our rescue high energy dog is driving us nuts! support please

[MommyDOK]

In January, we adopted a blue heeler, australian cattle dog. She was over a year when we got her and she is almost 2 years old now...should be well past the puppy stage.
She is a sweet girl and loves us a lot, but she is high energy and driving us nuts.
-she eats every piece of food as if she is starving to death. I know this is common w/ rescues. She DID have a home before us, but I have no idea what kind of care she received. She has put on 10 lbs since we got her; vet told us she needs to lose weight. Every drop of food, she absolutely goes after. She doesn't attack the kids, but the baby's high chair is licked down.
-she is a very strong dog. After we let her in, she runs through the house, looking for food that may have dropped. She knocks over children, toys, whatever.
-she still jumps on strangers. Doesn't jump on us, but anytime we have a visitor, she jumps on them.
-we took the 10 week class at Petsmart that was very good. She WAS the smartest dog in the class
-she pulls so hard on the leash that it hurts my shoulder. I've WORKED w/ her on that for months now--got a choker collar---still pulls. SHe is a very strong girl
-we walk her a mile (at least) every night. We do not have a fenced yard and it is very much out of our budget right now.
-she runs away when the door is open a crack.

I'm just so frustrated w/ her. The person that recommended us to her loves this breed and she is really sweet, but she is so high energy. When will she slow down?

[greenmagick]

She probably wont slow down anytime soon....those are two very very high energy dogs there. She is going to need more than 1 walk a day, especially with no fenced yard. She will also do well with lots of menta stimulation as I am sure she is very smart. The fact that she is so food motivated is good as that means you can use that. Teach her all kinds of tricks, get some toys like the food cube where the dog has to figure out how to get the food out.

When you let her in, she goes on a rampage....I would leash her to stop that...control her so that she doesnt. There are probably all kinds of different things you could do here, and I am sure someone has a better idea, but she needs impulse control here. Work on leave it (not during her rampages...work up to that ) work on wait, work on long down stays, etc.

How are you working on leash pulling? Food motivated works well here too. Does she eat kibble? If so, take her dinner on her walk. Feed her a piece throughout the walk when she is loose leash walking. In the beginning you can lure her with the food. Feed her piece after piece at your hip as you are walking. As she gets it, less food is required. If she does start to pull, either stop completely or turn around and walk the other way.

Running away with the door open....again, I think impulse control would help here and having a place she goes to when the door is to be open should help with jumping on guest and darting out. There are all kinds of ways to do this...I know you could find some episodes of "Its Me or the Dog" (Victoria Stillwell) where she trains for this. I never really watched her show before, but just started too and really like her. She does positive reinforcement training and is very up front about what the dogs need

And, I bet she would love doing agility! Even if you never compete or really get into it, its great mental and physical stimulation.

[Eman'smom]

The previous poster gave you some great advice.


That breed combo is super high energy and will always need tons of exercise, a one mile walk once a day isn't enough. Look online for mental stimulation games and up her exercise.

Our rescue corgi is like that with food. It's a constant battle.

[MommyDOK]

[QUOTE=greenmagick;14199966]get some toys like the food cube where the dog has to figure out how to get the food out.

QUOTE]

I spent $20 on a tug a jug, and she won't do anything w/ it. I was really surprised. Is there any trick to getting them to use it???

[betsyj]

A mile walk for a heeler/ACD cross? That is like me walking from the couch to the fridge to grab a beer. That is NOTHING.

These dogs are bred to work all day. You simply can not expect her to behave when her exercise needs are not even close to being met. I walk or run my Border Collie cross three to five miles a day and still do tons of mental work and ensure she gets loads of fetch time in the yard as well. And she is 8 yrs old. When she was younger it was even more.

Not only do you need to up her exercise needs significantly you need to add tons of mental stimulation to her days. And you have to do this every day. These are not normal family dogs. These are working dogs.

[Ola_]

I agree, she will be very high energy till she is probably around 10 or so - really! We have an elkhound mix who is energetic though not nearly as much as a cattle dog would be. She's now 6.5 years old and shows NO signs of slowing down. So prepare for this to last a while. One mile a day is probably nothing for your dog. When I take Chaos for an hour long hike in the woods we get home, I'm exhausted on the couch, and she brings me a toy to play fetch with - she's just had her warm-up!

