Is it a setter thing?

[alison higgins]

Jamie has just recently got bored with his dog buddy and wants to run off. He is 20months old and has been walking with his dog buddy for the past eight months. He seems to want me to interact with him most of the time, i.e. with the ball or changing direction to keep him on his toes, training him to go round trees etc. The point is I do not know why now he is bored with his buddy as we come across a lot of other dogs. He is now likely to run off into the horizon and not come back to play. I have noticed that if I'm nattering to my friend he plays up. We walk in a lovely area lots of squirrels, dear, rabbits etc so lots of lovely smells. I never have a problem getting him back from those scenarios its just other dogs, ANY other dogs he has to say hello to and smell them and if they smell like chanel no 5 I have no chance of getting him back. I had to tell my friend today I couldn't walk with him as I needed to focus on Jamie. Its a shame, I know he loves his buddy but I can't risk Jamie bolting off because I wasn't paying attention.

[James Doran]

Chanel No 5 has a lot to answer for, Alison!

[Howard Glansfield]

See my post of June 28th 2015.The solution is still working and I have a very happy dog....and he has a very happy carer!

[alison higgins]

Did the coat change after you neutered him?

[Howard Glansfield]

Yes it has, but it is not so bad as I expected.He is fluffy where he was once smooth and shiny. He is still the same lovely dog and is safe.

Yesterday he 'set' at a squirrel in a tree.It took me about five minutes to get him to break his set.I thought I was going to be all day!

Howard

[Finn]

We have two setters, 6 year old IRWS Fergus who approaches every dog with courteous respect, does all the right things, stands side on allowing the appropriate introductions and once established engages in lovely sniffs and friendliness.

Then we have Jasper, our 5 year old English setter who is obedient to the whistle, scents deer and rabbits and squirrels like Jamie but never strays far from us on walks. Until he sees another dog! Then it's full gallop ahead, oblivious to whistle or shouts and dives straight in to sniffs without so much as a hello, how are you. Many an older lady has growled her disapproval at this uncomely disrespect but it all goes over Jasper's head who regards himself as the Leonardo Di Caprio of the dog world - his attitude to rejection is a shrug and it's your loss, love.

No trainer we went to could solve this problem. Then one day Jasper did this very same thing with an older boxer who was having none of it. She snarled and barked and growled and pinned him to the ground (fortunately she didn't actually hurt him). The fright, shame and humiliation cured Jasper immediately. Now he has watched Fergus approaching strange dogs and he does exactly the same thing and all is well.

But I have to say it was a very scary horrible few moments when the boxer lady attacked him.

I can offer you no advice, Alison, we tried everything but in the end it took an older dominant female to put him in his place and she wasn't even wearing Chanel No 5.

[alison higgins]

Me thinks I need to find an old boxer lady for Jamie. I wear chanel no 5 and I don't have the same effect on my husband but mind you if he started to sniff my bottom he would know about it!

[Julia Grace]

Much the same experience as Finn I'm afraid. Harley is fantastic with recall except on occasions with other dogs. He's got better with age (he's now 6) but it took a couple of experiences with bossy terriers to put him in his place!

He will now introduce himself properly to other dogs but it took a while and some embarrassment to get there.

[Sharon Case]

This was my reason for joining the group. I realise it's an old post but I'm really struggling with recall. On his own with me, Seamus is 100% put another dog in the mix, dog or bitch, big or small and he appears to go stone deaf!! He's on 13 months so we both still have a lot of work to do.