brushing my dog, please help

gersgirl84 · 09-02-2010, 09:26 AM

thanks for the help ixmahr42. that does help. he is getting better. thanks for the comment about my dog. he is my world and currntly asleep in the sun. ha ha.

Ironwil · 10-12-2010, 03:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gersgirl84

Hi everyone, I need a bit of help please. I really struggle to brush my dog. he has long hair especially round the ears and on his tail. When i brush him he get so excited and starts jumping around and acting daft. I also suffer from a bad back and i really stuggle when he does this. if anyone has any tips on how to help i would be really grateful. thanks. xxxx

As I understand it, this will take a bit of work because he's learned this behavior. To start, get some treats but hide them. If you need to use a leash grab it, but get your dog to settle by you while you sit. Fairly soon the dog will lay down. At this point, drop a treat right next to his head (so he doesn't have to get up). Every so often, drop another one, but not if he's looking or expecting a treat. This trains him to lay calmly by your side. After this has been accomplished (maybe a couple of weeks), try brushing him while he's settled. If he stays calm, give him a treat. If he starts wigging out, stop and wait for him to calm. Ignore him entirely, rather than fight with him.

I watched some youtube videos on a channel called "kikopup". This technique is one she demonstrated, and it's already started to work on my dogs.

Dawnben · 10-29-2010, 02:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gersgirl84

i dont have anythng to tie him to as my house is not that big. when i was training him when he was a puppy i used hot dogs as rewards and he did really well. i may try that somehow. thanks for your help. xxxx

Put the dog in your lap and wind the leash around your leg. Don't plead or soothe while you are doing this it only encourages the bad behavior. Just sit quietly and brush. I used to be a groomer and the clients would always ask how I could brush their dogs when they could not get a brush near their dog. I always told them thats because I just do it I dont ask if its OK with the dog.