Dog Walking

lolarentt

It's got to be kept simple really. Off the lead's fine if there aren't any other dogs around, or if you know FOR SURE he'll come to you if you see another dog and call him back. Otherwise on the lead when there are other dogs around, or find somewhere less popular to walk him. I had 2 labs (sadly only 1 and 14 years old now) who were a bit OTT when meeting other dogs. I always put them on leads if there were other dogs around but I still had unleashed dogs charging up to them and jumping all over them - and people blaming ME if mine then behaved a bit aggresively even though they were on their leads!

Psykicpup

As an owner of a rescue dog that has not been socialised & 'does not play well with others':eek: , I find people that allow dogs to roam off lead & under no real control a menace!
I have to keep my dog on a lead when other dogs are around as I cant trust him not to fight. However the two times I have had problems are when other loose dogs have come bounding up to him!:mad:
What I'm rather clumsily trying to say is that it is essential that you teach him not to approach other dogs without checking its ok with the other owner first. He maybe just a pup that wants to play but you dont know what the other dog is like. I'm sure you would be heart broken if your dog was hurt or the other persons dog had to be put down as a vicious dog.

I'm very concerned that you say he is making you miserable! & that he is too strong for you - a halti type headcollar may help with that but to be honest if you cant control him off lead & hes too strong for you on lead you shouldnt be walking him at all.:rolleyes: Perhaps your OH should take over the walkies

I'm sorry for being harsh but my own enjoyment of walkies is very low because I cant let my dog off entirely because of others who cant/wont control thier dogs:mad:

nickiboop

Unfortunately I will have to walk him sometimes so just giving him to OH to walk isn't really an option!
We have a halti, Mitch has eaten through it twice and hates it beyond all belief! I can't control him on a choke chain( For some reason he walks to heel with OH)
I will try him with different treats, when I tried him in the past I think he was just too exited by being outside !
None of the APDT trainers are anywhere near me unfortunately, I actually live beween York and Leeds so pretty much in the middle of nowhere! I have tried the vets but the only ones they knew of didn't do classes because they couldn't get venues
I will however look into clickers !

I have to say his redeeming feature is hes VERY Good with our 2 year old toddler!

BabyElephant

Have you tried an anti-pull harness - they can be good for dogs that can't get on with haltis. You also need to be careful in using the choke, if not used properly they can cause serious damage (sorry if I'm telling you something you already know).

I have to agree with the others who have said that you should have control of your dog in open spaces - my dog is terrified of black dogs since she was attacked by two rotties and even though yours is a black lab the same as her if he came bounding up off lead he could set our "rehab training" (as I like to call it!) back months. Yet a "supervised" introduction would do her and your dog the world of good.

Training and socialisation are the key here - check your local paper or do a search online to see what there is. Please don't give up on him, if you train him properly he will be a joy to have around

Ohhh one more thing, what food do you feed? That can sometimes cause problems too.

suki1964

First of all a BIG ((((((((((((HUG))))))))))))))))) to you.

Its not easy bringing up a pup - even harder when you have an under 5 and a partner who maybe isnt on the same page. So well done for admitting its all getting a bit much and asking for help.

Baby elephant has asked about diet. believe it or not dogs are just as suspectable to crap diets as kids are and can be completely hyper. A change to a good quality kibble and stopping any processed treats can make a HUGE difference overnight.

Georgina has offered lots of great advice. Using the breakfast allowance for training is something I had to do with my cocker (yeah a cocker that wasnt food orientated :rotfl: ) I used to walk him as usual first then bring him home to start clicker training - just long enough to get through his feed allowence. Not just recall - sit, stay, drop commands etc - kept him guessing and kept him working.

And remember you dont need hours a day - just 20 mins for brekkie and just everytime you have a few mins - even advert breaks in corrie.

Once you get him working well in the house and garden, raise the stakes and take him to the park and start the training there - just this time high value treats such as cheese, liver, chicken, sausage etc.

