[fairyrocks]

I love my Dobie,he is a loving part of our family. BUT there our a few issues that he needs correcting and i wanted some advice on ways to train him.

He knows sit, wait, stay,down and we use an ok command for when he can move from these positions.

1. He runs all the time, which is fine apart from hes made a little game of running at people and just skimming them. HOW do i stop this? i usually take him to isolated fields where there are not many people but we do occasionally meet other people. Its so embarrassing when he does this and i get so worried he's going to hurt someone.
I want to know the positive way to correct this behaviour.

2. He has a very high prey drive. Cats he is obsessed with. We have a cat and she has learnt to walk around him rather than run. Hes gentle with her but he likes to chase.
He remembers where he has seen cats out on walks and goes into this searching mode where he pulls and just intensely looks for them. And if he see's any he whines and pulls.
Any tips?

3. Dominance? what are the signs?



We are having to do more recall with him and we are going to train him to a dog whistle because he has started being selective in when he comes back or sometimes when we ask him to sit. I know to step up the training but i just want to make sure i am doing it right.

Any advice would be great

 

[sam&macksmom]

You mean he does the dober-driveby? Yeah, Sam does this to me. A few times he had a failed driveby and I ended up on my butt, taken down.

I would keep him on a line long if you're out in a field, in case people show up. A line about 15-20' long.


As far as prey drive, well I'm not an expert on it so perhaps others will offer advice as to channeling it in more productive ways.

 

[DogsR4Life]

For squirrel chasing, when chase started to pull and whine, I pivoted around and walked the other way until he calmed down. Then I turn around and praise him for every step he makes on a loose leash and no whining. If he builds up again, I turn around and start over. I have gotten to the point where a squirrel can be two feet away and all he will do is stare ( the I-wish-I-could-chase-you stare lol) and track the squirrels movement, on a slack leash.

 

[fairyrocks]

You mean he does the dober-driveby? Yeah, Sam does this to me. A few times he had a failed driveby and I ended up on my butt, taken down.

I would keep him on a line long if you're out in a field, in case people show up. A line about 15-20' long.


As far as prey drive, well I'm not an expert on it so perhaps others will offer advice as to channeling it in more productive ways.

Yep the dober-driveby! I've been knocked over a few times too :/
Will look into getting a long line Thanks

 

[fairyrocks]

For squirrel chasing, when chase started to pull and whine, I pivoted around and walked the other way until he calmed down. Then I turn around and praise him for every step he makes on a loose leash and no whining. If he builds up again, I turn around and start over. I have gotten to the point where a squirrel can be two feet away and all he will do is stare ( the I-wish-I-could-chase-you stare lol) and track the squirrels movement, on a slack leash.

Will try this technique,Thank you
We have so many cats on our road and they all seem to gravitate to our front garden! I think thats what started his obsessive behaviour! They use to taunt him when he was little.

 

[Tanner's]

Tanner does the Dober-Driveby too! She takes me out at least once a week, but I am lucky she wants nothing to do with strangers.

As for the prey drive I usually put her in a heel and have her walk at a brisk pace than slow down and speed up randomly and often she looses focus on the cat because she is trying to focus on me.

... We have one gangster cat that tries to beat her up... in that case we usually turn around and walk the other way, this cat has guts, every time we walk by he runs at us.

 

[Australdi]

Do a search and some reading on "under threshold" training for the stuff you don't want him to chase...and divert the prey drive to a permissable game like go get the ball.

My old boy Daims was a master of the drive by as a youngster...full speed, extra points for missing only by a whisker...almost broke my knee the day he missjudged it by a millimetre or so. OUCH!

 

[melbrod]

My first dobe loved to buzz people--he was especially fond of dashing up, cutting a tight full-speed circle around someone (think barrel pony) and timing a perfect leap to plant a full-tongued slurp on the person's face--no bodily contact other than the tongue.

Extra points if the person doesn't like dogs.

