too excitable

[gabby_]

This is a crosspost with r/dogtraining because it looks like it could be days until it is approved there

I have a 1-year-old husky puppy that is just too excitable and headstrong (go figure!). We've had her since she was 2 months old. You can tell that she is trying to behave and learn, and she's (usually) very sweet. The problem is that we can't bust out the treats without her going nuts.

When we take a treat out she loses control. She jumps on the person holding the treats and will barely sit still when given the sit command. She knows and will complete a handful of commands (sit, sit pretty, speak, turn around, go to bed, and a couple of others) for treats, but after the fourth command or so she starts to go rogue and tries to guess what we want her to do, even though we are giving her different commands (such as repeatedly sitting pretty even though we tell her to turn around).

Her recall also leaves a lot to be desired. She will come on command when she wants to. Taking her out on a leash is rough, and people like to make a lot of sled dog jokes about how she tugs at the leash for the first mile or so of any walk we take.

She has plenty of chew toys (we subscribe to BarkBox's super chewer box and buy plenty of toys in the interim) and she loves tennis balls. She loves playing fetch and tug. There is no playing these games until she's worn out. Even if we play for fifteen minutes she still gets overly excited for treats.

We have had her for 10 months and have tried training her almost daily in a routine in hopes that her excitability would wane over time but it hasn't. I am at a loss on how to get her to calm down short of asking the vet for a sedative (which we don't want to do).

The one major positive is that we did successfully train her to use bells to go out for a potty break early on. Like I said, you can tell she is trying to learn.

So, dog trainers of Reddit: Is there something my family can do to help her calm down short of sedating her? Or will I absolutely need to hire a dog trainer?

Also, picture tax for those who love that sort of thing

 

[sarahtoo]

@gabby_ What does she do if you don't show the treat untill your ready to give it to her? Better that way anyhow it will make it easier when you try to fade them out later on. If shes not intrested without showing it out first maybe putting it away out of sight again when she starts getting too excited would help her see thats not what you want.

Husky recall is usually pretty sketchy. Train with a long line same as any other dog but be aware they seem to randomly decide "Nope, not today". With mine I had to face the fact I couldnt let him off unless I was 100% certain he wouldn't/couldn't run off on a Husky adventure. He would be perfect 9 times out of ten then just totally blow off the recall command. One time at the local park I shouted "come" and he rolls in some fox mess and ran off to do laps of the shop stinking to high heaven making everyone jump out of his way to avoid a poop covered dog.

Leash walking, mine did know heel but we learnt the old school way with a choke chain (20 odd years ago). It was too much hassle most of the time and neither of us enjoyed it so I normally just put his harness on and let him do his thing unless we were somewhere really busy.

 

[gabby_]

@sarahtoo She's smart enough to know the treat is coming and we get the same results if we don't even open the package until we're ready to give one. Sometimes she gets bratty and doesn't listen at all until the treats come out. She will do probably the same level of commands then stop trying if treats aren't involved.

I forgot to say that she is also kennel trained, another boon, and probably the only time that she does a command without a treat, just lots of loves and pets. She really likes her kennel and will go lay on there if she is feeling tired or bored.

I'm not expecting perfect recall, I know better than to expect that with her, but I was hoping for something rather than near nothing.

I'd also accept some tugging on the leash, but right now she will be front paws off the ground except for balance and pushing full strength and full-power hopping with her hind legs. I've tried stopping and returning home when she starts tugging, but when I do that I don't even get to leave the yard with her and she doesn't seem to care because she doesn't know that she could still get a walk of she stopped. As far as she's concerned, I've decided I'm tired and it's time to go home early, so she mushes all the way home. If I want to walk her, I have to put up with the tugging for the first probably six blocks (I exaggerated in my original post) and then she settles down to what I would accept as a norm. I'm always sure to give her praise and treats when she reaches this stage, but it doesn't seem to help get her to that stage faster.

I know I'll never get the perfect dog out of her, and I'm fine with that. I just want to be able to get her to stop some negative behaviors for the most part.

I know a few behavior modifications I would like to make. For instance, I know that K9TI is not a reputable trainer, but I did like their suggestion of training the dog to go to bed when someone knocked on the door. That is one I should be able to easily teach her if she could just settle down and let me teach her.

 

[sarahtoo]

@gabby_ Its hard to wear a Husky out but maybe try getting some of that energy out before a training session. Flirt poles are pretty good for high energy dogs if she will chase one.

Most of mines initial on leash training was done with a very old school trainer that I regreted taking him to. Not many teach like that anymore and for good reason. My Ridgeback learnt just by me stopping and guiding her back to my side each time. My Mal is very much a work in progress, just way too much excitment and energy when we first leave. Everytime I think she got it the pulling comes back. Suddenly changing direction everytime she pulls untill she starts following me seems to work best for her.

For recall start out on leash or with a longline in a low distraction enviroment. Give the recall command while moving backwards away from the dog encourging them to come to you, use the leash to guide them if needed. The moment they start coming towards you praise them, give a high value reward when they reach you but use the long line to show its not optional to come when they feel like getting a treat. Once they are getting good you can increase the distance or distractions but each time you do it gets harder for them. Don't go straight from your backyard to a dogpark with 50 dogs running around.

The worst thing for your recall command is ending up running after the dog effectively playing chase while repeatedly shouting it, something Huskies are very good at getting you doing. A few times when mine wouldnt come back I sat on the floor faceing away from him and acted like I found something really interesting. Curiosity would get the better of him and he came to see what I found.

 

[gabby_]

@sarahtoo My problem is that she knows the reward is there and she will not leave my side and/or will jump on me. We (my husband and I) have also tried teaming up and one gives the command while the other waits with her. She just goes haywire and picks one of us, then goes through her trick list in hopes that she does the right thing, even if the recall command comes from the other of us.

 

[marco4444]

@gabby_ Most huskys can't be off leash. This dog was bred to run and pull all day. This is a high energy working breed, have realistic expectations.
Things like nose work are a better option for enrichment. This dog is going to be a ton of work to manage it energy levels.

Karen Overall's Relaxation Protocol: What It Is & Why It ... https://www.k9ofmine.com/karen-overall-relaxation-protocol/

 

[gabby_]

@marco4444 I know she probably can't be off leash. That doesn't change that I need to strengthen her recall.

Also, unfortunately that article was written like someone was paid per word to write it. I got part way through and had to stop. I think I get the gist of it, though, and if I have more patience later maybe I'll try reading it again. It sounds like I could use her crate training as a great foundation toward other skills through that method.

 

[marco4444]

@gabby_ The relaxation protocol is well known, you can find a better source if you like it's from Dr Overall

 

[counselorg]

@gabby_ I’ve got a husky mix that we adopted 7 months ago, he’s about two years old. I run the little shit 30-40 miles a week and he’s still a ball of energy most of the time but he is at a manageable level now.