# Murphy the maniac



## Del17 (Mar 25, 2014)

Hi all, so Murphy is nearly 5 months old and we are having trouble getting him to walk without pulling. He's doing lots of sniffing but he's not wanting to do his business, he prefers to wait until he gets home for that (thanks Murphy!!) I have tried stopping and changing direction but that winds him up to a frenzy where he jumps around and tries to run in all directions including towards the road. I've tried treating when he walks nicely but he just pulls again straight away. He is having one walk a day for around 25 minutes - is that the right amount for his age? He seems to have loads of energy and has also developed selective deafness when off the lead and being called. Very grateful for any miracle cures (or advice if miracles are in short supply)


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## Lottierachel (Mar 3, 2013)

2ndhandgal posted a really good training technique recently for walking nicely.... I'm not sure where it is but it was different to other stuff I've heard and sounded like a really good way of training.

I would go for a couple of walks a day. Maybe 2 walks of 20 minutes each? The 5 minute rule is less set in stone the older they get, and also is more important for larger dogs, whose bones are still growing quickly and so are soft.

When Tilly was 5 months old, I took her to the big cockapoo meet in the peak district where she walked for about 3 hours!! It was a one off, and she was knackered by the time we got back to the car, but I definitely think Murphy could have another walk each day =)


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## RuthMill (Jun 30, 2012)

I think another walk and some additional positive reinforcement training. He's probably so excited to be out that he can't focus on walking nicely. I find my two pull and walk ahead when they haven't had enough exercise. Pulling is difficult to correct, there's no quick fix, lots of time and perseverance. You really need to commit to a method and be consistent. I find with mine, even a small inconsistency on my part results in more naughtiness on their part. Lola's much better at walking now, still working on Nina at times when she sees something she wants.


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## Del17 (Mar 25, 2014)

Thanks both, hubby and I were talking earlier about whether we should increase his walks. It kind of makes sense as we went to center parcs over the weekend where he walked much further (probably a little too far on occasion) and was definitely less crazy! I'll look for 2ndhandgals post too. We're trying to be be consistent but stopping doesn't seem to work for him, he also doesn't give a hoot if we change direction. He doesn't care which way we go, so long as it's fast!


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## Lindor (Feb 3, 2014)

With Maggie I was and still am very consistent. If she pulls, I stop and wait till she stops pulling and sits down, then we continue our walk. Sometimes, she would pull again after only one step. It would make for a very slow walk but she learned. Now our walks are so much better and enjoyable too.


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## Lexi&Beemer (May 5, 2013)

The key to stopping is that you stop and don't move, even if he goes all batty, until he is at a nice sit. Wait so that he's looking at you and then start moving. If as soon as you move he starts pulling or goes batty, stop immediately and wait. Wait for a long time until he seems to calm down. When I finally got this to work with my two we spent probably half an hour going 10 ft. The second the leash is tight, I stop. And I don't say anything just wait for them to look at me. They also know whenever I have the leash and I've stopped moving, they need to sit. Also I have them sit before crossing streets. Breaks up the walk and a lot of training to boot.


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## Marzi (Sep 17, 2012)

Consitency is the key and it is tough because sometimes life is mad and time is limited...

2ndhandgirls post was brilliant so definitely look back for that one.

Play games in the back garden and up training on all levels so that he is constantly being conditioned to listen to you. 

Dot pogos rather than pulls (although she is definitely capable of pulling too ) but generally walks better on the lead to an exciting destination if she is allowed to carry her ball... however she then gets matts in her beard from drooling dog slobber constantly.

Sometimes drive to your destination and avoid the lead walk to the fields (call me a coward!!)

You are not alone, Murphy is also heading for the adolescent phase so it is a really good idea to put in some extra work now and up the exercise too... Good luck.
Do post some pictures of the cheeky chap too


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## Lottierachel (Mar 3, 2013)

I can't find her original post, but here is the link to the training technique that 2ndhandgal was talking about. 

I've found clicker training to be really useful - a way of communicating what you want really clearly. With consistentcy, I think this method could really work!

http://www.pawsitivelydogs.co.uk/LLW.pdf


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## DB1 (Jan 20, 2012)

That one looks good Lottie, it is very hard being consistent though as its very hard to make every single walk a training walk, still working on it and Dudley is 2 and a half now! he does know what heel is and can do it perfectly, he just chooses not to until later on the walk when he has finished doing lots of wee's and a poo and then he starts trotting nicely by my side looking up at me as if to say ok mum you can give me a treat now!!


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## 2ndhandgal (Aug 29, 2011)

Yay - I love teaching dogs to walk nicely on the lead 

Consistency is indeed the key - which means from the moment you step outside the door, so for a pup if you have a 25 minute walk and during that time you don't actually reach the gate as you have had to stop so many times then that is the pups walk for that day. Tomorrow you will probably get to the gate and the following day a little way down the road - but all that is far more valuable than sometimes letting them pull then expecting them to walk nicely at other times. 

