Do you fear taking your dog on a walk because they always lunge at other dogs, people and objects? Maybe they start barking or growling too, with that activity. Managing an aggressive dog is an exhausting work for dog owners. But here's how you can remove it to some extent with some of the tips below.
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Understand The Reason Behind Dog Lunging
Dogs who lunge and bark during walks, are often called as Leash reactive dogs. A reactive dog is someone who is often aroused at normal situations and then Leash reactive dogs are aroused by their leashes or collars.
But what causes this behavior?
Mostly its the self-defence of dogs that is activated. They try to fear the other person, dog or objects to go away from them. And in the course of that, leash is the one that stops them do that. Then they start barking and growling at others.
Sometimes, its their natural aggression trying to harm others. This is not good and should be controlled from behavioral dog training.
If your dog is fearful, that means you need to build its self-confidence first, in order to control them.
Managing Your Dog's Behavior
It's important to prevent your dog from lunging at others, because everytime they do, they are building a habit of it and reinforcing the practice to lunge on leash, during walks. This gets stronger day by day, and then even harder to manage later on.
But how do you manage lunging?
Firstly, NEVER punish your dog for this behavior. It's not their fault, but natural instinct. Punishing them will only increase this behavior. They can also relate this with the other object or person, resulting in strengthening their fear or lunging behavior.
Second, use the correct equipment for walking. Using a dog collar that puts lot of pressure on their neck can cause harm to them and result in increase in this behavior. A Front-clip harness is better option from the buckle type collars. It puts the pressure on their chest, and not on their neck.
You can also use biothane harnesses for your dogs, which are soft and cause less pressure on dog's neck.
Finally, you have to be proactive. Planning your walks during the time when its least crowd and peaceful condition, will help your dog to decrease this behavior. Always be on the lookout for triggers, that cause them to react, and then you can keep your dog far away from it.
You can also try Loose Leash Walking Course - Highly Recommended!
Changing Your Dog's Emotional Response
Ofcouse managing is never the primary solution to any problem. In this case also, it will only prevent your dog from practicing lunging at others. Rather, you can try desensitization and counter-conditioning.
This technique will change your dog’s emotional response from negative to positive (in the case of fear-based or aggressive reactivity) or from out-of-control excitement to calm (in the case of frustration).
When Would You Need Help
Lunging on leash can be transformed into more polite and friendly behavior. Atleast you can minimize your dog’s outbursts with good management.
It takes patience and dedication to your dog and the training protocols, but walks can eventually be stress-free for both you and your dog.
These techniques can help for some dogs that are not much aggressive. But if your dog is having higher aggression, it’s advisable to get help from an animal behaviorist or a professional dog trainer with leash reactivity experience.