Terrier Terrorists

Clodagh

Clodagh

Playing chess with pigeons
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I am currently walking my m-in-laws 2 border terriers. Older one is about 5, younger one 2. Neither have ever been walked off the lead and if another dog is spotted in the distance complete hysteria ensues, both her and the dogs!
I really need to be able to walk them with my 2 labs and old lurcher. They aren't agressive, just stupidly overexcited. The older one is OK now as long as I keep a tight lid on, I can let her off and it is manageable. Younger one just scrabbles incessantly at my dogs heads, she is trying to lick their mouths but being small also has to hold herself up with her paws while she does it. They find it intolerable, as do I.
If she is on the lead and they are off she lunges constantly until she is strangled and I am fed up.
So, not too baby steps to get this working? She really needs mine to tell her off but they just won't. She is pig headed and untrained and mine have the nervous hab dabs if I keep saying no, as they think it is them.
 
Have you got somewhere totally secure that both could go off lead? She sounds completely unsocialised, hence the mouth licking. Poor little scrap must be going out of her mind.
 
IF yours aren't going to object I would tend towards letting them out together supervised for a while and doing 'day to day' jobs e.g walking round field etc, having a cup of tea etc until the excitement wears off, short sharp bursts will mean the behaviour will just continue as overexcited excitement whereas long boring stints together should allow them to settle.
 
amymay said:
Have you got somewhere totally secure that both could go off lead? She sounds completely unsocialised, hence the mouth licking. Poor little scrap must be going out of her mind.
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I am not really worried about them vanishing, I am sure they would come back eventually! When this situation was only a few days I wasn't so worried, but I am sure if I continue to walk them alone I could master recall.
 
SusieT said:
IF yours aren't going to object I would tend towards letting them out together supervised for a while and doing 'day to day' jobs e.g walking round field etc, having a cup of tea etc until the excitement wears off, short sharp bursts will mean the behaviour will just continue as overexcited excitement whereas long boring stints together should allow them to settle.
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Mine wouldn't hurt them, but it makes them thoroughly miserable, which I cannot or won't put them through. I took them for a walk with my mum's collie and had young one on a lunge line, which I jerked if she started persecuting the collie. That sort of worked. Maybe if oh came with me we could try that?
 
Far better to employ distraction techniques e.g toy if you want to do that technique- everytime you jerk a line you release first so the dog gets a reward just before the punishment - same theory as why it doesn't work on lead training!
Honestly, quick fix is to let them run togehter for long enough that it's not exciting, yours will cope!
 
Is there a reason you can't take them out alone? Much more enjoyable and less stressful to walk your own dogs by themselves and then take the terrorists out without your own dogs, which might also afford some time for loose lead and recall training if you so feel inclined. How long are you having to exercise them for?
 
WorkingGSD said:
Is there a reason you can't take them out alone? Much more enjoyable and less stressful to walk your own dogs by themselves and then take the terrorists out without your own dogs, which might also afford some time for loose lead and recall training if you so feel inclined. How long are you having to exercise them for?
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I imagine it will be about another month I will be walking them. Trouble is I just don't have time for 2 seperate walks in the morning before I go to work. Or the inclination! Older lab was out picking up today so I did walk them with young lab and old lurcher, I kept the young one on her long lead but the older one settled quite quickly (a bit of bellowing from me!) and her and lab just trotted along doing the smells, it was OK. Young one did pull a lot but not the manic lungeing we have been having.
 
Clodagh said:
I imagine it will be about another month I will be walking them. Trouble is I just don't have time for 2 seperate walks in the morning before I go to work. Or the inclination! Older lab was out picking up today so I did walk them with young lab and old lurcher, I kept the young one on her long lead but the older one settled quite quickly (a bit of bellowing from me!) and her and lab just trotted along doing the smells, it was OK. Young one did pull a lot but not the manic lungeing we have been having.
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Ah well, just grit your teeth for another month and then peace can once again be restored :)
 
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