LucyDog
Well-known member
Today I had a major breakthrough with Lucy. This may seem elementary to those of you that are experts w/ dog training, but for me it was a huge revelation. One of the things that I have been working with Lucy on is getting her to focus on me when we are out on walks or out in public. She has a tendency to become unglued when we are out and she sees things that attract her....thing like...well just about everything....and even treats won't get her attention. So, today when I put the leash on her to go for a walk it occurred to me that her flipping out begins when I put the leash on...at home! She started right in w/ the whining and crying that turns into barking and I thought to myself...ok what do they say to do when a dog exhibits behavior you don't want? Ignore it, right. So, I decided I wasn't going to move from the spot I was standing in until she stopped. We literally stood there staring out the garage door for 30 minutes w/ her whining and crying and barking the entire time. My kids were like, "Mom are we ever going on this walk?" But, I persisted and lo and behold she finally got bored and realized we weren't going anywhere and she stopped the crying and so I went ahead and walked with her out the door. She started again in the driveway and I stopped again and stood there until she stopped crying and then we went on our way. Well, she didn't bark, cry or whine one time on our entire walk! And, she was much more focused on me too. Unbelievable! I wish I had come up w/ this a year and a half ago...but better late than never.