Leash reactive Labrador Behaviour

Any suggestions on how to keep my 2 year old black Lab from lungeing, snarling and barking at other dogs while she's on her leash? She also tries to hurl herself out of my golf cart to get at these other dogs, digging her hind feet into my tender thighs for traction while barking, snarling and lungeing. She's been trained as a drug sniffer, and she gives the landscapers a run for their money!

You may have to go back to basics with your Lab, with socialisation and leash training. She needs to learn other dogs are not a threat and you should be the focus of her attention, not other dogs.

Try these videos from Victoria Stilwell:

Absolutely no use what so ever, but my lab was trained as an explosive sniffer dog and reacts in the same way on the lead. I think that it is a total lack of socialisation. Ben was 15 months old when we got him and although he had been interacted with a lot whilst training, I don't think he got much if any time with other dogs doing doggy things.
When Ben used to be let off the lead, if he saw another dog he would charge at it with no manners what so ever. Then he would quite rightly get shouted at, or attacked He now has a deep fear of any dogs he sees when he is out and his best line of defence is attack.
Ben is fine in a controlled environment, like dog training or walking around town with us where all dogs are on leads. He is even fine when I used to introduce him to strange dogs in his garden, when I used to be a dog walker
But put him in a normal walk situation, he will either charge dogs and bark at them if off a lead (doesn't go off lead any more) or try to kill any dog that comes within 25 metres of us when he is on a lead. Even if he knows the dog well.
Like others have said go back to very basic training with someone who knows what they are doing, when out and about, in the situations where she reacts

Do you take her out for walks with you walking, or just in the golf cart?

Malka,
I have stopped taking her out for walks because she is so strong and so reactive that I'm afraid that she might break loose from me. If the other dog handler allows his/her dog to get closer to my Lab, my Lab calms down immediately, sniffs the other dog, and wants to play. However, the initial meeting can be traumatic and scary for all concerned. I take her on the golf cart only at night now when there are fewer dogs being walked, but she continues to lunge, bark and snarl at them while I'm attempting to drive the cart, which is a danger in itself.

I thought because she was a Lab and because she'd been trained by the police that I was getting a well-trained, lovable Lab! Big mistake. It's going to be back to square one with this doggy. She just had her 3rd birthday, so I hope we're not too late!

She just turned three years old. I certainly hope that it's not too late!

Thanks so much for the videos. Checked out the clicker training by Victoria Stilwell as well. We will commence clicking forthwith!

My brother does security with his dogs and has a drugs dog. They dont live a normal dog life and its not easy to train them in normal life. My brothers dogs have never been for a "normal" walk in the park or anything like that and i dred to think how they would react if he did but his dogs are quite a bit older now. What you need to remember is your dog has come from a structured world where the handler will leave the dog with no question about what to do, will either be working or in her kennel or vehicle. I defiantly think you need to go back to basics and train your dog in the ways of the world the way you would a puppy as most of it is probable new and scary to her. You also need to remember that she is probably very smart and that she needs a challenge. A good game you can play with her is searching as she will or should already know how to do this.
Get something she loves her teddy or ball. Make sure she see's you take it. put her in a sit and stay and hide the toy. hide the toy and send her to find it. At first it should be easy and in plain site then move on to her seeing you in the general area you hid it. Untill you hide it without giving to many clues. If after 1-2 mins she hasnt found it you made it to hard and give her a clue. never ever ever let her fail to find it and go over the top with praise each time she brings it back.
before you start training come up with what issues you want to correct and have a game plan that you will stick to as consistency is key. You will need to find ways to get rid of excess energy for training to go well as if shes hyper she will find it hard to concentrate. If you feel like you need extra support or help speak to where ever you got your dog as they will be able to give you a good idea as to what she was used to before

Thank you so much for the advice. Ahhhh, smart she is! Will go slowly with her. Thanks again.

When you take her on the golf cart, do you hold her leash or attach it firmly to the cart? I take my dog out using a large road mobility scooter and her leash is attached to the frame of the canopy/roof so that I have both hands free to steer. There is no way I could drive it and hold her leash at the same time.

She's on a leash that is attached to the frame of the golf cart. Unfortunately, the leash is long enough to where she could seriously injure herself should she actually launch herself out of the cart. Consequently, I hold onto the steering wheel with one hand and the Lab's collar/leash with the other. This is NOT a good combination even at slow speed, ergo night trips only where there are fewer dogs being walked. One trainer who came to my house suggested that I squirt lime juice into her mouth when she starts to bark/snarl/lunge. That is a two person operation for sure. Not many retirees here want to volunteer to tangle with a 75 lb reactive dog while in a golf cart. She's fine until she see another dog, and then the games begin.

