While walking my dog, Kabuki, at the Nature Reserve, we came upon another owner walking their dog, which happens occasionally. Good dog etiquette in these situations is to shorten your leash and give each other space, since there is never a guarantee that two dogs will like each other. As I walked closer, I saw that the other dog had a very hard look in his eye and that his body had tensed up. If you have never seen a hard look from a dog, I promise you once you do, you will not forget it. Since the dog had his back to the owner, I am sure they didn’t see the look, but Kabuki and I did. We gave this dog a lot of space as the owner was saying, “It’s OK, he is friendly!” No sooner had the words been spoken than the dog lunged at us, snarling and trying to bite Kabuki.
Dogs that lunge at other dogs on leash could be doing so for a variety of reasons. Fear, worry, overstimulation, or they simply do not like the other dogs. Whatever the root cause of the lunging, it is a bad habit forming as well as a source of embarrassment or frustration for the dog owner. I do not blame the dog that lunged at Kabuki for being a dog. Maybe at the core, he was afraid of her and his best offense was a good defense. Maybe he was telling her, “I will get you before you get me.” Or maybe he just doesn’t like other dogs. Whatever the reason, he was handling the situation the best way he saw fit.
As a dog person, I do not fault the dog that lunged at Kabuki for doing so. It is always an owner’s responsibility to keep their dogs under control when out in the world. Having had dogs that simply did not like other dogs, I do believe that these dogs deserve to be walked as much as any other dog. It is how you manage those walks that matters. Sometimes, you don’t find out your dog does this until it happens. Then, like the owner in this situation, you find yourself shocked and apologetic afterward.
Leash aggression is a very common issue with dogs that I work with that are labeled as being reactive. Dogs lunge at other dogs for a variety of reasons, such as fear or overstimulation. Or, they are actually aggressive and frustrated with being leashed. The scared dog that lunges can be doing so as a defensive mechanism where they are telling the other dog, “I will get you first.” The overstimulated dog, who just wants to get to the other dog coming towards them to say hello, may bark and lunge to the degree that it looks aggressive. Alternatively, the aggressive dog may be lunging because they really do want to hurt the other dog. Whatever the reason, it can ruin your walk, and it is quite frankly dangerous.
My next series of tips will be focused on how to walk your reactive or lunging dogs safely and responsibly. I will end on a positive note by telling the other dog owner whose dog wanted to bite Kabuki that your dog is not a bad dog like you thought. How you walk him needs work, but he did what dogs sometimes do, so let’s get ahead of the issue!
If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at heidi@fouronthefloordogtraining.net.
Heidi Clayton started Four On the Floor Dog Training to provide positive, reward-based dog training in South Jersey. She breeds, trains and shows bull terriers under the SoraBully’s Bull Terriers kennel name. Email questions to heidi@fouronthefloordogtraining.net or learn more at https://fouronthefloordogtraining.net
