Verified answer

I just had this conversation with my vet yeaterday. I have a 2 year old chow mix that I got from my animal rescue group as a puppy. I have socialized him with strangers and other animals starting at about 4 months old (after all his shots) he is a great family dog, plays well with my young kids, lab mix and the cat... But a monster on the leash. He pulls on the leash and barks at all strangers and other animals. The vet explained that he is on the offense and is trying so show everyone that he is in charge and warning them to stay out of his space. For the pulling issue I have tried a regular collars and lead, a harness and at the vets recommendations I am trying a choker chain with the spikes. For the agression problem I make him sit and won't start our walk again until he is in a calm state. We are still working on the pulling issue but if I have him jog next to me while I'm on my bike for 15-20 minutes and then take him for a walk it is a lot easier and allows more positive reinforcement.

I wish you the best of luck- and thank you for being a foster

When you walk her, use a choke chain or collar until she is more or less leash trained. This will not harm the dog and make it easier to handle her if used properly. Do not let her lead you. When you go to walk outside, make her sit inside of your front door and do not let her walk out until you are outside. If she gets up before you are outside, make her sit and be consistent. Keep her on a short leash when you walk her and if she gets excited, draw her attention back to you and give her the sit command. Reward her if she does a good job. She may then only release from the sitting command when you tell her to. She will eventually get the hang of it and once your confident in her walks, you can switch to a different collar if you wish but the same techniques apply. You must not show your frustration while training her because she will feed off of your energy and if you are upset she will be less likely to focus and do what you want her to.