Quote: diane joslin

I make Nickie sit while I throw one of the toys and he runs after it. Then when he comes back with it, I tell him to sit but if I don't throw the toy in my hand fast enough, he leaps up at my face. Then I grab the drag line, pulling him downward and say "No, off!" If I just try to ignore him when he jumps up, he won't stop and I'm afraid he will hurt me! I'm just not used to such a big playful dog!

I see what you mean. Well how do you get him to sit before you throw it the 1st time? I'm thinking when he's running back to you, hide the toy behind your back until he calms down. If you have to momentarily move around til you can step on his leash, do that. Then step on his leash until he calms down. Looks like Nickie needs to learn to calm down a bit. After running back and forth chasing that toy, he will on his own.

Forgot to add..I don't know what would happen if you take Nickie on that grassy field at the school. As long as he is on leash and you have poop bags, you should be ok *IMO*. I took that dog many times (after-school hours) and never had a problem. If not, then just go to a park, but not a dog park, like you said. Too many distractions.

Using some compulsion on this dog is not going to hurt him, especially if it's not being used as any kind of competition dog. You can grab the leash as he approaches and then give him a good correction when you can see him even thinking about jumping up. Or you can toss the other toy before he gets all the way to you or show it to him where he can grab it without having to jump up for it. If you watch the Flinks dvd you'll see that he recommends blocking the sight of the toy from the dog by using your hand as a block between his visual line of sight and the toy. Don't forget the word no.

 Quote: Diane Joslin

What is your opinion on the neutering question?

Hi Diane, looks like you tried to ask this a few times and it go overlooked... so I thought I'd give you my 2 cents.

At Nickie's age (still under a year) I doubt neutering him will make him any less bouncy and enthusiastic. It's just an adolescent thing that he'll have to grow out of. If he were displaying any AGRESSION with that jumping and not listening to commands, neutering *might* help tone his attitude down, but it really sounds like he just has too much energy and a very playful spirit. My Oscar was the same way, and big, just like Nickie. He's still quite an active big boy, but as he's aging, he's calming down on his own.

I second the turning your back suggestion, but it may take a few leaps before he quits jumping at your back, and then the next time you turn your back, it'll be a few less jumps, and a few less again, until he learns that the behavior doesn't get him anywhere. Then one day he won't even try. It'll take a little time. When you DO turn around each time, ask him to sit (if he's not already) then praise and treat.

I also found that maintaining a calm attitude, even when you've got his favorite toy, will keep him more focused. If you get excited when you pick up the toy and prepare to throw it, he'll get excited too and he'll be much more likely to break his sit out of sheer enthusiasm. Try picking it up, putting it behind your back and calmly asking for a sit and short stay. Remind him to sit if he starts to pick up his butt off the ground. Work on showing him the toy and having him remain calm and seated. His reward for sitting will be you throwing the toy. If he jumps up, end the play session for a bit, then try again. He's gotta sit, every time...

Does Nickie have any dog friends (not strangers dogs at a dog park, but maybe friends of yours) that you could arrange a backyard play date with? I used to make a special effort to stop by friends houses after work where Oscar and one of his good buddies could race around for a little while in the yard and burn off steam. A tired puppy is definitely a better behaved puppy ! Some of your issues with his exhuberance my lessen if he simply has more time to wear himself out each day.

Just a few thoughts.

~Natalya

Michael,
That is exactly what I've been doing - trying to grab the drag line close to his prong collar and giving him a good correction. That plus a firm "NO" works 90% of the time - it's the other 10% that I'm having trouble with.

Another thing that is helping now is that when I get home in the evenings and he wants to go out and play, it's so beastly HOT outside that he is usually laying in the grass panting after about 3 round trips in the back yard with chasing his toy.

Maybe by the time it cools off this coming fall/winter, he will be a little less hyper. He definitely needs to calm himself down. That was why we stopped all the games of chasing his toys for a few weeks but have since started up again.

I don't know if you have access to a pool or body of water for him but it would be a great way to give him exercise and keep him cooled down at the same time. Give the blocking his vision of the toy thing a try and see what happens.

Michael,
We have a nice in-ground swimming pool in our back yard and have already been in it this month. Nickie does not seem interested and we have not forced anything like that on him. (He fell into our jacuzzi when he was just at our house for a week (9 weeks old). My husband fished him out in a half second and he didn't seem too tramatized, but he usually acts a little cautious around the pool.

When we are more active in the pool and playing with a ball, etc, maybe he will come in on his own.

I think your right about him coming in on his own. If he has a good drive like you've said he probably won't have any trouble if you use the toy to get him in. Just make it fun.

Natalya,
Thanks for your great suggestions - I just saw your post - guess we were typing at the same time this afternoon!

Nickie has never been off leash around any other dogs. I have been teaching him to act indifferent towards other dogs (behind gates) that we see on our daily walk. We also took him to a dog charity fund-raising event here in Las Vegas in April (you can see a couple of pictures in the link below). I was very proud of him. He did not once bark or growl at any other dogs and there must have been over 200 dog owners and dogs there that day - they were all nose to nose (and nose to butt of course!). He would just gently wag his tail but did not have any aggression towards any of them.

I've been thinking of inviting my friend from work to bring her daughter's family over this weekend to get in our pool and to also bring their lab. She said their dog (female - about 5 years old I think) is really laid back and loves everyone. I thought it would perhaps give Nickie the idea of going into the pool (I'm assuming that a lab would naturally go into the water without hesitation). The family also consists of a 6 year old boy and an 11 year old girl (they have both been to our home to see Nickie on two other occasions). The children are extremely well behaved.

Any thoughts on that idea? By the way, this evening I practiced with Nickie - trying to ignore him jumping up on me when I turned my back did not work (I let it go on 5 times before I grabbed his drag line which was attached to his prong collar, gave him a firm correction and made him sit). Then I kept him in the sit until he calmed himself down. We ended up throwing the toy a total of 6 times (the distance I was throwing it was about 40 feet one way). He was greatly improved and seemed much more content to rest in his crate this evening.

I was out in the yard with him this evening a total of an hour & a half which is a huge improvement over what I could tolerate with him before now.

So, thanks to all who helped me today with your replies - for the first time in a very long time I feel a little bit of hope in getting a handle on this situation!