In this post, we’ll be talking about looking at teaching your dog to ignore other dogs. This can be tricky for dogs of all ages, but especially for teenage dogs. These tips are written with dogs in mind who like other dogs and typically want to play. Having a sociable dog is great, but for safety reasons it’s important that your dog is still able to focus on you when there are other dogs present. If your dog isn’t keen on other dogs, have a read of our tips on helping your reactive dog here.
We’re going to break down teaching your dog to ignore other dogs into three stages. But, it’s important to remember that there is no rush to work through each stage. It may take a number of sessions/ walks to work through each stage, but there’s no rush. Training your dog is not a race or a competition!
What you’ll need
- Long lead
- Your dog’s favourite reward- high value treats and/or their favourite toy (we like the training toys from tug-e-nuff)
- A clicker or marker word
Teaching your dog to ignore other dogs- stage 1
Firstly, we need to get your dog able to focus on you in places with few distractions. The best place to do this is at home. Start when your dog is well rested and ready to learn. Start by sitting in front of your dog with a handful of your dog’s favourite treat or their favourite toy. As soon as they look at you, mark the moment with a clicker or your marker word. You can learn how to teach your dog a marker word in our blog post here. All your dog has to do is to engage with you here. That can include looking towards you, making eye contact or just orienting their body towards you. They don’t need to be in a sit or any other specific position. Once you’ve marked or clicked, give your dog their treat or have a play with their favourite toy. Repeat this step 15-20 times.
Here, your dog is learning that engaging with you means awesome things happen for them! This forms the foundation of teaching your dog to ignore other dogs. You can then practise this in the garden and outside the front of your home, thereby gradually increasing the distractions.
Stage 2
Once your dog is able to focus on you at home, you can start to practise that focus in places with dogs at a distance. Try parks at quieter times of day or on the other side of the park from the dog park. You could also ask a friend with a dog (ideally one who is not that interested in other dogs!) to walk parallel to you and your dog with plenty of distance in between you both. If you think your dog can ignore another dog from 50 metres away at the moment, start this at 60 metres away. This is to make sure your dog can easily ignore the other dog and sets them up for success. Rushing the process to get to the end goal is one of the most common training mistakes I see.
You’ll want to make a point of rewarding your dog with their favourite treat or toy every time they check in with you to begin with. If you are at a far enough distance, you should see your dog notice dogs in the distance then look away. Even if they don’t look back to you straight away, you can mark and reward that moment. This is how your dog starts to learn that ignoring other dogs gets them their favourite thing. This is the moment you are looking for when teaching your dog to ignore other dogs. Keep looking for and rewarding this!
Teaching your dog to ignore other dogs- stage 3
Once your dog is able to focus on you and ignore other dogs at a distance, you can slowly start to reduce that distance. It can be useful to use markers in the environment as a guide to your distance if you can. Perhaps there’s a line of trees or bollards between you and the dog park. For each tree, bollard or other marker, make sure your dog is able to still focus on you. They don’t need to be continuously staring at you, they can be sniffing and exploring normally. But they should be able to regularly check in with you and engage with you when you call their name. If they’re fixating on other dogs or visibly getting frustrated, you’re too close and need to add more distance.
Remember to keep a look out for the moment your dog sees another dog and looks away or back to you. This is the disengagement we are looking to build. Keep observing your dog and rewarding them well every time they are able to ignore other dogs. This will likely take lots of practise but is such a useful skill that it’s worth keeping at it. With time, practice and patience, your dog will be able to ignore other dogs at close distance.
What next?
- Looking for help with your dog? Contact us to arrange in person or online training.
- Read more blog posts here.
- Perfect Recall: Teaching your dog to come back when called every time. Our guide is free to download when you join our email list- sign up here.