Tankie wrote:My Nina is a real sweetheart, and she loves us and we love her, but if she gets off leash, she's gone. The first time she ran, I wasn't there, but the leash was dropped for barely a second and she ran off, and she's really fast (collie/heeler mix) so she was chased for a good four hours before she was lost in a park. Eventually she came back to the neighborhood, and with a lot of running and chasing, she was corralled back to the house, where no one caught her but she ran up the front steps, where there's a bed of thorny plants on one side and a railing on the other, in front of the house, so she was finally caught there. The second time, she was in the garage, and no one knew I was coming home right then, and I didn't think she'd be in the garage because we don't usually let her in there, but the moment I opened it she ran off. I sprinted after her, but on a sprained ankle I was slower, and though I'm not fast enough I could probably have trapped her or maneuvered her into some area she couldn't escape. I know the area well.
Unfortunately, she jumped a fence (a low one, more for show than anything else; it was only about three feet tall - she can't jump regular fences) and me and my sprained ankle had to run around it the long way because I couldn't climb over it, and I lost her over the other side of it behind a house. That was about five minutes in, and within another five she ran through the backyard, where I'd returned after losing her, and I chased her over to the front steps again, where she lay down and waited when she realized the chase was ending.
The problem is, the moment she's off the leash outside, she's gone. She'll come when called on leash, and while in the house, but not outside, and that's problematic. If she gets off leash in a crowded place, or when there's a dog nearby (thankfully there's never been a dog walking by either time she escaped; she's pretty aggressive), what are we going to do to catch her? She's not always going to be close to home, and we don't have a fenced yard for her to run around in so we can train her to come even with distractions. We can't lose her, and she already has a bit of a track record with local animal control for running off.
How do I train her out of her habit of running?
You have to a) keep her from escaping & b) work on recall training.
a) Keep her on a leash or long line. If she's escaping from her collar/harness purchase one that fits better and make sure it is adjusted properly. If need be attach a leash to a harness and another to a collar so if she slips one you'll still have her on leash. Don't allow her to be loose in a yard with a fence short enough she can jump over. Check fences for holes, loose boards, and objects that are nearby she could use to jump over (like trash cans, fallen logs, etc.).
b) You don't need/shouldn't be letting her loose to train a recall, she should be on a long line so your yard would be fine to start. You will have to slowly introduce her to distractions. You may need to up your rewards and use reward scaling. And don't forget to work on the collar/harness grab, she doesn't get her reward for coming until you've successfully grabbed her otherwise she may dart away again. Being off leash should be treated as a privilege, not a right. Also don't use a recall to take her inside otherwise she can learn that coming to you means an end of outside time. Recall her often and then release her to go play again. When it's time to go in go and get her instead of calling her.
c) Tips and Tricks: On the subject of catching her, chasing her is a mistake. It just encourages her to run. Instead try calling her name, turning around and running away from her and she may decide it would be more fun to chase you. Squeak a toy, throw a ball, throw a handful of treats right in front of you, whatever she likes. If she darts away when you go to attach the leash trying turning it into a slip lead and catching her that way.
They have dog tags with tracking chips in them, you might want to consider investing in one just in case.
Also some people have trained an emergency recall and paired it with an extremely high value reward as well. I've never tried that myself but it is an option.
Here's some training videos for you...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PL9Rk-8KF9I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tV5qsH5tjYA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7XxG5KchQ8
-♡ShelterPets- wrote:Aww, how cute <3
Well. It's happened.
I knew it would.
I've prepped for it but...
It's worse than I thought.
Stella's started food guarding.
Well, not just food, actually.
Resorce garding. Major.
But it's worst with food.
Any tips (positive reinforcement) on stopping the food guarding?
Game 1) I would give her an empty bowl. After she realizes how worthless an empty bowl is take it from her (if you can't do it safely have someone else hold her on leash and pull her away) drop in some food, then give the bowl. Don't approach, wait for her to finish then take the empty bowl and repeat the process. Do this kibble by kibble if you can. Do this for each meal you can for several days.
Game 2) Give her a handful of food in her bowl. While she's eating drop in something of higher value then what she's eating. You may need to do this from far away but you want to get to the point you can walk by and drop it in.
Game 3) When she's eating call her name from several feet away and offer something better (you can use another bowl if you need) if she leave her bowl to some get it she gets than then you carefully head towards her bowl and drop another higher value reward in.
Eventually you can teach her a leave it and work on leaving her bowl and letting you take it. Of course this works for bowl aggression. If you're dealing with her guarding chewies try the trade game and teach drop or give. You can use this with toys as well. Is she resource guarding other things as well?
Here's some video's for you...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ie4efzjQsbQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDeAKj2etMs
https://youtu.be/i60q52DqIuc
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