Training advice with walking near other dogs or people

[Spud]

I have been working pretty hard with getting Spud trained. He has been doing amazing with everything I have worked on him with minus lay down but I got a good grasp on that today. I am hoping by the end of the week he will be at a really good point with that. I have been working on loose leash walking with him for a while and he does great minus when people are walking near, or past and the same thing goes for other dogs. He is so sweet I know he isn't trying to attack or anything but wanting to play or at least check out the new person or dog. I'd like to know any tips for keeping him on his path and ignoring the distraction. Right now what I have been trying to do is get his attention away from the other person or dog and tell him to sit and treat him however it isn't working at the moment. He isn't very food based. The only idea I really have is maybe step up the treat to something a little more special that may get his attention a little more.

I was hoping you guys would have some advice on how to curb this and keep him on the walk rather then trying to pull and bark at the person or dog.

[Pugs-R-MandyBait]

Yup ... amp up the treat to something he only gets when learning, and give him 'Watch Me!' When someone else approaches, give the command and it is to have him totally, completely focused on you.
This is a tidbit from Victoria Stilwell and can prolly be found in more detail via Google. She also turns a reactive dog the other direction and walks until they become focused again.

[Spud]

I have been watching that show also and he knows watch me but with another person or dog in the area he won't pay any attention. I was thinking about doing the walk away quickly thing as well as stepping up the treat.

[Pugs-R-MandyBait]

he knows the words ... but does not grasp the full meaning yet. Watch me is total and complete focus on you - regardless of another dog or human. just takes practice ;-)
Up the treat to something he only gets during training. Here it is warm beef hot dogs.

[Hellas]

It sounds as if you're on the right path. That one is very difficult for an extrovert like a typical pug. You may have to patient and be prepared to work on it for a long time with plenty of setbacks. Spud is quite young isn't he? I find that mine have calmed down a bit with age. They're now 2 and approaching 2 and I find that it's easier to keep them focused on me than it used to be.

I agree with previous advice. That is the way to go. The principle is, the harder the "trick" the better the treat has to be. Se if you can find some sort of food item that he really, really likes. For me, it's sausage (without onion of course). We've also found a brand (Planet Pet) that makes all natural treats made of tuna, cod, chicken and similar. No preservatives, no additives. The dogs go WILD. Even our friends' chihuahua, who is hardly interested in food, went bananas when we gave her one of the tuna treats.

If this doesn't work, consider if there is some other kind of reward that would have a higher value for Spud. Does he like toys? Would it be possible to have a squeaky toy or something that he ONLY gets to play with in those situations?

[Spud]

He is 2 and I guess that is one of the things that is really nice he has calmed down a lot compared to like a year ago. I'm thinking about using some cheese. That got him to start laying down, one of the other things he doesn't want to grasp very quickly but he is making progress. Sadly he isn't a big fan of toys either. He enjoys playing with the other dogs otherwise he is generally really chill. He loves going for walks. One thing I think may help a lot is as soon as he starts trying to pull to the other dog is I will turn around and walk quickly away and then get his attention.

[Hellas]

He is 2 and I guess that is one of the things that is really nice he has calmed down a lot compared to like a year ago. I'm thinking about using some cheese. That got him to start laying down, one of the other things he doesn't want to grasp very quickly but he is making progress. Sadly he isn't a big fan of toys either. He enjoys playing with the other dogs otherwise he is generally really chill. He loves going for walks. One thing I think may help a lot is as soon as he starts trying to pull to the other dog is I will turn around and walk quickly away and then get his attention.

In that case, it sounds like a good idea to try the cheese. The important thing is to find something super delicious with a bit of scent to catch his attention. It should be something that he only gets in those situations (or at least only rarely).

[Lola's Mum]

When you see another dog or person approaching, go ahead and try to distract him with the treat...so he doesn't get worked up, maybe that will help...

[Pugs-R-MandyBait]

When you see another dog or person approaching, go ahead and try to distract him with the treat...so he doesn't get worked up, maybe that will help...

Bingo ... that is exactly what Victoria does. It is key to get them focused before they get distracted by the oncoming traffic

[Spud]

I do try and distract. One problem is people all over have dogs so he knows when we go for a walk when we are about to walk past a house that has a dog and he starts like looking for the dog. There are no routes to go to avoid it either. I think I got a few good ideas how to go about this. I just really need to step it up a little more on my part and in time he will come around.