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The doghouse

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Original poster

walking 2 dogs

22 replies

GROOVEYCHICK · 15/04/2013 09:31

hi we have an 2 year old retriever and a 5 month old husky do people with 2 dogs walk them together of on their own ?
i cant manage them together but they hate being the one left behind and cry and create or my goldie will plonk himself in front of the door and refuse to move lol

OP posts:

HousewifeFromHeaven · 15/04/2013 09:34

Watching with interest as I'm about to have this problem too, although my dogs are considerably smaller. I'm considering a split lead, but haven't seen many of them around.

Original poster

GROOVEYCHICK · 15/04/2013 09:38

i saw one of those in the pet shop and it said that it would work on 2 different size dogs
i can see me flat on my face with one of those lol

OP posts:

Callisto · 15/04/2013 11:08

I wouldn't even consider walking my dogs separately. Why did you get another dog if you can only just manage one?

Original poster

GROOVEYCHICK · 15/04/2013 11:21

Because I was promised help which was the only reason I agreed to a second dog but my oh hasn't been keeping his half of the bargain

OP posts:

D0oinMeCleanin · 15/04/2013 11:27

Train to walk to heel/on a loose lead, separately and then walk together.

I need to retrain mine, they were rarely getting walked on a lead for a good few months before I broke my arm, they were getting straight into my dad's car and then off lead all the way round their walk. When I broke my arm they stopped lead walking altogether because my Dad took them for me, after he'd walked his own.

Now they pull like mad on the lead because they are just not used to it anymore. I am walking whippy on a no pull harness until my arm heals properly and then will get back to training and giving Devil Dog corrections for really hard pulling. I can't leave Whippy alone, because she howls and the neighbours quite reasonably complain, so I do her training walk to my Dad's leave her there, train Devil Dog, drop him home and the collect Whippy.

mistlethrush · 15/04/2013 11:59

We had two collie crosses - both needed haltis for a bit but this improved and ended up with them both on a split lead very successfully.

LoveDogs · 15/04/2013 12:15

We have 2 dogs and they get walked together, the only trouble we have is we've got an old dog that walks slowly and a young dog that wants to get to the park as quickly as possible, which is a bit annoying because you're being dragged in both directions, but we only have a short walk to the park because its at the end of our road so it's not a big problem.

AnnieLobeseder · 15/04/2013 12:17

Why do you think it's tricky to walk two dogs together? Mine have always tended to go in the same direction. What specifically is the problem? I have run half marathons through mud with both my dogs!

JaxTellerIsAllMine · 15/04/2013 12:24

walk the husky seperately for now. Its a pup and needs to learn manners, get trained and bond with you before you run both together.

You can walk 2 together, but if they pull you need to be strong. A halti or Cannie collar will help you.

The best thing you can do is get them to walk to heel... I am back to 1 dog at the moment but I have managed to walk 2 GSDs together on lead - 1 on a Halti. It can be done, you need to be confident though and in control of your dogs.

JaxTellerIsAllMine · 15/04/2013 12:27

dooin its amazing how quickly they 'forget' isnt it? I had this with my 2 shepherds when we had the back lawn re turfed. I put them in the car, took them up to a nearby field and they ran around - never on leads for a couple of months until the grass settled. Lo and behold, the pair of them started messing about on their lead when things returned to normal.

Owllady · 15/04/2013 12:33

You have to train them both the lead walk separately and then go for smaller walks together, I have found anyway
and yes they do get out of the habit very quickly

mine were fine. I fell down the stairs and hurt my back so walked them seperately for 6 weeks. Lo and behold they can't quite behave themselves anymore and now it several months later and we are still plugginh away. Such is life with dogs :o

3kids2cats2dogs · 15/04/2013 22:04

I had one awful to walk JRT you know the sort only back legs touching the ground trying desperately to hang himself, no matter what I did, we recently took on a rescue Rotti who is a plodder never moves from you leg when walking, I bit the bullet and took them out together and omg they were fantastic the JRT has never walked so nicely its only been 3 weeks, I used an adjustable lead coupler quite reasonable on ebay
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-DOGS-ON-ONE-LEAD-WALK-TWO-DIFFERENT-SIZE-DOGS-LARGE-ADJUSTABLE-COUPLER-/280911224630?pt=UK_Pet_Supplies_Dogs&hash=item41679d1f36

Scuttlebutter · 15/04/2013 22:21

We have four dogs, so when DH is away I walk them as two lots of two. It's actually easy - they were reasonable at on lead walking when they arrived and they have a lot of it plus we reinforce with good lead manners and going to training classes. We used to have three and I would regularly walk three together.

