Comments on: Reward Dog Training

By: shibashake

shibashake — Mon, 05 Oct 2015 06:05:53 +0000

In reply to Emily.

How old is he? How long have you had him? When did these behaviors start? What kind of training is he used to? What is his daily routine like? What type of socialization experiences has he had with people and other dogs? Has he visited with any professional trainers?

Dog behavior is very context dependent, and there are many issues here. Especially in cases of aggression, it is best and safest to get help from a good professional trainer.
https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/finding-professional-help
https://apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/

More on how I deal with bad dog behavior.
More on how I deal with dog-to-dog reactivity.
More on how I teach my dog to be more comfortable around people.

Desensitization training is best done under the guidance of a good professional trainer.

By: Emily

Emily — Fri, 02 Oct 2015 05:41:05 +0000

I have a Chi/Dachshund mix who struggles with fear-based aggression toward dogs and other people (especially dogs). If he even hears the jingle of a dog tag he will start barking and pacing around the room. When somebody unfamiliar bends over him, he will leap into the air and bite them in the face. When somebody familiar bends over him, he pees submissively (another issue). He also has a strong prey drive and will chase cats, squirrels, and pretty much any small animal that moves. He also has issues with resource guarding (again toward both people and dogs) and has bitten me before while he was chewing a bone in his crate. How should I go about solving these issues? He is highly food motivated but is on a vet-recommended diet (he was overweight) and he can’t be exercised too much because he has issues with his knees. He really is a handful!

By: shibashake

shibashake — Sat, 04 Jul 2015 07:08:01 +0000

In reply to Emily.

Yeah, my Shiba Inu was very mouthy when I first got him. For biting, I did-
1. Bite inhibition training.
2. No-bite conditioning.
3. Structure and self-control.

More on what I did for my Shiba’s biting behavior.

For walks, my Shiba used to do leash-biting, which later escalated into jumping on me and biting on clothes.
More on my leash-biting experiences.

I also did shorter but more frequent walks, in quiet areas where he is less likely to get reactive. I walk him inside the house first, we practice door manners, and we do not leave until he is calm and following my commands.
http://shibashake.com/dog/pack-leader-to-an-aggressive-dog#walk

By: Emily

Emily — Thu, 02 Jul 2015 18:54:40 +0000

I just adopted a dog. At the shelter we were told she was a shiba inu mix of some sort. I’ve been able to teach her sit, laydown, and shake in the month I’ve had her. Some real problems that I am having with her are biting and when we are out for walks and she doesn’t get her way, she will jump at me and bite me, my ankles or she will try to get my shirt or dress that I am wearing. Do you have any tips on how to stop this sort of behavior? Right now, when it happens, I pick her up and walk a couple of minutes holding her. Then I set her down and give her another chance. If it happens again I will hold her for longer and if it keeps happening when we are close to my apartment I will put her into her kennel when we get home. These little attacks have been happening more often so clearly what I am doing is not helping her.

By: shibashake

shibashake — Fri, 29 May 2015 06:52:49 +0000

In reply to Morgan.

With my Shiba Inu, I had to slowly desensitize him to nail grinding. I start small, very slowly build up his tolerance, and always make sessions short, fun, and very rewarding.
More on how I desensitized my Shiba to nail grinding.
More on how I desensitize my dog to touches.

I do all my dogs’ grooming at home, so that I can take my time, make experiences fun, and slowly build up trust as well as confidence. With our Huskies we do nail clipping, but we space it out over time, and only do one every few days rather than all at once. They really didn’t like the sound of the grinder and they have bigger nails, so clipping ended up working best for them. I try out both (grinding and clipping) with each dog and see which they are most comfortable with.

