Re-homed puppy

Question
Hi there. I am writing to you from the UK. My boyfriend and myself have recently rehomed a 6 month old border collie puppy called Jack. He is absolutely perfect in every way, 100% house trained and is extremely lovable. His previous owners did not walk or exercise him for 2-4 months prior to us taking him on and the only exercise he had was in their back yard. As a result whenever we attach him to his lead and take him out for a walk he begins to cry, bark and act quite manic!! It is quite distressing to observe and is almost like it is a mixture of both excitement and nervousness. Inside our house and in the garden he is quiet, loves to play and is full of mischief. When he meets people he barks, until they make themselves aware to him and he feels comfortable with them, which also seems like it is due to nervousness. I was just wondering if you could offer any advice regardnig these issues, and whether you had come across anything like this before. Or if you think that over time, getting hims used to going on walks etc again will help to calm him down??
Many thanks in advance for any help and support you can provide.
Jodie Lees
United Kingdom

Answer
What you describe is really a very common behavior, and often from a lack of socialization and experience with other dogs/people/the outside world. I would start systematically desensitizing him to the environment. Once he is "manic" it's too late to teach him much. But if you can get him at a distance from exciting things where he still has a chance of thinking, and learning to interact with you in those situations, you'll get some good results. It may start by taking him to the exit from your garden, and working with him on looking calmly at the outside world. If he starts to go over-the-top, simply step back into the garden, do some calm work with him there and try it again for a few seconds. These sessions should not be long (a few minutes at most) and when he can look out, bring him a few feet outside the garden, again, retreating if he gets to excited. A really, really good book for you to read is "Control Unleashed" by Leslie McDevitt. It has a number of stratagies and games to help your dog learn to connect with you, and be less concerned about environment. I would do the "look at that" game in your garden gate. Here's another article which may be helpful, but I would get the book. http://dogs.krqe.com/Conduct/rehab_your_reactive_dog/index.html

Sandy Case BFA MEd CPDT www.positivelycanine.com