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Location: Camborne, UK
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 2
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Personally, I would take certain steps to deal with this.. and I would stick to them.
Remember that, if the dog is gaining reinforcement (i.e. Bailey gets ball) at all, then he will keep repeating it. The fact that you possibly/probably also reinforce it, simply by reacting and/or getting the ball away from him is just adding to it.
Number 1 'rule' would be: No more balls on walks.. (until you have taught Bailey some 'manners') - incidentally, I would never allow my dogs to play with sticks - I had a dog that had a stick pierce the roof of his mouth.. it was a very nasty wound and took a very long time to heal.. and he got off lightly...!
Number 2: Teach Bailey some self-control - initially, use the 'food in closed fist' (knuckles up) is "mine" (yours), and when he backs off voluntarily, immediately open and rotate your hand into 'food on open palm' is "yours" (his). This teaches him that he needs to self-control himself, in order to get what he wants. You can move it on (gradually) to 'spider-hand' over food (still yours) on floor, and he doesn't get it until he's backed off and waited for you to pick it up and offer it to him on 'open palm' (his). (Do these excercises both with Murphy in the vicinity, and not).Then repeat the whole thing with a toy, whilst randomly still doing it with food. Build it into a strong behaviour, until you can put it on the floor, stand up, move away, twiddle your thumbs, do a little jig.... you get my drift.. lol. You can also, eventually, move this on to throwing toy/Bailey doesn't get it until you tell him 'ok' (or whatever word you choose).
Generalise all of this self-control training.... in your garden, on the street, in a car park.. all relatively non-exciting, non-stimulative places to start with.. then, eventually, move it on to walks. - any reversion in behaviour in Bailey means take a step back, do it again.
In the meantime, I would be training both dogs to do simple behaviours (sit, down, stay etc.), both together, and one at a time, so that Bailey gets used to seeing Murphy get rewarded, but knowing that it will soon be 'his turn'.
Well, that's what I would do...