I am hoping someone may have an idea to help. My gsd is now 18 months old. He's always enjoyed his walks and I love taking him. However, his behaviour when I get the lead out is getting out of control. He leaps around with excitement to the point I am struggling to get the lead on him. It came to a head last week when he knocked me flying and my husband said enough is enough. I know it's not acceptable and I'm rewarding him by taking him out afterwards. I always tell him to sit - which he does - but then as soon as I try to get the lead on again he loses all control. Last week we tried walking away everytime his bum left the floor but he just followed me and started leaping around me like a dog possessed!!! We then tried putting him in the house, leaving him to calm down and then trying again. 1st night it took over an hour before he finally let me put the lead on him properly. 2nd night after nearly 2 hours of this I gave up and he missed his walk that day.

It's getting to the point where I have to get my husband to hold him while I get the lead attached. If he was a small boy it wouldn't be such an issue but as he weighs nearly as much as me I've got to get it sorted. The other thing is I love my walks with him but its getting so I dread the time when I know I've got a fight to get his lead on. I have to say, once the lead is on he is perfect. Walks beautifully and despite the excitement is not dragging me to get to the field.

Sorry if I've droned on but I'm sure there is something else I can try that I'm not thinking of. I can't imagine its going to be a quick fix.

Any suggestions will be appreciated.

Some suggestions

Up the amount of training you do during the day (not just the sit at the door) including new commands, it can only help his self control.

You need to break the connection in his head of lead comes out = go mental. For now I'd carry on with your husbands help in leaving the house as usual while you do the things below.

Train him to put a slip lead on somewhere else in the house calmly. Get him to sit, use a treat to get him to put his nose through the lead while still sitting. Reward calmly and take the lead off. Repeat at different times of the day for as long as it takes for him to really understand the "sit, put nose through lead" exercise.

(The different style of lead and doing it in a different area and at a time when he's not expecting a walk and then not moving from the spot will make him see it as a training game instead of anything to do with walks - even better if you can be in a different position like sitting at a chair instead of standing up).

Then practice putting the slip lead on and walking him towards the back door/front door/room to room. Take him back to the place you put the slip lead on, ask him to sit and remove the lead and go back to whatever you were doing. Again repeat until he does it all very calmly - he shouldn't be connecting it with a walk because you never walk him like this.

Next stage, all the above but ask him to sit at the door before walking back to the start point.

Next stage, all the above but put your hand on the door handle (any excitement at all go back to start point and repeat this bit until you can touch the door with no reaction). Then open the door, shut the door and go back to start.

Then open door, go through it. Shut door. Come back in and back to start point to remove lead.

Then when you go through the door walk to the end of the garden and back in.

Do all the above completely calmly and when he's understanding it's not a real walk just a silly training exercise try going for an actual walk. You might find he's broken the excitement connection and you can use it for the start of all your walks. On the other hand he might decide to get excited about the new start point - at the slightest bit of over-excitement take the lead off and go back to practicing just walking about the house on lead. Or just to the end of the garden path.

You know your dog so you might want to keep doing practice runs of putting the slip lead on and walking around the house.

I've not included bits about the other indicators you're having a walk (picking up your keys, poo bags, treats, putting on your coat, etc). You'll need to do some of these things in the training I'd probably do these once you're walking to the end of the garden path. Otherwise he'll know when it's a practice and when it's real.

It isn't a very quick fix but depending on your dog it might not be as slow as it sounds.

Just to add, if you don't want to use a slip lead for walking him you put his normal lead on once he's being calm at the door, in the garden, anywhere as long as he's calm.

One thing you could try is to pick the lead up in hall, walk to kitchen, put it down. Pick it up in kitchen, walk to sitting room, put it down, etc, etc. so you pick lead up 20-30 times a day but it don't mean a walk. once he is bored with the lead moving round the house get hold of his collar while holding the lead then put it down again. then clip it on and promptly unclip it etc. Will take a while but will take the excitment out of the lead. You may have to also put a coat on during each step as that is another 'riot' trigger.
Just a thought but had to do similar with mine at 6/7 months.
Chris

we had screaming instead as soon as I went upstairs to get changed.  In the end I had to sit upstairs until he was quiet - at one time it was over an hour, if he screamed when I came down up I went again.  It took us a good 3 weeks to get him out of it but we have never had it again so it is worth the patience and time it takes.

