In this case you have the option above, going to another area to walk & practice, or one thing I have people do during training is have their dog on the leash and just sit on their front porch or in their doorway and work their dog as the world goes past their house. Sometimes going across the street still isn't enough because the street just isn't wide enough to create the distance your dog needs. This also applies to those who live in areas where the streets are narrow. If that's the case then I suggest you find a quiet street with dogs behind fences and very little traffic to practice on until you & your dog have the skills necessary to go back to a street on which you would normally walk. I know this is difficult on a busy street because most of the time it means you are in the street while training. Once you can get your dog to pay attention to you from there don't just jump to the side of the street where the dog is, move in gradually. That's why when walking past homes where you know there are dogs behind fences you need to walk on the opposite side of the street. If you can't get his attention when you first see the subject approaching then stop moving towards the subject because it isn't going to get any easier. So, when dealing with a leash reactive dog, the closer you are the to subject the more difficult it will be to get your dog's attention. The closer you get to the earth's surface the greater the gravitational pull or acceleration. When dealing with a reactive dog always remember that distance is your best friend and ally. This brings up an extremely important point about any kind of aggression. Remember, if you can't control their behavior in the house or yard it's pretty much guaranteed you won't be able to control it outside the house. This in turn means it will be easier for you to call them away from the source, and it will also help to diminish their reactivity when on leash. Yes, they will still likely bark when they hear someone/something going by, but the duration and intensity of the reaction will be decreased. Of course, if your dog is leash reactive and has the ability to see through your home's fence or out a window the first course of action is to block those views. It can also be seen by dogs behind fences or who are able to look out their front windows onto the street where they can bark at anything going past their house. Leash aggression is often caused by what we call barrier frustration. Either way, it can be nerve wracking for both the person handling the dog as well as the subject at which the dog is reacting. Sometimes the dogs themselves are conflicted and don't know what they want. This could mean they make noise, bark & lunge because they are happy to see the dog or person approaching, or it could mean they are not so happy to see what's coming towards them or behind a fence they are walking past. One of the calls I get most often is about dogs that are leash reactive and dog aggressive.
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