How can i stop my border terrier from running off of the lead?

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kaholazephyr

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Hi my name is Tillie,

i have a 2yr old Border Terrier who when he was a puppy was great!
He used to go off the lead and easily come back. He was also really good with other dogs! Now though he attakes every new dog he meets and runs away off the lead not intending on coming back. we can now only walk him at our yard on the farm were he knows all the dogs with a lead on. It's such a shame as he is so lovely to humans. Can anyone come up with any suggestions on how i can teach him to be well behaved?!!
Thank you.
 
You probably wont like the answer but we have a Rhodesian Ridgeback that was just the same, as soon as he was off the lead he would just bolt after the nearest hare or pheasant or anything he wanted to really. When he was younger he recalled lovely and was trained properly so it wasnt lack of training. It started to get a bit dangerous as he would run for miles and sometimes we couldnt find him so somebody suggested to us a remote collar whereas as soon as the dog ignores you they get a warning bleep on the collar and if they ignore it they get a shock. You can turn the settings down so it is only a minor one. We used if for about a week and after that only needed it maybe once a week to remind him after a maximum of about a month he never has it on. I would advise you to hire one as opposed to buying one as you will not need it for long.
We felt really mean and cruel but I think it was more cruel to keep him on a lead all the time so he couldnt exercise like he likes to or risk him causing some sort of accident to others.
smile.gif
 
Can you call him back when in a familiar place ie your garden. If so then do you regularly practice calling him back and giving him a treat as a reward.
My puppy book recommends constant repetition as the best way to teach recall, and if you have said he was perviously good, does he just need lots of reminders.

Good luck

Fiona
 
Thank you very much for both of your ideas. i will deffinetly try them both. I think that someone i know has one of those collars and it has worked for them so i may see if i can borrow it. I have tried to call him in the garden with treats but he just ignores me like im not even there. Thank you very much though and i will keep you informed with how it goes!
 
You could try the citronella versions of the electric collar first before going for the electric version. I agree with the above poster, although the elec collars are harsh, the dog has to stay safe and under control or much worse can follow - and thats crueller by far...
 
Then train him in the house first with nice treats, before you try it outside. You want to reinforce the fact that being caught is a pleasurable experience, rather than a bad one. The way he sees it - being caught is the end of his fun time. You have to make being caught nicer for him.

Good luck.

|Fiona
 
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