A couple of new pictures of Bell at about 4 months. She is rapidly turning into a beautiful dog. Our puppy is gone! I found a picture of Gavin at 8 weeks. Bell’s and Gavin’s faces are very similar.
So far in puppy class we have learned whistle return (very useful!), down, sit, and come. Working on leave it (hard) and drop it. Bell seems very attracted to moving cars. Any suggestions on how to stop this behavior? If she ever broke her leash (has already happened once) while a car was going by she could get seriously hurt. Is this behavior part of her prey drive?
Dave
Bell is beautiful! They do grow up so fast.
She is gorgeous. Love those dark, sweet eyes.
Wow she looks so mature for her young age. She is beautiful!
She is a great looking pup Dave!
As far as the car chasing goes, it could be just a phase (she’s only 4 months old and is going through lots of changes rapidly), it could be prey drive, it could be fear, as well as a few other things. I couldn’t say outright since I haven’t seen her since she left Julies place!
This is what I did in the past. Take it for what it’s worth:
I tried a combination of distraction and redirection. If needed, I then used corrections. This wasn’t until he was older though. At only 4 months I’d still be trying distraction and redirection. Take her up to a local park that isn’t too busy, and bring a friend who has a car that is strange to her. Ask them to slowly drive by the place you are training with her. Bring her favorite tugs/toys/treats and some VERY high value food rewards like chicken, steak or hot dogs. The second you see her ears perk up at your friends car, distract her then give an obedience command. Use the steak/toy/treat to lure her if you have to. As soon as she obeys the command, give her lots of treats. Several pieces. Or a great game of tug, etc. I don’t know what she likes best… but use whatever it is. Ask your friend to go out of sight then repeat the exercise. Some 2 way radios would help to coordinate this for sure. Keep the sessions short, but frequent. Start with her far away from the car driving by and gradually close the distance as she improves.
I lived on a fairly busy subdivision street and would do this right when people were coming home from work, so I didn’t need the friend in a car. It all boiled down to obedience. After I had rock solid obedience the cars going by weren’t an issue anymore. He was totally focused on me and his reward (kong in his case) so eventually the cars lost all their appeal to him since I was so much more fun.
If you are training with anyone I would seek their advice too since they will know Bell’s personality. This method helped my boy, but may not be perfect for Bell. Hopefully it might help.
She is beautiful!!
Yeah, rock solid OB is needed and if that fails, E collar.
She is so beautiful, truly a Gavin daughter.
For the car chasing, I echo Lee. At that age, positive redirection should be effective. In my experience, the trick is timing. Once you’re able to read her body language and detect before she gets too excited about the car, positive strategies have a much better chance of working.
For Batman, I have been able to use positive methods to keep him from all distractions except other dogs. A handful of treats tossed into the bushes, or a quick fling of the ball will keep him from chasing most things. It’s the movement that attracts his attention. Try waving a treat under her nose, make it active and fun. When Batman isn’t paying attention on lead, I’ll take an exaggerated step away from him, swinging my arms. The motion catches his eye. I look like a big weirdo, but oh well!