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Ibis: I did google NILIF and I did follow it to the letter, and when she's inside she'll do as she's told 100% of the time. When she's outside she won't do a single thing, in fact she won't even look at me if I call her name
Just to be clear, this may not be an obedience issue but a temperament issue - ie, she's not being defiant. You say she seems "transfixed" - she probably is. There was an experiment done with cats where machines measured their brains' registering the sound of a bell. Then mice were introduced as stimuli to see whether the cats would hear both but ignore the bell. In fact they literally did not HEAR the bell when the mice were present.
In a situation where outside stimuli are more interesting than you are, you have to be more insistent about catching her attention. When she's in that highly aroused state, without scaring or hurting her, tap her on the butt to get her attention while calling her name again. Watch her for any sign that she hears you - flicks her ear, or shuffles her feet. Any time she acknowledges you, even by moving in your direction, praise her and give her a treat. You have to work at it, over an over, every day for a long time. I should go into more detail but this would become a dog training thread. PM me if you want a detailed exercise.
she just seems transfixed by the traffic (there's a fairly busy road we have to cross to get to the Uni' campus where I'm walking her) and especially cyclists, other dogs and joggers, who she'll growl and bark at from sometimes as far as 100 meters away. She will snap and bite at any and all pedestrians that go within fifteen meters.
You didn't say how old she was when you/your roommate got her, but this sounds like poor socialization. Unfortunately once the dog is past the puppy age, you're out of the optimum socialization window and forced to just manage the behavior. However, establishing a good relationship with the dog and training it well can help a lot.
Obedience school is still definitely an option, but it would be difficult: the dog, technically speaking, belongs to my roommate, who is out a lot during the times that she needs to be fed and walked so that tends to be my job. Also, seeing as I don't have a car I wouldn't be able to get her to obedience school. It'd be a hassle, but would it be worth it?
Yes, DEFINITELY. In my opinion "obedience" school is a must, not a luxury. The number one cause of death for dogs is behavior, ie being put to sleep for "bad" behavior. And the main reason for bad behavior is lack of training.
The way I see the plight of the dog is this - imagine you are airlifted into a remote village in another country. You don't know the language nor the customs, and as it happens a lot of the behaviors that were normal in your culture - shaking hands, hugging, laughing - are deeply irritating and even gravely offensive to the natives here. Of course you only find that out by doing things wrong - but they don't explain anything to you, they just think you're being rude. They try to teach you how to behave by hitting and yelling at you, but you still don't understand anything. And if you haven't "shaped up" in a few months, you might have to die by lethal injection.
Like I said, I'm a leeeeetle bit overly passionate on this subject. |
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