"Stop!" How to control predatory chasing in dogs

by David Ryan

Throwing a ball for a game of chase is an enjoyable and rewarding experience for many owners and their dogs. For other owners canine chase behaviour turns into a nightmare when their dog chases cyclists, cars or sheep. When their dogs choose what to chase it can compromise owners financially, cause the target severe injury or even death, and threaten the life of the dog. A good trainer or behaviour counsellor needs to be able to address inappropriate predatory chase behaviour swiftly and effectively. This book looks at the reasons for the problem, the more effective solutions and how to alter the behaviour.

Genres: Dogs

80 pages, Paperback

First published January 18, 2009

About the author

David Ryan was a police dog handler and Home Office accredited instructor for twenty-six years until retiring in 2007, handling and instructing in general purpose, public disorder, firearms support, cash/drug/firearms detection and explosives search dogs.
He achieved Southampton University's post graduate diploma in Companion Animal Behaviour Counselling, with distinction, in 2002 and accreditation as a Clinical Animal Behaviourist by the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour in 2008.
His work with the RSPCA includes their definitive guide on dealing with aggression in dogs and he now works as a canine behaviour consultant, providing legal expert witness advice in both civil and criminal litigation, and lectures around the UK and abroad.

Reviews

[Veronikalas]

Contains aversive methods, but the author is advocating for primarily using reward based training. There are some interesting points, but I’d much rather he had seen using a longline as a better ’last resort’ than training with a citronella collar. You can definitely skip the last 3 chapters. I also wish he had mentioned the positive impact breed specific enrichment can have on minimizing predatory chasing.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ryan is a behaviourist and ex-police dog trainer who is highly qualified in the theory and practice of dog training, and this book gives a good multi-step plan for owners of dogs that are problem chasers.

The book is quite thin, but it's useful and easy to read. It starts with basic obedience and the theory behind why dogs choose to chase. I particularly liked the bit where he describes chasing as being like playing for England in the World Cup, and then when the dog is just about to 'score the winning goal', trying to coax him away with the offer of a biscuit!

The book is aimed at controlling chasing that occurs 'out and about' - rabbits, deer etc. It's not aimed at people who are trying to train their dogs to live with other pets such as cats - although the information about prey drive will probably also come in very handy for people who are trying to do this, it would have been nice to have an extra chapter specifically on this topic.

There is no discussion of prey drive in different breeds - as a sighthound owner, I did wonder if Ryan has mostly worked with relatively energetic dogs such as terriers and herding breeds. Some of the information particularly about teaching dogs to retrieve was hard work with my dogs, as they tend to flip from 'high drive' to 'asleep' with only one change in gear!

None the less, this is a really valuable book that I would definitely recommend to anyone who can't be 100% sure that their dog won't disappear over the horizon if a suitable target presents itself.

The final chapter deals with using a citronella spray collar with lemon juice as an aversive to produce a 'disgust' reaction. It is fenced with warnings about all the things you should do before resorting to this, which is good news, but I am not entirely comfortable about this section. I would certainly not try anything like that myself with the aid of a book, I'd want proper professional advice from a specialist used to training with dogs of a similar breed.

[Tony · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good. Particularly interested in the use and the disgust reaction of citronella as a last resort.