Dog Training - Day 11 - Murphy's Law

So, Victoria told me to walk the dogs separately so it would be easier to handle/train them when we encounter another dog. This makes perfect sense because the dogs feed off of each other when they see another dog, making things worse. When I go on my early morning walks, I never see anyone with a dog. I see joggers, lots of birds, and the occasional deer, but never people with dogs.

Remember, since I've started this training, I hardly see any dogs ever - so I figured it would be safe to take both dogs at the same time since the mornings are especially quiet...


Well, this morning, not only did we see a dog, but we saw Finlay's nemesis, Dorito. Dorito is a Lhasa Apso and for some reason, Finlay does not like him at all. Perhaps it's because Dorito is still intact and likes to pee on our mailbox, marking Finlay's territory as his own, I'm not sure. What I know is Finlay does not like that dog, period. Of course, that's who we saw this morning.

Riley actually did pretty well, not reacting until Finlay started pulling and going bonkers. I was also able to easily calm her down, but the same can't be said for Fin. Luckily Dorito's owner just kept walking as I was struggling with tangled leashes and loud terriers (sorry neighbors!) and as soon as they past, all was quiet.

Alas, now I will get up 30 minutes earlier (I am not a naturally early riser) so I can walk them separately. One thing is for sure, these dogs are going to get me in shape!

Evening update: Ask and you shall receive! Tonight we saw dogs and unfortunately, Finlay didn't do so well. We saw a West Highland White Terrier coming our way and we were in a nice, open area, so there was plenty of room for me to walk in the grass so we weren't so close to the other dog. Well, it didn't matter. Every time I tried to walk in the other direction with Fin, he would turn around, pulling and barking at the Westie. He knew it was behind him and didn't want to do anything but bark at it. I tried calling his name to get him to focus on me, tried the "watch" command, but all his focus was on the Westie, nothing I did seemed to help or even register.

Riley and I saw a chocolate Lab the minute we walked out the door. Since it surprised us, she barked a bit, but I was able to get her attention on me and let him pass. She pulled a lot as the dog was going in the same direction as us, but again, I was able to slow her down and get her focus on me. Then, they turned around and passed us and she did well. She did bark once, but that was it and she responded to me very well. Further down on the walk, we encountered River, a Ridgeback/Pit mix who we've met before. He loves to play so almost immediately, he jumped towards us, doing a play bow. Riley sort of bowed/crouched down and began to bark at him. I don't think hers was a play bow...I think she was spooked because quick movements startle her. I was able to talk to the owner with just a bark here and there and was always able to get Riley to focus back on me. We then walked behind them for a bit and she was just fine. I think I'm making progress with her.