Max is 1 years old and pulls like crazy on his leash; and what about the jumping up on people!? HELP

[Kathy (Max's Mom)]

Hi everyone,

I'm new here and this is my first post. I've read a bunch of others and have gotten some good ideas so far. But here are my two main issues: leash pulling and jumping up on people.

To start, let me tell you my leash story...Max (1 yr old black male labradoodle) is a petite (sarcasm) 80 lb dog! He constantly pulls on his leash and i am hardpressed on how to get him to stop. He's gone so far as to take off running on me and jerked the leash forward that i crashed (and burned) in my driveway that i broke my elbow, fractured my hand and got a small concusion!! - but i love my dog! lol

I've tried stoping in place and all that does is focus his attention on what is around him....he hasn't figured out to come back to me or focus any attention on why we are stopped...I figure it's more of an opportunity for him to sniff everything in his reach. Secondly, trying the "other direction" thing doesn't work either for him as he just takes off running to catch up and sends me flying if i can't stop him. Now mind you, I am by no means a small person and it takes all my strength at times to hold him back on the leash when someone he knows is coming up the driveway....he pulls like a mac truck!! - he is quite strong! I'm concerned about putting harness's on him as i've heard that only gives him more strength to pull, but the regular collar he has on now he choaks himself to gagging to get to where he wants to go without stopping....and the pronged collars and shock collars scare me that he'll get hurt with them. PLEASE OFFER SOME SUGGESTIONS WITH PROVEN RESULTS - I'm desperate :-(

My last (well, not really last, but one that I NEED to get resolved before any others) is his habit of jumping up on people...my once scratch-free dining room table :( ...the counters....whatever really. It's sadly to a point that he has to be in his crate when company comes over because he can't be a ''good dog''. The rear-end sniffing of ladies in my church group is kind of embarrassing to I have to put him away for that too. Please note, he IS in his cage a lot....and I truly would LOOOOVE to get to a point where he can roam free all day when we're at work, but I don't see that happening any time soon! If I have the gate up to go upstairs for something, he's at my heels and howling at the bottom of the stairs because i'm out of his site...then he goes quiet (which is never a good sign cause we all know that leads to nothing good) which means he's up on my dining room table (and by that i mean two front paws not actually ON the table) sniffing around for stuff and grabbing anything he can reach.

Any thoughts?

Thank you everyone,
Kathleen :-)

[Holly Southall]

We are also a huge fan of the Gentle leader. We do not use the one that goes around the snout, we just use the regular harness. Angel is 70lbs and when she wants somebody or squirrel, I find using this harness helps me to control her so she is not pulling my arm off. It still takes some strength on my part when she is overly eager, but the harness when used tight enough and properly discourages them from pulling.

I agree with googling it and see what you think. It was cheaper online than at petsmart. And there had inbetween sizes. Angel is a Medium/Large.

[Kyoko]

I use "Gentle Leader" as well. Charlie does not care for it either, and try to rub it off of her face time to time. But not only for pulling, I just think it is nicer to redirect by turning her head than pulling on her neck. However, I practiced walking with her for months and months, 2 ~ 3 times a day. Initially, We started with few short steps at the time. I carried her breakfast, lunch and dinner kibbles in a treat bag each walk, placed her to my left with few kibbles in my left hand. As we took a step, two steps, I either clicked, or said yes, and gave her few kibbles. We did this for a long long time....
I don't think any collar, head collar nor harness is going to get a dog to stop pulling, per say, but the human have to learn to walk the dog and the dog have to learn to walk with a human. Charlie happen not to be one of those naturally good and gentle dog, so I had to learn a lot and worked really diligently to get her to learn things...It required a lot of effort and patience. But now, if she gets a little ahead of me, she will turn around and look at me or get back into my left. So, it really pays off. Good luck!! Max can do it, too!!

