Hi All. Desperately needing help right now. Marley is now 10 months old and doing well in lots of ways but I am having terrible trouble walking him.It is a problem that has only just started happening in the past few weeks. He constantly jumps up and tries to grab the lead and wants to pull nd tug on it. This is happening more and more often and it is now resulting in my arms and hands being bitten, not maliciously , I don't think, ore a case of me getting in the way. I have tried ignoring him, turning my back on him, getting cross with him and now even pulling him along to get him home as soon as possible. It is beginning to frighten me now as I don't feel in control of the situation at all and I feel it will only get worse. Can anyone help me ?? Susan
Hi Susan Does this happen on all of your walks? Does it, for example, happen on the way to an off-lead session where Marley becomes excited at the prospect of some free running? Or when meeting certain dogs or certain people? Does anybody else walk Marley?
That must be really difficult and painful! I'd be working on rewarding him for keeping all four paws on the ground. Anytime he's on the ground, give him a treat. Use a rapid rate of treats at first and as he gets better decrease the rate.
I think it may be something to do with his age. He is after all an adolescent dog. I endured this behaviour from Molly this time last year when she was that age. It wasn't any fun at all. nothing I did seemed to reach her. The episodes seemed to come out of nowhere and I never found any trigger for them and believe me i looked. Being totally unpredictable it was very difficult, if not impossible, to train for it. That sounds totally wimpish and as if I didn't try. But she seemed beyond it and all I could do is hang on for dear life. She simply stopped doing it at about a year. You have my total sympathy. It is frightening. You feel such a fool not being I control of your dog. The good news is that, like the teething, they grow out of it.
Well, I am feeling a little better this morning, had a good sob after writing my post on here , then worried all night that I would not be able to deal with this so, the first thing I did this morning was take Marley to the park for a good run, off lead. He loves all dogs and all people but is just so boisterous and full of energy. A couple of time on the way home he tried to grab the lead, and like you say with Molly, it comes out of no where, for no reason. It does happen on all walks at some point , sometimes last for a few seconds sometimes almost the whole of the walk and I know when he starts I get uptight and yes a little frightened that I wont be able to deal with the situation. My neighbour walks him for me at lunchtime on days I have to work and he has the same problem too He had quite a long lead, should I maybe try a shorter lead ?? A chain lead ?? He is a very clever puppy and I know reward and treat is the best option for good behaviour but I think now we are getting to the point where maybe he knows this and plays on grabbing the lead and playing tug of war in order to get treats. Sometimes its seems wrong to reward bad behaviour !! I just correct one problem and up pops another !! I do feel a failure and have thought on a couple of occasions I can't do this anymore, but I love him to dearly and am certainly no quitter in hard times.
Oh you poor thing!!! You are definitely not a failure. And Marley is totally normal. He's just full of life and full of beans. Even so, a good sob can be very therapeutic. You'll honestly look back on this time and be glad you persevered through it, even though it's terribly trying right now. When he walks on lead, are there times when he's walking normally? What do you do then?
Both you and Marley are totally normal. This time last year I was wondering how much longer I would be able to keep this nut job of a dog I had lumbered myself with. Would it be better to send her to rescue sooner rather than later to give her the best chance of rehoming. I was also looking forward to the winter. I was getting scratched to bits with her jumping up because I was wearing shorts and singlet, so I figured it would hurt less with a nice thick coat on. I also thought that it would be less embarassing walking her under the cover of darkness. I felt such a Pratt with this out of control dog. You are quite right, there is no aggression in it. I still think it is an explosion of energy with nowhere to go. If they are not on the lead they dash round like a thing possessed (which in a way they are) and we look on, laugh at their antics and two minutes it is forgotten about. So blow nose. Shoulders back. And soldier on. At ten months he is a good way through this phase. One day you will get home from a walk and realise he hasn't had a funny turn for several days.
Susan I really feel for you, you're definitely not a failure. You just love your puppy and want the best, I can identify with that. It's just Marley's age. I've done plenty of sobbing over the last ten weeks so you're not alone there. Mabel is 9 months so I can feel your pain. She is also incredibly difficult at times, she pulls on her lead like a looney. Which she never used to do. It's slightly different for me as she's had 9 weeks on restricted on lead exercise. 3 weeks left to go. Yay. She does all sorts of various annoying little things which she never did 4-5 weeks ago I can't put everything down to restricted exercise. People have commented oh my god you have your work cut out! She's a gorgeous clever normal puppy. Basically I now ignore them. I've just toughened up, it's been a challenge as I'm such a softie but I've found not caring about what other people say or think has stopped negativity on walks and helped my girls behaviour. I've bought Mabel some new tug toys and depending on the location of the walk I take them with me. She likes to carry them with me holding one end. This keeps her close and occupied. This may sound a bit silly but when I started puppy foundation classes a lady always carried a bottle of rescue remedy. If things got bad she would give her puppy a few drops. I haven't tried it on Mabel but I put 4 drops under my tongue if things get tough and it's helped. Maybe it's psychological who knows as long as it works it's all that matters. Do you use a clicker? I've found it makes a massive difference. My trainer also told me there are times when you feel like it's one step forward and two steps back. The best thing to do is carry on training as though you have never trained that behaviour before. It definitely works. Remember small steps. Keep going, it'll be okay in the end. Xx
Susan have you tried taking a ball or other toy with you on a walk and use as a distraction with Monty by allowing him to carry it home instead of jumping for his lead. I've known several dogs who love to carry things on their walks and walk very nicely once occupied. My last dog was an Italian Spinone who was a very bouncy, full of life dog who could pull like a train except on the walk home when he liked to walk along carrying the end of his lead. Best heel walk he ever did, no pulling and no interest in anything else going on around us
Also teach the 'look at me' cue (you start by holding the treat to your nose, then progress to no treat then in more and more distracting situations) this really works for Twiglet. They need to be food motivated 'tho
Hang in there, you'll get past this. I'm a great believer in giving your dog a job to do, that tires him physically or mentally. Any sort of classes will help your clever boy use his brain and burn off a bit of that boundless energy - gundog training, search and rescue, agility, fly ball...
Wow so many posts and such good advice from you all, thank you. Oberon, yes there are times when he walks normally, at the end of the walk, I let out the breath I have been holding the whole time and praise him lots and lots !! Pilate lover, I always carry rescue remedy for me. As for Marley, the vet has seen how hyper active he is and has said if he were a child they would probably diagnose him with ADHD. he recommended I try Valerian and scull cap which I am doing and I have also changed his food to James Wellbeloved on her advice as it has less if any additive, which she felt could also be adding to the problem. Maccie D - yes I have tried giving him toys to carry but he tends to drop them after a while and I end up carrying them home !! Karen, We have attended 3 sessions of puppy training, 24 classes in all and Marley can sit, lie, stand, wait on command, he can wait while I open doors etc. His recall I am told is superb by many people. I don't use a whistle but just shout Marley Come and he will come back to me and sit in front of me for his treat !!!!! I would like him to do some agility training but after recently paying £300 for lesson I will have to wait a while to try this. Lastly molly, thank you soooooooo much for totally understanding for having lived through this too !!!!Your posts echo my thoughts !!! A big thank you to you all once again, will keep you updated on the progress !! Susan and Marley x
Hi, the only thing I would add is that having the sit command sorted is a good thing; it can be used as part of your arsenal!