I remember your post earlier about pulling on a leash - you got some good advice and I'm suprised that you chose a choke collar. In my experience those are more difficult to use than the prong or head halter and if you don't use them correctly they will do nothing. If you just put it on and start walking the dog will pull just as with a regular collar. I'd definitely recommend to switch to a different tool.

Re: looking for food, we have that also. It may have something to do with the fact that Chaos was a stray dog before we got her, or it may not. Honestly it doesn't matter that much at this point. What I've taught her is to wait and look at me. The best way to start that is to hold a treat in your hand, she will probably look at your hand, maybe even paw at it - ignore it all. The second she looks up at your face, give her the treat. Lather, rinse, repeat. You are basically teaching her that rather than getting the treat herself she should look at you. Eventually you can try this with a (boring) treat on the floor - block her way to it, and as soon as she looks up at you give her a really tasty treat from your hand. It takes a while for it to become automatic but it comes in SO handy!

[MommyDOK]

ok, well now I"m really discouraged. I got her from a rescue that only rescues this breed. She said she was not able to be a working dog (too submissive) and told me she would be a good house pet. I disclosed everything---no fence, little children etc. I discussed that we were able to walk 20-30 minutes per day.

I will talk to dh and consider returning her. This is just not working and I'm very upset. This was failure from the beginning.

[betsyj]

Well BOO on that rescue. They really did set you up for failure. There is no way the home you describe should have a dog like that placed in it. And this is not picking on you at all. I am mad at the rescue.

There are dogs out there that would be perfect for you. Especially an older, gentle dog where a spin around the block would be perfect. But, if you aren't able to increase her exercise daily I would consider returning her. Bored ACD/heeler mixes-YIKES!

[MommyDOK]

Originally Posted by Ola_

I remember your post earlier about pulling on a leash - you got some good advice and I'm suprised that you chose a choke collar. In my experience those are more difficult to use than the prong or head halter and if you don't use them correctly they will do nothing. If you just put it on and start walking the dog will pull just as with a regular collar. I'd definitely recommend to switch to a different tool.

I meant to say pronged collar. You're right, the choker was worthless.... We did get a pronged collar, due to the good advice. She pulls so hard on that thing that she bent one of the prongs and now it barely fits on her. She is only 50 lbs, but pulls like she is 150.

[onelilguysmommy]

Somebody was just trying to get her placed. With those breeds it should be obvious, especially to someone "experienced" with them that you can't provide enough excercise. That is ridiculous and very sad on their part!

[Ola_]

Originally Posted by betsyj

Well BOO on that rescue. They really did set you up for failure. There is no way the home you describe should have a dog like that placed in it. And this is not picking on you at all. I am mad at the rescue.

There are dogs out there that would be perfect for you. Especially an older, gentle dog where a spin around the block would be perfect. But, if you aren't able to increase her exercise daily I would consider returning her. Bored ACD/heeler mixes-YIKES!

I totally agree - many older dogs or mellow breeds would do well with the kind of setup you have. Unfortunately high energy dogs often develop bad, even neurotic behaviours when their exercise/training needs aren't met - it's like they need it for their sanity. It's not your fault at all, and I'm sorry that you're having to deal with this situation.

[Eman'smom]

Wow I'm really shocked the rescue did that.


Any chance you can enroll her in doggie day care? Not every day but once in a while? Any chance you can take her out for a LONG walk/run even on the weekends? Do you bike, we've trained our shepard/lab mix to run next to us on the bike. She really needs a lot more exercise.



Is the prong being worn high? When she pulls try popping the prong and saying "no pull" and stop walking, make her sit in a heal next to you and start again. Pulling then isn't any fun when you have to sit when you pull.

[Piglet68]

Chiming in late here but I have a Blue Heeler mix rescue and she gets at least two VERY long walks a day (about 1 - 1.5 hrs along mountain trails each time). I also run 5 - 8 km three times a week. When she is well exercised all she does in the house is sleep, lol. I'm very sorry that the rescue placed her with you - this is not at all a breed that can do well on so little exercise.

[MommyDOK]

Originally Posted by Eman'smom

Wow I'm really shocked the rescue did that.


