Maisie and the stubborn mule gene...

[LottieLu]

Her occasional refusal to budge when she doesn't want to

a) take a shorter route home on a normally long walk  
b) go back to the car after a blooming good walk  
c) go out in the rain  

Treats and a bit of distraction in the form of ...' ooh look at that Maisie' or ' come on let's go   THIS way' are failing in effectiveness as her bum is glued to the floor with that stubborn cocker equivalent of toddler 'shan't' look in her eye. I've tried routes in reverse, approaching car from different side etc, ect. Toooo smarty pants  

Anyone else have this or know of a wonderful easy peasy solution? All suggestions gratefully received, pleeeeease! Please tell me I'm not alone  
PS. She is quite well - no health issues.

[Jonnydog]

You're not alone. We've had these issues with our springer, Jonny. He just seems to get into his head he's not going a particular way and nothing will budge him. It doesn't help that he's almost always off the lead and I've occasionally been caught with no lead with me! I've found putting him onto a slip lead and coaxing with treats and sweet talk works better than pulling, which just makes him dig in his heels!

No more suggestions. I'll be watching this thread with interest.

[seaangler]

I spent one hour this morning just going around in circles....(almost)

As much to say....With your dog at sit...presuming you have to carry him/her....

With treat in hand will your dog follow you(reading between the lines the answer is NO/YES)

Well try one of two...nither of my two needs a treat for this game....And that's follow my leader...

Once i have there attention walk look behind you so they follow you...and change course once they change course you do and keep it up and keep changing course... I done this for an hour this morning...

[JennyBee]

I have struggled with this problem for three years and I am afraid I've found nothing will make Brodie walk when she doesn't want to . She is a complete and utter nightmare when it comes to walkies. Stubborn mule is a good description . Sometimes I'll come across something that will work, like treats, but it never lasts long. I've had her checked at the vet and am planning to have them check her again the next time I'm there, but they've never found any reason so far.

If you find out a way to get Maisie to walk please let me know

[seaangler]

I have struggled with this problem for three years and I am afraid I've found nothing will make Brodie walk when she doesn't want to . She is a complete and utter nightmare when it comes to walkies. Stubborn mule is a good description . Sometimes I'll come across something that will work, like treats, but it never lasts long. I've had her checked at the vet and am planning to have them check her again the next time I'm there, but they've never found any reason so far.

If you find out a way to get Maisie to walk please let me know

The only other thing i can think of is a flert pole....(You can buy thease or you can make one simple enough....if you do not know what one looks like look it up on google...(just type in flert pole)

When useing a flert pole tye your dog best toy to it first...BUT dont let him/her catch it.....Run it around on the floor and into the air tease him/her with it and turn it into a game...prase him/her all the time with your silly dogy voice....After a while you can run with it so your dog has to follow and hopfully you are hafe way there...


I will use it later with are gemma but not at the moment she is to my rekconing to young and i am scared she may go down on her front legs as to the dog she is...



Booooooo

[Top Barks]

I find teaching dogs to target your hand with their nose works really well.

[seaangler]

I find teaching dogs to target your hand with their nose works really well.

I am brining gemma tomarow..(but comeing on my own)But gemma is not entered in any thing ...Have to keep a low profile with her in side...But will be late as i am on one night shift tonight...

See you around tomarow...

Plus i am in that silly 107 tomarow....

[LottieLu]

I'm so glad I'm not alone!

It's something she has done since we had her at nine months but until recently it was occasional. She had refused to go down lane where OH was knocked over by a bike while walking her. She had been really frightened. A badger darted down bank in the dark one eve on a footpath and startled her and for days/weeks after she refused to go down that footpath; that kind of thing and perfectly understandable, well except the rain thing!

She is now definitely using it as a means to go her own way and not through fear of any kind. Onlookers find it dead funny when she sits firmly on the pavement refusing to cross the road because she wants to go in the pet shop up the road where she knows she gets a treat every time from the shop owner - smart pet shop owner! Bit of a problem for me! It sounds such a small and daft problem but clearly you cannot just pick a dog up when it doesn't want to walk.

I looked up the stick idea Chris, thank you. She's not toy/ball oriented though so not sure that a lure of that type would cut the mustard plus I'd be trekking that stick with me for miles! Might work on OH though, I could use it to get him in the kitchen  

She is very treat/ happy praise focussed usually. How do you teach the target hand with nose Top Barks? Maybe we could try that.

[seaangler]

I saw Victoria stilwel...Do some thing that you could also try...

This was in a house to stop there dogs going to the door when some one came...It was a mat a satic mat that gave off satic shocks so the dog would not go near to the mat...When some one came to the door...To stop them greeting people so they could get through the door way...

What she done first removed the mat...

She got another dog to come into the house at the same time as there dog ....No it did not work at first but after a few times her dog saw what was happening and came in...BUT it did jump over al theo the mat was NOT there...

