The answer
The trainers draw a line between interest and fixation. Connor, walking Titan past geese the day before go-home: "he is interested in stuff but he's not fixating which that's the big thing." A dog can look at whatever he likes. If you give a command and he moves on at once, "you're fine." Fixation is when he stops hearing you. Roxy's trainer names it as the thing being trained on her long-line day: "she's kind of fixated she blows off the command so that's why we're reinforcing it." Neo's trainer puts the same rule to a friendly dog: some meetings he just has to walk away from, "and he can't fixate."
With another dog, the order of operations is the most important thing on film. Zeus's trainer teaches it to his junior handler on the field, to the owner at the in-program lesson, and again at go-home. If a dog is locked onto another dog and you correct him right then, he may blame the other dog: "that could make it feel like he did it, and it's an escalation." So you pull him off and away first, and only then mark and correct. The trainer says he has made the other mistake himself and caused a fight with it. The companion rule is to call it off "when you see the behavior start", before the conflict.
The positive answer is a command the dog already owns, cued into the fixation. On a greenway, another dog comes toward Zeus and the trainer does not steer away. He asks for a down, repeatedly, until Zeus takes it, then pays him with freedom to sniff. With Titan and Roxy the answer is "let's go" or a recall, reinforced until the dog moves on at once. Several trainers explain let's go as conditioning against fixation itself. Mazi's calls it "basically an anti-fixation command": say it every time the dog fixates and, after enough repetitions, he stops fixating, because he expects the let's go. Stormi's says the same about sniffing (sniff and keep moving, rather than sniff and fixate), and Boog's defines the public goal, "public neutrality", as not fixating: a dog who does not run up to another dog but stands there staring is not there yet.
Fixation also changes how anything lands. Angus jumps at an e-collar level he had felt several times before, because 'he was really fixated on the dog sound'; Chunk fixates so hard that the least leash pressure startles him. And it blocks teaching: Connor will not start Shadow's heel while she fixates, and a dog who holds a down only because he is fixated on something else has not stayed - 'it doesn't count' (Samson).
The trainers also use fixation as a test. At Rocky's private lesson the trainer brings Jayden, a stranger to the dog, dressed on purpose in gloves, hat and glasses, and reads Rocky's sniffing without fixating as a dog who is not escalating. Hank's trainer puts him in a play yard with barking dogs so he will fixate, sees it happen, corrects it and turns it into play.
Whether to punish the fixation itself is where the trainers differ. Whiskey's trainer says he does not normally like to: it is usually better to let the dog do what she is going to do and show her other options only if she reacts. But Whiskey freezes and stares at people from a long way off, and he says her fixation may be the primary trigger, so it may have to be broken directly. Bun's trainer and Kali's draw the line the other way as a matter of course: looking is allowed, and fixation is what gets punished - 'if he, like, fixates, like, if he freezes, I'd probably punish that, too' (Bun); Kali's says he never punished looking, only actual fixation (uncertain audio). And one dog is the counter-case: at Waffles's bite work, staff praise his lock on the bite object as "the type of defense dog" they want. They also say that is why he needs disassociation work.
Angier K9 is a family-owned, play-based Board & Train serving Angier, Raleigh and the Triangle, with three full owner lessons.
What to do
Let your dog look; answer the lock. Give a command he knows (let's go, down, come) as soon as you see him fixate, and make sure it is followed through. If he ever gets onto another dog, pull him off and away first, then mark and correct; never correct while he is still on the other dog (Zeus's trainer, three times on film). Act at the first stare, before the lunge.
