Lucy is a rescue dog about 6 months old. shes a good dog indoors. the problems start when we take her out first, theres the frantic pulling on the lead which im struggling to correct. im doing this by stopping everytime she pulls but its wearing me out and she keeps on trying to pull. theres a nice quiet bit of beach near us so we took her there today by car and let her off the lead for a good runaround. she was like a different dog. barking at a woman who was nowhere near us. shes never done that before as she usually loves everyone. then shes racing around and snapping at our legs, digging like a mad thing in the sand then racing around again. barked madly at another man who passed. she was like a different dog and a very unpleasant one too. I'm guessing that she thinks shes leader off the pack. shes herding us and protecting us from others. if I'm right what do I do about it? if I'm wrong, what do I do? thanks very much, hopefully, for your good advice.

Poor girl sounds very confused, I would suggest seeking advice from the rescue they should have behaviourists who can help. If they don't then you may need to seek behaviourist privately.

What breed is she? How long have you had her? Do you know anything of her history.

Mollie is right about getting a behaviourist in, it is always the best bet

breed unknown she looks like a Yorkshire terrier but bigger. I know nothing of her history except that she was found abandoned with her sister, both aged about 6 weeks. she was nursed by a rescue home then I took her aged 10 weeks. shes been lovely up til this last week. shes not too bad if one of us takes her out on the lead , apart from the pulling, but very bad when we're both out with her.

It's sounds as if she getting very excited/aroused at being off lead, a little overwhelmed maybe and just does not know how to behave in that situation.

The rescue may have a behaviourist they work with they can recommend, or even some quiet training classes

You cannot allow her to behave in that way in public, you could find yourself in trouble, use a long line and harness if need be.

I would forget about anything pack or dominance related, given her past you are probably looking at a fearful dog who has just not yet learned how to behave x

you could be right about being overexcited.
the rescue wont have any help because she is just a very kind lady with a big garden and a friend who is a vet. we live in Corfu so things are a lot different here. but I will ask around about a dog trainer. I'm sure there are a few around.

I would agree with that.

If she's ok with people when on a lead, I'd do a lot of on-lead socialisation with her (take her to parks, markets, places where there are lots of people around) and gradually let her have a longer lead (easily done with a flexilead, you just lock it at varying lengths).

To socialise her with other dogs, you need a friend with a nice, steady dog to act as a "stooge". Let them play together in a smallish space, like a garden to start with, gradually let them have more room, and gradually introduce another dog or two, for short periods initially.

I'd also do a lot of work on her recall, so you can get her back if she gets OTT.

Most dogs go a bit loopy on a beach, although not necessarily in a bad way. Every dog I've ever had has raced round and round like a maniac as soon as they're on a beach.

I would have a very short lead, this gives greater control straight away, no more letting her off the lead untill lead trained and walking carmly at your pace without pulling, when she has learnt this give her a bit of extra lead but making sure she does not pull as soon as start pulling back to a short lead. Deal with one problem at a time, dont try to correct all things in one go. Remember on lead you have 100% control off lead you dont

I'd use a long training lead you can let go of, but will trail behind and is easy to pick up/put your foot on if you need to.

Loose lead training - Dogs Trust do some nice videos. Online here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJ2KZjUT6_U

You can start loose lead in the house, strangely without the lead (training dog to walk close ). Using treats/positive reinforcement is the way to go. 'Pack leader'/ alpha dog/dominance theory is now thought to be nonsense. Dogs are not really plotting to be our overlords!

Six months is very young too - she is a teenager, probably pushing the barriers. Taken to rescue so young there is probably little difference between Lucy and any other pup as the rescue will have had a chance to socialise her etc.

They probably have a behaviourist available who can advise you for free? (Another advantage of getting a rescue dog). My money is on her being a troublesome teen - perfectly normal.

Young dogs are not always got at transferring skills over and generalising from one situation to another so it could be that she behaves well off lead normally but in this new, exciting setting hasn't transferred across how she normally would behave?

Just wanted to say the stopping thing with the lead does work, but takes patience and complete consistency. It can get very frustrating though, like you say. I was stopping and starting every few steps with my boy for a while. People used to think I was mad, but now he walks loosely and by my side all the time, and that made it all worthwhile

thanks. I'm still working on that and she is getting better. also the bad behaviour a few days ago seems to have been a one off. shes been very good since then. so I think something kicked off in her head that day and she got over excited.


thanks everyone else for your help.

awww it sounds like she was just an over excited teenager - its a bit like a toddler who gets overwhelmed by disneyland. Take baby steps, if she nips, don't respond, stand still and don't move until she stops.

Re: lead walking, as advised - stop start does work but it takes time and she will try to out stubborn you

As above, alpha/leader of the pack stuff is proven to be untrue now, she just needs a stable home and family and she'll be ok - which it sounds like you give her! 6-12 months is a tough age, worse than puppyhood for many dogs, they are finding thier feet and getting a little cocky. Just don't engage if she gets silly and she'll soon learn!

thanks.

Re the lead pulling a dog trainer advised us to stop and walk some steps backwards when it happens. Eventually the dog does learn that pulling leads to less progress.