Sorry Susan, I thought you meant that she walks while you drive which is what I do with Pereg, although it is more of a gallop interspersed with periods of slow walking that just a walk.

So how does she get her exercise then if you do not walk her and she sits in the cart while you drive?

As for squirting lime juice into her mouth, what sort of trainer would suggest such a horrible thing to do.

Ahhhh, one who charged $60 for a 2 hour session and who trains animals for films and at Disney (Orlando). She also suggested a prong collar. Happy, the Lab, plays ball twice a day with a tennis ball and Chucket, so she's getting lots of exercise, but she still needs to learn to walk on a leash without trying to eat the "ankle biters". She also chases gas operated golf carts, UPS, FedEx and anything noisy. We have a large side yard with the underground electronic fence, so she doesn't leave the yard, but she is wearing out my grass, and I'd prefer not to have to re-sod it.

So Happy does not actually go out for walks on a leash.

The thing is though, how can she learn to walk on a leash if she is not taken out on one. Playing ball twice a day will not teach her how to walk on a leash, nor will sitting in the cart while you drive around. She needs to be walking because she will never learn how to walk properly on a leash by playing ball, running around in your yard, or sitting in a golf cart.

she sounds scared to me. my dog is also scared of just about everything and compensates for this by acting in an aggressive manner about 70% of time. I use a head collar so that i have a safety net should something appear that she lunges at and my dog weighs more than i do so i can tell you with a head collar you dog should not get the better of you. i will only ever recommend a dogmatic as all others i have seen work there way in to eye and some even close tight around muzzel. I would also say have a double ended lead so you can have one end clipped to collar aswell just incase the clip on dogmatic fails. with a dog like you have she needs working as she is a working dog that has been trained to work and has the drive to work. with dogs like this the saying "the devil makes work for the idle" comes to mind. She needs her mind and body keeping active. you need to give her a good long walk a day and also play at home bit of ball play, the search game, mind games like the tray games you can buy that you hide a treat in. Phoebe used to have a ball that after rolling round would deposit a treat it was for horses and big heavy plasic so was hard work for her. I think you need to look in to a dog matic, look in to good training methods such as victoria stillwell to help you combat the issues. If shes focussed on you on walks she shouldnt notice other dogs and if shes busy or sleeping because shes knackered at home she wont be tearing up your garden barking at passers by. You have to be the most interesting thing in her whole world. And once she is out and about and well exercised she will also be learning that the world is not that bad a place.

Do you mind if i ask why you walk her on a golf cart??

Point taken. It occurred to me that I could just walk her around the block where there are few if any dogs to whom she might negatively react. When I first acquired her back in October 2012, we walked daily, so she knows how to walk on a leash. However, it became so embarrassing and dangerous for me to be dragged down the street that I finally quit walking her. I hired a local dog trainer in addition to the "lime juice" lady who considers herself to be an expert in animal behavior, and they both recommended the prong collar, which did nothing but aggravate the situation. In Florida walks must take place early (6:00 AM or earlier), especially with a black Lab who absorbs heat quickly, because the pavement quickly gets too hot. However, that's what all the other dog owners are thinking, and that's when the problem begins.

No, no, I don't "walk" her on the golf cart; she rides on it. I live in a large golf cart community, and that's how I mostly travel. Riding on the golf cart is supposed to be fun for her, as it was for my previous Lab. Is the "dogmatic" a black strap-like device that fits over the dog's muzzle? If that's what it is, I have one, but she manages to get it off before I'm out of the driveway. She is my third Lab but is nothing like my other two. She was found wandering around Deerfield Beach, FL, and rescued by Lab Rescue in Gainesville, FL, when she was about 15 months old, and because she's so smart,
she was then quickly adopted by the sheriff's dept in Orlando for drug sniffing school.....but eventually kicked to the curb. I acquired her when she was nineteen months, fresh out of drug sniffing school. From the scars on her back, I believe she was abused or had to fight for her life when on the streets. I have had no experience in raising abused dogs, only loved dogs. I do believe she is frightened of many things because she is very gentle with neighborhood dogs who come into our yard to play with her, regardless of size. She is unleashed, and that seems to make a difference.