How do I get my dog to leave other dogs alone?

Teach them a Watch Me exercise, do this randomly throughout the day, start where there are no distractions, and your dog isn’t doing something else. Say their name enthusiastically and when they look at you reward them with a high value treat. Once they can do this reliably, practise this everywhere – always rewarding them. Avoid places with many dogs, start training your dog the Watch Me exercise in a quiet place indoors where it’s just the two of you. Once you can do this at home, you can progress to the garden where there are more distractions from sights, sounds, and smells. Distract them when meeting other dogs, start off a long distance from them – beyond the point where your dog would usually react, all you want your dog to do is look at you, and you will reward this. Slowly build this up to being able to do it at closer proximity but never too close that your dog feels that they need to react to the other dog. Always use high value treats to reward them for paying attention to you and not the other dog. Practice is key, remember that patience is very important when training any dog and you shouldn’t expect instant results. Give play opportunities, make sure your dog still gets a chance to play and interact with their chosen doggie friends, set up play dates or dog walks with a chance for off-lead play regularly with your dog’s best friends. Use a long leash and avoid pulling on it, while you are training, you can use a comfortable harness with a long leash, this will allow your dog to have more freedom and practise your distraction training safely at a longer distance.

Offer your dog a tasty treat and encourage them to 'take it' in an upbeat, friendly voice. Hold a treat in your hand with your fist closed around it. Your dog will likely try to nudge and lick your hand to get the treat out - don't respond to any of these attempts. Wait for your dog to back off from your hand, even just slightly or for a moment. As soon as they back off and there's a small gap between your hand and your dog's nose, open your hand, release the treat and give them lots of praise. Once your dog is consistently moving away from the treat, you can start to add in the cue word 'leave'. Say this in a gentle tone as they back off and then open your hand to give them the treat and lots of praise. Place a treat on your open palm so that your dog can see and smell it. Ask your dog to leave it by saying 'leave'. If your dog stays away from the treat, reward them with lots of praise and a treat from the other hand.

You can train a dog to ignore other dogs by following these steps: 1. Prepare the right equipment. Plan to bring along all of the gear you need to take your dog on a comfortable walk as well as bring training tools for positive reinforcement. Dog owners can use positive body language and treats to teach a dog how to sit and stay when called and to obey you when around other dogs. Begin by taking a normal walk with your dog where there are no other dogs around. Every so often, stop and call your dog’s name. Reward your dog and use your clicker if they look at you and remain calm, but turn away and withhold the reward if they don’t. Once you have trained your dog to stop, calm down, and leave objects alone while on walks, you can begin slowly walking around other dogs at a distance. Use your clicker and high-value treats to bring their attention back to you when you notice them getting distracted by the other dog’s in the distance. Over the course of multiple days and dog walks, begin moving closer to other dogs while still using positive reinforcement to bring their attention back to you when distracted. Eventually you can walk your pooch around another friendly dog and use your new training to teach them to leave the other dog alone.