Hi everyone!
I'm back with a few more questions.
Basically, Rico is growing up (he's nearly 11 months old now), but there's one habit of his that hasn't changed at all.
And I'm pretty sure it's my fault!
On the lead, as soon as another dog passes us, he starts pulling like a maniac to go and see them.
So he's dog-reactive, but not in an aggressive way at all; it's purely for contact and play (though that doesn't stop him looking like a right tank).
I think I know where the problem started.
When he was a puppy, I was desperate to socialise him, so I used to let him say hello to other dogs while on the lead.
He didn't weigh as much back then, so I didn't really feel him pulling.
He's super sociable, and I think I've indirectly reinforced this behaviour by letting him go and see other dogs instead of ignoring them.
Even so, we've been working on his lead walking.
He walks well on the lead when there are no distractions.
In town or wherever, I can control him fine on the lead; he focuses on me, no worries at all.
When the other dog is far away (on the opposite pavement, for example), it's also fine. A "no" is enough to get his attention back on me.
But if, for example, the dog is only a couple of metres away, or if they're coming towards us and Rico spots them, it quickly becomes a struggle.
I still have some control, but he pulls and pulls!!
What I do is:
- either I whip out a bit of dry food or a toy before he sees the dog, keep him totally focused on me, and then we walk past at heel, without him even noticing
- or I make him lie down and stay, but that doesn't work every time...
On top of that, he gets about 2 hours of exercise a day:
1 to 1.5 hours off-lead in the woods every morning, always with other dogs; no behaviour issues there, good recall, attentive, etc.
20 mins at midday
40 mins around 6 or 7pm
15 mins before bed
So my question is this:
What should I do? Will he grow out of it? (I've been told this is fairly normal for a Labrador and that they calm down with age)
Do you have any techniques?
I work on obedience with him for about 20 minutes a day; he's pretty cool with that and learns fast.
Thanks, everyone!
