Robert asked for help with leash training his Bull Mastiff:
“I have a 4 month old female bull mastiff i can not get her to walk with on a leash it ’s like a stand off she will just lay down i do not use a chocker i don’t thank it would help can you please give me some suggestion’s on how to do this so it’s not so painful on both of us thanks”
Try getting her to associate the leash with positive things. Have a selection of her favorite treats to hand. Lay the leash on the floor beside you and call her over to you. When she comes, give her a treat and let her go. Do this a few times, then try attaching the leash before treating. Take it off immediately and let her go. Again, repeat this a few times, gradually moving towards being able to hold the attached leash whilst standing up.
Once you have got her associating the leash with a treat, use the treat to lure her to walk beside or behind you while you hold the leash. Do this indoors at first then after you have got her happily following you around in the house, venture outdoors. Increase the time between treats and you will eventually find she walks along with you without needing them.
It looks like a time consuming job, but it should only take a day or two if she is receptive to the treats you offer. I have found that even ‘problem’ dogs can’t resist fishy treats like pilchard cake or tuna cake if you are stuck to find something she is prepared to accept the leash for.
One of my newsletter subscribers emailed asking for help with his Shi Tzu who has a small behavioral problem:
“HI, I need your help I have a small ShiTuz love her to death. My problem I am having with her is she runs to anyone who comes and start biting their feet as well of mine when I come home.
I tried spanking her but she still does this, I am afraid she will make someone trip & fall since I’m elderly & so are of lot of my friends.
Please tell me & help me brake her of this habit looking forward to help. Homer” more…
Lynn has a potty training and socialization question about her new shih-tzu puppy:
“I am getting a 8 week old shih tzu puppy in 5 days and I have no idea how to potty train. I would like it to go to the back yard but the breeder has said it is already paper trained. So can I still outdoor train or not? Also I already have a 12 year old female cat and I’m not sure how to introduce them to eachother. Help!!!!” more…
Erica has got a problem pooch:
“What do I do when my 5 mo. old pom/yorky ignores a command I am certain he knows and there are no appearent distractions? Do I enforce it by putting him into position?”
more…
Catalina left this qusetion on the dog training question page:
“My 3 year old german shepherd is very agressive towards other dogs and unframiliar people. We can’t even take her to the beach without her barking at people walking by, and becoming agressive towards other dogs. When we are at home we have to keep her tied up because she likes to nip at people’s feet. She is perfectly behaved towards the family, but when it comes to others she is very agressive. What should we do?” more…
Betty needed help with her Yorkshire Terrier Mix:
“I have a mixed yorkie we travel in the R.V. If she is not on a leash but is with us and she sees an animal or something she is gone like a light, when we call she does come back, however, is there any way we can stop this behavior. people have suggested using a shock collar,I hate to resort to this but am looking for any suggestions to see if this behavior can actually be stopped” more…
Bill asked this simple question relating to a big problem:
“I can not get my dog into the car to go anywhere.What can i do?.”
Strangely enough, this problem is quite close to home for me, so I can tell you what worked in a recent, real life scenario…. more…
Melis posed this question:
“How can you fix a dog that is very excited with other dogs.He barks constantly because he wants to play . how would you fix him”
This problem most likely stems from more…