How can I reduce my dog's reactivity towards other entire males?

Hi there, I’m not fully up to speed with your whole story, but from what you’ve said, walks seem to be getting much more pleasant :) What do you think helped him make that progress, though? What steps did you take? I'm asking because I don't quite understand why you’re now looking for tips for when he gets mounted... and then reacts badly or overreacts? Why isn't what worked for the other things working for this? I'm just trying to get a better understanding of the situation.

Hi everyone, I’m checking back in to give you an update on Neels and to share my experience with other owners who might be going through the same thing. Recap: Neels, a male Australian Shepherd, became reactive towards other males—specifically intact ones—during his "teenage" phase at around 8–9 months old. He was neutered about six weeks later. I’ve seen three different dog trainers. Where we are now: Neels is 2 today (it’s his birthday!). I can take him anywhere now, and passing other dogs goes great as long as the other dog is chilled out. However, if the other dog starts growling or is too pushy and rough, he kicks off—and don't even get me started on what happens if another dog tries to mount him. The last trainer I saw simply told me that I have a dog with a strong personality and that I had to accept that, as well as the fact that dogs have their own likes and dislikes. On the other hand, you shouldn't accept him lashing out at every dog for no reason, and thanks to her, he doesn't do that anymore. So, overall, things are pretty good. I’m much more relaxed on walks and passing other dogs is much easier. It's still a bit of a lottery though, as you never know who you're going to meet. I let him have a sniff, but if I see the other dog isn't friendly or is getting a bit too "fond" of Neels, we move on before things kick off! By the way, if anyone has any tips on the best way to react when your dog gets mounted, I’d be really interested. See you soon.

I might be getting mixed up, I haven’t really come across traditional training or those daft myths that go with it.

Sbaar, that was the advice I was given when I first got Maya. She was a total live wire, and as we live in a flat, house training was a bit more of a challenge because she had to feel completely at ease outside before she’d agree to do her business. I was told several times that I should grab her by the scruff of the neck. At my house, we see what’s lacking and work on it “on the ground”. If her behaviour is completely unacceptable, then yes, I’ll show my displeasure, but without it turning into a boxing match. There’s also a lot of confusion between being firm and just being a shouter. People have had a go at me for lacking authority because my dog isn't scared of me when I get cross. She might not “submit” like a poor little thing, but at least she stops. There’s no point being borderline tyrannical; it’s easy to get certain behaviours through force, but building a proper bond and the right attitude is much harder. Mine is very sensitive, actually; if I tried to grab her by the scruff or the back end, she’d just try to bolt and would listen to me even less. That said, during moments of intense over-excitement, I have had to be a bit firm to bring her back down to earth, but again, it depends on the situation. I can’t see myself making a massive drama like I often see people doing just because a “down” command wasn't followed.

Hi Kikaah, I’m not just disagreeing for the sake of it, you know me ;) And I'm not knocking positive-only training—at the end of the day, to each their own, as long as it gets results. But this time, I’m on the same page as Sbaar. I’ve had some fairly obedient dogs in the past; one was really playful and robust, while the other was like an old soul even as a puppy! The kind of dog who is so obedient, calm, and bright that you only have to tell her once. I’d never known a dog like her... But my current one—well, you can show him whatever you like, he’ll still try every trick in the book to get his own way. Mind you, he picks things up incredibly quickly. He can walk off-lead to heel for miles and respects my commands, but he’ll always try his luck when the temptation is too strong. If I spoke to him in a soft voice at those moments, he wouldn’t even register I was there... And when it comes to other dogs, he still deliberately blanks me sometimes. He knows perfectly well what I’m asking, but he just puts his own interests before my instructions. Because he’s naturally so high-energy, you really can’t afford to be half-hearted with him. When he was a pup, I had to catch him mid-run with a firm touch on the neck to snap him out of that trance-like state when he was chasing other dogs—dogs who didn't necessarily want to play with a total live wire. I was reminded of that method only last week when a young adult rescue, adopted by an older gentleman, was playing with a five-month-old puppy and had zero recall. Since the whole group had stopped so he could get his dog back, I eventually intercepted the dog as he went past with a firm touch. He stopped dead in his tracks, was put back on the lead, and off we went. So yeah, I have to admit I raise my voice quite often and I’m pretty hands-on with him. I don’t hit him, but I use touch for all sorts of things... To be honest, if you look at how dogs interact with each other, they aren't exactly gentle. They only act through reaction and, therefore, correction. Rewards are a human concept, not a canine one. Mine certainly got pinned to the ground a few times when he was little by dogs holding him by the scruff of the neck and pulling him down! So yes, we can teach them loads of things, but I still don’t see how you can make a dog understand a "no" or a correction without conveying something negative. Surely the whole point of communication is matching your voice and body language to your mindset, isn't it?

I’m mainly talking about those over-the-top wrestling moves. The puppy has an accident? Apparently, you’re meant to shake them by the scruff while screaming your head off. The puppy is nipping? He’s trying to show dominance, so you have to give him a proper wallop. There are so many behaviours that can be corrected just by having a sensible attitude. You can discipline your dogs, but you need a bit of consistency; you don’t start bawling like a madman over a bit of poo or because they didn't follow a "sit" command. Besides, I’ve never had to shout, but when you do raise your voice, it’s far more impactful than if you’re someone who spends all day hollering. After a while, the dog just couldn't care less, and quite right too.

What I’ve noticed with most "old-school" trainers is that they wait for the dog to show unwanted behaviour before correcting them (more or less violently, but I mostly see the lead jerk and the guy yelling "NO!"). It’s just like your example: the dog misbehaves, so they pretend they're a dog themselves and pin it to the ground, or even give it a smack. Have they never thought about actually teaching the dog the commands beforehand?