Most dogs enjoy chasing things, with cats, cars and people being particular favorites of theirs. Dogs generally see this as something fun to do, and don t mean any harm by it, but, the fact is, that by chasing they invoke fear in others and can cause unintentional accidents.
Allowing your dog to chase anything is an irresponsible thing to do. So, it is important that, as the dogs owner, you see it how others see it, as annoying and dangerous. Don t worry though, it is something that can be corrected with a little time and effort.
It is not as simple as just yelling at or hitting your dog after it has chased something. You might think that doing this would make it less likely to do it next time, but it rarely does. It s instincts will kick in again next time around and the pain it suffered last time will be soon forgotten. Taking a proactive approach, rather than a reactive one, is much better.
The very least that you should is not let your dog be in a situation that allows it to chase in the first place. With dogs who regularly chase after things, this may mean having to keep it on a leash or within a fenced yard. Until you have learnt to predict your dogs behavior and have trained it obey your commands, this must be done to ensure no danger comes to your dog or those who share an environment with it.
To prevent them from chasing an owner needs to understand his dogs cues. It is common for dogs to give some indication, such as a prolonged stare or a lifted leg, before they set off after something. Once you know what it is that your dog does, you can act before it does. You should be able to find this out fairly quickly as dogs are creatures of habit.
The obeying of basic commands is necessary for a dog to stop chasing. You need to teach your dog some basic commands to start with, such as sit down and come here. Once your dog understands these skills it will be easier to stop him from chasing.
So, how do you train a dog to obey voice commands? First you need to find something that the dog really likes, such as a toy or treat. Place your chosen item 10ft from the dog and wait for it to start approaching it. As it starts to move, command it to either sit down or come to you. When it obeys your command, speak in a warm tone to it and let it have the toy or treat.
Get a friend to help you, once it has mastered this part of his training. Have your friend jog by you whilst waving a toy or treat and see what the dogs reaction is. If it starts to chase then give the dog the command to either sit down or come. On obeying your command, give it the reward. Should it ignore you and continue to chase then be sure not to give it a reward, even if you feel sorry for it.
This might take some time and patience, but your persistence will pay off. Remain positive and determined and you should have the problem solved within a week.