If you haven’t encountered this
behavior during leash work yet - I promise that you will.
This is the dog who may have
learned to heel on leash, but when he sees a distraction (usually another dog)
he vocalizes in a very LOUD whine – kind of like the old style police siren you
might see on an episode of “The Untouchables.” I’m not talking about a little
whine; I’m talking about an ear piercing scream that can literally be heard a
block away. Sort of a cross between a bark and a howl, it’s called “baying”
when done by hounds but in this case the behavior is coming from a dog of any
breed, who is expressing either anxiety or frustration.
The natural instinct of many
new trainers when they encounter this behavior will be to correct with a
hard leash prompt. Sometimes a well-timed correction will work, but usually
this is not the correct solution. Why not?
First, you would have to
correct the dog pretty hard in order for the drive to be broken. Think of how
that would look: the dog is screaming, people are looking out the window
wondering what that awful sound is, and there’s a trainer yanking hard on a
leash. “Oh my! That trainer is torturing that poor dog! Quick Louise, get my
cell phone so I can take some video!”
Second,
correcting the behavior with a leash prompt if the behavior is rooted in
anxiety might create an even worse problem
(leash lagging). You run the risk of the dog shutting down completely.
Another thing people try when
confronted with this problem is to use food treats and/or a "look at me" command in an effort to “redirect.” Using food may temporarily mask the problem
but it won’t fix it. It won’t address the root of the problem. Plus you run
the risk of inadvertently reinforcing the undesirable behavior.
Same problem if one tries to use a “sit” command to fix the problem. Instead of trying to take drive out, the best way to address this issue is to put the dog in drive.
The solution:
The handler must become more interesting
than the other dogs, by keeping your dog in motion. Use your dog’s drive as
your ally. Pick up the pace, make some unexpected turns, slap your hip, change
directions. Become more interesting to the dog than the distraction. Keep the dog moving and keep him focused on YOU.
This is not a quick fix. It takes skillful handling, lots of practice, and it requires
gradually increasing the level of distraction to proof the exercise, but
eventually even the most siren-like dog can be taught to walk politely, and
quietly, on a leash.
What if this noisy behavior occurs in the car or at the Vet’s
office?
In these situations I prefer management. In the car, teach the dog to
ride in a Vari-kennel (blocking out the visual stimulus of the other dogs). At the vet, either arrange for an appointment at a time when you will be the
only client, or find a vet who does house calls.
