Taking your dog for a walk is one of life's real pleasures. The fresh air, the countryside, peace and tranquility. Time alone, just you and your dog, letting the troubles of the world tumble from your shoulders and travel away down that babbling brook. But, all too often, we see people who are trudging along, head down, shoulders hunched, just getting from A to B. Completely disconnected from their dog, who is busy making his own entertainment searching out smells far away from his owner, running left and right, far and wide without a backwards glance. This is a sad picture of isolation; of two souls on separate journeys, sharing little of the pleasure between them. It's very easy for walks like this to become a chore, rather than something to look forward to, and far too easy for the dog to end up in trouble. So, what can we do? I thought this thread would be a good place for people to discuss what they do to keep their dog close to them on walks. Here are my thoughts, for what they are worth. First off, I want to share the walk with my dog. I want to feel I am walking with him/her, rather than simply following along the same route. The first step to this is being aware of where the dog is at all times. Watch him/her. In one of the books I read recently, there was a suggestion for a "game" where you're walking with a friend and, at random intervals, they tell you to stop. You close your eyes and have to say where your dog is and what he's doing. It's a very simple exercise, but, looking at other dog walkers, I'm confident that most I come across wouldn't be able to do this most of the time. If you're alone, you could do the same thing by setting an alarm for random intervals. Why not make it interesting and allow yourself a treat if you get it right? Once you start watching your dog, you'll probably be surprised at how often he looks at you. Even a fleeting glance, just to check you're where he thought. Maybe he brushes past your legs on occasion, when there is plenty of room for him to get by without any contact. These check-ins should be acknowledged and rewarded. If you use a clicker, then clicking and treating for the looks in your direction will increase their frequency. Even returned eye contact, a smile, a few happy words, a tickle between the ears - anything that your dog enjoys is good for rewarding. It varies from dog to dog, though - although both of mine respond very well to a C&T, Willow is particularly happy just to receive returned eye contact and a smile and in some regards this is more valuable to her than the treat. I think she likes the feeling of connection in that shared look. Shadow isn't as subtle and enjoys a good ear rub. Stop walking! A couple of times in each walk, I find somewhere to stop and sit for a few minutes - on the ground if possible, or on a rock. Invariably, the dogs will come and sit by me, and we can share some good "together" time. They don't wander off at all at these times. It's not something I've trained for; they just seem to appreciate stopping and spending time with me. Lovely Make yourself exciting! I play a lot of games when we're out on walks. I reward them for being close with a game of "which way?!" where I get a treat and bounce from side to side, while the dog tries to work out which way I'm going to throw it. Highly exciting for them and very rewarding. They get a game and a treat! This happens multiple times in the walk, and always when they approach me, rather than me calling them to play. They also get regularly rewarded by having a pine cone thrown for them to chase. When there are two of us doing the walk, we play "recall ping-pong" which is a highly active and fun game for them. Or hide and seek with both of us; I keep the dogs with me and my husband walks off and hides behind a tree. I send them off with a "Where's Daddy?!" and they go shooting off to find him, while I hide. When they find him, he does the same: "Where's your mum?!" and they come to find me. Because they always have one of us around, it's not a hunt based on fear of abandonment; it's just pure fun and they are so excited to find us! The book Clicker Gundog suggests showing your dog what a good hunter you are. All the time they are off mooching without you, that's what they're doing; hunting. Trying to find scents that will lead them to something tasty or exciting. So, show your dog that you can be a good hunter, too. Scatter a load of treats on the floor, and "find" them, all excited. "What's this?!?!!? Wooooooowwww!!!". Your dog will come to see what it is, and lo and behold, you've found an amazing stash! You are a fabulous hunter and should be watched more closely from now on, in case you find another one. (The downside of this is, as your dog starts to watch you more closely, it becomes harder and harder to scatter the treats without them noticing!!!). A variation is from the Chase! book I just read, and is a Sausage Tree. A similar concept, but you're stuffing bits of sausage, cheese, whatever into the bark of a tree. The book suggests doing this before your walk, but