If you are finding it hard to keep hold of him on a collar and lead - go for a sporn harness. Cockers pull like trains - this stops them

If you cant find a class, how about finding a one2one behaviourist? Yes its going to cost a bit (upwards of 60 quid for the first consult ) but they will be able to show you how to best work with your dog.

Something Im doing with the pup Ive just rehomed is taking him to PAH and Jolleys for some socialisation. Sounds daft but both places welcome dogs - and you get doggy lovers and other dogs in them so its a "safe place" to get them used to sitting and waiting to be greeted and not jumping up. I get Billy to sit and keep reminding him to sit 9treating as he does) while dogs come sniff him over and kids come and fuss him.

The first two years of dog owning are hard but if you and your OH can work together on putting in the training you will have many happy enjoyable years to come

pboae

Try a Kumfi Dogalter head harness, I can control a 14 stone St. Bernard in one, so a lab pup shouldn't be a problem. He shouldn't be able to eat through a head harness, because it shouldn't be able to get in his mouth.

Also, get a double lead and clip it to both the head halter and a harness, that will make it very very hard for him to pull.

If he's really not interested in treats (and I would be surprised if there is *nothing* edible that motivates a lab), then you need to find something that does motivate him. I use baked liver and cheese for training.

If food doesn't do it, then try toys, balls or tuggers both work well. If your dog isn't toy orientated either, the motivator will have to be you. So you have to make yourself the most exciting, interesting, and entertaining thing your dog knows. You need to interact with him constantly on walks so he has no opportunity (or desire) to go running off.

The problem you are having is not about his size, it's purely about training. It doesn't matter how big or small the dog is, relying on physical strength to control them is never going to work in the long term.

I'd also suggest that you try www.dogpages.co.uk and http://www.rykat.org/forums/index.php?act=idx there will be someone on one of those sites who can recommend a local trainer for you. I'm in South Yorkshire and I know there are lots of Yorkshire based people who post on both boards. Some of them were kind enough to let me use their dogs as stooges when I was first training my rescue dog.

Debt_Free_Chick

nickiboop wrote: »

We have a halti, Mitch has eaten through it twice and hates it beyond all belief! I can't control him on a choke chain( For some reason he walks to heel with OH)

I think Mitch knows that HE IS the boss when he's around you. He also knows that YOUR OH is the boss when he's around him.

You must get some training. Training is not so much for the dog, more for the owner. Let me be straight as someone who took on an English Springer Spaniel two and a half years ago, with huge ambitions of training him as a gundog. I'd never trained a lapdog before, let alone a gundog!!!! :rotfl:

Dogs will do exactly what they're allowed to get away with, which is why they behave differently depending on who they're with. And, generally, dogs behave better with men because the tone of a man's voice and the manner of their behaviour is generally more commanding. When a man says "COME HERE!" what the dog hears is :eek: "get yourself here, now, this minute without stopping to sniff, pee or even glancing in a different direction. Do it NOW!"

When a woman says "COME HERE!" what the dog hears is :A "coo-eee, come on my gorgeous little precious beauty. :happyhearThere's a good boy ... come and see mummy:lovethoug" ... so no wonder dogs find other dogs more attractive :rolleyes:

Work on lowering the tone of your voice so it sounds gruff - in my experience, a very difficult thing to do. Try gritting your back teeth together. He needs a firm, clear command in a manner that leaves him in no doubt about obeying it.

Use short, sharp, gruff commands and leave the sweet voice for praise and praise ONLY when the dog has done exactly what you want it to do. On recall, for example, praise the dog when it gets to your feet. Don't praise it when it's only advanced by a yard, as the dog learns that's all he needs to do so there's no point in him recalling all the way.

It's you that needs to be trained in how to train/behave around the dog. I'm sorry that's blunt, but it took me about a year of constant training before it stuck. I'd "get it" at the training session, but not apply what I'd learned until I went back the following week. :doh:

Forget about special leads, harnesses and other gadgets. These simply won't turn Mitch into a well behaved dog who respects you as a Master. He will simply be restricted - not a bad thing, but not the answer IMHO.

