jumping and pulling

[rosiemay]

She is now 6months old and was spayed a couple of weeks ago and has made a full recovery, at the moment we are having terrible trouble when we walk her. She just pulls really hard and tends to jump up at people and dogs,although she is not at all aggressive. She is so powerful even at this young age.Wewalk her on a harness and a training lead just to keep some control on her,today someone recommended a head harness,i have tried one of these but she didnt like it,the person who i spoke to said to persivere as they have more control.We are taking her on holiday in 8 weeks and are now feeling a bit desperate at the thought of all this jumping that she does. Can anyone please give us any advice............ Nina

[pologsd]

Hi
A dog will only pull you if you folow it! When your dog pulls ..STOP and stand still. When she turns round to look at you, call her back. Don't move forward until she comes back. Use a treat to reinforce her new position at your side. This will either extend your hour walk to 2 hours or halve the distance you cover. It is time consuming but worth the effort.
You could also try walking her in the opposite direction she is heading. Keep changing direction. You may look a bit odd to onlookers but so what! This way, she'll get confused as to which way is forward but it reinforces that she needs to stick by you. Reward lavishly with treats when in correct position.
Jumping up? You could try getting her to sit when someone approaches. Step on the lead so as to not pull her head down but prevent more than a few cms upward movement. Reinforce with a stay or sit command and reward.
PM me if you need further help
Ewan
http://www.k9-behaviour-services.co.uk

[Smokeybear]

Unfortunately most owners reinforce pulling and jumping unconsciously by continuing the walk etc.
Most harnesses actually encourage pulling (think about huskies and tracking dogs).
Head halters are very useful but first of all you need to acclimatise the dog to a head halter by associating it with all good things.
This may take a week or so in the house eg by feeding her only when she is wearing it etc.
Harnesses and head halters do not STOP dogs pulling, they only mitigate the effect.
As dogs do what works you have to demonstrate that pulling = either walk halted or walking further away from goal. (This is why it is usually futile commencing this on your usual walks and is better started at the END of a walk or when you get there).

The same applies to jumping up you need the dog to realise jumping up = isolation eg you turn your back, 4 paws on the ground = whatever the dog wants.

Reward the dog for the behaviour you want and it will become more likely, stop reinforcing the dog for inappropriate behaviour and it will become less likely.

[rosiemay]

thanks for all your advice i will certainly take it all on board. Will post again in a few weeks to let you know how it is going and i will try to remain CALM!!!!!!! Thanks again ......Nina

[Boxer]

One of my Boxers pulls dreadfully. I tried the walkeeze harness but that only seemed to make him want to pull more. He wears a Halti now and it's been a godsend. Some walks he's fine and walks nicely so I take it off and some he still pulls. He doesn't like wearing it as somedays all he does is walk along trying to paw it off but it's tough. If he wants a nice long walk I have to be able to enjoy it too.

[pologsd]

Hi
Haltis provide a quick solution to a pulling dog. Unfortunately that's all they do. It doesn't cure the problem, only provides temporary relief for the handler. Short muzzled dogs like the boxer find haltis very uncomfortable and can actually cut into the flesh. As tempting as it is to resort to using a halti for the immediate effect, in the long run it provides no cure for the problem.
Any dog needs to be conditioned (trained) into walking at the heel position. This reinforces its status position in the pack. Some dogs get this very quickly, some don't. Patience, consistency and a basic obedience skill knowledge are the keys to success. Walking at heel is also important for safety. A strong dog like a boxer can easilly put you off balance if it decides to take off on the leash.
I always say, you cannot sit down and explain to a dog how you want it to behave, it has to make the mistakes before you can correct them. Therefore, a halti is preventing the dog from making the mistake and therefore you are unable to correct it.
It is better in the long run to invest in the time and effort it takes to correct the dog pulling.
If you want further info and I have some handouts that may be of use to you, please PM me
Regards
Ewan

[WBC]

Good post Ewan - detest hearing of people using any form of head collar on a Boxer. Ive seen dogs with cuts under their eyes & round wrinkles, so unnecessary

I do however favour training harnessess, trained all ours on them. Boxers are smart cookies & soon realise what its about. Dr Mugford & his "Company of Animals" (google it) has a new training harness out which looks good

At 6 mths a Boxer is still a pup, they are a breed slow to mature3-4 yrs, so plenty of scope to train & work with. Also you say shes just been spayed, it'll take time for the hormones to settle down. Ewan's advice us good.

[rosiemay]

Many thanks for all your advice.I do use the head harness but only for a short space off time,it does seem to really calm her down,after 15 mins i take it off. She still pulls without it and jumps at other people,but we have notched up some success,where when told to sit and stay she has actually done this,so we must be heading in the right direction!!!!!!! and doing something right.I myself personally need the head harness for her at the moment just to give me that bit of confidence and as long as i use it properly and not abuse it then i will continue to use it until i am in control so to speak. I feel as if some of you think i am awful and a bad owner using it,but surely if it helps both of us then it is worth the effort in the long run.......... Regards Nina

[Smokeybear]

You are certainly not a b ad owner for using a head halter!

It is no different from a rider using say a gag, or a chifney when riding a very strong horse, it is in fact kinder than constant pulling at the neck in the dog's case.

I walk mine in head halters in the ice, it would be silly not to make things as safe as I can, with 65 kgs of dog at the end of a lead, if they decided to react to a deer, cat etc then this way I can keep ALL of us safe.

[pologsd]

Mmmnn.
I would like to say that I would never suggest that you are a bad owner. I hope you don't feel so. You need to be confident for sure.
My comments, and I stand by them, were that head halters are not really suitable for boxers as they MAY damage their muzzle. Of course constant pulling and jerking the lead on a dog's neck can also have the potential to do a lot of muscle/ skeletol damage. The technique of stopping when your dog walks in front thus preventing it from pulling you (as opposed to you pulling the dog) is sound. Changing direction teaches the dog to follow you if you reinforce the wanted behaviour. Time consuming? YES! Worth the investment? YES!
Head halters dampen/stop the pulling effect but as you've found out, don't CURE the issue. Positive reinforcement of rewarding your dog when positioned at heel is the way to go.
Personally, if my dogs pulled on the leash or if they weren't under my control, I wouldn't walk them on the ice. I would instead, use the time to work on some basic obedience training which can be done safetly in doors.

[Boxer]

Oh please people wind your necks in.

For a start the halti doesn't cut into my dog in any way shape or form or ride up into his eyes. Most days it comes off after the first 10 minutes but I feel no need to explain myself to you. I have seen harness's a lot more painful than a halti. It works for Nina so don't go making her feel bad about using one. My dog is 4 and he still pulls like a train a lot of the time despite changing direction, despite standing still despite having a 1 to 1 trainer. My usual methods must work as my other two Boxers walk normally (one is 5 and one is 3)

Some dogs unfortunately just don't get it, no matter what you do.

[pologsd]

Mmnnn!
Ha ha ha
Neck wound in suggest you do same.
I was merely giving my opinions from 32 years of working with dogs, yes, I started at 14!
You need a better trainer or improve your own skills, I have never experienced non success with stopping a dog pulling on the leash. Of course, it all depends how the dog views the person on the end of the leash. Some people have it, some don't BUT DON'T BLAME THE DOG!