Staffie owners - strong dog pulling

lisajane

How do u walk ur dog? My own dog is so strong, she walks me. She does nothing but pull. She's knocked me down a million times by just pulling. She's even worse when she see's another dog.
I have tried everything including those choke chains. I have started to drive her in the car and letting her run home behind me for her daily exercise. She loves that. But I would love for a proper walk with her without the pulling.

Killme00

lisajane wrote: »

How do u walk ur dog? My own dog is so strong, she walks me. She does nothing but pull. She's knocked me down a million times by just pulling. She's even worse when she see's another dog.
I have tried everything including those choke chains. I have started to drive her in the car and letting her run home behind me for her daily exercise. She loves that. But I would love for a proper walk with her without the pulling.

wtf ARE U PLAYING AT?

orchidsrpretty

I had the same problem with my Boxer, she was really terrible and it came to a point where i could not walk her as she was too strong for me. I ended up gett a Halti for her and although it took a couple of walks for her to get used to it, she stopped pulling. Im sure if you dont want to try this option or have already you could try dog training.

Glowing

I can't belive you walk your dog in the car. Sounds like you need to engage in some serious clicker training ... she'll keep pulling while you let her away with it.

Have you tried a halti collar?

http://www.dspca.ie/shop/halti-head-collar-p-86.html

lisajane

Iv tried the halti, no good. How much would the dog training cost?

Glowing

lisajane wrote: »

Iv tried the halti, no good. How much would the dog training cost?

Why didn't it work? How long did you try it for?

Have you actually tried training the dog? It's not easy, and you can't do it overnight, but with persistance and consistancy (and reading a good training book), you should be able to manage it.

orchidsrpretty

I had three lessons with a guy in Wicklow and the cost €150, which was money well spent!

lisajane

I tried the halti and it did work. The dog is the family's pet and when someone else takes her on a walk, they always come back with the halti and the matching lead chewed up. It happens every time. And im getting fairly annoyed cause its me running out to buy more. If i didn't she would never be walked. But since im the one that loves animals the most im left with all the expense of her. 15 euro everytime she eats it, it all adds up.
I suppose its the family that needs training.

cotton

Have you tried a sensible harness? I've had great results with this & one of my dobies.

http://www.dogtrainingireland.ie/shop/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=8

lakes

i cant believe you walk your dog from your car!!! MAD

arybvtcw0eolkf

lisajane wrote: »

I have started to drive her in the car and letting her run home behind me for her daily exercise.

Are you an American?...

Funniest thing I've read here in a long time..

Pheonix Ski

The dog doesnt respect any off you by the sounds off things,its no good you going to all the trouble of trying to train her if the family doesnt do the same. Sounds like she needs a firm hand. I have 3 staffs and a english bull terrier and i can walk all four on a lead together,no pulling. I found the choker worked,when they pull ahead,a quick firm pull to the side should shock her into holding back,repeat it a few times if needed and let her no whos boss!

kerrysgold

I just put my fella on an extendable lead because he is a bit of a puller but mostly just because he is a fast walker, so he gets to trot on up ahead instead and I can easily reel him in if need be. I have the opposite problem with my westie, I have to try and encourage her to walk properly. she'd rather be sleeping than exersizing :P

michelleans

Pheonix Ski wrote: »

The dog doesnt respect any off you by the sounds off things,its no good you going to all the trouble of trying to train her if the family doesnt do the same. Sounds like she needs a firm hand. I have 3 staffs and a english bull terrier and i can walk all four on a lead together,no pulling. I found the choker worked,when they pull ahead,a quick firm pull to the side should shock her into holding back,repeat it a few times if needed and let her no whos boss!

This is not how you get a dog to respect you, it is how you get a dog to FEAR you.

You need to show your dog that you want her to walk beside you and that when she does good things happen, and that you are a good leader that she can trust and respect.

Heel.
Try offlead in a garden/house with no distractions first. Call her over, ask her to sit beside you, luring her into position with a treat, then treat and praise madly. If she gets up, no bother, repeat a few times then have a game. Come back to it again in an hour or so. Don't let her get bored with it so lots of breaks for games. Once she's got this down name the behavior "heel", progress to walking forward while she is sitting beside you, encouraging her to come with you, holding a treat just out of her reach in the position you want her head to be in the heel. Only walk a few paces at first, if she follows perfectly, reward, give the treat and praise loads. Repeat again and again, without overdoing it and with lots of break and games, so she knows training is not just boring! Slowly increase the length of time she will walk by your side... Then attach the lead and continue on. When she's got it down, treat less, praise more, vary the treats and the rewards. Then take it up to a quiet park, gradually introduce distractions and work slowly. It takes effort and patience.

