Hi Thanks for accepting me and Poppy...Now i have a problem maybe someone else has come across before, whilst out walking on the lead, she suddenly turns grabs the lead and pulls really really hard sometimes nearly pulling me over she is only 6months old but very strong, i try to ignore her and try to carry on walking nearly impossible, ive stopped still, told her off nothing seems to work until she decides it stops i want to be able to enjoy our walks and when she is'nt doing this we do have nice walks but it is very stressful any ideas??
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! Lois, what kind of lead arrangement are you walking Poppy on? Is it a collar and lead? When she grabs onto the lead and you have stopped, have you tried just stepping on the lead (keeping it short - not giving her much length to pull on) and standing stock still and looking away - so, basically, stopping the walk and getting the lead out of your hands and giving her zero visual attention? That might make the tug of war boring enough that she will stop. The walk only continues when she is no longer holding the lead. One other option might be to get a shortish length of chain that you attach to her collar and then attach the lead to that. She may not enjoy grabbing onto a metal chain. Some dogs don't have a problem with grabbing metal, though - if she is one of those then I wouldn't persist with this approach as they may damage her teeth. Another option could be to try a head halter (there are various brands) like you use on a horse. With these, the lead is visible in front of the dog's face and is no longer a invisible object of fascination behind their head. Having said that, now that she has learned that pulling on the lead is fun, a change to having the lead in front might not do much, plus some dogs really do not like a head halter and spend most of their time trying to get them off (while others are fine with them). Anyway, just a few thoughts Edit - a few more thoughts... Have you done any kind of obedience training with Poppy? Is there a local dog training club (that uses positive, reward based methods) that you could go to for classes? Any kind of positive training will help build the relationship between you and your dog and will help you to work as a good team. Also, you could try getting a shortish length of lead (a foot or so) and have that on her collar all the time. The idea here would be that she drags it round and gets used to it and eventually ignores it (plus there is nothing on the other end to tug and so the fun factor is reduced). The other thing is to reinforce her (give her rewards/small treats) for walking nicely - so you actively teach walking on a loose lead without grabbing. You may need to work on this in the house and your backyard - somewhere less distracting than out on a walk. The idea here is to reward any forward movement that does not involve pulling or grabbing the lead. Does Poppy enjoy carrying something in her mouth - is there a favourite toy that she could carry with her on a walk or that you could swap the lead for when she grabs it?
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! I had one pup used to do this whenever she was tired or anxious about something. It took me a while to work out why she was doing it, because like you, she didn't start until she was about 6 months old, but it coincided with me upping the anti with her Guide Dog work and making her walks longer. Have a look at when she starts doing this. Is it at random intervals? If so have a look at what's going on around her at the time, or what you're asking her to do. Is it when there are lots of distractions and she is having trouble concentrating, or maybe she isn't fully understanding what you're asking her to do? Or is it at a specific time during your walk? If so perhaps you are asking her to concentrate on walking nicely for too long and she is getting tired, frustrated or bored. I got round it by breaking up any walks before the pup got to that "naughty" stage. So a few mins of walking, then a Sit at a kerb, or a change of direction, before carrying on walking again. Even just a change of pace, or laying down to watch the world go by for a few mins helped to keep her focussed without over taxing her on one thing. It's very easy to forget that at 6 months old, although they almost have the body of an adult dog, their brain is still very babyish and they can only concentrate for a couple of mins at a time on one thing. A bit like a child when it first starts school; if you ask them to do one thing for too long, they tend to become naughty . I personally think there is nothing better for ruining a pup's good on lead walking than taking it for a walk on lead for more than a few mins, which is why with my own dogs I do very little in the way of on lead walking until they are approaching adulthood. Instead I teach heelwork and other training in little snippets OFF lead every day. Obviously I had to do more on lead work with the Guide Dog pups, which is why I had to find ways around them getting mentally tired out, bored and frustrated, but it's an awfully big ask of a pup to undertake this and this is why you see so many Guide and Assistance dog pups on head collars and semi check collars, because without them, they are so hard to control.
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! Dont despair Lois , Sam is 21 months and still has a tendancy to pull on his way to an offlead walk, just pure exhuberance, he walks like an absolute angel on the way home . I did resort to a gentle leader head collar for him at one point as he is a big strong dog, he hated it with a passion but it saved my sanity whilst we worked on the loose lead walking . I do find that he walks much better on his way to an off lead walk if he is carrying his dummy or ball
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! Thanks all some really good advice, I have tried to work out why seems to be on our way home from a walk so i try to vary our route, i had been taking her for a walk just before her bedtime which is 830pm when she asks to go to her crate but stopped as she was always bad i guessed she was tired so she just has a quick wee now..and it saves my sanity!! Maybe i try to walk her too much i'm just aware the being a puppy she may need lots of exercise maybe i should try to entertain her with different things other than walking. We have been to puppy classes but they were unsuccesful they were held in a small hall with 12 mad pups and it was in the evening she was just too tired it was nightmare..but we are starting outdoor classes on a sunday morning soon so im hoping these will be better for her. Anyway will try all your ideas and thanks once again. Lois xx
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! [quote author=lois link=topic=1344.msg8816#msg8816 date=1364215463] Maybe i try to walk her too much i'm just aware the being a puppy she may need lots of exercise [/quote] How much are you walking her a day? You do know the recommended amount for a Lab pup is approx 5 mins per month of age, per day, don't you. So she shouldn't really be getting much more than about 30 mins of "Forced" (as in she can't stop when she wants to) exercise per day. This guide is there it help protect their growing joints, although they will obviously have more energy to burn than just 30 mins worth...and that's when some brain training comes in, to tire them out mentally.