The hardest part was managing the poos, as inevitably one would decide to poo, and be in mid-air, then a second or third would decide that the perfect spot was just at the opposite end of the lead at a really odd angle, so I'd end up looking as though I was playing solo Twister.

DamselWithADulcimer · 15/04/2013 22:22

My mum walks three together. She's very well organised, and they know who is pack leader. I am working on this with my children too.

MacaYoniAndCheese · 15/04/2013 22:31

I had to walk mine separately at first...the puppy was constantly annoying our little dog, biting her leash and whirling around etc. She had to learn leash manners, heel and 'look at me' before I could walk them both together on leash. Now puppy is one they've fallen into their own kind of rhythm when we walk and it's much, much easier. Lucy (Springer) wears a Gentle Leader most of the time though as she's like a freight train first thing in the morning and Shonagh (Westie) likes to poke around, sniffing every blade of grass and pebble we encounter .

Or save yourself the stress and take them to an off-leash dog trail where they can each do their own thing early in the morning and save the leash walks for later on in the day.

Don't panic; it gets easier!

MacaYoniAndCheese · 15/04/2013 22:37

Oh...re; the split leash. I don't think this would work unless you have robotic similar age/size/paced dogs. I don't have a problem with two leashes; I hold them in one hand, like double reins, so that I can control the tension on both dogs. It's hard to explain .

pigsDOfly · 15/04/2013 22:51

Yes, have to agree with Maca re the split leash.

I have seen dogs walking happily on them, so I suppose if you're prepared to work at it and train them, but I'm not sure it's worth the effort. I tried it when I was looking after my daughters dog: both dogs are a similar size, but found my younger dog was being dragged here there and everywhere.

Much easier with two leads.

MagratGarlik · 16/04/2013 08:59

I walk both mine together. I am very strict that they each stick to their "side" when on the lead as otherwise you get tangled quickly, otherwise it is fine so long as they are trained to walk on a loose leash. We spent a lot of time with each separately in training classes though.

If I'm walking on my own with dc's and two dogs, I tend to use a split lead which gives me a free hand. However, this only works with the dogs in harnesses(which I don't like) as otherwise they tangle each other up. It is handy for occasional use though.

HousewifeFromHeaven · 16/04/2013 11:33

I will have 2 pugs so am hoping that the split lead will be okay. Theyre only energetic in small bursts so I will give it a go and see

toboldlygo · 16/04/2013 12:27

The pup will need to be walked separately as often as you can to work on lead manners, socialisation etc.

The solution employed by many multiple husky owners is to wear a padded walking belt, the dogs wear shoulder harnesses and are clipped to the belt by plain or bungee leads. That way you have your hands free, your body takes the force of the pull and the dogs are free to mooch about, then you can reel them in and have them walk on a loose lead when you hit tarmac again but be reassured that they're attached to you so if you fumble with the leads or whatever there's no risk. I use a swivel carabiner so the dogs can swap sides with no tangles.

I too don't like couplers, one dog will inevitably yank about the other, much easier to clip two normal leads together with a carabiner through the handles and use it like a double rein with separate tension for each dog.

Lucyellensmum95 · 16/04/2013 12:38

I walk two JRTs and i do use a double lead, the jury very much out on it though, as one dog does yank the other around and they get tangled up. However it is better than the inevitable tangle i find myself in with two long leads. When i walk my mums dog too i have three and he is massive, however he is very quiet on the lead whereas my two are little batards!

Lucyellensmum95 · 16/04/2013 12:41

I also found i had to tie the doubler up nearer the dogs because otherwise i didn't really have control over both of them as one could go one way, the other the other way so could never really garunetee to keep them out of the road.

The thought of a body belt scares me - I stupidly walked my rottie on a flexi lead and he pulled me over a couple of times, had he been on a belt i would not have had the opportunity to let go and save myself from being pulled into a wall

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