# Help with Huntaway running to people or dogs and barking



## Tania (Apr 26, 2010)

We absolutely adore our Huntaway who is nearly 3 yrs old. We have a huge problem when walking him though.

He will barks at everyone, when we are out. Which is not good as this scares them. Although he would never hurt them, they do not no this.

Also, when he is let of the lead and another dog comes on the field he will run to it and will not stop barking at it. We have taught him the commands like: come, sit, wait, leave, down, paw etc and is brilliant indoors with these commands. Outside on his walk this is all forgotten. We are worried that he will annoy the wrong dog with his barking, he is not aggressive as when the dog is bigger than him and barks back at him, he will come running to us to protect him.

I have tried taking him to training, this never worked as he would be constantly barking at all the other dogs.

We have thought about getting another dog that get's along with any breed of dog, in the hope that it may take the pack leader role and make Gnash more submissive. But are not sure what breed of dog to go with?

Would be grateful for any advice.


----------



## hutch6 (May 9, 2008)

If you get another dog you will have a barking Gnash for quite sometime which could lead to resentment if you are not prepared for that. He will also still bark at strange dogs or people when out and about.

You sound like you take him to a dog specific place to walk and romp around so you have the perfect plave to begin conditioning hiom to the fact that strangers aren't a problem and neither are dogs.

Take a load of treats with you and just explain to other dog owners what you are trying to achieve and would they mind spending two minutes helping you out. Give them a dog treat to give to Gnash but make sure they ask him to sit before he gets it or ask him to be quiet. At least this way he will see that strangers aren't really worth barking at and he gets more if he is quiet and not so up in the air.

With the dogs situation:

Was he allowed to interact with other dogs as a pup without being dragged away or told off?

Whilst barking at other dogs does he try and solicit play with play bows, jumping about, spinning round, running away and back again or does he just stand in forn barking in their face?

Usually you just need to allow your dog to socially interact with other dogs instead of restricting them when they are so wound up and realise there isn't any need for barking as doens't really serve a purpose. Otherwise you can be setting your dog for bigger barking, lunging and pulling issues as it tries to inetract. As long as you are confident that your dog isn;t goign to bite the other dog which it sounds like it isn't or it would have jumped straight in and your thread would eb different, then you can just let him get on with learning social skills. A dog can teach your dog social skills better, faster and more effectively than you will ever be able to.

I let mine spend as much time around other people's dogs as they and the other person's dog wants. If you think about how much time we allow a creature to interact with its own species against how much we do as social creatures it is pitiful.

Ask other dog owners if they come down regularly or if they wouldn't mind a few play dates for your dogs etc. The more time he spends with other dogs the better and the more positive but controlled interactions with strangers the better. He sound slike a dog that just needs a bit of socialising. Nothing major.


----------



## Colliepoodle (Oct 20, 2008)

> We have thought about getting another dog that get's along with any breed of dog, in the hope that it may take the pack leader role and make Gnash more submissive. But are not sure what breed of dog to go with?


What breed of dog is that, then? This mythical breed that gets along with any other breed, I mean 

For goodness sake, you can't get another dog and expect it to train the one you've got! Most likely, the new one will follow Gnash's lead and start barking at everyone too.

Sort out the dog you've got before you even think about getting another.


----------



## hutch6 (May 9, 2008)

Colliepoodle said:


> What breed of dog is that, then? This mythical breed that gets along with any other breed, I mean
> 
> For goodness sake, you can't get another dog and expect it to train the one you've got! Most likely, the new one will follow Gnash's lead and start barking at everyone too.
> 
> Sort out the dog you've got before you even think about getting another.


Steady. Deep breaths. In..........out.........in............  

Welcome to the forum by the way Tania. Forgot to mention that in my post.

Are there any socialisation classes in your area?

