When you have had dogs before, but they were all nice, well behaved, and the suddenly you adopt a dog that is reactive, it's a whole new experiece... And we as dog lovers and owners, we need more education on different dog behaviours, so when it comes to adopting a new dog, we know what we are dealing with
Nice! This was also our session, Biggins was doing great by the end! My dog neco had the same reactivity and by the end they were both less reactive. Highly recommend Tom and his team to help train you, the owners :)
Great feedback on how to see the build! Needed that. One of the best videos on how to handle the reactivity BEFORE it starts. Tom is excellent in explaining the tools to help diffuse the build but I hadn’t really caught on to what to look for. It always feels like it’s out of the blue. Thank you!
This is absolutely the exact thing Steven James & I work on! I can totally relate to Higgins owner feeling anxious! I have been pulled to the ground because of Steve’s reactivity. Thank goodness we had the pleasure of working with Tom at the Calgary seminar! Thank you Tom!!!!
This episode was so wholesome. Higgins is a handsome boy and seemed to catch on quickly. Props to his mom! She was right when she said there are other dogs in the world and that's not going to change so Higgins needs to learn. The editing on this video was on point, too! "Oh, hi, I didn't see you there" lol
I hope I can find exactly what I am gifted for like this guy. He is definitely working in what he was created to do. He isn't working but getting paid greatly
Yeah, so? I had a real big dog, and we had 2 of them, one time I got in between them when they were really fighting and I still got a good bitemark under my operation scar on my leg, also on my hands, that happenes more than you would think... Every dog can be trained, IF you have the time to do it.
I started getting into arguments online with the positive only ppl..what a waste of my time. They equate balanced training like this to obvious abuse like “Dog Daddy” overhead slamming a dog by its neck/leash to the ground, (he literally picks the dog up by the leash and just overhead..in a circle slams it to the ground.)..there’s no reasoning with them. I thought I’d try to redirect ppl to sites like Tom’s, to “rescue” dogs from a dead end with bad futures, but..social media is set up to foster cultish behavior, so certain groups and people can take advantage of others by posting propaganda, lies, and make money. I’m getting my GS puppy in a few days, I’ll just concentrate on what I have to do with my happy little (well and consistently trained) guy.
Dog intelligence personified .... thanks Tom. I have directed many people to you ... I can only hope they listened as then they would see your value in improving their dog's (and their own) lives. 👍👍👍👍👍
if someone doesn't believe in positive reinforcement on a basic level not a dog training political level and won't use it, then they do not know basic animal psychology and shouldn't own or train animals period 4 basic facts about animal training 1 reward = more of a behavior 2 negative = less of a behavior 3 neutral = calming the animal 4 you cannot have one method only to train every dog in the world, a puppy is going to respond differently from an adult or elderly dog, just as a food-motivated dog will act differently from a verbally motivated dog ext ext
Hello folks at UCA! I have a question. My nearly 5 month old female GSD heels great in the house. But when I try to move heel work to out in our back yard it's like her brain falls out lol. I'm sure it's something I am doing. She's not paying attention to me. Will this iron out with consistency and frequency? Or should I switch to a herm sprenger? In all our sessions I have been using a slip lead. I am just concerned she will be pulling me everywhere soon as she's growing fast and I'm a 5'1" 120lb woman. Any advice would be much appreciated. Love you channel!
She unknowingly tells this dog to react this way. There are no bad dogs, because knowingly or not, it's the owners who have caused these issues in the first place.
Today I was walking my 3month old GSD and a pitbull, off leash, no owner in sight, came trotting toward us. I was already running with her at the time but when I saw the dog was still following us I stopped and kept walking trying to keep my dog from engaging. The dog came to my front left and too close for comfort so I immediately picked up my pup, the dog did not look freindly and I didn’t want to cause my dog to become reactive by getting in a dog fight. Well at that moment the owner pops out and yells for his dog (why his dog is getting punished when he was the careless one I don’t know) and says he’s sorry, I instinctively say it’s ok when it wasn’t. Clearly the dog was being territorial on the public street and maybe warning me off her property away from her owner idk but it freaked me out. I was just glad how well my pup did! She didn’t even bark, of course she was very distracted and curious but not aggressive or reactive
I cant Thank You enough for your videos. I have a 100 lb GSD who was very reactive and an 85 lb golden ( there not over weight..dont come for me ) i am 5"4 and 110 lbs i can walk them both on slipleads one on each side you dont have to be 250 lbs and 6"4 to have control you need Confidence, Trust and Respect for your dogs and from your dogs i have learned so much from your videos i work everyday with my shepherd on your training tips. We have all benefited so much from your training .
Tom (or any one who has worked with a fear reactive big dog such as a GSD). Have you ever had a moment, (even if it’s for a literal second) where the dog scared you? If so, how did you come back from it?
