Another Ripley problem

Ripley needs exercise. Off-lead exercise, and LOTS of it. I have been walking him for about 2 miles every day, playing fetch with him inside the RV and letting him swim in the lake. Whenever I'm outside, he's outside - mental stimulation galore. We work on obedience about 45 minutes every day, broken into 5-minute sessions so his ADD doesn't kick in.

Despite this, Ripley is WIRED. He wants to run, needs to run, and he can't while he's on the leash. I've been trying to get him to calm down for training today but I can't because he has so much pent-up energy. I'd have to walk for 10 miles to get him to wear out.

The place we are staying at is completely fenced in, but Ripley can squeeze through the tiniest holes. And he looks for the opportunity to escape.

I don't know if this is a training question but I want the advice of those who frequent the training board. A trainer I was talking to last night recommended an e-collar for him (she is a reputable trainer who uses positive, motivational methods, so this surprised me) because she didn't think I could get much farther with his training unless he was able to release some of that pent-up energy, and an e-collar would give me a bit of control over him.

What do you guys think of that suggestion? I'm so hesitant to try it because he IS a little guy. If he was the size of my Border Collie I would absolutely try it if it would mean him getting the exercise he needs. But I don't even know if they MAKE ecollars in his size!

What would you do to exercise this dog? I devote as much time as I can to my dogs but I still have a life outside of them, and spending 4-5 hours each day simply exercising Ripley is out of the question. He really needs to run free, but he can squeeze out of even the most securely fenced environments (we ripley-proofed our yard for months and still have to watch him to make sure he can't escape) and despite my most desperate attempts at training him, he has virtually NO recall once he gets wind of a good smell or sees something intriguing. Properly used, would an e-collar give me more control over him? Would it be enough so that I could let him run loose on this property and not bolt away?

Any suggestions or input are gladly welcomed. I am really trying to work things out with this dog but I know that without proper exercise, he will never be in the right state of mind to learn.

Tiny little dogs use the Invisible Fence. We have a mini dachsund and a chihuahua next door with an Invisible Fence. They learned their boundaries immediately and don't get 'hit' anymore, but they always wear those collars when they're outside.

I don't know if it's the same if you're controlling something that gives them the little correction as it is when they learn a boundary for the fence, but I guess the collars are the same. The collars look kind of big and goofy on them, but they don't seem to mind, and they run and play and BARK.

Another woman has a cat who wears one to keep it in the front yard (also invisible fencing) while their husky, who considers the cat prey, is in the back yard.

Are you considering the electronic fence or just watching him and triggering the correction yourself?

I do a lot of house-sitting, and have been lucky enough to find a great way to exercise other peoples dogs who can not be off-leash. I work at a horse farm, and will toss them in the indoor ring with any other dog-friendly dogs who are around. They can tear around, wrestle, sniff, and do whatever their little hearts desire, and I don't have to worry about them disappearing on me.

Can you find any large enclosed areas like that? I'm pretty new here, and don't know anything about your dog, but is he dog-friendly? I find letting two or more dogs play together tires them out far faster than anything I can do! Maybe you can set up playgroups for him?

I've also wondered about those attachments for bikes that allow your dog to run alongside safely. I have no idea how well they work, but it's the other thing that popped into my head.

Also, we have a tennis court in our neighborhood that is gated. I've never let my dog run around there, but I read in a doggy book once that a fenced in tennis court is a great place to let a puppy get some energy out.

I'd look into the tennis court option myself, especially if it's one that has slats woven in between the links for that added privacy. He would love our outdoor daycare area. The indoor horse arena is also a good idea...or any sort of indoor sports area, provided of course that you have permission.

If you feel that this trainer is one you can trust to show you how to do it right, go a head and give it a shot. I know that you can't put up any I.F. where you're at.

I think if it was me I'd run a strand of electric fence along the bottom of your yard. That way he doesn't have to run around with an electric collar on his neck. Hopefully he'll get the lesson quickly.

I can't use an invisible fence here, it's not my property and digging up the grass would be a no-no. It would probably be a remote e-collar if I decided to try it, that's what the trainer recommended.

