Is separation anxiety and bad recall linked?

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Parkranger

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Well after spending today shoving archibald in the kitchen for half an hour every hour, we got to the final one, around 8pm and after an inital wimper and me shouting SHHHH at him, there was nothing, not a peep.

Took him out for his evening walk on the flexilead and he came back to me EVERY TIME.....I nearly fainted!

He's proven he's not food orientated but I'm wondering whether now I'm asserting myself he's just pleased to get lots of OTT attention when he comes back? I'm not over the top with him in the house now - I decide when we play and then we don't.

Do excuse my lack of knowledge but i've only had food obsessed terriers and great danes (which are just stupid!)
 
Not as far as I am aware.

I would forget a flexilead for recall training, he will be able to feel the tension on the line, go for a lunge line or long line trailing along on the ground so it will be a better replica of him being truly off lead, calling him every so often and you can then stand on it if it looks as if he is going to tank off.

Well done with getting the crying in the house sorted.

To be honest it just sounds like he is settling down :)

ETA - just another thing, he only 'met' you at the weekend - YOU know he is your dog, he won't realise that you are his person for a while yet, give him time with recall. I spent a year working on recall and other issues with my dog from the age of 12mo.
 
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I think it's just that aswell - seems weird and was probably just a fluke anyway!!

I'm just worried about doing things the right way with him that's all - I'm sure there will be lots of annoying posts by me!
 
Funny thing but as soon as Dax's separation anxiety improved (still not 100% but far better than the incessant howling when she first came home!) her recall improved drastically as well - but I'm more inclined to attribute this to the fact that she is more settled, happy and aware of her boundaries now that she's been here a while rather than any link with the anxiety and recall.

I actually feel quite bad now, looking back at previous posts, as I just hadn't given her enough time to settle and learn the rules and now every day brings a new improvement. :)

Ditto the long line, if you get a really long one you can let them go with it trailing behind then step on it and reel them in if they ignore you. Flexi leads are useful for freedom on off-road walks but a bit pants for recall as you can't grab the cord to bring them in.
 
Spaniels suffer from both as a breed, but I don't think they are linked in the slightest TBH.
The recall is usually because scent over-rides their tiny brains, however most Spaniels won't 'run off' they just don't come back. The reason they don't run off is because they have some desire to be around you, to work for you - and that is the reason they suffer with seperation anxiety.
 
I didn't think of letting the lunge line run on the floor - I don't always trust my eye/foot coordination - I can see this being interesting!

I think there's something in the fact that they realise they can't decide when they spend time with you and as you mention, a dog with boundries is a happier dog.

How long have you had her.....pics?
 
kirstyhen said:
Spaniels suffer from both as a breed, but I don't think they are linked in the slightest TBH.
The recall is usually because scent over-rides their tiny brains, however most Spaniels won't 'run off' they just don't come back. The reason they don't run off is because they have some desire to be around you, to work for you - and that is the reason they suffer with seperation anxiety.
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That's interesting - thanks Kirsty!
 
Otto's recall improved long before his anxiety about being left did. Oddly enough he became far more relaxed about being left after I quit my job and was at home all day, I doubt it's linked mind you, just him growing up. Thankfully it is at least semi-sorted before we move into a house with neighbours :D
 
Jasper used to keep running....he never looked back. We would just make our way to the nearest water source in the vain hope of finding him in there.

Harvey, on the other hand, is (so far) proving to be really good. I've made a very conscious effort to have him off the lead from day one. As a tiny pup he naturally didn't dare venture far and he is still proving himself to be a model student at present. He will go further away from me from time to time, but for the most part he's so blooming close I'm tripping over him.

He is also crate trained and I make a point of sometimes putting him in the crate when I'm in the house, just for quiet time as well as not letting him straight out the moment we return from being outside.

No fuss, no welcoming excitable chatter. Just let him out of the crate and straight outside for the toilet.

Archie is adorable. I haven't been on the forum much lately, what's his story? How did you come by him? Last I heard you were considering a JRT puppy as first choice but knew of a Cavalier KC that might need rehoming. You succumbed to our incessant "get a Spaniel" posts didn't you?
 
Patches, I found him online. I did look at some rescue dogs but I really wanted a dog that was used to being on his own and from somewhere that I knew his background ..... haha

His owner was pregnant with her fourth child and with her husband being in the navy she just didn't think she could give him the time and effort he deserved. She was gutted when I took him.

Everyone who meets him falls in love with him - I think he'll settle and we just need to get into a routine I think.....
 
