Gallery 8
Kobe
The two year old, seriously reactive, male, Doberman/Labrador/Bull Terrier X.
This boy is something else, he reacts to anything that moves, has seriously high prey drive, and is super social. What a combination!
He just wants to say hello to every single dog he sees, and has a complete meltdown when this is not going to happen. Taking this young lad for a walk was a serious struggle.
Well, after a lot of work, things have started to change - for the better; the first video shows a counter conditioning session we did on August 18th, the second video is again, a counter conditioning session, from September 1st 2020.
Look at the difference, look how much closer we are now able to get without Kobe losing it. :)
The next step for him will be to attend reactive dog group classes - he is most certainly not out of the woods yet, but both him and his owner have made a ton of progress.
Pictured right; Kobe is now able to relax in close proximity to other dogs. :)
Charlie, The Labradoodle.
Charlie desperately needed some structure, boundaries and calm guidance in his life.
He was, already at 6 - 7 months of age, showing signs of behaviour issues which, if not addressed, had the potential to escalate quite considerably as he got older.
Once lifestyle changes were implemented, boundaries enforced, and having shown the owners how to correctly teach him what was not allowed, as well as implementing proper foundation style obedience training, changes started to happen.
Here he is at 9 months of age, after 6 sessions, his impulse control has dramatically improved, and so has his focus on, and his engagement with the owner.
"Bruce"
The young Australian Bulldog
This is Bruce, the young Australian Bulldog who needs some clarity in his life as to what he can, and more importantly, what he cannot do.
He was used to pretty much getting whatever he wanted whenever he wanted it - and that lead to some very serious behavioural issues if not dealt with.
He was already, at the tender age of 5 months, displaying aggressive behaviour towards his owners if he didn't get things his way. With other words, he was turning into a brat.
Above: This is from the first real session, handler is now getting focus instead of being ignored - she's not asking for focus, and she's not using treats in order to get focus!
This is the dog showing respect and asking "what do you want me to do next?"
Video is from his very first visit to Riverway.
He lives on a property outside Townsville, so things like people walking pushing prams and strollers are completely new to him, something he has never seen before.
We worked a lot on the handler's leash handling skills during this session, proper leash handling makes a huge difference, and is not something which comes naturally to most people.
Pictured left, another milestone for young Bruce, his very first visit to a cafe. Friday morning, Sept 11th, and he nailed it.
He was happy to just chill, ignoring the people around him and all those yummy smells from the kitchen too.
Basil
The young, rather excitable Staffy X.
This young boy had absolutely no impulse control, and he gets seriously excited when he sees another dog. So much so that taking him for a walk was a complete nightmare.
He had no respect for "his" human, she pretty much ceased to exist unless there was something to be had, and he would otherwise pretty much do what he wanted.
This is not something you fix only through obedience training - the owner had to implement some serious lifestyle changes as how you live with your dog is incredibly important if you want to have a good, healthy relationship with your dog.
I'm happy to say that they have made quite a bit of progress over the last few weeks - still a way to go, but it's looking good. :)