I'd recommend a trainer also once you've got the basics done as obedience around other dogs is also important, and the best place to introduce them is in a calm controlled environment.

See NILF for how to become a leader positively.

Pheonix Ski

what i mean by be firm is dont give in if it does not succeed the first time and i dont mean hurt your dog by giving it a firm jab,Cesar Millan uses the same technique,my dogs respect me,i rarely use a lead as we live in a remote area and i have no trouble with them running off as they dont want too,they respect me as i respect them. Moving on.....I agree that a trainer may be the best solution to your probelm tho.

hardly work'n

Talk to your vet. Most vet's know of a good trainer in your area. There are loads of them out there. Alot of them have not only obdience classes but socialisation classes. If your vet doesn't know then I almost guarentee the spca in your area will know!

When you invest the time & money in the classes do the homework or the classes are a waste of time & money!!! You have to do the homework. Keep it consistant.

stevoman

lisajane wrote: »

. I have started to drive her in the car and letting her run home behind me for her daily exercise.

I have heard it all now.:p
perhaps you may have to invest in a large hamster wheel now:p

coisaille

I've got a walkezee harness, find it really good, it wont actually stop the pulling, but will stop you from being dragged about while you're working on the training...they work well with an extendable lead as well if you're in an open area so she can have a bit more of a run about. good luck!

http://www.dogtrainingharnesses.co.uk/

Dyr

michelleans wrote: »

This is not how you get a dog to respect you, it is how you get a dog to FEAR you.

*sigh* both of my shepherds had choke chains, neither of them feared me. Wouldnt use a choker now but the comment mademe :rolleyes: all the same

carwash_2006

For anyone who does use choke chains still, or anyone thinking of using one, have a look at this article.

http://www.apdt.co.uk/pdfs/Choke_Chain_leaflet.pdf

emsy g

Hey,my dog is like that too,he really pulls,tried all sorts but found the halti is the best,he still pulls but i have more power over him now.If noone else can bring him for walks on it without him chewing it up then maybe it's too loose?can't see how he could chew it...maybe go for walks with them and teach everyone else HOW to walk him,some people have a knack for making your dog worsen his bad habits It's hard when there's more than one training a dog as it picks up all sorts of ideas.I'm sure you've tried it but if you haven't you could try a body harness.Choke chains are a pain i think.I don't think they are cruel but if your dog is hard to walk they tend to lean on them and just choke all the way.They are good for a dog that doesn't pull constantly but has a tendency to try running after everything it see's,when they run for it they get one tug and figure out that that isn't fun....Other than all that i'd agree to just hire a dog trainer,watch everything they do and see what happens.One of my brothers dogs just cannot walk on the lead though,they've tried everything but luckily they are in the country so they just let him run

campervan

Pheonix Ski wrote: »

what i mean by be firm is dont give in if it does not succeed the first time and i dont mean hurt your dog by giving it a firm jab,Cesar Millan uses the same technique,my dogs respect me,i rarely use a lead as we live in a remote area and i have no trouble with them running off as they dont want too,they respect me as i respect them. Moving on.....I agree that a trainer may be the best solution to your probelm tho.

yep I always watch the Dog Whisperer - he is a super dog person, unbelieveable! And 'normal' doggy people can achieve the same results too with time and consistency. The dogs he works on never seem to be hurt, he doesnt scare them or make them fear him. A sharp pull is often what is needed - its what makes them listen. dogs are pack animals and if they ever get out of line with their leader they will know about it! Same goes for horses and alot of animals infact. Dogs also seem to have a short memory, for want of a better phrase- the correction needs to be given within a split second of him misbehaving, not 5 minutes after or he wont know what he has done wrong.

Pheonix Ski

I no hes brillant,ive picked up a few things from just watching his show but thankfully none of my dogs have any issues that need seeing to.

Whatever you decide to do OP i hope it works out for you and your family and also the staffie,seems like you have a few options and im sure one will work! Goodluck and let us no what happens!

jesus_thats_gre

Would defo recommend a harness. Have a 3 month old Boxer who has a fierce amount of energy and puls a fair amount. Also had a habit of trying to hold the lead in his mouth and bring me for a walk

Got a harness a short while ago and both problems have been solved. Bringing him for a walk now is a completely different experience actually. We also got a pretty short and slight elasticated lead. If he does pull on it, he makes a little big of progress and then springs back. He soon gets bored pulling.