Labradoodle & Goldendoodle Forum
Tips For Zoomies
I thought I would post some TIPS FOR ZOOMIES and hope everyone else will add theirs too!
Here are some of the things that were suggested to us that helped get rid of the zoomies:
Recall - If “come” doesn’t work, choose a new word. You don’t realize how many times a day you say “come” like “come on lets go in
the other room”, so the word becomes devalued. We switched to the word
“front”. Then you need to start over teaching a recall with the new
word.
Fun - Take the dog to a fenced-in area (backyard, playground, tennis courts, etc) , let off leash and walk away. Let the dog run on its own. When the dog comes to you, don’t say anything just give it a treat, then turn and walk away in the opposite direction. Keep doing this and
soon the dog will figure out if he/she stays with you they will keep
getting treats and you will become the most fun thing around! Once they
consistently stay with you in a fenced area, switch to a lightweight
long line in an open area. This one worked really well for us.
Down - Learn an immediate/emergency down. You introduce a new hand signal, we used me raising my hand up, open palmed above my head, and
you teach them to drop immediately. You start on a leash, you move
quickly in front of the dog, tell them “down” in a strong voice and
pushing their butts down if needed to get them to down quickly. Give
them a treat, put it on the ground at their feet, so they stay down
until released. Slowly you move farther away from the dog, they should
drop where they are. It’s easy to practice in house too. As your dogs
is following you from room to room, just turn and tell them down.
Time – time helps all! As the dog matures, it will naturally start to calm. Maggie really changed around two.
Stress – Much of “zombies” may be caused by stress. I really believe that once I started learning to be better with my handling cues, Maggie started to respond better and was less stressed by trying to figure out
what I wanted. She stayed focused on me and stopped running away. I
would say it was a good year after we started training before I felt
like I started being a better handler.
Hope that helps and that others will add their tips too!
Here are some of the things that were suggested to us that helped get rid of the zoomies:
Recall - If “come” doesn’t work, choose a new word. You don’t realize how many times a day you say “come” like “come on lets go in
the other room”, so the word becomes devalued. We switched to the word
“front”. Then you need to start over teaching a recall with the new
word.
Fun - Take the dog to a fenced-in area (backyard, playground, tennis courts, etc) , let off leash and walk away. Let the dog run on its own. When the dog comes to you, don’t say anything just give it a treat, then turn and walk away in the opposite direction. Keep doing this and
soon the dog will figure out if he/she stays with you they will keep
getting treats and you will become the most fun thing around! Once they
consistently stay with you in a fenced area, switch to a lightweight
long line in an open area. This one worked really well for us.
Down - Learn an immediate/emergency down. You introduce a new hand signal, we used me raising my hand up, open palmed above my head, and
you teach them to drop immediately. You start on a leash, you move
quickly in front of the dog, tell them “down” in a strong voice and
pushing their butts down if needed to get them to down quickly. Give
them a treat, put it on the ground at their feet, so they stay down
until released. Slowly you move farther away from the dog, they should
drop where they are. It’s easy to practice in house too. As your dogs
is following you from room to room, just turn and tell them down.
Time – time helps all! As the dog matures, it will naturally start to calm. Maggie really changed around two.
Stress – Much of “zombies” may be caused by stress. I really believe that once I started learning to be better with my handling cues, Maggie started to respond better and was less stressed by trying to figure out
what I wanted. She stayed focused on me and stopped running away. I
would say it was a good year after we started training before I felt
like I started being a better handler.
Hope that helps and that others will add their tips too!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Kim Williams on
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Lori, these are awesome. I so agree with you on each category. Especially Stress!! Parris is so in tune when I am stressed about a run. She acts out every time!! When I am sure of myself, Parris seems to have great runs. I bet you are a great handler.
I really think having a RELIABLE recall is the most important obedience and agility skill!!! Our word for recall is "NOW"
I love your down signal , that would be great for a lot of situations. -
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