Patches said:
Jasper used to keep running....he never looked back. We would just make our way to the nearest water source in the vain hope of finding him in there.
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Hence my 'most' :p :D

Spaniels should work as if you have a 'zone' in front and to the sides of you (never behind you!) and most do it naturally although it may be considerably larger than it should be, hence why 'most' don't run off, just run around like loons.
Otto's 'zone' was huge when we got him, but even at his worst he never ran off, he disappeared for 20 minutes once, but in actual fact he was only out of sight. He just wouldn't come back. If left unchecked he still works further out than he should, and I have had to train him to work in close, but he always has one eye on me and has recently started stopping to look at me for direction, which I am over the moon about :D :D
 
Parkranger said:
I didn't think of letting the lunge line run on the floor - I don't always trust my eye/foot coordination - I can see this being interesting!

I think there's something in the fact that they realise they can't decide when they spend time with you and as you mention, a dog with boundries is a happier dog.

How long have you had her.....pics?
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It takes some getting used to, we had a few accidents with trees/thorn bushes/tangling around my legs until I worked out how to handle the line, lol. You only have to step on it a handful of times until they work out that they need to keep checking in with you and stay within a certain distance. The ability to reel them in is essential, if they ignore your command just once and you can't get them back it teaches them that they can ignore you sometimes. :p

Boundaries do indeed make a happy dog! The other thing that really gave us a lightbulb moment was mastering walking to heel - suddenly loads of other little things seemed to come easier after that.

We've not had her long, six weeks if that, and after a hellish first fortnight she's suddenly a pleasure to own instead of a liability. ;)

Obligatory pic (on a flexi, don't tell CC!) :

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GRRRRR! :p

Honestly, if you have ever lunged a horse, walking a dog on a lunge line isn't a big deal IMO. I am perhaps a bit more practised with it given that I have always used them, even as a tiddler I could reel in a tracking line quick speed!

It is kinder initially to attach it to a harness but keep a collar on so you can clip the lead/line to it for closer work.
Like I say, my boy was on a long line for pretty much a year and his recall is, er, 99% now, I learn the signals, I can see when he is thinking about following his eyes and nose and that is when I get him back using my voice.

OP sorry if you are already doing this but running in the other direction, hiding behind a tree or clump of grass, mucking about on the floor and keeping everything very fun, light hearted, don't over use his name, it will sour it for him, and perhaps use a high pitched 'heeeere!' or 'puppeeee!' which is what I use - the funniest thing ever for me was a chap who wondered why his bitch wasn't coming back - it was because he was stood stock still, towering over her, yelling "BO! (Rhymes with 'No!') COOOOMMMEEE!"
No, I wouldn't either :p
 
Cyrus said:
Awwweeeeee BC shes sooooooooooooo pwetty, DD wants to know will she be his girlfriend?
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Shhhh, don't tell anyone, but I think she's a lesbian - she has no interest whatsoever in sniffing boybits but goes mad to sniff a bitch. :eek: :p

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If he wants to come and visit though she has a variety of sunny spots for flirting and looking pretty in. :D
 
I bet B could turn her :p

What I can say is I find it refreshing to see a husky being walked in a collar.

A guy got hauled all over the stage by a young husky at Cesar last week, it was wearing a harness and a bungee lead, can you guess what Cesar did first? :p
 
Don't worry CC, I don't see what is difficult about a lunge line either! Although walking Otto with my Mum's pack was amusing as he took the legs out from underneath most of them several times before they learnt to avoid the line! :D OH nearly got floored several times too, but that was his fault for standing in the wrong place :D

CaveCanem said:
perhaps use a high pitched 'heeeere!' or 'puppeeee!' which is what I use - the funniest thing ever for me was a chap who wondered why his bitch wasn't coming back - it was because he was stood stock still, towering over her, yelling "BO! (Rhymes with 'No!') COOOOMMMEEE!"
No, I wouldn't either :p
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I greatly amused a horse rider at the weekend when I was calling Otto -
'oooooooooottooooooooooo' I think even OH was shocked at how feminine I sounded! However, I was only calling him to get him to look at me so I could get him to change direction (I hadn't seen the horse), he spotted the horse, belted back to me and sat at my feet! Now who's laughing :D :D
 
CaveCanem said:
I bet B could turn her :p

What I can say is I find it refreshing to see a husky being walked in a collar.

A guy got hauled all over the stage by a young husky at Cesar last week, it was wearing a harness and a bungee lead, can you guess what Cesar did first? :p
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Bloody hell, I can't even imagine walking her normally in a harness. I am looking to buy one but with the intention of teaching her to pull me in it while attached to suitable objects. :p

I started her off in a choke chain but my OH has never used one before and was handling it quite inconsistently so I switched to a Halti - brilliant bit of kit, she (and he!) got the idea very quickly and it's now gone back in the cupboard as she's fine on a standard collar.