for me, it's more practical to do it when I have someone else with me to distract the dogs while I go and load the tree. Make sure you get some bits in nice and high, so the dog has to reach up to get them - even better if you have to point them out or pull down a branch to help; this promotes teamwork. When I "find" the tree, I shout "Wow, it's a sausage tree!" and the dogs go nuts. Sausage trees are the best and I'm the only one that ever finds them. Training games. My dogs are most connected to me when I'm working their brains. They just love to be challenged and worked. It's not a chore; it's a real pleasure for them. So, bring it into your everyday walks. Who says a "walk" has to be about getting around a certain path in the quickest time? Mix it up. Do a couple of minutes of "work" here and there as you go. Take your dummies and target sticks, if you use them, and set up some activities. Chuck in the odd stop whistle and reward with the throw of a ball. Even if you don't do gundoggy stuff, putting in the odd sit/stay in the middle of your walk, hand targeting from a distance, basic obedience.... these all work their minds and help them to stay focussed on you, wanting to know what you're going to ask them to do next. Training is FUN, so take every opportunity to share it with them. I use all of thees tactics every day to try to make myself as appealing and fun as possible. To keep my dogs engaged and connected to me. By doing so, our bond has increased, my dogs look relaxed and happy and they stay close, not knowing when I'm going to do something super fun again. It's certainly more work than just plodding round the edge of a field, but you know what, it's so much more rewarding to get home feeling that you have shared that time together, rather than just coexisting in the same rough area. What things do you do to keep your dog close?
I very much agree with everything Fiona writes. Just a couple of builds: I don't set off to walk very long distances with Charlie, who is a dog that constantly seeks out mischief. If I set off to walk a long way, eventually I'll become tired (especially if he has been hard work), or time will start to get on, and then it can go wrong. I view a walk more as "spending time" in an area with my dog and we just get as far as time allows - if we spend a long time playing or training, and not walking, that's fine. I think that it's important to start the walk as you mean to go on. If, when you take your dog's lead off or let him out of the car, he shoots off to do his own thing, you are on the wrong foot to start with. When you are starting off with this, drop a pile of treats, and walk off - most dogs will rush to catch up with you (after all, you are dropping piles of treats) then you can engage him for a few minutes, and give a "go free" cue. You can build this up until you can take off your dog's lead and nothing happens, he just stays with you until you say "go free". Spend some time with your dog on a lead. So many people say "but s/he is awful on lead, much better off lead". That's because you don't put your dog on a lead. Having a dog that will calmly walk on a lead in an area where they expect to be off lead is priceless - and an important part of your and your dog's safety. Turn "lead on" into a big game (a limited slip lead is best for this because you can get your dog sticking his head through the loop for a treat). When I first started stopping on walks, my dog would leave. My dog is extremely confident, he was very happy to be far away from me at a very young age, and he doesn't panic if he can't find me. He more or less just thinks "she'll turn up". So I had to start this with my dog on lead and a structured "settle" cue. Then build that up to me still or sat down as a cue for him to hang around. Up your expectations - have a clear idea in your mind what you want your dog to be able to do, and what you don't. And be consistent. If you don't want your dog running over to other dogs, then you can't sometimes let him run over to other dogs (when you don't think the other owner will mind, for example). If you want your dog to turn to you when he gets out of the car, then you have always got to do that, you can't do it only sometimes, and then get annoyed when your dog doesn't always do it (because neither do you).
I have two Labs, one drives me mad because he wants to be near me all the time and throw a ball or retrieve, the other one is quite happy mouse hunting or generally hunting. If I do suddenly stop, they are both with me in seconds. I like a dog to have freedom on a walk, to do what dogs do, hunt and scent, but on the other hand they are under control in as much as they will respond immediately I call them and they have their eye on me as if I change direction, so do they. I start the walk with them on the lead, then off the lead but walking to heel a few yards, then sit, then I tell each one they can go in turn. I do of course do retrieving here and there, long memory retrieves for both of them, blinds, stop whistle, but in between they can be dogs.
