I am soooo frustrated...

[BabyElephant]

So, Poppy's training is going well on the whole (still going on the sit-down-sit but getting there). There is one thing that seems to be stopping us doing sooo well in class and that is leash biting. She only does it at class, and has done it since we started the classes. I asked the trainer when we first started and he said "Don't worry, she will grow out of it" well she hasn't and now were in the intermediate class and she's still doing it. It's holding us back because sometimes she is more interested in biting the lead than listening to me.

Tonight, she wouldn't sit, she just wanted to bite the lead, she wouldn't down, she just wanted to bit the lead - argggh! I spoke to the trainee trainer to see what she suggested and she said she would talk to the trainer to see if they could come up with something. We practiced once all the other dogs had gone tonight and she was fine, I even told her about being able to get her to sit a home with just the hand commands and she said that I was doing good if I could get her to do that at her age but there was obviously something at class that warrented her attention more than me.

So, any suggestions???

[Dax]

Baby, are you using a nice expense leather lead? Switch to a nylon one and give it a good spray with apple bitter or cayenne pepper mix. That should deter Poppy.

[RickyB]

My cat likes apple bitter, I caught him licking the plant stand! Isn't that bad for him?

R

[eXile]

No its not bad for dogs. Why would they sell it for them. Just yukky taste, althought some dogs do adapt to it and lick it. Baby, your problem is normal. Are you using anytype of collar such as the prong or choke collar? If your using one of those you can give a correction with a quick yank. Delt with. If your using the generic flat buckle, just give her a stern NO! and make sure the leash isnt anywhere in harms way from her mouth, and give it a quick yank. (god i hate flat buckles so much. They give theeeeeee most useless of corrections:@) Or just go to a local pet store and buy a chained leash. Dogs dont like the feeling of the metal in their mouth.

[Dax]

I was thinking too that the lack of concentration on you might be an issue. If you had a favorite squeeky toy or kazoo to make a noise to draw attention back to you. As she grows she will develop more concentration.

[BabyElephant]

Dax/Exile, I had a cunning plan this week, I should have said. Last week we put a check chain through her collar so she would bite on that and hopefully because it was metal wouldn't want to bite it - no joy, she enjoyed the metal just as much. She has a leather flat style collar. She normally has a nice fabric lead, but it is quite chunky so this week I switched to her small nylon lead (two reasons, my hands can't take the big fabric lead and I wanted to try something different) so before we went I soaked it in "No Chew" stuff. I didn't just spray I soaked.

We get to the class, she bites then stops, bites then stops then obviously gets used to the taste and carries on biting. In the meantime this stuff is obviously getting on to my hands because I have wet it quite a way up the lead, I forget I have this stuff on my hands and put some lip balm (applied by fingers) on my lips. Boy, I have no idea why Poppy would bite the lead with that stuff on it because it tates foul, I can still taste it this morning - LOL.

I'm not sure they'd allow squeaky toys - it might distract the other dogs then, but I'll ask the trainer. I also thought about a clicker, I have used one previously but stopped because they don't use them in this training class.

[Lessica Jake]

Try the cayenne pepper. She definitely won't enjoy that. But maybe don't put it so far up the lead, because you REALLY won't like it when you get that in your lip balm.

[eXile]

Baby, i really suggest you get a prong. As labs grow older they get alot stronger. How old is yours? 7 months? Even at that age, she is still quite strong and can pull you if she needed too. Prongs work great in every situation. And you would not beleive how simple but yet affective it is to correct her. Since i bought mine and learned how to PROPERLY use it, Oscars behaviour has changed quite a bit for the better on leash. Leash biting is one of the many things the prong collar can get rid of. But first ask your trainer if its allowed in the class, for some strange reason alot of clubs do not allow it? Ohh i know...then your dog will be better behaved then all the other ones

[BabyElephant]

Exile, thanks for the info, however I have searched the Internet and called all my local pet shops and none of them stock or even know where to get hold of prong collars so I think they must not be available in the UK. I did find a really good website which tells you how to fit one (and after reading this I think that I would not be capable of fitting it given the state of my hands) http://leerburg.com/fit-prong.htm I also suspect that my trainer would not allow it even if I could get hold of one, so I think I'll have to try the pepper! As I said it only happens at training class so perhaps I need to find out what it is that sets her off when she is there.

[Luvit73]

This is going to sound really strange...but ok , I'm a strange person . With my dogs , I've learned that if nothing else works , speaking to them in their language , does . Poppy knows you're the alpha , right ? (Somthing you might try at home first) next time she starts to chew on the leash - stare her right in the eye , and growl at her - long and low . If she grabs it again - snarl loudly and lunge at her , quickly . That usually does the trick for me . But - with the pups , one last step may be required - growl , lunge , and get her by the scruff and shake a little . I know it sounds weird - but , it has worked well for me . (Noel really liked to chew her lead , and it is metal) .