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! A good way to tire out a pup or dog without the physical strain is with mental exercise - e.g. teaching them fun, new things. You can teach tricks or obedience stuff - any of it can be fun if you make it fun and pretend that it's the best thing in the world and your pup is the most wonderful dog in the world when they make a little step in the right direction. Hopefully the new training class that you are going to will give you a good start and you can go from there. There are endless simple tricks too teach - shake hands, put your head on your paws, roll over, touch a target with your nose, ring a bell, spin in a circle. The key is to go in small steps, to always ask something achievable (always set your dog up to win) and go for short, regular sessions rather than long, infrequent ones. And to use really enticing treats (roast chicken is a big winner round here).
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! Thanks to all the help def a work in progress, im sure Poppy dislikes me sometimes....my neighbour at work pops in and takes her for walks with her little jack russel and she behaves perfectly no pulling no tug of war, with me today tug of war nightmare..tried to do different things stopped walking had no communication she stll carried on tugging the lead i stood on the lead so it was no fun,,,it really is hard work, still love her to bits i wish she could talk and tell me why??? Anyway we will keep going, anyone have ideas on how to teach her little tricks to keep her mind active? thanks again.
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! She obviously finds tugging on the lead worthwhile regardless of whether you're pulling on the other end or not. Maybe give some of the other ideas a go? If she is well behaved for someone else then I suspect that building a good training relationship with her will help you. Check out the large number of training videos that dog trainer 'Kikopup' has put up on YouTube: http://m.youtube.com/#/kikopup/?uid=-qnqaajTk6bfs3UZuue6IQ&desktop_uri=%2Fkikopup%2F These are really clear demonstrations of how to train a whole range of things, including tricks. Some of them are worth watching first - like the ones about how to clicker train (this one here) (there is also one on how to train without a clicker too). I do recommend clicker training if you've not tried it before - a clicker paired with treats is a great communication tool.
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! I have discovered a trigger for Poppy's bad behaviour whilst on the lead she will pick something up that she should'nt I attempt to take it off her or tell or to drop it and this is when she attacks the lead and what with the wind as it is today been a struggle just when i thought we were getting somewhere...we've gone a step backwards arggggggg!!! Oh well another day tomorrow....
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! Still Struggling.... Hi This tug of war on the lead is getting very very stressful.. I did think we had turned a corner...but we seem to be back to square one today!! We have started new puppy classes which are much better than the other ones....and the trainer is willing to help me sort Poppy out he advised me to fill a tin with stones and every time she grabbed the lead i was to shake it and say a firm NO! at the same time this did work the first time and i thought yep cracked it....how wrong today done exactly the same and she went completely nuts barking jumping growling it was horrible...then we get home after a fight and she looks so lost with her eyes looking at you i would love to know what goes on in her little head, what on earth can i do? do you think one to ones would be better for her? im willing to try anything :'(
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! Heidrun...just a normal lead about 4ft long and normal collar any suggestions greatly received
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! Pippa suggested in an earlier post to use a chain lead rather than an ordinary fabric or leather lead. I would go along with that. Dogs don't like grabbing hold of a chain and it will probably break the habit. Then you can go back to using a normal lead again.
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! Did you try the chain option? I think I'd try that next as well as trying to keep her on lead walking to a minimum while you work on heel work with no lead. Riley pulled when he was younger so I drove to most of our walks while we worked on his behaviour in the garden. I'm not sure about rattly bottles, I believe some dogs find them scary so I'd try lots of the other suggestions first. Wishing you lots and lots of luck
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! Yes BBrown.....I think the can scares her half to death...poor thing..Right i have ordered a chain lead, knowing Poppy she will still grab argggg
Re: Tug of War....whilst on the lead!! From the little I know about the use of rattly cans etc I'd thought that the idea is to toss them near the dog so they make a noise when they hit the ground. The dog is distracted/startled by the noise but doesn't see it as coming from you or caused by you - it sees it as being caused by its behaviour. Some people use a short length of heavy chain (just four or so links) which is less harsh than a can but still makes a sudden noise when it lands. I think that practising in the garden and rewarding for not grabbing the lead (even if it's just one second at first), plus working on no-lead walking (in a safe environment) are good ideas. The chain lead may teach her that grabbing the lead is no fun, but the other training will teach that not grabbing the lead is fun (rewarding). I know that it must be really frustrating as you just want to enjoy your walks
