We Went For A Walk....

[RobiLee]

Just got back from a walk with the girls. Just a small one. Didn't want to wear Tori out. I swear she has a ton of energy though. We did alright. A bit hectic but not bad. Tori just seems to follow Katie. I only got tangled a few times and that was when I stopped to talk to people. People stopped us 3 times. Loved the pups and wanted to know if they were mother and daughter...lol. I just don't know about that Tori! We came across a woman with a schnauzer (sp) and Katie is all friendly with the other dog but Tori immediately starts growling and barking and sounded so vicious! She is just a pup, what do I do about this? I think I'll try and sign her up for puppy obedience classes if I can. Also do you guys have any advice on walking 2 dogs? I usually do all the walking with Katie but now that we have 2 dogs I may have to wait for Alden to be able to join me.

On a sad note....when we were almost home there was a lady following us in her car and I knew she was just checking out the pups. She pulled over and asked me to stop. She just had to see Katie. She looked so sad. She had just recently had a male Akita put to sleep. I think she said he was 11 years old. She said that Katie and her akita were almost identical with the same markings and all. Hers was just a bit bigger of course being a male. You could tell she didn't want to leave Katie and just kept petting and petting her. She said if she didn't know better that they just had to be related. The weird thing is they both came from Petland. ( You all know that so don't jump on me! ). I told her I would never do such a thing again. What's even more strange I told her how we came about getting Katie, about me being sick and all that and wanting a dog to help us through and keep our mind on something else and you know what....it was the same thing for them. Her husband was diagnosed with Hodgkins diesease and they did the same thing and went and got them an akita puppy. Her husband is just fine now also. We just kind of looked at each other in awe. It was very weird! She said if she thinks about it she will look for some pics of her dog and stop by sometime. Do you think since they both came from petland and with all the puppy mill crap that they do that maybe they could be from the same line even though they were 10 years apart?

Robin

[Cinder & Smoke]

Originally posted by RobiLee
... Tori just seems to follow Katie.

... Also do you guys have any advice on walking 2 dogs?

Yeah!!

Get a "Y-Thingy"!!

As long as they DO really "get along" -
and at least "try" to walk together...

By all means try a "coupler" -
It really does Look like a "Y" -
One loop connects to a common leash;
and Two *short* leads then connect (with regular *snaps*)
to each Dog's Collar...

Result is the Two Dogs are seperated
(but CONNECTED to Each Other)
by the length of the two Short Connectors...
and You're six or eight feet away from the "joined" dogs.

No More "Let's tie Mom up by runnin around her legs!"
ALWAYS done in opposite directions -
a very "secure" leg-wrap for da Hoomin!
(Usually resulting in da Hoomin having to "sit" to un-wrap said legs!)

REALLY makes a Two-Dog-Walk a LOT more enjoyable for ALL involved!

[Cinder & Smoke]

"Y-Thingy" example >>>

Sporn Double-Dog Coupler

They are also made with MUCH *shorter* leads going to the
two dogs - can be found *short* enough to keep the
two dogs almost walking "shoulder-to-shoulder".

[captain]

Phred,

Guess what ........ company policy prevents me from going to that link ............... 'cos it's got the "P" word in the title!!!!!

Robin,

I walk Captain and Ruby on seperate leashes ........ it can be hard, but Captain handles it well. He knows to "come around" me so as not to get tangled in Ruby's lead (she just walks, and walks ........... ...... paying no attention to the possibility of "tangle"!!)

The main reason I do that is because Captain likes to "pee on the trees" when he walks, and zig zags around, and likes his independance.
Would like to try the "Y" thing tho ......... might be good now Ruby is older, although I think she might end up with pee on her head

[Cinder & Smoke]

Ooooh-Kaaaaay...

Let's try THIS one >>>

DO-it-YourSelf Coupler "KITS"

They talk about "Fabric" for the material that YOU supply
and construct the "couplers" with - using the Hardware
that you BUY from them in the "Kit"...

DON'T use "fabric"!
Buy Nylon WEBBING in a good hardware store!
It's available in 1/2", 3/4", and 1" wide sizes.

[Cincy'sMom]

We also use a Y coupler, and it works well. I have two on one leash and one on another and can walk all 3 by myself. It took a lot of training to get to that point though...Cincy as a puller extratrondaire!

[Cinder & Smoke]

And here's another "coupler" supplier >>>

http://www.gearfordogs.com/index.shtml

LOTTA "neat stuff" on this site - but the site
acts a bit "strange" on some pages.

Use THEIR "search" box and type in [ coupler ] -
they offer several Sizes!

[captain]

Phred,

The font of all knowledge!!!
Those are great links (and I can open them at work!!! )

[anna_66]

So Robin,
I see you must have gotten all your work done

I bet they had a great time on your walk!

It is strange how things were so similar with you and the lady. I hope she does end up sharing her pictures with you. It would probably do her good to be around Katie

[shais_mom]

Originally posted by RobiLee
Also do you guys have any advice on walking 2 dogs?

TAKE PICTURES!!!

[Kfamr]

I too recommend the 2 dog coupler. I walk Simba and Nala with it. We got ours at PetsMart in the leash section. They have one in every color. We got a red one.

Also, if they pull at all - I recommend harnesses, which can also be found in the PetsMart leash section in different colors. Both of mine have one in black.
Simba is fine without his harness, but Nala like to pull. It's amazing the difference on the harness compared to a collar. They also don't choke theirselves on the harness.


Also, get Tori used to walking on a leash and good about not pulling. It'll make walking two dogs much easier.

Although, Since Simba and Nala are complete opposites -- when we're walking it's pretty good. Since Simba likes to go so slow and sniff everything, with Nala's slight pulling and wanting to just walk gets us much farther. They kind of control eachother for me.

[ChiRen]

Originally posted by shais_mom
TAKE PICTURES!!!

AGREED!!!

lol

[ramanth]

That was just eerie that you met someone so alike.