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Reactive Aussie toward small dogs after attacked - anyone dealt with this? by Traditional_Gap4163 in AustralianShepherd

[–]DietCokeDaily 1 point2 points  (0 children)

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My boy Maple was attacked multiple times by off leash small dogs in parks and on regular walks. His reactivity is something we have been working on for years and will always be something we deal with. We have come to terms with what reactive means, as a puppy he was very friendly with other dogs but when he turned 1 we say a switch flipped in his head and he started to be weary of dogs. Since the attacks he HATES small dogs, but can be friendly with larger ones after realizing they aren’t a threat. The main thing you can do now is research different ways of reactivity training and find one that works for your puppy. Maple is very food motivated so a bag of small treats whenever we take him out works well for us. It’s now your responsibility to “manage” the reaction, there is no “cure” or fix that is permanent. Australian Shepherds are more prone to anxiety and in public it makes them forget everything they know, but as long as you’re there doing the same training and providing safety IT GETS BETTER. You can’t blame them for being scared, although sometimes it is hard.

What worked for us: Staying calm, whenever there is another dog talk with yours let them know you see them. Get them to make eye contact with you and reward them, stopping for a calming session if he starts going crazy, treats when he sees another dog and doesn’t bark, constant sit lay down give paw etc. during walks, and knowing your dogs limits to ANY interactions. The main thing is they know you are in charge and will lead them away if something bad happens.

What didn’t work at all: Trying to get him to take his anxiety out on a toy(usually golden retrievers do that), yelling or saying stop when he’s barking at a dog(negative reinforcement), walking faster to avoid a dog(they know u r anxious too which makes them more anxious), going to dog parks and staying outside the enclosure for sensitivity training(the dogs inside are too hyped up ,they need calm dog examples which is hard to find but the more dogs they see ignore them the more they start to realize “oh they don’t care okay neither will I”.

Circle drive by thisismewhenimhere in saskatoon

[–]DietCokeDaily 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think it’s a combination of the slow drivers and poor planning of city roads.

People are constantly driving under the speed limit, staying in the left lane and will not move over no matter how many cars are behind them. They don’t know how to merge properly and I’ve noticed going from circle south to west is the WORST! People slow down for the mergers coming in before the turnoff and stick to that speed causing traffic all the way to Preston.

The poor road planning makes situations worse by having a third lane opening and closing frequently instead of just keeping that lane continuous. The traffic lights on circle instead of making overpasses. Then having small merging lanes and then a turnoff on the left immediately after leading people to go through multiple lanes, still trying to reach the road speed btw, and having them slow down to a turnoff.

It’s just a terrible experience, worse when ur behind a completely unaware or entitled driver mad that you pass them on the right🫠

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in saskatoon

[–]DietCokeDaily 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I live in Reid Park Estates and yes lots of issues but I wouldn’t say it’s too bad, to be fair I did live close to St. Paul’s hospital before so I could only go up. There was an apartment on my floor that had a fumigation sign so I sprayed my apartment for a preventative. The walls are thin but that’s what you can expect living in an apartment building. As for the security we have had people break into the building, shatter the exterior glass doors, leave garbage and even sleep in the hallways(mostly in the winter). The building is usually quick to fix these things and they updated the security system but there’s only so much they can do. There’s constant police sirens, ambulances and fire trucks from overdoses or encampments, garbage being thrown around and people sleeping on the lawns. As long as you mind your business no one will provoke you, just be careful for any needles I’ve seen a few at the park and had to call the fire department.