What the trainers say
job so he is interested in stuff but he's not fixating which that's the big
thing is like yeah the dog can be interested in something but when you give them a command
sometimes she gets them you know more interested in those things she's kind of fixated she blows off the command so that's why we're reinforcing it
because unfortunately not every dog is a good match for every dog when they meet each other
so there's some cases where he'll have to just be able to walk away and he can't fixate let's go
so one important thing if you if you're ever doing something like this if you're the one that's working with the dog that's doing the thing what you never ever do you never tap the button first
because that could send him onto him, because that could make it feel like he did it, and it's an escalation, because that's what he's focused on. So he could attribute it to him.
you pull him away right the reason is that if you say uh-uh and tap the e-collar while he's still in that position all ramped up he will take that out on him potentially right that could happen
say like you had that same scenario again zeus is already like and doing that whole thing jumping on him if you were then to say and tap as an example i have made that mistake before uh and what will happen is in most cases that dog we'll go you did it to the other dog you did that and we'll take it as an escalation and then fight
hey hey down down let's go dude you're not doing that that's all you fixate bro let's go come
would have been too much but um i think i am gonna have to do something that i don't have to do very
I think a lot of times it's better
the fixation is gonna be like a primary trigger for her.
So just trying to let him make that mistake so I can see it happen.
he would be fixating more on jayden yeah because jayden's new and never been around you know and
let's go instead because let's go is a directional thing so it actually is a command we teach that is basically an anti-fixation command
over time every single time they fixate on something you say let's go that's actually how you fix fixation
fixating on dogs and i i guess i picked the word fixate because you could have a dog not run up to another dog but they're like just staring
every time you see something instead of fixating they're conditioned to let's go
So like I'm gonna sniff and then we'll keep him moving as opposed to like, I'm gonna sniff and fixate and make him have to come get me.
so I'm actually like, when she gets fixated, I just keep walking, and then once I pass that point, then she gets the e-collar, so she's going to have to learn, like, to be be aware of me even while she's fixated
you can't correct her for looking right yeah i mean she's not doing anything wrong
he fixated on the dog and then he decided i'm gonna attack that dog i'm gonna sprint after that dog so i punished it
under the predator area right and so their instincts cross a little different where their fixation hits harder so like it's a lot harder to get a dog to break a fixation then like let's say a horse
that's just to interrupt the brain pattern because she knows when she feels that collars go off then that stops the brain pattern
So it looks like he got a little surprised by that e-collar because he was really fixated on the dog sound.
he'll bark back and forth and have fun and he'll like do stuff but he's not fixating which is good
like i have the e-collar on so i can back it up because those situations are the most likely for a dog to want to ignore yeah um right because they're in the mode of either a chase or some type of fixation problem
Like, I'm only going to punish him if he does something, though.
Or if he, like, fixates, like, if he freezes, I'd probably punish that, too.
bit because he does have starts looking at like another person or another dog and he like goes to lean out that well and he fixates really hard and what happens is because he's really fixated when he feels the least pressure he startled himself
don't care fixating problem right um so i never punished looking i only punished like
and they're like face to face like that yeah that's normally a precursor of something bad
say his name down yeah correctly okay yeah down so if he's fixated and he's ignoring right this is what I wanted to see
they didn't stay they just got distracted and forgot to get up they got fixated on something else and then they didn't get up
reactive towards things, like wanting to bark, fixating, I can't teach that because she's gonna get distracted every five seconds.
lot of dogs like him they'll fixate yeah where they just see the dog and they're like and they don't know what to do yeah yeah when you fix that problem the dog can kind of just be like whatever
How it looks, dog by dog
Zeus
Zeus launched at other dogs, and his program had one goal: live with the four dogs waiting at home. On a staged test at Dorothea Dix Park, he sniffs the test dog, they lock eyes, he ramps up and jumps on her. He is pulled straight back before anything else happens. The trainer then stops to teach Jayden the rule: never tap the button first while the dog is on the other dog, because he may blame her and it becomes a fight. The same rule goes to the owner twice. At the second in-program lesson it comes with the confession that he has made the mistake himself, and with the companion rule to call it off when the behaviour starts. At go-home it comes with the instruction to pull him back a little first, then mark and correct. On a greenway walk he answers another dog with a down, asked again and again until Zeus takes it, then pays him with sniffing.