Isn't it a shame dobermans are so stand-offish with strangers?

 

[fairyrocks]

My first dobe loved to buzz people--he was especially fond of dashing up, cutting a tight full-speed circle around someone (think barrel pony) and timing a perfect leap to plant a full-tongued slurp on the person's face--no bodily contact other than the tongue.

Extra points if the person doesn't like dogs.

Isn't it a shame dobermans are so stand-offish with strangers?

Ace whizzed through 2 walkers today. The man had to hiking sticks, Ace nearly took them straight out of his hand. I had to do the whole " he wont hurt you, hes just very hyper " speech!

I do find it very sad when people instantly grab there dogs or try and avoid us when we are on our walks

I love finding out about all these characteristics dobies seem to share

I'm going to really crack on with heel training. So i can at least get him walking nicely by my side when times like walkers occur!
The look on peoples faces when they have a Dobie running full speed at them :/

 

[DagniTheDobie]

As far as recall and sits...some of this might be because he's a 15 month old. Some of it might be because he's a Doberman and Dobes can be stubborn. That's why they're often listed as 'hard to train' because they learn quickly but they also have quite a mind of their own. It's all about being consistent and being insistent. If his recalls are getting bad...go back to square one. Have him on a long lead...do recall training with him. You'll probably find that as he gets older, he will settle back into his good behavior. That does depend on consistent and insistent training through his trouble times though. Also it's possible that he's just learning that when you recall him, the fun's over. Change it up...do a lot of recalls, give him treats when he comes back, let him go play again. When we take our dog on off-leash hikes I call her back every once in awhile just to give her lots of treats and send her off again. Or I'll find a really nice stick and recall her so that I can throw it for her a few times. Make yourself really fun to go back to and make it a habit for him of hearing your recall and returning.

As far as cats...I'd say removing him from the situation (ie: turn around and walk in the other direction) and distract him. Maybe he has a favorite toy that you could pull out when you guys turn around? Really though, it's just about breaking his attention from the object of his obsession. It wouldn't be a bad idea to teach him a solid 'look at me' so that he has a new focus. 'Look at me', give treat...over time you can ask for longer and longer 'look at mes'. It's good that your cat has learned to walk and not run. It's really the running that triggers their prey drive. We have two cats. My dog likes to chase one of my cats more than the other because that one is the one who is more likely to run. One day she decided to sit instead of run and my dog ended up just sniffing her and walking away - this was after she was in her rigid chase body posture.

And with dominance...that's a term I'm a little uncomfortable with just because there's contradicting information out there now regarding whether or not dominance actually exists in dogs or whether it's a manmade idea. Also...dogs know that we are not dogs. A dog being the dominant dog at the dog park isn't the same thing as a dog dominating his humans. Stubbornness, strong-willed...definitely...but that's not necessarily because of dominance. For example...a kid might know that they DON'T want spinach for dinner and they want chicken nuggets instead. They might also learn that if they throw a fit and scream for chicken nuggets, they'll get it. That doesn't mean they want to be the parent or that they're trying to be dominant...they're just learning bad behaviors. I see it as the same thing with dogs. For example...my dog will paw me for attention...some people would call that a small show of dominance. I see it as...she wants attention so she's doing something that she knows will get a response out of me and I usually will get her attention if she paws me. Just like my cat will jump up on my lap if she wants attention...she's not trying to dominate me, she's just communicating her need for attention.
The whole idea behind dominance seems to stem from wolf behavior but recent information (I think there have been more recent studies) shows that wolves don't really have this whole dominance thing that we had originally thought. Anyhow, interesting information out there regarding this whole thing...something you can investigate further if you have any interest.

 

[fairyrocks]

Tanner does the Dober-Driveby too! She takes me out at least once a week, but I am lucky she wants nothing to do with strangers.

As for the prey drive I usually put her in a heel and have her walk at a brisk pace than slow down and speed up randomly and often she looses focus on the cat because she is trying to focus on me.