That method as posted by Lottierachel is fab - it works really effectively and whilst it might seem like an awful lot of treats in the early days it means the dog actually learns what you want because they are getting lots of rewards which act as feedback to say "yes that is what I want" and you do actually progress quite quickly. If you go somewhere really exciting (to a pup!) then you need to up the level of rewards and increase the quantity so when I was building up with my pair if I went somewhere more challenging I reduced the number of steps to around half which seemed to work pretty well for us.


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## Cat 53 (Aug 26, 2012)

I had a friend who took a book on walks. She would stop and read at every pull! Got through several books that way!


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## 2ndhandgal (Aug 29, 2011)

I love that idea of taking a book 

Back tracked and found my original post describing what I did with my pair:

"I used this over the winter to smarten my pairs lead walking up a bit as Chance was getting a bit teenagery and Molly will lapse if she thinks she can 

I started in low distraction areas and then moved to higher distraction areas and if I was somewhere I knew they would find difficult I cut the number I started at by half, so if we were up to 80 steps somewhere normal I would start at 40 steps somewhere different, or even 20 if they were really struggling in that area so they got it right.

For stuff like the ultra exciting park when treats just won't cut it we also used the "whoops you are pulling we will turn and go the other way until you are walking nicely method" our worst ever was their favourite walk where we park quite close and I had been guilty of letting them pull to get to the field. The first day it probably took us over 5 minutes to go what should have taken less than 30 seconds (and an elderly couple coming the other way were very amused) but generally now they just need the occasional reminder that yes I do still want them to walk nicely.

I was a bit hit and miss with the training Fairlie so sometimes walked and counted as I should, sometimes totally forgot and just threw them rewards now and then and sometimes just walked them but made them come back if they did pull but it changed both of their attitudes and responsiveness to me for the better and that has continued.

I think part of the beauty of the method is that it does naturally ease off on the rewards anyway and by the time you are rewarding every 150 steps it is already pretty infrequent anyway. I take treats now if we go somewhere super exciting, like today we went to a country show so I took treats but to be honest I found they both walked pretty nicely anyway as it is pretty much habit now I think."


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## tessybear (May 1, 2011)

Mine are nightmare pullers. Nothing stops them except putting on an ordinary harness. For some strange reason they don't pull in a harness.


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## dsnth (Jan 21, 2014)

He sounds just like his brother - Watson is a pest until he is tired then good as gold.
The lady at puppy school has told me to take him on some 'boring' walks, along the road & back so that it isn't always somewhere nice.


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## RuthMill (Jun 30, 2012)

Just started clicker training with Nina when she sees a bird or cat on a walk! Worked a treat - no pun intended


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## Lottierachel (Mar 3, 2013)

RuthMill said:


> Just started clicker training with Nina when she sees a bird or cat on a walk! Worked a treat - no pun intended


What did her reaction to birds and cats used to be??


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## RuthMill (Jun 30, 2012)

Lottierachel said:


> What did her reaction to birds and cats used to be??


She would just get really excited yelping a bit and pull on the lead to get to whatever it was. Nina's such a sweetie, she just wants to play with everything/everyone. I could normally get her attention back but I have started using the clicker to prevent her reacting at all. It's working well. She just needs desensitised.


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## Del17 (Mar 25, 2014)

I just wanted to say thank you for all your advice. We are being consistent and not letting him pull , and I do think he's starting to get a little better! We had a lovely walk this afternoon with hardly any pulling and no craziness 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## 2ndhandgal (Aug 29, 2011)

Excellent  I always say to people not is the dog perfect - but are you seeing progress and improving and sounds like you are doing brilliantly


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## Mazzapoo (Jul 28, 2013)

Oh I know where you're coming from! I got so bored of those early walks being a training exercise, I'd waited so long to get her, been good with the tiny walks and then just when she could potentially go a bit further it took a massive amount of self control to keep up the stop/start stuff. I just wanted to go for a lovely walkies with my dog aaaargh! I'd definitely add another walk in and I do find the 'watch' or 'look' command is a powerful one that cuts through many distractions and regains Poppy's attention. I trained it with copious amounts of warm chicken which she obviously must have really loved (and a silly voice that stretches the word). But she's very much still a work in progress and although the spinning on the end of her lead thing is virtually gone she loves people and dogs so much she forgets herself on a regular basis  Which actually is a very nice problem to have now I come to write it down


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## RuthMill (Jun 30, 2012)

Del17 said:


> I just wanted to say thank you for all your advice. We are being consistent and not letting him pull , and I do think he's starting to get a little better! We had a lovely walk this afternoon with hardly any pulling and no craziness
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Well done!! Consistency is the key! Don't let your guard down, you are top dog!


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