Amy Hatcher answers

Q: My 16 week old Springer Spaniel puppy is very intelligent and has so far been easy to train. The only problem I have is pulling on the lead. No matter what I try he is so over excited at approaching dogs and people I cannot stop him from pulling, any tips?

AIt’s brilliant that you have enjoyed training your puppy so far. Training should always be fun and it helps to create a bond between you. At 16 weeks your puppy is probably preparing to teeth, this is also a crucial age to introduce your puppy to new situations, dogs and people and so make sure you are going to plenty of new places every week. Try focussing first on recall to help drain some of your puppy’s energy before putting him back on the lead. Here at the Doodley Dogs centre we run drop-in puppy classes where we concentrate on heal work in a real life situation by taking the whole class out to meet cyclists, runners, traffic and even pigs!

Q: My dog hates it when I leave him and over the last few months has taken to barking all day. This was not a problem in the winter as my neighbours could not hear him. Now my windows are open several have complained as he is very loud. Help!

AThis sounds like a separation problem. Dogs of all ages, shapes and sizes can suffer from separation problems at any point in their lives. It is important to introduce your dog to being left alone from a very early age, otherwise they can become over attached. Leave your dog with plenty of things to do such as toys stuffed with tuna and frozen, leave the radio on and make sure you give him a good long walk before leaving the house. Doodley Dogs can make a huge difference to a separation problem as it introduces your dog to being away from you without being completely alone and certainly without being bored! It can also carry over to the next day as your dog sleeps off the previous days fun and frolics from the centre.

If you have a question for Amy, please send it to: info@doodleydogs.co.uk

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