My dog is driving me insane!

Family, Education, Health and Pets
1
I am after a genius training idea.

I have done an immense amount of training with my dog. Used dog trainers, Youtube, books etc. Tried many different ideas to make him walk nicely on the leash. And he knows how do do it. Problem is he literally will only do it when it suits him.

Example, we just went out to the local football field where we play fetch. He pulled like a train the whole way there. Every time he pulled I stopped. I took steps backwards. We only advanced when he wasn't pulling. Not once did he walk to heel. He got frustrated, I got frustrated though tried not to show it. I got exhausted (he is 40kg and I am 50kg - he has 4WD advantage) He couldn't give a crap about treats at this point.

Eventually got there. Played fetch, and the second i put the leash on to walk home he became an absolute frickin' angel. Walked to heel the whole way home, took ten minutes instead of 40. Got a lot of treats for being good.

How the hell, do I make him walk like that all the time I can have a pocket full of steak and he won't give a crap.

2
With one post it is hard to know, but let me ask you something. How much walking do you do with the dog other than going to play fetch? Or do you play every single time he goes for a walk?

They way you describe it I get the feeling the dog KNOWS he is going to play. He is excited and wants to get there. Afterwards, his desire to play is satiated, and he is tired from running.

3
I have a guess.

My guess is that you have is a high-energy dog, and he's probably a smart dog as well.

He's pulling, tugging, tense, and frustrated because he's needs to run and exercise. As you noted, on the way back, he was quite well behaved. He got the exercise he needed.

At least in the short term, I'd take him out more often to walk, run, and play, and see if that helps. If he's young, these behaviors may mellow with time as well.

4
I don’t play every time. Often we just walk, but then he pulls most of the way and we can only walk for an hour because I can’t take anymore. He loves to play and it’s less exhausting for me and he gets more exercise than a standard walk - so play seems the best answer really.

5
He’s not smart enough to figure out he’d get there quicker if he didn’t pull and he’d also get longer walks if he didn’t pull

6
If you find it hard to handle the size and strength of this kind of dog and to satisfy his high drive for exercise then it sounds like you may have got the wrong kind of dog for you.

7
I have seen many dogs of this breed of dog who are super easy going. Including those belonging to the breeder. So yes he is probably not the right dog for me as an individual - but it was not for lack or research or training - I just got a head case!

8
What breed is it?

9
Swiss shepherd.

Oh and I’d happily hike with him and play with him all day long if he’d not drag me around like a rag doll. Seen plenty of shepherds who are capable of walking nicely and plenty of shepherd owners who wouldn’t be able to handle being dragged around like a rag doll for hours on end.

10
Maybe your dog has learned that if he really misbehaves and then suddenly starts to behave, he will get extra treats!

Pavlovian style!

11
It is a high energy herding dog that needs a significant amount of activity and exercise to not get bored. It could be that despite training your dog is also stubborn and doesn't see you as the leader.

Do you have a husband/partner and if so how does the dog behave with them on walks etc?

12
Yes I do. And the same - although husband has a little more strength to deal with it. Oh dog is totally stubborn!!

13

Do you mean Alsacian or Bernese, or Bouvier?

14
Berger Blanc Suisse

15
I have a dog that did the same thing. Sometimes still does, but much less now. Also not so motivated by treats. I also tried just about everything, it was driving me nuts.

If you'd like 1 anecdotal data point, what finally worked for us was something I read about on some 9th-page-of-google blog called the "crazy walk".

The thinking is that the dog thinks he has to lead you (or pull, in this case) to wherever he wants to go. In your case it sounds like that means the park, to play.

So you basically need to retrain them into thinking that it's not them who is leading, it's you. If they want to go forward, they need to follow your lead. So if my dog starts pulling, I turn around and go the other way. Then I might go sideways, or forward again, or in reverse again. The dog has no idea what I might do, forcing him to pay more attention to me.

Then, once you finally start going back the right way, and if he is in the correct position (to the side, not pulling), you can reward with a treat if he'll take it.

Looks a little funny to everyone else, but seemed to be effective in our case. Took a few tries, though. I still try to throw one in every once in a while, just to keep him on his toes

16
Here is a suggestion: https://www.u-buy.ch/en/product/T0218QS-dogpacer-91641-lf-3-1-full-size-dog-pacer-treadmill-black-and-red

It is a treadmill for dogs. Let him run on it for an hour or so, and then take him on his walk.

17
I think she probably means one of these.

https://www.dog-breeds-expert.com/wh...pherd-dog.html

They are beautiful dogs.

A friend in the village is currently puppy training one for the guide dog association based in Liestal (I think) with the aim of her becoming a guide dog one day. It’s one if the few places which trains non Labrador/retriever type dogs to be guide dogs.

18
I was thinking about getting one of those actually! Obviously is not going to happen until i move to a house with a big yard but i can always dream....

19
How old is your doggie?

We have a 9 month old, highly excitable, but highly trainable Labradoodle and she too is a "Puller". Like yours, she has good days and difficult days. We go to puppy training a few times a month and these have been amazing.

It has really been a lesson in patience for me. Walking used to be her suddenly stopping and then bolting forward and I really had to keep my patience in check.

The trainer made the recommendation to simply stop when she pulls, say "No" and stop. When the leash goes slack, we walk. This is ongoing and like you there are days when she'll just do it like a pro, and days when she's just deaf.

When I go out for a walk and we walk at least 4-5k a day, 4-5 times a week, the first part of the walk it critical. So I start technical training straight away. What works for me is the choice of treats; not all treats are equal. I use these tubes of paste that you squeeze out, she loves these and we call it Obedience Crack. She'll do anything for the stuff.

I keep on my my left, hold the leash in my right and at the side of my thigh, squeeze out the Obedience Crack while walking. She sticks to my leg as we walk. Then I give her the command to heel and she sits. I tell her to wait and walk a few meters forward, when she reaches me she heels, I tell her to wait as I walk forward and then call her, we walk and she sticks to me while sucking on the Obedience Crack tube.

Once I reach open field, I made her sit and I take off the leash, tell her to wait and after a minute she can go and get her Zoomies in. This is just how it is.

What I have observed is that I train and train and train something, and feel like it's just never going in and she's never going to get it and then one day, BOOM, she just does it, she suddenly integrates it.

Toilet runs are a trip around the block. At around the halfway mark I let her off leash (not always) and she does her business. Then we walk on leash and I pick up the pace, when I do this she tends to focus and trot alongside me. This helps and when she does this I heap praise upon her.

I've also learned that If I just start praising her, she starts looking for good behavior to fit the praise. So I just praise her all the time and she reacts appropriately.

Good luck and all, I hope that you all settle and have a fun time.

20
I am a big fan of Victoria Stillwell....

Have a look at this, training with no pull harness might help? At least your dog won't be able to drag you all the way. My partner's mother (in the US) put a prong collar on her dog for the pulling and I told her to PLEASE stop that. She ordered the below no pull leash, watched training videos and told me it's much easier to walk her now, thank goodness.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQWV0o6blxY&t=271s

https://positively.com/dog-training/...ull-harnesses/

I understand your headache. Our dogs are much more clever than we give them credit! My chihuahua can be very stubborn and he always wants to walk the way towards the vet (he's weird, it's his most favorite place to go) OR onto a street where he has a dog-buddy. He will stop walking if it is neither of those directions and often I have wondered what people do with much larger dogs... Now when he does that, I will walk right behind him so he has no choice to start walking...

He also knows many commands and is VERY good. BUT- if he's not in the mood, he's not in the mood