I was looking at the Dogmatic headcollar website the other day and was amused by how many of the pics on the user review page were of huskies and malamutes. Anyone would think they had a problem with pulling, or something...
 
kirstyhen said:
Beat the owner over the head with the stupid plastic handle on the bungee lead?? :rolleyes:
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No, sadly. Although Col will tell you, I went so high pitched when I saw that get-up, the dog was the only one who could hear me :p

BC, I won't rant on again about the people who walk the Sibe in the woods near me on a harness and flexi at full length with the guy's arms hanging out of his socket :p
I make it my mission in life to keep out of their way!
 
CaveCanem said:
BC, I won't rant on again about the people who walk the Sibe in the woods near me on a harness and flexi at full length with the guy's arms hanging out of his socket :p
I make it my mission in life to keep out of their way!
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What a masochist - I only had to put up with the pulling for about a week and I was totally knackered by it, the entire right side of my body was one big sore muscle. Even at six months she could pull me off my feet without a backward glance. :rolleyes: I won't comment on the sibe tendency to gravitate towards strange people and jump up enthusiastically at them, and why this makes flexis a bad idea. :p

I was thinking along the lines of walking belts with bungee lines which can sometimes work but imagined the amusing spectacle should a squirrel cross our path...
 
With B at six months I actually had a training line which I clipped one end of in a loop around me and another to his collar. However this did make a rod for my own back :p as my resistance helped increase his strength.

Binned the harness after I pulled a muscle in my back and in the end, as Cayla will know, I went into the forest trail with a slip lead and spent several days cracking it.

I think it is very important for a dog to know the difference between a loose lead and a tight one, for us, heel is heel, normal walk is out in front on a loose line 'walk on' and then 'go on out' is pull as hard as ya like!

Even now with hillwork I encourage them both to pull and I keep my arms at my side until the elbow, it gives all three of us a workout :p
 
First thing I did with my lot was teach them the difference between walking on a collar and pulling in harness.
The only time they go in harness on a normal walk is when OH walks them on the walky belt and that is because at that point they are allowed to pull

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Look at Loco slacking off at the back! :p :D

I nearly had a stand-up argument with the lady at Burghley that told me that the only way to stop my dog pulling (which he wasn't, I had him on a Halti as I wanted control of his nose in amongst all those people and stands, which she took to mean he pulled) was to buy a harness (which coincidently only her stand sold..) she didn't understand when I told her Otto only wore his harness on a long line and therefore didn't understand the concept of walking at heel in it.
 
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I saw a weim at a show at the weekend being walked around through crowds of people and dogs on a harness! :mad: To say the woman had no control over it is an understatement, Flora bit it on the nose.....the woman didn't even notice! :eek:
I should explain that further! lol Flora was sat at my heel, the weim turned in the opposite direction to the way it was supposed to be walking on its harness and stupidly long lead and bounced straight in her face/on her head, so she snapped at it, and fair play to her!! I get sick to death of people telling me I have an agressive dog because she will snap in this sort of scenerio, the people telling me this have dogs that shes snapped at because they have the most uncontrolled horrible little ****es for dogs in the world. To be fair if I was stood doing a job or sat relaxed doing as I was told and some twit bounced on me head I would punch them in the face and I don't see why my dog should be any different! :p :D Never ever has she been allowed to do that to another dog so I can perfectly see why she finds it unacceptable herself! LOL
 
Stop making excuses for you nasty dog :mad: :p :D

I was ranting and raving at OH the other day about how irritated I get by people who have badly behaved animals and then blame mine for something. Like the lady that shouted at me for cantering in the warm-up for XC because it upset her horse... :mad:

OH just nods and grunts in the right places when I get on one these days :D :D
 
Actually I went mad at a woman at crufts in a similar situation, she had a vizz that was pinging around on the end of the lead as she walked up the benching aisles, she had absolutely no control over it and was making no attempt to have control either. Flora was sat with her head in my mates OH's lap half asleep and having a tickle...again cue dog landing on her head in B's lap and her going mad at it! I quickly started apologising to the woman and then stopped and said 'actually I have no idea why I'm apologising, you and your dog were in the wrong, mine is under control, yours isn't, so sod you'..and carried on my convo with another friend. Woman flounced off but I saw her a few hours later and the dog did exactly the same thing again to another dog the next aisle down, so my words obviously bypassed her braincell! :mad:
 
I need you to come up here for a walk with me, so you can shout at the bint with the terriers that harrass Otto. It scares me that Otto is going to snap one day, and when he does he will take their heads off, pyscho Otto is a scary sight indeed! But will she put them on a ruddy lead, nope! They are only 'frightened' of him! Well my dog is cowering because your dog has hold of his throat, doesn't look f-ing scared to me!
However I am too much of a wimp to say this to her, so just make every effort to avoid her instead!
 
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