How can I get my Dalmatian to get along with other dogs?
spotteddoglover asked:
I rescued him about 2 years ago and I love him to death! He is great with my two little dogs and loves attention from humans. My mom took him to a dog parade last year and he was mean to all the other dogs. I can’t afford classes for him, so I’m looking for something I can teach him myself. Any ideas so we can go to dog parks to run around and make new friends?
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I rescued him about 2 years ago and I love him to death! He is great with my two little dogs and loves attention from humans. My mom took him to a dog parade last year and he was mean to all the other dogs. I can’t afford classes for him, so I’m looking for something I can teach him myself. Any ideas so we can go to dog parks to run around and make new friends?
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Tags: Dog Parks, Little Dogs, New Friends
November 30th, 2008 at 12:58 am
He really needs obedience classes - both for socializing for him and for you to get someone who can teach you how to train your dog. If you’re very experienced with dogs, you could work on his issues yourself, but even then he’d need to be socialized correctly with other dogs. (I think being taken to a dog parade was likely just totally over-whelming for him so he was reacting. That’s a situation you only throw a very well socialized and confident dog into.)
December 1st, 2008 at 9:15 pm
You can buy a clicker and some treats. Then, get his attention and say…GOOD and give him a treat. Good and give him a treat. Then do this a few times more. So he can associate the word good with a treat. Then bring other dogs into the room slowly, and calm him and say stayy….calm down its ok. or other stuff like that. If he’s like not mean or barking then give him a treat. kinda work from there. GOOD LUCK
December 2nd, 2008 at 5:12 pm
Dalmatians have a bold temperament sometimes. When one is used to a lot of attention, it might get aggressive because he/she is overwhelmed by a lot of other dogs. Take your dalmatian to the park and let him “say hi” (sniff / play with) other dogs. The more dogs he meets, the more used to them he will be. But if he can’t handle a dog parade maybe that’s not somewhere he wants to go.
December 5th, 2008 at 11:54 am
Two options
get a dog trainer or
watch the Dog Whisperer at National Geographics on Friday at 8 pm
December 8th, 2008 at 2:17 am
If your Dalmatian is lunging, snarling, barking at other dogs while on leash, he isn’t mean so much as fearful. He may have had bad experiences with other dogs in his earlier life and hasn’t had any opportunities since to form better associations.
Since he gets along great with your other dogs, he just needs to feel that strange dogs are ok to be around as well. The parade, with big crowds, strange people, strange dogs was probably just too much for him to take. It put him on edge and he reacted badly to other dogs coming near him.
You can work on him being near other dogs on leash. If you know someone with a nice, mature, calm and friendly dog you can meet them on the street and practice having your dog near him while being fed nice treats.
Always keep a loose leash so that you aren’t making him more tense. Holding tightly onto leashes or collars makes aroused dogs even more so. Everyone needs to stay relaxed.
If he starts to get snarly, tell him no or off sharply and the second he knocks if off, immediately praise him and give him a treat. If you don’t know anyone, just practice standing calmly in the park and watching other dogs go by without snarling, raising hackles, glaring or exhibiting any other aggressive or fearful behaviors.
He should associate other dogs with good things instead of bad ones. He can graduate, slowly, to being able to walk with other dogs (humans in between) and then meeting other dogs while on leash. If you are worried about him biting, you can always get a muzzle.
It helps if you can find a large field and put him on a very long line. You can get one made of nylon that is 30 feet or more in length so he can run. Dalmatians can travel 35 or more miles in a day so they really need lots of exercise to feel good.
When you have him under control and he is happy being near other dogs on leash, then you may want to try a dog park when it is not very crowded. Mature dogs, after about 3 years or so, don’t always like to meet and play with strange dogs.
Please don’t take known dog aggressive dogs to dog parks. They don’t always ‘work things out’ and it is not fair to other dogs or their owners.
December 10th, 2008 at 11:39 pm
I had this problem with another friend’s dog. Dalmatians are famous for not being social. They are not bred for genetics, only color, and are pumped out becuase they became popular from movies like 101 and 102 Dalmatians. They are genereally not socialized as puppies so you must do it later on. Try walking him on a tight leash around town. You’re bound to run accors other dogs. Ignore them. Don’t let him know you are thinking he’s going to go crazy at the sight of them. Greet the other dog people in a nice tone to give him a hint that they are ok. When he does freak out, correct him by telling him no, and make him sit on the spot. When/if he calms down, continue walking. If he won’t calm down bring treats to try to distract him. It get really embarrasing trying to do this but it works. Once he is pretty ok with it, find someone at the dog park that can help you. Tell them you want to socialize your dog and become friends with them. Let your dog meet theirs a few times on leash. Don’t have any treats or food near. Bring some new toys yours has never seen. Give it to the other dog FIRST. Make them share and play nicely. If he turns mean, make him timeout right then laying on the ground for 1 mintue after you tell him no. Let him return and if he continues to be mean, take the toy away and make both of the dogs sit quietly for a few mintues. Hope that helps!
December 13th, 2008 at 3:28 pm
Do you know anyone else with dogs? You could start by introducing your dog to others one on one. This will get him used to seeing and meeting new dogs. To do this, though I would use a neutral yard (not your’s or the neighbor’s) so that neither dog gets territorial. This way you can see how your dog will behave around another dog off his leash.
Dogs also often have a different on-leash personality compared to off-leash. My dog barks and growls at some dogs we pass on our walks, but at the dog park she’s fine.
I think this is because when they are off the leash they are free to greet each other like they are suppose to - by sniffing butts. They can’t do that on the leash.
However, you could just try taking your dog to the park. But I would keep your leash with you and bring lots of treats (if your dog likes treats). Sometimes toys, like a ball or Frisbee can cause issues so maybe don’t bring those.
If you do decide to just go, I would also make sure your dog comes to you when called so that if he starts causing trouble you can call him back.
December 14th, 2008 at 12:50 am
I use to train and sometimes rehabilitate dogs. I might be able to help you. E-mail me and we’ll talk.
Christy