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She is walked with a harness with a clip on the front that prevents pulling. She walks really well, and the leash is slack on our walks. She isn’t leash reactive, but I find there are exceptions sometimes. She is just high energy and she gets excited when seeing other dogs on walks. She will whine and tug towards the dogs, and if i don’t let her greet the dog she will start growling.
I believe this is because of her built up energy that turns negative through the tension on the leash, so I try to get her to sit before greeting. This is why I exercise her before walks, so she doesn’t become as excitable. When she’s on the bike, she is more focused on keeping up with me so she will glance over at dogs passing by but she won’t get distracted. With walking it’s hard to keep her attention on me because she doesn’t respond to rewards in the outside environment. She won’t take even the juiciest of treats because nothing is more interesting than greeting the dog. I don’t believe that it’s coming from any tension in me because we will be walking and she will be relaxed, but I don’t even notice the dog or person until I see her perk up and get worked up on her own.
I would say that in all of the dogs that I know, she is the most confident. She isn’t exactly outgoing but she definitely isn’t very fearful, which is why the noise problem with groups of people is a little surprising (but not very because it is a loud, unexpected noise after all). I have taken her to a crowded street festival, and she did beautifully. Her tail was up, ears weren’t back, and she was walking beside me without a problem.
I’ll be looking into dog daycare, because I think that more healthy relationships with other dog would be good for her. She can be mentally stimulated through interaction and the added exercise would be beneficial as well.
Could you provide advice on the growling issue? She’s never tried to bite and doesn’t show aggression, and I’ve read it’s becausd of leash tension and not aggression. What else could I do to prevent the pulling and excitement build up?
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