Kim_MacMillan
Posted : 12/31/2009 8:39:31 PM
espencer
I can just remove the leash from my dog and believe me, he will think that i'm now giving him permission to chase the wild rabbit, the prey drive is still there
I ask this in the most honest manner, with no ill intent (trying to keep the topic well, on topic!!).
Why is it only the leash that keeps your dog from chasing rabbits? Have you done any off-leash training to try to change your dog's relationship and willingness to work with you? In other words, it sounds to me like the only way you can "control" prey drive is through physical manipulation and coercion. Have you done any other type of training to change how your dog responds to you in the face of distractions?
And just to show that I am not nit-picking, I am the first to say that Gaci is not a dog that can be trusted offleash in all areas at all times. She is a breathing, dripping predatory machine and new environments can be cause for her to turn deaf and follow her instincts. However, in other areas she can be totally offleash with other prey-like animals and be completely safe. She is almost never leashed in the backyard, and is never leashed on our hikes on the field trail or the beach we hike on in the summer. She has learned, within the limits that I have worked (that's the important part - the level of proofing required), based upon relationship and reinforcement history, that she will almost always get what she wants (including often the ability to chase!) if she does as I want. It has taken her six years to get there, but she has gotten there.
So I do ask - is your leash (and the corrections associated, as it's all that I know you have used thus far for leash work) the only thing that keeps your dog attached to you when out in the environment? If you removed the leash altogether, it sounds as though your dog would be gone in a heartbeat. Is this true, or is it just the way you typed it that sounds that way? If you removed the leash, does he automatically think he has permission to chase, or do you still get to "choose" (with cues such as recalls, waits, and stays, or general attention) when to release him and when he needs to be with you?