On film
that's doing the thing what you never ever do you never tap the button first
escalation and then fight there's a problem right so you call it off before then when you see the behavior start that's when you go and tap you guys you don't do that
um you don't want that you don't want him to put take it out on the other dog so if you pull it right you pull him back a little bit first and then you tell him
Zeus. Down. Down. No. We've practiced this so much. Down. Come on. All the way. All the way, Zeus. All the way. All the way. We're going to keep doing it until you go.
Titan
The day before go-home, Connor walks Titan past geese to see whether his avoidance is done. Titan is interested and not fixating, which Connor says is the whole point: he can look, as long as he moves when cued. If he does not, that is blowing you off, which Connor says much of Titan's program was about. At go-home, the conversation turns to the bully tendency to avoid and to fixate at once, with a story about a tree Titan would not leave.
On film
job so he is interested in stuff but he's not fixating which that's the big
blowing you off slash avoidance which that's not good that's a lot of what titan's program was
to move because they have not only do they avoid they fix it yeah it's the other bully thing so
Roxy
On a long line in public, Roxy wants people and other dogs more than a ball. Her trainer names her failure: she gets so interested she fixates and blows off the command, and that is what the session reinforces. A low e-collar level does nothing when she wants to reach people, and he says so and turns it up. By mid-session she holds a down while a person walks by. In another session she sits instead of downing and he reads it as attention still on a trash can. He points to the ground to help her, and chooses the word 'avoiding' over 'stubborn'.
On film
sometimes she gets them you know more interested in those things she's kind of fixated she blows off the command so that's why we're reinforcing it
down let's try again hi much better Roxy good job okay let's go good girl you did much better that time you let it go right by you that was perfect
She was getting distracted by the trash can, and so her mom was just on the trash can. And so when I sat down, she sat, because she was still thinking about the trash can.
Whiskey
Whiskey freezes and stares at people from a distance, then barks. Her trainer treats the bark as the symptom and the stare as the problem. He says he may have to do something he rarely does, punish the fixation itself to break her out of it. He does not normally like to: usually it is better to let a dog do what she is going to do and show her other options only if she reacts. At her first in-program owner lesson the trainer gives the rule in practice: if she notices and moves on, that's it; if she ignores it and keeps barking, she gets a tap, 'just to interrupt the brain pattern' - she learns she was supposed to move on and did not.
On film
Good job, Whiskey. You can see she kind of freezes up a little bit when she sees people.
would have been too much but um i think i am gonna have to do something that i don't have to do very
the fixation is gonna be like a primary trigger for her.
Again, went by the door, she fixated a little bit and she kind of wanted to go that way, that's why I did that on purpose.
she just moved on that's it we just move on if she ignored it and was like no no I'm gonna bark and I'm gonna like keep barking right then that's when I do another like
that's just to interrupt the brain pattern because she knows when she feels that collars go off then that stops the brain pattern
Neo
Neo is friendly and wants to greet every dog. On an early foundation walk a staff dog is brought out, and Neo gets irritated under light pressure and bites at the leash. His trainer's reason for teaching him to walk away is not danger. It is that not every dog is a good match for every dog, so some meetings he has to leave. By the third pass he walks by with only a verbal correction and a small tug, still looking back.
On film
because unfortunately not every dog is a good match for every dog when they meet each other
he got a little irritated there and kind of bit at the leash because he wanted to be able to run
that time he didn't get overly irritated a little bit but he did walk away with
Rocky (the Rottweiler)
The owner reports Rocky growling at and pinning the household's other dogs. The trainer reads it as possessiveness of the owner, not general aggression or nerves, and tests that reading with a stranger. Jayden comes dressed in gloves, hat and glasses, chosen to trigger a dog. Fixation on him is the sign the trainer is watching for. Rocky sniffs and watches but does not fixate.
