Pack leader problem ? ?

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ruby82

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Hi guys,*
Never posted in the dog section so please be gentle. I have a three year old black lab who I have had since a pup. Me and the other half know we have spoilt her and in turn she Is extremely jealous not of people or other dogs but today my OH bought his first mountain bike we took it up on to some public land and the dog was yapping and jumping up at him whilst he was on the bike. I put her on her lead and walked her next to him while he cycled and she was fine. I have stroked horses in the past over the wall and she has jumped up and yapped at me, it's like she is saying your not allowed to give your attention to anyone but me, Is it a case of she thinks she is the pack leader and any tips on how to deal with this?*
 
Pack theory has been pretty well discredited these days - I would not use it as a basis for the way you think about your dog.:)

I think your explanation is probably simpler - bikes are exciting stuff! Look, look, look how fast dad is going! What a fantastic game - think I'll join in! Putting her on the lead was the right thing to do.

With the horses, if she isn't used to sharing your attention then she may be trying to get it BUT that does not mean she is plotting world domination. She needs to learn to sit quietly until you are ready to move on again. Practice this on walks - just stop, ask her to sit, stand for a short time, praise her and walk on. If she whines or gets up, put her calmly back in the sit without giving her any more attention and don't move on until you are ready to do so. Start small, with just a few moments of waiting, and build up. This is good discipline for any dog.

Both of these issues are things a good trainer - preferably one up to date with modern training methods - will be able to help you with, probably quite easily so long as you are willing to put the work in:)

But no, she is probably not under the impression that she is the pack leader, as this theory is, as I said, generally held to be deeply flawed these days :)
 
Thanks for your quick response, i think your right about the bike thing. She is fairly well trained as I took her to gun dog training as a youngster but I suppose I may have got a bit lazy if I stop to look at sheep, cows, horses etc she just yaps and I don't want to cause any destress to any animals So I have just moved on sharpish bit I know it makes the problem worse as she thinks umm that worked! When we attend gun dog training it was really hard to get her to stay and me walk away we put her on a long lunge line and put it in a stake she we would sit and stay but cry and bark, eventually she would shut up lie down and behave think i need to invest in another lunge line and get my ears muffs out!*
 
I would find a new trainer, to be honest. There are gundog trainers that are aware of newer methods (such as the one I work with), which your dog might take to better. We wouldn't teach a stay in this way for example - we would build the distance that the owner moves away gradually, even if that just started with the owner just shifting their weight away from the dog.
 
Agree it's nothing to do with pack leader blah.

Staking works with some dogs but as Spudlet says, baby steps, side stepping to the side or front and stepping back and rewarding, repeating that and lengthening the distances ad nauseum is a much better way.

As mentioned it's best to make yourself much more exciting and the focus of all food and play than other stuff like bikes and animals.
I would try handfeeding her, if she is a lab she is probably foodie, so don't feed her before her walk, put a few handfuls of what she would have got, in your pocket, and every time she looks at you or pays attention, reward her with a few nuts.
Accompany it with a word like 'watch' or 'close' and if you use a clicker, even better. So basically she figures out, I get what I want when I watch mum.
If she is not foodie, try it with a ball or a toy.

I do believe there are dominant dogs out there and I have met a couple, but they are not usually in pet homes and are very rarely labs!!!
 
you might like to try the A.P.D.T ( association of pet dog trainers) They are very good and should have up to date state of the art training methods to help you. Stays are very easy to train and a remedial task to train if you know how. They only use kind fair and effective methods no choke/check chains. Good luck.
 
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