Hello! Looking for a little advice and reassurance with my 17 week old pup. He's a super mutt with Queensland heeler, poodle, and mostly a whole lot of companion breeds. I've had him since he was 12 weeks, but he had kennel cough and then a bad vaccine reaction, so we really didn't get into much training until recently.
He is generally a pretty chill pup who redirects to me easily, but I'm very afraid of him becoming reactive, and I want to temperature check if my expectations are realistic, and if we're off to a good start.
Here's where we're at now:
– calm and friendly with any people we pass
– sometimes gets barky when we see other animals, but can also sometimes pass calmly/neutrally and stay focused on me
How we're training:
– 2 short neighborhood walks per day with lots of reward for check ins, jackpot reward when passing potential triggers, etc
– 1 Short socialization session per day where we go to a new place (pet store, beach, etc) and get lots of rewards for calm observation
My main concern is that he can get barky towards other dogs that we pass if he's surprised by them, if they're barking, or if he thinks they are approaching him. Although he recovers quickly and can redirect and move on, I fear that this is a sign that he'll always be slightly reactive.
Are my expectations just too high for his age, or is this behavior a sign that he'll always be slightly reactive? If we keep going with the training we're doing, are we in good shape?
I genuinely just don't remember how dogs I've raised in the past were at this age. Any advice or thoughts are greatly appreciated!
submitted by /u/zetalouise123
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