The Dog Behavior Answer Book - Arden Moore [62]
When you walk in the neighborhood or park, do not feed Boomer his full meal before you go or, even better, wait to feed him until after you return from your walk. You want him a little hungry so he will pay more attention to you. Fasten a treat pouch with his favorite goodies around your waist. You must keep Boomer on a leash while he is learning to pay attention to you. Each time you spot a cat, squirrel, bird, or any moving target, reorient Boomer to look at you by telling him watch me. (See To Err is Human, page 153 for more on this cue.) Then have him sit politely to earn a treat while he ignores these furry temptations. The goal is for Boomer to learn a new association. As he discovers that he gets a prized treat whenever he sees a cat, bird, or squirrel, he will look to you instead of speeding after these critters.
As for his bolting out the door, put him on a leash before you head for the door, especially if you can tell from his behavior that he has chasing on his mind. Always make him sit or stay before you allow him out the door. Do the same when you return from a walk so he gets the idea that he must stop and sit whenever he approaches a door. As he learns, practice leaving the door open for a few moments while he sits nicely (keep that leash on him, though!).
Throughout, please be patient, as the chase drive is very strong in terriers, and changing Boomer’s behavior may take a lot of time and repeated commands. For dogs with strong chase drives, holding a stay is very challenging. With some dogs, the urge to chase is just too strong to trust them off-leash in areas with squirrels and cats.
In addition to teaching Boomer better self-control, I also recommend improving his recall so that he can chase after an acceptable object such as a tennis ball or dog toy. When he heeds your call to come, reward him by flinging the acceptable toy in different directions and encourage him to give chase.
SNIFF IT OUT!
Among the most popular dog tricks, according to many trainers, are sit, shake a paw, roll over, speak, and lie down.
Snakes and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails
Q My dogs, Fred and Ginger, are terrier mixes who enjoy off-leash romps and love to snoop around in the woods. I like letting them run free, but there are poisonous snakes in our area and I want to keep them safe. Is there any way to get them to stay away from snakes and other dangerous wild animals?
A The primary culprit behind dogs and snakebites is canine curiosity. Most dogs love to poke their noses in shrubs, thick grasses, and other spots that may harbor snakes, skunks, or other wild creatures not so wild about dogs. Even though some dogs are naturally afraid of snakes, others respond to the sight of a coiled rattler with intense interest or even aggression. If a snake ventures into their turf, some dogs will fight first and suffer the consequences later.
According to my friend Kelly Burch, who has successfully taught hundreds of dogs to just say no to snakes, training begins in an outdoor setting. In his classes, the dogs are fitted with a special collar that emits warning signals and then kept on leashes as the instructor shows them a live, defanged rattlesnake. When the dog gets near the snake, the trainer releases an electric pulse from the dog’s collar that teaches the dogs to associate the snake with an unpleasant experience. That’s important because dogs have a tendency to hear a sound and hurry to check it out. They risk getting bitten in the face if they rush in and come face to face with a startled, angry snake.
In addition to helping dogs stay away from snakes in any locale, from hiking trails to their own backyards, snake-avoidance training can save human lives. Snakes are hard to spot, and hikers sometimes don’t see them until it is too late. A snake-trained dog with superior senses, however, can alert his human pals to stay away from places with snakes and avoid