Any chance you can enroll her in doggie day care? Not every day but once in a while? Any chance you can take her out for a LONG walk/run even on the weekends? Do you bike, we've trained our shepard/lab mix to run next to us on the bike. She really needs a lot more exercise.



Is the prong being worn high? When she pulls try popping the prong and saying "no pull" and stop walking, make her sit in a heal next to you and start again. Pulling then isn't any fun when you have to sit when you pull.

No, there's no chance of doggy daycare. I do pull her prong when she pulls, but I haven't tried the stopping part. Will try that.

We do take her on longer walks on the weekends....most of the time. We have a running line and I'm going to have my older dd bounce the ball w/ her more. THat will help too. I'm going to post a separate topic about getting them to use the tug a jug. I really thought she would love it, but she doesn't.

The older children are so attached to her, I would hate to give her back to the rescue. I don't know. Dh and I are torn.

[MsVyky]

I don
t have any advice aside from what's already been posted, but I'm in the same boat as you- when we bought our house in the spring, I wanted to get another dog- but an adult dog.

Instead, DH brings home this mistreated, starving doberman/coonhound PUPPY from some people at work. She's a disaster and I have no time NOW to clean up her path of destruction, so in 2 months when I have my very first baby to take care of, it's going to be that much worse.

I'm trying to convince DH to re-home her- it's not fair to me (I'm going to SAH) to have to take care of her when I didn't want her in the first place, on top of learning how to be a mommy. It's also not fair to her to not have all her needs met

In teh end you have to make the choice that's best for all of you- your family and the dog.

Hugs to you, hopefully you can get things sorted out without too much heartbreak.

[Piglet68]

Does your dog do "fetch"? Mine doesn't, but my last dog did. She was a border collie cross and also very high energy. On days when I didn't feel like running or cycling I would take her to a playing field with a squash ball and racket (these days they have those ball-throwing sticks). I'd stand there and send the ball way down the field: she'd run and catch it and bring it back to me. After 20 - 30 minutes of this she'd be exhausted with little effort on my part.

[kathymuggle]

Go to a baseball field - they only have one or two entrances - man the entrance and let her run. We do this once a twice a week as a change from walks and it is great.

Sorry you are having such trouble - hugs, mama!

Kathy

[june'smom]

If you can't up the exercise to the proper amount for the breed, get her a new home. My mom had a Blue Heeler for a few years. The dog ruined her stuff, torn up couches, shoes, WALLS, etc... He would eat books, run off whenever the door cracked open. He was soooo smart and sweet, but she just didn't give him enough stimulation. She would walk him a little, like 15 minutes a day. She also played some fetch with him, but it just wasn't enough.

He ended up getting out one day and killing a chihuahua from down the road. He just ran down, bit the dog and carried it home like some kind of present.

She then had to pay a huge fine, quarantine the dog for 10 days (or she could have put it down), and then scramble to find someone to take this dog. She did find a good home, but it took a while and was super stressful for her.

These are NOT the kind of dogs that will get easier any time soon. They will need this much exercise until they are way old. Good luck with your decision.

For what it is worth, we got a poodle/border collie mix a year ago. She was awful to start with, but it was our fault. We only walked her about 4 days per week, short walks. Then she ruined our $300 carseat. So I started to run again. I ended up losing 43 lbs and our dog is now super nice. I didn't think that I would have the time to do it, but it was so important that we took care of the dog that we rescued. She has been really good for our family, if sometimes frustrating.

[Sailor]

You're walking her one mile daily? Is this all the exercise she gets?

If so, that's your problem right there. It is too little. She needs A LOT more than that. Also, age 2 - in many breeds, that's still a puppy.

Try SIX miles daily - 3 in the morning, 3 in the evening. In between that, work on training/obedience with basic commands and exercises. If you can go to a fenced park, and play some fetch with her - an hour of that should tire her out.

If that's not enough - do 8 miles a day: 4 in the morning, 4 in the evening.

I have a high energy working GSD - we run anywhere from 8 to 10 miles in the morning, do training in the afternoon, and then go to the dog beach in the evening for fetch. These are the needs of my high energy dog that I MUST meet in order to keep him content.

A tired dog is a good dog. Your dog runs through the house, is hyper, tries to get out because she needs more exercise. Also, she may be bored. Smart dogs need challenges.