Walking on the lead nicely......

[speedyjaney]

........is something I would love to say about Jessie!! She is always at the end of her lead almost choking...the only way I have found to get her to walk with me (rather than drag me) is to have lots of treats and feed her all the way round  :?
Saffi is similar but not quite so bad as she is smaller so doesnt dislocate ur shoulder as much as Jessie does.
We have tried walking them seperately, a halti which neither Jessie nor me liked, stopping everytime either of them pulled, walking backwards everytime one of them pulled...again we have tried all of these when they are seperate and when they are together!!
Will a harness help? Dont like the look of em but we need to try and fix it....what about a double lead thingy?...u know one lead with two clips, one for each pooch?
How do all you others out there with 2 (or more) cope? I love it when I can let them off....just to give my arms a rest  
Apart from this both dogs are great...they are still under a year old...but very well behaved in ALL other respects except when they are attached to a lead..If I cant fix this soon both of them are likely to fail their Good Citizen Exam at the end of the month as I have been told NO TREATS !  :shock: Its strange as they will 'wait' for an eternity...but have to gallop when the lead (and me) are attached!!
Thanks
Janey (who resembled an orang u tan this morning)                    

[bluegirl]

Hi,
The harnesses are recommended for dogs over 10 mths as they can do more harm than good I was informed when I made enquiries.

We went to obedience classes and was told walk as normal with your dog on a loose lead and allow them to pull as they do, then give a little tug on the lead and bring the dog back to your side. By doing this you are showing your dog what is and isn,t acceptable. Talk to your dog constantly to keep its attention on you and when you bring it back to you always use the same words ie here or heel so eventually it will understand the command. The key to successful training is repetition.

Hope it helps,
From Karen                    

[Shirley]

Hi Janey

Morgan still pulls a bit, but normally just for the first couple of minutes of a walk.  I've tried the stopping and the walking back too but to no avail - I think this is as good as it gets with him  :roll:     He's much better than he was though.  When he was a little pup I used an extending lead a lot and this ruined him.  I stopped using it and after a while he got better.  I've had to go back to using it recently but that's another story  :roll:   .

I wouldn't bother with the coupler (for attaching two dogs to one lead) as it's much more of a strain, for a start - you've got the power of two dogs pulling on one lead for the whole walk - at least with two leads you can hold one in each hand for some of the time.  Also, you don't have as much control of the dogs as you have with seperate leads, can't tell who's pulling in order to correct it.  It's also a bit of a nightmare when one needs to stop for the toilet and the other wants to carry on pulling     I thought the coupler was a good idea when I saw it but in reality it's not up to much.

I wish there was a magic answer but I think it's just putting in the time seperately with each dog.  It's sometimes hard to find the time with two - I've got long holidays just now so have started putting in more time with each dog on his own.  Can't think of anything else right now, but I'm sure that others have had similar experiences and can offer some solutions. I'll certainly be checking to read the resposes that you get.

Shirley                    

[PennyB]

We went to obedience classes and was told walk as normal with your dog on a loose lead and allow them to pull as they do, then give a little tug on the lead and bring the dog back to your side. By doing this you are showing your dog what is and isn,t acceptable. Talk to your dog constantly to keep its attention on you and when you bring it back to you always use the same words ie here or heel so eventually it will understand the command. The key to successful training is repetition.

Hope it helps,
From Karen

I was taught this at classes as well and works but it takes a lot of practice and too many friends I have here seem to think on the way to the park is the best time instead of taking time out to practise. I also went to my trainer for a 1-2-1 to show me how to walk both together (he walks 4 GSDs to heel) and I know it works its just we need a lot more practice LOL

And the other key to training cockers is to be able to get them focused on you (rather than nose to ground) which is all part of the bonding process (Wilf has zilch focus at the moment as he's a teenager)                    

[annemie]

Joris is also pulling on the leash, so we bought this harness (see photo) and he will not choke, but pulling he is doing also but not that much anymore.

                   

[taniac]

With Neo we did the red/green traffic lights method: When he pulls you stop, when the lead goes slack you start moving again.  He soon learnt not to pull, it's so funny because now if you stop he backs up until he's next to you complaining all the time  

I have to say I can't get him to properly heel he insists on having his head at least 6 inches in front of your knee.  If I can keep his nose off the ground I feel like it's an achievement :wink:                    

[Louis]

When we went to training with Louis the gentleman said when the lead is loose praise the dog in a high pitched, (very embarrasing)  :shock: voice and keep talking to them, if the lead goes tight, say NO in a firm voice, turn the dog around and walk back 2-3 steps and then start walking again.  It's very time consuming and you don't end up getting very far but it does work  

Lead work is something I think that you constantly have to keep training the dog to do, unlike sit, once they have learnt this they do it when asked.  Sometimes Louis starts pulling and I have to use this method again, but most of the time he walks by my side.

