My 6 year old terrier was terrified of our treadmill so with marker training he now jumps up and stays on it while it's off. How do I transition to him actually walking on a moving treadmill? I have had him sit next to the moving treadmill and do sit/down, I also threw some treats on the moving treadmill and he was catching them at the end (like the treadmill was dispensing the treats). That's all I could think of to get him ready for it. Would it be a good idea to walk on the treadmill myself while holding the dog in my arms?

Does he sit next to the running treadmill calmly now? If so, maybe put him in a harness so you have good control, take a long, long walk to get him in a calmer state, then come back in, turn the treadmill on it's slowest speed, and take him for a walk around the room and right onto the treadmill - calmly and matter-of-factly. Mega high value treats for walking beside you for awhile?

I'm not crazy about holding him in your arms - still smacks of "he's so worried that I need to hold onto him."

Some need to really concentrate initally and once moving chewing and coordinating the legs is quite the task. One of my jitter bugs, I offered yogurt so he could just lick.

With the jitter bug when we started there were two people one held the yogurt which he didn't touch and took space to give him the appearance that he couldn't bolt off that side. And I stood at the other side holding the leash and verbally encouraging him. I started with him standing on it, with it off and then turned it on at the slowest speed. Initial sessions were very short, just long enough that he was able to coordinate his movements. Then we had the big party with lots of treats. Next session same thing minus the helper and then we added small amount of speed. And repeated steps gradually. He's ok with it now, sometime I'll run along side him and sometimes not.

Initially it took a lot of encouragement for him to move his legs. I would go from side to prevent to escape, shift my body toward the front to encourage him forward, shift back to the side.

I think knowing the dog, and anticipating its reaction makes trying to plan for this easier. What is it going to take for this dog to have a positive experience.

Whenever the Dog Whisperer does it with a new dog, he just sets them on there, with a short leash tied to the front of the treadmill so the dog is in the middle of the part you walk on, and turns it on the slowest setting. The dogs don't always love it at the beginning but he encourages them and guides them to stay put with his hands, gives them treats etc. It doesn't take long before they are just walking right along. You can go to the Dog Whisperer website and see all the shows. Maybe you could search for one that has a video of the treadmill technique?!

Rob,
thanks for the reply. I do see your point in not holding him. What you suggest sounds really good. That and Aimee thanks for reminding me this should be short. I initially tried doing it the way Cezar Millan does it but, as I said in my earlier posts, I am not him. The dog just dug in and completely freaked out. So I went the desensitizing route and so far so good. I just don't want to spoil the next step. Thanks for all the ideas.

Lenka

If it is a people treadmill that you are using maybe you can stand on there with him,if there's room & start it slowly & walk with him at first.

I have a jog a dog treadmill. I ran it with them next to it & then I just walked my dog up on it & started it on the slowest speed & held them on a leash. I didn't make a big deal out of it, so why should they. I would never tie my dog to a treadmill, I don't care what Ceasar does. I stand there next to them while it is running, no exceptions to this.