While some people don’t think it’s acceptable, leashing a dog to a tree where it can’t hide and firing off a ton of rounds nearby may break the dog of being gun shy. Drop-dead gorgeous furball that hid the first few months under the bed, behind the couch, *anywhere* I couldn’t get to easily. At a distance, it’s a ‘Delicate Sound of Thunder’…. Stay calm. Male Siberian I had, loved the rain and thunder and noise (good thing, I love rain and thunder). Sounds like “Everything-has-to-be-perfect Mommy Syndrome. Some never get over it as it can be not simply frightening but physically painful to the dog. I have a horse that’s gun shy. How to build confidence in a timid, shy dog! He got some ear-pro, and the dog was a completely different animal after that. RF says that the key to dog training is to start with a good dog. Always be patient but be direct when you want to correct bad behavior. When I trained gun dogs who were NOT gunshy, I still had to desensitize them by setting off a couple of firecrackers at feeding time, when they were hungry and expecting to be fed. She grabbed it from my hand but didn’t eat it. Step One: Develop Prey Drive Go Hunting in Silence. One suggestion: make the noise first (gunshot) then giving your dog something she likes, like a favorite toy or treat. Take her to a gun range (a sporting clays place if you have one is best) and just sit there with her (outside) and start far away from the noise. anyhow, really handsome pooch there. Some dogs are afraid of fireworks and are not gun shy. Good Luck! Identifying and Neutralizing Triggers to Shyness Be sure not to unconsciously reinforce shyness. Eventually the stimulus should grow to be at least as intense as any likely to be encountered in real life. mixes,.and littermates, just didn’t care about any of that. Seeing the Gun as a Positive Thing Many dogs that become gun shy are not only afraid of the sound of the gun, they are also afraid of the sight of the gun. Slowly move the shooter closer, in 10-yard increments, until you can shoot near the dog without her reacting. I’ll give you an example. In talking with folks about curing their gunshy dogs, we’ve heard a lot of causes, the majority of which were completely unintentional. She could get the idea that rabbit equals loud bang instead of the other way around. Walk her from the parking lot up to a range. Tied outside the entrance of a café, the young Border Collie-mix paced and panted. This dog was born sound sensitive. You have entered an incorrect email address! I must defer to the Rabbi’s expertise. You trained one dog and that makes you an expert? Fire engine horns and sirens, elevators, garbage trucks, dumpster lids slamming, low flying 747s, livestock, whatever. Step Two: Reintroduce Firearms With a new pup, you don't have to be this careful, this is how a gun shy dog is broken. I would recommend a certified trainer who trains hunting dogs, if just for advice. This happens when the first time a dog sees a gun is also the first time he hears one. If everyone just culled the bad ones and got a dog that worked, we’d have to cull fewer pups. She had the best personality and the cutest white-tipped tail. IDO » Community » Forums » Hunting Forums » Hunting Dogs » Gun Shy Dog. I’m no fancy dog expert but I have learned a lot raising my first German Shepherd. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Most tips are for hunting dogs, but Clover isn’t going to hunt. It really all depends on the dog, the intended purpose for keeping the dog and willingness to burn resources on trying to train the gun shy out of the dog. Asked a nice lady, how she got the dogs to behave, and gave me this advice. I think they even make canine ear plugs, I know they make them for horses for use during cowboy mounted shooting. I’d go with what Chris, Strych9, and Rabbi said. We had to do that to our border collie during every thunderstorm, new years and July 4th. As soon as Siko and I had a bond and I could see that he trusted me to … Then pet the dog, give it a treat, and once it calms down try another shot. It could take days, or even weeks, before a dog fully overcomes the fear of even a small bang. You can pick which one you’re engaged in. We think the dog was abused by its first owner, who adopted her and then returned her to the animal shelter. Some dogs are afraid, most others are not. First, much like firearms trainers, there’s really no standard for a “Certified dog trainer.” What about the NRA certified trainers, you say? A gun-shy dog is a man-made problem. Only the ones that don’t flinch are chosen. My old Pit mix was terrified of everything. My SPCA rescue-e was 1 year old when I adopted her. Apparently you didn’t get the memo. But they are background noise, not terribly loud. Give some hugs. Look around then at you almost like saying “what are we gonna kill boss”? I have a friend (honest) whose dog is very sensitive to loud noises, like thunder, A10s, P51s Supercubs and F22 flybys at high speed and low altitude. I shot my gun ONCE, walked back to the Jeep to my cowering and shaking pup and immediately gave her the dog jerky she loves. It’s not a deal breaker, and I love this dog, she’s not going anywhere. If you’re that serious you will search it out on your own. I’ve read about the cap gun idea as well – snapping away with that (at a little distance) during feeding times. If you have a rebuttal that’s actually sound and goes against years of psychological study (science) I’m all ears. The whole ordeal was just too corrosive to the trust I was otherwise building. Gun