Settle these boys down!

Long post, but looking for help.

I have a beagle and my boyfriend recenlty adopted a dalmation mix. Both are males and they get along rather well for the most part. Background on the boys:

Beagle Bailey - 4 years old and by all accounts a true beagle. He is a taller beagle and is on the heftier side. I adopted him about a year ago from the shelter and I have very few complaints about him.

Spanky - about 1 1/2 - 2 years old dalmation mix. He is tall and lean and full of energy. He was adopted from the same shelter as Bailey about 4 months ago and despite some puppy-esque problems, he is a very good dog.

The problems:

Walks - Bailey is a typical beagle...as soon as he is outside, his nose is to the ground. I use a retractable leash for him because his nose takes him in every direction possible and when using a regular leash he pulls and pulls because his nose his leading the way. Spanky is still learning how to walk properly on a leash and also pulls. We have recently found that a walking harness works well for him. The problems begin when I attempt to walk both dogs together by myself. I've tried using the same length leash so one doesn't get ahead of the other, but that almost makes the walk worse. Spanky will constantly jump over, on and around Bailey tangling the leashes. Bailey will pull endlessly because his nose is on something. The two of them together are so strong, I make it home and my hands are red from the leashes and arms are sore. How can I get both of them to walk calmly together? How can I get Bailey to listen to me instead of following his nose?

Dominance - Bailey gets very dominant when it comes to bones/rawhides, etc. If I give each of the boys one of their own, Bailey thinks they are both for him and he takes Spanky's away from him and guards it while eating the other. If Spanky goes near his stolen treat, Bailey will growl and nip at him. This doesn't happen with food in general, just bones/rawhides.

Calming Down - my BF and I do not live together but our boys see each other almost every day. Spanky gets so excited to see Bailey and it takes him hours to calm down. He is constantly in Bailey's face wanting to play and Bailey ends up trying to hide to keep him away. Even after we've been to the dog park and Spanky has run for 45 minutes, the minute we get home, he is back in Bailey's face wanting to play. How can we get him to relax?

Thanks for any suggestions!

Sounds like you need to work with them some separately, particularly Spanky, to get him to be better behaved on the leash. Once you and he have worked on that, then try adding the Beagle back n.

Have you tried one of the "no pull" harnesses/collars - like a Halti - for the beagle just to at least spare your poor arm socket some wear and tear?

I would suggest a long walk for Spanky, get him as tired as possible - before getting together with Bailey, after all, a tired pup is a better-behaved one! If you have a place to play fetch safely (fenced in) that's a good way of tiring him out some without exhausting you ...

Have you tried a gentle leader? Those help the dog learn to walk on a leash better.

Easy Walker is another good training harness.

To train Spanky on the leash, you should do the "drunken sailor" walk. You will need a baggie with lots of small training treats. Take 4 normal steps forward, turn right take 3 quick steps, turn left, run for 5 steps. Just keep mixing it up. Treat him each and every time he stays with you. You won't cover much distance, and the neighbors will be sure you've lost your mind. :D Do this for up to 5 minutes, 3 or more times a day, then expand to 10 minutes Training and walks times should be clearly defined as different times, at this point.

After a week of this, you can start mixing the training in WITH a walk BUT: don't start turning after you have lost his focus. This means during the start up, you also need to watch Spanky and learn his body language (most likely, ears and head) for when he is about to take off. Anticipate that, and change direction, getting him to follow you AND REWARD WITH A TREAT.

You can read more about the "drunken sailor" walk and other training practices in The Other End of the Leash, by Patricia McConnell. I found it at my library, liked it so much I bought a copy off amazon.com

Good luck!

Gentle Leader is awesome. I use it on my Beagle/Boston Terrier mix - he is probably 95% Beagle. His nose goes straight to the ground, sniffing here and there non-stop. Once I have that Gentle Leader on him, he is actually good on leash and he walks great. You should try it. :)