# pulling on leash towards other dogs and stubborness ISSUES



## mummybytes13 (Aug 2, 2016)

Hi

i was wondering if someone could give me advise for our 20mon old golden male. we have 2 concerns.

firstly, when walking on leash he walks well on a harness with no pulling. we use the front leading harness by ruffwear but have only had leash attached to the back of harness not the front as yet. a couple of months ago when he saw dogs on the other side of the road he would bark and pull like crazy to get over there. i was worried i might get pulled off my feet, not to mention him getting free and run over by a car. So we looked into a trainer. we had a private training session first with this particular club, the trainer took of the harness and attached a black dog head halter, he then pulled hard on it when he took him out walking, so much so we had a very quiet and subdued dog, that was practically perfect at heeling instaneously. 
a miracle so we thought at the time. 2 days later he was sick - couldnt eat from his bowl or drink, we had to lift his food and water bowl up to him. He was very quiet for a few days seemed in pain when walking but after a few days was back to his lively self so didnt think to much about it.
i was unusure about the head halter at the time so we used the harness and the head halter for about 1 month after this sickness BUT the difference we didnt pull and tug on head halter like the trainer did, our golden didnt really like the halter but he walked well on it and didnt carry on when he saw other dogs.
fast forward to this weekend, we had our first group session last weekend, they once again told us to take of harness and just use the head halter and they tugged on it several times in the session, yesterday 2 days later he is sick again, walking slowly, cant eat from bowl on floor etc. we have just come back from vet and he has a sore neck from the head halter and the vet says NOT to use it again. He has had a shot for an antiflam and should be back to normally hopefully but he is in a great deal of pain at the moment.
researching the head halters i have seen they can cause damage i certainly hope he doesnt have any long lasting issues with this.

so my first question now is suggestions on how we can get him to stop barking and carrying on when he sees other dogs? he isnt aggressive when he does meet them, he just wants to play but not always possible.
we will put him back on the ruffwear harness, should i be using it from the front? i have noticed manufacturing instructions say dont only use from front but use a double ended leash and also attach to back.


our second issue, he can be very stubborn. for example if he doesnt want to walk a particular way, he will just lie down. last week he saw the park entrance and thats the way he wanted to go, i wanted to go the other way, we had a 15min standoff he lied down and wouldnt budge. if i took 2 steps towards the park he got up, if i tried to lead any other way he would lie down. i tried treats, even a toy. the only thing that eventually worked was a couple walking by so i seized that moment and said lets go in their direction, we crossed the street towards them and then they crossed towards the park and he dropped down again when we didnt go that direction, i then growled at him in a deep low growl lol and he got up and we continued on finally in the direction i wanted to go but its really frustrating as he does it to the housesitter as well.

advise greatly appreciated thankyou


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## laprincessa (Mar 24, 2008)

I had no luck with any harness - the only thing that's worked with Max is a martingale collar and a ton of walking, practicing, walking, practicing

About the lying down and refusing to move - I've posted this several times - I take a book along. When he gets in the mood to have a rest, I pull out my book and read. He eventually decides to get up and move on. Our walks aren't for marathon training, we go for distance but we don't go for speed, and if it takes longer than usual, that's that.


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## mummybytes13 (Aug 2, 2016)

About the lying down and refusing to move - I've posted this several times - I take a book along. When he gets in the mood to have a rest said:


> but isnt this just reinforcing the behaviour of lying down?


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

Sorry to hear your dog has been injured by your trainer, it should never have happened, hope that your dog does not end up with long term issues, due to the handling he received. 

Yes, do use the front attachment on the harness, it will give you more control when walking your dog, you can put a second lead on the back clip if you like. 

Consider what you want your dog 'TO do' when he sees another dog and work with him to teach him to do it. Teaching and highly rewarding for making eye contact, 'checking in' with you can go a long ways to reducing inappropriate behavior on leash, and help your dog to maintain some self control.
http://www.clickertraining.com/files/auto-eye-contact.pdf

Over excitement is largely due to a lack of impulse control, dogs are not born with but the can learn it, work with him by teaching /rehearsing skills such as, - leave it, stay, sit, go to a mat and remain there until released, gradually increasing duration, and distractions, as he is able to handle it, beginning in a quiet non-distracting environment (at home) and making it more difficult as he becomes reliable at each level. 

The book Feisty Fido - by Jean Donaldson, is a good resource in helping to understand the behavior, and guide you in working with him. 

To help get past the 'stubborn' spots, consider teaching him to 'touch' (target) his nose to the palm of your hand. Start teaching the skill at home, it is fairly easy to teach, and fun for them to learn. Make it a game, keep it fun and highly rewarding to him, something he really enjoys doing. It can help to keep him 'engaged' with you, keep him moving when he gets the urge to lay down.
Once he become reliable with it, initiate the game as soon as you sense he is slowing down, going to stop, to re-focus his attention and help to keep him moving. If there are specific 'trouble' spots, avoid those areas while you work on 'touch' in the real life situations.


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## laprincessa (Mar 24, 2008)

mummybytes13 said:


> but isnt this just reinforcing the behaviour of lying down?


With Max, it seems to be more an attention thing - if I'm standing there trying all kinds of things to get him to move, and I've done them all, I think, he's getting my full attention. If I stop and read, and ignore him, he's not getting any attention so he gets up and moves. When we're moving, he gets the treat and the good boy! 

And CharlieThree gives wonderful advice, by the way.


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

Don't be shy about advocating for your dog, you have the right to say 'No', and walk away, even remove him from the class, if you are not in agreement with what any trainer is doing, or teaching you to do to or with your dog. Trust your gut, if it doesn't 'feel right' to you, it probably isn't right or good for your dog. 

Since your dog has unfortunately suffered a neck injury, (and re-injury) consider using a harness with him for life, to avoid the risk of injuring his neck again. Keep in mind that it is not the 'equipment' that teaches the dog, the purpose of it is to help maintain safety and control, while he learns from you, what you want him 'to do'.

Search out a reward based (positive reinforcement) training class, take the time to check out a class or two, without your dog. A good trainer should have no problem with that, to ensure that the trainer is using the methods they say they do, and it is a good fit for you and your dog.


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