"Around that time, I got an outdoor cat for my garden area. I tried to socialize them but my dog acted aggressively toward the cat so I asked my trainer to help me with this. We worked on sessions of impulse control with his cat but in the end, after my dog attacked his cat, he told me I would always need to manage my dog around cats or he could kill them... I also have a video of my dog attacking the trainers cat. Very disturbing! He went from a down to a powerful sprint in seconds”

So when the dog broke his down command, what did your trainer do?

What do you do when your dog blows off one of your commands?

 

He corrected him with an ecollar!
I try to stop him with the ecollar.

 

How long has your dog been using an ecollar?

How was your dog introduced to ecollar?

So when the dog broke his down, the trainer just zapped him? Or, did he say something first?

How did the trainer handle things after the dog started attacking the cat?

 

How long has your dog been using an ecollar? introduced at around 4 months old.

How was your dog introduced to ecollar? My first trainer introduced it to me and my puppy using vibrate mode on recall. King come…vibrate and when he came, reward. I later paired other commands after I found his working level using treats.

So when the dog broke his down, the trainer just zapped him? No
Or, did he say something first? He said “No, Down”

How did the trainer handle things after the dog started attacking the cat? Trainer was calm and increased ecollar level until my dog responded to a recall. He was surprised he had to use such a high level.

 

What kind of training and proofing was done for prey before the trainer put his cat at risk? The dog has to understand the boundaries at a lower level before tossing a cat in the mix.

 

Can you explain what that looks like? I understand proofing commands. But good point! He probably went too fast! Not enough distance for sure.

 

Or, did he say something first? He said “No, zap, Down” or King come! No, zap, come

 

Just because GSD can successfully live with cats doesn't mean they are a good breed for cat co-habitation.
They're bred to chase and bite things!

 

Just because GSD can successfully live with cats doesn't mean they are a good breed for cat co-habitation.
They're bred to chase and bite things!

I thought so until a few people commented about “balance.” So thought I should ask. Glad I did cuz the trainer always said, we never correct a behavior until we are certain they know what is expected. Pretty sure my dog thought he was expected to get the cat. 🤷‍♀️

 

I’m surprised that amid an attack, trainer was able to remain calm, increasing the stim until the dog responded and that this cat is still alive. were the animals at a distance? not appropriate for the board but i’m certainly interested in seeing the video. via PM if you’re open to that.

 

In attempts to move forward with your question…. can you explain exactly what your goals are? To stop chasing cats or to reliably down or recall…… Easier to reinforce OB than to kill drive - just want to make sure we’re all talking about the same thing.

Additionally - are there any other small animals that your dog responds similarly to for the sake of practice? My dog for instance will go after cats and squirrels the same way, is interested but considerably less with birds, lizards, even rabbits….. but, regardless of the species, because of this, i’m able to get a lot of reps in daily. My goal is an automatic down or at the very least, solid recall….. because i have no doubt if she were allowed to fully pursue a small animal, it wouldn’t end well.

eta: i have an indoor cat btw….

 

In attempts to move forward with your question…. can you explain exactly what your goals are? To stop chasing cats or to reliably down or recall…… Easier to reinforce OB than to kill drive - just want to make sure we’re all talking about the same thing.

Additionally - are there any other small animals that your dog responds similarly to for the sake of practice? My dog for instance will go after cats and squirrels the same way, is interested but considerably less with birds, lizards, even rabbits….. but, regardless of the species, because of this, i’m able to get a lot of practice and reps in daily. My goal is an automatic down or at the very least, solid recall….. because i have no doubt if she were allowed to fully pursue a small animal, it wouldn’t end well.

Excellent question. Thank you for clarifying. I need to think about that because my initial answer would be both but I don’t want to kill drive. So my goal is auto down and solid recall. I too work in my front yard with lots of squirrels. They are no longer a distraction though because he knows he can’t get them. He gave up the last time he tried to climb the tree. Hilarious. Guess he thinks he’s a malinois. Can I work with a game of fetch to reinforce a down in mid chase?

 

Dogs would be so much easier to work with if they understood our intentions/language the way we do! And I say that with a smile and a laugh most of the time...

I went through this with my current dog a few years ago. She was raised without cats around, so had zero exposure to cats until she was about 3 years old. She has pretty high prey drive, so will chase squirrels and rabbits and other small critters if given the opportunity.

The first time she was near a cat, the cat stood its ground, and the dog showed respect for that, rolling her eyes as she gave a wide birth. The second and unfortunately third time the dog saw this same cat it was outside, dog darted after the cat before I noticed her even looking (I mentioned having no cats!), and promptly chased that cat up and over a 6' privacy fence.

I had it easy, because said cat was indoor/outdoor and generally pretty bold. Still it took nearly a month with the dog on a leash inside and the cat free to roam the house every evening, before the cat was calm enough to approach and smell the dog, and the dog was able to show enough restraint (via relaxed body, no more intense fixation etc.) that I was comfortable enough to remove the leash.

Follow that with a week or so of close supervision, and I allowed them - again with close supervision - to be outside in the yard together.

So altogether about a month and 3 weeks, and they are buddies now. Other cats did not get that privilege yet, as my dog chased more than a few away. Two years later and she has decided that all cats are okay. Again, she decided, not I put any time into teaching her.

Teaching an emergency down or a down stay will not teach your dog not to get your (or anyone else's) cat though! So keep that in mind. It only works if you are there to see and stop it.

That being said, why not teach both?

 

For the outdoor cat, I’d really use some more controlled reps. I’d start with the cat in a see through metal crate. I’d stim the dog on a high level anytime he started to go after the cat or show any intense predatory behavior towards the cat. After that I’d move to having him in a controlled position (down stay) with the cat free. A place mat with a tie off works well. It’s easy for the dog to understand and prevents the dog from being able to actually reach the cat. I’d use a high level stim to if the dog tried to go after the cat. Once the dog is showing he can successfully handle this, I’d move to having him work with me while the cat is free. I’d recommend a long line tie off so he can’t reach the cat and again high level stim for trying to go after the cat. Once he shows he can work with you around the cat, you should be able to control him off leash around the cat.

 

EXCELLENT ADVICE! Very clear and concise! Feeling confident and look forward to working on this with my dog! TYVM 😁

 

@Bearshandler drop the Venmo 😆