Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Wally and his walks

There are many reasons why Wally is getting is happier with his walks, but, really it centers around the fact that he is getting more walks.  We have enjoyed my new job and the nice hours which helps Matt and I get to take Wally on his walks in the evenings.  Of course, I'm definitely a fair weather dog walker.  Anyways, the reason I'm happier with our walks is that Wally is trained!!

He loves his walks and gets so happy when we get the leash. 















But in the past he hasn't been so good on his walks.  If a dog passes while Wally was on his leash, he became very aggressive, barking like an a crazy dog and sometime snarling.  It was real annoying and I got very anxious every time I saw that we were about to pass someone else walking their dog.

Well, about a month ago, I took action and got a dog trainer to come by the house.  To my surprise, she said it was my fault and that basically Wally was reacting to my reaction of getting anxious and some past experience.  The good news according to the trainer is that Wally and his behavior is fixable.  The trainer worked with Matt and I on using our leash and walking Wally and how to react with him when we pass another dog.  We worked out a plan to get Wally back on track and Wally is a different dog on his walks these days. 

This was before: (He was always pulling us through the walk and we had no control.)
Here's some pictures from this weekend:

Wally now sits when we tell him to and he has to sit as we open gates and doors.  He has to wait for us to walk out before he does.
You can see how he now walks beside us.  I don't have any pictures of him reacting to another dog.  We still have some work to do but walks are much more enjoyable.

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