Chasing rabbits, squirrels and chipmunks

[FeliciaMaida]

Good morning, my eight month old pup has discovered squirrels and chipmunks and rabbits. How do I distract him when in the yard, or walking? My yard is not fenced in so when I take him out he is always on a leash and looking/smelling for them to the point where he doesn’t even want to play ball in the backyard so he can run around. Which we always did and he loved. Know he has no interest!  (I keep him on a 40 foot leash so he can run)  At night when the rabbits are out the most and he has to go out for his last potty before bed he literally pulls  my arm off trying to chase them. Because it’s at night I don’t see them but I know he smells them. When we are walking most of the time I see them before he does so I can brace for it. But I really need to know how to control him and get him to play ball/fetch once again. Any thoughts and suggestions you have would be very welcome.

[JMFS]

Oof!  That's a tough one because we are nowhere, and I mean Nowhere, near as interesting as critters to a dog.  How big is he at 8 months?  I recall he's an Aruban pup and I'm so curious now!

Momo was Horrid about creatures.  Especially squirrels (no chipmunks this far South) with their nervous twitching.  It's like they're Asking to be prey.  I never broke him of the hunting and honestly, didn't really try.  He was our watchdog so it came with the job.  I stupidly tried to bicycle with him once.  Road rash over 2% of my body taught me to never try again.  Adrienne calls that "single instance learning."  😆  That's what these furry beings are to dogs - single instance teachers.  I swear you can practice "sit" all day long and Finally get it whereas all they have to do is hear "squirrel" once, see one, and Bam, they know it for all eternity.

With Gertie I did the "look at that" game and treated her every time her rump stayed on the ground or she didn't flinch when I pointed out a squirrel.  I can now walk with her on leash and not get my arm dislocated (thank goodness she's only 42 lbs), but off leash forget about it.  Crows are the worst!  I actually allow her to chase those because I can't stand them, but she still has to wait for a release.  Does she?  If I see them first, yes.  If not, nope.

Most of what I have for you is stories, and lots of them, about our experiences and what worked and didn't work.  The "look at that" game is the most effective tool in my belt.  It's how I'm teaching Esther to stop being so insane when another dog is anywhere near (it's barrier frustration - she wants badly to play but can't so she barks, growls, whines, and pulls on the leash).  If you haven't seen that one in the training, yet, I can find the link for you.  It's been posted often here so a search for "look at that" would likely turn it up as well.  I have to get back to work, but wanted to drop that tid bit of info before I go, and to let you know you're Definitely not alone and there is hope.  :) 

Gertie is far better than Momo ever was and Esther is going to be even better than Gertie.  I think the flirt pole may end up being your friend as well as "leave" is another tool for this situation.  If he's all excited about bunnies then I'm going to guess he's got a strong prey drive and getting that energy out of him before walking around may help.  The flirt pole is a great way to train "leave" and "drop" for dogs with prey drive.

A shorter leash at night may help, too.  You'll have more control and he'll have less distance to build up speed, which means less tug force on your poor arm.  Remembering he's from Aruba (I think you adopted him from there, but my memory is fuzzy) and my recent visit there I have another curiosity stirring.  Aruba was really quiet during the day and it started coming alive around 9 pm.  I wonder if that might have somehow affected his day / night cycles.  Do the pups sleep when the humans are partying, or do the dogs also come alive at those hours.  I don't know that it has anything to do with the issue at hand, but it Could affect his evening alertness if it's something he learned or if it's ingrained in the breed.  From what I read they do have a high prey drive to the point of being poor matches with households that have cats.  They were bred to hunt the iguanas, of which there were Tons when we were there.  It's a very interesting breed.

[Adrienne]

These predatory behaviors are so strong in some breeds, especially those selectively bred for hunting! Here's the thing: Prey drive is instinctive and self-reinforcing which is why it's so hard to work against. When dogs search and chase, they have a rush of adrenaline and dopamine which makes the activity extra rewarding and even addictive. 

The adrenalin helps get the dog quickly into action and ensure he uses the necessary caloric resources, and the dopamine plays a role in the rewarding aspect of hunting, making the pursuit of prey intrinsically rewarding because it creates positive feelings as the reward centers of the dog's brain are activated. Allowing a dog to repeatedly chase prey animals will therefore allow the behavior to put roots and establish, making it more and more difficult to eradicate. 

So, can prey drive be trained out of a dog?" The answer is no, you cannot completely remove prey drive from a dog, however you can provide outlets for it and channel it to alternate activities. I will point out it's not easy once they got a taste of how it feels. This requires patience, time and determination. There are usually setbacks in this training. When there are setbacks, embrace the challenge and make a point of working harder in that particular setting by making it easier for your dog to make good choices. 

I find that tackling high prey drives requires a multi-pronged approach. Here are some tips. 

-Manage your dog and his environment. In other words, try your best to not put your dog into situations where he gets to rehearse chasing behaviors. Don't let your dog free off-leash to roam the neighborhood, avoid having him get too close to critters. 