On film
if he was like becoming more aggressive or like more nervous or extra defensive
on purpose like I want things that I would hopefully see if it triggered him
Hank
His trainer uses a play yard next to barking dogs on purpose, to let him fixate so the trainer can see it, correct it and turn it into play.
On film
So, what we're doing is just using one of the play yard areas here and just trying to let him make a mistake, fixate on something.
And then being able to correct it and redirect it to play so that we can burn some of that energy.
Waffles
The counter-case. Waffles is the resident Belgian, surrendered for his drive and force. At bite work the same locked-on quality is praised as what they want in a defence dog. In the same minute, staff say he cannot yet out, and name disassociation as the work he needs. On a bite object, fixation is the raw material; the failure is when the handler cannot get the dog off it.
On film
dog you you we need to see like this is what we like to see just fixating on the
That's why, like, we need to do some disassociation.
Zeus (March 2026)
A different Zeus, from March. The map filed this entry under the summer Zeus, but his arc removed it as March material. At this Zeus's first in-program lesson the trainer describes the earliest version of the answer: say 'let's go' whenever a dog or anything else sets him off, and follow through if he does not listen. Over time the sight of the trigger itself comes to mean 'let's go', and the dog knows not to start. The full treatment is in correct-the-command-not-the-trigger.
On film
he gets punished for not listening over time every time he sees a dog or something his brain will
Boog
What he wants is notice the dog and keep moving, and let's go is how it is maintained: given the moment the dog shows more interest or tests, until he is conditioned to let's go instead of fixating.
On film
fixating on dogs and i i guess i picked the word fixate because you could have a dog not run up to another dog but they're like just staring
you don't want that you just want like notice the dog keep it moving right so with the let's go that's how you keep it maintained
every time you see something instead of fixating they're conditioned to let's go
Coco
Her trainer names fixation as what is left on Coco's walk: her let's go is good, but she gets fixated. His technique is to keep walking through it and give the e-collar only once they are past the point, so that she learns to stay aware of him even while she is fixated. Her case file lists it as a stated technique seen in one dog so far.
On film
I'm trying to tune up her radius, because her let's go is good, but she gets fixated,
so I'm actually like, when she gets fixated, I just keep walking, and then once I pass that point, then she gets the e-collar, so she's going to have to learn, like, to be be aware of me even while she's fixated
Hattie
The trainer wants to set the situation up so it happens while they are ready, so it can be penalised and not repeated.
On film
you can't correct her for looking right yeah i mean she's not doing anything wrong
she was like oh she like fixated and locked in on it right
that's why i want to try to set it up because like that's the best way to get it is to set it up and be prepped to like try to create make it happen so that you can penalize it harshly and make sure it doesn't happen
Mazi
Mazi's trainer ties his yelps and his whining to fixation - downtown he was fixated on every store window, and on a walk the whining 'means that he's really fixated'. On another walk he fixates, feels the pull and goes straight back to the thing, which the trainer needs him not to do. At the second owner lesson the trainer names let's go 'an anti-fixation command': say it every single time the dog fixates, and after enough repetitions his brain predicts the let's go and he stops fixating - 'that's actually how you fix fixation'. He applies the same principle to reactivity.
On film
he will yelp a little bit usually because he has a fixation thing so like if we're like downtown he was like fixated on like every store
he's doing a lot of whining here hey and the problem with all the whining is that means that he's really fixated
so you can see he'll fixate sometimes and feel the pull and then he'll go right back and i need him to not do that
let's go instead because let's go is a directional thing so it actually is a command we teach that is basically an anti-fixation command
over time every single time they fixate on something you say let's go that's actually how you fix fixation
fixation because every now in the future when they like start to fixate on something their brain goes well the past 30 times I fixated I got a let's go so it'll probably happen again and so they just don't fixate
Nikki
Not a map member; read with care. In a behaviour-modification session with a cat, two unnamed speakers call Nikki's lunge small and 'not like heavy fixation', then say she is 'so fixated on her' but excited, 'not like prey driving'.
