Help! Our puppy follows every stranger.

[Camus]

I knew that doodles were very friendly but never thought that so much. We took Camus (he is almost 9 weeks old) for a walk yesterday in the night and this early morning and he tried to follow every stranger without even been petted. He just tries to go away with everyone who passes by us. At the same time Camus is pretty shy, he walkes behind us and follows very well if ther are no people around.

I googled this and found very few discussions. It doesn't seem to be a common thing. Does anyone have the same problem? Should I worry? I read that one way to solve this is to treat him every time he comes to me. I'll do that, but Camus is not very food motivated. Is there anything else I should do about it? 

Obedience lessons? At what age should they start?

Ah, another thing. Our puppy is very calm and independent: even at home Camus doesn't follow us everywhere, only when he is interested. He doesn't cry at all when we leave him alone and feels very well  being left in his sunroom. He is happy when we come back, but not like crazy. 

As for other commands like "sit" and "down", he does them pretty well, but get distracted easily. 

Thank you in advance for any advice or comment on this. 

 

[Katie, John & Parker pup]

My Parker also likes to "chase" strangers...I  think he is just social though as at home he is a defininite mommy's boy. You're lucky Camus is so independent at home! I wish Parker would relax more when he was left alone...he howls and barks. Puppy class has been helping to give him more confidence with things and they also cover the "come" and "stay" command with other puppies as distractions which is very helpfuL! Parker is 6 months old so obviously a little older than Camus but as long as Camus has all of his shots (especially rabies), he would be good to start a puppy kindergarten.

[Camus]

Thanks.  I don't plan to take him to a kindergarten, but will consider obedience lessons if I can't handle some problems. 

Yes, I understand that I should be happy about his independence, but sometimes I worry that he doesn't need us very much and there is no strong bond between us and him which is not good. 

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

When you take Camus for his walks is he on a leash?  If not, that's one way that you can be sure he says right with you and doesn't follow strangers.  If he is on a leash and is pulling to get to the strangers you can try to reengage him with you by using a treat or a squeaky toy.  As for formal obedience lessons, I'd say he should be about four or five months.  Once he has his shots, you could also try one of the puppy socialization classes if you think he's enjoy that.

[Camus]

Yes, he is on leash. The problem is not about pulling. I think it's not normal, that a dog tries to follow everyone, as if they were his owners.  

[Camilla and Darwin]

Darwin does this more now than he did as a puppy. If we go to dog parks or things like that he'll find a random couple of people and plop down next to them like they are his owners. LOL

 

I think if Camus is on leash it should be easy to correct him back towards you. I think it's a good thing that he is so friendly to people. :-)

[Camus]

Yes, it is definitely better than having an aggressive dog. He is on leash, of course. I just didn't expect a dog to be ready to go with everyone. Thank you! It kind of calm me that he is not the only one who does this.

[Jess and Pippin]

Sounds so much like Pippin.  The first week or so, he was quite hesitant outside.  I think he was just getting used to the new neighborhood and us as his family.  Now (he is 6 months old), he will follow anyone.  He just loves people.  When we are at the dog park, he will park between any human's legs when he feels overwhelmed (he is a medium doodle and still finds the big dogs a bit much at times).  We took him to the vet this week to be neutered, handed the leash to the vet assistant and he didn't even look back!  It was "OK, new adventure, where are we going?"  Love this about his personality, but it can be concerning too.  We make sure that when we at off leash outings, we take the best treats with us, and before we let him off leash, reward him a couple of times with the best treat so that he knows we have them.  (eg ask for a sit, high 5 etc a couple of times).  Pippin is also very independant at home which surprised me a bit because are other dogs have both been my shadows.  We started obedience training the day we brought Pippin home.  Lots of short puppy sized sessions.  We love the book "my smart puppy" by Brian Kilcommons.  Keep things fun and stress free for Camus.  Pippin is a very smart boy, but gets distracted really easily (more when he was younger, focus is improving all the time).  We started a puppy class when Pippin was 14 weeks old.  He had not completed all his shots, but because he was so independant, and in talking with both our vet and our trainer (both who we know really well from working with them both with our 2 previous dogs), we all thought it was important to work on training asap instead of waiting for all his shots. 

[Camus]

Thank you very much for your advice and all the tips. I'll check that book. I agree that it is important to train ASAP instead of waiting for all the shots. And I feel better knowing that there are other doodles as independent as Camus. Just one more questions. The obedience training you started with Pippin when you brought him home did you learn it from that book?  If not, could you describe those sessions in two words?

[Jess and Pippin]

HI.  We had a puppy once before, so it was a quick refresher to go back to.  (well, not exactly quick because there was a lot we had forgotten!)  Working on bonding with him, especially because he was confident.  Spending time playing with him, teaching that nothing happens without a sit (eg, food, play, leash for a walk, petting etc).  So, we worked on sit first.  Then when we moved on to the next thing (eg down), we started with sit (no reward for that) and then a reward for down.  Walking on a leash started right away too.  First, just allowing him to pull the leash around (no problem there).  Then, the first few walks were just getting him used to the immediate surroundings and sounds.  No agenda other than letting him explore, being together and having fun.  You can start in the house.  Have a good small piece of a soft treat, call his name, and if he is beside you on leash, say good boy and reward him.  Gradually increase the distance between rewards.  Another fun game was rolling a ball on the floor for Pippin to chase.  That helped with bonding.  I know I said Pippin would go to anyone in the park.  What we find is neat is that he is looking for us and is really happy when we call him and he sees us.  Same thing when we come home from work school etc and any separation.  We have definitely bonded with him, but it is very different from our other dog who is a complete shadow. 

[Camus]

Thanks, Jess. I am glad we do all these things already. So, I think we are on the right way and just need to practice more. I bought 2 books that seem to be pretty good. I'll check also the one you said. 

I had a dog for 15 years. It was so different with that one. They are all so different just like people. :) 

My husband and I say sometimes that we got another cat (speaking about Camus). 

[Jess and Pippin]

There was only 3 years between our puppy stages, and we forgot a lot in that time.  I also knew in my head how much work a new puppy is, but remembering it and living it are 2 very different things!Getting another puppy was very much a family decision (me, hubby and kids 13 and 15) and everyone pitches in.  And yes, every dog has a very distinct, unique personality.  My biggest tip for puppyhood is the same tip that I've shared with new moms of human babes.  Their lives are full of stages, and each stage brings its particular joys and challenges.  Focus on the joy, not the challenge (although the challenges need to be addressed) because all little ones, human or puppy, grow up so fast!

[Camus]

Right.

We recalculate with my husband the puppy's age to the human age and try to require the adequate from him.