Groovy Greyhounds

Please does anyone have any suggestions. My lurcher is 80% greyhound and 20% doberman hes 9yrs old who we rescued 6 years ago. Twice this year he has been attacked by loose running dogs while he was on his lead. His behaviour has changed eratically over the past five months or so..................as soon as he steps outside the house he is immediately searching for other dogs. Once he spots one barks agressively and rears up constantly. He is a very strong fit dog who can put a fight to get his own way.

Ive tried changing walking times and place to avoid other dogs, but theres always one about usually.........................Ive bought a halti head collar to see if that stops him pulling my arms off and also a soft muzzle incase he gets loose and attacks another dog or person...................Hes as gengle as a lamb in the house with us and my children and our greyhound hes great with, even our cats he loves them.

I am reaching the end of my tether and would not want to have him put down if he becomes uncontrolable, I cant take obedience classes because other dogs would be there and it would be a nightmare. We love him to bits and so do our children but its getting beyond a joke now, please I would welcome any tips or comments please.

Ooaar

I have the same problem with my Saluki X Finn as he was bitten a lot by other dogs before being rescued. He will lunge and bark at other dogs and seems to be quite vicious but at home he is lovely. I have found that using a Dogmatic head collar has completely changed him, he is much easier to control and he seems more settled when we are out. It's like a halti but much better and I bought it on line. I know just how you feel because I came home from walks so many times in tears at his behaviour and I dreaded taking him out. I think it is fear aggression which is the same as Finn and I found that when I used a muzzle it stressed him out even more. Please don.t give up on him as its not his fault he was attacked, try the dogmatic its about £20 but well worth the money as you have control of his head and it will give you confidence as well. Good Luck with him.

Must admit, I was hoping someone with experience of this would answer (thank you Jackie!), as I'm no expert. But I think it would be worthwhile asking advice on a busier forum such as The Refuge (link below), as on a forum with more members you're more likely to come across someone with some ideas.

Having said that, I also think it might be worth contacting a trainer or behaviourist before thinking of anything drastic. They can be costly, but could be money well spent (would be a good idea to ask your vet, or on the forums, for a recommendation).

I've heard nothing but good about the Dogmatic too, they're very popular in the dane world - they're essentially a head harness, no magic tricks, but it could help you gain some control over his rocking horse impression.

Here's the link to The Refuge, you could also try Dog Chat (but be aware some people there recommend training with adversives, so it might not match your own personal ethics, but there are many very knowledgable people on there too).

http://www.therefuge.org.uk/forums/

http://www.dogchat.co.uk/

Hi jackie thanks for the reply
its a little more reassuring to know its not just me thats having this problem.............................It seems your having similar problems with your dog finn bless him..............it is embarrasing when you take them out for walks but they still have to go out and have their freedom too I have used the halti alone and he walks like a dream on it until he see's a dog. I must say its was a lot easier controling on halti it doesnt take me as long to get control as it did then I can turn him away and walk in the other direction so he cant see the other dogs. I bought a soft muzzle because I didnt want to be cruel throwing all the thing on him and scaring him to death. I dont put the muzzle on tight just secure enough so he couldnt bite any dogs if he got loose...........................................the extention clip on the halti to the collar is a god send tho at least if he slips the halti its still attached to the collar and he cant run off. Hes not scared of the muzzle or head collar he just accepts them.

Im gonna have look at the dogmatic and see what info it says about it online jackie. for that tip as for the vet well hes not ill hes a fit as a butchers dog and would run rings all of us he can jump my 6ft fence from standing with a hedge at the other side when he wants to play his escapology games lol................................hes never had any illness since we rescued him from kennels......................I was wandering if there was anything herbal I could use to calm him before his walks.? Its getting so he cant be let off his lead hardly which is really sad unless we take him miles and he loves to run round off the lead. Thanks LisaLQ for the tips ill will have a looke at the refuge and dogchat links. If i come across any helpfull tips I will post them to help anyone who is in the same boat as me and jackie.



ooaar (sue)

Johnsons do some calming tablets and they do seem to help, you put two in their food once a day. I feel they help Finn and they are only about four pounds and Vetzyme do something as well, I think they are well worth trying.