... We have one gangster cat that tries to beat her up... in that case we usually turn around and walk the other way, this cat has guts, every time we walk by he runs at us.

LOL and doesn't it hurt when they take you out!

I think Ace just likes to be center of attention, its almost a "look at me" moment when he does it. Just get worried that he might knock over a child or an elderly person. (well anyone really!)

 

[DagniTheDobie]

Ace whizzed through 2 walkers today. The man had to hiking sticks, Ace nearly took them straight out of his hand. I had to do the whole " he wont hurt you, hes just very hyper " speech!

I do find it very sad when people instantly grab there dogs or try and avoid us when we are on our walks

I love finding out about all these characteristics dobies seem to share

I'm going to really crack on with heel training. So i can at least get him walking nicely by my side when times like walkers occur!
The look on peoples faces when they have a Dobie running full speed at them :/

As far as grabbing their dogs if you're off-leash hiking, it's not necessarily because they're scared of him. If I am off-leash with my dog and I see people up ahead, I usually will grab her too.

1. I don't know the people. If they don't like dogs I like to respect their right to enjoy their walk without a dog running up to them and sniffing. If they don't have dogs with them or if they have a child, I always grab my dog. Not because my dog is harmful but I don't want her scaring the kid (after all, kids tend to be uncomfortable around big dogs unless they were raised with them) and I don't want her bothering the people.
2. If the people have a dog on a leash and I don't know their dog. Their dog may be friendly or their dog may have problems with other dogs. I'd like to let my dog sniff and say hi but that's only with the OK of the owner.
3. I want to present Dobermans in the best light possible since I know there's so much negativity around them. I want them to leave thinking, 'wow...I didn't know Dobermans were so calm and well-behaved' instead of 'holy crap, that Doberman was crazy.'

If I see someone with their dog off-leash who isn't leashing their dog up, usually I won't leash her up either. However, I always look to my dog's body language. If she seems like she might be uncomfortable with the situation I always leash her because of reason #3.

There are certainly people who have pulled their dogs away before and I have strong suspicions it's due to breed but that's not always the case and it isn't for me.

 

[fairyrocks]

As far as recall and sits...some of this might be because he's a 15 month old. Some of it might be because he's a Doberman and Dobes can be stubborn. That's why they're often listed as 'hard to train' because they learn quickly but they also have quite a mind of their own. It's all about being consistent and being insistent. If his recalls are getting bad...go back to square one. Have him on a long lead...do recall training with him. You'll probably find that as he gets older, he will settle back into his good behavior. That does depend on consistent and insistent training through his trouble times though. Also it's possible that he's just learning that when you recall him, the fun's over. Change it up...do a lot of recalls, give him treats when he comes back, let him go play again. When we take our dog on off-leash hikes I call her back every once in awhile just to give her lots of treats and send her off again. Or I'll find a really nice stick and recall her so that I can throw it for her a few times. Make yourself really fun to go back to and make it a habit for him of hearing your recall and returning.

As far as cats...I'd say removing him from the situation (ie: turn around and walk in the other direction) and distract him. Maybe he has a favorite toy that you could pull out when you guys turn around? Really though, it's just about breaking his attention from the object of his obsession. It wouldn't be a bad idea to teach him a solid 'look at me' so that he has a new focus. 'Look at me', give treat...over time you can ask for longer and longer 'look at mes'. It's good that your cat has learned to walk and not run. It's really the running that triggers their prey drive. We have two cats. My dog likes to chase one of my cats more than the other because that one is the one who is more likely to run. One day she decided to sit instead of run and my dog ended up just sniffing her and walking away - this was after she was in her rigid chase body posture.

