My husband and I adopted a BC 5 months ago. He is a male 2 year old. When we first got him, he was perfect. He was introduced to my mother-in-Law’s dog (cockapoo) the second day we had him and he has always been fine with him. He also seems to be fine with the neighbors dogs. After a month of easy walks and near perfect behavior our dog started becoming aggressive towards other dogs. He lunges and barks at other dogs and can be challenging to control at times. We tried avoiding other dogs. We tried distracting and positive reinforcement (not effectively). We switched to a no-pull vest, which was a game-changer for a few weeks. Then it was ineffective. We began working with a trainer as soon as we could get in with someone. We have tried pinch collars and are now encouraged to use a shock collar to correct his behavior. He still lunges and barks aggressively at other dogs. I really hate shocking him. I am worried it is driving our training backwards. I know a lot of his behavior is because it’s part of his breed and he might be trying to heard dogs. I also know it’s harder to train dogs when they are older.
Other than the dog aggression, he is the sweetest dog. He’s gentle and loving towards all humans.
I honestly don’t know if we should switch trainers and try a new approach or continue with the shock collar. Please don’t judge, I’m just trying to do what the trainer told me but all of you seem very knowledgeable.
