Hi. A year ago, a show breeder rehomed one of her retired champions with me. He retired early because he was scared of showing, what with the crowds and having the judge bend over him. Jag is a Siberian Husky, almost 4 years old, intact male. She has said she should have socialized the litter more, for Jag and one of his littermates have developed into shy dogs. Working with his fear about new people is very doable, I've had calm adults come in and basically ignore him, talking to my parents or whatnot. He relaxes within about 5 minutes if they don't pay him attention, and the sessions end with him sniffing them briefly. What I'm having trouble with is getting him to settle on walks. Even after all this time, I can't walk him well. He walks nicely going away from the house, but as soon as we head home, he starts pulling (sometimes whimpering) to get home quickly. I try to project a calm, assertive energy while going out, and keep the pace brisk. I've tried the turning around when he starts to pull so he learns that pulling towards home will not get him there any faster ..no go. When he gets spooked by say, someone coming out into their driveway to empty trash or something, I sit him down and wait (I've waited for over half an hour at times) for him to relax. I don't comfort him or anything to perpetuate the fear ...I've tried draining some energy by playing in the back yard before going on a walk, didn't make a difference.

I don't think his pulling is because of dominance, as he walks well going away from home and I set clear rules within the house and enforce them. I thought I was being a strong leader, but now I'm starting to wonder if maybe I'm not ...like if I was a true leader, he'd stop worrying so much and trust me on walks. He currently walks in a nylon slip collar or regular collar. On a choke chain he'll pull to the point of coughing for breath, so I stopped using that. I'm looking into one of the prong collars Leerburg sells ...do you think that might help his pulling towards home?

I take online classes right now to finish up high school, so I have the luxury of taking him out whenever. Thank you for any input.

Sarah

Edited to add: He shows no sign of aggression. He doesn't growl or bark at strangers or strange things ...I've only ever seen him go right into flight mode. He's a wonderful dog, I just want to know what I can do to be the best owner I can be for him.

He sounds a bit like my Border Collie. She was quite shy when I got her when she was 3 y/o. With her I think it was that she was just eager to get back to her "safe spot" - it meant security to her. She is now 7 and still does it a bit - I'll take into a store and she's always excited about going in, but tends to start pulling to get back to the car when we leave the store.

I know she trusts me - she'll try just about anything for me (last summer I attended a therapy dog class, and she handled elevators, handicap equipment, new places/people, just fine). I don't think she'll ever quite be over wanting her "security blanket". I think it is just something that was very ingrained in the years before I had her.

Some thing you may want to try is taking a shorter walk, then walking back past your house for a little ways. That way turning for home is not an automatic "we're going home".

What motivates him? With Missy, it was a ball. Anyplace/anyone was good if she had her ball to play with. Maybe try some really yummy treats, and encourage him to "check out" new things. Teach him at home with lots of praise/treats, then transfer it over to new objects. Take it slow and easy with lots of encouragment for him.

Try taking him places where there is activity, but you can stay in the background. Maybe pre-arrange a couple friends to come by and talk to you there. When he is comfortable enough to sniff their hand, they could offer him a yummy treat - but make the treats really good (like cheese or freeze dried liver), and make sure he is hungry (skip a meal ahead of time).

Good luck!