# My dog hates motorbikes



## stellB1 (Jul 7, 2011)

When out walking on the lead, if a motorbike passes Joe will try to charge at it and gets very vicious. Has bitten or tries to bite the lead holder. Any good ideas to stop this behaviour .


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## tinamary (Aug 17, 2008)

Sounds like its fright that makes him behave like that. You need to keep reasuring him when you see the bike coming and make him sit down so you can have more control. He will hopefully get used to the noise. Our rescue dog was afraid of cars when we first got her and would swivel around on her lead. Keep trying and when he realises its not going to hurt him he should accept them.


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## grandad (Apr 14, 2011)

Desensitisation. When you see a motor bike coming, turn him away from the road and feed treats. Focus on you is important. So a "watch me" command could be useful. If you know someone with a bike, you could step it up a little by getting the owner of the bike to ride it about 100 yards away in a field, whilst you control the dog. Bring the bike closer in small steps and over a period of time. 
Hopefully doing this all the time will eventually break the behaviour.


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## stellB1 (Jul 7, 2011)

Thanks for that advice. Someone we know has offered to ride his motorbike around Joe so we will give that a try. Will let you know how it goes


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## grandad (Apr 14, 2011)

stellB1 said:


> Thanks for that advice. Someone we know has offered to ride his motorbike around Joe so we will give that a try. Will let you know how it goes


good luck. remain calm and in control. Patience and lots of it is the key.


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## leashedForLife (Nov 1, 2009)

stellB1 said:


> When out walking on the lead, if a motorbike passes Joe will try to charge at it and gets very vicious.
> Has bitten or tries to bite the [handler]. Any good ideas to stop this behaviour.


what breed is Ur dog? GSDs often react/over-react to diesel engines, buses, motorcycles, etc.

sounds more like massive over-arousal than fear - but whatever reactive issue it is, _Click to Calm_ can help. 
the book has detailed, step-by-step, humane B-Mod protocols written out.

Amazon.com: Click to Calm: Healing the Aggressive Dog (Karen Pryor Clicker Book) (9781890948207): Emma Parsons: Books

U have to keep him UNDER threshold - meaning aware of the trigger, but far-enuf away *not to react*. 
every time he practices this over-the-top reaction, it becomes more habitual - so *avoiding the trigger* is essential. 
if an unexpected bike comes along, U will need a well-rehearsed, fluent, *happy* emergency U-Turn to get both of U out of the area, 
quickly. Teach it away from bikes, inside the house, in the garden, on the sidewalk, practice on a bike-path, etc. 
anywhere, *every*where - have a short, snappy, cheerful cue like *'Let's go!...'* practice, practice, practice.

reducing his visual-stimulus may help - a calming cap makes things a short distance away fuzzy-focused. 
52 Weeks : 33/52 - Calming Cap | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

*calmatives * will definitely help - Use everything U can, not just one thing. 
Pet Forums Community - View Single Post - dog body-language - and why it matters so much...

he needs desensitization & counter-conditioning, so the bikes are no longer a trigger.


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## Malmum (Aug 1, 2010)

Flynn dislikes motor bikes and cyclists, he is mainly scared of them I think and always pulls to get to them and growls. I let him see it coming, or he hears it in the case of a motor bike, and tell him to sit and focus on me while giving treats. He is allowed now to watch them pass while sitting and having treats as he doesn't go after them any more and even sometimes just sits all on his own when he knows there's a bike/motor bike around.

You have to make sure it's extra special treats, possibly ones he doesn't get when at home ( small pieces of cooked chicken, cubes of cheese, hot dogs) and give him lots of praise for ignoring the bike. At first I didn't let him look at the bikes but as he got better I allowed him to see them. Mostly now he can walk when a cyclist goes past and often doesn't even want the treat but still a bit edgy with motor bikes, they are extremely noisy at times after all.
I did try the clicker but couldn't seem to get my timing right and as Flynn is extremely food orientated found food worked best.

Any treats you give him deduct from his daily food allowance, you don't want a fat dog, lol.


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## stellB1 (Jul 7, 2011)

HI Malmum That sounds good advice especially the extra special treats as Joe is not particularly food orientated. He's not bothered about bikes only the noisy motorbikes, I am not sure if it is the noise or the helmets that are worn. He often growls at men especially if they wear hats or caps. Thanks very much I will give it a try


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