Max, my happy afghan hound, trained

This is the 2nd month that Max has been fully trained, and able to be off-leash on his daily walks! Max took several months of on-leash training before he was responding well enough to be given his freedom. He is trained to come when called (even when he flushes a deer or grouse, which happens fairly regularly), and he is trained to stay on the groomed trails because his afghan coat would be a mess if he got into the "rough". Max LOVES his freedom, and you can see the absolute joy in his face in this video. Max is our 4th sighthound, and all of them have been trained in this way. He and our scenthound, Willow are walked every day, without fail, on our farm's 6 km network of trails, so being free is not a novelty. There isn't a reason to run away, since he is free to run the trails every day... and he is bonded to both me and Willow, and has no wish to leave either of us.

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• afghan hound
• happy dog

[TheTHINNERALBUM]

My Afghan does not last more than 10min in the snow. She gets snow balls in her feet and simply stands still. Mine is also very well trained. It took time, but now I can let her go anywhere and she always comes when called. My secret, Sighhound or not, I discourage her from darting after anything alive. Getting mine over birds took about nice months. But now she looks at the birds, stands still, and watches them fly off. Goooooood GIRL!!!!

[skisandhorses]

@TheTHINNERALBUM

Well DONE! It is so worth the time (and the DO take way longer than most dogs), as these dogs are athletes, not couch potatoes. There is nothing happier than an afghan that is free to run, and little more rewarding than an afghan that comes when called. Like my previous afghan, Max may disappear around a corner, but when I get there he is waiting for me. At trail junctions, he waits to see which way I am going. When called, he barrels back at full speed.

[FhengJuagh]

If you have taken the time to explain the training process in writing, you might as well copy it on a site or blog, so that more people can find the useful information. :)

(if you've already done that, sorry)

Being able to run all day long, your afghan sure is happy! :)

[skisandhorses]

@FhengJuagh

Every situation is different, and the same things don't always work for every dog. You have to be very intuitive and also have a safe place to train during the first off-leash sessions. There are too many ignorant and irresponsible dog owners that would take short cuts, or not recognize the stages of training that the dog is at... this is why so many are lost. So I am not advocating off-leash to everyone - but it certainly can be achieved with ANY breed.

[JVDAfghan]

I have two Afghans and would love to train them to behave off-lead. Would you mind sharing how you trained Max?

[skisandhorses]

It will take a very long email, so I'll p.m. you shortly!

[fidhw]

Congratulations on your success! My Afghan-Irish Setter cross is a year old now and goes off-lead most days: she's a little erratic with her recall although if I disappear she does notice and come running back to find me (we play hiding games). If she has a 'bad' day she pulls a 20ft training lead for a few days, gives me a chance to reinforce the recall or stop her by stepping on it... Did you write out your training regime? I'd be very interested to compare notes!

[TheTHINNERALBUM]

When training any dog you get to a point where things just keep getting better and better. I purchased my Afghan sight unseen and she was a mess when I got her. For a shot time I thought she would never be free. Then, one day I said "enough" and we started training. I let her off of her leash three times a day in safe areas, and she comes when she is called far better than most of the other dogs around. I hate it when Afghan breeders scare owners into keeping their hounds leashed for life

[bayouroads]

@skisandhorses

I wish I caught this at the time so I could have been added to that email!! I finished the first obedience course but now living VERY RURAL with NO SERVICES :( Did you do it alone or via classes?

[TaraTownsend]

Thank you for posting. He is so beautiful and I am sure the hard work of training him has now made you very proud and happy.