Holding dog to the ground.

I have a Cairn Terrier who is 2 years 7 months. I have taken him to puppy classes and he is well socialised. When he was about 13 months old he started reacting to other dogs, especially large male dogs. He would growl and lunge at them when on the lead. I would not let him off for fear that he would have a go at them, and I would not be able to get him. As he has got older he is now better behaved and I can let him off more often, depending which dogs are round, he walks with a group of dogs, sometimes up to 10/12 strong, but all smaller dogs, although he meets larger dogs,collies for example and is well behaved with them. I keep a close eye and if I am concerned I put him on his lead and keep him away.

This morning, I walked him, with a few dogs, including one black spaniel type a bit bigger than him. In the past, at least a year ago, he has growled at this dog, today he said
hello and then ignored him for the rest of the off lead walk.

When we neared the car park, I put him on his lead and he then had a go at this dog, who infact had a go back. I pulled him away and told him no! The owner of the other dog said that I should hold him or pin him to the ground and act as an alpha dog and indeed she wanted to do it to him herself but I told her not to. She said that I should discipline him like this but I really do not think this is the right way. (She has done it to dogs not owned by herself in the past).

I don't know what started the dogs off but it was over in seconds. Why would my dog walk calmly around this other dog and then have a growl at him when on the lead.

He also makes a lot of noise when he does this and I think people think it is a lot worse than it is, and like most Cairns he does not like to back down! but I am well aware of that and keep my eyes open.

What do you think, and advice and thoughts gratefully received.

Thanks.

Some dogs only react when on the lead, maybe he felt intimidated when he knew he wouldn't be able to 'escape' from this dog. Or maybe the dog was rude in some way that you didn't pick up on and he was offended by it. Either way you did the right thing by not pinning your dog. Pinning is a great way to destroy your dog's trust in you and get yourself bitten.

You were right not to let this person anywhere near your dog.

Some people claim the 'alpha roll' helps subdue a dog but dog owners have been terribly hurt when trying this. Personally I would never, ever do it with any dog.

Many dogs - mine included! - turn into total terrors the minute the leash is put on, and kick off at other dogs. You can try other things to try and help with this but I would advise against listening to the person who recommended the 'alpha' stuff.

Why would my dog walk calmly around this other dog and then have a growl at him when on the lead.

Because when a dog is on a lead it is not in control over its own body posture, orientation to other dogs nor can it control whether or not it can scarper!

Ignore dinosaurs (not all are extinct) who tell you to do things which at best will have no effect on the behaviour you are describing or at worst may exacerbate it.

Dogs, like children, couples etc have minor squabbles, nothing to worry about and just carry on as you are.

This owner is just silly and ignorant, she risks not only upsetting the dog but also being thoroughly bitten for her pains

I once saw someone alpha rolling their gsd and apart from anything else, the pose she had over him just looked erm hilarious and even a bit rude to be very frank - who would want to look like that

If you are concerned about your dog, a good trainer or behaviourist might help, most aggression is due to fear anyway to be honest, no holdling dog to the ground will help on this deep down problem.

I suspect the owner has been watching CM

Wys
x

Smokey Bear, Tabitha J and Loki's Mum,

Thank you all for your comments, and advice. I am glad that my instincts were right. Maybe I'm not making such a hash of it after all. My Cairn is a happy little soul and I would not want to jeopardise that.

Can I recommend you read The Culture Clash by |Jean Donaldson. It is one of the best training books I`ve read and deals at the start with mistaken ideas like pinning and rolling, explaining why they should not be used.
Trust your instincts, not silly ladies in car parks.

There is an excellent link here -
Alpha Theory: Why it doesn’t work
which will tell you everything you need to know why this kind of dog training is outdated, misguided and quite simply, unkind.

Wysiwyg, ClaireandDaisy, MerlinsMum,

Thank you for all your help and advice. I shall certainly look at the link about Alpha Theory, and also will try to get a copy of The Culture Clash by |Jean Donaldson. I am really interested in this, I need to arm myself with the correct information for when I meet this person again, which unfortunately I probably will.

Once again, thanks.

I'm so glad you didn't let that lady take over and do what she suggested, it's total madness! I know of one guy, who professes to be a trainer who did this with a puppy and it died of shock!!! This outdated method goes along with the shock collars etc, which he also swears by! Always listen to your own gut instinct, and if you feel something's wrong, then walk away! Good luck with him, sometimes, some dogs just don't like other dogs, let's hope that was the case this time (I have one like that!), but I'm sure with good socialisation he'll prove to be fine either on or offlead. Mine doesn't suffer with being onlead, in fact she prefers it when there's dogs about she doesn't like, maybe it gives her more confidence knowing that I've taken the reigns, who knows