Carrots carrots carrots

We had Diane's brother and wife up for the day, along with Shadow their Australian Shepherd. I have mentioned in past posts that Shadow is Loki's arch nemesis but we are working on trying to change that.

We are trying various methods with Loki, not really any one "system" or "methodology" but a smorgasboard of techniques from various sources, the ones that have been most helpful to us. I have taken a lot from the National Geographic show The Dog Whisperer. The most effective tool is to clear my mind of any unwanted emotions, to try and just view any given situation with Loki as a list of facts rather than colored with emotional thought.

I call it 'carrots, carrots, carrots' thinking. Whenever I'm in a situation where I have trouble with Loki I think about carrots. I try and visualize them in detail, facts about carrots. Simultaneously I am watching Loki's body language and attempting to make corrections, just focusing on the correction without any sense of punishment or anger just carrots.

For example, we worked with Titan and a trainer a long time ago. Titan was very aggressive with other dogs when on a leash but take him to a dog park and he was Mr. Congeniality. We learned a lot about what we were doing wrong. One thing the trainer asked us to do was give Titan the 'watch' command ('watch' means the dog is supposed to make eye contact with you) to take his attention away from the other dog. We were told it didn't matter if the look was only 1 second, eventually it would be longer and longer, the point was the less time Titan was focused on the other dog was more time he was focused on us, his leader. I have similar issues with Loki and do the 'watch' command. But whereas before when I gave the 'watch' command I was anxious what with Loki is pulling hard on her leash and the other dog/owner excited or clueless making the situation worse, my anger and blood pressure rising, now I think 'carrots, carrots, carrots.' It is a small miracle as far as I am concerned. What I have witnessed is that Loki pulls about 66% less, she is able to focus her attention on me for about 15 seconds and drops the whole act in under a minute. The other thing I am doing in these situations is to keep on moving forward when possible. The before and current scenario goes like this:

BEFORE - IN 30 SECONDS OR LESS
Loki spots other dog ( OD) before OD spots her. I see OD and OD Owner and brace myself for the inevitable aggression. Loki's hackles go up, her glance is seemingly at something else but clearly watching OD. OD gets close and spots Loki, Loki lays down --looking to most humans like she is submissive (ha ha ha ha ha ha lol) as OD and ODO approach Loki stands abruptly, stiff legged and wide eyed. IF ODO has stayed away Loki lunges forward with a G-force of 2000 lbs and snarls and pants and shows teeth. (remember the Basenji doesn't bark) IF ODO is clueless and saw Loki lay down ODO often says out loud 'oh, how cute!! She is so submissive' and comes trotting over with OD, I immediately state forcefully that Loki is not friendly with other dogs and she will bite if they come closer. What happens next depends on how stupid the ODO is but it always ends with me stepping between OD and Loki before contact is made.

CURRENTLY -- IN 15 SECONDS OR LESS
Loki spots other dog ( OD) before OD spots her. I see OD and OD Owner and think 'Carrots.' I tell Loki 'watch' she does then returns focus to OD. I step in front of her and give her 'watch' again. Loki tries to peer around my legs but I block her vision with my body. If she tries to pull away I do Cesar's 'shush' sound and a quick pop and release on her regular collar. Then I start to move forward at a brisk but not rushed or panicked pace, just continue the walk all the while thinking about carrots. Loki will sometimes try and look back, I shush her, give the pop and release on the collar and keep moving. End of story. I never make eye contact with the ODO and don't engage in conversation, in fact turning my back to the ODO and OD keeps them away from us and Loki focused on me.

We've been trying the same thing around Shadow. The situation with him is very frustrating because we can't pin point a specific trigger, other than the fact since Titan died Loki isn't confident around other dogs and acts aggressively. The other difficult things is that she doesn't do it 100% of the time. She can be fine for hours, she walks with Sahdow witout any problems. And then she can be sleeping in another room entirely, wake up with a start, ears alert if she were human you'd say the expression is "Oh Shit I just remembered something...I have to go kick some ass" gets up, seeks out Shadow and attacks him. I've been trying to think only about carrots when those 2 are together and have requested that Shadows owners pay no attention to either dog. Easier said than done. I would be anxious too if it were the other way around, but I think the anxiety is what fuels these 2 to act out. I also try and break Loki's focus whenever she even remotely has the "I'm going to kill you" idea developing. I redirect her and Shadow with a command or walk her away. Giving Shadow commands has made a differnece. While he isn't my dog Loki has paid attention to my being in charge of both of them and it seriously eased the tension, you could feel it.

Other things we are going to try in 2007 are reinstituting the crate in Loki's life. Since she grew up we haven't had any issues of her being destructive and she has free roam of the house. But when we travel she needs to be in a crate. She has never done well in a crate and destroys anything remotely designed to offer her comfort. Since we don't need to use her crate often I gave up trying to get her acclimated. Regardless, it shouldn't stress her out as much as it does.