walking and noticing that Ninja was more relaxed, I wanted to test Ninja, so I told my brother to tell Ninja to do a sit/stay and walk a couple steps ahead and tell him to come to him. So he did and Ninja was wagging exitedly while walking to my brother. So I told my brother to make him sit again and this time when he sits - say "GOOD BOY!" and pet his back. So he told Ninja to sit and then pet his back. JUST LIKE THAT!
So - I guess my question is...do your dogs act differently on-lead vs off-lead? Ninja seems to be more comfortable with "new" people if they walk him and do a bit of training with him. But off-lead - he won't let anyone get near him.
Or is it possibly because he is on-lead and knows he can't run away even if he tried? But then I would think he would become more aggressive and start growling or bite if someone got close or attempted to touch him..
I want my brother to do this more often to see if Ninja will get more and more comfortable with him and eventually get used to him off-lead as well. But it's hard to rely on someone else to be consistent.
Comments
Miko listens better than Moto. But I think it was Paul (owner of Mura, Mikos sister) who told me that the shiba motto is "mine" and the shikokus motto is "teach me"
Nemo also has to meet people a few times before they can come too close. However with a leash on I can get him to sit calmly by my feet even with strangers around, without the leash he is under the bed, possibly barking. Yes the tough guy barks at strangers from under the bed.
I had people over last Saturday night and Nemo did pretty well, yes there was some barking and shyness, but there was one great moment. Andy was over (he moved out a couple weeks back) and Nemo wanted to go see him but he was sitting on the couch with one of my other friends Isaac. Nemo has met Isaac a good amount of times but never consistently enough to really get to like him. However he got brave and jumped up between them. He took treats and petting from Isaac while he visited with Andy. I was pretty great to see.
Also, the bit about your brother having a hard time hooking him up to the lead made me smile. I used to get a lot of that, and I really believe that it's more of a game than anything else. To me it reflects the animal's preception of your brother's place in the pack:
Ninja-"Mom feeds me, I have to be nice to her; you're just another yard ape here for my amusement, now let's see you run." :0)
HAHAHA
I can hear Moto Saying to my husband "Run Monkey Boy!! Run!!!"
This definately makes me think that I am the issue for ninja's behavior. He seems to act more mellow with new people when I am not around. Even at the vet - I now sit and wait in the waiting room while they take him in to the exam room to check him out and they always say he does fine and doesn't growl or anything.
HMPH :T
I know so many trainers who will tell you it is so much easier to train dogs you have no emotional ties to.
So we tried putting Ninja on-lead inside the house and it worked!!! My brother was able to pet him without being growled at. Ninja did look tense in the beginning, but he seemed to not mind it too much. I think he was a little confused too. But overall - I AM SHOCKED!!! I got a video clip of it last night...youtube finally came through and uploaded it. ITS AMAZING!!!
Brandon - THANK YOU AGAIN!!! I am TRULY thankful for you and the forum! I think with this new technique...it will be much easier for Ninja to allow strangers to get closer to him and eventually be more comfortable without the lead on. AND....We didn't even have to use food for motivation!!!
Here is my little man in action!
My girls started barking and ran to the door when Ninja and Portia barked.
(side note; i don't know if i ever noticed ninja and portia's matching white patches! CUTE!)
Ninja does really well with your brother and the leash. It's odd how it changes behavior like that for dogs.
My brother has been around dogs as much as I have. Although - he never had a dog of his own. It was always mine or my sister's dogs. He is a little nervous with Ninja. Before when Ninja was off-lead and my brother would try to pet him, he would get growled at and snapped at sometimes. So I think he is a little scared. But I think if we keep doing it - he will get more comfortable with him. He is used to Portia and Portia likes to be patted kind of hard and she does play rough with him. So I think he might just be used to patting dogs like that.
Anyway, on-leash, he's a perfect gentleman for me, but he tends to not let other people pet him. I think that goes back to an experience he had as a puppy, though. When I was walking him, a kid ran up and grabbed his leash and started pulling it up, choking him. I immediately told the kid to leave my dog the eff alone, but the damage was still done. Off-leash he's actually super mellow and friendly with everyone.
When someone is visiting our house, I will always put on leash for initial excitement and i give guests some treats to offer to Frost. Once that ritual is done, he settles down and I take the leash off and he is a good boy, responds to most commands, nornmally does not jump on adults. with younger kids he tries to dominate as kids move too fast which he treats as game.
I have been taking Frost for training since he was 3 months old. Right now we are doing intermediate training at Petsmart (my both trainers have been very good). I guess continuous training is needed.
What I do is, everyday at random times I will conduct 5 minutes of training 3 times a day and concentrate only on 2-3 commands pere session and I also vary the treats he gets (cherios, few other meaty treats). for example, in the morning before he gets food, i will make him heel with me around the house. do rapid fire sit/down. In the afternoon after I come back from work, i will give him a biscuit or two and then play a game of fetch with him (work on command = fetch, he is very good at retrieving tennis balls and bringing back to get a treat, then I will work on stay and wait. Everyday i will make a point to pet him all over his body, put my fingers in his mouth to check teeth, touch paws, i even carry him like a baby for 2 minutes around the house. he is now used to human touch. Many times my kids will lie down on the carpet next to him and then can give him belly rub for like 10 minutes!
I have also found that if he knows "i have treats in my hand/pouch" he is very obedient.