Hey guys, I'm hoping for some advice here because I really don't know what to do anymore. I need to figure out way to walk Mya and Kody together without the craziness. I'm going to try and explain the situation without this being 3 pages long..LOL.

As of right now I walk Mya first and then take Kody. Mya has always jumped at the door like a crazy dog before her walks. I've tried getting to her to sit while i put on her stuff and it's gotten a little better, but she still jumps and jumps. Kody is really good at letting me put his collar on and actually sits and waits at the door when i tell him too. I can open the door and he's still sitting and waiting until i tell him to go. He lets me lock the door and everything when I tell him to wait. Awesome, right?

Ok, so when I attempt to take them both out together all hell breaks loose! Mya jumping at the door (as usual), but Kody WOW! He goes nuts crying and barking and CRYING and not letting me put his things on Then when he wants to go jump on the door with Mya (remember he doesn't do this when I'm taking him alone) Mya attacks him because she doesn't want him jumping, or getting next to her, or crying or whatever!

I've tried putting Kody in the tv room to see if he calms down, but that doesn't work. I've tried getting them both to sit and wait, but that doesn't work either. My hubby holds Kody through all of this and when he tries to hand him to me Mya attacks him because he's next to her. My hubby can't walk Kody too often because of his knee replacement so it would be great for me to be able to take them both.

Once we're out walking they are fine. It's the leaving the house that's the problem.

I DON'T GET IT!!!!!! I really want to get one of those double leashes and for them to walk next to each other like this should, but like I said I don't see this happening.

WHY CAN'T THEY BE NORMAL!

Have you tried putting Kody in another room then taking Mya out the door first, tying her to something outside (tree, door, railing) and then getting Kody ready and then taking him out the door? Just a suggestion if you haven't already tried it.

Melissa, im not sure what to tell you.
i make our 2 sit by the door or near it before the leash is attached, they can mess around and play and i just stand there till they sit. if jack sits and i go to put the collar on and he gets up i stand back up and wait till he sits again. they got the point after some time and they are good now. maybe you just have to stand your ground and they will catch on that no walk till they are settled. have you tried treats? if i remember one of yours could care less on treats right?
i will tell you that the Y line hook up did not work for me, having a boy and girl the whole peeing on things and such made it very hard on them! and i got annoyed with it and stopped using it, i like the control i have with 2 leashes one in each hand.

ok rereading the post, have you tired getting them ready by a different door? maybe trick them and do it at the back door? then walk out the back and around to the front? just try to stick with it, life is so much easier when you can do both at the same time.

Jenn has some good advice. You'll need to be patient, and be consistent. If it gets really crazy, try walking away from the door and then until they calm down, try again. This might take a while,. but if you keep at it and you're consistent, it should get less and less crazy. When Mya attacks Kody at the door, what do you do to correct that behavior? You'll have to teach/train Mya that isn't acceptable.

Patience and consistency will be key. They are smart and will get it eventually, but it'll take time, and it'll be tough on you in the beginning until you can figure out what they respond to as a correction that jumping, attacking, crying when getting ready for a walk at the door is not acceptable. Once they start to get it, praise, and treats to reinforce the 'good' behavior.

Ashley, I thought about tying Mya up to the fence outside, but I know she'll start flipping out and I'm afraid that she'll get loose.

The other door idea won't work either Jenn. We only have a sliding glass door to the yard and opening the gate to get out is a bit of a process. I don't think I could do it holding 2 dogs Hmmm, I could try to bribe them to sit with treats, but i'm not sure if they'll really care for them if there's a walk involved. Plus I can't have kody loose through this since Mya attacks him. I wish these would just play around instead of going nuts before walks

So the Y line didn't work too well for you? That sucks! I thought it would be super cool. I guess I could hold both leashes in one hand and pray that they don't see a DAMN squirrel (lol) if they do #2 so that I can pick it up.

Claudia, when Mya attacks Kody we pull Kody away and tell her NO and bad girl. I mean, I do end up taking them anyway so maybe she's not getting the point. I haven't tried walking them together in a while because it's just so frustrating. I swear, I'm going to video tape this so you see what I'm talking about. Complete insanity!

Today I decided to try and get Mya to stop the jumping and "wait". I guess that's a first step. She was jumping at the door and I would tell her "sit" but nothing. So, I sat down and kept telling her "sit" until she did. When I stood up she started at it again, but I didn't take a foot forward until she sat again. So on and so forth. She was exhausted just from jumping by the time we left..lol. I guess after a while of telling her to sit she'll get that if she doesn't sit she's not going. Then to work on Kody's insane crying and whining

Sounds like your on the right track with Mya. Keep at it and I'm sure she will get it in no time. If Kody is good when he is alone, then he may just be feeding off of Mya's jumping and stuff. My guess would be if she stayed calm, Kody probably will too. Keep us posted. Good Luck

Are you using a cinch(prong) collar on Mya? I only ask becuase I could never walk miko(and I only have the one) without prongs on. I tried several times, she gets so excited she literally almost dislocated my shoulder. With prongs on she stops the moment she starts to go crazy.