I wonder if you might be better off re-introducing him to other dogs, even those dogs in training classes with their owners handily holding them in check. He's really so frightened to be outside in a situation where he cannot even defend himself. The halti is a help to you but a terrible handicap to him. While you are trying to get him under control, he surely can't move his head to see anything that might be there trying to hurt him some more, which only reinforces his anxieties and fears. Do any of your shelters have inexpensive classes that he could attend? Even ones where you are not in training but are near or next to other dogs. THose classes that are teaching higher level training and aren't the sort that the dogs just bound out of control at the sight of a new dog out there with them? Do any of the rescue organizations have training sessions, or a few friends and their pups that can meet you at the house when you come out with your pup? Perhaps that might help him to regain his confidence around other dogs. There's no need for drastic action in his case. I think if you stop all that you are doing, remove yourself as the owner of the problem and think sort of, out of the box...as if someone came to you with the exact problem that you are experiencing, you might get better resolve. Most people can be more creative helping others, but they sort of come up with big blanks when it is their own problem they are trying to cure. I have multiple books on K-9 research, training and psychology in my study, let me run through some of them and see if I can be more help to you. Sue

Thanks for the advice ebony's Mon, ...............................Using the halti is working to a certain extent, ive begun using it less though to reintroduce him back to his lead...............Ive begun socialising him on our field with dogs he doesnt mind which is only one or two. He behaves quite well with them but its not very often the owners are there. We have no dog training classes in our area whatsoever ive done some checking which really suprised me. We have a kennels nearby which I thought of taking him down there to socialize him at but its too busy and always full with kids which I wouldnt like around whilst this is happening as he can be very scary when hes playing up as hes a very strong dog and can drag me off my feet and im used to handling horses so you think he would be a doddle to control.......................................ha ha not so.lol.

Im starting to wander too if maybe his eye sight is fading due to age sometimes hes started barking at small children in the distance but once you get closer and its as if he realises theyre not dogs he stops and calms down..........................Its as if I can see him looking into the distance and having that look of what exactly am I looking at? im not sure so I'll bark anyway until he gets closer. I walked towards a lady with a large bag under her arm he must have thought she had a small dog and was barking like mad until we got closer and he realised it wasnt so he stopped. I dont have any friends close by with dogs who I can socialize him with indoors or out. I would love to leave him off the halti but ive seen what damage he can do to a dog when he was attacked by a staff he ripped its ear off and nearly killed it so thats why I have to very what I do and where.

sue

You should get one of the Dogmatic Head collars as they are better than the halti, I use one on Finn all the time and it has made such a difference to him and me. They don't pull on it and you can control their head easier. I used to dread walking Finn as he was so bad with other dogs and although he still has problems with some he has improved a lot since getting the Dogmatic.

I use Dogmatic headcollars for all my dogs (2xlurchers and 1 lab cross boxer). I think they are fantastic, especially with the lab x as he is such a strong dog. The 2 lurchers don't need it so much but they are now used to walking out in it and it also doesn't pull on their necks if they decide to "have a go" (squirrels beware!!).

The Dogmatic is also leather as opposed to the Halti which is nylon. Also due to the way its made it does not cut in at the eye area. I guess its all personal preference, but I wouldn't be without it.

Hope you get it sorted, you just have to find what works for you and your dog.

Take care
Alison

Dogmatic http://www.dogmatic.org.uk

The Dogmatics are brilliant and I have one for my Saluki X and my Lurcher who is young and headstrong. I would recommend them to anyone, as Alison has said they are a better fit than the Halti and do not go near the eye. I got mine from the website and they were very prompt with delivery.

Hi all
I must be lucky with fit of the halti I have for Raven then as it doesnt cut in at his eyes at all its a lovely snug fit and I prefer the webbing to leather as leather is heavier and I would have thought it the dogs would be more annoyed with having one on?...................................Hes now begining to stop looking for dogs as soon as soon as we step out of the door but not all the time which is a great improvement. Hes tending to play up still once he sees them but now hes got the halti on and hes brought to check he has on a few occassions begun to listen without having to strangle the poor little sausage to death lol............................................Walkies are a lot better than they were at the moment I think its just a case of perseverance until he behaves. Then I can try him back on the lead and see what happens eventually.

ooaar

The leather is very soft and light on the one I use for Finn and the straps are very slim. If you are happy with your Halti thats great, no need to change, I am glad things are getting better but there is no quick fix.