Advice would be much appreciated over walking Brion

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2010 8:04 pm

It's me and Brion again. I fear that I only ask for help on this site but really don't have much to offer on the helping others front - except to encourage any doubters that Briards are worth the effort!
What I'm asking about is help over making Brion's walks more interesting. He and I seem to have reached a bit of a plateau on that front. The school holidays are now coming up so I will have far more time and would love to expand our horizons a bit. At present I or my husband or both of us tend to walk him with just our Pug at times and places where there aren't too many dogs and he lobs along happily about 20 yards ahead of us and we call him back when we see another dog and he then walks beside us or on a lead until the other is past. I also walk him with a dog walking friend who was his saviour when I was having major problems with recalls and annoying other dogs. He used to play with her dogs but now totally ignores them.
Our dog walker, who is very fond of him, who walks him three days per week during the term says that he very much likes the wide variety of dogs with whom he is walked and his behaviour is exemplary but she doesn't let him off a lead.
The situation upsets me a lot because it seems so very dull for him. However we still haven't managed to stop his tendency to terrorise nervous dogs (chasing them until they surrender) and so we just don't see how we can let him have more freedom.
Are there other things I haven't thought of to give him more fun and freedom on walks?
He loves to play with equally bouncy (and nippy) dogs but otherwise his main interest on walks remains to act as a sort of advance scout, just checking on every creature, dog or man, that comes into his range of vision. If he had his way he would also gallop over to every human that came into range, sniff them and then return to me.
I'm going to meet up with some other friends who I can't see during term time and who have bouncy dogs who aren't worried by him but obviously I do have to pick my place and time for letting him bound around too much because he does tend to break away in mid game and bound off to another dog if that appears!
As I said, is there anything I haven't thought of? Advice and ideas much appreciated. Amanda

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 2010 9:17 pm

why not drive to a quiet village closeby with your bike in the car and go for a bike ride with him trotting or walking along side you, he will love the variation of speeds and stop for chats and cuddles when you need a break, its such great fun Laughing

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 2010 9:36 pm

What a good idea! I love cycling and am thinking that I need to be more adventurous in exercising Brion. I'll let you know if it works.

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 2010 10:38 pm

Do you have a friendly farmer nearby? If so why not approach and ask if there are any fields you could walk in or around the edge of.... my neighbouring farmer lets me walk MBJ in his fields when the cattle aren't in them, and in return I keep an eye on his fences etc. Not great for socialisation but fab for excercise with a tennis ball and chucker! x

Posted: Thu Mar 25, 2010 1:22 am

Sometimes I play treasure hunt games with my briard, Ivy, in the woods. I take along a few deliciously smelly treats and ask her to sit and stay whilst I wander around and hide them. Then I return to her and tell her to "FIND!" She seems to enjoy it and it keeps her mind active.

I love the bicycle-riding idea!

Emme

Posted: Thu Mar 25, 2010 11:08 pm

Many thanks for some more excellent ideas. I do have a friend with a very clayey field which I used for a number of weeks when Bertie, our previous Briard, was being particularly teenagerish. I'm sure I could borrow that again. As for hiding treats, I hide favourite toys around the house while Brion sits and he loves looking for them, so that is worth a try on a bigger scale. We used to play hunt the boy with Bertie, which he absolutely loved, and would find the boys and their friends when they had hidden in the deepest of thickets. I think that is a bit advanced for Brion, but we could build up with treats, though tricky to pick up when wearing a muzzle, not that his muzzle prevents him from drinking from dirty puddles or accepting treats that are posted through!

I'll report any successful progress, as with the bike, which I shall try out on local quiet roads. When we didn't have either Bertie or Brion I used to put Cino, our Pug, in my bicycle basket, wrapped in my coat, and pedal off to the local woods for his walk. He loved that. So if Brion takes to it, I could take them both!!

Thanks again.

Amanda

Posted: Sat Mar 27, 2010 6:50 am

soory everybody says hide the treats but my dog doesnt go for them if i hide them

Tim

Posted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 5:39 pm

We have the same problem with Norbert - he is always wanting to go off and see other people and dogs and our biggest fear is if he knocks over some elderly person as he loves to lean against people - or use them as brakes! We have discovered that if we walk him with one of his "pals" - current favourite is a white German Shepherd - then he simply ignores everyone else. He is too busy keeping an eye on his pal to notice anyone. Very Happy

Posted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 7:05 pm

I'd say the bike ride sounds a great idea. When I had my rather exuberant Cocker Spaniel, he used to race off and disappear from view on every walk. Drove me mad trying to find him everyday. But when I cycled, he had no choice but to keep up with me and he loved it. Stayed close the whole time and he got happily worn out in the process.

Other ideas - are you near a bit of beach? They're usually empty in murky weather so if you don't mind wrapping up, there's a lot to entertain a Briard - waves, seaweed, crabs etc. Olive LOVES the beach.

Third idea, rollerblades!

Cadi xx

Posted: Sat Apr 03, 2010 5:59 pm

I take Ed on bike rides a lot. He loves running alongside the bike and usually starts off by pulling me (up to 14mph one time!) without me pedalling at all - my kind of exercise!

I use a walkydog (http://www.walky.co.uk/) which is wonderful, because he is securely attached to the bike and doesn't pull me off if he gets distracted by a cat, sheep etc. Well worth the investment!

Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 5:17 pm

Many thanks for the biking ideas. Brion and I have just returned from a very successful first outing with my bike. To start with I just went up a back virtually traffic free road and expected him to be a bit wary but he absolutely loved the outing, and trotted along beside me like an old hand. Now I'm keen to get the special bike attachment but is it really OK? I've looked up its website and it does look to me that if Brion should suddenly take off he could pull the bike over and also how safe would he be on a proper road, should a car come too close? With just a lead attached to him I could always just shorten up the lead or let go if I absolutely had to.

Amanda

Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 8:31 pm

Amanda Elsdon-Dew wrote:

Now I'm keen to get the special bike attachment but is it really OK? I've looked up its website and it does look to me that if Brion should suddenly take off he could pull the bike over and also how safe would he be on a proper road, should a car come too close?
Amanda

I'd be interested to know the answer to this too. Bob and I used to enjoy cycling, but haven't taken the bikes out since we got the dogs because we're sure they'd pull us over on a regular basis! With two dogs and two of us we could conceivably all go biking with two walkydogs, but it's a fairly hefty investment unless we were sure we'd be safe.

Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 8:49 pm

I'd cycle to the butchers every time me thinks if I wanted to or not! Laughing

x

Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 9:05 pm

Exactly, butchers here we come, I'm trying not to think, but then Brion did seem so thrilled with his spin by the bike. . . He stretched out into a beautiful show doggish (or at least what I think is show doggish!) extended trot and came home with eyes shining beneath his fringe. I didn't take his friend Cino the Pug (who used to ride in my bicycle basket) but I can't help thinking what fun it should be, but alas we live in suburbia and truly quiet roads are hard to come by. Brion is hugely much calmer and more responsive than he used to be but he is, after all, a Briard and I can't help remembering reading somewhere that although there is a charming picture of Briards pulling a cart in that Briard book what it doesn't show is that the dogs did have the odd 'moment' and crash into shop windows!
However I eagerly await encouragement from Briard owners who can make Briards and bikes work.
Amanda

Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 9:32 pm

Doe's this attachment have a safety release on it? If it doesn't then I would be very wary of cycling with around 40kilo of determined dog on the end of it.
It doesn't matter how obediant they are if something catches their attention then look out!!!
I will not even consider one for Poppy as she is not keen on the bike and when we have tried her and Rosie on the common with it she just stands and looks as though I have lost my marbles, as for Rosie she wouldn't budge an inch unless it had 4 legs and went "miaow" or a bushy tail and ran up trees, well life would be very interesting!!!
All joking aside the safety aspects of this would be interesting

Posted: Fri Apr 09, 2010 11:27 pm

Remember the dog walker is not You and a briard likes to be with his master..... so whether it be 5 meters of 5 miles he will love to be with you or at your feet or a wet beard on your lap he is there... loyal and that what we love about them

Posted: Sat Apr 10, 2010 7:58 am

Absolutely. Brion has just had to go into kennels for a couple of nights because we are going to visit non Briard loving cousins (imagine it!) and my husband and I have just sat outside having breakfast saying 'Oh! Where is he?' He would normally always be sitting somewhere near or nudging us gently with his shaggy head. "Walk time. Remember?' If he thinks I have spent too long at the computer he will actually jerk my hand off the keyboard! Amanda

Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2010 12:21 pm

Sorry for the delay in replying.

Ed is 32" at the shoulders and weighs 47kg and has frequently seen cats, sheep and other "interesting" objects on our bike walks. He has not been able to pull me off or even wobble the bike.

The beauty of the walkydog is that it attaches below the saddle - ie where all the human weight is centred. This is much better than being attached at the handlebars where no weight is at all. Therefore, you are no more or less likely to be pulled off the bike than you are to be pulled over if s/he ran off when you were walking him/her on a lead.

Also, at the speed you are travelling (normally c 8mph with me, but have been up to 19mph), there is much less opportunity for the dog to get distracted, as the distractions move by quickly and his/her attention is concentrated on running rather than what's going on all around.

Yes, there is an emergency release, but I've never needed it and Ed is, as I said, not exactly petite and is a typical briard when it comes to wanting to play with anything else that moves!

Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2010 10:01 pm

Actually I did the bike thing without a lead. I went like a bat out of hell and my spaniel had to keep up. Which he did with great bounding enthusiasm. My spaniel was a dog that vanished over every horizon within seconds and had zero recall, but he focused on the bike extremely well and never strayed. It was the only way it ever worked out.

Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2010 10:47 pm

I purchased a new bicycle a couple of weeks ago and Ivy and I haven't looked back since! It's *so* much fun!! I have been walking it and her to the park and then cycling around with her off lead. At first she tried to herd me a little by running in front, and cutting me off, forcing me to slam on the brakes and nearly go flying each time but she's gotten the hang of it now and runs either beside or behind me. I know this sounds silly and is probably just my own ego speaking but she seems to have a new-found respect for me now that I can "run" faster than she can! I'm sure of it!! She seems very relaxed also and much more ready to sleep of an evening.

Highly recommend the cycling thing!!!

Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2010 11:22 pm

Emme, that's exactly how my spaniel seems to view it. I was a boring plodding human to him until I got wheels!