Dee&Frankie wrote:

Sounds like your on the right track with Mya. Keep at it and I'm sure she will get it in no time. If Kody is good when he is alone, then he may just be feeding off of Mya's jumping and stuff. My guess would be if she stayed calm, Kody probably will too. Keep us posted. Good Luck

Yeah Dee, that could totally be it! He sees her jumping like crazy and we don't let him jump too so he starts flipping out. They're a handful I tell you! I see this being a long long road ahead..lol.

Becky wrote:

Are you using a cinch(prong) collar on Mya? I only ask becuase I could never walk miko(and I only have the one) without prongs on. I tried several times, she gets so excited she literally almost dislocated my shoulder. With prongs on she stops the moment she starts to go crazy.

Yep, yep, i CAN NOT walk her without it! Oh my goodness if she sees a cat or squirrel without having that on I'll be dragged down the street..lol.

I think I have a mini solution! It's a bit more work for me, but I'm thinking if I do this for a few weeks they'll get it. I took Mya on her normal 20min walk, dropped her off (left her with her collar & leash) and took Kody on his. When i got back from Kody's walk I let him drink some water and I immediately told Mya to lets go. She sat at the door and Kody was waiting patiently and we were off. She growled at him a little when he first ran up next to her, but that was it.

So, tire them out and then they can walk together..lol! The whole point of me wanting to walk them together is to save time though so I'm hoping they'll get used to it and I can take them together once and that's it.

I think that is a great idea! And as time goes on you can walk them each a shorter amount of time and make the group walk longer and I think they will get it!

Mine Were More Crazy w 2 leashes i Love my 2 way ! They Girl Seem More In Line More Attentive when on 2 way .. I would never go anywhere w/o it but i do need a walky-belt ! tieing the leash around waist gets Old ! And I Wouldnt Stick Noones Leash on if they were jumpin barking or gettin mean w anyone .. id stick em in Their crate til they were done then maybe a walk

That is a great IDEA that's what I did with Abby and Shelby at first, because they were so hyper together it was hard to control them both haha!

jbealer wrote:

I think that is a great idea! And as time goes on you can walk them each a shorter amount of time and make the group walk longer and I think they will get it!

Exactllyyy!!! Fingers crossed this works..lol

Good luck Melissa! I wish I lived closer so we could do Husky walks lol

arooroomom wrote:

Good luck Melissa! I wish I lived closer so we could do Husky walks lol

That would be so much fun. Imagine..lol. People would be definitely crossing the street! Haha! I'll see you Saturday though =)

Ok, well, I haven't attempted walking them together again since my last post because on my last attempt they both went nuts when they saw a dog at the park by house and it was kinda hard to control them. The dog must have had super powers or something because they normally don't get that pyscho..lol.

Anyways, last week I thought of another solution. A block away from my house there's a trail that runs parallel to the Metro Rail so i decided to try out it with Mya. It went great...no other dogs really, no cats, no squirrels, no 100 kids wanting to touch them....perfect place to walk them together in peace, right? Well, I try taking Kody and when the train passed HE FREAKED...totally totally scared of it! I know it's loud and poor thing has no idea what it is. It passes every 5-6min and he's terrified. I tried taking him again this morning to see if he'll get used to it and he would sit and refuse to walk

I thought of maybe taking some treats and giving him one when the train passes or maybe taking him with Mya to see if she'll make him feel more calm since she's not scared at all?

I don't want him to be freaking on his walks...that's supposed to be the highlight of his day. What would you guys do?

Regarding the Y-line ... it takes time to get this thing to be useful, but once you do, it's lovely. I used to walk one dog in each hand, and found it cumbersome if I stopped into the store real quick, locking or unlocking the door, scratching my ear, etc -- or even trying to give a treat for good behavior. So I started introducing the y-line slowly. 10 minutes without it, 2 minutes with it, and so on ... at first, volya thought it was play time and would try to roll danika, but after a few times of stopping, making him sit quietly for 5+ minutes and some "leave its", he got the idea and now they handle better on the y-line than separately (which is nice, because mastering them on that has helped me with keeping Volya from trying to play with whomever is next to him on the gangline when we train w/our whole team).

Important thing about the y-line, though: hold the actual y-line where the silver ring thing is that attaches each line instead of holding the leash. This helps keep their focus directed until they are used to it. If you hold the leash, they still have too much slack and can get tempted into partaking in shennanigans. So just hold the line where the silver ring is, keep your arms and shoulders totally relaxed and if you can get them to follow suit -- you'll love your life. I said it on another post here today already, but I'm telling you ... when you get to the point that you can control both huskies on one hand so well that you can enjoy a glass of wine while walking them without spilling a drop ... man, life is good lol

As far as Mya's behavior at the door ... oof. Everyone else already said it. Be more stubborn than she is, wait until her madness is over, and be consistent with letting her know she's getting nowhere fast with the crazy act

oh, and on the train thing -- When I got danika, she was afraid of EVERYONE and would freak out and shut down when we passed people, ESPECIALLY men. I got her over that by parking her butt with me at Home Depot everyday for 20-30 min. WHen she was scared and tail tucked, I ignored her, didn't let her lean on me and NEVER said, "it's okay" or pet her when she was in that state of mind. I didn't want her to think she got rewarded for being scared.

