Walk Help

LoveBrits18 · 08-03-2008, 07:23 AM

Hey everyone. I have had my 8 week old brittany puppy for about a week now, and I need some advice when it comes to our walks.

I give her 2 good walks twice daily, once in the morning and once at night right before bed. She really seems to enjoy her walks once she gets going, and she was VERY good on the leash for the first couple of days (she has no problem with the leash aspect) but lately, on our way AWAY from the house, she balks. She just digs her paws in and will not come along for anything.

Note, on the way back to the house, she WALKS LIKE AN ANGEL. She is not a fearful puppy whatsoever, and I just cannot understand why she would be acting like this.

I have tried luring her with treats, encouragement, getting her to follow when she's off leash, and just steamrolling ahead and letting her drag (horrible, but I'm at my wit's end.) After she realizes that we're going whether she likes it or not, she comes for a little bit, but then digs her paws right back in.

I have no idea what to do about this! Any help would be GREATLY appreciated.

Even letting me know that she will grow out of this will help haha!

parvus · 08-03-2008, 12:30 PM

How much do you walk? You don't need to take puppies for walks, especially at that age.

The house is her safe place and going too far away is scary and I suggest you take small walks close to your house. She will eventually grow out of it

.

TooneyDogs · 08-03-2008, 05:15 PM

She's afraid. You can walk back and forth in front of the house. Then down to the end of the block. Then around the corner and eventually around the block. She'll let you know her comfort level on how far to get away from the den.

LoveBrits18 · 08-03-2008, 06:42 PM

Thanks for the advice guys. In that case I have another question. Holly is a very VERY high energy puppy and she has a hard time getting to sleep at night without her long walks. Playing just doesn't do it. Is there another good way to burn off all her energy without walking for so long? And at how many weeks would it be ok to start taking her on longer walks?

TooneyDogs · 08-03-2008, 07:45 PM

Mental challenges can be very tiring....even more than physical exercise. Work on basic obedience...sit, down, come, stay. Teach tricks. Games like Sniff and Find (sniff a treat...hide it...very close at first and let her hunt for it. Hide a treat under one of several cups/cans.

Squeeker · 08-03-2008, 10:45 PM

We got our Britt pup 7 months ago, she was 12 weeks old. Lucky you, your pup walks nicely on the leash! Ours was a maniac of a puller... and, being our first dog, we didn't know how to train her!

After getting advice from the great people here, we started over just walking around the driveway. I know our situations are different, but as a very young pup, a 10 or 15 minute session is really all they need. We did this 3x per day. We started going on longer walks when she was 6 or 7 months old, and now she's good to go for hour long walks or more. She typically puts in 12-15 km per day now at 10 months (Libby is also high-energy), through a combination of walks, off-leash runs in the park, playdates with other dogs, agility, and field training.

The rest of the time we played indoors (Canadian winter with a pup is NOT a good idea, I'll never do that again!). We played tug, fetch, chase, etc. and a LOT of obedience work. We clicker-train, and would feed our pup her dinner piece-by-piece while we taught her simple things like sit, down, stand, stay, leave it, bite inhibition, and "puppy zen" (see the link above). Sessions need to be short with a young pup as they have SO little attention span, but they certainly are capable of learning! And, if your Britt is anything like ours, they are fast learners!

Other things to pass the time are a variety of chew toys and food-dispensing balls, like a buster cube. Those really wear them out as they figure out how to manipulate the ball to get their dinner!

Good luck! And post pics!

LoveBrits18 · 08-03-2008, 10:46 PM

Thanks for the advice Tooney.

Your dogs are cute!

parvus · 08-04-2008, 06:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LoveBrits18

Thanks for the advice guys. In that case I have another question. Holly is a very VERY high energy puppy and she has a hard time getting to sleep at night without her long walks. Playing just doesn't do it. Is there another good way to burn off all her energy without walking for so long? And at how many weeks would it be ok to start taking her on longer walks?

Find a good place nearby where you can play or train some easy commands like sit. Some puppies get high energy when it's time to sleep and that usually means that they're tired.

You don't have a place where you can take off the leash and let her explore by herself?

LoveBrits18 · 08-04-2008, 07:27 AM

Thanks Squeaker..it's always comforting to know that people with the same breed had the same problems! The reason we got a Brittany is because we're very outdoorsy people and we are dying to take long walks and go hiking with her, etc...

And Parvus..boy are you right about high energy before sleep. It seems like everyday at around 3-5 she is a NUTCASE. Haha and then she goes to sleep for a few hours.