On film
She did like, lunge a little bit. But not like heavy fixation.
She's so fixated on her. I mean, she's excited. But she's not like prey driving like right now.
Pepper
At an in-program lesson with an owner who rides, Pepper's trainer gives a reason fixation is the hard part with dogs: horses are prey animals and dogs are predators, so a dog's fixation 'hits harder' and is much harder to break - though the principles are the same.
On film
under the predator area right and so their instincts cross a little different where their fixation hits harder so like it's a lot harder to get a dog to break a fixation then like let's say a horse
Reaper
On a public walk the trainer narrates the moment he does and does not punish: while Reaper is only looking, nothing happens; when he fixates on a dog and decides to sprint at it, he is punished. The trainer says the same penalty worked earlier in the program for the same pattern with people.
On film
i'm not going to punish anything there right nothing happened he's looking looking looking looking looking and then he made the decision to sprint towards the dog to engage and not in a good way
he fixated on the dog and then he decided i'm gonna attack that dog i'm gonna sprint after that dog so i punished it
Stormi
Stormi's trainer lets her sniff, and explains let's go as conditioning against the fixation that sniffing can turn into: over time the dog learns 'I'm gonna sniff and then we'll keep moving', as opposed to sniffing, fixating and making the handler come and get her.
On film
But the long-term benefits from Let's Go are great because you do end up conditioning
So like I'm gonna sniff and then we'll keep him moving as opposed to like, I'm gonna sniff and fixate and make him have to come get me.
Angus
On a recall walk Angus reacts to an e-collar tap as if it were much stronger, and the trainer explains why: he was really fixated on the sound of a barking dog. The level had not changed from the other times he felt it; his state had.
On film
So it looks like he got a little surprised by that e-collar because he was really fixated on the dog sound.
is that the e-collar level did not change from there to any of the other ones that we used
Apollo (the Bully)
At Apollo's first owner lesson Christian measures progress by fixation. Early on Apollo would fixate and stare at dogs, even through a fence; now he barks back and forth and plays but does not fixate, and the same has eased with people in public.
On film
that right now he's you know like in the beginning he did fixate a little bit
he'll bark back and forth and have fun and he'll like do stuff but he's not fixating which is good
Astro
At Astro's evaluation the trainer says the e-collar is on for the moments a dog is most likely to ignore you - a chase or 'some type of fixation problem' on his housemate. The order is: interrupt the fixation, then use the recall he knows to get him away.
On film
like i have the e-collar on so i can back it up because those situations are the most likely for a dog to want to ignore yeah um right because they're in the mode of either a chase or some type of fixation problem
Bun
Downtown, Bun is allowed to look - 'It's okay to look' - and Kelton says he is only going to punish him if he does something, or if he fixates or freezes. Bun does neither, and comes off it when redirected.
On film
It's okay to look.
Or if he, like, fixates, like, if he freezes, I'd probably punish that, too.
Chunk
Staff describe Chunk locking onto a person or dog so hard that the least leash pressure startles him - he 'scares himself'. Fixation here changes how any correction or pressure lands.
On film
bit because he does have starts looking at like another person or another dog and he like goes to lean out that well and he fixates really hard and what happens is because he's really fixated when he feels the least pressure he startled himself
Kali
At Kali and Kane's first owner lesson the trainer explains a correction near a small dog: looking is fine, fixating is the problem, and he only punished actual fixation, which he reads as a sure sign the dog is planning something. When the dog was merely interested he reinforced the recall instead (most of the passage is uncertain audio).
On film
he was looking because looking's fine no problem with looking yeah fixating is the problem looking
back again right so i was reinforcing the recall not punishing anything
Kodak
With Rocko, Kodak's housemate, fixation is the signal watched for. On a long line near another dog Kelton notes he is 'fixated a little bit... staring' and waits to see whether he does anything; at go-home he tells the family the big warning between the two dogs is a hard freeze, face to face.