ASPCA article on desensitization and counter-conditioning-
https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-behavior/desensitization-and-counterconditioning

By: Morgan

Morgan — Wed, 27 May 2015 18:23:58 +0000

I have a 1 yr & 1 month old husky named Kona. My partner and I have been working on training her using rewards and most of the time it goes well. Do you have any advice for us when it comes to getting her used to grooming and handling? We started taking her to the groomer at 14 weeks for baths and to get her nails clipped and ground down, just to get her used to it (we take her once a month.) However, when we took her in this month she wouldn’t let them clip or grind her nails (she has no problems with baths though.) Even when I tried simply lifting her paws at home, she freaks out and tries to “death roll.” She’s always been nervous of people handling her (vets, groomers, us, etc.) Most of the time it’s okay and we have no problem giving her the space she needs, but when it comes to her nails (and vet visits,) we really need to build her trust so that we can care for her properly and keep her from injuring us and our family with those sharp claws. I just don’t know how to modify this task to make her comfortable or to show her that she’s safe and okay. The only option my friends and such have been giving me is to have Kona’s vet administer some sort of sedation and grind her nails. I know this can be traumatizing as well, so it puts me in a tight position.
I also feel like I should note that we had used calming collars and a thunder shirt when she was younger for social anxiety and it worked wonders! She couldn’t walk into stores or go up to a stranger at all. Now she’s come a long way! She’ll greet most people and, unless they approach her abruptly, she’s fine. Normally if someone does startle her or she senses mysef or my partner are uncomfortable, she just barks but it’s never aggressive and she generally stops once they walk away. (We generally can’t draw her focus away from the person without actually removing ourselves from the situation.) I guess I feel it’s important to let you know that she’s a nervous pup.

By: shibashake

shibashake — Sun, 23 Nov 2014 04:47:09 +0000

In reply to Charla.

In terms of training my Shiba to be more calm around other dogs, I had some very good sessions at my local SPCA. We did 3-4 short (30 min) sessions per week there, and they had many different dogs that they brought out to train Sephy with (under the direction of one of their trainers). Then, at the end, Sephy got to play with a dog that suited his temperament. It worked out very well.

I have also done this type of training at a good daycare, where they also have access to a variety of dogs that they can use to help during training. The daycare environment is very chaotic though, so the environment at the SPCA was better because it was more controlled.

When Sephy was young, I also brought him to puppy classes that focused on play and socialization. We went to SIRIUS puppy classes. That was also very helpful.

By: Charla

Charla — Thu, 20 Nov 2014 17:30:54 +0000

Hi, I recently look for a shiba trainer in my area New Brunswick or Princeton New jersey. Do you happen to know any experienced shiba trainer around this area? My shiba is really good at home, but he totally doesn’t know who to react to other shiba or even kids running around. Need a trainer to introduce how to be with other dogs for him…

By: shibashake

shibashake — Wed, 09 Jul 2014 20:19:26 +0000

In reply to noelle.

Any dog may defend himself if pushed too far. Here are the results of a study from UPenn which show that “If You’re Aggressive, Your Dog Will Be Too”
http://www.upenn.edu/pennnews/news/if-youre-aggressive-your-dog-will-be-too-says-veterinary-study-university-pennsylvania

Does everyone in the family want a dog? Consistency is very important in training my dogs, so I get everyone in the family to use the same type of training and enforce consistent rules. I involve the entire household in their training and daily routine, so that they form a positive and healthy bond with all the people around them. In addition, if I need to be away, there will be others whom they already trust, who can properly care for them.

Are you planning to go to college? When you leave for college, what will happen to the dog?

Here is a story of my childhood dog.

By: noelle

noelle — Tue, 08 Jul 2014 15:12:36 +0000

Hello! My family is looking for a new dog and I am the person picking out the pet for the family. I’m very interested in Shibas, and I’m willing to understand and deal with all the cons and quirks that come with owning one. However, I’m kind of concerned about the training in one aspect: one of my parents can tend to become… aggressive(-ish?) towards dogs. The parent likes to cower over to intimidate dogs who misbehave around their presence (from what I’ve seen), but otherwise they wouldn’t really care what the dog does.

I’m a high school student. One parent works away from home while another works from home (the parent who I’m concerned about). If I get a Shiba, he/she will be around this parent a lot. I’m wondering if the cowering and intimidation will negatively affect a Shiba and delay the training. From my understanding from what I’ve read, if the cowering over happens with this dog I feel like the Shiba may defend himself (feeling like an animal backed up in a corner).