And with dominance...that's a term I'm a little uncomfortable with just because there's contradicting information out there now regarding whether or not dominance actually exists in dogs or whether it's a manmade idea. Also...dogs know that we are not dogs. A dog being the dominant dog at the dog park isn't the same thing as a dog dominating his humans. Stubbornness, strong-willed...definitely...but that's not necessarily because of dominance. For example...a kid might know that they DON'T want spinach for dinner and they want chicken nuggets instead. They might also learn that if they throw a fit and scream for chicken nuggets, they'll get it. That doesn't mean they want to be the parent or that they're trying to be dominant...they're just learning bad behaviors. I see it as the same thing with dogs. For example...my dog will paw me for attention...some people would call that a small show of dominance. I see it as...she wants attention so she's doing something that she knows will get a response out of me and I usually will get her attention if she paws me. Just like my cat will jump up on my lap if she wants attention...she's not trying to dominate me, she's just communicating her need for attention.
The whole idea behind dominance seems to stem from wolf behavior but recent information (I think there have been more recent studies) shows that wolves don't really have this whole dominance thing that we had originally thought. Anyhow, interesting information out there regarding this whole thing...something you can investigate further if you have any interest.

Thank you for all the information. Will make a start tomorrow
Hopefully me and Ace can work together and make our walks more fun
I think i am not going to focus on dominance. It just makes me sad to look at it that way.
But i do think Rules and boundaries are important so will deal with it all in a positive way

Its funny because when Ace is on the lead he doesn't really care for strangers. Doesnt want to really meet them, hes very tolerant if they stroke him etc but he doesn't seem bothered. One man came upto him and grabbed his head and was kissing him!! Ace Just had this look on his face like ' space invader' lol!

 

[Ahalvorsen]

Oh the many casualties of the Dober-Driveby... Torque has yet to actually take anyone out, he's come close though. We joke that we need to set up a speed limit sign for him in the barn. He will come tearing through down the aisle. Good thing the horses are all used to it and good ponies! haha

 

[DagniTheDobie]

Thank you for all the information. Will make a start tomorrow
Hopefully me and Ace can work together and make our walks more fun
I think i am not going to focus on dominance. It just makes me sad to look at it that way.
But i do think Rules and boundaries are important so will deal with it all in a positive way

Its funny because when Ace is on the lead he doesn't really care for strangers. Doesnt want to really meet them, hes very tolerant if they stroke him etc but he doesn't seem bothered. One man came upto him and grabbed his head and was kissing him!! Ace Just had this look on his face like ' space invader' lol!

I agree with you 100% on rules and boundaries. A dog can be spoiled just like a child and a spoiled Doberman can be a handful.

good for Ace that he's at least tolerant of strangers petting him! I can't believe someone grabbed his face to kiss him! Poor Ace!

 

[Dobs4ever]

If he is high drive as you say then you need to get a specail toy I like the Wubba because it is darn near indestructible and build his drive for working and the toy. Keep him on leash or at least a long line wher you can enforce the come command. But also use the squeeky - I can start squeeking that toy and my guys come running.

Then I use the toy for motivation to follow the command. If he does good then play tuggy for a minute then back to work. The more fun you make it the more he will want to stay with you instead of go check out something else. But if he is on lead he will not learn that he has a choice which you don't want him to have.

I would not use a ball and throw it away from you becasue the point is you want him to be engaged with you. I have seen many go after a ball and the further away they get the less control you have. JMHO

 

[fairyrocks]

Ace ran to greet someone yesterday. The lady had a puppy and she got scared and hurried out of the field before my partner could get there.
He obviously wanted to play and was doing his vocal play voice. Which someone may mistake for a growl.
Scott (my partner)was very apologetic when he saw her later on in the day. She said it was ok it just scared her because her ppupy is young and ace was barking and growling.

then on facebook she puts to me on a friends status @I suggest you put him on a lead because he went for me and my puppy, next time i will report you'

I have never been so angry EVER. Yes we no that its our fault he ran to them and yes it would be scary for some. but to say my dog "went" for them???
If he wanted them im sure someone would of got bit. He has never growled or showed any aggression to any one else we've met or anyone i our home. I find it very insulting that she would say one thing to scott and a different thing on a social networking site and probably to most of our community.