The trainer said the dog has to learn that you are walking them and not the other way round, and that they will get to there destination, but at your pace and not there's!  All very complicated when you just want to get to the park and let them off the lead :?  :?

Gemma&Louis                    

[Rusty]

Hi all

Rusty is a circus dog!  :?

He can walk everywhere on his 2 back paws when out for a walk.  :shock:

Obviously he has only been out for a couple of days now, but the thing is he walks absolutely fine for my wife. When I take him out, he pulls back towards the house immediately, so I encourage him with treats to begin the walk - this means nothing to him. He likes the treats, but won't come to me to get one. Instead he sits, straining backwards, even when a nibble is only 2 feet away from him. I don't want to "drag" him to start, but a tug needs to get him moving, then he assumes his two legged position at the end of the lead. Not only can he walk on two legs, his eyes can bulge AND he can choke and cough all at the same time, which makes him some sort of superdog.

Obviously this is worrying me, as I don't want him to associate me walking him with choking himself to death.

I do the - stop when he pulls, offering a nibble to get him to return to the (not even heel position!) but just to stop choking - loose lead, praising him when he good, yeah right  :x

I think the biggest problem is, he gets "cuddles and kisses" from my wife as though they are on sale, yet he "only" receives gentle clapping and rubbing tummy when he's good from me. I think he obviously prefers the cuddling and kissing, so he can't be bothered with me, excpet when it suits him. This doesn't bother me, I'm definitely NOT jealous, I just think that the two different types of behaviour has possibly initially confused him and he has now went for the person who bestows him with most love, which I think can be a bad thing at times. Hence walking on 2 legs.                    

[taniac]

Have you tried the high pitched voice as Louis suggested??  I know it's embarrassing but dogs really do respond to it.. My dog trainer says he's made an fortune out of his effeminate voice and the dogs all love him!  I have started to emulate the voice and found other people's dogs tend to react well to it.

So it could be just a difference in the way your wife talks to Rusty rather than the difference in affection?  I would also stand still & don't try and go anywhere, keep talking to him and although he might want to go back to the house, he should eventually stop.

I have a similar problem with my two dogs, because Jovi my baby wants to be with Neo (who's 2).  So if we go out together and he falls behind, he strains to get to him.  My partner walks on with Neo and I stand still and coax him, if he looks at me or comes back to me I use a clicker to click and treat (if he'll take it).  He starts pulling again, but you have to take baby steps.  Eventually we managed to get a 100 yards walking nicely without his big brother as a security blanket.

It does help if you're treats are 'high grade' i.e. cheese, hot dog sausage, chicken bits!!                      

[Tracey J]

Am really interested in this as Molly is a hind-leg walker.  She can even pull so much she has to stop to choke and cough for a few minutes!  We've tried all of the above but to no avail.  The only time she doesn't pull is on our way home after a very very very long walk (off lead).  I praise her for walking well, but to be honest, I don't think she could care less.  In the same vein she also (although generally stays within sight of us) won't come back to us when called, unless absolutely exhausted.  We always walk in safe fields and parkland, but it concerns me in case she runs far enough as to reach a road.  She has no road sense (make that no sense) at all.  Any advice on how to get her attention away from the ground and back to me?

Tracey & Naughty Molly                    

[picklesmum]

Hi Tracey, no advice offered, but am SO glad I won't have the only unruly cocker on Saturday!!!!!
Emma and Pickle xx                    

[*Jay*]

Hi Tracey, no advice offered, but am SO glad I won't have the only unruly cocker on Saturday!!!!!  

Or me :roll:                          

[Louis]

Just been looking through this thread and noticed that some of you are from Scotland, just wondered where you generally meet up with your cockers.  I live in Newcastle and I would love to meet up with some of you one weekend, obviously I am prepared to travel to Scotland, not too far away, or is it :?  :?  I don't drive you see, but my husband could taxi me and Louis if I persuaded him.  

Gemma&Louis                    

[Tracey J]

I truly hope you're not just saying that to make me feel much better!

 
Tracey & Molly                    

[*Jay*]

I truly hope you're not just saying that to make me feel much better!  

Once you meet Vegas, you will understand :twisted: