r/reactivedogs • u/These-Cycle-8169 • 8h ago

Advice Needed Ok on walks, crazy wound up in house/yard

Our 16 month old shichon is great on a leash when encountering people, animals...but when he's watching out of the front window or in the fenced yard he goes into nitro mode. Constantly barking, running, on high alert. We tried the "Good quiet" with a treat strategy a trainer taught us. He will literally stop, get his treat and then go back at it. We've had days where we went thru so many treats training that he was sick. Thoughts? Suggestions?

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u/kerfluffles_b 6h ago

For inside, cover up the windows that he can see out of. He’s rehearsing the behavior every time and he’ll just continue to do it forever unless you break the pattern.

For outside, keep him on a leash and keep him focused on you instead of the other things to bark about. Create more value in you vs everything else.

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u/SudoSire 5h ago

Getting enough exercise? 

1

u/RyanLoseke_CPDT-KA 3h ago

The treat-after-quiet loop may actually be reinforcing the bark cycle. he learns bark, pause, get paid, bark again. Management is your first move here, block the window view with frosted film or curtains so he can't rehearse the behavior when you're not actively training. Additionally, this process has alot to do with timing and being clear in what you're rewarding and what you're not.

The good news is you have a strong interrupting pattern built if he is willing to come away from the window, but now you need to change things up a little and ask for what you WANT.

You have clearly identified to us what you DONT want. But try thinking about what you DO want him to do and reward him for doing that. Owners are rarely successful rewarding a dog for STOPPING doing something.