Homer often does a little check in look back when he trots ahead of me off lead, I also play a little check back and call him back at random intervals with various treats of joys ya good boy. On a few occasions I dropped back or stop, sometimes hide behind a tree and watch him, check back, not see me and he gets a bit worried and comes back to find me. Recently, on holiday along a tricky path, we let him run on with my my husband while I went to sit a little way off the oath to see what he would do. After about 20 meters he would not let my H go any further then came back till he saw me, then ran back and forth until H came back to me. We were very proud of our dog!
Such an interesting read snowbunny and JulieT. I totally agree with everything you have said. Mabel has her harness off, lead and collar on before she leaves the car. I'm amazed how many people let there dogs out of the car and off they go. If she pulls on the lead she doesn't get anywhere, she's learning no pulling equals reaching her destination faster. We have a few minutes on lead in the field/wood or park, she's allowed to sniff and explore. She then has her lead unclipped but only when she offers a sit. During the time we are out she can sniff, run and explore but she is frequently recalled. Although at times this can be a bit difficult as she hasn't moved very far away. I do some training and games which vary in duration. I also clip her lead on at least once mid walk and practice a little heel work. I'll use other dogs and owners as training aids for my recall and heel work. For me a walk isn't about distance it's the time I spend with my girl. Sometimes we don't get very far at all, especially if we walk from the front door we may only get as far as the brook at the end of the road especially if it's rained. Such fun, I must look strange running through the water in my wellingtons. A couple of times a week I'll go on a urban walk purely because she goes into sensory overload around lots of people and shops. She's not that interested in people it's the smells and pigeons. It is hard work, twice this week I've been told you don't get the dog you want until they are 3 years old. I've a long way to go as she is now 10 months old. I just have a clear view of how I want my dog to behave, I've high but not unrealistic expectations. She can be extremely silly, over confident but at other times nervous and anxious. Today she was scared of a crisp packet our walks can be frustrating, although most of the times they are fun and interesting.
I'm not sure you ever get the dog you want...I think you get the dog you deserve (through hard work and how you behaved in a previous life). Arrghhh.....I'm doomed!
Love this thread...... Most mornings we go to the desert for an off lead walk....at the moment due to the weather I drive out but in Winter I will walk so Dexter gets a good 20 mins walk on the lead before we've got there.He has to sit before his lead is taken off or 'wait' until I say 'ok' before he jumps out of the car... I pack his breakfast portion of food in my treat bag along with some higher value stuff .When I've driven I park in a really open flat area so I can see any deer movement for miles and miles ( and they can see us) it's not very interesting or scenty so he stays really close to me ,practically on heel, I think this is because I've always rewarded him for checking in with me.,when he's trotting along nicely next to me and looking up I pass him a biscuit every so often . Once I get into the dunes ,it becomes the more interesting ,scenty part of the walk his nose goes down and his tail goes up and I need to start engaging him more.....I use rabbit skin toys out in the desert for retrieving and to play fetch. We also play ' find it ' which is my amateur blind retrieve....although I'm a bit scared of encountering a snake so I don't send him foraging too deep into the bushes! Dexter hates not being able to see me.....that doesn't mean I'm safe though,seeing something to chase or the memory of a place he's found something tasty to snack on will override that ....So we play hide and seek.....but because I'm on my own I use my recall whistle to call him in,he comes belting back if he can't see me. I put him in sit/lie down stays and climb up to the top of really high dunes and call him up to me ( great excercise) .Now he's older he can cope with a ball chucker about my person so I use that with a tennis ball but I race him for it.....he's not copped onto the fact that he could beat me everytime because sometimes I trick him and he's goes belting off and I throw it in the other direction! We also play catch with the tennis ball. I'll try the hunting game you do Fiona where you find a pile of treats too.....I do like playing with him but I do also just love walking along with him quietly as dawn breaks and the desert is so peaceful......well that is until I shatter the tranquility with the ball chucker game !!!
