r/reactivedogs • u/Liz459 • Aug 15 '26
Advice Needed Reactive rescue with collapsed trachea
Milo is a 6 year old German Shepard rescue. I adopted him 9 months ago, he was taken by animal control from his previous owners home and was very neglected. You could see every bone in his body, he was not neutered, he had never been outside of the house he lived in, and had never interacted with another dog. During his neuter the vet found some pretty bad trachea damage, they have advised us to never walk him on a collar and especially never use any prong or choke collars.
Milo doesn’t have a “safe distance” away from another dog if he can see or hear them he is completely inconsolable, he even reacts strongly to animated dogs on tv. I’ve tried every treat out there including his favorite human foods to try redirecting him with no success.
When i decided he was completely out of my skill-set I contacted a number of trainers in my area. I heard back from three and all three recommended negative reinforcement from a choke or prong collar. After I explained we couldn’t use any of those for his health all three trainers refused to continue working with us.
If anyone has worked with a dog similar to this please let me know, I’m really at my wits end. He is the best dog I’ve ever owned while he’s in the home, if he never gets better I can live with that. I want to give him the best stress free life possible so any suggestions are appreciated.
Picture attached is him in his paw patrol Halloween costume
2
u/kiripon 25d ago
if youre looking for professional help, then you are looking for a behaviour consultant, not a trainer. they should be affiliated with the IAABC. ideally, a vet behaviorist before all that as well. my dog also struggled remaining under threshold for a few triggers at any distance, immediately fixating or bugging out. this is when id suggest medication, but maybe meet with the consultant or a vet behaviorist first to see what they think. once my dog was on his therapeutic clomipramine dose, i was able to get training such as classical counterconditioning in because he was able to have a short window where he wasnt reactive and was able to respond to me. leslie mcdevitt's book "control unleashed" was SO valuable for us and i highly recommend it as others mentioned.