It was hard to take a photo of Charlie. She was so friendly and curious that pointing a camera at her brought her over to investigate, so here she is, lying down, busily chewing a toy.
Charlie came over from Ireland and was adopted by her new family about three months ago. She has landed on her feet.
She is largely Labrador, but has short legs and could be mixed with Basset Hound, Beagle or even large Dachshund. She is very bright and very willing.
Charlie’s problems are out on walks
Like so many of the dogs I see, Charlie is reactive on walks.
She pulls on lead. She wants to see off cars, joggers and cyclists; she’s is very reactive to some people and to all dogs. I suspect that if she were not trapped on lead she would be a lot better, but with no reliable recall her new owners are unable to let her off.
Many of the dogs I go to have had traditional training. However, not pulling on lead and tolerating other dogs in the class doesn’t always translate to walking on a loose lead down the road, being sociable to other dogs in the park and not chasing bicycles.
I am a big believer in front-fastening harnesses for dogs that are stressed on walks. Not only are they more comfortable for the dog, they give the handler a lot more control.
Equipment doesn’t solve the problem.
It’s not a magical quick fix. Equipment doesn’t solve the problem. Only the owner can do that – by themselves behaving in an appropriate way in the eyes of the dog. I have proved time and again that this does not involve correction, lead jerking, commands or force.
Charlie’s owners realise that this will take weeks, months maybe, patiently building up Charlie’s confidence and their own. In the end they will have a lovely dog who walks beside them like there is no lead at all. A dog that will not react to other dogs or approaching people and who will be able to run freely and safely off lead.