Thanks for all your replies. I totally agree with "start as you mean to go on" and, from very early, mine learnt to sit quietly to have their leads removed, and then to continue to sit until I release them to play. It's so easy to train, and far less stressful than having a dog that is straining at the lead and who runs off as soon as he's let off. I'm working on extending this to having their collars put on before we leave. I'm lucky that my two have never been the type to go mental as soon as I pick up their leads and collars, but they are excited and, left to their own devices, won't stand still, will pace and barge and generally be a bit rude. So, now, they are learning that the collars only go on when they're sitting quietly. Of course, once they're on, it all goes a bit crazy as they try to rip them off each other's necks, but that's another story Clipping the lead on and off throughout the walk has also been great for me. I'm currently walking my two with one always on the lead. When I get their leads out, they trot over and sit down to have it clipped on (for a nice treat, obviously!). Having lead walking time in the woods and by rivers etc has done wonders for their on-lead walking in other locations. They were pretty good anyway, but Willow especially has gone from being "pretty good" to fabulous. Walking down the road to one of our favourite walking areas, she would generally be excited and start to sniff and pull, so it would take plenty of stop-starting to get the last thirty or so metres, but now she just trots alongside me, in a beautiful position (I struggled for a while to get her positioning right) with no bother whatsoever and without having to treat her every other step I like the thought of making a game with the limited slip lead. Mainly because I'm always after an excuse to go shopping for the dogs! I've been looking at the Tuffstuff ones for a few months now, trying to work out if I need them or not. Although, since we're going to be back in harnesses very soon for the winter, it's probably not worth it.
I love my walks with Harley. At the start of a walk, Harley knows she has to sit to have her lead taken off and wait until I release her. We mainly do off lead areas, but I mix it up by putting her lead on randomly and getting her to walk nicely. I always put her lead on if we someone with their dog on lead nearby. 99% of the time she won't go towards another dog until I say 'go on'. Even then, she says a quick hello then is straight back to me. I love watching her run, especially in the long grass, and she won't go far from me and keeps checking in. We do training at random times - recall, sit, wait, lead walking, blind retrieves, ball throwing/find it, off lead heel walking and a few more. I mix up every walk so she never knows what's coming. I always know where she is as she stays quite close unless retrieving, but even then I can always see her. I see so many walkers constantly throwing a ball or having headphones on not paying attention to their dog and I feel sorry for the dog, just ambling on, no interaction. It must be so boring for them!
Lovely post Ternaya , Harley is making such a good girl, sounds like you both get so much from being out and about . I agree, its so sad when owners don't get the same enjoyment from walks as their dogs do , I just adore that Sam will check in and look to me for instructions, or just wag his tail , pure pleasure indeed . Changing walks is such a good thing to do , we are lucky in having lots of forests with masses of different trails , its so good for them to experience change and learn to accept it , well done to you both x
I am enjoying this thread and it's very useful as I hadn't realised how much training I actually do. So just got back from a 1 1/2 hour walk with Hattie and I made lots of mental notes. I do lots of heel work of course, sitting the other side of stiles whilst I walk a good long distance and recall her, lots of sitting and downs at a distance with recalls, out of sight sits or downs followed by recall, some very basic directional work which is just for fun, stop whistle, playing either ball or tug, although some days Hattie isn't interested other days she can't get enough, some hide and seek too. Extra work needed now as the darn Pheasants are out in their hundreds I had noticed over the last few days Hattie was far too interested in flushing Pheasants and going too far from me following scents, on ocassions for 5 minutes which is worse than Charlie and I'm not happy with that So I went out today armed with juicy chicken and set to work and she never left me once, we walked across a harvested field on lead, lots of Pheasant scent, Hattie walked to heel pretty much the whole distance, with a click, click with my tongue which gets her attention back on to me and by my side, much more effective than a nagging "heel". She kept at her 5 - 10 meters and always checking in to a "good" and treat, lots of fun and games a little sit down and tug games and hiding too and all our usual bits and pieces thrown in. The difference was great so we will see how the next few days go and hopefully the result will be Helen 1 - Pheasants 0 I have to say I do love a 'walk' to be just that and I don't personally think there is anything wrong with it if your dog stays with you and mostly Hattie does, but if she slips up more work is done, of course. My walks with Hattie are the most precious time of the day and we both enjoy them enormously . Charlie gets walked by David who is working hard on C&T for every bit of attention and now responds a little round wildlife, lots of heel work, hide and seek and stop whistle which still is very slow progress with him. He is a completely different and difficult rescue dog to train and is not interested in retrieving at all even after almost 4 years of trying. I currently have a new toy in the drawer trying to build desire, but not holding out too much hope David takes Charlie out on group walks every Sunday with our neighbours who sometimes looks after other dogs so a good range of breeds have been introduced and we have found Charlie has a real fondness for Spaniels. So with Charlie we have to take tiny steps to build on what we have achieved
