Thank you for allowing me to be a member. I have a dog problem.

We have a two year old Huntaway/Border cross called Kato. Actually, she is nearly three. We live on a farm and so she is seldom on the lead. She is excellent with the farm animals, comes when she is called and we trust her completely. She walks to heel when we are on the road and has a lovely nature. Our problem is that she gets excited when on a walk and skips around in circles at our feet. We have trained her to go a little further away, but she is so excited 90% of the time that she is constantly back and forth, twirling round and being a total pain. It is impossible to enjoy a walk with her. It seems to be a habit because she only does it in certain places and runs away in other places, but she is always very excited. When we stand still, she stands still, excitedly watching us and waits and waits until we are off again and then round in circles she goes!

Our other dog, a seven year old Border called Teg, is perfect on a walk, happily sniffing around and doing doggy things mostly ignoring Kato. Kato is our fourth dog and we have never had this problem before.

My question, is there a way to calm Kato down and break this very silly habit of hers?

Hmmm, perhaps you can try to keep her on lead a few times so she can 'forget" of this habit? I know how great it is to walk dogs off lead but this would be done for a few times just to break the habit. If she is on lead and you leave the leash slack only a few inches so she can heel nicely next to you she should be unable to run around in circles. You must therefore, establish a no turning around policy.

This has certainly become a habit, and the only way to make her stop is to not allow her to do so. So every time she is about to do that, you can give a leash correction with a disaproving ''ah ah'' and you will praise her when she walks nicely. Then only once she seems to be able to walk without doing so, you can put her back off leash. If she tries to go back to her antiques, you must only rely then to the verbal ''ah ah '' command. Praise lavishly every time she behaves well.

Have you ever laughed about her going around habit or given her attention when doing so? Even a laugh may be perceived by a dog as a reinforcer, causing the dog to want to do it again and again simply because the owners laugh and approve it.

Another thing you can try to do is when she does this you will turn around and walk the other way. This may surprise her, and since you will be ignoring her by turning around she may no longer find it fun. Or you can suddenly stop and become a stuatue every time she does that so she knows that walks stop when she does that and get boring. She must learn that in order to advance with the walk she must walk properly and when she does so good things seem to happen. This may mean stopping more frequently that you may like but she may ultimately get the message.

Dogs are pretty routine animals they like to display behaviors over and over if they find them entertaining. If she can stay a few times without doing this behavior she may forget it. The most important thing is to be consistent, correcting her each and every time and making the behavior seem boring by not giving any attention at all. Allow her to do so without correcting her once or twice and you may be back to start.

She seems like a highly energy dog, perhaps you can also engage her in a game of fetch prior to the walk so to tire her so she will not be so excited once out on the walk.

I hope you will be able to find a solution, it sounds like a frustrating situation indeed, however, she just sounds like a very excited, smart dog that just needs to be praised a lot when displaying the correct behavior. Best wishes!

[Kingsbridge Cav]

Borders are herding animals and it sounds like you have one with a strong instinct! Not sure what I would do while walking, and I'm not sure a game of fetch will tire her out enough to keep her from doing what is natural for her, which is herding you.
You may consider some agility training which keeps her at a distance from you while she is still working to please you. This can give her time with her people, keep her mind busy and wear off some energy. Save the peaceful walks for those dogs who aren't going to herd you into the ditch.

Hey,

What you could try doing is just stopping and waiting any time she gets too excited. Simply say "No" once she starts getting carried away and wait until she calms down before walking again...

Ive had similar problems in the past and have used this technique to overcome them..

Good luck!

Walking off lead should be a privilege, if she is abusing that privilege, then she needs to be put on a leash. Start off your walk like normal and if she starts doing that, put her on a leash and make her stay by you. Once she calms down, you can let her off leash again. If she goes crazy again, then she looses the privilege for the entire walk and has to stay on a leash.

Thank you to all you dog-experts for taking the time and trouble to answer me. We have done the ignoring thing. She comes to us and we very snootily look the other way, it helps a bit. Standing still doesn't work, at least for as long as I am prepared to stand still on a windy hillside. She stands and watches, waiting for me to do something interesting, although I never do. I cannot outlast her!

I am sure she is herding us up like you suggest and, in the hands of an expert, she could be trained to be wonderful sheep or cattle dog. She is so quick and strong and does what we say in all things but the dancing round in circles.

The lead idea is a good one that, to be honest, I've not tried. It doesn't help that her lead went missing several months ago! She can walk very nicely on the lead, but once she mastered that, we sort of forgot to ever use it again. I've tried making her walk at heel when she is being dopey and she does that beautifully and then the second she is released, then she's off again, driving me nuts. I suppose I could just accept that she will have to walk to heel for a few weeks. I don't see habits changing in less than a few weeks. Is that right?

I think tiring her our before a walk is a terrific idea. I have CFS and so would have to be very careful it doesn't tire me out to the point of no walk! I'll give it a go, though, and get back to you.

Strangely enough, after I posted, I noticed a slight improvement. Only slight, but it has been maintained over the last few walks and so, here is my next question, as she is nearly three, do you think she could be growing out of it?

Originally Posted by Stitch

Thank you for allowing me to be a member. I have a dog problem.

We have a two year old Huntaway/Border cross called Kato. Actually, she is nearly three. We live on a farm and so she is seldom on the lead. She is excellent with the farm animals, comes when she is called and we trust her completely. She walks to heel when we are on the road and has a lovely nature. Our problem is that she gets excited when on a walk and skips around in circles at our feet. We have trained her to go a little further away, but she is so excited 90% of the time that she is constantly back and forth, twirling round and being a total pain. It is impossible to enjoy a walk with her. It seems to be a habit because she only does it in certain places and runs away in other places, but she is always very excited. When we stand still, she stands still, excitedly watching us and waits and waits until we are off again and then round in circles she goes!

Our other dog, a seven year old Border called Teg, is perfect on a walk, happily sniffing around and doing doggy things mostly ignoring Kato. Kato is our fourth dog and we have never had this problem before.

My question, is there a way to calm Kato down and break this very silly habit of hers?

If there is not a better way for you to calm your Kato, why not let her be herself? She is happy in that way.

[Kingsbridge Cav]

age can make a difference, but not usually visible in just a few days or weeks. She is probably responding to the tricks you are trying. Spaying can also make a difference in an overactive dog.
This was suggested to me when i rescued a Springer Shorthair mix who wouldn't stop jumping on anyone she greeted. It got so annoying that I would completely ignore her. The kids didn't mind so much, but anyone else visiting was equally annoyed as I. Initially the spaying didn't seem to help the energy level. It did help her to gain some much needed weight though. After 6 years, Lady is now a bit more calm, but still will jump if given the opportunity. Lady's problem is not from too little exercise as she has run of 160 acres and loves to chase the rabbits!
I still think your answer is in positive reinforcement and training. Sounds like you are on t he right track!