Monday 27 July 2009

Another Weigh-in & Teaching A Dog To Run

I lost 1.5 pounds this week for a total loss of 112 pounds (8 stone) so far! Only 25.5 pounds to go until I reach my target!

Robert wasn't able to come to the meeting with me because we didn't have anyone to babysit the kids. He might go to one of our Slimming World consultant's other meetings this week though.

I'd have liked to have lost at least two pounds this week, but I'm happy for any loss. Even though I only lost 1.5 pounds, I still won Slimmer Of The Week this week and got to bring a bunch of fruit home.

This week, on my daily hour-long walk with our dog, I've been adding in short bursts of running. The reason I'm not running for longer than a block at a time is because I need to work my way up to it, but another reason is that my dog, a beautiful border collie named Mercury, really doesn't have the hang of running with me yet. He no longer jumps around in front of me and nips at me. Now, he starts jumping around in front of me while grabbing his leash in his teeth and growling and pulling me faster. On rare occasions, I can get him to do a short run properly with me, but it really is a rare occurrence. I'm not sure how to train him in this. I need to teach him that I'm not trying to play games when I run.

If anyone has more experience with training dogs, particularly border collies, please do chime in in the comment section!

Mercury is only about 15 months old. Here's a couple of photos of our lovely pup.
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9 comments:

  1. I don't have a solution to your problem. I just had to laugh as the jumping around, grabbing the leash is EXACTLY what my dog does. I had to read your blog to my kids as they have been with me and witnessed this. LOL. My dog is a great Pyrenees - German Shepard cross.

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  2. Whooo! Way to go with the weight loss this week. Great job. Keep up the great work.
    Mercury is too cute! Love the pics

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  3. What cute dogs! I just wanted to say... do the video! It's so much fun. :)

    Congrats on your loss so far! You are amazing!

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  4. Congratulations on the loss! That is terrific! I wish I knew the answer to your dog issue, but I am no help at all.

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  5. I have a Border Collie Lab x and she used to do a very similar thing. I bought a simple collar that is similar to a choke chain, but it is nylon. I keep her right next to me, and just give a quick tug back and ot the side at the same time, then release when she falls in line. She learned very quickly to stay close to my side. Now she just needs a reminder now and then. The collar was around 5 dollars and is at any pet store. It is skinny nylon rope with a closed metal ring at each end. Good luck.

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  6. Good job. I'm still trying to train my cats, 6 1/2 years later I'm still trying.

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  7. There is guy called Desar Milan - aka The Dog Whisperer. He has a show in the states. Here is a link to his website. His techniques really do work - good luck!

    http://www.cesarmillaninc.com/tips/basics_masteringwalk.php

    Pamela

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Sorry about the word verification. I turned it off and started getting tons of SPAM, so I had to turn it back on again.