I'm hoping that those of you who use a harness or a Halti when
walking their dogs could perhaps give me the benefit of their
experiences please.
At present, I *only* have 3 dogs, which I'm find awkward for walking
en masse. When there were 4, I could walk them 2 at a time, but now,
that means leaving one on his/her own, which is definitely not their
idea of fun...
Don't get me wrong, as a rule, the 3 of them are wonderful on leads,
don't pull, don't weave... I've even taught Roxie and Maggie that
sheep are the most boring animals in the world, that rabbits really
are no good up close, that bicycles don't do well with a dog hanging
on to a rear wheel and joggers really, really don't want to race
during training!
But, and it is an almighty BUT...
Maggie & Roxie play off each other: if they see another dog, or if
people stand just out of their reach (and say "ooh, you've got your
hands full there." Arrrgh), or a RED car passes us, they vie to see
who can pull me over first!
I'm getting just a little weary of ending up face down in the road,
or trying to mend holes in my skin caused by leash burn. Not to
mention the damage to my pride... Luckily, our road is little more
than a farm track on the way to nowhere, but there are always
tourists about, and our neighbour has a red car (which I'm sure had
grown horns and a tail last time I was examining its underneath!)
So, I'm wondering if using a harness or Halti would stop the terrible
two in their tracks? I'm fast running out of options, and to be
honest, getting a little paranoid about walking them on the road at
all. Our neighbour is no help, you'd think after seeing me on the
road in front of his car more than once, he'd have learnt to slow
down and steer wide passing us; but no, he either keeps going at a
rate unsuitable for the road, or stops just far enough away that the
girls just know he wants to talk to them...
And that's another thing, I thought dogs only saw in shades of grey?
How can they recognise any red car for heaven's sake? Different
coloured vehicles are fine, they are allowed to pass without the dogs
moving from their 'sit' position on the side of the road... But red?
Not a chance...
Your experiences would be most welcome, I am desperate to sort this
out once and for all - and don't think I haven't thought about the
obvious solution, get another dog... That's on the agenda, but not
until next year!
Liz Bradbury in Scotland, with Roxie the bouncing Berner (but I
really need to check his tyres aren't bald);
Newfs Toby (I'm too mature for all this nonsense)
and Maggie (I bet I can get to the car before you);
http://www.btinternet.com/~liz.Bradbury1