I got your tug:)) my pup loves playing tug but I hate the sound of her little teeth getting caught on those tug rope and scraping over the threads and ripping them😬😬 it makes me cringe so I’m looking forward to having a canvas one that she can really grip onto
I think this lady should be commended, many people simply give up on a dog, take them to the shelter, get another, like they're trading in a blender they were unhappy with...Dogs have feelings, and many grow attached to their hoomans quickly, faithfully, and are broken hearted when they are abandoned...many people also don't even realize that our dogs certainly feed off our energy, when we're nervous or anxious, they're nervous and anxious, we become calm and content, and they follow our lead...this trainer is knowledgeable and patient, two qualities that make for a wonderful dogman...he more importantly understands how to train people, which are, in many cases, the student who needs the most work imo...
I have my pack, I know without seeing what's going to happen before it happens. I go in and correct and keep on going. A lot of people hang on to old situations that were bad and won't let it go! Love running my pack at my house its amazing!
Yes, that is what I learned in the advanced leash training. Dog should never be in front of you, always beside, tops! If he gets ideas, cut his way, go in front of him and show him where he has to be. My dog has 70kg, so this course was crucial!
So idk if you have a video breaking down dog behaviors and signs ie "tail wags" barks, ear movement, I feel like these convey so much from our dogs and really really tell their state of mind
I absolutely love how detailed and insightful the videos are. I became really interested in dog training after my german shepherd started showing reactivity and the videos are so helpful and empowering.
By making an outside turn, she puts herself in between her dog and whatever the dog is fixated on. Interrupts the dog’s line of sight. I’m older, so I could think of it like a new dance move.😊 I’m enjoying this.
I try my best but I'm still having no luck with my Great Dane Mastiff. And I have had so many trainers tell me to put him to sleep. I really need help. He's only 3 years old. And I can't have him being reactive. I have a disability and really need help training him.
Tom, thank you for your videos, I have learnt so much so far! One question. When I make the inside turn, my dog instantly turns the other side around (away from me) so that he can still watch the other dog and I still have to pull him with me. Any ideas?
I am a big Fan of the channel and the shown methods. However i would love to have such Video witj a highly reactive dog but using a flat collar for corrections. Here on Europe, prong collars are Banned and my dog sometimes doesnt seem to care about corrections on the flst collar...
My dog is a 100 times worse than this also against people just about ready to give up trying to get a trainer in uk is like gold dust and you must be a millionaire.
@tomdavisofficial OMG!!!!! where and when? I feel like I have the most amazing dog in soooo many ways, but his reactivity is driving me mad and is going to end badly one day!!!
This is very helpful, thank you. My dog has turned reactive around other dogs after having been attacked by 2 dogs that were off leash. She isn't aggressive, she's scared. But try telling that to a dog owner when your 70lb GS/BMC is growling.
I've been using a prong collar to help with obedience training. But sometimes when I give leash pop corrections my dog growls. Especially when he's distracted (by people or other dogs). When I try to correct the growl with a pop and a "no" he often escalates (growls louder). What should I do? [Male Rottweiler 2yrs old]
Our 19 month old GSD is not reactive on lead walking toward dogs, animals or people. At home is a different story. We have to keep her restrained or she will very aggressively alert to passing dogs. What am I missing? Would appreciate any advice…
Hey, just listened to your No Bad Dogs Podcast and was wondering if you can point me in the right direction. I am passionate about dogs and really want to pursue a career in the dog training business and help everyone and every dog I can. I currently live in Nashville Tennessee I've been searching and emailing places to learn to train and how to build that relationship proper with dogs ect... Most of them won't take me because they don't have time or can't afford to pay, I said l don't want to receive payment. I just want to learn. Can you point me in the direction so I can shadow and learn the craft? I just want the knowledge. I want to understand and know how to properly train. I'm willing to invest into myself aswell, if I have to pay someone to teach me or purchase online classes to watch so I can practice with my dog and volunteer at nearby adoption centers to build My experience. I'm just seeking guidance.
hey tom, i do not have a dog. i am interested, but i am allergic, so i wont get a dog. still, it's so fascinating how you can "talk" to dogs. you opened my eyes how stupid most people are. bad behaving dogs are never the problem, its always the people. when i go on a walk and see people struggling i can see what they are doing wrong and have to hold myself back to tell them. dog training should be mandatory for all owners.
I would also like to add that our vet is intimidated by her. They muzzled her at 14 months for bloodwork and yearly exam. I believe it’s because they took her to another room away from my husband and she was insecure and unsure of their intentions. She has never acted that way in our presence. What should we have done differently?
