Deisel

Question
Our dog Deisel is an English Mastiff. Someone tried to take him about a year and a half ago.  Since then he has progressively getting worse about lunging toward strangers when they hold out hands toward them. How can we break him of this?  Otherwise he is a good dog and smart!  Thank you

Answer
You can't break him of it.  If you correct him for lunging, he will stop, but eventually, he will bite instead.  The lunge is most likely a stress/fear lunge.  If he has to bottle up that stress (because you've corrected him for lunging), he will eventually break and bite.  The best you can hope for is to desensitize him.  But, in order to do this, you will need the help of a whole bunch of strangers.  Start by having a stranger far enough away from your dog that he doesn't react.  Then, slowly start moving the dog and/or stranger closer a few steps.  If Diesel doesn't react, treat and praise.  Slowly (SLOWLY!) move Diesel and stranger closer and closer, treating and praising all the time that Diesel doesn't react.  If you get to a point where he does react, move back to the last distance before that and treat.  You will just have to keep repeating this sequence over and over and hopefully, Diesel will learn that good things (praise and treats) happen when he is calm around strangers.  Remember, with dog training, slow is fast.  Good luck.