German Shepherd who chases rabbits, Melbourne (VIC
I have a nearly 2 year old German Shepherd who has an obsession with rabbits. She watches them in the garden from inside the house and if is let out the front will chase them or run up the street to a neighbours property to chase them there. When she runs off she will not come back no matter how loud you yell. She goes to obedience school and works off lead most of the time and now she is just starting to run off there into the bushes when we do a recall. Is there anyway of getting rid of this obsession with rabbits??
Posted: 05/10/2007
ANSWER: German Shepherd who chases rabbits, Melbourne (VIC)
It sounds like her chase instinct is over active. I am sure that you have heard about dogs that are ball mad - well this is not dissimilar, but a little more challenging. You need to desensitize the dog on the rabbits, so it focuses on the better alternative on offer. This is an on leash exercise and will take some time. Some distraction exercises would also assist. This would be best done in one-on-one training with a behavioural trainer. But yes it can be solved or controlled. Posted: 05/10/2007