Leads and exercise

[Neil Todd]

Shea is 14 months old now. We exercise him once a day for an hour+. We have 2 ways of exercising him and vary it from day to day according to our daily schedule/the weather.

 

1) We take him to a local field where we spend about an hour letting him run off lead. We walk him to the field using a check chain/short lead (about 10 minutes), on which he walks pretty well to heel most of the time. He pulls now and again but we find it fairly easy to get him to heel. When we get to the field we let him off lead and throw squeaky kong balls for him (the only ones he doesn't/can't chew up!) and he loves it. At the end of the run we walk him home again on the check chain/short lead.

 

2) We take him on a long walk (3-4 miles+) in various places (forests, national parks etc). This is where we have a problem. Because we're conscious of Shea needing proper exercise/a good run, we mainly use a strong extension lead on him as we like to give him an element of freedom to run a bit and sniff around, etc. However, as well as generally pulling once the lead gets to its full extension, whenever other dogs approach even though we get him to wait/heel, he often bounces about/pulls, obviously wanting to interact with the other dog(s).

 

We have been wondering whether we should be using the check chain/short lead all the time on long walks or whether we should perhaps start him off and finish him off on the check chain (say for the first/last 10-15 minutes of the walk), only allowing him on the extension lead during the middle part of the walk. We are wondering will Shea get enough exercise this way? (We are usually out for well over an hour with him)

 

Letting him off-lead on the long walks is out of the question for now as we still haven't mastered recall with him. We know all too well from experience if he sees other dogs it's like we don't exist and he's off into the sunset after them, to the point where we suspect he would follow them all the way home given the chance!

 

Exercising him once a day for the amount of time we do seems enough for him. Our issue (apart from recall, which we know/hope will come with time/practice) is whether Shea would get adequate exercise using the check chain/short lead more on our long walks?

 

Debra & Neil

[Ossian]

oh dear!

At 14 months he doesnt walk to heel (very well) he pulls, he doesnt appear to have a sound recall and you cant let him off bevcuse he will be off after something and doesnt respond very well - can you not see why??

Contrary to any received wisdom, you have a highly intelligent dog. yet you walk him on a short lead to a field and chuck squeaky toys for him. Would you not think to harness his natural ability, use what he was bred for and set up the kind of game and play which will really make him want to stay around you and see what you have thats interesting.

 

I strongly suggest that you and Shea learn "wait", "heel" "down" and if necessary "get your ass back here"

 

That one works best if you are offering the kind of mental stimulation setters love best.

Ask a question here about how to train some nosework into your dogs

 

On the face of it you walk Shea every day and he gets an hour and he get this and that.

If I said to you for fourteen months my Fiat van is at the end of the road lets walk along there, lift the bonnet and look at the engine ask yourself after all this time wouldnt you just once maybe like to go and watch paint dry!

 

Make training and walking fun!

 

[Howard Glansfield]

That's good advice for me too.Arthur (6 months plus) has been very good and I was really pleased with his recalls but,the past few days,he is far more interested in other dogs/pigeons/blades of grass/holes in the ground/squirrels etc. than in me! I am leaping up and aving my arms like a demented windmill, using a high pitched voice making friendly overtures and he ignores me.It is only when Fred comes back that he does.We are taking him on holiday in April and if his recalls haven't improved he will be on a long training lead.I don't fancy a chase along  two miles of beach!

[Neil Todd]

Yeah, I don't think that just chucking squeaky balls for him is an accurate description of what we do with Shea alone. There is good variety in what he does with us when out, as mentioned every other day he will go with us to a huge field surrounded by farm land, he is happy to run ragged after balls, which he does with gusto, not exactly what I would imagine a bored dog would do. He is allowed to run into other fields and explore, we also use this time to practice some training, sit, down, drop etc. On the other days he will go for a walk with us, usually on an extending lead where he has some free rein within a structured walk. Everyday we will have a very happy and tired dog on our hands after his exercise so am not sure the 'fiat van' analogy is fitting.

We have had Shea to a trainer who is happy that he has all the 'basics' apart from recall, of which he said will come with maturity, practice and patience. Recall is in progress, sometimes he will come, others not and as mentioned if other dogs/people are around he will want to bound up to say hello with great fuss. This is why we use the extending lead for the walks to give him some free ground but also to keep control and try to check him when he shows too much interest in things we don't want him to, however he does tend to forget he is on a lead with it and can pull (please note he very rarely pulls on his short lead and walks to heel just fine).

The OP was my partner Debra and I think her concerns were raised after watching an episode of dog whisperer where it was asserted that a dog should never be in front of you on a walk due to alpha issues so immediately our extending lead came into question. It was decided maybe we should just walk him on his short lead so that he is to heel, problem being we are worried he wouldn't get the exercise that he gets on extended, that was the original question.

Nosework- would anybody like to suggest some methods they use?

[Teresa]

I think Ossian and Sue have made a very good point, and pretty much said it all!

I'd just like to add that if Shea gets so excited when meeting other dogs, probably there is not enough contact with other dogs. Maybe you could find some doggie friends and arrange play dates! When they have the chance to be out playing with friends, they are normally not as interested in other dogs - in my opinion this makes it easier for you to be the most interesting thing around them.

[Sue and Cash]

Your way is exactly what I do also for my 15 month old dog.  It seems to be enough for my dog as well since he sleeps or lays around and is very relaxed until HIS TIME comes around the next day.  I find the lead walks aren't enough to get his energy out enough.  My dog needs to get a good run in.   With all the mud lately I have tried to just do walks to keep him cleaner, but he seems to get a bit wired at night and runs through the house or digs a nice muddy hole in the yard then.  I am thinking once older, the walks will be enough once in a while but for now, I have to release that energy.

