Taming Toby

I rescued Toby from a very abusive situation (tied outside for 3 years to a dog house, then condemned to death for biting a child).  I immediately got him enrolled in the first obedience class I could... His problem at that time was uncontrollable barking and lunging, which seemed to get worse as the class progressed... I next enrolled him in agility...and that was a disaster... He barked and lunged at all the other dogs. Toby doesn't like men and is terrorized by machinery: vacuum cleaners, lawn mowers, snow blowers, snow plows (I live in the Adirondack Mountains, where snowplows are very common), log trucks, bicycles, ATVs, snowmobiles, pick-up trucks. When he hears/sees one of these, he becomes psycho-dog—barking and lunging and practically strangling himself on his leash...Did I mention he also pulls continuously on the leash? And when he gets onto a scent, I might as well not exist...

I have spent hundreds of dollars on books and advice...and I am at my wit's end! I really want to be able to take my dog into towns without apologizing for his relentless barking and pulling. I really want to be able to take him on hikes...without worrying that he will run off and not come back, bite someone else coming up the trail, or have to have him continuously tied to me with a 30 foot leash! I was desperate. I knew he had the potential to be a great dog and I felt I was failing him.

(One week after beginning Dialogue, self-trained)

...He doesn't drag me down the street any more, AND last night I jogged a little bit...and for the first time, he jogged WITH me—he didn't dash ahead at full tilt!!! That was very exciting (for me, anyway). And here is another bit of new behavior good news: along our route, depending which direction we head, there lives a large, very friendly Samoyed named Sammy. Sammy loves attention and loves to play, and she is always trying to initiate play with Toby, who normally will have nothing to do with her—completely ignores her. Well, last night Toby actually responded to her initiation to play...And on our way back past her driveway (the road is a dead end, so we pass it twice), Toby initiated the play. He trotted on over, and HE started playing with HER! This time I let go of the leash and they played and played! And when he headed out into the street, I called to him. He stopped, darted back toward me, and started playing with Sammy again! This must be a sign that he is relaxing and feeling more confident (Sammy is about twice his size). Another happy moment for me!

Ellen, New York