You could try getting sone one else to walk there dog and your at the same time..Do a few times and see what happens..Chris

Target hand..if i am right...click for your dogs atention.. treat in right hand..click hold left hand up so your dog smell the left hand ..reward good lad ..and do that a few times so your dog looks at the site  hand as a treat...I hope i am right mark will tell me if i am wrong This can also be use if you have a snappy dog that will go for your hand....As the old saying goes dont bite the hand that feeds you

[Sarah.H]

The bit about wanting to go to the pet shop for a treat is a good thing as it means she will walk for a food reward  . For going back to the car I would save a really amazing hand full of treats or her breakfast/tea etc that she only gets when you have arrived back at the car, so as with the pet shop she associates it with something nice rather than just the end of her walk. Make it part of your routine and do it every time.

Top Barks uses clicker training, if you google clicker training and targeting you'll get lots of info 

I had a problem with Millie refusing to cross the road near my house as about six months ago there was a cat in the hedge (damn dog and her amazing memory  ), so on approach to this area I made sure she realised I had some tasty treats in my hand. I gave her one bit as she turned away from the hedge to face the road (and made sure she knew I still had something) then gave her some more once we crossed the road. I only had to do this a couple of times before she started anticipating a treat rather than looking in the hedge.

[seaangler]

The bit about wanting to go to the pet shop for a treat is a good thing as it means she will walk for a food reward  . For going back to the car I would save a really amazing hand full of treats or her breakfast/tea etc that she only gets when you have arrived back at the car, so as with the pet shop she associates it with something nice rather than just the end of her walk. Make it part of your routine and do it every time.

Top Barks uses clicker training, if you google clicker training and targeting you'll get lots of info  

I had a problem with Millie refusing to cross the road near my house as about six months ago there was a cat in the hedge (damn dog and her amazing memory  ), so on approach to this area I made sure she realised I had some tasty treats in my hand. I gave her one bit as she turned away from the hedge to face the road (and made sure she knew I still had something) then gave her some more once we crossed the road. I only had to do this a couple of times before she started anticipating a treat rather than looking in the hedge.

I am with Top Barks tomarow so i ask and make sure..as to what i have said...

I would have thought more cockers from C.O.L Would be at kenelworth tomarow for the dog show!!!...Starts at 09/30

[LottieLu]

Thanks Sarah.H. I'm a terror for just taking the usual treats out with me as they'd always worked brilliantly in the past. I think as she is so treat oriented that extra specials may very well help. As you say, I could offer them as we approach the car so that she associates return to the car etc with special tasty things. Knowing my luck within a week she won't want to leave the car!!!

Chris thanks again, I've never used clicker training but heard it mentioned a lot here, should have paid more attention. Blissfully ignorant until I need it it seems.

[Karma]

To train a hand target....

Have with you one clicker and one pot/bag of treats...
Hold clicker in one hand... have treats close by (but preferably not in direct sight - helps avoid the "I'll only work for a treat" mentality)
Hold out other hand flat at dog nose height... dog, being the nosy little thing they are, will sniff hand.  Click and treat... repeat many times....

Once dog has got the idea, begin to refine... wait for a more definate touch rather than a passing sniff... be careful to click when dog touches, not when dog is backing away again... gradually build up duration by holding off the click for a milisecond longer... make sure not to hold the hand in the same place all the time, so dog gets the idea that it is the hand being out flat that is the cue, not any specific position.... once it's well established, you can add movement, so the dog follows your hand... again do this very gradually...

Hand targetting is great... it can help reconnect a dog's attention if it has become over-excited, anxious etc, and it can be used to achieve other behaviours/tricks without using a lure.  It can help with recall (I know some people who use a touch command instead of a recall one, because the dog finds the touch command very rewarding), it can help with general attentino and focus... it's great! 

[LottieLu]

Thank you very much Karma. That sounds do-able and I like the idea of it helping focus on me and gaining her attention. She gets nervous with crowds and a couple of other things sometimes so that would be good to get her to focus on me.

My only bit of concern might be mucking up responses to commands already trained by introducing clicker now? And she is generally so good with everything else. ie. she'll respond to hand signals/whistle for recall...except for the above issue!

[Karma]

Using a clicker shouldn't interfere with already learned commands... the clicker is purely a marker that tells the dog the precise second they are doing the right thing.  Some people use the word "yes" instead... but obviously "yes" comes up in conversation so isn't as unique for the dog.  It's just more accurate that "Good girl" and giving a treat... was it what the dog was doing when you start saying "Good" or finish saying "girl" that was the right thing to do?  A click is clear and consistent, that's all.

Once a behaviour is learned, you would fade out use of the clicker... so it's not something you need to have with you to ask for the command, it just makes the learning process more straightforward for the dog.