-Watch what you do. When you are out and about walking your dog and you spot prey animals, stay as calm as you can and avoid pulling the leash back as soon as you notice a critter that you dog hasn't seen since that can become a cue for your dog that you have just spotted prey. Instead, train your dog to do an about turn, here's how to train your dog an emergency u-turn and walk the opposite way:https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/emergency-u-turn/

-Train alternate behaviors. These alternate behaviors will give your dog an outlet for his predatory drive and something else to work for, while still catering to the dog's seeking system Ask for behaviors that are incompatible with chasing animals as explained below. These behaviors will also help you bond more and make you more salient and relevant (rather than invisible!) than other distractions around. 

-Train your dog to respond to a smacking sound. Make a smacking sound and reward your dog for looking at your by giving a high-value treat. Train this at home first, then in the yard away from prey, then on walks and then at a distance from potential prey. The goal is to eventually have a dog who learns to look at your rather than attend to sights and sounds of prey.  Here's how to train it:https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/the-airplane-game/the-smacking-sound/

-Train your dog to do several steps of attention heeling. With your dog focused on looking into your eyes while walking, you can train him to walk past distractions this way. Here's how to train it: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/heeling-attention-heeling/

Practice dog leave its and drop it exercises. These are important in case your dog attempts to approach a small animal or grabs it in his mouth.

 https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/take-leave-it/

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/drop-it/

-Use high-value treats. These treats are used to reward your dog when he performs alternate behaviors (like looking at you rather than chasing). They need to be good enough to compete with all the wildlife and therefore entice your dog to engage in alternate behaviors more and more. 

-Add distractions gradually. It's a big mistake to train in the home and then expect the dog to respond reliably on walks with prey animals around.  Distractions need to be added very gradually around different sights, sounds, and smells. Only once  your dog has show to be responsive in a quiet environment, you can  gradually increase the level of distractions. So start in low distraction areas with your dog under threshold and build up from there. When on leash, stay as much as you can at a distance from the critter. More on thresholds: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/

-Reward voluntary check-ins. When you walk your dog to take your dog to a safely fenced area, praise and reward him for checking-in with you such as looking at you or coming your way. He's choosing you over engaging predatory behavior, and the more you reinforce this, the more he'll check-in. 

-Organize surprise treasure hunts. This is my version of Clarrissa Von Reinhardt's "Sausage Tree." Occasionally, prior to going for a walk or in the yard, scatter some high-value treats around a tree or bush. Then, put the long line on and let your dog explore around, then reach the bush while your dog is distracted and call your dog saying something along the lines of "Hey! (dog's name), look what I found!" in an excited tone as you pretend to dig with your feet uncovering some treasures. This makes you interesting and helps your bond as you help your dog find tasty treasures.

-Organize Rock Tossing Games. If you ever happen to be in an open field with tall grass, you can add distractions by tossing rocks in the tall grass (or having a helper do that for you). Your dog will orient towards that noise, at that point make your smacking sound and therefore work on focus exercises despite this distraction. If at any time your dog doesn't respond, take it as a sign that your dog isn't ready for that level of training yet. Take a few steps back. 

-Organize 'stuffed animal walks." With a foster dog I worked with last year who had a very strong predatory drive, at one point I had my hubby dragging a stuffed animal on a long leash in tall grass to mimic prey, as we worked on focus exercises.

-Channel that prey drive. Sure, treats are a powerful way to get dogs to perform behaviors, but in dogs with high prey drive, the opportunity to engage in predatory behaviors is often the biggest reward. As Jennifer pointed out,  try to invest in a flirt poles. Also tug toys (how about those made of rabbit fur?), balls and dog Frisbees.  Engaging in such prey-driven activities is not only fun for your dog, but also satiates his strong drive. Offer these activities away from prey animals to help him make good choices. If he picks to chase prey over a game, the game value would have weakened. 

-Provide brain games to keep that mind stimulated. Treasure hunts, food puzzles and interactive toys will keep that brain busy. Also, consider training impulse control games:https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/impulse-control-frustration-tolerance/

Hope this helps,

Best,

Adrienne 

 

 

 

 

 

[FrederykBlot]

Hello

 

If any help, I can just concurs with Adrienne and JMFS

Always have the impression that Loki is doing good with attention and walking in a "well behaved manner" (not fleeing, checking on us...) but the sight of a critters (in our area it's mostly birds), he lose it all !!

 

I don't know if it's best, or if it can apply for you, but what we do with Loki is : 

- if the place is safe of other distractions (like people passing by, or other dogs being walked), we just let him, and practice a recall. I guess it works because it's birds, and they will fly, and he will just end up all alone in the field, with nothing more to chase. It is the perfect occasion of a long recall, which he's starting to have. It may not be suited for rabbits or squirrels though as a pup may follow them far away

- he's most of the time on leash or long leash (we tried non-tied walk but for very short period of time in very safe fields to practice recalls, check ins, and walk in "long distance follow"), so we do just the same when he wants to greet other dogs : impulse control. We stomp on the leash, we wait that he find out the rewarding behavior is being calm, and when he sits, or stops jumping / whining / lunging, we treat. But it's a loooooong process : we made that every walks for a month now, he just starts to offer a sit when he sees a dog quite far, but goes to him when the other get closer. And it's even more longer for critters, in the sense that there are more other dogs that birds landed in a field, so I guess in the end, it's just about impulse control... and using the critter as an opportunity for impulse control training, instead of training impulse control to behave around critters

 

I hope I have been clear enough (I dont have this impression :)) and that it will help