There is one by me every Saturday 11:00 - 13:30 where you can let your dogs off in an enclosed area so they can just romp around with eachother at the owners discretion. The trainers are on hand to give advice and tips etc I believe and there are rule sot ensure that no dog that is specifically dog aggressive is allowed in without thorough tyraining before hand and a muzzle or no dogs in season.
It's £5 a pop and worth the cash if you want to let your dog learn the social skills in a kind of controlled environment.

Where abouts are you and I will see if i can find something similar that may benefit your dog?


----------



## Colliepoodle (Oct 20, 2008)

[/rant mode]

Ahem.

Yeah OK.

Welcome to the forum


----------



## staflove (Sep 4, 2008)

Colliepoodle said:


> What breed of dog is that, then? This mythical breed that gets along with any other breed, I mean
> 
> For goodness sake, you can't get another dog and expect it to train the one you've got! Most likely, the new one will follow Gnash's lead and start barking at everyone too.
> 
> Sort out the dog you've got before you even think about getting another.


I have to agree, you need to sort the dog out and manage the situation, getting another dog will follow the same behaviour, not in all cases but its not a good idea, i have a very stropy bitch and when i rescued my little lad i thought she may teach him bad habbits and he takes no notice of her but i can manage the situation between them


----------



## tripod (Feb 14, 2010)

Welcome to the forum  Get this dog right first! 

Keep him on leash - he is at great risk, as are you if he is carrying on this way. If you must exercise him do so in a secure area and/or on a long line.
You need one-2-one training help and your breed is one that needs plenty of work and lots to be doing. This bit of reactivity is tough to work on but well worth it.
Does your dog get to socialise off leash with savvy dogs often? If so whats he like?
How close do people need to pass by before he goes nuts?
This issue has nothing to do with 'dominance' so submission is not the answer


----------



## Tania (Apr 26, 2010)

Hi and than you for the welcome and various advice.

The New Zealand Huntaway is a very unique sheep-herding dog, in that it uses its voice to drive the sheep. Because they were bred as a barking-herding dog, they need to be trained when to bark and when not to bark.

He is allowed of the lead, he will go to another dog and bark, in a playful way, front legs on the ground, backside in the air and run off hoping they will run with him. Huntaways are also known for their speed, people who have seen him run are shocked how fast his is. We need to make him understand that you do not need to bark to play. 

He is great with adults and children he will greet everyone with a toy. in the hope they will play with him. Our problem is outside, he thinks he needs to bark at everyone. If people stop and talk to us he will eventually stop. I need stop the barking when they are just passing bye.

We were looking more for at another dog as companionship for him to play with, and was hoping that this would learn him how to play correctly. But maybe that is not a good idea.

When he is off the lead and runs to another dog, he will come to us if we walk away, I presume he doesn't want to be left behind so he follows us.


----------



## hutch6 (May 9, 2008)

Aye, he just wants to engage them in play.

To teach "quiet" you need to teach "speak" which should be easy if he's vocal. When he's barking say "speak" and treat him. Do this in the home to begin with. Get him barking again and say "speak" and treat again. Keep going until you can say "speak" and he barks.

Now get him barking, move your hands across your body like a conductor indicating to an orchestra that that is the end and say "quiet" at the sane time in a flat tone. As soon as he stops barking then treat. Get him barking again and do the dame action and word. Treat him for being quiet. Doing it this way you have a way of allowing him to follow his instinct but also able to control it.

You will need to do many many sessions if this to get so you can control his vocalisation when he is in an excited state.


----------



## Skemo (Sep 6, 2010)

heey

ive got a huntaway/border collie and i have the exact same problem. he barks in a defensive way- but not at everybody? he seems to pick out people he doesnt trust and barks at them, and sometimes it takes a while for him to come back. and whenever he meets a dog his coat goes up right away, even if he doesnt bark at them. maybe trust issues? he's a very odd dog :


----------



## RobD-BCactive (Jul 1, 2010)

Tania said:


> The New Zealand Huntaway is a very unique sheep-herding dog, in that it uses its voice to drive the sheep. Because they were bred as a barking-herding dog, they need to be trained when to bark and when not to bark.
> 
> He is allowed of the lead, he will go to another dog and bark, in a playful way, front legs on the ground, backside in the air and run off hoping they will run with him. Huntaways are also known for their speed, people who have seen him run are shocked how fast his is. We need to make him understand that you do not need to bark to play.


