I swear, Nala has the energy of twenty 5 year olds all wrapped up in one dog! I try to run around and play with her and take her for long walks down the street, but it seems she's just a bottomless pit of energy! She never tires and is always jumping and mouthing on everyone. Especially my six year old brother. Even when he's not encouraging her rough play, I feel like she feeds off his energy and gets crazier simply by his presence.

Not to mention, she basically never listens and training is almost impossible considering every treat I offer her doesn't seem to be worthy of her and rewarding with play doesn't work either because she just stares at me and the toys like I'm crazy.

I love her to death, but I'm going insane and I need some help!

Have you done NILF training, it's made my crazy rescue calmer. She had no training at all when we got her but now she's got some down.

I just read about it, it seems like a very good idea and I will definitely try it! Thank you very much for the suggestion!

I know it might sound crazy, but I would also think about trying to back off on the exercise. When Appa is overworked / overexercised he gets crazier. Think of the toddler that is fighting sleep. I'm not saying that's what's happening, but it's what happens with our guy. Too much exercise and he misbehaves - we put him in "time-out", forced seclusion, and within minutes he's passed out asleep.

How old is Nala? I wonder if she's old enough to start biking. I can walk my pups all day long but they won't really get tired doing that. When I run them on the bike, though, even a mile at a quick pace will make them pass out.

She's a year old. And I've thought about that, but how do I maintain control of her? I'm afraid she may see another dog or something and take off for it, dragging me helplessly along with her.

tsalaginala wrote:

Not to mention, she basically never listens and training is almost impossible considering every treat I offer her doesn't seem to be worthy of her and rewarding with play doesn't work either because she just stares at me and the toys like I'm crazy.

Ignoring treats is more the rule than the exception with Siberians. Our Sibes have been very picky about treats. sometimes, not always, these ideas work:

Feed the dog half the normal amount or feed after training. Feed the remainder by training treats.
Have a variety of soft smelly treats. We rotate these: dried bits of chicken dog, soft cat treats, fish, jerkey of various types, freeze dried chicken liver.
If our dogs are not taking any treats, forget it. They are either overstimulated or just had enough.

Woo-oos to Nala.

Quote :

I've thought about that, but how do I maintain control of her? I'm afraid she may see another dog or something and take off for it, dragging me helplessly along with her.

Yes, she definitely can and probably will. Perhaps after a squirrel instead of a dog.

We use chest control harnesses on our Sibes - the leash hooks in front of the chest and pulls the dog to the side if it lunges. Easy Walker is one brand. We do not like head harnesses because they can whip the dog's head around if it runs and is pulled up short.

Consider scootering or other wheeled mushing activities. It can be simple or expensive, stay within your means and abilities.

tsalaginala wrote:

She's a year old. And I've thought about that, but how do I maintain control of her? I'm afraid she may see another dog or something and take off for it, dragging me helplessly along with her.

You may need to wait a bit longer since she's only a year.

As far as maintaining control, look into a WalkyDog or a Springer. I know many people that use both. I personally use the WalkyDog, but there's no real reason why. Here's a short video of my two using the WalkyDog: Video

I heard the Springer for you bike is amazing. It's on our wishlist! check youtube for springer videos too.


and rileyflorence our dog is the same . If we play and exercise a lot she gets very excited and goes crazy. as soon as we back off and "ignore" her she passes out somewhere. lol

Epimetheus wrote:

We use chest control harnesses on our Sibes - the leash hooks in front of the chest and pulls the dog to the side if it lunges. Easy Walker is one brand.

We actually have an Easy Walker and it was wonderful! Until I forgot to take it off her and she chewed it off... I'll just sew it back together. But thank you! I didn't even think about using that for wheeled exercises.

Papabear wrote:

You may need to wait a bit longer since she's only a year.

Would that be because of attention span or strength reasons? Cause I can't argue with the attention span part haha but as far as strength goes, I'm a very small girl and she drags me well enough on feet, much less wheels lol