# Dog shaking and leaning on me before walks



## Nina_82 (Sep 26, 2010)

Hi all,
I have posted a couple of times on here about my rescue Staff x Boxer, Daisy. She has a few issues that we are trying to get under control, the main one being her aggression to other dogs. We are trying various methods to help stop this but she seems to be getting really anxious about everything lately.

I have been reading lots about dog body language and calming signals etc and wonder if anyone can tell me what this means...

For the past few days before a walk she has been leaning against my legs as I put her lead on. I read that leaning is a sign of an anxious dog, is this always the case? 

She has also been shaking as I put her lead on, which I assumed was excitement but now I'm not so sure.

Any help greatly appreciated!


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## newfiesmum (Apr 21, 2010)

Leaning does not always mean anxiety. Newfoundlands tend to lean on people but that is part of their breed and something most of them do.

As to the shaking, that is a harder one. How long have you had this dog and has this only just begun? Has anything outside frightened her so that she doesn't want to leave the house? Does she go outside willingly, or is she holding back? And is she ok once she gets outside?

I would have thought that if she didn't want to go, then she would be running away when you get her lead out. Without seeing what sort of shaking is going on, it is hard to know whether it is just excitement.


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## Nina_82 (Sep 26, 2010)

Hi, thanks for replying!

We have had her since September and she has been a pain with other dogs since we got her. 

She goes absolutely mad when she sees any dogs when on walks and there is no getting through to her when she does it, it's like she can't hear or see me when she is going beserk at a dog. She accidently bit my leg once as she just seems to lose all control. She is very obedient in all other situations though and gets on well with dogs that she knows (dogs at training and my mum's dog)

The shaking and leaning has only just started though and lately her tail is down on walks but it goes up when she knows we are on our way home. Although she happily leaves the house for a walk.

Just wonder if she is getting herself so worked up she doesn't enjoy walking as she knows she will see dogs.


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## Rottiefan (Jun 20, 2010)

Yeah, it's quite difficult to tell at this stage from your post. If you could let us know how she is when you have the lead on and leaving the house etc. in general, that would be quite helpful.

This could be a behaviour that she got into for whatever reason of her past and it has just became part of normal procedure- it might not mean that much anymore. However, shaking and trembling is generally a sign of stress. Leaning can be for many things, I think. It could be a calming signal, indicating a bit of stress at the moment the leads are put on, or it could even be affection! 

You never know what her past life was like and what association leads and going for walks has for her now. Perhaps her aggression is an indicator of stressful walks in her past life? I'm clutching at straws here, as you can probably tell, so any more info would be good. 

Cheers


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## Nina_82 (Sep 26, 2010)

Hi Rottiefan,

I think I must have posted my last post above at the same time as you... 

"We have had her since September and she has been a pain with other dogs since we got her. 

She goes absolutely mad when she sees any dogs when on walks and there is no getting through to her when she does it, it's like she can't hear or see me when she is going beserk at a dog. She accidently bit my leg once as she just seems to lose all control. She is very obedient in all other situations though and gets on well with dogs that she knows (dogs at training and my mum's dog)

The shaking and leaning has only just started though and lately her tail is down on walks but it goes up when she knows we are on our way home. Although she happily leaves the house for a walk.

Just wonder if she is getting herself so worked up she doesn't enjoy walking as she knows she will see dogs."


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## newfiesmum (Apr 21, 2010)

So, this tail down walking, has this only just started, or has she been like this from the beginning? It could well be that she is afraid of going out on walks. She is obviously afraid of strange dogs she meets, which is why she is aggressive, and I just wonder whether she has been punished quite nastily for taking an interest in those dogs.

Basically, a dog will be interested to meet another dog; that is just being a dog. Someone then does something to her to prevent that interest, perhaps she has had a bloody shock collar or something on. To her mind, it is the other dog that is causing her pain, so she is afraid of them. And she knows that when she leaves the house, she is going to meet some of these horrible dogs that cause her pain, so she really doesn't enjoy going. If she really didn't want to go, she would probably resist, but the tail down and the shaking tells me she may be just afraid of what is out there.

If she is ok with dogs she knows I would stick to those for a while. If you do see a strange dog, try to get her to focus on you. Make her sit and try to tempt her with a treat, so that she starts associating nice things with strange dogs. Or put yourself betwen her and the other dog, so that she doesn't see it coming. You will need to watch out for other dogs and get this focus before she sees them.

This is only a guess of course, and I could be way off track, but it is all worth a think.