[Linda and Molly]

We used a few different types of collars with no real improvement UNTIL we tried the GENTLE LEADER.
It looks like a slim muzzle, but it isn't a muzzle at all. It shifts the pull from around the neck, to the side of the neck.
Our 13 month old 60 lb molly was not fun to walk as a young puppy - always pulling, and jumping to greet everyone.
This leader helped us to finally teach her to heal.
The other factors that contributed..... We walk Molly for 45 min.s each day(every day),
(often with two other dogs - gives her a chance to be a dog and vent energy)
She has been going to puppy school group for the last 6 months
(spot correction techniques for us,and socialization for molly)
The last thing I did was to install an electric invisible fence which also has a remote training control.
We have small children next door and across the street - Molly loves the kids and ran across the road
to play (bad news - our street can get busy). The fence training was fast and easy - within 8 days we were
confident she understood (and respected)the boundaries (she only received 3 corrections -like a static shock -
before she learned the warning tone means for her to get back). We used the hand held control to get her to
stop jumping, and to reduce her barking (joggers, hikers, neighbors kids). Once she learned the combination of warning tone followed by correction, she stopped unwanted behavior as soon as she hears the tone. We never had to hit the correction button (the shock), just the warning works. Prior to Molly we had 3 dogs over 18 years and never needed an electric aid - -I think the Poodle genes add to her independence and stubbornness. She is a good dog and worth the extra effort.
Hope this helps

[Kathy (Max's Mom)]

Thank you for those comments. It is the Gentle Leader that I have and it's very difficult for me to get on Max now since he knows what it is and what it does. When he does where it, it's great...but 730 in the am when I'm rushing to work doesn't leave much time for wrestling with Max to get that thing on. However, I will re-visit this muzzle thing and see what magic can happen. ;-)

And as far as the invisible fence goes, I've been strongly considering that because I live directly on a busy highway with tractor trailors and cars going up and down my road 24/7...which after a year of living there I've just started to tune out the ambulances and police cars that go roaring by every 20 minutes....ha!

In any case, how my yard is situated, I wasn't sure how I would be able to have the fence. I have a very tiny front yard but a large backyard which we're still working on the fence completion. My driveway runs alongside my yard and house and you have to go down it to exit the house to get to the backyard....do invisible fences go across paved driveways?? And sadly, if Max breaks through that fence just one time...no more Max :-( So not that I would let him run free until we got to the backyard...but goodness, scary thought.

What fence system do you have if you don't mind me asking the cost as well??

[Linda and Molly]

Yes, getting the leash on a curly head takes some getting used to - - we gave Molly her favorite treat once it was on - that and knowing she was going for a walk, she is absolutely no trouble now.
The fence I installed is made by INNOTEK (www.innotek.net). The unit we picked was around $300 - it had the normal electric fence feature with the addition of the training remote.
The web site will give you all the info you need to see how to install. When you need to cross a hard surface - like a sidewalk, or driveway, you will need to made a shallow cut (circular saw with a masonry blade), lay the wire in the groove, then caulk over when done. The area I fenced is 1/3 of an acre (approx 125 X 150) -mostly lawn, maybe 15 feet of driveway cutting . I chose to dig the wire into the lawn ( you can staple it on top of the ground and avoid the digging - but that's a problem if you mow your lawn. It took me a full Saturday to install our unit by myself. PS Invisible fence wanted 800.00 for an installed system (no remote training option available)

[Laura & Chewie]

I'm going to chime in here. I have an invisible fence and it goes around my entire property...front yard, back yard and yes, across the driveway. The installer dug a tiny trench between the driveway and street, layed the wire and filled with some kind of special caulk. The company I used is Pet Stop and the cost was $750. I had wanted to build a fenced dog run and this was cheaper than the small amount of fencing I would have needed for a run that wouldn't have been that big. Chewie also learned very fast with only a minimal shock...I tried on my hand...could barely feel it. The system is turned up higher now, just in case.

