I realized we’re in this together, we’re a team!

Exactly! And really, my dogs and what they think, matter to me a lot more than what my neighbors think. Also, I realized that many of my neighbors were having their own problems with their dogs, so many of us were in the same boat. 😀

Big hugs to Bane!

He used to be absolutely terrible and would bite the leash a lot when we went running together. I eventually learned that when he bit the leash, he was trying to tell me he had to poop LOL I guess he gets so excited when we’re out, he has to go in the beginning of our run, but I would ignore him and make him keep going, because I thought he was trying to wander off (and people were watching, of course!). Then I felt horrible! He’s still an excited dog, especially with people close to us and bike riders, but it’s one step at a time for US. Of course, I still get embarrassed, because he’s one years old now and still has issues with distractions (which includes barking/whining, pulling to get to them, etc.), but we’re still working together and exposing him to the distractions that over excite him.

I can now take him for a car ride without him crying and howling, he can now lay down and chill until we get to our destination. A lot of the time, it’s frustrating, but when it’s good, it’s the best feeling in the world. Oh, the joys of huskyhood 🙂

Hmmm, does Libby seem more playful while she is doing this? or does she seem more stressed? Also, when does she usually bite on people? When she is playing and gets overly excited? What is the surrounding context?

When Lara was young, I would sometimes just send her outside briefly, if she gets overly excited. In this way, play-time ends and she does not get to be with her people for a brief period of time. I let her back in when she is calm and quiet. I also first ask for a command, e.g. Sit, before letting her back in. Our backyard is fully enclosed, with a high fence.

Another thing that I found with Sephy is that the calmer I am, the better he responds. He gets excited very quickly, so I throw in a lot of play breaks, where we do some brief commands, to get him to calm down. I also have consistent and clear rules when I play with him.

If Sephy bites at me, I first start by redirecting him onto a toy. I may sometimes also give him an alternate command (e.g. Sit). If that works, then I continue playing with him. This helps him to associate biting on a toy with more play and attention.

If he continues biting me, then I withdraw my attention. I stand up, fold up my arms, and ignore him. In this way, he learns that not listening and biting on me means that he loses my attention and play-time ends.

If he escalates his behavior by jumping on me and biting on clothing, then I calmly say “Timeout” and lead him to his timeout area calmly. I only use timeouts at the end and only if he escalates his behavior.

In general, I try to –
1. Manage Sephy’s excitement level.
2. Set up clear rules of play so that he knows what is ok and what causes the game to stop.
3. Start by letting Sephy know what he should do instead of his current behavior. This teaches him what *to do* instead of just what *not to do*.
4. I start small and only slowly escalate my response if he escalates his behavior.
5. I try to stay very very calm.

How I respond also depends a lot on Sephy’s state, e.g. is he stressed? overly excited? playful? frustrated?

Hope this helps and big hugs to Libby! Let us know how it goes.

The Nothing in Life is Free (NILIF) program has worked well for my Sibes. In general, I tie what they want most to the things that I want them to do.

Here are some other things that I do to bond with my dogs. It will likely take some time to build trust and a strong bond, especially if the dog has had a difficult past.

all I gotta focus at the moment is to keep his mouth busy on good things and to keep him out of trouble!!

LOL! Thank you very much and congratulations on your new Shiba pup!

Would love to see some pictures of Hiro when you have the time. 😀