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## Nina_82 (Sep 26, 2010)

The tail down walking has been for a while. I just thought it may be because I have been teaching her not to pull the lead, by stopping when it goes tight and that she may just be getting fed up with keep stopping and starting!

Since the shaking and leaning though it has made me think there is more to it.

The lady at training suggested the 'watch me' command which works well at training with dogs Daisy knows but it all goes out the window on walks!

Someone suggested a squeaky toy to get her attention, would this be ok or is this like rewarding her for lunging at dogs?


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## newfiesmum (Apr 21, 2010)

It is all down to the timing. If you start the distraction before she has a chance to lunge, i.e. when she is still calm, then try to keep her attention on it when the dog goes past, she is being rewarded for staying calm. That is what association is all about. Put yourself in her view to start with so she doesn't see the other dog coming, then it will be easier to hold her attention. Once she sees the dog going past and away from her, she will start to think "Oh, this isn't so bad then".

You should try to do this with the other dog far away to start with as well, not walking right past. Gradually bring her closer once she has stayed calm a few times. It will take a very long time to overcome her fears and you may never be able to trust her 100% around other dogs, but it will make her life and yours much easier.


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## Nina_82 (Sep 26, 2010)

Thanks for the advice 

I will give a squeaky toy a try, she can spot a dog a mile off though, might have to get myself some binoculars


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

It sounds to me like she really is nervous and anxious about going out in general, If shes shaking and going out with her tail down especially if its tucked under, sounds like shes stressed out and anxious before she even gets out the door. Dogs stress levels are measured usually from 1 to 10. If shes way up the scale before she even starts then its just going to go higher and higher as the walk progresses. The higher up the scale the more reactive they are and the harder it is to bring them out of it. It Sounds that her reaction to other dogs is also possibly fear based aggresion, sometimes it can be redirected and that was probably what happened when you were bitten.

I did have the same problem with one of my dogs when he was young, he used to get himself so stressed he wouldnt even take food or treats if he went too far. I did get a behaviourist to confirm that the problem was fear based and she did help to give confidence with the problem and show me how to go about ways to modify the behaviour so that is one thing you may want to consider.

In the meantime There are things you can try. It might be an idea to go back to basics and make walks fun and less stressful for awhile. If shes ok in the car and you can it might be an idea to drive to quieter areas like a park after busy times and where they are only a few dogs while she and you gets confidence back. Then gruadully build up to quiet side roads and then busier areas as she copes. If theres someone you know with a calm confident dog she likes and you can walk her with that will help. You can try her with treats with dogs at a distance, if you can turn her 180 degrees so shes facing the other way it would break eye contact and focus on the dog. Try high value treats, hot dogs, chicken and cheese and do the sit and watch me. My favourite is cheese like primula in the tube, most dogs love it and will carry on licking and trying to get it out the tube.

One thing are you finding that you get tense and worried about taking her out.? I know its easier said then done but if you are that will also be picked up by her and will add to her anxiety confirming in her mind there is something to worry about. So try to be calm if you can.

Hope this might help.


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## Rottiefan (Jun 20, 2010)

Very good posts above. One more thing you may like to try is a clicker. The beauty about this method is that the clicker is a sound that the dog only hears when she gets a treat. Using 'watch me' commands are good, but sometimes they can be ignored easier than a clicker. 

Basically, as soon you see another dog, click the clicker and give her a treat. Obviously you need to do this before she gets worked up. To start, you'll need to 'load' the clicker's sound. So, at home, practise some basic obediance and whenever she does something you ask, like 'sit' or retrieves a ball etc., click and treat. Use high-value treats to build the association that click means a treat. You are effectively marking good behaviour. 

From then, you can build positive associations with other dogs out on walks. It works in a number of stages: 1) When she sees another dog, click and treat 2) When she sees another dog, click and wait for her to look up at you, expecting a treat- then give her one 3) Then, she'll eventually look up at you automatically upon seeing another dog, which you click and treat for 4) Remove the clicker and just treat when she looks up 5) Phase out the treats, so she gets 1 treat for looking up at you twice, instead of once, then every three times, she gets a treat etc. Substitute treats for praise.

The above stages need to completed one at a time so that she can do each consistently before you move to the next stage. You can begin to bring in a 'watch me' too around stage 3 or 4, if you like. 

Hope this helps. It sounds complicated but it really isn't. It's my favourite method when beginning to work with dogs who are reactive or nervous in different environments.


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