Hi Tom, I'm living in the UK near London, and like some other countries using prong, slip, and even a vibrate collar are very frowned on and dare me if I am for respectful and right use of them. I would really like to find dog trainers like you here in UK that are using those training tools. Do you know any good trainers here to shadow and learn from?
I'm on the other side of the world and so wish I could bring my dog to you for training. Your videos have been instrumental in me handling my young rescue staffy. Do you think a prong collar is still okay if you don't know your dog's history and whether one was used improperly with precious owners?
Tom I wanted to ask you something, I recently got a 5month female german shepard but it doesn't play with any toys and everytime I leave the room the dog leaves the room
Just charging a "no" marker and following up with something like a pet corrector would likely be the perfect tool for this dog. Using the startle response instead of physical pressure for this type of reactivity isn't typically sustainable over time. Correcting the loading (when he starts up/looks/fixates/growls) would be being proactive, but you have to make the loading aversive enough, and leash or physical doesn't always sustain long term for all dogs, and could cause redirection. The exploding itself needs to not get to that point. A tug as reward is likely a good outlet in the rehab phase, using a "leave it" as soon as he looks/locks on, upon non-compliance, correcting there. Those Hounds 😂 reminds me exactly of a beagle/heeler mix I worked with!
@jeno264 yes exactly! That's why the corrections must be clear, concise and motivating enough. So the word "no" is not needed at all, actually extinguishing the behaviour. Of course, any good training/rehab plan should not need to contain positive punishment long term as it should essentially eliminate the behaviour permanently, only leave positively rewarding the better choices. If the correction/punishment is not more motivating than the reinforcement he's getting for reacting (which is massively self reinforcing for these breeds) then we can end up just managing and nagging constantly but not fully inhibiting the reactivity. I'm all for what works, of course! I just feel in this case there needs to be a slightly different, less physical approach, even remote collar would be more productive, and just targeting that arousal and the vocalization intensively. Hopefully we get an update though! Happy if owners are happy/satisfied, of course. That's what matters, anyways.
We desperately need your help. We live about 20 to 40 minutes away from you depending on which office we went to. Pricing is the thing. We have an 18 month old dog that we are teaching to be a service dog. Unfortunately we waited Until she was a year old to start training her. We got her when she was nine weeks old and we just wanted her to live her best life as a puppy. Yes we did you know all the basic obedience training all that. And she does really really well. Except for this Pat this June she all of a sudden just started attacking our other two service dogs out of the blue whenever food, toys, or myself were around. Like if they wanted to come to me or go near the food or a toy that she was Near , She just attacked them. And we finally got her out of it for the most part. But she just recently started again yesterday out of the blue. Not yesterday the day before yesterday sorry. And I know it was my fault as well as hers. And I'm working on my things. But unfortunately the only thing that I've learned from trainers that I've talk to her people that I've talked to is I have to show her who's Alpha. And Sometimes it means you have to tackle her to the ground. Right after she does the bad thing. And unfortunately that's the only thing that we've done that works. And we've only done it four times but it's literally four times in the last four weeks. And I am disabled due to extreme chronic pain. And terminal cancer and severe PTSD. So three of those four times it was me taking them apart and tackling her to the ground. Injuring myself in the process. Except for this last time I hurt myself by tackling her and my normal chest pain ended up getting worse. And then a few moments later when my adrenaline adrenaline started to calm down, my POTS went into overdrive in my case, and I passed out but didn't pass out. Like I got really really lightheaded and fell and I was in shock so I couldn't move or speak for a moment, but my sister was there to catch most of my fall but I did hit my head so I most likely have a light concussion. And I know she has the ability to be a wonderful service dog because she's already proven that she can. It's just this resource aggression. Is difficult for me to really train out of her. And I am trying by watching some of your videos on it. But for me being disabled, it's not something that I can continuously do throughout the day to train her. My daughter can and when she has time off from work and stuff, and then I can the other time. But we just really NEED YOUR HELP in figuring out the best way to absolutely positively get her to be the perfect her she can be in possibly trading the side of her.
Just my 2 cents. Find someone to help you with ecollar work. Takling to the ground is clearly not sustainable for you or safe. Also REMOVE THE RESOURCES! No food, toys, treats, affection, furniture access. Anything that could be guarded should not be allowed. Everything is given on your terms and no demanding/begging is tolerated. With affection be sure you initiate, not the dog and don't tolerate the others coming in or other jealous behaviors when you are interacting with one. Management will be key until you get the training done.
This video was very insightful! I have a extremely dog reactive/aggressive gsd, shes working line high drive and I've had multiple trainers and tried several different methods. The most recent one I took her too I spent 800 for a top tier trainer in California, and have seen some difference but not much, he said she is the most stubborn dog hes ever worked with and hes worked with tons of reactive dogs. I'm going to keep trying different methods till I find what works for us. She most definitely stubborn and hard headed.