shyness is often genetic and very difficult to cure, sometimes impossible. Work up to a 50 BMG? It may sound strange, but when introducing a puppy to shotgun fire make sure that atmospheric conditions are in your favour. Puppies; Trained Dogs; Studs; Dams; Retired Studs; Retired Dams; Learning Center. There’s a lot of good in this post; you need help. Well-balanced, healthy dogs don’t harbor inherent fears of inanimate objects–something has to cause … Continued, By Realistically, I’d try tying the dog to a tree and shooting until the dog realizes that it’s not being harmed by the noise and calms down. We finally took to drugging him with sedatives during thunderstorms. September 2002: My 6-month-old lab has a problem. With a high enough prey drive and a small enough bang from a great enough distance, the dog shouldn’t even notice, which is exactly what you want. I go outside at my back door and shoot a few dozen rounds frequently. Anyhow, the standard technique for gun dogs is to start firing quieter guns such as a pellet rifle or .22lr subsonic around when they’re being fed or doing something else they’re sure to be very attracted to. It will help with the separation anxiety too. So I decided to take her with me to the range the next time, thinking she would be OK knowing I was making the noise. This didn’t stop, no matter that she was loved and protected with me. Then build it up. My dog ignores gunfire, but barks at lightning. April 15, 2006 at 10:48 pm #438511. Clover was house broken in only one month of having her as a nine-week old puppy. don’t force it and try to make it fun for the dog. So, the minute you hear the shot, play with him or give him his favorite food or toy, and then pay no attention to him until the next shot is fired. I wonder if desensitization, by way of starting with silenced 22, until (or if, I guess) she is accustomed to that, then progressing suitably far in the direction of .50BMG unsilenced, will do the trick. Steve Plantz. You may end up conditioning the fear out of the dog but still getting the displayed response because the dog doesn’t actually understand what it’s being rewarded for. My advice is that if the dog won’t do as is, just cull the beast and find a breeder with a proven track record of producing pure bred pups that will do what you want. Best of luck and just be patient! As she begins to chase, have a buddy fire a .22-caliber blank, 12-gauge primer popper, or even a cap gun from a distance of 100 yards or more. The same make and model one at work barely woke them from a sound sleep. Gun Shy Dog, Chattanooga, Tennessee. If your gundog puppy is confident you should be able to start at about seven to eight months of age. She’s 5 now and has no issue with gunshots or fireworks. If you give the dog a less intense/overpowering dose of the fear stimulus and allow it to see that you’re not concerned in the least and are doing normal things, that will help. He ignores it as if it’s not happening. training of dogs) thus you would know of their effectiveness. From Sporty’s Pilot Shop. Those that torture housepets should be tortured themselves…. I am a musician living in and around Chattanooga, Tennessee. Repeat this technique for a couple of weeks and see if you notice any differences. It’s a tricky problem. The safest thing to assume is that every dog is potentially gun-shy, so avoid anything that might make it so. Give a friend a walkie and a 20ga, put about 50-100 yards between the two of you and have the friend fire in the immediate moment that you throw the bird(or tennis ball). You have to teach steps in the process because the dog won’t understand the command in it’s entirety at first.) Focus on providing calm, steady leadership for your dog. Start out giving them regularly and then taper the reward schedule off once the desired behavior is achieved. More dogs are ruined by inexperienced trainers than turn out to be useful, finished dogs. Getting some pup of dubious breeding and expecting it to turn out perfect on your first go-round is unreasonable. 21 likes. Take baby steps. i suspect sara’s milk may let down. Also, if you are keyed up they will be keyed up so you will need to be ultra in control. DIY Project: Cure a Gun-Shy Dog Step One: Develop Prey Drive For her to overcome the fear, you must let her chase, catch, play with, and even kill prey. Your dog does not belong at a gun range. We’ve come along way since 1942.”. Pavlov trained dogs to salivate based on a noise, that is a natural response to knowing they were going to eat, something they naturally due. While viable in concept this is difficult to pull off and, the way you’ve done it, can’t be pulled off (no offense) because there’s too much delay between action, reaction and reward. The Marine Corps has researched this extensively since 1942 and the two constants they found were that not all dogs can be trained to do what the Corps wants and not every person can be a competent dog handler or trainer. Beating the living shit out of kids turns some of them into model citizens. Training Builds Confidence. If Clover will be doing home watch-dog security for your family, deafening her will hinder her in that regard. It seems like your baby is smart and wants to please. No drive for self-improvement what so ever. Throw a bird or release a rabbit and let the dog chase it. She was wearing a thunder shirt/jacket most of the time and it helped some. Pavlov’s system isn’t foolproof and only someone of limited mental capacity would say it is. 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