Try the same with Kody. Take him to the train and just sit there for 20 min or so for however many days it takes so that he learns that the train won't hurt him. When he's freaking out, ignore him completely. When he is calm, treat him. Then after sitting there, try a short walk alongside the track and do it every single day. The only way we can teach our dogs to not be afraid of something is to make them confront it and prove to them that they will not be hurt. If we stay away from something they are afraid of, they never learn to get past it and we lose an opportunity to show them how much they can trust us -- ie, we lead them safely into and out of a scenario that terrifies them.

Thanks for your input Hilary! I recently purchased the EZDog Cujo leash and it gives you the option to hook them both up to the same leash making it a Y-line, but I don't think I'm ready for that yet. I need to first get Mya used to Kody being next to her and Kody used to the train sound. Like I said once we leave the house they're fine a few minutes into the walk, but I need to walk them somewhere that there isn't too many people, dogs, cats, squirrels, etc to just get them used to walk together. My solution is the trail, but Kody is so scared of the sound of metro rail train that passes above. My hubby came with me twice and Kody does fine when he's there and Mya. I'm not sure if it's combination of both or Mya being there or not, but he freaks when it's just me and him. Hubby unfortunately can't walk kody with me everyday so I need to figure out a way for Kody to walk by there with just me and Mya. I'm going to try going with them alone tomorrow.

Oh, and still have the issue of Mya attacking Kody before leaving and Kody going INSANE when he sees that he's going with Mya! I've been making her "sit and wait" instead of jumping like a crazy dog and it takes a while, but she eventually sits, jumps up again, sits, etc. She knows we will NOT leave the house until she's sitting so that's progress I guess. My dogs are not easy i tell ya!!!

hillarycole wrote:

o NEVER said, "it's okay" or pet her when she was in that state of mind. I didn't want her to think she got rewarded for being scared.

Oopsss! LOL! That's the first thing I do...be like "no baby, it's ok, and pet him". There's not track it's an above ground train so it passes on top of you. It's loud, but not that scary... really! Mya is fine with it. He's such a baby! lol

hillarycole wrote:

oh, and on the train thing -- When I got danika, she was afraid of EVERYONE and would freak out and shut down when we passed people, ESPECIALLY men. I got her over that by parking her butt with me at Home Depot everyday for 20-30 min. WHen she was scared and tail tucked, I ignored her, didn't let her lean on me and NEVER said, "it's okay" or pet her when she was in that state of mind. I didn't want her to think she got rewarded for being scared.

Try the same with Kody. Take him to the train and just sit there for 20 min or so for however many days it takes so that he learns that the train won't hurt him. When he's freaking out, ignore him completely. When he is calm, treat him. Then after sitting there, try a short walk alongside the track and do it every single day. The only way we can teach our dogs to not be afraid of something is to make them confront it and prove to them that they will not be hurt. If we stay away from something they are afraid of, they never learn to get past it and we lose an opportunity to show them how much they can trust us -- ie, we lead them safely into and out of a scenario that terrifies them.

Excellent post and idea, I've never heard an idea like that before and I really like it!

haha! Yeah, Melissa, sounds like you have your hands full, but they'll get there! I totally understand not wanting to do two separate walks! Stick with them and they'll get it together

Val -- thanks, I hope it's an idea that can be as useful for anyone else as it was for me and Dani

MelissaI wrote:

hillarycole wrote:

o NEVER said, "it's okay" or pet her when she was in that state of mind. I didn't want her to think she got rewarded for being scared.

Oopsss! LOL! That's the first thing I do...be like "no baby, it's ok, and pet him". There's not track it's an above ground train so it passes on top of you. It's loud, but not that scary... really! Mya is fine with it. He's such a baby! lol

I tell you what...that's a tough one! We had a guy with a cute, little rescued Benji-type dog in our puppy class last spring. That poor dog was afraid of all of us and our dogs. He just sat under his owner's chair and shivered. It broke my heart, but the only reason he was there was to help conquer his fears. The first thing the trainer told his owner was to not let him think that his fear was a positive behavior by treating him or otherwise rewarding his fear. We, the other dog owners, could give him treats because that meant he was a good boy and came out of his shell enough to approach us. It broke my heart because I would guess he had been abused at some time in his life...

Good luck with that big, scary train, Kody!!

oh, my , it's SO HARD not to coddle her when she's scared, but she's shown such improvement since I hardened my heart against it, it made me know I was doing her more good by not babying her when she's scared. When strangers want to pet her, i only let it happen is SHE goes to THEM. But if she's cowering, then it's a no go. Unfortunately, she was with the breeder's last handler her first year and he kinda messed her up. She's coming along quite well now, though.