i need Dog advice.

[vash]

first time i heard the term, yesterday ; Over Stimulated.

wtf? i dropped my dog off at daycare. not cheap, but they work with the problem dogs. my wife got a "report card" yesterday. our dog was "over stimulated" and was picking on other dogs. i read that as, "being an A-hole and biting". they separated him to calm down and reintroduced him to a smaller group of older calm dogs. he got thru the day.

i took him back today. i called worried for a progress report. same thing today..milder. they took him out, and calmed him. then they are now walking him around with the older dogs..giving him orders..sit, stay, etc..he is okay now that he has a job.

he has been great up till now. what changed? i think i messed up. we walk him twice a day. on leash. but i think i made a mistake. i walk him to a park and throw a frisbee. he knows this and is so amped up all the way there..ears back, kinda pulling on the leash.

i think i just need to walk for walking sake..right? no frisbee destination. i am gonna fill his pack up with water bottles and just walk..brisk..no destination, i'm the boss.

seriously..wtf does over stimulation mean? the short days makes it hard..i was trying to optimize dog time by mixing leash time with frisbee time. big mistake?

i swear..i am going to buy my next dog from a reputable breeder. screw this adopted dog wildcard BS.

[Rikao4]

oh dear..your turning into a pretty good dog whisperer..
if he's used to running, throwing ...
he has that expectation upon arrival..
both of mine do this..
mix it up is best..

Rika

[drkshdw]

It sounds like he was put into the wrong group of dogs. 'Over stimulated' meaning he has decided he no longer wants to listen, taking after the dogs he's around. It's not necessarily his fault but rather the handlers fault for giving him the opportunity to misbehave.

It's like a recovering drug addict...put him in a job with responsibilities and he's likely to succeed and stay clean but the second he's around junkies he's back to the drugs. It's all about keeping the brain busy with things he's supposed to be doing instead of what he wants to be doing. The latter being much easier than the former.

[T77911S]

puppy Prozac.

how old is it.
they are like kids, you ever try to make a 5yr old boy sit and play when there are 5 other 5yr olds in the yard running around? they have energy to burn


reminds me of when my brother left his dog at our house. we have property, he has a very small yard. the dog ran for literally 2 days, then it calmed down.

[Cajundaddy]

As dog owners we need to train calm into our dogs so they pay attention and don't act out in public or new environments. It is pretty easy to do and if you walk him twice a day you are already putting in the time. Now to just redirect your efforts to train your dog to be calm in new situations. This works with all breeds of dogs and is more about specific training instead of just letting it happen.

These are a few of the basics:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQnIWkKJF1g

[vash]

Originally Posted by Cajundaddy

As dog owners we need to train calm into our dogs so they pay attention and don't act out in public or new environments. It is pretty easy to do and if you walk him twice a day you are already putting in the time. Now to just redirect your efforts to train your dog to be calm in new situations. This works with all breeds of dogs and is more about specific training instead of just letting it happen.

These are a few of the basics:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQnIWkKJF1g

thanks. helpful reminder.

[varmint]

You never said what breed.


And the old rule is- a tired dog is a good dog.

[Norm K]

Originally Posted by vash

he has been great up till now. what changed? i think i messed up. we walk him twice a day. on leash. but i think i made a mistake. i walk him to a park and throw a frisbee. he knows this and is so amped up all the way there..ears back, kinda pulling on the leash.

I doubt your walk to the park will improve until and unless you teach your dog to heel. Given our proximity to a very popular walking path I see scores of people walking their dogs every day. Almost invariably, those who struggle the most have dogs that are not at heel. And those stupid, ridiculously long retractable leashes only exacerbate the problem.

_

[Rickysa]

Absolute best book on obedience training...as a know nothing (me) it has given amazing results for all of our rescues. No treats used. Companion based training.

[vash]

Originally Posted by Norm K

I doubt your walk to the park will improve until and unless you teach your dog to heel. Given our proximity to a very popular walking path I see scores of people walking their dogs every day. Almost invariably, those who struggle the most have dogs that are not at heel. And those stupid, ridiculously long retractable leashes only exacerbate the problem.