Ripley is dog-friendly with very small dogs, but unfortunately I can't seem to find any small dogs that are friendly with him! Most of the ones here are so calm and pampered, they just want to lie around on pillows instead of playing.. And Ripley doesn't mix well with bigger dogs - he is nice enough to them, but he zooms in circles around them until they pounce on him. They don't mean to, but they wind up hurting him.

A tennis court is a good idea. I wonder if dogs are allowed on them though? Ripley isn't an obsessive marker but he WOULD pee on the court at least once...

Sorry, I didn't explain well enough. I'm at a private yacht club, its not my yard. Ripley's a 5lb Papillon, I can't run him alongside my bike and I would worry about a zap from an electric fence killing him. LMAO

I was thinking a public tennis court. I don't think I've seen signs saying that they're not allowed, although I doubt that they intended them to play there! Then, again, the skateboarders, etc., that go on them occasionally probably weren't what the city had in mind either.

As long as no one's wanting to play on the courts at the time you go, I doubt you'd have any trouble.

harness and a cotton long-line. he's little. he can run plenty on a 50 foot long line.

elegy I was JUST going to say that!

Get him a long line!! They are FABULOUS!

Riot sometimes goes on walks in the park with a 15' lunge line(my old horses's) and he just loves it.

Definately a good Idea for Rip! You coudl also get in those swivels that you turn into the ground to hook him to. They are about $10 roughly.

The long line is a good idea. I've tried to put Dakota's longline on Ripley but it is too heavy for him (even though it's just cotton with a lightweight snap) maybe a thinner one would be better for him.

We still do need to get him a good harness, his really sucks but I don't have the $30+ to spend on a good one at this point. I'm flat broke.

Yes. And yes. A properly used e-collar can work wonders at giving a dog a reliable recall.

But honestly, he's so little that I'd just stick a 50 foot rope on him (or heck even 100 feet, hardware stores have spools of lightweight rope and you can take as much as you want) and play fetch that way. Easier and cheaper.

*nod* I can understand that. And I suppose I could just let go of the rope and let it drag - if he decided to bolt away I could just step on it.

it doesnt even have to be thick rope - hes a small dog and i am sure other lighter material would work fine, like 3/8th of an inch nylon rope.

Letting him drag a 50 foot lead should work. He's in a fairly secure area, right? He just can slip out of tiny openings. It shouldn't be too hard to step on his lead before he slips through one of the cracks. That sounds like a very workable plan!!

I like the idea of th eong light rope, something like we use with Tink, our 6 pound bundle of energy..it's amazing how long these little guys can run,eh?
Or you could set up a long zip wire clear across the yard, the kind with the pulley and leash attached so doggie can run back and forth a lot too,you'd just have to find a small enough clip for his neck

I have permission to set up a zip line outside our RV, I might do that too so he can be outside more often. I can't exactly leave him alone on a leash though, because Ripley twists and turns like a contortionist until he's completely bound by his leash and is forced to lay on the ground motionless, or stand in an uncomfortable position. "Low maintainance" is not in this dog's vocabulary.

I'll hopefully pick up a long nylon or cotton rope today and see how that goes. I'm going to be gone all day so he'll have plenty of energy to burn off when I get home.

Ok, here's my bad owner story of the day... I was letting Tink race around after a ball without any long lead...(lazy me) she had a reg. leash attached, and was dragging it...anyway, the BIG boxer/pitbull mix tied next door started barking, and Tink, for the first time decided to take off over there and investigate!
She is 5 months(rotten teen) And completely ignored my 'come" and ran straight to the widly barking dog,he lunged, she ducked back just out of his reach, when i finally managed to grab her leash.
The sad thing is, she showed no fear or barking till I grabbed it,( I had to, Bowzer was going nuts, we were in his yard) so all my work with her, getting her to be unafraid and behave well around strange dogs, out the window in 30 seconds!
It's all my fault, for letting her run around without a reliable come...
Once I had her leash ,she too went crazy,and I learned my lesson, while slapping my own head..... can't be lazy.....