Squeaker, did your pup bond to you right away or was she a little "aloof?" I'm not sure if it's the breed or just my pup's personality, but she just isn't a cuddly, I-love-you kind of puppy. I've had dogs my whole life and they were always cuddly as puppies, and I'm a little confused about this one. All she wants to do is just around and mouth, then when she gets tired, bam. She finds a spot 10 feet away from me and sleeps.

PS Squeaker..what you mentioned about a Canadian winter...hahahaha I will NEVER EVER do a Pensacola, FL summer with a puppy again!!!

staghound · 08-04-2008, 07:34 AM

I'm having the same problem with my Staghound puppy. We haven't gotten to the point of long walks yet, but ANY walks, even from the door to the car, cause the digging in for her. It is very frustrating for me as well. I am trying to work with her in very small increments, but we don't have a fenced yard, so anytime she is outside my home, she needs to be leashed.

My pup, Chloe, is also very, very energetic. She seems to have the most energy after supper time. I have been taking her and our other dog to a nearby baseball diamond. I let both the dogs run off leash, since it is completely fenced in. I do intermittent training sessions with both dogs while we are out there and they are off leash. It is a great place to work on long distance recalls, since my puppy likes to chase me and my other dog. I take her out sometime around 8 PM (when it starts to cool off a little) & usually try to keep her moving for 1/2 an hour to 45 minutes. She always comes back pooped!

Any fenced area would be a good place for you to run with your pup and get some energy out. If you don't have a fenced in yard a baseball diamond, tennis court, soccer field, etc. will work. With my pup, I just walk laps around the field, keeping my pattern somewhat erratic (one time around the entire perimeter, the next time walk straight throught the middle of homeplate, then the pitcher's mound, etc.). My girl will often plop herself down when she is tired and watch me. When I get all the way to the other side of the field she will run full steam toward me. While she is in her forward motion I tell her "come" and then reward her when she gets to me. I always have my treat bag with.

Good luck!

Squeeker · 08-04-2008, 01:22 PM

Quote:

Thanks Squeaker..it's always comforting to know that people with the same breed had the same problems! The reason we got a Brittany is because we're very outdoorsy people and we are dying to take long walks and go hiking with her, etc...

Squeaker, did your pup bond to you right away or was she a little "aloof?" I'm not sure if it's the breed or just my pup's personality, but she just isn't a cuddly, I-love-you kind of puppy. I've had dogs my whole life and they were always cuddly as puppies, and I'm a little confused about this one. All she wants to do is just around and mouth, then when she gets tired, bam. She finds a spot 10 feet away from me and sleeps.

PS Squeaker..what you mentioned about a Canadian winter...hahahaha I will NEVER EVER do a Pensacola, FL summer with a puppy again!!!

We got a Britt for the same reasons - we are also very active people. We're dying for the day when we can start taking her running with us... but that will have to wait until next spring. I want to be SURE she's ready!

About the bonding - it's hard for me to say, as she's our first dog! We picked her out of the litter because she was the cuddly one, but she sure fooled us because she really didn't enjoy being petted or touched at all for the first few weeks. However, she always wanted to be near us, so I do believe she bonded quickly. She is now much cuddlier, but it is on her terms. Her favourite place to be in the evenings is curled up on my hubby's or my lap while we watch TV. She still doesn't beg for petting like some dogs, though.

And as for the mouthing... MAN, ours was bad! I'm sure being first-time dog owners didn't help things, but it took a few months for us to get it under control. She's very soft-mouthed, now... at least on human skin, anyway! Dog toys are a completely different story altogether!

PS: I'd take the heat and humidity over -30C plus windchill any day!! She didn't seem to feel the cold, but I sure did!!! Our britt tires quickly in the heat, though, and I now understand why they call them the "dog days of summer"!

LoveBrits18 · 08-04-2008, 06:15 PM

Squeaker you're making me feel much better hahaha. She sounds exactly, exactly like Holly.

I too cannot wait to jog with her. Are you holding off because her joints are still developing or because of her stamina?

Squeeker · 08-04-2008, 07:48 PM

Quote:

Squeaker you're making me feel much better hahaha. She sounds exactly, exactly like Holly.

I too cannot wait to jog with her. Are you holding off because her joints are still developing or because of her stamina?

Glad I can help... having someone to talk to really helped us, too.

Too bad you're so far away! They sound like sisters, haha! Will you post some pics?

We're holding off jogging to give her joints time to finish growing. Britts are supposedly good to go around 14 months (we'll consult the vet first), but we'll have to wait for spring because the prospect of teaching her to run politely beside us in the snow and ice doesn't sound like much fun! We're only now perfecting the art of loose-leash walking!