# lurcher recall and nervous - can anyone help?



## sophiehj (Sep 7, 2013)

Hi I would love to hear your thoughts on the following as I am confused.
We have a lovely 7 month old lurcher - she is bedlington/greyhound/whippet/deerhound. She has been to puppy training and I train her every day. We thought she had amazing recall, we recently took her on holiday and went for long walks in the woods and she walked near us, coming back every time we recalled and sitting.
I took her for a walk yesterday in a large park, it was clear open space. There was no one else in the park as it was drizzling and no other dogs so i let her off the lead. There was nothing that scared her and no animals that i could see. She had a run then i recalled her and she came back, but when i went to put her lead on i reached under her neck as i always do and she flinched like she was scared of me and ran away. I then spent 2 hours in the park with her coming near me then running away like she was scared of me. She would stand at a distance away from me, run in a circle then stand away from me again. She totally ignored me after a while and just walked around. I ended up having to call my local vet who was near the park and kindly they came and helped but it took us 2 hours in total. Since then she has ignored me and even when i call her for dinner she wont come near me. She has always been a nervous dog and we don't know why, we got her when she was small from a nice breeder so nothing happened to her when she was young. In the park i didnt shout or get stressed obviously to her, i did my crazy high pitched recall voice that she usually responds to and kept being excited. When i got her back i didnt tell her off i just ignored her and walked her home. My husband had a lurcher before and he adored us. Lurchers are obviously known for becoming attached to their owners but she doesnt seem to be bothered about us at all. Is this the teenage years, will it get better? Also, how do you get lurchers enough excercise if you cant let them off the lead - is a long lead enough it seems cruel for her not to be able to run free but if i cant get her back on the lead ( it happened once before ) then i cant even let her off in a safe enclosed dog walking area. Anyone shed any light? I'm mostly confused that she doesnt seem to be bonding with me, i am at home all day and thought i had done everything right and i spend a huge amount of time training and being with her.


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## ClaireandDaisy (Jul 4, 2010)

Is she coming in season? They can get hormonal, you know?


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## SleepyBones (Apr 17, 2011)

> i reached under her neck as i always do and she flinched like she was scared of me and ran away


Its possible (_only_) that something bit her at that point or a small thorn or possibly something irritating or slightly painful if touched was there at the time, maybe even from an earlier period.

If that was the case, note >IF< she might well/probably thought you had caused it, being a dog & (_emphasis_) if that was the case, she would have had no explanation herself so ran from you, her assumed source.

Thats only speculation but those sort of things can happen especially with younger dogs whose experience of the world as they perceive it is small.
.


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## ameliajane (Mar 26, 2011)

It sounds as though your dog may have experienced a flash of pain just as you went to put on the lead.

I had a very similar experience with my last dog. I believe in my case my dog received a static shock as she went to take a treat from my fingers. I was wearing a showerproof top at the time and some rainproof clothing is made from nylon which can cause static shocks. I notice you said it was raining. My dogs lead was also made from nylon. Do you think a static shock was a possibility?

This is the link to the thread I posted when it happened: http://www.petforums.co.uk/dog-training-behaviour/177241-back-square-one.html There are some helpful links within this thread.

You will have to keep your dog on the lead for now but I'm sure she will eventually forget about this incident. It took a few weeks, but with a bit of work my dog did eventually return to normal.

Some dogs just seem to be very sensitive and can easily become very spooked by seemingly minor things


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## Hopeattheendofthetunnel (Jun 26, 2013)

Is it possible that you could have misinterpreted an unwillingness to finish the walk and go home as being scared?

Some dogs, when they really don't want to go home yet, will dodge and dive their owners attempt to put the leash back on. Depending on the dog's temperament this "catch-me-if-you-can" is a sort of game for the dog. I've seen some dogs joyously run laps around their exasperated owner whilst cheerfully barking and I have seen others shy away each time the owner got close enough to snap the leash on.

Maybe she just REALLY wanted to carry on her walkies ?


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## Hopeattheendofthetunnel (Jun 26, 2013)

To add to the previous..

....there are 3 issues here if I understand correctly:

1) is the question why she didn't want to go back on the leash yesterday. 

And

2) your perception that she isn't bonding with you the way your previous lurcher did

As well as 

3) how to provide adequate exercise if she is reluctant to go back on the leash.

As to # 1, you had a variety of possibilities from static shock, to reluctance to finish the walk. 

As to # 2, perhaps she is simply the reserved type? I've met a couple of dogs like that and they are seemingly non-plussed about their owners or anybody else. 

Or maybe you still need to find a common interest, something that makes you 2 click. Does she like running after frisbees or balls? Or have you tried tracking or agility? Anything that makes you interact in a fun, exciting way will assist with the bonding. Hang on in there and please don't give up on your relationship.

As to # 3... I have always envied Lurcher owners since all the ones I know are ball or frisbee crazy  Meaning they are divinely easy to exercise since they will delightedly chase after a frisbee for as long as the owner will throw it. I know 1 lurcher owner who cycles with her dog, and the dog runs alongside the bike. Which means that both get great exercise!

And lastly....I remember how one of my dogs once did something similar to yours. My perfect puppy with his perfect recall heard me call "come", then 
he looked me straight in the face, gave me a polite tail swish and stood there like a rock "uh-uh, nope, sorry, won't". He was maybe 9 or 10 month old.

It was at the end of a long walk and I wasn't going to turn this into an entertaining, time-wasting game for him so I just said "okey-dokey, tootlepips" turned on my heels and walked off sharply. I hadn't gone very far when I heard him thundering after me. Like young kids, young dogs test their boundries. They need to see what you do when they do XYZ. It's perfectly healthy, normal development to test whether the rules of yesterday are still valid today. Its part of growing up. Don't read too much into it. You haven't failed as an owner or trainer. It sounds like you are doing a great job.


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## sophiehj (Sep 7, 2013)

Thank you everyone, really appreciate your replies-really helpful. I'm going to re read them all again now 
and keep on trying! X


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## sophiehj (Sep 7, 2013)

Thank you for the links ameliajane - your old post sounds very similar. It's so upsetting to have your dog seem scared of you isn't it.


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