[Ann]

I have had success with the harness that your leash attaches to the chest. If he walks or runs and you pull it, it makes the dog go sideways and he can't get to where he wants to go. This worked for me and I was pulled thru the mud (if everyone remembers that incident). i fell on my butt and slid thru the mud as Samson was pulling me. Lovely! Also, i know a lot of people don't like collars that vibrate, but I have one from my prior dog and it vibrates only. It is a rechargeable collar with prongs and if he jumps on people you push the button and the collar vibrates like a cell phone and they stop in their tracks! It works!! I am training with this collar now.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

I am looking into the Weiss Walkie - mentioned on dk last week. It is very easy to put on. Nancie Casey just got one for her Gracie - who is a big doodle, and so for she likes it. Here is the link:

http://www.emilyweiss.com/arquan/arcart/ProductDetail.cfm?ProductID=3

[DeeDee and Sheila]

Kathy: When you signed on to get an 80 lb. dog, you made a MAJOR committment to training and exercise. An 80lb young athlete locked in a cage all day while you work is a recipe for disaster!!! You need to get serious quickly before Max kills you or gets killed in the road. I have had 4 hunting dogs. I think you need to get an expert in at this point. The experts will teach you and show you how to control the dog. And consistency is the key. Max doesn't understand sometimes on the couch and sometimes off. He might when is is older, but right now you are dealing with a Baby Huey. We got up at 5AM to get our dogs run and then again after work. THEN TRAIN when they are calmer and tired. I am afraid that you will get discouraged and want to rehome Max if you don't get some help soon. You can't even hire a dog walker at this point. Will this dog fetch a kong w/ a string? We would play fetch for an hour in evenings in a field or a hill to get the stink off our labs. Or throw it in the water. If you get a professional involved, I think you will not feel so alone. Get on the internet in your area. Get someone who works w/ athletic dogs-like retrievers. They will show you their tricks and probably good areas to take your athlete to work off his energy.!!! Good luck.

[Amanda and Wheatley]

Sorry I didn't read other peoples responses because I'm reading this on my phone, so someone may have mentioned this but my all time favorite thing for a pulling dog is those easy walk dog harnesses. I can't remember is that's exactly what they're called and they're not the ones that go around the muzzle, they go around their body like a normal harness. The thing is the leash attaches to a ring on the chest which tightens when they pull and its awesome because as soon as they pull they have to stop. This way it doesn't hurt their neck when they pull and they don't even have a chance to pull! Its pretty cool! Look it up on petsmart, its only like 20 bucks or so!

[Donna Latrell]

Kathleen: One word; RIVERDOG...It is a great dog training facility in Issaquah. They work with you and your dog, which makes the training stick much better. They show you what you are doing wrong, which is half the battle. The dog will want to do the right thing. I cannot recommend them enough. If you are unable to take Max there, there are several good training books available. A good way to keep him from jumping up is to move forward into him as he is jumping. While doing this say off or down. Our natural reaction is to back up and that doesn't work. As soon as all four of his feet are on the ground, reward him with good dog, hugs, or if he is food motivated a small treat. He will soon understand not to jump. You must be consistent with this. If he does it to someone else teach them this method or have them turn around and ignore the dog. I know that is hard with an 80 pounder, but it can get dangerous with him jumping up on kids or elderly, so he needs to know this is not acceptable. Good Luck, and I hope you have enormous success. And one other word: Exercise....He needs a good couple of hours of it interspersed throughout the day. A tired dog is a good dog.

[Erin and Dexter]

Hi Kathleen,
We've got a big guy too (70 lbs at 11 months) and he's a puller too...best thing we ever got was called a SENSE-ible dog harness. it's very very easy to put on, the dog doesnt have to get used to it at all, it's comfortable and it doesn't allow him to pull because the strap is low across his chest. http://www.softouchconcepts.com/products/sense_ible_harness.php
Best thing we ever got, really helps, especially to try and train them not to pull because you can at least control them!

the other thing our trainer said was when he is pulling, try and snap the leash like a whip, quick pull, "attention getter" she called it. once you got his attention, you give him a treat. basically if he looks at you or comes near you, he gets a treat but only when he's not pulling. it worked really well with our pup but I definately think the more exercise you can get him, the better. Our pup always walks way better when he's tired. good luck, hope that helps!!

Erin