Keeping your dog close on a walk has been a constant theme of ours since we got Simba when he was 9 months old and firmly set in the ways of wandering! Well, not exactly wandering, more like "run as far away from the human as fast as you possibly can, and on no account respond to any calls to come back....and if they get close, a little chasey-game is just the ticket!" Needless to say, the whole idea of a no-lead walk had to get put out of our minds while we addressed all this! I think it was Barb who first suggested the treat-scattering manouever to me, and that was the first thing that made Simba want to stay close! Luckily a dog park opened up in our town and we were able to go there to let him off lead, as it was fenced. So I tried that, and it was miraculous! He started "hanging around" a bit. I also began the recall whistle training, which has been a lifesaver! The other thing that has help d us is the long line, which I still use on our walks as I'm not quite ready to let go of that security blanket yet. Mostly at this point it drags along the ground behind him, but at least it gives some measure of control if I need it. I have also trained a specific two-tone whistle I do with my mouth, which I do every time I throw a treat. This also works pretty well, and I've been glad of it the times when I'm out on a walk and have (horrors!) forgotten my whistle. I work on the recall, mainly, when I'm on a walk. Sometimes some sit/stay, but that's about it for training. Simba will do some fetch in our back yard, but I can't get him interested in retrieving while we are out and about. Too many interesting sniffs.....
I feel naked if I forget my whistle! It's only happened twice so far, but I feel a bit vulnerable. I can't whistle for toffee- sometimes a bit of a peep will come out and surprise me, but generally, it's just air
I use toys. I carry a rucksack and change them all the time. Its big enough to fit a football in and I also carry a medical kit and some bandages. I also use my close command and periodically put each dog on a lead and have them walk with me for a while. If i can't see on of them they get called back. There are also some areas on the park where i routinely lead my dogs as fast bikes, flashers or joggers maybe in the area. The treats I take with me are also always special yummy ones. I having a few problems with Rorys recall at the moment so I take him out on his own and practice this and other things he needs to practice. I don't use a whistle as I would forget it. I let them sniff and play with their friends but expect them to come back and move on with me. Theres nothing like that feeling of moving together as one I really missed it when I was down to just one walking dog. I like the way each dog chooses its own place in the moment midge on point doug(when he could) right beside me and Rory moving inbetween us all. Now Doug cant come and Rory is feeling more grown up so he wants the point which midge does not want to give up but she's getting slower and finding it hard to keep the pace to keep the position. I've had to start calling her to me and getting her to walk with me as she's getting too tired with the pace. she's a little old lady now, so adorable. The main thing which bugs me is the people who walk their dogs whilst on the phone. The poor dogs have waited all day for their walk and time and attention form you why would you waste this by being on the phone? Don't get it. I even once saw a man bring a book! he red it as he walked round and sat on benches reading it while his dos did their own thing. So disrespectful to his dogs. Also walker who let their dogs get up to no good while they chat. I like just being with my dogs I talk to other walkers and my dogs like to interact but I like the peace and the company of my own dogs. I find them so interesting, people less One of my old dog walking friends had a very aggresive cancer and he couldn't walk so far anymore but he used to bring his collie and buy each of them an ice cream and they would sit together on the grass it companionship eating them it was so lovely, and a real lasting memory of what the companionship of a dog can bring.
Keep forgetting mine at the moment and my whistle is also pathetic, although I have discovered that Juno comes bounding back to my pathetic peeping. It's as if she is listening out for it more or she feels sorry for me
I'm the same, and if I forget my clicker, well that's another story I've just bought a pack of 5 and keep an emergency spare in my car.
Having read this topic I've been concentrating on being a good hunter. What a fun game I've "found" all sorts of delicacies. Certainly one of our favourite games to play. Mabel's a bit of a plodder but not when I play this she runs like a bullet.