On film
on the long line see what he does you see he's fixated a little bit he's staring see if he does
there were any other things right i mean that's like the big one is if they freeze up really bad
Max
At Max's evaluation Christian has the family ask for a down while Max is fixated on them, and Max ignores it - 'this is what I wanted to see'. He shows the answer: stand in front, add social pressure, tap until Max goes down, then stop.
On film
say his name down yeah correctly okay yeah down so if he's fixated and he's ignoring right this is what I wanted to see
Peque (PK)
In the park Peque stares hard at a man, and the handler does not leave it: 'let's go', and praise as she moves on.
On film
let's go yeah good girl good girl pk let's go she's staring so hard at him
Samson
After Samson's session two trainers note a trap: a dog who holds a down only because he got fixated on something else has not stayed. 'It doesn't count' - no training happened.
On film
they didn't stay they just got distracted and forgot to get up they got fixated on something
Shadow (German Shepherd puppy)
Connor holds off teaching Shadow's heel because she fixates and barks at things and would be distracted every five seconds; the reactivity work comes first, until she can walk past without fixating.
On film
reactive towards things, like wanting to bark, fixating, I can't teach that because she's gonna get distracted every five seconds.
Shadow (Siberian Husky)
At the first owner lesson Connor names what impulse control was fixing in Shadow: dogs like him fixate, see a dog and do not know what to do; fix that and the dog can just think 'whatever, it's a dog'.
On film
not even because he's tired but just like we work with impulse control part of the thing is like a
lot of dogs like him they'll fixate yeah where they just see the dog and they're like and they don't know what to do yeah yeah when you fix that problem the dog can kind of just be like whatever
Why it works
As the trainers explain it: a fixated dog is not hearing the command, so the command is not what is failing. What is trained is getting out of the state (Roxy's trainer). Near another dog, the correction's timing decides what the dog learns. A consequence that arrives while he is locked on can be pinned on the dog in front of him, which reads as that dog escalating (Zeus, three lessons). So the dog is pulled clear first, then marked and corrected, and the earlier the better: at the start of the behaviour, not in the conflict. A command he already owns, such as down or let's go, is something he can do about the trigger instead of going forward. A fixated dog is also in a different state when a consequence arrives: the same e-collar level that was nothing a minute earlier surprises him (Angus watch 10:48), and the least leash pressure startles him (Chunk watch 30:33). Connor's criterion is the dividing line: interest that yields at once to a command is fine; fixation is when it does not. Two further explanations were given in September 2026. Repetition: a let's go given every time the dog starts to fixate becomes what the dog predicts, so the fixation itself fades (Mazi's trainer, watch 08:37). And species: dogs are predators, so their fixation 'hits harder' and is harder to break than a horse's (Pepper's trainer, watch 05:45).
On film
sometimes she gets them you know more interested in those things she's kind of fixated she blows off the command so that's why we're reinforcing it
because that could send him onto him, because that could make it feel like he did it, and it's an escalation, because that's what he's focused on. So he could attribute it to him.
escalation and then fight there's a problem right so you call it off before then when you see the behavior start that's when you go and tap you guys you don't do that
thing is like yeah the dog can be interested in something but when you give them a command
fixation because every now in the future when they like start to fixate on something their brain goes well the past 30 times I fixated I got a let's go so it'll probably happen again and so they just don't fixate
under the predator area right and so their instincts cross a little different where their fixation hits harder so like it's a lot harder to get a dog to break a fixation then like let's say a horse
Inferred
Whether Whiskey's fixation was in fact punished later is not on film.