Ace will now be let off in small fields where he can't run too far away. and a long line for bigger areas. Also training will step up.

Are your Dobies noisy players? Ace likes to nudge and nose and barks etc when he plays. Not all the time tho.

 

[fairyrocks]

As far as grabbing their dogs if you're off-leash hiking, it's not necessarily because they're scared of him. If I am off-leash with my dog and I see people up ahead, I usually will grab her too.

1. I don't know the people. If they don't like dogs I like to respect their right to enjoy their walk without a dog running up to them and sniffing. If they don't have dogs with them or if they have a child, I always grab my dog. Not because my dog is harmful but I don't want her scaring the kid (after all, kids tend to be uncomfortable around big dogs unless they were raised with them) and I don't want her bothering the people.
2. If the people have a dog on a leash and I don't know their dog. Their dog may be friendly or their dog may have problems with other dogs. I'd like to let my dog sniff and say hi but that's only with the OK of the owner.
3. I want to present Dobermans in the best light possible since I know there's so much negativity around them. I want them to leave thinking, 'wow...I didn't know Dobermans were so calm and well-behaved' instead of 'holy crap, that Doberman was crazy.'

If I see someone with their dog off-leash who isn't leashing their dog up, usually I won't leash her up either. However, I always look to my dog's body language. If she seems like she might be uncomfortable with the situation I always leash her because of reason #3.

There are certainly people who have pulled their dogs away before and I have strong suspicions it's due to breed but that's not always the case and it isn't for me.

I do the same as you

 

[fairyrocks]

If he is high drive as you say then you need to get a specail toy I like the Wubba because it is darn near indestructible and build his drive for working and the toy. Keep him on leash or at least a long line wher you can enforce the come command. But also use the squeeky - I can start squeeking that toy and my guys come running.

Then I use the toy for motivation to follow the command. If he does good then play tuggy for a minute then back to work. The more fun you make it the more he will want to stay with you instead of go check out something else. But if he is on lead he will not learn that he has a choice which you don't want him to have.

I would not use a ball and throw it away from you becasue the point is you want him to be engaged with you. I have seen many go after a ball and the further away they get the less control you have. JMHO

I think we've had a wubba before. He got it and destroyed it. I think the yellow ball in my picture is the inside lol

 

[Herb2relax]

Ace ran to greet someone yesterday. The lady had a puppy and she got scared and hurried out of the field before my partner could get there.
He obviously wanted to play and was doing his vocal play voice. Which someone may mistake for a growl.
Scott (my partner)was very apologetic when he saw her later on in the day. She said it was ok it just scared her because her ppupy is young and ace was barking and growling.

then on facebook she puts to me on a friends status @I suggest you put him on a lead because he went for me and my puppy, next time i will report you'

I have never been so angry EVER. Yes we no that its our fault he ran to them and yes it would be scary for some. but to say my dog "went" for them???
If he wanted them im sure someone would of got bit. He has never growled or showed any aggression to any one else we've met or anyone i our home. I find it very insulting that she would say one thing to scott and a different thing on a social networking site and probably to most of our community.

Ace will now be let off in small fields where he can't run too far away. and a long line for bigger areas. Also training will step up.

Are your Dobies noisy players? Ace likes to nudge and nose and barks etc when he plays. Not all the time tho.

I'll go ahead and tell you I would do the same but I wouldnt tell you to your face it was fine. I would tell you if you dont have control of your dog offleash then keep it leashed. If it were my puppy I would call that going for it to. A dog rushing a puppy and having an owner who cant control it is not a positive interaction for my puppy and is another ignorant dog owner to me.

ETA: That is if this is an area that is not designated as an offleash area. I couldnt tell if it is a place that allows off leash or not. IMO if its an offleash approved area you are entering at your own risk. There is always the chance there could be dogs who owners may not be able to control them.