When a doggie sees the brake
squeal and the swerving of the car he gets excited and decides to meet the
unforeseeable thud of the wheel, resulting in sickening crash of the twisting
out-of-control-car. Of course the dog is the victim of the scene along with the
car occupants but the entire fault comes to the dog owner. It is the sad state
of affairs in our country that levies the entire actions of the dog solely on
the shoulders of the dog owner in the same way as a parent is held responsible
for the child's actions.
So what causes dogs to chase
cars? Don't they understand the risk that they are taking in order to meet the
thrills of chasing the cars? These answers can be found in the evolutionary
nature of dogs.
In the wild, dogs used to run
down their prey with the help of instinct and speed that nature has gifted them
to accomplish the task. Chasing the prey in the wild was a serious business
which not only helped them to survival, but also gave them the thrill of the
chase. But once the dogs started to be domesticated, they were not required to
chase prey for survival. However, they still have the undying urge of enjoying
the thrill of pursuing prey as a part of their natural instincts.
There are three types of dogs
that chase cars. Let us look at each one them and the way to deal with the
situation.
The protective chaser
The first type of dog chases the
car because he presumes it to be an intruder, and he is trying to protect his
owner. The best way to deal with the situation would be to break the ice
between the people driving the car and the pooch. Ask them to give treats to
the doggie so that he understands that they are not going to harm anyone in his
territory. This would most definitely pacify the dog.
Remember, most of the dogs chase
cars because they are unfamiliar with the vehicle. Once he sees the car traveling
on a regular basis, he will stop chasing it.
The voracious chaser
The second type of dog chases the
car to hunt down the people in it. The best way to deal with such dogs is to
have them on a leash or have a loud speaker so that they are distracted from the
ignition noise of the car. This would prevent the start of the chase.
Once the dog gives up on the
chase and diverts his attention to you, give him a treat along with praise so
that he starts associating the behavior of staying calm when the car goes by
with positive things. You can alternatively have him confined in a fenced area.
But every time it is not possible to have fences, hence, the best sort would be
to leash the dog to resolve this problem.
The herding chaser
The third type of dogs tries to
find out constructive ways of venting out their excess energy. The best way to
deal with this type of dog is to drain him up with regular exercise, including the
long walk coupled with adequate playtime. Once he gets tired the urge to chase
down the car will go away.
But if he still chases the car,
then divert his attention by playing with him an organized sport like Flyball
or give him agility training to keep him busy. This will help in draining his
excessive energy which would ultimately curb his car chasing behavior.
If you are still unable to reform
the car chasing behavior of your doggie, take the help from a professional dog
trainer. He will work with you and your pooch to get rid of this chasing
behavior from your dog once and for all!!
Comments
Post a Comment