Help??? Thai is having an issue...

[ThaiGhing]

Hey all, Thai, my 9 month old smooth hair chow chow is horrible on recall. We had an episode yesterday. We were in the process of loading Thai into the car to visit the leash free dog park... And Thai escaped.

We were trying for over an hour to catch him. I tried to be happy, and recall him. Didnt work. I tried to bribe him with treats. Didnt work. I tried to corner him. Didnt work. I was at a loss of what to do next. He was running away right in front of my eyes. I was heart broken. I was so terrified he would be in the street!

We finally got him about 12 blocks from home. And I was relieved. We passed Puppy class (recall was included). But didnt know how to get him back in that situation. I was so scared. I panicked, as did my husband. Thai is our baby, and I feel we failed him. Cause we didnt know how to get him back, etc.

Pls help me with some tips on what to do... I hope I never have to use the tips, but I am quite shaken up over this incident. I was actually to my stomach worried about what could have happened to my little baby.

Also, can you retake a puppy or obedience class even if you passed the first time?? We defintely need to try that again!

[LavenderRott]

My only advise would be to never let this dog outside without a leash. Until you know for a fact that your recall is 100%, a leash is not optional.

If the dog escapes, well, don't run after it yelling and screaming. Run away from it hollering in your happiest voice! If you chase him/her you will either scare it into thinking it is in trouble or you have just invented the best game ever. If you run away from him/her, then they will really want to see what you are up to.

[mona_b]

Ditto on what Lavender said.

Aslo,do you have a pic of Thai?The reason I ask is there is no such thing as a smooth haired chow chow.Unless it's a new breed of chow.

[heeler's rock!]

Mona, don't get her started on her dog! She doesn't like people questioning her about her dogs breed! Sorry if you didn't like that comment, but it wasn't meant to be rude, it's just that you've made that very clear in the past thaighing.

As for your problem with Thai, the answer is simple. He doesn't respect you as his alpha. You need to keep him on leash everywhere you go until he starts to follow you. Then you can try him off leash and if he doesn't listen, well put him right back on leash, and try a time out. That's where you tie him to a tree for 5 minutes and stand at least 10 feet away from him. He needs to learn that you're the boss and until he does, he'll continue challenging you for the alpha role.

[Lucky Rescue]

The smooth Chow is simply a short haired variety of the chow - same breed as the rough, just like smooth and rough collies.

[tenderfoot]

9 months is just when the little adolescent brain starts to challenge mom & dad. Your puppy training class was elementary/middle school, but it won't ensure success at high school or college levels, which is just what happened to you yesterday.
You need to create opportunites for teaching him at the higher levels. This means you need to go back to the leash and work in different environments with different distractions and use the leash as a back up for your words but try not to rely on it. Start with a short leash and work towards a longer one as he is successful. You need to practice frequently and at random times - not panic and expect results when an emergency happens.
Your chow needs to respect your words, but in scary situations he should also come running to you as his safe zone. This all comes with relationship - a dog should want to be with his leader and typically will not venture far away from him/her. We will be in the woods and release our dogs to play and they will go about 10 strides away and then stop and look back as if to say 'well aren't you coming?', if we were to turn away from them they would turn and join us too.
Chows can be stubborn and aloof, but that just means you have to do a lttile more work and make things as fun as possible. Make sure that you are also working on other aspects of his obedience throughout the day. This helps to create a stronger relationship overall, keeps everything in balance, and everyone better prepared for the emergencies.
I would recommend that you work privately with a good trainer and get a handle on this quickly.

[mona_b]

Oops ok,I won't ask...My bad.

Thanks LR.

[Writing4Fun]

Originally Posted by ThaiGhing

Also, can you retake a puppy or obedience class even if you passed the first time?? We defintely need to try that again!

You can retake the puppy classes, but if you've graduated, maybe you should consider taking the next level up from there. Good luck!

[ThaiGhing]

Thanks Tenderfoot for your excellent advice. I was very worried about Thai, so today I called the trainer from our puppy class. We have an appt tomorrow evening, to re-evaluate Thai. I wanted to get her opinion on his behaviour, and his continued learning.

I asked a question, not to be slammed by some people on this board. I am glad there are some people out here willing to help and give advice. I appreciate all your suggestions and I will take them with me on my training endeavours.
Thanks

[heeler's rock!]

Why is it when anyone points out a fact, that the person who originally posted the question, feels slammed? I said I wasn't trying to be rude, but I guess that part was overlooked. Anyways, good luck with your training.