[Louise Perry]

Yes I have to agree with Sue, that the recall is the most important thing when out and when you master that you have control of your dog and no need for extending leads. It took me a long time to master it (look at my past posts!) but it def helped when I did the following things:

Played hide and seek on walks

only fed him meat when he came to the whistle, inside and out.

Used a long trailing line for a while (and yes very muddy and messy) and i could reinforce commands by stepping on the line or gently tugging it when he went deaf. e.g he had no choice but listen to me! Of course we got in tangles and I didnt always get to the line in time but these were very rare and the effort and mess paid off I think. I think by having him on an extendable lead they are effectively(in there head) still on a lead, so when you take it off it is back to the fun of being a bit deaf. But I would reccomend  a long trailing line definitely.

 

Reuben loves other dogs too but he has kind of desensitised to them (a bit anyway) and doesnt feel the urge to bound up to all of them. I find that if I start walking away he will generally follow me now.

It sounds like you know what you are doing and putting in all the necessary effort and Shea is still a young dog  but my opinion would be to ditch the extendable altogether and try a long line.

I would never have posted a reply to you a few months ago as I was having a nightmare but am recently feeling a bit smug as it seems a switich has flicked in Reuben's head and he is very obedient at the moment (have to be careful as he may have me under false pretences and then run riot again, lol).

Good luck.

[Sue and Cash]

Oh I agree with you Louise.  Cash has so much time with other dogs that he doesn't get overly excited to play when on lead. I take him every Saturday to our local petstore that has an adoption event.  There are never less than 30 dogs all over on lead.  He had his puppy class there as well.  He is so used to walking through and not being allowed to make contact with the other dogs that it is just routine now.  We use it as a training place often because where else could I find that many people and dogs milling about.  He just seems to have learned that off lead is free running and playing and on lead he has to settle down and mind me.  I am not sure about that letting your dog walk in front of you means they will see themselves as above you in the pecking order.  Maybe it is with some breeds perhaps.  I am not an expert just a 50+ year dog owner.  But I don't think my dog thinks that way at all.  On lead he is in a harness and has to walk nice or we stop walking.  If it means he is a bit in front of me but walking gently without pulling me then I am very pleased with that. 

[Howard Glansfield]

I tried Arthur on a 30' training lead today.It was sheer mayhem! I haven't got very good hands due to arthritis so that didn't help,it was pouring with rain so that didn't help and then Arthur was able to run circles round Fred because I had dropped the lead and they both ended up thoroughly entangled...and that didn't help! Many swear words and minutes later they were disentangled and ,when I called him,Arthur came straight back to me,off lead.

I know it is early days and perhaps I expect too much.

I later tried Cornelia's idea of 'SIT' when later on he wasn't coming back and that worked.He sat,admittedly I had to go and get him but at least he didn't ignore me or run off.Thanks Cornelia.

I agree with Sue,it doesn't make the dog above me if he walks a little in front of me.However ,I always make sure that Fred and Ellie go through the front door before Arthur.

[Howard Glansfield]

I think that standing inside your forest watching a herd of deer must be wonderful.

Where I live in Northamptonshire (England) we have a few herds of deer nearby ,mostly on the Duke of Buccleuch's estate but I don't walk my dogs that far.Occasionally we get deer come into the town ,my dogs are always very interested when we come across one.

[Ossian]

Hi Neil

dont take it as a criticism. You are doing your best but by asking a question about leads and exercise you are seeking guidance and people will pile in.

The van IS a good analogy because despite your assertion, you are not doing enough to stimulate Shea otherwise he would want to be with you.

Comment about interaction with other dogs is right if he s excited about them he isnt meeing enough.

I was out yesterday with two of mine and ended up on walk meeting up with a lab and owner, a boxer pup with his mum and da and two other cross breeds with owners.

None of us knew the other but within five miutes there was a group of people and dogs walking across the hill together.

The puppy jumped all over everyone and ended up marching stoutly along with my old boy sniffing whar he sniffed while the others tore round in chase and tumble. Every so often, just to make the point, I would call Norna from the distraction, priase her and then send her back "go play" I gave her permission to play.

Prior to meeting the others I had been out with several items familiar to Norna, scuffing the grass and dropping these things so that when we are out and walking into the wind I can send her "find it" She loves this game, sometimes indicating and other times running with it and bringing it back.

If Shea is toy oriented why not teach him to find his toys and then his reward is a throw.

Recall will come easier if the dog WANT to return to you.

 

Howard.... you have learned that the art of long lining is not easy and you need to learn how to handle the line.

 

For boph of you.

Use long line and clicker. If you have wrecked the recall command then try boundary control.

Let the dog travel out on the line almost to the end of it (boundary) and then quicly change direction using a happy "this way" and a gente tug. If the dog changes direction to follow you and picks up pace to catch up, click and reward when it reaches you. Let the line out again and set off repeating the "this way" command and click treat. You should be able to get this is to an "on the move" reward as you turn but ultimately "this way" should bring the dog back to you with out windmills and screams.

Neil... I think that Sjea s exercising that teenage right to do his own thing and it is easy to feel that "damn him I am doing my best" but I am being truthful - you feel he is happily running after the ball and he is "happy" your dog is standing behind you as you tuye saying " actually dad I'm not. Do you think you could get a rabbit skin one day and put it on a dummy and hide it, could you get me a partridge wing and tie it on a string and let me follow all over where you dragged it and then find a great treat. Go on dad... I'll be good!!! Ans PS dad dont listen to them telly dog trainers!!

[Howard Glansfield]

Thank you Ossain.I will try again.