Where the trainers differ
Fixation as fault, or as the quality wanted
One view
Fixation on a person, dog or object is the failure the program trains out
On film
so there's some cases where he'll have to just be able to walk away and he can't fixate let's go
fixating on dogs and i i guess i picked the word fixate because you could have a dog not run up to another dog but they're like just staring
so you can see he'll fixate sometimes and feel the pull and then he'll go right back and i need him to not do that
Another view
Fixation on the bite object is 'the type of defense dog' wanted
On film
you will lose the cheek here go pick it up but this is the type of defense dog
How to read it
In protection work, fixation on the bite object is praised; the handler's problem there is getting the dog off it (the out, disassociation).
Punish the fixation itself, or not?
One view
Looking is allowed; the fixation itself is what gets corrected
On film
Or if he, like, fixates, like, if he freezes, I'd probably punish that, too.
don't care fixating problem right um so i never punished looking i only punished like
Another view
Usually not: let the dog act and show other options; punishing the fixation is a rare exception
On film
would have been too much but um i think i am gonna have to do something that i don't have to do very
How to read it
Kali's lines are uncertain audio.
Common owner mistakes
- Correcting the dog while he is still on or locked onto the other dog. The trainer says it can start the fight it was meant to stop, and admits he has done it.
On film
say like you had that same scenario again zeus is already like and doing that whole thing jumping on him if you were then to say and tap as an example i have made that mistake before uh and what will happen is in most cases that dog we'll go you did it to the other dog you did that and we'll take it as an escalation and then fight
Watch at 24:33 ↗ - Waiting until the conflict instead of calling it off when the behaviour starts.
On film
escalation and then fight there's a problem right so you call it off before then when you see the behavior start that's when you go and tap you guys you don't do that
Watch at 25:02 ↗ - Assuming a friendly dog can greet every dog; not every dog is a good match, so he has to be able to walk away.
On film
because unfortunately not every dog is a good match for every dog when they meet each other
Watch at 3:20 ↗ - Counting it as success because the dog did not run up to the other dog, when he is still standing there staring. The goal is notice it and keep moving.
On film
fixating on dogs and i i guess i picked the word fixate because you could have a dog not run up to another dog but they're like just staring
Watch at 28:30 ↗
Questions owners ask
Is it bad that my dog stares at other dogs?
Looking is not the problem. Connor's line with Titan is that a dog can be interested in something as long as he moves on at once when you give a command. It becomes a problem when he stops hearing you.
On film
thing is like yeah the dog can be interested in something but when you give them a command
My dog jumped on another dog. When do I correct him?
Not while he is still on the other dog. Zeus's trainer teaches the order every time: pull him off and away first, then mark and correct. Corrected while locked on, he may blame the other dog, and that can turn into a fight. Better still, call it off when you see it start.
On film
you pull him away right the reason is that if you say uh-uh and tap the e-collar while he's still in that position all ramped up he will take that out on him potentially right that could happen
escalation and then fight there's a problem right so you call it off before then when you see the behavior start that's when you go and tap you guys you don't do that
Should I just steer him away from the other dog?
On film the trainers give him something to do instead. Zeus gets a down, asked until he takes it; Titan and Roxy get 'let's go' or a recall. Walking away is also taught, even to a friendly dog like Neo, but as a command he follows, not as the handler dodging.
On film
hey hey down down let's go dude you're not doing that that's all you fixate bro let's go come
so there's some cases where he'll have to just be able to walk away and he can't fixate let's go
The lesson
The goal
The owner can tell interest from fixation, answer fixation with a known command, and knows the pull-off-first rule near another dog.
Learn first
The drill
As run with Roxy on a long line in public: let her go freely, and each time she locks onto people or a dog, give the recall or down and reinforce it until she lets the distraction go by; pay the check-in with freedom. As run with Zeus on the greenway: when another dog approaches, cue the down and hold out for the full position, then release into sniffing.
Watch out for
- Correcting while the dog is still on the other dog.
- Correcting interest that would have yielded to a command.
- Waiting for the lunge instead of acting at the freeze.
Check yourself
Your dog has just jumped on another dog. What do you do first, and when does the correction come?