Aarrgghh you have no manners

have a lab come into kennels yeaterday i will call him marley , he has no manners. He had his two walks yesterday with other staff who told me about him and then told my boss who has said i should walk him as im our big dog person. He knocked me over coming out of kennel and just pulled and pulled the whole walk - he was like a freight train. He managed to trip me up aswell as he goes round you and crosses your path. He also stopped every now and again to jump all over me . All i could do was hold on with 2 hands and try and stay upright.

By the end of walk i was dripping with sweat and in a right mood. I know my dog has no manners but this guy made her look angelic. Hes in for a month and i cant do this everyday for a month, but its also not my place to try and train him to be any better. For all i know they want him like this for some reason i may never understand.

Im really not looking forward to going into work now as i dont want to deal with him.

Sounds just like my Lab when I rehomed him.

All you need to do is what I did - get a headcollar. You can then use that to help teach him better loose lead walking.

I recommend either the Dogmatic or Black Dog Halter. But any headcollar will help you enormously. Be sure NEVER to jerk on the lead while the dog wears the headcollar though and NEVER use one with an extending/flexi lead. It could result in a nasty neck injury for the dog.

When he jumps up at you, simply step BACK and say a very firm' NO!'

I would say you have to train him for your own safety pet. Speak to your boss first though, I'd say your safety takes priority.

You don't want to end up getting pulled over and hurting yourself.

I agree with the above post, perhaps a halti or something to stop 'Marley' pulling you off your feet.

Is it possible he's just trying it on?

I know whenever Dennis has been in kennels he comes out wild! He's great for me, takes the **** out of my husband, and I just know he must drag the kennel girls about like a hooligan because it takes me a couple of days to get him behaving again once I get him home.

If not, I don't think a little training would go amiss. It would be awful walking that kind of dog for a month...

If he's like that now and he's not trained by his owners then he'll probably just 'forget' his lessons when he goes home anyways!

Em x

Can sympathise - some of the dogs I walk at Dogs Trust are real steam trains. I've always had big dogs so I'm used to walking big strong dog but some of them are a real challenge to walk. Agree with the previous posters, some changes need to be put into place for your safety.

im sure hes used for hunting or something. will have a look on his notes.

Dont think ild be alowed a halti, but think im going to have to do something as it was horrible. Might see if i can take him in the boss garden for a game of ball first try and tire him out

Why would you not be allowed a Halti or Gentle Leader or Gencon etc???

Frankly if you are told you cannot use one, and if this dog is as big and strong and unruly as you describe, then I would refuse to walk him.

I was dragged to the floor by MY Lab when I was not using a headcollar - I ended up with blood pouring from my hands and knees and my dog racing into the road to pursue a horse.

For your safety AND your dog's safety, tell your boss that you MUST use a heacollar, until either this dog calms down or gets some training.

i know we dont have any at the kennels but i may take my phoebes with me and have a go with that if i can make it small enough. To be honest hes not big, hes a medium lab but my god he is strong - phoebe cant pull me the way he did. I also dont think using a flexi lead helps - i never let it out but still not much to get a good grip of, will try a normal lead in the morning.

Thanks for the replys, makes me feel better to know im not being unreasonable

You are being totally reasonable.

I know how hard even a medium sized Lab can pull. When Dexter came to us he was so skinny but my goodness, he flew down the street and dragged me with him!

RE FLEXI LEAD:

Be really careful using this with a dog that pulls, jump and lunges.

I use one in the park but I would never, ever use one near roads, traffic etc - it's really dangerous.

Firstly (this happened in the park!) if the dog lunges and they are strong enough, the Flexi will fly out of your hands and you will lose any control over the dog.

Secondly, the locking mechanism can and does fail.

In short, a Flexi will not give you any control at all over a Lab who pulls and is very wild!

If you do use one, don't let the dog stay at the end of the Flexi, as if he then lunges, that's it.

I'm no expert but based on personal experience I would recommend:

1 - headcollar

or

2 - a strong leather lead and a semi check collar.


If you want to get a headcollar that you can make into ANY size to fit any dog, then the GenCon is a good option.

If you use one just note that if the dog is pulling a lot, the GenCon will keep tightening every time, so not that comfortable for a serious puller!

Let us know how you get on!

i didnt let any of the flexi out atall - i didnt dare knew ild have no chance if i did. Im going to try a normal lead with a half check collar and a pocket full of treats for tomorrow. If no better then hes getting phoebes haulti with a normal lead. Owners will be getting a better behaved dog back, im not dealing with that for a month. Will update when i get home from work tomorrow.