Shadow's reactivity log

Joy

Joy

Location
East Sussex
It doesn't look as if the muzzle is bothering him at all. You've clearly done a great job of getting him used to it. Obviously you want to check that it's correctly fitted but I think it looks more comfortable being on the large size so that Shadow can open his mouth wide and presumably when he sniffs things the smells can circulate properly.
 
snowbunny

snowbunny

Location
Andorra and Spain
I spent a very long time on the really early stages, and still go back to that at least once a week and just reinforce for him putting his nose into it. It's a fun game they all really enjoy :)
It is more difficult when it's clipped on for any length of time, I'm sure it's a bit annoying, but he's getting used to it, and I built it up really slowly, where it was clipped on and straight off again maybe ten outings in a row, then left on for ten seconds, then a little longer, but mixed up with going on and off again. It's also a good reinforcer for a recall, having his muzzle taken off! I'm already dreading the discussions with all the locals up in Andorra; I might just put something on Facebook to explain why he's going to be wearing it this season so I don't have to have the same conversation a million times!
 
Xena Dog Princess

Xena Dog Princess

Location
Wellington, NZ
In response to "why did nobody give us a wide berth" - it probably was down to Shadow's body language. If I was walking - alone or with Xena - and a dog wearing a muzzle approached us, I wouldn't automatically cross the road or even give the dog a wide berth. If the dog is looking relaxed etc, I'd just walk past and ensure that Xena didn't swoop in for a hello. If the dog was barking, snarling etc, I'd absolutely cross the road, but I'd do that regardless of muzzle.
 
snowbunny

snowbunny

Location
Andorra and Spain
Shadow is doing SO much better with his reactivity, but we've not got to the point of meeting up with unknown dogs yet. However, that was taken out of our hands on this evening's walk when a huge Lab/Dane/whatever cross came hurtling up the mountainside towards us. I'd seen him from a distance (having the height advantage) and so we hung back so we wouldn't meet. We had all four dogs with us and Shadow is always worse when "his girls" are around. I didn't factor in the fact that this dog would run hundreds of metres up the side of a mountain to get to us - it's not something that happens here!

Immediately, Shadow and Squidge went to engage. I managed to grab Willow - she would tell a rude dog off, and I don't worry about her with other dogs at all, BUT her telling him off if he got over-friendly would wind Shadow up.
I couldn't do a lot, as they were down a very steep bank, but it went better than I could ever have dreamed. This dog (Gus, from the owner's bellowing), was just as stiff as Shadow (gagh!), and growled at Shadow. But, that was it. Shadow didn't escalate, there was no scuffle, just a bit of posturing. Gus also growled at Squidge, who was being her usual lovable dick, bouncing around, play-bowing and trying with every bit of her essence to get him to play with her. Again, Shadow ignored the growl, turned away and had a wee.

Great displacement behaviour from S, I was really proud of him.

I didn't bother recalling because this dog was obviously intent on coming to us - he ended up right on the high path with us in the end. He went up to Ginny, who always looks a bit uncomfortable on meeting new dogs, and when he eventually ran off back to his owner, she barked, as if to say "And the horse you rode in on!!" :D
 
snowbunny

snowbunny

Location
Andorra and Spain
Had another great one this evening. We went out with Annie again for a nice long Labrawalk, about three hours. There was a bit where we had to cross a road - dead-end, mountain road, no traffic. On the way back, just as we had popped off the road and onto the mountain again, we saw a choccy Lab being walked up the road. Squidge saw it and went to say hi, but the other three didn't - my friend kept them entertained while I went and collected the hairy terrorist who was entertaining them with her antics.
They were walking the way we had come, so we didn't expect to see them again, but as we got back to the car, on this low path we were taking, they appeared, having walked back down the road. Gagh! Annie (W&S's sister) had a good bark at the guy, who had hiking sticks (none of those three like people with sticks), and Shadow went straight to the dog. My heart sank, but I chose to ignore him completely. Easily done, as Squidge decided that was an opportune time to steal the lady's fluffy har from her hand and run off with it into the snow :wasntme:
Luckily, she gave it back to me, and the couple were really good about it, but I was more impressed with Shadow who was a superstar. Not a single gruff or growl from him. Again, the other dog was quite stiff and giving him whale-eye, but they both walked away from one another without a word. For Shadow to do that with the ladies around was great. Very proud of him again :)
 
snowbunny

snowbunny

Location
Andorra and Spain
Sigh, a couple of setbacks recently, after it all going so well. The first was a week(ish) ago, when someone's lurcher came running up to us. Shadow played with him for a minute then I called him back. J took him on a ways as I stopped to talk to the owner; I know him vaguely and have been helping him with dealing with SA in his dog so wanted to see how that was going. Then Shadow came running to us and went straight for the dog, grabbing his jacket really nastily. He came back when I called, but we were all shaken, it seemed totally unprovoked. I can only guess that the adrenaline of running to us had upped his adrenaline and tipped him over the edge.

Then, yesterday, he had a go at a female boxer that he has previously met and played with. Again, no harm done, but she was shaken up.

It's hard not to be demoralised after I thought we were making such good progress. I've lost a screw from his muzzle so I need to get that replaced and then he'll have to wear it for off-lead walks from now on, otherwise I'll just end up keeping him away from all other dogs in future, which is no good for any of us.
 
snowbunny

snowbunny

Location
Andorra and Spain
Someone shared this with me yesterday and I'm trying to keep it in mind. From Ian Dunbar: Fighting

"To know whether or not you have a problem, establish your dog's Fight-Bite Ratio. To do this you need to answer two questions: How many times has your dog been involved in a full-contact fight? And in how many fights did the other dog have to be taken to the veterinarian?

Ten-to-Zero is a common Fight-Bite Ratio for one- to two-year-old male dogs, that is, ten full-contact fights with opponents taking zero trips to the vet. We do not have a serious problem here. Obviously the dog is not "trying to kill" the other dog, since he hasn't caused any injury in ten fights. The dog would have caused damage if he had meant to. Moreover, on each occasion, the dog adhered to the Marquis of Dogsberry Fighting Rules by restricting bites to the other dog's scruff, neck, head, and muzzle. Surely, there is no better proof of the effectiveness of bite inhibition than, when in a fighting frenzy, one dog grasps another by the soft part of his throat and yet no damage is done.

This is not a dangerous dog. He is merely socially obnoxious in the inimitable manner of male adolescents. Yes, the dog is a bit of a pain, but he has wonderful bite inhibition (established during puppyhood) and has never injured another dog. Solid evidence of reliable bite inhibition — ten fights with zero bites while adhering to fighting rules — makes it extremely unlikely that this dog will ever harm another dog."

Still sucks, though.
 
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