Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead this is a great training piece. I have realised recently that i have taught heel almost like a trick, they dutifully trot to heel when told but the second i say Good Heel they stop. As if its the same as Spin or Rollover. ah ok heel, righto, we've heeled, trick done now off we go again. I'm also following the gambling effect horrendously! loose lead walking is my new project with cuillin from now on, brodick next....
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead Thankyou Pippa....you have hit the nail on the head there Debsie that's my experience too....I've said a couple of times recently that I'm like a broken record,micromanaging our lead walks with constant repetition of the command......it's an ongoing project with me ...I've been stuck in for a while
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead WGT told me I must have my gundog whistle in my mouth at all times when walking Chalie on lead - I later figured out it was to shut me up! ;D ;D ;D
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead I have a question about the method of standing still when your dog pulls. If I stop whilst we walk my dog will whine for about 2 mins solid now. I do not walk or give attention of any kind and wait for about 30 secs of no noise before I continue. So you again take the two steps stop and praise him for being in the right position right? I cant praise him because as soon as we stop he whines for 2 mins solid again! And this is our walk................. I stop even for 5 seconds. He whines the place down for up to 5 minutes at a time sometimes.
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead If he is whining to go forward, but waiting for him to stop is a pain, could you turn 180 instead of stopping? It is annoying, because you don't get anywhere though!
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead He anticipates the turn and wraps me up in the lead..........
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead Deliver treats on the move for nice walking - don't stop. Another big reward is the opportunity to keep walking You don't need to stop and praise if your dog is walking nicely - just keep walking. When he pulls, stop and wait (exactly what you are doing). When you have a quiet dog and a loose-ish lead, start walking again.
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead problem is he isn't bothered with kibble in the slightest. He wont take them, just turns his face away. He also has a skin condition so he is on a strict diet. Even cooked chicken is off the menu. He is on a hypoalergic diet. He has the oily sebboherea (cannot spell it lol)
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead Oh gosh,tricky....are you walking him hungry?that would at least make the kibble the most attractive it is ever going to be.if you can't up the treat value you might have to start thinking about some tools to help you ......when I was at my worst, Pippas article said go cold turkey on pulling.to do that I had to buy an easy walker ( I think it's the same as a halti.it went round his nose and pulled his head down if he pulled) he didn't love it but he tolerated it and it kept me sane and him safe while I went right back to basics again.Dexter is still on a front fastening harness now,his lead walking is a lot better,we can actually achieve a loose lead walk( with periods of reminders and rewards along the route) -and we've had to collar and lead this week for a few days because of the cone.he will still pull towards other dogs and cats but we'll keep working on it.I was resistant to using items like the easy walker because I felt like I was cheating .......but it was a life saver.it will allow you to take your dog out for his excercise but don't let it mask the underlying problem,the pulling,that was my mistake.Use tools in conjunction with training and persistence and I think you will crack it.its not easy and it can be frustrating but you will get there,we are and if I can do it( first time dog owner)anyone can! ;D. You have my sympathies ,pulling is so upsetting,I couldn't bear the tension on Dexter's neck,I felt sick and came home a couple of times in tears because it was so awful.for me there wasn't/isn't a quick fix ,I don't think there can be for this issue it's just persistence,practice and consistency. Very good luck and best wishes x
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead I do use a halti or use my slip lead to make a head collar. You twist it to make a figure of 8 and walk like that. It is easyer to walk him like that but now I just cannot get it on him! He walks away ducks his head, twists his head away. I now virtually cannot get it on him. I tried feeding his dinner through the loop on the halti for a week or so but he just learn to stay a safe distance away so I couldn't slip it on. And I couldn't get it on at all without the treats. So now he would rather go hungry then let me put it on with his food even.... This is getting silly
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead Huge sympathy - my boy was the same with a back fastening harness, it got to the point where freshly roasted chicken wouldn't get him near it. Mind, he is not much better with a flat collar and getting worse, I don't know why, it doesn't even have a lead attached to it (as I use a slip lead now). God knows what is going on in his furry mind.... Can you drive somewhere you can teach walk to heel off lead? Then return to the lead later?
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead Im sorry, I'm stumped.....I've got such a food motivated dog that I can get round most things using treats and he's our first dog so that's all I can draw on..... Would you try a harness?A new piece of equipment,no associations with it,no smells to it and introduce it very gradually,and reward his interest with it....although the kibble isn't rocking his world is it? Thats all I can think of....I'm interested to hear other suggestions too if any of the others have any ideas.
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead I don't drive or own a car im afraid. I Tend to practice on my road in front of my house as our garden is so small but a staffy keeps getting out and attacking peoples dogs Its the whining that's getting to me as it seems to putting a dampener on the heel work I have found a grass verge about 5 mins away I can take him to practice. Wondering if I should just run there LOL I could try a harness. Which would you recommend?
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead Trying to deal with two separate issues at the same time is making things more complicated. If you want to tackle the whining at the same time as the heel work, I recommend you use a clicker. Most whiny dogs pause so briefly that no other kind of marker is going to cut it. Or you could simply ignore the whining for now, and focus on the heelwork. The whining is down to excitement and once he discovers that he can keep moving if he walks in the required position, the whining will probably stop.
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead My first one was and Easy walker,no pull front fastening harness from Pets at Home...but what I really wanted is the one I have now a Sense-ation front fastening harness.google it and the website comes up they are in USA but they deliver worldwide...you might even have a stockholder in the UK...there was one Boarding place here (Dubai)that ordered mine for me.....they aren't miracle workers....your dog still will try to pull but it turns their body into you and serves as a reminder not to pull ,it also takes you away from a collar and lead which he has probably learned to associate pulling with,and it stops the horrible pulling of the neck and gasping...I still cringe just typing that x
Re: Walking your Labrador on a loose lead I have two labs, age 7 months. I have a home in the country with acreage and a condo in town. My pups were doing well on the leash at the condo. When I brought them to the country, I enjoyed watching them chase squirrels. They love to just run and run and play with each other. Is it possible to have both? Surprise, surprise, when I put them back on the leash--disaster. Will I ever be able to let them enjoy both their freedom and the well-mannered association with me and others while on a leash? How do I help them differentiate the circumstances and what is demanded. They are at the age of sexual maturity, both are female, and I am afraid to let them out of my site until they are spayed (as soon as vet can get them in), so walking on the leash, even in the yard, is now a necessity.