_

true. maybe time to go back to basic.

[KFC911]

Is Hank used to you leaving him at a strange location (even w/o dogs) since you've adopted him Cliff? Might be some of that seperation anxiety stuff too in addition to all the excellent suggestions already posted. You'll get him in line lickety-split!

HEY NOW...what's wrong with using bits of treats or food as bribery !!!

[Jims5543]

Your dog should walk to your side, you walk it it does not walk you.

We have a rescue that was horrible on a leash at first, and a year later (she is now 2 years old) we are still working on her. Things do not happen overnight.

She heels OK we are still having problems when another dog comes up, she wants to play, or if a squirrel or rabbit runs by.

We are trying to get her to the point where we can have her off leash, my sons dog is the best off leash, he stays by you and comes back to you the moment you tell him to.

We hope to get ours to that point, we do not expect that for another year or two.

Dog training is constant, you also have to make the dog think, drills at home, hide a treat for them to find, we play a game where we hide a treat under one of 3 cups then slide them around and see if she can find it.

We do all kinds of things to try to engage her mind as well as physically tire her. To be honest, she is more calm after a 15-20 minute training session than after a 2 mile walk.


Oh and as echoed above NEVER use a retractable leash, that dog needs to be at your side and if it is healing, the leash will be slack as it walks along side. Making constant corrections and reminding it what you want takes a lot of work.

We have to stop on many walks and get ours to acknowledge us over the other dog / rabbit / squirrel, like I said a lot of work and constant work in progress. After a few years you marvel at the changes we already see a huge difference one year in.

[Rickysa]

HEY NOW...what's wrong with using bits of treats or food as bribery

The idea being to tie into the dog's ultimate desire to please Alpha (that being you )

The book is a great read, and it really is a great way to get a dog to behave the way you want him to, because he want's to do it. You get to spend time with your companion, and it teaches you how to behave as much as it does the dog.

No treats, no punishments (AT ALL)...works miracles (imvho).

20-30 min. training sessions and then some play time...believe me, the dog is working hard during that session. We would meet with a class of other dogs twice a week, do "homework" between sessions, and the graduate three months later. I'd love to have taken a video of the first class with dogs all over the place, and then graduation with them all sitting happily side-by-side while their proud owners looked at them from twenty feet away.

[Cajundaddy]

Funny, but teaching calm, obedience, and impulse control in kids is surprisingly similar to teaching it in dogs.

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by Rickysa

The idea being to tie into the dog's ultimate desire to please Alpha (that being you )
.

Sounds like a great book! Lots of ways to skin a dawg...

Oh yeah, they please Alpha all right....and it pleases Alpha to give them a treat

[scottmandue]

Keep the dog away from the espresso machine!

I'm no dog whisperer but I have raised a few.

I would echo your pup needs to learn to heal... I took a 'obedience' class that was given at a pet shop, meet on Saturdays for a half dozen sessions. My very refined BYD (big yellow dog) learned to heal... she was very sweet but dumb as dirt and before the training would run out into the street on a whim.

Also +1 on a tired dog is a good dog, maybe add a tennis ball to the exercise routine.

[Rickysa]

Sounds like a great book! Lots of ways to skin a dawg...

I can't describe the feeling of having your dog behave because he want's to make you happy...that bond is just so damn special.

any kind of reward training is great...be it treats or not...a well behaved dog is a happy dog. And don't you (all) think we owe them that.

[Bill Douglas]

Another thing is to ignore the dog for two minutes when you get home. Greet other family members then greet the dog last. He's got to learn he's bottom of the pecking order.

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by Bill Douglas

.... Greet other family members then greet the dog last. He's got to learn he's bottom of the pecking order.

What if he ain't at the bottom?

My wife took our dawg and and left me
I sure am gonna miss that dog

[Bill Douglas]

LOL.

A bit like my joke.

A friend walked past the house and heard my girlfriend saying "I LOVE you" kiss kiss kiss. and he said to me you are so lucky. I replied, she wasn't talking to me she was talking to the dog.