muzzle my oh so dangerous dog

corkimp

A check chain in handy for quickening the training period - gets the message across to the dog faster and just as effective. But be sure it releases! People hate check chains because of the fact so many don't know how to put it on correctly, leave them on the dog all the time or use them to tie up the dog with and the dog will literally "choke" on them. I'm not sure of your opinion on them. I might use one on my pup when she is a little older to train her a bit.
As for the other people with their dog on the beach - they should have had the sense to stay still while you tried to catch your dog.

Gillie

corkimp wrote:

A check chain in handy for quickening the training period - gets the message across to the dog faster and just as effective. But be sure it releases! People hate check chains because of the fact so many don't know how to put it on correctly, leave them on the dog all the time or use them to tie up the dog with and the dog will literally "choke" on them. I'm not sure of your opinion on them. I might use one on my pup when she is a little older to train her a bit.
As for the other people with their dog on the beach - they should have had the sense to stay still while you tried to catch your dog.

Very true.
I have a normal "around the house" collar for my dog as well.
If the chain is not put on properly it will choke the dog.

Good luck with the puppy training!

corkimp

Gillie wrote:

Very true.
I have a normal "around the house" collar for my dog as well.
If the chain is not put on properly it will choke the dog.

Good luck with the puppy training!

Thanks Gillie. I did a dog training course so should get her basics down ok - if dave my fiance doesn't spoil her! Might eventually go do agility or something with her - she has a great nose for stuff already - mainly food! lol. I've seen so many people with the chain on wrong and I have gone up to people to say it. All you have to do is look at animal rescue programs on Discovery and see the damage and suffering it causes. People just buy them but don't know how to use them - most pet shops do ask when the products are being purchased. (note: pups on her back looking for attention from Dave - the sl*t! lmao)

peasant

Errr ...

Choke chains choke. That's what they do. Otherwise there would be no different "learning effect" for the dog than the usual collar.

Anything that puts strain on a dogs windpipe and neck vertrebrae can cause damage in the long run. Be that a choke chain or the occasional hard pull on a normal collar.

Not recommended.

Get a well fitting harness instead.

And as for the "learning effect" ...over time a dog will just develop stronger neck muscles and keep pulling.

Gettin a dog to "heel" is a matter of training, routine and patience ...not strangling it.

Jotter

well Ill be buying choke chains and haltis and whatever the hell else is available bec im going to throttle that bolkd brat after our walk today :mad:

He is soooo good in the house, does all his commands well and is nice and gentle with the kids. Outside hes so hit and miss.

Yesterday he was walked and he was perfect on lead, let him off lead (noone around) and we played fetch again perfect, came when called ,sat on command etc.

Today hes like a different dog. Pulled when walked, got that under control, got him to do a few commands on lead to be sure he was back being good and no probs, then let him off lead (again bec there was noone around for miles) and he legs it, doesnt listen to anything Im saying, runs back towards me, i had chicken in my hand and he just ran past me, eventually came to me after me shouting my lungs out, sat for the chicken and just about got him back on lead. His inconsistency is driving us bonkers and we dont know what to do as we keep his training as consistant as possible. We use sticks when out and about for training as he loves them and also chicken sometimes (he responds better to sticks tbh!)

Anyone any pearls of wisdom or is this just part of training and normal puppyhood?

btw with regard to OT he was on a good day then up until the jumping incident so hes not bold all the time (just most of it lol!!!)

peasant

Jotter wrote:

Anyone any pearls of wisdom or is this just part of training and normal puppyhood?

In a nutshell ?

YES !!

It's a dog ...not a machine


Next time he fecks off when there's no-one around ...don't shout and scream ...disappear. (i.e hide somewhere)
Let HIM panic for a change.

Ideally you' pick a spot to let him off the lead where you can "disappear" while still being able to keep an eye on him.
One call ...then "vanish" and watch him "sweat" after a while when he's finally copped that you're gone.

Only when he's really looking for you can you help him "find" you.


(of course you can only do this in a safe and deserted area)


Explanation: As long as you are there, shouting your lungs out, he kows that you are there and he just carries on doing whatever he's decided on doing at that time in the full knowledge that there is feck all you can do about it and also in the full knowledge that you're not going to disappear on him (after all ...he can hear you screaming) ...so just vanish ...that'll teach him

Jotter

Thanks, I remember my dad doing that with our old dog, I hadnt thought to try it with ours. Unfortunately we were in polo grounds so no place to hide there, I also had 2 buggys and 2 babies with me
Will bring him back to park tomorrow and give it a shot, I know of a place where theres long grass and rarely any people, it would be nice to see him sweat alright instead of me calling him like an eejit Glad to hear its normal as we werent sure if it was us or him doing something wrong! Phew this training lark is hard work :rolleyes:

Gillie

Jotter wrote:

Phew this training lark is hard work :rolleyes:

Worth it in the end though!

lisajane

Those choke chains sounds evil. My dog is impossible to control. She's very strong. She's even worse when there's another dog. Iv tried those halti's. But she got it off and ate it. We've been using a nylon muzzle and a halti on her now. It seems to be working. But she will try and pull. And sometimes she'l win pulling u with her-very strong dog!
Is there a way to train her to walk properly and not pull? Iv seen those leads in the pet shop to use with the halti - but do they work??? Is it a bit late to train her to walk at 2 years old? She's a nightmare to walk. And she's not getting enough walks because of it and thats unfair on her.

peasant

The first step to successful lead training is to start training with a tired dog.

Let the dog run off steam first (preferably off lead ) and start the training later when its tired.

Once the urgency has gone out of it it's so much easier to use the only method that promises long term success.

The tree method.

It's very simple ...as soon as the dog pulls, everything comes to a halt (you become a tree:D ) only when the lead is slack is when you move. Once that principle is understood you can then introduce a command like "heel" or "close" or whatever you want to use. (proper "heel" with the military precision that's a different thing but unecessary IMO).

It will take time and lots of repeats before this works. Also the command is easily spoiled. In the beginning you should only use it when there is a reasonable chance of it registering ...ie not when your dog is besides itself with excitment after just stepping outside the house or the car and pulls like there is no tomorrow. The command will never get through and become meaningless.

You have to work back to front. Start the training at the end of the walk with a fairly tired and listless dog, introduce the command and praise and reward when its followed ...ignore when not. Once that works flawlessly you can move the training phase further and further into the earlier stages of walkies until after a few months you will hopefully have reached a stage where your dog will heed it right from the beginning because it has become totally ingrained.