I also think you should find a good dog trainer/behavourist in the area who runs dog socialisation events. The one I found, has a regular puppy romp, but also group walks for (initially) anti-social dogs.

My experience with an anti-social 5 month old puppy, matched what some previous respondants have said.

The good relaxed example of our dog, did not stop the foster from blustering and making threatening displays to keep other dogs at a distance.

Other dog owners are not expert handlers & behaviourists, so followed natural inclinations and were not really motivated to take more than a minute or two out of their lives, to help a fearful dog. Once initial relaxation occured, and seeds of social behaviour started, the meet would end when I wanted a few calm sniffing moments (at safe distance still). I totally failed to make any headway on the issue in the 4 days I tried. Furthermore some despite called out warnings like "Rescue having a bad day, here" would not avoid the very situation I was avoiding; head on glaring confrontations with their off leash dog ahead and in the lead.

Exercising on long line, in park areas with wide avenues was the only option for a pleasant walk, and even then I would have to worry about the chances of meeting the wrong dog, off leash under poor control.


----------



## Tania (Apr 26, 2010)

Hi Skemo,

I took the advice from these posts. I have been taking our Huntaway to doggie school. Which unbelievably he is the best behaved one. Doesn't bark at the other dogs, does everything on command. I have also been doing doggie walks with friends and their dogs, we found that he needed other dogs to play with, to burn off energy, run with, play fight etc. 4 weeks ago we got a Border Collie Puppy. Huge difference, he absolutely adores him, always playing with toys together, play fighting and running around together.

Our problem was with 1 off dog's we meet. He is ok when there is a group of dogs.


----------



## nicki1591 (Apr 11, 2011)

i have a huntaway call Lucy shes two year old and very vocal aswell. she use to run off to go and see other dogs and people but we got her out of that be distracting her with a stik. she still barks at the stick but it keeps her mined off anything elas.

when lucy was little she thought everyone and eveything love her then one day she ran to play with a dog that tuned and snarled at her so i think that help a little to.

i dont think you could ever stop a hunterwy from barking its just there thing. lucy dose it at other dogs when she wants to play or when i play with her. i think there all a little mad!!!


----------



## LynnJ (Jun 11, 2020)

Tania said:


> We absolutely adore our Huntaway who is nearly 3 yrs old. We have a huge problem when walking him though.
> 
> He will barks at everyone, when we are out. Which is not good as this scares them. Although he would never hurt them, they do not no this.
> 
> ...


I have a kukoni cross huntway who is just turning one. She is very vocal, usually good with meeting most people, but on occasion will stand and bark at people. She looks very aggressive when she barks, but she is not aggressive at all. I've started distracting her when we walk past people and dogs on lead. I talk to her, tell her it's ok and she is very good and keep a treat handy. It works sometimes, but it's a work in progress. Off lead she is great with other dogs, but still wary of strangers.


nicki1591 said:


> i have a huntaway call Lucy shes two year old and very vocal aswell. she use to run off to go and see other dogs and people but we got her out of that be distracting her with a stik. she still barks at the stick but it keeps her mined off anything elas.
> 
> when lucy was little she thought everyone and eveything love her then one day she ran to play with a dog that tuned and snarled at her so i think that help a little to.
> 
> i dont think you could ever stop a hunterwy from barking its just there thing. lucy dose it at other dogs when she wants to play or when i play with her. i think there all a little mad!!!


----------



## Torin. (May 18, 2014)

@LynnJ this thread is a DECADE old (see the timestamp at the bottom of every post?). You'd be much better off starting your own thread


----------

