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The simple answer is: you need to reprimand him whenever he grabs the legs of another dog. Please have a look at this related question: What is an effective way to discipline a dog?.
The difficult part is that any kind of reward or punishment is most effective withing a maximum of 2 seconds after the behavior you want to reward or punish. You need to have a direct connection with your dog to be able to reprimand him any second in the dog park. If you start running to him the moment he grabs another dog, you initiate a different behavior (most likely playing) instead of discouraging his previous behavior.
Also important: dont wait with your reprimand until after your dog has already grabbed some legs. The moment you see him leaning towards a dogs legs or opening his snout to grab them, call his name and sternly tell him “NO!”. Dont make it a friendly “Id really appreciate if you didnt do that” but look at him angrily and tell him “no” in a stern voice, so there can be no doubt in your dogs mind that you dislike whatever hes doing right now.
You might need to discourage his behavior in a physical way, too. This never ever means to hit or otherwise hurt your dog. Most dogs are simply so concentrated on their playing and interacting with other dogs that they ignore their owners vocal commands. By adding a physical contact, you pull him from his previous thoughts and make him notice you.
The solution is a long leash. They come in length of 20 or even 30 meters and can become quite cumbersome. Additionally, if your dog is 20 meters away from you, you still have no chance of reprimanding him in time, even if hes on the leash. So please use a leash of 5 – 10 meters. That gives your dog enough freedom of movement to play with others while keeping him close enough to give you a chance to interact with him at any second. A short pull on the leash at the right time can act as the physical stimulus to pull him from his playing and notice your reprimand.
An alternative is a remote controlled shock or vibrating collar. I strongly discourage the use of electric shock collars as these are much too strong and the electrodes are situated directly at the throat. Most dog owners I know have made good experiences with a simple vibrating collar, and even those vibrations are often too strong for sensitive dogs.
Start by disabling the electric shock (if the collar has one) and configuring the vibration to the lowest level. Then fit the collar to your dogs neck. It must not restrict movement or breathing, but should not sit too loosely. As a rule of thumb, you should be able to easily fit 2 fingers between the neck and the collar.
Then take a walk with your dog or observe his actions at home. Whenever he does something bad, activate the collars vibration and see how he reacts. Its enough for him to be startled or confused and stop his behavior. Thats all you really need. If he ignores the collar, the vibration is too soft, if he yelps or panics, its too strong.
Keep in mind that activating the collar itself is not the punishment. Its just the physical stimulus to stop the unwanted behavior and make the dog perceptible for your reprimand. You still have to tell him with your voice that you dislike what hes doing.
Some people prefer teaching their dog alternative behavior instead of reprimanding bad behavior. I honestly cannot fathom how you would implement an alternative behavior to grabbing other dogs legs without making your dog not play with other dogs anymore…
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I am a Cesar fan and have a question regarding dogs at ‘play’. My first obvious thought is that, if your dogs have energy to play, they’ve not had enough exercise’right?’ In any event, what types of play do you allow in your pack?
You mentioned that your dog has enough energy to play after she does exercise or goes for a walk. Absolutely! Utilizing extra energy in play is a great way for dogs to celebrate the day. All the dogs at the Dog Psychology Center play after exercise. They just don’t play for a long period of time. After feeding times and when the temperature cools at around 5 pm, everybody here is frisky and playful, but playtime only lasts about fifteen minutes. After that, they are tired!
I have a very playful two-year-old, high-energy Doberman named Klohee.’ She gets along well with other dogs: play bows, lays down to bait them to play, etc., but is quite obnoxious at times about playing, i.e. does not know when to stop.’ Even after her exercise, she always has enough energy to play with other dogs.’ Listed below are some of my observations of her play.’ Can you tell me which behaviors should be allowed and to what extent I should ‘break it up’ as her pack leader?’ How can I tell if the play is reciprocal or if she’s just being pushy?
Why does my dog bit my other dogs legs?
‘ Nips at legs. – This is more irritating to a dog than a bite to the neck. Dogs do this when the other dog is not paying attention.
Why Does My Dog Chew His Leg?
Training your puppy when you bring him home with you is generally the number one task on any new dog owner’s list. From obedience to house training to preventing separation anxiety, there are tons of issues to tackle during his journey through puppyhood, and managing them all at once is not always easy. There are bound to be things here and there that fall through the cracks, One of the issues that puppy owners come across often is the painful nipping that comes along with some rough play. Puppies have sharp little teeth that can cause some discomfort for other dogs if they’re uncertain of their own strength. Socialization with other dogs is important for puppies to develop good manners, but dealing with a nippy puppy can be a chore all on its own for both the owner and the other dogs in the area.
Biting and nipping is natural puppy behavior and it is common for a puppy to not have manners when it comes to interacting with other dogs. Puppies learn manners from their mother and littermates and sometimes, the provided role models are not quite what we’d hope. Puppies can also pick up bad habits from their environment, whether it was accidentally reinforced or not. Despite this, your puppy should learn the appropriate behavior as soon as possible, starting from when you first bring him home, and should be reinforced for at least three to six weeks in order to assure that the better, more appropriate habit is established. Positive reinforcement for the appropriate behavior and interrupting bad manners are both tools to utilize during this training, as it can keep a small problem from developing into a much larger one later on.
Before your training begins, make sure your puppy is fully vaccinated. Puppies shouldn’t interact with other dogs outside of their litter until they’ve received all of their vaccinations in order for them to stay happy and healthy. Once that is done, invest in a few chew toys and other items that are good and healthy for your puppy’s teeth. Treats and snacks that are made to be a little tough and chewy are ideal, but remember not to get anything too hard, or this could damage the teeth! Use these items often for downtime, play time, and rewards.