Make the lead less of a trigger. Have it around all the time. Carry it around your neck all day long. Take it off now and then just to handle it, then put it back. Walk towards him with the lead in your hands, then put it back around you neck and do something else. He'll never know when you are actually going to put it on him. And always stop trying to put it on and put it back around your neck when he starts being silly.

Dogs are so good at picking up on little clues. Once upon a time my dogs would go mad when I brushed my hair -turned out I always did it before going for a walk. For many years I had a dog on medication, and every time I opened the kitchen drawer with the medicines in, the dogs would start to jump around like mad, knowing the sound of the drawer meant the food was imminent, as the tablets were added to the food.  The latest is that if I sit at the computer and the dogs are indoors they are all quiet, if I push the keyboard away(it's on a pull-out shelf) they jump up and run to the front door assuming it means they will be let out. So I'm currently making a point out of pushing the keyboard away and going elsewhere, like to the bathroom or into the kitchen.

> if I push the keyboard away(it's on a pull-out shelf) they jump up and run to the front door assuming it means they will be let out.

It's amazing how fast we teach them things without realising.  Clever dogs!

LOL we've got one that as soon as OH reaches for his cigarettes she knows he's on his way outside and stands up to lead him out!!!  Smoke Police rule!!!
The funnier bit is that when its his last smoke of the evening, she promptly comes in and takes herself off up to bed.  She knows our routine better than we do!  :-)

With mine it is the tiny click of the laptop lid closing that triggers a stampede for the door, so I'm now closing it at random intervals during the evening just to cause confusion - it's working !! lol

Mine used to stampede at the shutting down music on my puter :-P

Have you thought about leaving a "house line" on him indoors?
If he was wearing one of those he would, in effect, be on lead all the time - you could even start to create a new routine where he is led out of the house on the house line and the lead attached afterwards.

I agree they are extremely clever at picking up the tiniest signals, and with my dog I deliberately had coats & lead right next to the front door and never did the "walkieees!!" thing, so it wasn't until the very last moment he knew whether he was coming with me or not.

My other dog is a rescue and will not go into the garden late at night for a last wee, so it's clear she's been kept in an outdoor kennel at night in her past, and thinks she's going to be locked out of the house.

> so it's clear she's been kept in an outdoor kennel at night in her past, and thinks she's going to be locked out of the house.

aww bless her

Have you thought about leaving a "house line" on him indoors?
If he was wearing one of those he would, in effect, be on lead all the time - you could even start to create a new routine where he is led out of the house on the house line

Hahahahahahaha!  I was CONVINCED you meant my OH here.....................now there's a novel thought!!! :-D :-D

Lipstick and perfume means they troup off to bed, but when I appear at the bottom of the stairs looking like a tramp it's all kisses, leaping, love-you's and 'woohoo, we're going with her'!

...it's enough to give a girl a complex... :(

So how to they know it's show days?  I'm dressed fairly smartly, but obviously not smart enough to fool them.  My harshest critics!

Bet you don't do the perfume on show days!

Thanks everyone. Some really useful suggestions. Will see which works best for him.

It is funny how they pick up on your routines and yes, I have a "dog walking coat" which doubles up as my allotment digging coat. Whenever that appears it is also a trigger for him. If I can't take him to the allotment that day he looks so dejected when I go out without him!!!

lol MsT. I am the same. I have never taught the dreaded W word. Our last dog knew that word and even if it was said in passing conversation between me and hubby he would run to his lead wagging and looking as if to say "so...come on then!!!" lol

Our boy knows when the TV is turned off at night it signals bedtime. Even if he's been playing up to that point, he will lay down and close his eyes. Usually when we walk into another room he's right behind you but not when the TV's gone off. He lies perfectly still hoping we will forget he's there and not make him come out of the living room!!!! lol