How to get my dog to stop barking at other dogs!!!!? I’m desperate so we don’t get kicked out of agility!!!!

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Sounds like he needs practice being calm. Once he's excited it's hard to get him to focus.

Shepherds in general are reactive vocal dogs. Their original purpose was as a herding breed. They need a confident owner who can channel that energy. I agree more exercise and obedience classes is a good place to start. People underestimate how much exercise dogs require.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I will be watching this thread for answers. My two Shelties are barking fools. I am starting to get a handle on it by using a "shaker can" to re-focus them but like @TheDawg says, it's a long-term process. I put a handful of beans in an empty plastic water bottle and when the insanity begins I say, "Quit" and then shake the bottle. The sound is sharp enough to distract them for a moment so I praise. This takes lots of repetition but they are now starting to respond to the verbal cues. They don't like the rattle, so quickly get a grip on themselves. As they give me the side-eye, lol.

 

[Persassy]

We did buttons so the dogs will press this button and it means stranger this one means hungry this one is walk ect

 

[Persassy]

They just press a button instead now

 

[ShrekDawg]

I find exercising them beforehand helps. I mean REALLY work them. Get them tired.

I know it is counter intuitive since the class is agility but he is on full alert to strangers and other dogs. A tired dog is a good dog.

I would also like to know how he is with basic training.

Oh and on leash is WAY different than off leash.

Not all dogs react to being on leash in a group the same way.

On leash on a collar is also different than in a body harness. I had one dog that a leash on her collar was the cue to be a jerk and yank me all over. That same dog in a body harness was good as gold.

Sounds like he needs practice being calm. Once he's excited it's hard to get him to focus.

Shepherds in general are reactive vocal dogs. Their original purpose was as a herding breed. They need a confident owner who can channel that energy. I agree more exercise and obedience classes is a good place to start. People underestimate how much exercise dogs require.

I will be watching this thread for answers. My two Shelties are barking fools. I am starting to get a handle on it by using a "shaker can" to re-focus them but like @TheDawg says, it's a long-term process. I put a handful of beans in an empty plastic water bottle and when the insanity begins I say, "Quit" and then shake the bottle. The sound is sharp enough to distract them for a moment so I praise. This takes lots of repetition but they are now starting to respond to the verbal cues. They don't like the rattle, so quickly get a grip on themselves. As they give me the side-eye, lol.

Sorry for putting you all on the spot/dragging you in but thanks for jumping in anyway even though I kinda made ya excellent answers everyone and the people before too and hopefully something will help OP!

 

[townchicks]

A little late to this thread, but to me, it sounds like leash reactivity or general over excitement. If I may be blunt, he's just not ready for agility class. Start with an obedience class, and /or a reactive dog class. I'm really not in favor of puppies , especially large breed puppies doing agility. You really risk damaging his joints with those kind of activities. By the time he's got his obedience down, and can focus on you with other dogs around, his joints will be ready to tackle the impact of jumping and turning required for an agility dog. One activity that you can do with him now, and GSDs excel at, is scent work. He won't have to work around the other dogs, and brainwork can be surprisingly tiring. An added plus, is you can practice anywhere, at home inside or out, and he can learn a "work ethic" with distractions at a distance. Good luck, and enjoy training.

 

[ShrekDawg]

A little late to this thread, but to me, it sounds like leash reactivity or general over excitement. If I may be blunt, he's just not ready for agility class. Start with an obedience class, and /or a reactive dog class. I'm really not in favor of puppies , especially large breed puppies doing agility. You really risk damaging his joints with those kind of activities. By the time he's got his obedience down, and can focus on you with other dogs around, his joints will be ready to tackle the impact of jumping and turning required for an agility dog. One activity that you can do with him now, and GSDs excel at, is scent work. He won't have to work around the other dogs, and brainwork can be surprisingly tiring. An added plus, is you can practice anywhere, at home inside or out, and he can learn a "work ethic" with distractions at a distance. Good luck, and enjoy training.

 

[agold23]

I have a 8 month old German Shepard!! Named Giles, He’s the sweetest boy and loves to play!! He has three dogs to play with here and he also goes to my sisters sometimes and plays with her dogs!! But what I don’t understand is every time we go to the park and he sees another dog, he suddenly sounds aggressive! Which I know he’s not!! Anyways I took him to a agility class last night! Because he loves jumping and running!! And I thought it would be good for us to spend time together training, but he barked so much and would not calm down at all that he had to sit out of class!! He would not let any dog or human come near him!! And I’m worried we will get kicked out!!! I don’t know what to do and my next class is in a week! I’m desperate for some advice!! Does anyone else have this problem!?

Congrats! Your dog is reactive! I have a dog reactive dog too, don’t worry. Reactivity isn’t a negative thing, it’s just something you need to help your dog with. We’ve started training for my reactive girl Cricket. I’d recommend contacting and working with an R+/FF trainer! There are definitely some exercises you can look into (disengage and engage games) and try your best with them! Just because your dog is leash/stranger reactive doesn’t make them any less of a good dog Cricket looooves new people and dogs when being greeted appropriately! I’d lay off of agility class for a while and maybe find a less populated park to hang out for the next little bit to minimize stress. Good luck!

 

[black_cat]

I think that agility is a little much for your dog right now- I would work on his focus (teach a 'watch me!' or 'look!' cue, work to make him dog neutral) then take an obedience class, THEN take agility. Barking alone for agility is fine (if you look at professional agility, some dogs bark their heads off out of excitement) but it is important to identify the cause of the barking.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I agree with @townchicks that basic obedience should come first, before anything else. Obedience is kindergarten, in which your dog learns to focus on you, to control himself, and essentially "learns how to learn." If he can't focus on you, even in distracting circumstances, then, IMO, he can't really learn anything else. In my classes I encouraged, even required my students to work their dogs in distracting situations. Of course, I also taught them how to keep their dogs' attention in those situations - without treats or constantly nagging at them with verbal reminders to "look at me, pay attention," etc. The dog's life may someday depend on that kind of focus.