naughty dogs

Question
Hi
I hope you can help me with my two very naughty jack russels.
I have a four year old neutered male and a three year old spayed female,,,I am still unable to walk them saftly as they PULL with such force that they have on several occassion managed to pull me over,,, they both also bark at every dog they see and do not stop untill the other dog is out of sight also whilst barking they flip themselves backwards in an atempt to free themselves from me,,
I have a dog walker for them 2/3 times a week as she has a little more control over them ,,this enables them to have some time off lead for proper play and excercise,,,
The male is very friendly in fact to friendly and has no fear and is not able to take directions from other dogs ie he doesnt recognise an angry dog or fearfull dog hence he is sometimes at risk because of his lack of skills in this area...
The female has no social skills at all ,,she will not sniff a dog and under no circumstances will she be sniffed,,she barks very aggressevly and charges she has also bitten another dog  she loves her brother very much but will not tolerate any other dogs,,,My dog walker walks too very well adjusted dogs really good boys very well behaved abd balanced they have walkied together for nearly three years but my girl still will lnot let them anywhere near her ,,,its a shame cos they love her but they seem to understand she needs her space and let her be, I worry a lot about my two as i dont think they are very well liked and its such a shame as they adore people and children and all my friends children love to play with them and they so enloy it,, please help
ps my dogs are called floyed and fifi

Answer

Dogasaur.com A couple of ideas:

Have your dogs wear a canine backpack, weighted down in the pockets with water bottles. Also, if they are on regular collars, or harnesses, these encourage pulling. I would suggest switching to a prong collar (not a choke or slip collar) as these can be very effective if used properly. You might also try a Halti or Gentle Leader which also discourages pulling, but it takes longer for the dog to acclimate to it, usually.

At home you should be enforcing your gentle, but firm and fair, leadership qualities. You eat first, and they must be sitting when their food is sown. No charging out the doors or up/down stairs. No sleeping in bed with you. When it is clearer to them what the hierarchy looks like, it SHOULD translate to better leash manners (with the change in collars as well).

I would recommend having a trainer come to your house to demonstrate how to do a proper leash correction. Most people have trouble finding out just how hard they need to pop on the leash, and they also don't remain objective about it. It must be done in a way that does not overly stress the dog but you are still getting your point across that this behavior will not be tolerated.

When you get a good response (i.e. no acting up around other dogs), praise like crazy!
Good luck,

Josh Abrams
www.dogasaur.com