How can I help my dogs cope with being walked separately? Co-dependent arseholes!

[BeSharpHelper]

I have 2 dogs, big dog(bd) and tiny dog (td).
we had bd first, she is shy, avoids other dogs if she can, would orefer not to meet strangers etc and dislikes men. Alone in walks she is not reactive ,behaves nicely off lead, has good recall and walks nicely on the lead. She seldom/ never barked.
we then got td, he is reactive , barks at everybody and every dog, he has chewed through 4 leads to escape and harrass other dogs. We now have a wire extension thing that he can’t chew through, so at least other dogs are safe now.
separately they are ok to manage in walks but together they are a nightmare.
the problem comes when we try and walk them separately . The one left behind gets hysterical ( for want of a better word) and won’t calm down till the other gets back.
bd won’t walk at all unless td is there, if we manage to get her out the house she will only walk a few yards and then sits down and refuses to walk further , we usually have to give in and go home as there is no persuading her .
so out walks are limited to both together and are a bit shit as we have to avoid other people which makes them less socialised and the problem worse.
bd is a rescue who has been badly abused and left permanently disabled, so we cut her some slack. Td is the instigator and bd is his back up but they absolutely hate being seperated .
they are also not great with visitors/ strangers in the house ( esp men) and have attacked/ bitten/ torn trousers of guests and workmen recently. Not badly, but still!! Some of those occasions were the visitors fault, and some were not.
does anybody have any ideas how I can encourage some independence from each other and so I can walk them separately making our walks more enjoyable ( for me!) there behaviour is getting worse , especially with visitors , which I feel woukd be helped by more walks and socialising but struggling to currently implement this.

You really need to seek professional help from a qualified behaviourist, who can see the dogs in person and assess their relationship. Make sure they are registered with ABTC or PACT.

How long have you had TD? Is he also a rescue? Would you consider rehoming him? It doesn't sound like the relationship is doing either dog any favours.

No real help but I like the sound of BD. I would love to walk her. She sounds like she’d be a great dog to go hiking with as a single female. Would it be an option to use borrow my doggy or a dog walker and get someone else to take them out for short individual walk?

I agree with @SpanielsGalore - you need professional help. You currently have two dogs showing aggression towards people in your home and are very lucky you haven't been reported.

We have had td for approx 4/5years and bd for 5/6 years. They really hate being separated. Im not currently in a position to pay for a behaviourist .

She absolutely would not walk with anyone else without td, she just sits down and refuses to walk at all. Td would also be inconsolable in the house without bd.

Your insurance will cover an accredited behaviourist with a vet referral.

Insurance is another thing i cannot currently afford.

Get a medium dog?

I will probably just stick to stair gates in the house and shit( for me) walks. Maybe a plug in for the house ? I’ve heard good things about them.

At least get a muzzles for both dogs so that they can't continue to bite at people.

Do they like the car? I have found taking one dog in the car to a different walk helpful if they put the breaks on leaving home alone. They are more willing to walk away from the car.
For the separation anxiety, go back to basics and give a kong/treat to one dog, take the other outside with a treat, and then return. Increase the time outside gradually.
Take high value treats on the walk and get td attention before seeing people coming/dogs approaching. Say a calm sentence - I say hello doggy or hello people - and give the treat. Over time, they recognise people/dogs as being positive as they get a treat, so will look to you rather than bark.
I have two rescues that have been a bit of nightmare, but with calm, consistent training they are mostly well behaved now.
You need to limit visitors to the house, section off a secure area for them to go if visitors are necessary, and provide some form of enrichment eg a licky mat each. They need to associate people and dogs with good things happening, not bad.
It is hard work, and I wish you luck.

Brilliant , thank you so much, that’s really helpful.

They don’t snap or bite people outside the house.

A plug in won't solve your problem I'm afraid. A behaviourist might not cost as much as you think. What about contacting the rescue(s) to see if they can advise? You really need professional help.

When I say the walks are shit, what i mean is I’d like them to be more varied rather than just the fields behind my house , im a bit bored of them, the dogs love it but I’d like to take them somewhere different , we have lots of lovely walks , but they are popular with other walkers so I generally avoid them.
the dogs are pretty happy, especially now the farmer has spread cow shit everywhere , which also makes me wish I was walking by the pretty canal on my bloody doorstep instead.

Would a plug in not help at all with her at home ? Shes hyper vigilant and pretty anxious.

Then they need to be muzzled in the house if you have people over, or else you must keep them away from all visitors at all times.

The law changed recently so that dogs can be reported for being out of control on their own property.

Well yes , I obviously do keep them separated from visitors now, i dont just sit back and see what happens.

It’s a process to get to your end goal of walking them together in challenging places and needs to be broken down into stages that must be achieved before moving on to the next stage. First stage would be to grow their ability to be separated in the house. This might need to start with them both in the same room with them both on lead. Maybe tether one and occupy it with a long lasting chew or stuffed kong while you walk the other one round the room. Practice until you can do this with each dog. Then try crossing the threshold with one. Throwing high value food to the one left behind can help to soften the blow of being left behind, so they learn that you leaving with one dog predicts high value food arriving.
Practice this until you can leave the house with one and the other is happily occupied with a chew or kong.
Then, in a quiet area (so not your most challenging space), teach each dog (separately) to check in with you when you say a particular word. Then go to a slightly more complex area (distance will be your friend here) and practice saying your word and rewarding the check in. If your dog can’t offer the check in, take it as information that the challenge is too great and go back a stage.

As you can see, it may take time to get where you want to be with them, but it’s perfectly possible but there are no magic fixes or short cuts.

Thank you that’s very helpful. I have been watching some specific breed training which says to watch the ‘threat’ from a distance that they are comfortable with, and then decreasing the distance gradually . (Ive perhaps not explained that very well ) we did have some success from a very large distance .

Sounds like counter conditioning and desensitisation.
It worked well for my anxious rescue dog. It's important to do it at your dog's pace and not push it too far too quickly. Good luck.

Well, the fact that it's happened to multiple people says that perhaps you're not quite as on top of it as you should be.

Dogs with bite histories need professional help. You owe it to them to get them the support they need to be happy and fulfilled.