Daughter wants me to stop walking her dog to allow training

[exboyfil]

My adult daughter has a 7-8 month old mini-Aussie that I spend considerable time with (I play and walk with him in the morning from 30 minutes to an hour and a half, I walk him again usually after work for another hour, and then a night time walk of at least a half hour before bed).

He is become a substitute for my old collie mix that died about four years ago. I went into depression when he died, started eating badly, and stopped exercising. I gained considerable weight and had early onset diabetes.

I have been on keto for about a year and a half and lost over 160 pounds. I have been walking a neighbor's dog for a year which I continue to do (used to be up to two hours a day but he seems happier at about 40 minutes to an hour now given his age).

The reason my daughter wants me to stop walking him is because he barks and lunges at other dogs, my daughters are working on a training method that involves no more walks for now (they are getting input from a trainer).

I have to admit that I am pretty depressed right now, and I think we are going to have behavioral issues with the dog when he doesn't get his walks. Her dog so her decision.

[Mr.Bill]

1. Sounds like a temporary situation,

hang in there.

[cheri010353]

2. Is there a shelter or rescue near you?

They often need volunteers to walk the pups and are grateful for them. I walk dogs at nearby shelters occasionally and it's fun and great exercise. And I meet a lot of really nice people and dogs.

[imaginary girl]

3. What about playing in the yard?

Stopping the walks can be good for dealing with reactivity, but there are lots of ways to give a dog exercise. Playing in the yard could be great for both of you...scent games, trick training, training games, etc.

[wnylib]

4. Difficult for you, but you still have the neighbor's dog to walk.

Try not to feel let down. Maybe you can do dog walking for other dogs, too.

I don't know a lot about Aussies, but I think that they are similar to border collies in temperament and energy. I raised a border collie from age 2 months. Although he was smart and learned many things at an early age, self restraint and compliance with requests/commands were definitely not his strong points as a puppy. He was too full of energy and playfulness for any self restraint.

But, once he reached one year old, he got much better. He not only cooperated, but looked for ways to be cooperative and helpful, just in order to please us. So I wonder how much good it does to try to train a dog like that in obedience while they are still puppies so full of excess energy.

We lived in a city with a fenced in yard so he got a little free run time there, but he sure enjoyed free runs across open fields in the country when we drove him out of the city to do that.

Developing a bond with him as part of the family did a lot to encourage his instinct to please us as he matured. Made it easy to get him to respond to commands like "No" and "stay, sit," etc. He became a well behaved guy with no outside training help.

But, as you said, it is her dog so she gets to decide how to handle him. Perhaps you can enjoy the company and affection of other dogs by taking other ones for walks.

Hang in there.

[intrepidity]

5. Omg, i wished you lived near me

I have a farm collie that would LOVE all those walks!

And my son has a mini aussie, so I understand the challenges.

Hang in there.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

6. He barks and lunges at other dogs?

That is Not Good. He absolutely needs to be trained.

[enough]

7. Truly.

[LisaL]

8. Could you get your own dog?

You get to decide with your own dog on what to do.