Mitch doesn't respect you as "a higher being" in dog-pecking-order land. And to be honest, from what you've written he does seem to have the upper hand, as you're at the stage whereby you hate (dread?) walking him. Ask yourself ... is this because you know he'll do what HE wants and not what YOU tell him?

Get yourself some training. There will be trainers near you - you live in "dog country" (as I do). Be prepared to travel. I used to drive 25 miles on Sunday mornings to a three-hour gundog class, come rain or shine. I hated the travel, but loved the class But I did it because it made a real difference to the way I handled and managed my dog. Before then, he would have me in tears simply by ignoring what I later found out to be my feeble and ineffective commands.

I think you're procrastinating about the training, probably because you're so exasperated and frustrated with the dog - I know that feeling all too well

Well stop it Find a trainer. If you have to, find a gundog training class - seriously. A gundog is just a very well trained dog. Trained to be steady and not chase sheep, birds or any other animal (including other dogs!); trained to retrieve; trained to walk to heel, off the lead (and I mean TO HEEL); trained to recall, every time. There's nothing in a gundog training class that you wouldn't want every dog to do.

There's a Retriever Club in York, a gundog club in Keighley, a "canine club" in Keighley all listed here. Sorry if they're not convenient locations, but I don't know your part of the country - but get Googling!

You can get started now by finding what motivates Mitch. You say not treats? Didn't work for me either. :wall: But there will be something. Try a ball. Try a frisbee -though I can't work the damn things :mad: . Just find something that gets him excited and then reserve that thing for training. Don't let him have it to play with - put it away and take it with you only when you walk him. Use it to entice him to follow you. Hide it, let him walk away/run off a little - then call him, show him the thing, wave it excitedly and keep calling him. Let him have it for a short time, as that's his reward - but gently take it off him again, so he has to "work" to earn the next reward. He's also likely to respond to lots of fuss and praise. When he does what you want, overplay the fuss. Get down on the ground with him and rub him around his head & neck, giving lots of cooing praise

Finally - Mitch is still a puppy. The good news is, he's completely trainable for about the next two years. The bad news is, he's not yet fully trained so he'll misbehave as he doesn't know any different.

You have a great opportunity here to turn this dog around - please don't waste it. He'll repay you in bucket loads, with good behaviour and loyalty, if you get this right now.

Hope my "tough love" approach hasn't insulted you as it's not my intention.

BTW - do I have a well trained fully obedient gundog? Do I heck as like :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: But he's far better than he would have been, had I not persevered with the training. Even other local gundog owners admit that I've "not done too bad a job" and he's still very young, so time for me to improve. Note, it's me that's need to improve - the dog won't do it on his own

A good saying, well known in gundog circles ...

"Remember, labradors come into the world half-trained. Springers leave it half-trained"

Never a truer word

Good luck

Debt_Free_Chick

nickiboop wrote: »

Who is right here, should my dog get exercise or should he stay on a lead at all times not to upset little old ladies?

She is right, in the sense that a dog should always be under control. This doesn't mean on the lead - but it does mean he should return to you when you call him.

She was also being a bit harsh as she must have seen that he's only a puppy and so not yet fully trained.

Debt_Free_Chick

suki1964 wrote: »

(yeah a cocker that wasnt food orientated :rotfl:

Yup - I've got a Springer who was just the same - still is :mad:

He'd win Springer body of the year, though :rotfl:

JennyW_2

nickiboop wrote: »

I am thinking of getting rid of him but that would make me feel even worse as I hate people who get dogs without thinking it though and I feel like as we have taken him on we have to keep him even if I am miserable. I should have stuck to my guns and got a smaller dog.

these are the sort of comments that make me very sad and angry. Here is another young dog, through no faulty of his own, who may well end up being rehomed. Taking on a young dog is never easy. Did you not consider what responsibilities come with taking on a pup?

Of course he is pulling, he has not been trained to walk properly. Dogs don't come ready trained, they need to develop and learn.

Are you taking any time out to train him or just assuming that he'll stop pulling one day? If you cant manage on your own then you'll need to seek help with training classes